177. Body Love/Body Hate – Natasha Yglesias
Now when I create characters, I often find myself starting with the body, and I often pull from my own bodily insecurities as inspiration.
I don’t know a single person who doesn’t have a complicated relationship with their body, or who hasn’t been taught to dislike certain parts of it. In this way, dissatisfaction with our image and self-criticism are some of our most unifying commonalities. My own complicated self-image is so often my focus that many of my short stories were actually born from moments of frustration, sadness, or longing about my body. It was only once I began facing what made me insecure that I was able to learn more about these insecurities, and unearth their roots.
Now when I create characters, I often find myself starting with the body, and I often pull from my own bodily insecurities as inspiration. Does the character have flat feet or a downturned mouth? What are their hands always reaching for? How does gravity affect them? Have traces from their environment made themselves known on their skin or under their nails? Do they constantly pull at their clothes? What is their posture like?
While these moments of bodily consideration haven’t exorcised the pain and toxicity from my self-view, they’ve given me the power to name and explore my discomfort more fully. They’ve illuminated how my relationship to my body affects the way I move and exist in the world, the way I connect with others, and my expectations for intimacy and acceptance. This learning and unlearning about my body has helped me understand myself and others better, which only enhances my writing and strengthens my character creation.
– Natasha Yglesias
