Well as most of you know I am writing a book about my teenage experience at a WWASP school. There’s so much that I want to unpack in this book, I want the reader to experience what I felt, but there is some graphic content I don’t know how to properly portray. I want this reading experience to feel raw and real. But there is some grooming and sexual abuse that I need to write about, I don’t want to traumatize my readers by going into too much detail but I want it to feel real. Self harm is another thing that I have already explained in pretty graphic detail. This book has elements of self harm, sexual abuse, conversion therapy, physical abuse and general coercion and lack of autonomy.
I have considered just putting a disclaimer at the beginning of the book saying something like this
This book is based on true events. Personal names are edited out of this book however are based on real people. Strong trigger warning for sensitive topics such as sexual assault, emotional and physical abuse, self harm and mentions of suicide.
Go with what you feel you need to write about. If that involves graphic material then you provide a disclaimer like you are doing.
Write it in a way that will best help you to heal from your traumatic experiences and it ultimately doesn’t matter who likes it or doesn’t like it. This is your story - write it just how you need to.
it is important for you to write it down like it happened. but I must say that these days I am extremely sensitive to reading about such content. because I have been through that myself too. I get intrusive thoughts about this sort of stuff and they won’t leave me alone. I get really anxious and distressed. so the trigger warning is a good thing. I myself deal with distressing stuff through my art, somehow that is easier for me to handle than writing. I get really anxious about the news these days to be honest. to the point I can’t stop thinking about the horrible things I just read. I can’t read anything triggering as it might just be too much for me to handle.
but for your own healing: write it down. I hope it helps you to deal with things. I know my art helps me.