N is for Nerd: A to Z blogging challenge

If you know me now, then it's not that surprising to you if I announce that I am a nerd. I'm not apologizing, just acknowledging. I'm comfortable with who I am now. But, like many a middle-aged nerd-girl, I spent my teenage and early adult years trying to hide my nerdy-ness.

Teenage Me, circa 1987ish

I tried to dress like an 80s pop princess (I was bad at it), even though I really wanted to wear Converse sneakers and ironic teeshirts with jeans. I pretended to be engaged by teenage romance novels, when really I wanted to read science fiction and fantasy. I pushed the comic books under the bed when my friends came over so I could pretend I was interested in hair and makeup.

I don't know who I thought I was fooling.

As a college student, an English major even, I was a victim of my own snobbery.  I was convinced that the books I enjoyed weren't capital L Literature, and tried hard to develop a taste for postmodern cautionary tales and experimental theater. The then-husband was a bit of a culture snob, too--though the chip on his shoulder originated in other ways.

I'm not sure when I stopped pretending to like things I didn't really like just because I thought I should like them.

What I really like are superhero stories. Not just for the powers, though those can be pretty awesome. No, it's more about that human element, that huge broad, dramatic canvas to explore issues that might otherwise seem mundane. I want an underdog to cheer for. I want a character who doesn't get it right the first time out, but you know they will eventually.

There are a lot of those stories out there, but, mostly, they're about men. So, I wrote Going Through the Change, a nerdy little superhero book for me and other women like me. Women who are fully grown up, with all the problems of adult life. Women with messy, real sorts of lives. And, of course, superpowers.

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This posting is part of the A to Z blogging challenge, in which bloggers undertake to post every day in April, excepting Sundays, which amounts to 26 postings, one for each letter of the alphabet--preferably along a theme. My postings will all be about my debut novel and my experiences writing it and seeing it published.

Blogging A to Z is a great opportunity to connect with some excellent bloggers and interesting people. I encourage you to check out other participating blogs, too!
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