Q

'Women in Clothes' editors seek why, not how, of self-presentation

Sheila Heti, Heidi Julavits and Leanne Shapton on their collection of essays about what women wear.

What is your process getting dressed in the morning? When do you feel most attractive? Can you say a bit about how your mother's body and style has been passed down to you, or not?

These are just some of the questions featured in Women In Clothes, a collection of essays about how women present themselves and how their decisions fit within or stray from the codified culture of fashion.

Three of the book's editors -- Sheila Heti, Heidi Julavits and Leanne Shapton -- join Jian to discuss what they learned from women's diverse responses and why they felt it was time for a collection about the why, not just the how, of personal style and fashion.

Jian is flanked by Leanne Shapton, left, Heidi Julavits and Sheila Heti in Studio Q (Fabiola Carletti/CBC)