Interview with Therese Fowler, Author of Reunion - Page 3

My latest novel, Reunion, is at its most basic level the story of a woman from very humble beginnings who, at 19, gave up a child for adoption and kept the entire matter a secret.  When she later becomes a celebrated talk-show host, she undertakes a search for the child - but not necessarily so that they can meet; rather, to assuage her need to know what became of him. 

She's also trying to reconnect with the person she is behind the facade she's built—which she hopes will open up possibilities for new personal connections as well.  There are risks, though; if the past she's hidden for so long is discovered, it may jeopardize her career and her efforts toward fulfillment.  Ultimately, Reunion is a story about redemption, self-actualization, and love.

What was the inspiration behind your book?  Why did you feel a need to write it?

For most of my life I've been fascinated by the concept of celebrity, and how it might feel to be the person inside the fishbowl.  Coming from a lower-class background as I did, fame and fortune held great appeal - not so much for what it might give a me materially, but rather for the way it could remake me entirely.  I wanted to be so much more than I was or could expect to become.

When I was in my 30s, I divorced and went back to school for a degree in sociology.  I think it's the sociologist in me who continues to be intrigued with celebrity and with culture in general.  So I tend to create characters who battle the forces of society as well as their own mistakes and shortcomings.  What motivates us?  What changes us? 

At the base of all my stories is love, in all its forms.  In my view, we need more stories about love's power to repair or remake us, when life is so challenging and happiness can be so difficult to find.

Why did you choose your particular genre?

I don't think I did choose a genre - though to date my novels are categorized broadly as “women's fiction.”  What I'm writing are stories that involve particular themes, like family relationships, personal relationships, mistakes and consequences, the search for happiness, the possibility for redemption.  These things make up the essence of our lives, and so I find them infinitely rich with possibility and infinitely interesting to explore in my stories.

Article Author: Dorothy Thompson

Dorothy Thompson is CEO/Founder of Pump Up Your Book Promotion, an innovative public relations agency specializing in online book promotion for authors.

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