Author Denise Williams On Writing About Body Positivity

From Denise Williams, author of the smart and sexy debut rom-com How to Fail At Flirting, comes another charming romance that touches on real contemporary issues. THE FASTEST WAY TO FALL (Berkley Trade Paperback Original; November 2, 2021) tells the story of a lifestyle writer who unexpectedly falls in love with the personal trainer she’s writing her big story about.

How to Fail At Flirting (2019) received overwhelming praise from readers and media: a #1 Library Reads pick and an Indie Next selection, the book was included in reading roundups from Oprah Mag, Cosmopolitan, Goodreads, PopSugar, BuzzFeed, The Washington Post, and more. Williams’s debut was lauded for its authenticity and substance, touching on topics of domestic abuse and race alongside a sweet love story, proving once more that romance novels have the ability to emotionally educate and uplift readers simultaneously.

THE FASTEST WAY TO FALL follows suit, tackling issues of insecurity, addiction, body positivity, and more. In a powerful author’s note at the beginning of the novel, Williams writes:

“I’ve been fat my entire life and I spent so much of my time giving others power to dictate what they thought my relationship should be with my body. When the idea for this book came to me, it was the book I needed to read. I started writing this story for myself at twenty-four when, broken-hearted and freshly dumped, I feared no one would find me attractive again. I wrote it for me on my wedding day when I was at my biggest and had never felt or looked better. I wrote it for the me of twenty-seven who fell in love with the gym and became enamored with what her body was capable of, and the me of today who keeps meaning to get back on the treadmill. I wrote it for the me of tomorrow who might need a reminder she’s strong and beautiful.”

For Williams, writing a love story starring a fat woman was a way to empower herself and others. She wrote Britta’s character in response to our society’s fascination with weight and body size, and she sought to represent the experiences of fat people finding romantic love and self-acceptance in a way that is both authentic and affirming.

In THE FASTEST WAY TO FALL, Britta Colby has been an editorial assistant at the lifestyle magazine Best Life for four years, but hasn’t had her moment to shine until now. When she’s tasked to write about her experience with FitMe, a new body-positive fitness app that includes virtual, personalized coaching, she knows that this is the big story she’s destined to write.

As CEO of the FitMe Fitness app, Wes Lawson finally has the financial security he grew up without, but despite his success, his floundering love life and complicated family situation leave him feeling unfulfilled. He decides to return to what he loves: coaching.

When Britta is paired with an anonymous virtual coach on the app, she never expects that he’s actually the CEO of said app. And she also never expects to fall head-over-heels in love with him.  Wes isn’t supposed to be training clients, much less flirting with them, and Britta’s credibility as a writer will be jeopardized if Best Life finds out that she’s dating her coach. Walking away from each other is the smart thing to do, but taking on life side by side feels like the start of something real….

Body positivity has made a huge change in the way that women look at themselves - but also other women. What are some of the ways that you see women supporting each other in this area?

Body positivity can make a huge change in how we look at ourselves—it’s so often looked at as a trend or fad, which is so telling! Being positive about one’s body has always been an option and it’s exciting to see so many more people exercising it. I think women can support each other in so many ways, but also know that it’s not just women—we can support men, non-binary folks, and everyone around us in body positivity. Here are a few ways I love to see it happening:

1.     Paying attention to our own language. Body shaming, especially fat shaming, fits into a lot of the speech many of us grew up with. Paying attention to our own language and talking about our language with friends can be so meaningful in supporting each other.

2.     Something Britta does in the book that I think can be so beneficial for all of us is to acknowledge our concerns or insecurities. Body positivity can become harmful if someone is only putting up a front of positivity while keeping fears, worries, and concerns concealed. We can support each other by listening to the people we love when they share about their body and to talk through things with them. I believe we ultimately become stronger if we can talk about insecurities with others and find someone who helps us reframe or contextualize those insecurities.

3.     It’s such a small thing, but we can support each other on social media! Most of us know the boost we feel when photos are liked or commented on. Maybe some people hate engagement but I am not those people. Like and comment on unfiltered photos! Show love when people post selfies. We spend so much of our lives on social media that it’s an opportune place to support each other’s body positivity.

