Guest Author - Jacqueline Geller

“If I’d Known Then” is the newest addition to the “What I Know Now” book series. Edited by Ellyn Spragins, this book is a compilation of letters written by women in their 20’s and 30’s to their younger selves. The book was published in 2008 by Da Capo Press, a member of the Perseus Books Group (www.dacapopress.com).

The letters are written by a surprising variety of women, some of whom one never imagines to be anything other than golden children. Entries include submissions by: Actress Jessica Alba; Olympic gold medalist Julie Foudy; Daily Candy founder Dana Levy; singer/songwriter Lisa Loeb; actress Danica McKellar and photographer Sabina Louise Pierce.

The point is to help readers realize that perfection is a myth and that a simple dream can carry a person to greatness. Editor Ellyn Spragins hopes to spark recognition in the reader’s inner core and to bring the reader back to a time when the future looked both bleak and wonderful. She may even hope to reignite those dreams, spurring a 20-something to the greatness that she aspired to when she was a budding teen.

Letter writing has long been a counseling technique, primarily used to help patients resolve past issues, particularly with people who have passed on or are no longer available to them. Spragins hopes to help readers appreciate the “messiness that life hands you,” although that is usually evident long before a woman reaches 30.

By using famous women, Spragins shows that ALL women went through teenaged angst and somehow managed to survive it. The letters are meant to help to bond 20-30 year olds to each other, as well as their former selves.

While it is difficult to fathom that the former prom queen or cheerleader felt insecurities while being bathed with attention, she presumably had worries about her own issues, although they certainly were not the same as the teen who was on the outside looking in or the person who was bullied. As actress Kimberly Williams-Paisley puts it so aptly in her letter to herself, “Being treated as a dork will color who you are forever.”

The teen years are full of angst, which is the premise of writing the letters of encouragement from the “seasoned” 20-30 year old to the younger version of herself. It also is a bonding experience, informing women everywhere that anything is possible and that they are not alone in their insecurities.

For more information on the “What I Know Now” series, go to www.letterstomyyoungerself.com. A portion of the author’s proceeds benefits Girls Inc.