Jason Kirk
asked
Jason Kirk:
[Answering questions that I wasn't able to get to during our book launch party.] From Julianna: "Which of your female characters do you most identify with? #TeamAlexa"
Jason Kirk
This answer contains spoilers…
(view spoiler)[To one extent or another, I identify with all these characters. I think I feel like they're my slightly younger siblings, and we're looking back together on the stories of our adolescences.
- PG has a big part of my younger biography, as a lead vocalist torn between genuine creative efforts and Owing God All Your Talents. I definitely feel her blurtiness, online-ness, and blatant annoyance with her religious environment. I tried to convey my kinship with her by giving her part of my adult resume: religion podcaster who'd ignored religion for a decade-plus.
- Mom works in a couple modes: the Republican matriarch she thinks she's supposed to be, and then a rooftop oddball who's basically the author explaining why this novel exists. I very much identify with her finding it weird that most adults pretend to be unable to see themselves in young people.
- When writing Bobbi, I basically just pretend College Me is arguing with High School Me. I had a pretty hardcore agnostic phase (not that I think Bobbi's going to "grow out of" atheism or has any reason to), and I know what it feels like to be completely right about something while feeling bad for the people who've been conditioned to think you're wrong.
- Kori is also kind of a writer's experiment, I eventually realized: What if my brain had been born into a female body in the same patriarchal world? What if I'd been pushed toward empathy instead of assertiveness? For me, she's a co-protagonist. Also, we're both gray-eyed Scottish-American distance runners with dorky Bible theories, metalcore opinions, homeschool memories, and Jurassic Park thigh tattoos.
- Having said all that, absolutely, #TeamAlexa. (hide spoiler)]
- PG has a big part of my younger biography, as a lead vocalist torn between genuine creative efforts and Owing God All Your Talents. I definitely feel her blurtiness, online-ness, and blatant annoyance with her religious environment. I tried to convey my kinship with her by giving her part of my adult resume: religion podcaster who'd ignored religion for a decade-plus.
- Mom works in a couple modes: the Republican matriarch she thinks she's supposed to be, and then a rooftop oddball who's basically the author explaining why this novel exists. I very much identify with her finding it weird that most adults pretend to be unable to see themselves in young people.
- When writing Bobbi, I basically just pretend College Me is arguing with High School Me. I had a pretty hardcore agnostic phase (not that I think Bobbi's going to "grow out of" atheism or has any reason to), and I know what it feels like to be completely right about something while feeling bad for the people who've been conditioned to think you're wrong.
- Kori is also kind of a writer's experiment, I eventually realized: What if my brain had been born into a female body in the same patriarchal world? What if I'd been pushed toward empathy instead of assertiveness? For me, she's a co-protagonist. Also, we're both gray-eyed Scottish-American distance runners with dorky Bible theories, metalcore opinions, homeschool memories, and Jurassic Park thigh tattoos.
- Having said all that, absolutely, #TeamAlexa. (hide spoiler)]
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