Meet Georgina Warren, a captivating storyteller and author of “Tales of Virtuous Stepmothers.” Growing up amidst the pages of books and the strokes of her paintbrush, Georgina’s unique childhood experiences shaped her perspective on traditional fairy tales, leading her to challenge the stereotypical portrayal of stepmothers. In this insightful interview, Georgina shares her personal journey, inspirations behind her book, challenges faced during the writing and publishing process, impactful lessons learned, and her exciting future plans in the realm of creative endeavors. Join us as we delve into the world of fairy tales, family dynamics, and the power of storytelling with Georgina Warren.
Can you share a bit about your personal journey and how you came to write “Tales of Virtuous Stepmothers”?
I grew up in Winston-Salem, NC where I was homeschooled until the age of 15. When my parents separated, my sister and I lived with our mother, and we only saw our father and stepmother on weekends. During my childhood, I spent my days painting and exploring books in the local public library. Later I moved to Washington DC with my father and stepmother and started attending schools there. My experiences in the British School of Washington and the Field School awakened a deeper, lifelong passion for the visual, literary and performing arts. While growing up with my father and stepmother, I realized that traditional fairy tales like Cinderella and Snow White, stories that featured a “wicked stepmother” did not reflect the life I shared with my own family. This revelation led me to develop a better narrative for modern readers.
What inspired you to celebrate your stepmother through your book and challenge the traditional portrayal of stepmothers in fairy tales?
The “wicked stepmother” as depicted in many adaptions of Hansel and Gretel, Cinderella and Snow White is usually vain, malicious, conniving and selfish. But my stepmother has always been an innovative, loving, and brave woman. When writing Tales of Virtuous Stepmothers, I imbued my stepmother characters with all the virtues that every good parent should possess like patience, creativity, compassion, loyalty, resilience, courage and intelligence. These stories also contain elements taken from my own family’s experiences juxtaposed with fairy tale motifs. Since I found no positive counterpoint to the “wicked stepmother” in the books I read, I decided to create my own stories with life lessons that resonate with modern blended families.
Could you tell us about any struggles or challenges you faced during the process of writing and publishing your book?
One of the biggest challenges I experienced were time management. When writing and publishing Tales of Virtuous Stepmothers I was balancing commitments between school and applying for jobs. I set the book aside while I completed my Master of Library and Information Science, but I was able to finish the book and the publishing process when I started working full time at the Library of Congress. Another challenge I experienced was related to the question if my book had enough originality. While I composed the book, I was afraid that someone already wrote a good stepmother book that might overshadow my achievement. Since publication, I have discovered other authors that created good stepmother books, but I decided that even if someone came up with an idea like mine, it was still worthwhile to share my own vision with the world.
What were some important lessons you learned while working on “Tales of Virtuous Stepmothers”?
Aside from the obvious lesson, “not all stepmothers are bad” I learned that producing a published book is not a solitary process. Even if this book is self-published, I had many wonderful people to help me with editing the text, designing the cover and preparing copyright registration. My editor Annie Smith and the publishing team of Tell Tell Poetry have been indispensable in this personal journey of writing. For the author, creating the story is a solitary process, but it is helpful to go to new places and speak with other people to gain more inspiration. I attend a weekly writing club where I develop new ideas and share them with fellow writers. Inspiration can be found anywhere if you know where to look and I get inspiration from everything!
How do you think your book has impacted blended families and individuals who have stepmothers in their lives?
Many readers tell me that this book is an essential addition to the literary world and that it will help more blended families feel heard and supported. Stepmothers feel vindicated because they now have a fantasy book that recognizes their daily struggles and celebrates their achievements. Children from blended families can feel affirmation that their family is normal, and they can feel proud of their unique heritage. Here I will share testimony from one stepmother reader:
“As a stepmother myself, I enjoyed reading about the non-wicked stepmothers. I am also a fan of fairy tales, so this was a fun read for me. Each story was very different from the others. We are introduced to all sorts of stepmother and adoptive mothers. I found it refreshing to have the fathers present and helping out in some of the stories. If you read a lot of fairy tales, there are other examples of good stepparents and adoptive parents out there. I agree that the stepmother has gotten a bad reputation due to the popularity of stories like Snow White and Cinderella.”
What advice would you give to others who are considering writing about personal experiences or challenging societal norms through creative projects?
To upcoming writers, you can’t be afraid to let all your creativity come out! You can never know how ideas can change and grow in different ways. When you have writer’s block, take a walk or do another physical activity away from the desk. Sometimes that’s all you need to reset your brain and finish the next step of writing. If you are challenging societal norms through your writing, some people may object, but your opinion and your experience matters and don’t let the naysayers weigh you down. Instead, focus on the many awesome readers and allies that will be glad to explore this story you want to share with them. Often you will have many great ideas, but some of those ideas might need to be changed or removed if they don’t fit within the overall execution of the plot. I had to make some painful decisions about cutting elements from some of my stories. But these changes will make these stories more cohesive, and you can always save those extra ideas for the next book.
Can you share any upcoming projects or future plans related to your book or other creative endeavors?
Tales of Virtuous Stepmothers is only the first part in a set of three volumes of good stepmother fairy tales. Some of these short tales have grown into novel-sized stories and those tales will be released later. Readers can find Tales of Virtuous Stepmothers available in paperback and e-book on Amazon. Follow the author on Goodreads and Instagram for the latest writing news and public appearances. To hear more about the author’s journey, followers can tune in for interviews on episodes of In The Blend, Women Winning at Writing and the DC Public Library podcast channels.
You can buy Georgina’s book here.
