It’s Women’s History Month. I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about the important women who have shaped my life both directly and indirectly. Directly I can thank so many of the amazing women of my family who worked so hard to shape me into a socially acceptable human with both etiquette and a will of my own (apologies on the etiquette front - I think social anxiety and a penchant for four letter words makes me a bitter pill to swallow more often than not). There are also a good number of teachers and professors who managed to push me to follow my heart and utilize my talents. The most notable being Cheryl McVay (her memory remains a blessing), Jayne Hill, Hillary Cowan, Molly Erlandson, Paula Clendenin, Reidun Øvrebo, and Olivia Turner - those in the know would recognize that these are the gifted teachers and art instructors who put up with me at a variety of levels and disciplines. Despite my stubborn refusal to “work to my potential” these women continued to push and encourage me. Indirectly, there is a long list of artists and authors who make me want to be better as a creative. This week, I thought I’d acknowledge some of the female authors who have inspired me throughout the years, I want to talk about the women artists who inspire me; but I’m having a time trying to edit it down to a manageable list.

Judy Blume

Sometime after I graduated from picture books to chapter books, I fell in love with the books of Judy Blume. Mrs. Schram, our school librarian, read Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing aloud to my class and I can distinctly remember the long pauses as Mrs. Schram waited for the waves of laughter to diminish enough for her to continue with the story. My only complaint was that it was taking too long to get through the story, so after school I went to the Kanawha County Public Library and checked out a copy all my own. I devoured the rest of her books as quickly as I could. One of my greatest joys and memories of motherhood was sharing SuperFudge with my boys and watching them laugh and roll around clutching their sides.

Anne Rice

Blame it on Bunnicula, but I’ve always been a sucker for vampire stories. By the time I was in middle school I’d cultivated an all black wardrobe, a hardcore eyeliner addiction, and a serious Anne Rice habit. My folks were pretty big popular horror fans in the 80s so I found Interview With the Vampire just lying around the house at some point. The Vampire Lestat came out when I was in seventh grade, and I absolutely devoured it. While I have always enjoyed her Vampire Chronicles, my favorite of her books is Cry to Heaven - set in 18th century Italy, the story revolves around the opera and the perfect male soprano and the horrific means some used to obtain those angelic voices for the popular and sacred music of the time. Spoiler (for a 35 year old book): adult male sopranos were commonly referred to as castrati.

Erin Morgenstern

I have waxed poetic about my love of The Night Circus and The Starless Sea many times already throughout my short history here at the Echo-Lit blog, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Morgenstern makes my list of beloved women authors. Her take on magical realism just fits within my brain in such a gorgeous way that I can only read and sigh with admiration for the machinations of her mind.

Anne McCaffrey

McCaffey is best known for her Pern novels - a vast network of interwoven novels that detail the lives of the special folks known as dragon riders. For whatever reason I never took to the Pern books. Nonetheless, I consider McCaffrey one of of the foundational authors in my literary taste. When I feel a need to dive back into McCaffrey’s books, I usually go back to her Crystal Singer series. After training for years to sing opera, a flaw in her vocal range effectively eliminates Killashandra Rae’s chances of stardom. Rather than resign herself to the chorus, Killashandra heads out to the furthest edges of the galaxy to learn energy crystal mining - a vocation that requires a trained voice and perfect pitch. I still have very strong memories of reading my way through these books in the back seat of my speech teacher’s car, Walkman playing Depeche Mode as we drove for hours for a speech tournament in Chicago. I have such a distinct sense memory of it that I can smell the pine car scent whenever I hear particular songs from that cassette.

Roxane Gay

After two difficult pregnancies back-to-back, I was really hating the changes my body went through. I have never been small - I’m a large, loud, and fat in a world that doesn’t generally embrace that kind of woman. Post-pregnancy, I lost any sense of my place within my body. A friend gave me Gay’s book Hunger. While Hunger didn’t cure my body image issues; but it made my feel less isolated in how I felt about my body. I followed Hunger with Bad Feminist - Gay manages to make the complicated matter of being a feminist AND liking things that are stereotypically “girly” both accessible and funny. Women who consider themselves feminists often find themselves having to apologize for things that they love that seemingly contradict their political identity. Bad Feminist takes a look at these dichotomies and helps women come to terms with them; the humor takes the edge of guilt away from the topic.

Elizabeth Gilbert

Like so many other folks I read Eat, Pray, Love at that time in my life where I was just trying to figure it ALL out. Gilbert’s journey is very different than most people I know, but her path of discovery through food, spiritual exploration, and her reclamation of her romantic/sexual self is one that so many people - women in particular - can aspire toward. Even if you read Eat, Pray, Love solely as a travelogue it is a beautiful document of a getaway with purpose. Gilbert has managed to create a space for herself that is both self-affirming and one of service to others, I am awed by the wisdom and balance she has cultivated.

Victoria (V.E.) Schwab

I’ve been following Victoria Schwab as an author for a couple years now; yet somehow I’d never read one of her books. My best explanation for this oddity is that I was a fan of her as a person and a personality; I was worried that reading one of her books and not liking it would possibly ruin my enjoyment of her social media presence. I bought A Darker Shade of Magic several months ago. It sat in my TBR stack taunting me, and my cowardice. The push and pull of life kept me from reading much last month (and I’m now behind on my 2021 reading goals), so I decided that I would start March by tackling a book from my TBR list. A Darker Shade of Magic caught my eye and my fancy. I am now kicking myself for waiting so long. I am now taking a good long look at the rest of her considerable bibliography - she publishes as both V.E. And Victoria Schwab; her YA titles publishing under Victoria - trying to decide which direction to go next. I am amazed by her organization, her work ethic, and the sheer volume of work she produces.

Jenny Lawson

I found Lawson through her blog. As The Bloggess, she detailed a life marked by physical and mental health issues yet somehow her writing is so filled with humor and joy it is hard to see the depression that Lawson has struggled with throughout her adult life. For me, Lawson is one of those people I just get on a molecular level. When she announced the publication of her first book Let’s Pretend This Never Happened: a Mostly-True Memoir, I pre-ordered it that day. As luck would have it, my copy arrived two days before I had to travel for work. I tucked it into my carry-on, delaying joy for 48 hours, knowing I’d need something to read on the plane and during layovers. Much to my fellow travelers’ dismay, the book is absolutely hilarious and I giggled, snorted, and guffawed throughout the entire flight - once to the point of that runaway laughter that leaves a gal with a mile-wide grin and mascara trailing down her cheeks. I can only imagine what the other passengers thought. As I’ve said before, I’m mostly an audiobook reader; but when it comes to The Bloggess, I buy hardback, and I buy first day. Her next book Broken (In the Best Possible Way) is due out April 6, 2021 and yes, I’ve already pre-ordered it. Whenever I need a laugh, I go to her blog and reread the tale of Beyoncé - the big metal chicken.

Mary Doris Russell

Sci-if has been used as a way to discuss a variety of social issues for decades. Russell’s books The Sparrow and The Children of God confronted many of the social issues wrapped up in the Catholic Church’s mission to spread The Word to all God’s children - even when sentient life is discovered on a planet in the next galaxy over. As a late convert to Catholicism, these books speak to me in a way that it might not to those born to the practice. While I am in awe of all the beautiful art, music and architecture built at my church’s behest, I am also torn with grief when I think of the lives lost over the past two millennia as the Church sought to spread to every corner of the world - often by force. These books not only explore these themes but also how faith is tested in the face of tragedy; especially when it seems as if the Divine has moved and tilted the universe to set the destiny of a few special people to further His plans.