The Unspeakeasy with Meghan Daum

The Unspeakeasy with Meghan Daum

Share this post

The Unspeakeasy with Meghan Daum
The Unspeakeasy with Meghan Daum
Some Subjects Will Always Be Third Rails
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More

Some Subjects Will Always Be Third Rails

Art Monster: Lesson Three

Meghan Daum's avatar
Meghan Daum
Jul 15, 2024
∙ Paid
28

Share this post

The Unspeakeasy with Meghan Daum
The Unspeakeasy with Meghan Daum
Some Subjects Will Always Be Third Rails
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More
12
1
Share

When writing personal essays, what subjects should you avoid (if any)? Meghan Daum discusses her experience writing about abuse, money, and others' parenting choices and how people react to those subjects.
Photo by Chirag Vashist on Unsplash

My post last week about what the July 7 bombshell by the writer Alice Munro’s youngest daughter, Andrea Skinner, did or did not reveal about Munro’s monstrousness proved to be something of a Rorschach test. Like many such articles, people read it through the lens of their own experience with abuse and family secrets. 

Of course, we all read everything through our own personal lenses; that’s how the brain works. But I’ve found that when it comes to certain subjects, objectivity is, well, objectively impossible. 

Keep reading with a 7-day free trial

Subscribe to The Unspeakeasy with Meghan Daum to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.

Already a paid subscriber? Sign in
© 2025 Meghan Daum
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start writingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture

Share

Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More