Rachael Eyre's Blog - Posts Tagged "coming-of-age"
Why are there so few girls' coming of age stories?
Once a week we listen to Mark Kermode's film review podcast. In case you've never caught it, you really should- the ultra flammable Mr Kermode gets very enthusiastic, particularly when describing bad films, and it's a joy to hear. Listening to him list the great kids' coming of age films, I found myself wondering: where are all the coming of age stories for girls?
Coming of age films follow a set pattern. They usually cover a summer (it's always a summer) in the life of a group of kids, as something bizarre goes down. It might be hunting for treasure or aliens, but it's never run of the mill. Lessons are learned, friendships are forged. And the characters are nearly always boys.
Oh, there might be one token girl tagging along for the ride. If she isn't the focus for precocious adolescent yearnings, she's a tomboy who's "as good as" or "almost" a boy, who will punch anyone who asks why she spends her time in a smelly old den reading comics or holding spitting contests. But women virtually never feature in any important capacity- they're mums and teachers. Certainly nobody seems to think girls merit a coming of age story of their very own.
It's baffling why this should be the case. Off the top of my head, I can only think of To Kill a Mockingbird and Claudine at School. Most people focus on the miscarriage of justice rather than Scout's coming of age, even though it is a sizeable subplot. Claudine is wonderful- a charming, reckless, bisexual bully- but as far as I'm aware, there has only been one English language adaptation of her adventures. I'll never forget my shock when I realised this wasn't your bog standard school story! Donna Tartt's The Little Friend has all the ingredients for a cracking tale- a twelve year old plans to unmask her brother's killer- but it never quite catches fire. Harriet the Spy has potential but gets derailed by its insufferable heroine.
If this kind of subject is touched upon, it's always as a retrospective; you always get a woman or group of friends looking back, with the inevitable contrasts between then and now- the weird one is now a writer (of course!), the pretty one is bitter and stuck in a dead end marriage, the two best friends haven't spoken in years etc. Isn't karma a funny old thing, so on, so forth? The only problem is that because the retrospective is just a framing device, it lacks the interest and conviction of the earlier parts of the story, making you wonder why they can't ditch it.
It's time this was put to rights. Girls have their stories too- it's not as though they're zipped through this portal aged thirteen, where they shed all their previous interests and think only about boys and clothes (and for some of us, this never happens). Give a girls a great meaty coming of age story we can sink our teeth into- a female Stand By Me. It isn't too much to ask.
Coming of age films follow a set pattern. They usually cover a summer (it's always a summer) in the life of a group of kids, as something bizarre goes down. It might be hunting for treasure or aliens, but it's never run of the mill. Lessons are learned, friendships are forged. And the characters are nearly always boys.
Oh, there might be one token girl tagging along for the ride. If she isn't the focus for precocious adolescent yearnings, she's a tomboy who's "as good as" or "almost" a boy, who will punch anyone who asks why she spends her time in a smelly old den reading comics or holding spitting contests. But women virtually never feature in any important capacity- they're mums and teachers. Certainly nobody seems to think girls merit a coming of age story of their very own.
It's baffling why this should be the case. Off the top of my head, I can only think of To Kill a Mockingbird and Claudine at School. Most people focus on the miscarriage of justice rather than Scout's coming of age, even though it is a sizeable subplot. Claudine is wonderful- a charming, reckless, bisexual bully- but as far as I'm aware, there has only been one English language adaptation of her adventures. I'll never forget my shock when I realised this wasn't your bog standard school story! Donna Tartt's The Little Friend has all the ingredients for a cracking tale- a twelve year old plans to unmask her brother's killer- but it never quite catches fire. Harriet the Spy has potential but gets derailed by its insufferable heroine.
If this kind of subject is touched upon, it's always as a retrospective; you always get a woman or group of friends looking back, with the inevitable contrasts between then and now- the weird one is now a writer (of course!), the pretty one is bitter and stuck in a dead end marriage, the two best friends haven't spoken in years etc. Isn't karma a funny old thing, so on, so forth? The only problem is that because the retrospective is just a framing device, it lacks the interest and conviction of the earlier parts of the story, making you wonder why they can't ditch it.
It's time this was put to rights. Girls have their stories too- it's not as though they're zipped through this portal aged thirteen, where they shed all their previous interests and think only about boys and clothes (and for some of us, this never happens). Give a girls a great meaty coming of age story we can sink our teeth into- a female Stand By Me. It isn't too much to ask.
Diary of a Teenage Lesbian
I'm delighted to report that my new novel, Diary of a Teenage Lesbian, will be available on Amazon soon. It's a lesbian coming of age story set at the turn of this century - nearly twenty years ago but thankfully far, far away.
What do you do if you're in love with your best friend? Or when your mum is dating your creepy teacher? Will life always be this turbulent and embarrassing?
What do you do if you're in love with your best friend? Or when your mum is dating your creepy teacher? Will life always be this turbulent and embarrassing?
Publication of Diary of a Teenage Lesbian
I'm thrilled to announce that Diary of a Teenage Lesbian is now available on Amazon! So if you've ever been young, gay and in love with absolutely the wrong person, give it a read!
