Jonathan Currinn
This week saw Janet Devlin release her autobiography, titled My Confessional, alongside the release of her second studio album, titled Confessional. It’s a very personal book delving deep into her thoughts, emotions, and feelings from her life as she has battled with many inner demons and struggled with her mental health.
This well-written autobiography contains 12 chapters to coincide with the twelve songs that appear on her new album. At just 25-years-old, Janet Devlin really has been through a lot of downs in her time to which she confesses to everything in this book. We travel down the dark winding road from her self-harm to her anorexia, from her depression to her anxiety, from her alcohol abuse to her self-depreciation, all of which has been kept from the world as she focused on her music career, but no longer will it be hidden away.
Unlike many other autobiographies that I’ve read, Janet Devlin tackles her demons head-on telling the reader all about those specific moments in time and how she felt, rather than giving us a linea timeline of her success to-date. This leads to a lot of back-and-forth going on through time, focusing on specific demons per a chapter – or per a song since each chapter expands what we hear in the songs from her album.
People hoping to find out more about her music career, her time on The X Factor, the creative process of her debut album and her sophomore album, will find glimmers into that part of her life, but the main focus is on her feelings and emotions during these aspects of her life, as well as her school and family life. Moments we don’t even know about become unforgettable scenes in this book, and it’s written so brilliantly that you’re there with her in that moment watching her self-harm or drink that bottle of wine, or not eat enough.
Janet Devlin doesn’t hold back for this book and that’s what makes it so good to read as it allows her to open up but also allows the readers to understand how she’s been feeling over the past decade and a half. Her story is so relatable to so many people out in the world who are struggling.
Speaking about the book in a press release, Janet Devlin said, “We need to begin having more conversations, start a debate and look (these) issues straight in the face. That’s what this whole idea of ‘My Confessional’ has been about: to show people that no matter how dark your life can get, there is always a light to aim for.” She continues, “…this is my life as I’ve lived it with no filters. Each chapter in my book unlocks the truth behind a song on the album. They span ten years of intense self-discovery married with a lot of self-sabotage. My broken brain has taken me to dark places both in my own head and in the real world. But thankfully with destruction comes creation.”
The ending of the book sees her release all these struggles she’s had and allowing herself to be free. With the release of this book, My Confessional and the release of her sophomore album, Confessional, she has a bright future ahead of herself and she’s ready to dream big and work on her music – the one constant that always helped her to feel better.
My Confessional, the autobiography from Janet Devlin is available to buy in hardcover and e-book, right now, published through Omnibus Press. You can hear excerpts from the book on her official YouTube Channel, where she’s been reading out parts of the book for her viewers.
