“Beach Read” by Emily Henry (post 3): People contain multitudes, may split in two, and author experiences protagonist as growing outside of her

When I read that this bestseller was about two novelists who help each other overcome writer’s block, I was hoping it would describe subjective experiences of the writing process. But the main experiences described are sexual encounters between the two novelists from the woman’s point of view.

In the rest of the novel, all I have found of relevance here are passing comments, suggestive of multiple personality, that apparently reflect the author’s view of human nature and of the way she experiences her characters.

People Contain Multitudes (Alternate Personalities)

“Your mother has been a lot of people in the twenty years I’ve known her…You have to keep falling in love with every new version of each other” (1, p.219).

Person Splits Apart (Into Different Personalities)

“I felt like I was coming apart…and I was going to split” (1, p. 331).

Character Grows Apart From Author (Like Alternate Personality)

“January [the protagonist] grew far outside of me [Emily Henry], until she was a full, real character. A thorny, messy, heartbroken woman with a lush, meaningful story (1, Readers Guide).

But aren’t those metaphors? Yes, but they may be what I call “subjectively experienced metaphors” (search).

1. Emily Henry. Beach Read. New York, Jove, 2020.