Laura is a fourteen year old girl growing up in the West Midlands. Her brother Ben is acting like a condescending knob and her mum is dating her creepy teacher. If that isn't stressful enough, she's secretly in love with her best friend Christina.
It's the year 2000. Section 28 is in force, preventing schools from even mentioning homosexuality, and she's scared. She doesn't want to be a lesbian. And what if Christina finds out?
Laura is a fourteen year old girl growing up in the West Midlands. Her brother Ben is acting like a condescending knob and her mum is dating her creepy teacher. If that isn't stressful enough, she's secretly in love with her best friend Christina.
It's the year 2000. Section 28 is in force, preventing schools from even mentioning homosexuality, and she's scared. She doesn't want to be a lesbian. And what if Christina finds out?
Everything You Need to Know About Diary of a Teenage Lesbian
* Our heroine, Laura, is thirty two at the beginning of the story, but prompted to dig out her teenage diary by big bro Ben.
* If you're gay, chances are that one of your siblings will be gay or bi. Despite this being incredibly common, I've never seen it reflected in any book or show and felt I had to write about it.
* To non British readers: Section 28 really existed. It was in force from 1988 to 2003 (thanks, Thatcher) and blighted countless young lives.
* I started writing the novel due to the media attacks on trans children, but the recent campaigns against LGBT inclusive education gave it a new impetus. I wanted to show where this damaging rhetoric can lead.
* It's possibly my most autobiographical book to date, with several scenes lifted directly from life. Depressingly, my outing experience was *worse* than Laura's. A happy ending with a cute girlfriend was a long way off.
* Too many YA novels end with the protagonist making friends with their parents' new partner, however much they disliked them initially. This is often impossible in real life - a situation I've hopefully made clear with Mr Cunningham.
* Honey is a female, dastardly version of my childhood cat Jester. Most of her antics happened!
* Although I never explicitly name the setting, you can go to Stourport on the bus, Worcester on the train and Malvern's within spitting distance. It's based on Kidderminster, where I lived aged twelve to fifteen.
* Calvary Hill is a mashup of my middle and high schools. The schools themselves weren't bad places but homophobia was universal at this point. St Blaise's is a mixed sex version of the private school I attended aged eleven to fifteen - and as the novel suggests, that was an even more hostile environment.
* The lesbian themed novels Laura reads are all real, and worth checking out. Apart from The Well of Loneliness. That's a historic artefact only.
* Most of Laura's opinions about various bands/celebrities are similar to my own. I was a rabid Spice Girls fan in my youth.
* The unofficial theme song for the story is Don't Speak by No Doubt.
* If you're gay, chances are that one of your siblings will be gay or bi. Despite this being incredibly common, I've never seen it reflected in any book or show and felt I had to write about it.
* To non British readers: Section 28 really existed. It was in force from 1988 to 2003 (thanks, Thatcher) and blighted countless young lives.
* I started writing the novel due to the media attacks on trans children, but the recent campaigns against LGBT inclusive education gave it a new impetus. I wanted to show where this damaging rhetoric can lead.
* It's possibly my most autobiographical book to date, with several scenes lifted directly from life. Depressingly, my outing experience was *worse* than Laura's. A happy ending with a cute girlfriend was a long way off.
* Too many YA novels end with the protagonist making friends with their parents' new partner, however much they disliked them initially. This is often impossible in real life - a situation I've hopefully made clear with Mr Cunningham.
* Honey is a female, dastardly version of my childhood cat Jester. Most of her antics happened!
* Although I never explicitly name the setting, you can go to Stourport on the bus, Worcester on the train and Malvern's within spitting distance. It's based on Kidderminster, where I lived aged twelve to fifteen.
* Calvary Hill is a mashup of my middle and high schools. The schools themselves weren't bad places but homophobia was universal at this point. St Blaise's is a mixed sex version of the private school I attended aged eleven to fifteen - and as the novel suggests, that was an even more hostile environment.
* The lesbian themed novels Laura reads are all real, and worth checking out. Apart from The Well of Loneliness. That's a historic artefact only.
* Most of Laura's opinions about various bands/celebrities are similar to my own. I was a rabid Spice Girls fan in my youth.
* The unofficial theme song for the story is Don't Speak by No Doubt.
Free Promo: Diary of a Teenage Lesbian
Beginning today and finishing Friday 24th May, Diary of a Teenage Lesbian is free on Amazon!
Laura is a fourteen year old girl growing up in the West Midlands. Her brother Ben is acting like a condescending knob and her mum is dating her creepy teacher. If that isn't stressful enough, she's secretly in love with her best friend Christina.
It's the year 2000. Section 28 is in force, preventing schools from even mentioning homosexuality, and she's scared. She doesn't want to be a lesbian. And what if Christina finds out?
Laura is a fourteen year old girl growing up in the West Midlands. Her brother Ben is acting like a condescending knob and her mum is dating her creepy teacher. If that isn't stressful enough, she's secretly in love with her best friend Christina.
It's the year 2000. Section 28 is in force, preventing schools from even mentioning homosexuality, and she's scared. She doesn't want to be a lesbian. And what if Christina finds out?
