When it comes to leisure reading I’m in the anything-but-politics camp. One of my favorite chick-lit writers is Jen Lancaster. She’s written several hilarious memoirs and has a new fiction book out today titled, Here I Go Again. Rather than me explain the premise, check it out here.
Lancaster doesn’t write about politics, but she is one of us and deserves our support. I interviewed her for my De Pasquale’s Dozen column back in 2010. Here’s her explanation of how her conservative beliefs fit into what she does:
Tell me about the moment you decided to become more vocal about your political beliefs.
LANCASTER: As an author, I’m actually less vocal about my political beliefs than I used to be as a blogger. I was working to get my first book published during the 2004 elections and I wrote a lot of posts about my politics. Regardless of how articulate I thought I was, I found that I was winning neither hearts nor minds and I was losing readers. On top of that, my agent warned me that being so forthcoming could keep editors from wanting to buy my book, so I stopped. I hated the idea of silencing myself but I was willing to do so in order to start a writing career.
As years have passed and I’ve built a fan base, I’ve become far less cryptic about my political beliefs. Readers know what I stand for, but that’s not something I stress in my writing, at least directly. I try hard not to let my politics become divisive. Rather, through my books I want people to see that even though we might vote differently, we still have many of the same interests and goals and feelings. I have so many readers tell me, “You’re the first conservative I’ve ever liked.” Convincing others that conservatism isn’t evil is the first step in getting others to open their minds to opposing ideas.
No one’s going to be won over by my spouting dogma in my books because that’s not why people buy my stuff. I don’t write essays on why liberalism doesn’t work or why Obama’s taking us down a slippery slope. People read my books to laugh, so that’s my goal. But if my goofy little stories just happen to emphasize conservative values like morality, self-determination, and liberty, well… let’s just say that’s not unintentional.
I love this woman. Buy her books.
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