When Isabella Huffington was hit by a biker in Manhattan’s West Village, her life changed forever. What started as a minor concussion spiraled into years of debilitating health issues. In her Audible memoir Map to the Unknown, Huffington takes listeners along on her medical and spiritual journey with grace and good humor. Here, Tory Daily speaks with the fine artist about the healing power of storytelling.
I was inspired to write Map to the Unknown because…
When I was in the crucible of relentless pain after my concussion and original endometriosis diagnosis, I felt like most books about chronic pain fell into one of three categories: relentlessly positive and not holding any space for the reality of the pain; so depressing they were hard to finish; or purely medical. My experience with chronic pain — which I am still dealing with — was marked by a spiritual journey that brought me the ability to take it day by day and, when the pain gets really bad, hour by hour. It also helped me ride each wave as it came with more trust, resilience and humor. I wanted to share what I learned because even when everything falls apart, something new always emerges. It just doesn’t always emerge on your schedule or timeline.
I would describe my writing process as…
Layered. I don’t write trying to make every sentence perfect. If I did, I would still be stuck on page one. It’s more like sculpting. I hack away at the big things, and then return again and again to edit and work on the language and smaller details. I wrote the first draft with my inner editor on mute. It was more like allowing the river to flow without putting up a dam at every turn.
I published exclusively as an audiobook because…
After my concussion, and still now, it was hard for me to read for more than a brief period, so audiobooks were and are my saving grace. They allow me to close my eyes and get lost in another world. And I always loved being read to long after I could read for myself. Listening to a great audiobook has always felt like sinking into a hot bath.
My proudest moment when writing Map to the Unknown…
Was starting to write the book at all. I was originally so uncomfortable being vulnerable that I wrote the first draft in the second person as if I were telling someone else’s story and I was merely the omniscient narrator. Switching to the first person and doing something completely new — moving from doing visual art to writing — meant I was taking a leap into the unknown without any certainty about what it would lead to. I always like to have directions, so this was the beginning of me learning how to hold space for the unknown.
And the greatest lesson I learned…
You don’t have to wait until you can tie all the parts of your life tidally together with a bow. I learned while writing the book that that day never comes.
I embrace ambition by…
Being clear that ambition and arrogance are not the same. Owning and honoring what your talents are and showing up with the gifts that are yours to give is essential if we’re going to solve all the massive problems facing our world. Everything that we now hold so dear started with ambition: from a child taking its first step to landing a man on the moon to Stacy Abrams declaring ten years ago that she could turn Georgia blue. None of our personal and collective goals can be accomplished if we’re still cringing at the word.
And the person who inspires me to embrace ambition is…
My mom. My mother’s whole life — from deciding at 16 that she wanted to go to Cambridge University even though she didn’t speak a word of English to writing her first book at 23 to launching HuffPost at 55 and Thrive at 66 — is marked by embracing ambition which definitely challenged me since my default personality is wanting to hide under the bed, ruffling no feathers.
