FAQ: Where did you get the talk radio idea?
September 17, 2007
Lots of books start with the premise of “what if vampires and werewolves existed in the real world?” The stories tend to get soap-opera-ish and angst ridden. I decided these folks needed their own call-in advice show because Dr. Laura just couldn’t handle their problems.
I wrote the first short story initially because I figured an idea that silly couldn’t possibly last for more than a short story. It turns out the radio show was the perfect format in which to discuss just about every aspect of the supernatural, paranormal, and all its attendant literatures and stereotypes I could possibly put my mind to. So, five short stories, a couple of spin-off short stories, and four novels later, I’m still writing about Kitty and her world.
A side note about Dr. Laura: I was working in a bookstore at the time (mid-90s) and her book, Ten Stupid Things Women Do to Mess Up Their Lives, was hitting best seller lists. I despise that book. No, I haven’t read it. But 1.) the title is so condescending it makes my blood boil, and 2.) a great number of the people who bought the book were middle aged and elderly men who said they were buying it to give to their daughters and granddaughters.
Oh. My. God. It was all I could do not to yank the book out of their hands and bitch slap them with it. Is it any wonder girls have low self esteem when the father figures in their lives are basically telling them, “I’m expecting you to mess up your life.”
By the way, it’s not usually a good idea to give a self help book, any self help book, as a gift to anyone. Even if you mean well. Especially if you mean well.
September 17, 2007 at 1:18 pm
Hey, there’s an idea for a book, “Ten stupid things geeks do to mess up their lives”. No?
I gave a self help book away as a gift once, at least I think it is a self help book. You can learn a lot from Max Brooks “The Zombie Survival Guide, complete protection from the living dead”.
A great book with plenty of good tips to help yourself in many ways.
September 17, 2007 at 4:16 pm
Perhaps a better title would be “Ten Stupid Things Dr. Laura Does to Mess Up Other People’s Lives.”
September 18, 2007 at 5:46 am
The Things Therianthropes do to Mess Up Their Lives
“For werebison it’s insisting on staying inside when the full moon occurs during a rain storm. Bison poop is a bitch to get out of carpet, and bison stomachs don’t process artificial ferns very well.”
September 18, 2007 at 9:19 am
Ewww…why would you ever GIVE a self help book to someone. That just seems far to insulting/blunt…
September 18, 2007 at 1:17 pm
LOL! You’re right, there just really is NO way to give a self-help book that is nice! *giggle*
Probably anyone giving a self-help book ought to be whacked with it. If they’re willing to undergo that trial of being pummeled with the book, perhaps they really Do care about the person after all.
Funny how after having a daughter who captured my heart, any condescending, limiting type attitudes toward girls or women really grind in my saddle blanket! I’m sorry to say that I likely wasn’t that way right out of the box, but thankfully the software upgrade took.
September 19, 2007 at 8:50 am
Turns out “7 Habits of Highly Effective People” is a popular graduation gift. That baffled me as well. I mean, it’s supposed to be “self help,” not “foist help upon the friends you think are losers.”
The self help section was my very least favorite section of the store.
September 19, 2007 at 6:05 pm
I totally dig the mental image of you bitch slapping a customer with the book. Not only does it kick ass, it is totally appropriate.
September 20, 2007 at 10:14 am
And you know, that would totally hurt…
September 20, 2007 at 4:44 pm
Which makes you hope that they would think about what they did…Lesson learned.
September 23, 2007 at 8:17 am
I loathe self-help books. They’re basically the author killing a bunch of trees so that he/she can tell you how to live your life. We were forced to read “Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens” in seventh grade (we weren’t even teens yet!) and it made me want to smack the author right in his smug, condescending mouth.
September 23, 2007 at 9:15 am
I’ve never read “Seven Habits,” but I’m told that one of the premisis is how to organize your life better and spend less time on work, because no one ever lies on their death bed wishing they had gotten more work done.
But a writer friend of mine pointed out: this isn’t true of artists/writers/musicians/etc. They actually DO end up wishing they’d done more work!
September 30, 2007 at 9:29 am
I’m not so sure all self-help books are necessarily bad. For someone like myself, who has ADHD, there have been some self-help books about my condition that have inspired me to try to get my life together.
September 30, 2007 at 9:33 am
*Er, granted, these were books I bought for myself, or requested as holiday gifts, rather than someone thrusting them upon me without any warning. But still…
September 30, 2007 at 8:41 pm
Yeah, I think the key word should be “self.” Part of the problem with giving them is gifts is not knowing if a particular self-help book’s philosophy will suit the person you’re giving it to.
And the ones with titles like “Now that I’m Married Why Isn’t Everything Perfect?” kind of drove me batty on principle.