Brianna Karp

Wow, it’s so weird to be back writing a follow-up post for ELLE.com after a series of guest posts two years ago, when the glorious E. Jean Carroll plucked an anonymous, homeless blogging chick (that would be me, btw) out of obscurity by offering her a three-month internship. And what’s happened since? The lovely people at ELLE have asked me… Well, I’ve written a book, The Girl’s Guide to Homelessness. It came out at the beginning of May and has gotten much more buzz than I ever could have hoped and critical reviews that have sort of floored me—Publishers Weekly, Augusten Burroughs, Kirkus, Library Journal, Booklist, People Magazine, and many more have recommended it, some with starred reviews. The book won ELLE’s #1 Readers’ Prize in June, which sort of felt like an odd and comforting coming-of-full-circle, in a way.

It’s all a very surreal sensation for someone who never got around to feeling like a “writer” rather than a blogger. There are days where I feel like I’ve somehow accidentally snuck into someone else’s life. Somebody who’s a “real author”. There’s been a lot of “finding my voice” and coming to terms with being a public figure, which I’m slowly adapting to, I think. A terrific theatre in Orange County, South Coast Repertory, has hired me as their Marketing Assistant. I’ve been here for about 6 months now. I didn’t mention during the interview that I was homeless or writing a book, fearing it might hurt my chances of being hired. They Googled me and found out anyway. They still gave me a chance. Not only do they pay the bills, but I love them and I love my job. I lost a fiancé. Well, life’s never perfect, is it? Then again, things have gotten so busy, who has the time or patience for romance? On the nights and weekends and wherever I can in between, I keep advocating for homeless individuals and other social causes close to my heart. A friend in Ireland and I co-founded World Homeless Action Day last year, which partnered with fellow social issues groups such as Food Not Bombs and boasted participation in over 100 countries (we’re hoping to increase that even more this year, and trying to figure out what direction to take the grass-roots organization from here on). My publisher, Harlequin Nonfiction, has been kind enough to send me to various areas not only to promote The Girl’s Guide to Homelessness, but to speak for various homeless organizations and conferences about searching for solutions to all homelessness.

Because of Harlequin and the book deal, I’m also getting to travel and see places that I would never otherwise be able to afford to visit. My 9-5 employer has been more than generous, supportive, and flexible about allowing me to use my vacation time to fly off on short notice to do a book signing or speak to a homeless coalition. I’m working on being permanently re-housed sometime in the next two months. People often express surprise that there’s no definite conclusion yet, no Cinderella ending, despite the media buzz and writing a book and etc. To which I respond: Dude, if you only knew. It’s all a lot of hard work and a process and a steady climb with no promises or certainties at the end of it, but you know what? It’s a nice change to be overwhelmed with work for once after searching for it for two years and finding none. So hell, I’ll take it. Most homeless people aren’t given the opportunities that I have been. They don’t get handed an internship or a book deal. There’s a lot of frantic pedaling just to stay in place, never mind move forward. If I can in any way channel this experience into a platform for them to tell their own stories (and there are millions of them!); challenge stereotypes and prejudices and preconceived notions…that’s what I want to do. Through the opportunities that E. Jean Carroll and ELLE initially opened up for me, I’ve discovered a passion in helping people a making a difference, no matter how small, in the world. What more can a girl ask for? -Brianna Karp