Kaitlyn Greenidge, author most recently of We Love You, Charlie Freeman (Algonquin Books) provides her take on Lionel Shriver’s recent remarks at the Brisbane Writers’ Festival for the New York Times. Greenidge recalls writing her first novel in which there was an eighty-year-old Yankee heiress. “I was struck by an awful realization. I would have to love this monster into existence,” she writes. There comes along a responsibility when writing characters outside one’s own background. Characters need “a reason to exist besides morbid curiosity or a petulant delight.”
Input your search keywords and press Enter.
Sign up for the weekly Rumpus
Once a week, we'll send you a roundup of what's new on the magazine, invites to upcoming events, open calls for submissions, and more!