Roxane Gay is synonymous with the personal essay.
The essay collection, on shelves May 1, is actually an anthology.
I thought, what an interesting thing to tell someone and what aterriblething to tell someone, said Gay.
Credit: Jay Grabiec; HarperCollins
And I wondered what other people would have to say on that subject.
And then I realized that would be a great idea for an anthology.
The result was several hundred essays, which took Gay and her assistant Melissa Moorer months to comb through.
Beyond the sheer volume, Gay was struck by the honesty and candor shown by these perfect strangers.
Her disturbing anecdotes had caught Gays eye before she set out to work on the book.
Ive known Ally, from online, for a couple years now, she explained.
The rest of the tome is rounded out by, of course, the many essays from unknown writers.
And she has a few goals for what the books release and reception might achieve.
IfNot That Badhas half the effectiveness ofGays Twitter feed, that seems quite likely.
