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This week, Judith Felsenfeld, the author of Blaustein’s Kiss blogs for The Postscript on the reaction of some friends and family to her work of fiction.
The Postscript series is a special peek “behind the scenes” of a book. It’s a juicy little extra something to add to a book club’s discussion and a reader’s understanding of how the book came together.
A couple of days after Blaustein’s Kiss, my collection ofshort fiction, is published, my cousin Roz phones to sayhow much she loves the book but — miniscule correction— the ‘shayna kupp’ issue came up around Thanksgiving,not a Seder.On Facebook, a former roommate posts that hermemories of the years she and I hung out together differsubstantially from mine. She unfriends me.In an e‑mail, Aunt Flo, who moved to Oaxaca in 1985and is not often in touch, calls the book a fabulous readand expresses her gratitude that finally someoneunderstands where she’s coming from, family-wise.My niece shoots me an e‑mail: Really enjoyed yourstories. Quick fact check — Mom was no longer playingthe cello when Dad passed away. She had given it upseveral years before, due to lower back issues.
Why is it, I wonder, that these friends and familymembers assumed I was writing about them? Why arepeople driven to insert themselves into works of fiction,particularly the fiction of someone close to them? Is it akind of hubris, validation? There I am in black and whiteon the page, therefore I exist?
In the interest of clarification: I write fiction. However, as in the stories in Blaustein’s Kiss, there was a muchbeloved grandmother in my childhood; a boy in myson’s class contracted diphtheria; friends of mine set upa not-for-profit that provides sanctuary for abusedwomen; I once sat next to a mouthy little girl on theBroadway #104 bus who entertained the entire backrow with funny, inappropriate remarks; a neighbor’skid took oboe lessons; the death of our family dog was atotally wrenching experience; we carry a quilt in theback seat of our car. It comes in handy.
Judith Felsenfeld book of short fiction, Blaustein’s Kiss, was published in April, 2014. Her stories have appeared in numerous magazines and literary reviews, including The Chicago Review, The Southwest Review, Blue Mesa, and broadcast nationwide on NPR’s Selected Shorts.