“Dicey, you seem like such a sweet, smart, sane woman. Where in the world did you get the idea to write about a thirty-nine-year-old married mother of three having an affair with a sixteen-year-old boy?”
Good question. I have every intention of answering, but you know I like to do lengthy intros first. So…
First off, thanks! I am a little sweet and smart, but I’m insane in the membrane. And I’m not the only one because the idea for my novel SHAMEFUL derived from a discussion with a close friend, who thought it would be an interesting topic as well. Plus, sales of my book have been going quite well. So, that tells me others are interested in reading something different. Even if it is taboo.
Secondly, thanks for actually asking me about it. Normally, when I tell folks about the book, they start counting how many kids I have. I have TWO. I look nothing like the woman on the cover. I have never cheated on my husband. I was thirty-four when I first started writing the story, and I’m only thirty-seven now. No, the book is not a memoir. It’s not an autobiography. It is NOT about me or my family. Got it?
Now…
How did my friend and I get on the topic?
We had just finished reading…
(drum roll, please)
The TWILIGHT series.
You read right.
We read all four books. In a little over a week.
I am a vampire fanatic who fell in love with Jacob’s character. 1. He’s a huge dude, well over six feet. 2. He’s at least 110 degrees hot, which I prefer over Edward’s ice coldness. 3. He’s sweet and devoted to Bella, who’s constantly getting his feelings trampled on. 4. He has a Native American-tanned complexion and long hair…until he cuts it. 5. He can turn into a killing machine and kick some ass.
My homegirl and I were squealing over his character like all the rest of the Twihard teenage girly fans. And it seemed weird. I mean Jacob’s a teenager in the books. It didn’t seem right to love his character so much. At least we could watch the movies without feeling pervy. Because Taylor Lautner didn’t quite look like the Jacob we imagined.
Then he packed on thirty pounds of muscle.
Hello.
Our convos got reeeeally interesting then. And I saw bunches of forums with grown-ass women discussing Jacob/Lautner too. Most had completely overlooked his age, which was seventeen at the time. Others wrote about all the “interesting” things they’d do to ol’ Lautner after he turned eighteen. Not that it mattered, because none would EVER have a shot with him, but I looked up the age of consent laws and learned he was legal in most states.
Hmmm.
My story had been born. BUT that wasn’t good enough. And older woman having a younger lover has been done a million times in a million different ways. I deliberately dropped his age to sixteen so that I could address all the issues that would arise if those middle-aged women from the forums actually did get their hands on an underage Lautner…or Jacob…or my character Alex.
I can’t believe I just revealed that secret.
Happy Thanksgiving to all!
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