‘Overwhelmed’ in my local newspapers!
My first TJL article, featured in the Haliburton Echo, Bancroft Times, and Minden Times!
Article Highlight I will elaborate on: how I “wanted to flip the narrative”.
Indeed, my primary goal with Overwhelmed was to switch things up and really challenge what is considered ‘normal’ in society.
The biggest negative stereotype being how the main girl/woman in any story (movie, TV show, etc.) always has the following features: thick flowing hair, huge eyes with long full lashes, dainty nose, rosy lips, and a slender / hourglass figure with long legs — the signature feminine appearance that is expected of women, the desired traits that make a female ‘attractive’.
My female lead, however, is the COMPLETE OPPOSITE of all that.
Overwhelmed’s protagonist Yanya also does not behave in the typical ‘feminine’ way — she is very clumsy, insecure, and enjoys traditional ‘boy’ hobbies. Sure, we see some dorky and/or tomboyish protagonists — but they are ALWAYS beautiful, implying a different personality is acceptable ONLY if she’s nice to look at.
Which brings me to another irksome ‘norm’: in any love story involving royalty, the pairing goes like this: the gorgeous princess (loved by all, confident, graceful) and the ordinary guy (usually poor, awkward, less attractive). And in any love story involving the Sunshine/Grumpy trope, SHE is the Sun and HE is the Grump.
But how often do we see the ordinary withdrawn girl with the handsome upbeat prince? Almost never. *
* (There is one notable movie I discovered, but I will elaborate more on that in a future blog post!)
In other words, a girl will fall for a nice/smart/funny guy even if he isn’t good-looking or confident — but a guy will only fall for a nice/smart/funny girl if she IS good-looking and confident.
Well — my book explores that rarely-seen, much-needed reversal.
In addition, both my main female and main male are judged for their appearance — but in opposite ways, which directly addresses double standards, gender roles, and other toxic perspectives that obscure true equality.
