The Revenge Dress
Everyone has a secret weapon. Especially when it comes to revenge. Some women use the revenge dress. Others create a revenge body. You can do that and more by writing your own revenge story.
For Princess Diana, it was a jaw-dropping, off the shoulder form-fitting, black silk dress. An iconic look; the press dubbed it, "The Revenge Dress," because she wore it to a public function the same evening her fairytale prince charming confessed his adultery to the world.
Like Diana, many women can find themselves in the midst of relationships gone wrong.
Maybe he cheated.
Emptied your bank account.
Abused you – emotionally or physically.
How does one recover, heal and come out stronger after something like that?
How can something so humiliating turn out to be the best thing ever? For the very few high-minded, they can find something redeeming and even fruitful by forgiving the transgressor.
However, I am not one of them.
I prefer revenge.
Get even.
Give them what they gave me.
In spades. So they never forget.
And, luckily for many of us, there are more than enough ways to exact our own personal revenge. Especially when it hits the core of betrayal and humiliation. No, it isn’t something life threatening or debilitating. It isn’t going to their boss or even creating a scene in a fancy restaurant - even if that’s first on your list, as it would be mine. Nor is hurting yourself ever an option.
Instead of inflicting more pain on yourself, write about your experience.
Something that fits.
Like the revenge dress Princess Diana wore.
Silky smooth.
Dark and spectacular.
A revenge story can help begin the process of healing and at the same time, create an entirely new story.
With an eye geared toward revenge for wrongs done to her, a woman like Princess Diana, could lay claim to her voice through her outfit, physical body or even a gossipy piece of tell-all fluff.
She could re-claim her power.
Establish boundaries.
Give a no holds barred interview to the press.
Call it out to the world!
While that might feel good for the moment, what would the long term effects be?
Instead, healing can begin with writing your story.
The Revenge Story, is your memoir, the story that goes deep into the psyche of betrayal. The slights, the wrongs, the hurts, the betrayals.
Humiliation. Abandonment. Shame.
Definitely not a sappy, gossipy tell-all.
It is the book that touches the heart and opens to the soul of our feelings. The kind of book most women can identify with.
Real feelings and emotions. Blurred lines shared by all women. Mostly though, it has lasting power.
It gives your voice visibility.
You are no longer dismissed.
The Revenge Story becomes the setting to clear the air and tell your truth about what happened. It opens the door for personal healing.
It allows you boundaries. "I'll accept this, but not that." You own who you are.
After all, a dress is just a dress. They also come and go with each new season.
A book is something else.
A book tells a story; imparts information, gives advice and shares the moments of experience that can make or break one’s life experiences. Your book can do the same for you.
Writing your true and authentic story offers all three scenarios.
Plus more. It's a written testament, a pivotal moment of an experience – including your feelings and emotions in real time.
As a memoir, it is solely driven by those heartfelt experiences in narrative form that create comfort and healing. It wraps its arms around the reader as if it’s a warm blanket – of hope, comfort and healing. You too, can do the same.
Above all, it is a way to healing.
But first you must begin!
Writing a memoir isn’t as difficult as one might think. Pen to paper. Write.
What’s more, your memoir offers plenty of a-ha moments for the reader too! She comes away with a nuanced look, a deeply felt persona of self and determination. It becomes a moment of her how.
“If she can do that, so can I.”
It is the experience she will identify with, learn from and begin the process toward healing.
No matter what her sense is, your reader will find something of interest coupled with its potential insights and understanding.
After all,
It’s not called The Revenge Book for nothing.
