Join two authors who have made mid-life women the fierce, funny, and complicated hearts of their fiction. Julia Tuffs's debut novel 45 Things to Do Before You're 45 follows Charlie - perimenopausal, unfulfilled, and determined to reclaim herself through a chaotic bucket list that takes her wildly out of her comfort zone. Amy Beashell's Bad Manners and Spilt Milk place women at the centre of urgent, unsparing stories about power, motherhood, and the truths we keep hidden.
In this conversation, Julia and Amy explore what makes the mid-life woman such a rich and vital subject for fiction. Why has this stage of life been so underwritten for so long? And why, now, is it having such a moment? Chaired by Suffolk Community Libraries, Lisa Brennan.
Expect honesty, laughter, and plenty of recognition.
 
Format: Interview & Q&A
Themes: Non-Fiction, Adults, Young People, Headliner, Food, Health & Wellbeing
 
Julia Tuffs Books: 45 things to do before you’re 45, Nesting
After a brief (but fun) stint working in television and as a primary school teacher, Julia decided to take her writing dreams more seriously. She lives in South-West London with her family and ragdoll cats (Billy and Nora) and spends her time writing, reading, dreaming of holidays and watching too much reality TV. She aims to write the kinds of books that will have people laughing out loud – and crying – on their commute. Her young adult novel, HEXED, was nominated for the Laugh Out Loud Awards, and its sequel, TWICE HEXED won the children’s category at the Isle Of Wight Book Awards.
 
Amy Beashell Books: Bad Manners, Spilt Milk, We Are All Constellations, The Sky Is Mine
Having shoe-horned the phrase “finding her own self-worth” into every possible English-literature essay from GSCE through to university, it’s no wonder that Amy is now writing books featuring female protagonists who are fiercely attempting to do just that. She likes dark stories, complex characters and hopeful (but not too tidy) endings. 
Her debut novel for young adults, The Sky Is Mine, was nominated for the Carnegie and Branford Boase awards and shortlisted for the Bristol Teen Book Awards. Her subsequent teen and adult novels have since been described in the press as “slyly funny” (The Guardian), “compelling” The Daily Mail, and “unflinching [with an] acerbic wit” (Company), all traits Amy is actively cultivating in real life too.
 
Lisa Brennan
Lisa Brennan has worked in libraries for almost two decades and is an experienced interviewer who has hosted conversations with hundreds of authors, including Lee Child, Anthony Horowitz, Elly Griffiths and Amelia Gentleman. She is known for creating warm, lively and engaging conversations with writers and audiences alike.