ICLM - Guest Post: Lee Murray + WIN AN AUTOGRAPHED COPY OF HER BOOK :)

As we near the end of May , I would like to say a huge Thank You to all the authors and chick-lit lovers who have sent me Guest Posts/ Reviews to help celebrate International Chick Lit Month :)

Today is a special day as I have a local author from my hometown Tauranga :) . 

Her name is Lee Murray and she has written a number of books including a Chick Lit Novel called " A Dash of Reality" which will be reviewed shortly on my site.

She is giving readers , the chance to win an autographed copy of her book :)

Guest Post : Lee Murray 

It’s International Chick-Lit Month, Paula tells me. I wonder a second about that. International Chick-Lit Month? Is this a cause like saving the white rhino from extinction? Should I be buying a T-shirt? Sending a donation in support of this much-cherished yet threatened genre? Raising awareness amongst my friends on the sort of derided, undervalued chick-lit writers around the world?

And believe me, chick lit writers are derided. The minute a book is labelled chick-lit then its value is shot to hell. Diane Meier (Huffington Post, 2010) says it’s insidious: ‘the way [the term] chick-lit has been used to deride a wide swath of novels about contemporary life written by women.’She’s so right. Worse, I’ve done it myself, offhandedly describing my own novel, A Dash of Reality (www.oceanbooks.co.nz), as ‘girly fluff’.

Yes, chick-lit can be frivolous, and like most examples of its genre, A Dash of Reality includes a conflicted heroine, a gorgeous hero, smarmy boss, a posh gown and various embarrassing moments. But it isn’t all light-hearted. Chick-lit writers also address important everyday realities, often tackling themes that, in other genres, would be too grim. Take Marian Keyes’ This Charming Man: artfully plotted, hilariously funny, yet with a serious theme (which I won’t spoil for those who haven’t yet had a chance to read it!).

Maybe the problem is that chick-lit, by definition, both restricts and belittles its target audience. They’re books written by chicks for other chicks. Forget intelligent, discerning, paying readers, the term chick-lit scoffs at its readership. No wonder we hide those pink-cover books at the bottom of our handbags. One friend hides her in her knickers’ drawer! And for a guy, admitting to reading chick-lit is as good as saying you moisturise twice daily and swoon at the mention of Patrick Dempsey. Most men I know would probably prefer to disembowel themselves with an emery board.

What other genre marginalises and narrows its readership in this way? Anyone can read a thriller: that’s acceptable, even desirable. Same goes for mysteries. Memoir. Science-fiction. Young adult still has ‘adult’ in the title, and although the term children’s fiction appears to exclude adults, everyone knows that responsible parents read with their children.

Thus, the problem is in the terminology, which insults both its readers and writers. But here’s a gem from my graduate women studies classes - one which doesn’t involve burning any undergarments- changing the language we use to describe something can change our attitude toward it. A chef is more highly respected than a cook, for example, a diva more valued than a singer.

So let’s save this rhino: let’s change the way chick-lit is perceived by redefining the genre, let’s give it a new name. To do that, we’re going to need something catchy. Inspiring. Inclusive. Send your suggestions to Paula before the end of the month. The best idea will win an autographed print copy of A Dash of Reality.

In honour of International Chick-Lit Month, you can help support a struggling writer by sending $NZ1.99 to www.oceanbooks.co.nz and receiving your own electronic copy of A Dash of Reality.]

ENTER TO WIN :

So let’s save this rhino: let’s change the way chick-lit is perceived by redefining the genre, let’s give it a new name. To do that, we’re going to need something catchy. Inspiring. Inclusive. Send your suggestions to Paula before the end of the month. The best idea will win an autographed print copy of A Dash of Reality.

OPEN INTERNATIONALLY