This week, Stephanie’s story “I Was a Girl Who Wanted to Be a Boy” struck a chord with many of our female readers. We loved hearing from you! Feels like we’re onto something and we want to hear more.
Announcing our first Restore Childhood open call for submissions.
The term “tomboy” seems to be disappearing, along with the girls it represents - this is a call to what may be the last generation of tomboys.
We want to hear from anyone for whom this topic resonates with — no limitations.
The prompts:
What was it like growing up a tomboy, or a girl who didn’t quite fit the stereotypical “girl” mold?
Were you supported? By whom?
What were your greatest challenges?
Did you ever wish you were a boy?
Did you grow out of it or are you still a tomboy?
How did the era when you were a tomboy impact your identity then and now?
Do you think things would have been different for you if you had grown up as a tomboy today?
Three (3) submissions selected by the Restore Childhood team will be published and each receive a copy of Lisa Selin Davis’s acclaimed 2020 book Tomboy, The Surprising Stories of Girls Who Dare to Be Different based on her viral 2017 The New York Times article.
Please send submissions to: natalya@restorechildhood.com
Include your email, age, city/state. Please try to keep it to 700 words. Include photographs, if at all possible!
SUBMISSIONS DUE JUNE 30.
Both my mother and my current and former wives were tomboys at some point. It take a special kind of bravery to be a tomboy. And just like feminism, and gay females, it's all being subsumed into the current narrative.
Having said that, I have a suggestion: IMO, this shouldn't be handled like a writing contest. Everyone (once verified to not be a bot) should be encouraged to share their stories in an online forum. Or perhaps an 'open letter' that people can sign, as is the fashion these days...