Writing Our Way Out of the Dark: An Anthology by Child Abuse Survivors [Paperback]

Elizabeth Claman (Editor)

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Queen of Swords Pr; First Edition edition (October 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0963899228
• ISBN-13: 978-0963899224
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,584,612 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Before becoming a teacher and writer--the vocations that have identified her for most of her adult life--Elizabeth Claman pursued a number of different interests and vocations. In 1969 She earned a BFA in painting from Cal Arts (then called Chouinard). She worked in New York as a researcher for NBC (1966-67), and in Hollywood as a script reader, film production assistant, stylist for TV commercials, actress and model (1970-'76). Those Hollywood years are the basis for her novel, "The Prodigal Wife."

In 1986 she earned an M.A. in Creative Writing from San Francisco State University, in 1997, a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from the University of Oregon. During those years, she published a poetry chapbook, "Peripheral Visions" (Five Fingers Press, 1989), won the Grand Prize in the Eve of St. Agnes Poetry Competition judged by Diane Wakoski (also 1989), and she received two grants from Oregon Literary Arts (1991 and 1994). In 1992 she co-translated with Steven Rendall "History and Memory" by Jacques LeGoff (Columbia University Press). Her poems and short stories appeared in numerous "litmags," such as River Styx, Hubbub, The Galley Sail Review, Bastard Review, The Napa Review, Fireweed, Alaska Quarterly Review and Many Mountains Moving, in two Milkweed Editions anthologies, "Outsiders" and "Night Out," and in "Intimate Kisses" (New World Library, 2001), among others. She edited the anthologies, "Each in Her Own Way," "Writing Our Way Out of the Dark," "Hard Love," and "Passionate Lives," all from Queen of Swords Press, and served on the editorial board for both fiction and poetry for The Northwest Review (1992-1996).

As an educator for almost 30 years, Claman taught English, creative writing, art, comparative literature and French at many different levels. She now lives in Richmond, California, not far from her daughter and granddaughter, and works full time as a writer. She has published two novels so far, "The Prodigal Wife" (2009), and "Identity Blues" (2010), and is currently at work on a third novel. In addition to writing and family, her passions include progressive Christianity; advocacy for peace, justice and the environment; organic gardening, and learning more about the world and its diverse cultures.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Hard Read, But A Worthy One, March 27, 2000

By 

G. Morse (Cambridge, MA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Writing Our Way Out of the Dark: An Anthology by Child Abuse Survivors (Paperback)

No poem or account in this book is an easy read. They all have teeth to tear at your heart. Ms. Claman has collected works from both well-known and first-time writers to show - no - drag the reader into the eyes and minds of people who have experienced abuse. More than anything in the world, I wish this kind of collection was unnecessary. But since abuse still exists, I'm very glad that Elizabeth Claman, and her contributors, have come together to make this book. Read only if you're ready to make this journey with them. There is a section with a great deal of hope at the end, so skip to that if you're beginning to feel there's no end to the pain. (Note: I am a contributor, but I feel that I would write the same way if I had not been chosen.)