Jillian Lauren’s first book, Some Girls: My Life in a Harem, tells her true story of living in a harem in Brunei. She is most recently the author of Pretty, a novel about a young lady named Bebe who goes from drugged-out stripper to cosmetology school then finds Christianity. …more

Friend of the Rumpus Tony DuShane sent us this dispatch from the San Francisco International Film Festival’s Closing Night Party.

I’ve been covering the SFIFF since 2000, except when it coincided with rewrites of my novel the last two years. This year it coincided with a bitch of a chest cold after doing publicity for the novel at the LA Times Festival of Books. I only say this because I want you to understand that I couldn’t actually cover any film events this year and that bums me out to no end because it was a great program.

As a proper journalist and writer, when I cover these types of parties I go straight for the booze and free food. SFIFF doesn’t skimp on quality and I always forget to bring a foiled bag to bring home leftovers. Yeah, I’m that classy writer, a novelist with a block of cheese and a bag of salad that is about a month old in my fridge. I’m a catch.
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