I was so honored to be asked by Brandon to contribute to this special blog series on LGBT writers. Brandon asked me of the six novels I’ve written, which is my favorite and why? Hands down, one of my favorite books I’ve written is The Muse, a lesbian romance novel that deals with the tough subject of bullying. I released it in December 2012 and have received some really inspiring feedback from readers.
The book is about how a provoking set of tweets from a beautiful girl (Eva) challenges an insecure girl’s (Jane) sense of identity. At twenty-nine, my character, Jane Knoll, is convinced that she will never experience her first kiss. Bullied as a teenager, she lives life under a veil of insecurity and loneliness. Her social life consists of television reruns and a weekly laundry night with her neighbor, Larry. Then, hope rises when Jane starts following her beautiful, magnetic co-worker Eva on Twitter.
Under the protective disguise of an alter ego, Jane experiences the joy of flirting and the rush of euphoria. Eva and Jane quickly launch into an online love affair that brings out the best in Jane. Behind the safety of her laptop screen, she becomes confident and empowered with purpose and talent. But face-to-face, Jane is nothing more than Eva’s nondescript, clumsy co-worker—a social catastrophe.
For the first time in her life, Jane has discovered true bliss—happiness in love, newfound success in a writing career, and the chance to make a difference in the world. But can she live the rest of her life as an alter ego? Is she brave enough to reveal her true identity and risk squandering it all?
These are just some of the tough questions I tackled in this book that is told with humor and love.
Here’s what inspired me to write this book: When I set out to write The Muse I did so to address a personal adversity I faced as a child when I was bullied. So many of my fans have also been bullied and I had this strong drive to write something that could bring more awareness to the issues involving bullying.
I have zero tolerance for bullying. I wrote this book to shed light on the consequences that occur as a result of it. This book is dedicated to anyone who has ever suffered at the hands of someone cruel. This book goes deep at certain parts and will hopefully inspire both victims and their bullies to rise above their fears and insecurities.
We all have a significant place in this world whether we are aware of it or not. This book shows how our actions and inactions can profoundly affect the lives of others. [tweet_dis]Sometimes taking action is uncomfortable and causes us to step out onto the ledge of instability.[/tweet_dis] Often times, it’s through this instability, through coming out of our comfort zones, through stretching our minds, that we end up changing the course of our lives, and the lives of others, for the better. The courage to take such a profound step out of that comfort zone, like the one Jane needs to take in this book, brings us face-to-face with our destiny and allows us to leave our mark on someone’s life, and thus complete the circle of significance and future goodness.
As with all of my books, I donate a portion of my proceeds monthly to the NOH8 Campaign, an organization dedicated to promoting and raising awareness for Marriage Equality and anti-discrimination on a global level through an educational and interactive media campaign, and Hearts United for Animals, a national no-kill animal shelter, sanctuary and animal welfare organization dedicated to the relief of suffering. I do this because I feel it’s critical to give back the community.
Wishing you all the best,
Suzie Carr, Novelist
NOTE: If you’d like to receive the first 2 chapters, please visit www.curveswelcome.com.
If you are a LGBTQ author, musician, or filmmaker and would like to chat, please feel free to contact me.