Meryl Streep is Copying Me

See for yourself. 

Meryl: “Streep goes on to describe how a cinematic landscape dominated by men and male stories has all but demanded girls learn to empathize with male characters. But boys have rarely been required to do the opposite, because they have always seen male experiences reflected back at them in literature and film. ”

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/04/23/women-in-the-world-meryl-streep_n_7126204.html?utm_source=salon.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=pubexchange_facebook

Me: “When a subject is written by a man, it’s considered universal because men see stories about men as universal and men make these definitions. Because assigned reading is so heavily male, women have been taught to find universal themes in books written by men and about men. The opposite is not true. Men have not been required to find universal themes in books written by women, about women. They have rarely even been required to read such books.”

https://womensfictionwriters.wordpress.com/2014/02/18/guest-post-a-tale-as-old-as-time-sexism-and-books-by-and-about-women-by-author-katie-orourke/

Hm. Well, at least I'm in good company.

Book Club Contest

Book clubs are fantastic. They get people reading. Sometimes they give people a night away from kids and responsibilities. Maybe they're a way to socialize and connect with your community.

Why do you love your book club? Send me a tweet @katieorourke78 (or post a comment here) and whoever has the best answer (ie: my favorite) will win free copies of my new book, A Long Thaw, for every member of their book club. (I'm thinking between 5 to 10 members, but I'm flexible.)

Here's a bit about the book:  

A Long Thaw is contemporary women’s fiction, perfect book club fiction. Cousins Abby and Juliet were born into one big, close family. But when Juliet’s parents divorce, it tears the family apart and sends the girls in very different directions. It’s a story about the power of secrets and the unbreakable bonds of family.

Praise for A Long Thaw: “A big-hearted and deep-thinking novel about two young women navigating the peaks and valleys of love while relying on their friendship and family bond to keep them balanced along the way.”  -Mary Vensel White, The Qualities of Wood

Book clubs are a writer's best friend. Let me be a friend to your book club!

Interview with author Kevin Keely

I "met" Kevin on Authonomy.com, a site where writers support or compete with each other. (Sometimes both.) Kevin has a big personality behind that tiny avatar. He pulls no punches and takes no bullshit. He has the kind of blunt, unapologetic style that makes him a great writer and, I figured, a great interview. So I made him agree to sit down with me (virtually, I assume we were sitting) and talk about the release of his new book, A Fistful of Salt, and his thoughts about the publishing industry.

Okay, so tell me about your book. What is it about? What kind of audience is it for? Why should people read it?

Well they should read it because its an excellent story, why else? I specifically wanted to write a book with broad appeal across age and gender. I wanted the book to be the kind of thing you can read then pass to your husband and he can tell his mates down the pub and they can tell their wives and mothers etc. It's literally for anyone who just likes a good yarn about regular people getting themselves into a whole heap of trouble in a very short time. It's a love story between an introverted cabbie and his childhood crush, who happens to be off the rails. But as they rapidly get themselves into hot water with some very evil villains their humanity inevitably begins to prevail over their societal roles and they become first friends and then lovers. It's ultimately a story about human frailty and the fight played out in all out hearts between good an evil and how we sometimes fail but sometimes we succeed. It's a feel good story with a lot of bad stuff in it. Pretty much the same as life.

What do you think about genre? Is it a helpful guide or a straight-jacket?

I think of it like sex. Some people like it one way, others like it another way, and most people just like it with a lot of action and a healthy amount of humour. So If you bring a straight jacket to your lover's house then you're going to get tied up and the best of luck to you. Me? I like to think passion and vigour are the greatest components to writing and sex. So that's what I bring.

To read the entire interview, check it out at TodaysAuthor. If you'd like to read Kevin's interview of me, you can check out his site here.