This book touches on a space that is like a second home to me - the gym. But it can be a very scary and intimidating place for many people, and women often fall into that category. A lot of people - women in particular - often feel like they need to look a certain way before they can even walk into a gym. How does your book address the insecurities of someone walking into that space not in tip-top shape?

 I remember the first time I walked into my old gym, a place that became a home away from home. I was nervous people would judge me, unsure where to begin, and fearful I would fail. From gym classes to getting used to negative body feedback, walking into a gym can feel like walking into hostile territory. That’s how I felt, anyway. Britta introduces this idea of the gym being intimidating for fat people as the impetus for her review of FitMi Fitness and the series of posts about her fitness journey. As you read the book, you’ll go into the gym with Britta, you’ll see her rely on her trainer to help her get to know the space, but you’ll also see inside her head as she experiences and tries to shut down some of the insecurities I and others initially felt. There is a post where she gives a list of ways to feel comfortable when new at the gym and mentions that it’s important to celebrate wins, be they finishing a hard workout or being brave to step into the gym for the first time and consider that you belong there. Britta comes to love the gym and the way it’s a place that enables her to feel strong.

Insecurity and anxieties in relationships are always uncomfortable, and when someone feels that they are not as equally physically attractive as their significant other, it becomes more intense. How does Britta move away from that mental space in order to truly enjoy the relationship, and the person she is with, rather than allowing comparison to be the thief of joy? 

Something I appreciate about Britta is she likes her body from the beginning. Even though she experiences external fatphobia and knows the realities of how fat people are treated, she feels attractive before ever beginning the exercise journey and appreciates her body. As she gets to know Wes and falls in love with him, she doesn’t waver on her appreciation for her body, but she does question if he could be interested in her. Ultimately, she decides to believe him when he tells her he wants her, to trust her own instincts when she feels he’s interested. That’s not a small thing, especially if someone has felt insecure about their own body in the past, but love stories are about trust—trust in the other person and trust in ourselves to take the risk. For Britta, that’s a risk worth taking and once she trusts that Wes finds her attractive, that he wants her, she can avoid the quagmire of self-doubt related to him. If we’re lucky, we all find a Wes who reminds us we’re beautiful and cheers for our strength.

Denise Williams wrote her first book in the 2nd grade. I Hate You and its sequel, I Still Hate You, featured a tough, funny heroine, a quirky hero, witty banter, and a dragon. Minus the dragons, these are still the books she likes to write. After penning those early works, she finished second grade and eventually earned a PhD. After growing up a military brat around the world and across the country, Denise now lives in Iowa with her husband, son, and two ornery shih-tzus who think they own the house. How to Fail at Flirting was her debut novel and she can usually be found reading, writing, or thinking about love stories.

Chelsea Bobulski on Implementing Indie Strategies in Traditional Publishing

Today's guest is Chelsea Bobulski, whose new series - All I Want for Christmas - is traditionally published, but releasing under a rapid release model, a hallmark of Indie promotion and marketing. Also covered - how to write and promote at the same time, knowing where your time is best used, and how an author's voice and style can transcend genre.

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The Healing Power of Music...and Writing

by Rebecca Lyn Gold

When Mrs. Almeda, my 9th grade music teacher, first played “Fire and Rain” for the class, she had no idea that song would have such a profound impact on my life.  As she swayed back and forth with her long black hair flowing, she sang along with James Taylor:

“I’ve seen fire and I’ve seen rain,
I’ve seen sunny days that I thought would never end …”

I remember that day so clearly. Most of the kids in class were talking to each other and not paying much attention, but there was something about the singer’s voice that drew me in, so I walked closer to the front of the classroom to hear the lyrics more clearly.

Mrs. Almeda was singing along quietly and strumming her guitar, with her eyes closed. I closed my eyes, too, and listened.

“I’ve seen lonely times when I could not find a friend,
but I always thought I’d see you again.”

The last line hit me. I felt like someone had punched me in the chest, and I couldn’t breathe. This singer, with the most beautiful voice I had ever heard, was singing exactly what I was feeling.

