100 TIMES: A MEMOIR OF SEXISM by Chavisa Woods (Seven Stories Press)
We worked with Chavisa Woods in 2016 on her fabulous collection of short stories THINGS TO DO WHEN YOU’RE GOTH IN THE COUNTRY, published by Seven Stories Press (If you haven’t read it, you’re missing out. Pick up a copy here!) We collaborated with Woods and Seven Stories again in 2019 to work on a very different book: 100 TIMES, a collection of one hundred personal vignettes of the sexism, harassment, discrimination, and sexual assault Woods has experienced in her life, from her childhood in rural Southern Illinois to her current life as an award-winning author in Brooklyn. Booklist called 100 TIMES "brilliant and simple" and "sure to advance understanding of a topic of intense national reckoning." They went on to characterize it as “a rich portrait of Woods’ life as an artist and a lover prevails through all of the horror.”
From a publicity standpoint, the book was well-positioned in a post-#MeToo world under a misogynistic President who’s been credibly accused of multiple sexual assaults. But the big challenge was finding a way to break through in the crowded field of news coverage and similar books and articles. We emphasized Woods’ powerful storytelling and her compelling life story—a gay teen raised by Southern Baptist grandparents, an artist in St. Louis, and now an outspoken feminist writer and artist. We pitched the book to a wide range of media categories: literary, memoir, politics and news, and feminism.
Here are some highlights of the campaign:
WAMU’s 1A with E. Jean Carroll: “Chronicling Sexual Harassment And Assault In The #MeToo Era”
We knew we tapped into the right angle when Woods was invited to join this nationally broadcast NPR show along with E. Jean Carroll soon after she went public with her allegations against the President.
New York Times New and Noteworthy
We were thrilled the NYT recognized 100 TIMES! “Incident by incident, this memoir makes the case in stark personal terms.”
Lambda Literary review: “A vital read”
This review tied Woods’ work to the larger legacy of feminist writing. “We need work like Woods’ memoir in the world.”
