Posted by on Jul 24, 2006 in Uncategorised | One Comment

The excellent Sandra Scoppettone

Okay, here’s the deal. Sometimes somebody will read a story of mine, go to the website or the blog and email me. And then – assuming they are not completely insane (as is likely with some of the material I write; it appeals to the lunatic fringe) I reply to them. And nine times out of ten they come back and say ‘Wow, you wrote back, that’s amazing!’

I’m only a little writer. Okay, I get around a bit. But I’m not any big hill of beans, I’m not even a hillock of beans. And they’re surprised I’d bother to write back.

And then there’s Sandra Scoppettone. A woman with nineteen (say it loud – NINETEEN) novels under her belt. I first found her work in 1997 when I was in a New York bookstore. I read one, went back, bought two others. Actually, that’s a lie. I’d already read, and loved, one of her books under the pen name Jack Early, but I didn’t connect the two for several years. As herself she writes funny, witty novels about women detectives. The Laurano series is about a lesbian detective and I fell under the spell of a PI series that was also about the real relationships real women have. Those who’ve taken my ‘Writing about Sex’ course know how I hate the stock depiction of lesbianism in genre writing, but Sandra never falls into that.

So … browsing the net, as one does, I came across Sandra’s website. And then her blog. And I wrote some gushy stupid little comment on it, and she emailed me back. That’s amazing. And she even went and looked at my writing, and commented on some things I’d said on my blog.

Big writer. Big influence in my early writing about women and sex. Big enough to email complete strangers and give them support and insight.

I am overwhelmed – go and see for yourself how great this woman is at Sandra’s blog

1 Comment

  1. B.A. Goodjohn
    24th July 2006

    I’m always blown away by how generous writers can be. I’ve met a few lovies, but on the whole, they’re a great bunch 🙂

    Studying with Carolyn Chute next residency. She’s my hero and I hope she’s as forthcoming as this lady.

    Reply

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