I started to cry. First, just a little sob. And then, as Mrs. Almeda belted out the chorus, something inside of me burst wide open. Everything that I had been feeling: abandonment, confusion, fear, sadness, and loneliness: All of it had been captured in that one song.

I got up and walked as fast as I could to the bathroom down the hall. I couldn’t stop the tears from pouring out of me.

What Mrs. Almeda didn’t know, nor did anyone else at the time, was that within the timespan of one year, everything I knew to be true had been turned upside down. My father moved out of our home and left my mother with four children to fend for ourselves. We lost our five-bedroom suburban home and moved to a two-bedroom apartment in a nearby city. My mother worked jobs as a waitress and bartender to make ends meet, and was experiencing freedom for the first time in her life, which left my siblings and me alone much of the time. To top it off, I had found my way into the home of an older man, a leader in the Adidam cult, who was posing as a guitar teacher.

He lured teenagers like me into his home, kids who were vulnerable and lost—latchkey kids. Through drugs, mind games, sex, and secrets, he seduced and manipulated us into thinking that we could be happy if we were devotees of his group. That what he was doing was good for us: providing a family that we lacked and needed.

So while my own close-knit Greek family was falling apart, this leader of the Adidam cult was offering a way for me to be part of a family again. And every week as I went for my “guitar lessons,” I got sucked in further; it was confusing and dangerous. I was scared, lonely and had no one in which to turn. I even considered suicide.

Until this singer, this stranger, sang a song that rattled my inner being. I felt his pain, his struggles, and this made me feel like I wasn’t alone anymore. He brought me into his world through his songs and gave me the strength and the words to finally break open the truth about what was going on behind closed doors in my guitar teacher’s home.

In the midst of my trauma, I did not have the words to express what was happening. I could not make sense of the experiences, nor my desire to continue to be a part of it. Something inside my brain broke open that day, when I heard James Taylor sing about his own pain and suffering. His voice and his words allowed me to find the language for my own healing to begin.

I went directly to the neighborhood record store and walked out clutching Sweet Baby James.  I listened to every song on that album over and over. “Blossom,” “Anywhere Like Heaven,” and of course, “Fire and Rain,” inspired me to open my journal and write down everything I was feeling as well as everything going on in my guitar teacher’s home. When I went to bed that night, I left my journal open in my mother’s bedroom in the hope that she would read it when she got home from work. She did; and so began the journey for me to get the help I needed. 

The story doesn’t end there. In fact, it is where it begins. James Taylor’s inspiration in my life continued through the next four decades as he has continued to write and sing songs that have touched me deeply throughout different periods of life. And I continue to take the breadcrumbs of his music to follow a path to my own true and healed self. Through episodes of PTSD, depression, divorce, and struggles with infertility, as well as through glorious moments like the birth and adoption of my children, living in South America, and marrying my soulmate.

In her memoir, My Story, Elizabeth Smart writes about her own coping mechanisms after she was freed from nine months of captivity. She says that, “Music is the unspoken language that can convey feelings more accurately than talking ever could.” For Elizabeth Smart, playing the harp was her therapy and meditation. For me, it was the music of James Taylor.

I did not know any of this when, at 13 years old, I was drawn into the music of James Taylor. I did not know that my own healing would come through his music and continue to be a defining force in my life.

Music and writing together can be a profound conduit to healing at any age. I am deeply thankful to James Taylor for writing songs that have rattled me, consoled me, and inspired me to continue to write my own deepest truths.

Rebecca Lyn Gold is an author, editor, and the founder of Yogic Writing™ a practice that utilizes the philosophies and disciplines of yoga, meditation, and journaling for writers of all levels to heal, reveal, and leave a legacy through writing life stories.

She is the author of Till There Was You: An Adoption Expectancy Journal, A Wizard Called Woz: a biography of Stephen Wozniak, How To Write It Funny with author/humorist Amy Koko, and From Your Mat to Your Memoir: Creating a yogic writing practice to find and write your life stories.

From the early 1970’s when Rebecca first heard the song “Fire And Rain,” James Taylor has been a source of inspiration and healing throughout her life.