“The Swank Hotel” by Lucy Corin — Graywolf Press, 2021
To whom it may concern;
My name is Sebastian Meissner. I am a radio producer and artist based in Berlin, Germany.
I am reaching out to draw your attention to the upcoming book by Lucy Corin titled “The Swank Hotel” (Graywolf Press, 2021). This book breaches several ethical boundaries and is about to be published without full / final consent of one its principal characters — Corin’s sister, my wife and my professional collaborator, Emily Hochman — whose life and mental health struggles are laid bare on over 400 pages. While it is not in my power to stop this publication (nor do I desire that), I regard it as my duty to inform the public about the terribly insensitive and exploitative nature of this work. Please allow me to provide some critical details.
Emily Hochman and I have been married for more than 10 years now. We live and work in Berlin and have written, directed and produced several radio documentaries on the topic of mental health, mostly for German public radio stations such as ARD, Deutschlandfunk, WDR. These include “All The Pretty Little Horses” (2015), “Thoughts Of Suicide” (2019), and “Mapping the Psyche” (2019) among others. The programs featured a wide range of perspectives on depression, bipolar disorder, suicidality, and coping strategies. We also discussed the impact of the digital age and attention economy on mental health and conversed about our own mental health histories. The ethics of our approach are informed by emancipated discussions on mental health; our aim is to include those affected by mental illness as equal partners and experts rather than turning them into passive objects of study. This is particularly important to my wife Emily, whose mental health history represents the very core of her identity — something she has been addressing in her art and writing for decades.
Roughly one year ago, while visiting her sister Lucy Corin, Emily stumbled upon a manuscript of “The Swank Hotel”. Flipping through the pages, Emily experienced a shock: it was full of details about her mental health history, including intimate biographical information.
After expressing concerns and discussing this at length with Lucy Corin, Emily was left hoping that the terms of her participation will be clearly communicated to the public. She asked Corin and Graywolf to involve her in the book’s promotional concept, for the sake of full transparency. This, however, was denied to her and the book is now bound to be published.
Furthermore, it is particularly perturbing to know that Emily got dispossessed of her own life story by those she trusted the most. “The Swank Hotel” has already had a severe impact on my wife, who is currently hospitalized — also due to the excessive and exhausting distress caused by this publication.
People affected by mental illness are highly vulnerable individuals, working with them can be challenging, but there are no alternatives to their inclusion in such processes. People affected by mental illness need to be given agency in situations like this. Their inclusion needs to be regarded as a part of a healing process and a vehicle to recovery from trauma. Appropriation of their life stories, on the other hand, can have a profoundly destructive effect. When writing a book such as “The Swank Hotel”, it is of critical importance to work with the protagonists in tandem, on equal footing, and allow such individuals to represent themselves in a way that is comfortable and safe. Caution, sensibility and respect go a long way here. Corin and Graywolf need to explain themselves to the public for breaking some of the most rudimentary norms of ethics, and for handling this publication so poorly.
Should you require additional information or have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sebastian Meissner
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PS: Emily would like me to clarify that this essay expresses my own opinion, and that as she was hospitalized at the time, she played no part in its writing or circulation.
