Joanne Harris (OBE, FRSL) is the internationally celebrated and award-winning author of 23 novels, plus novellas, short stories, scripts and articles. Her 1999 novel CHOCOLAT was adapted for the screen with Juliette Binochche and Johnny Depp, and was nominated for 5  Oscars. She is a passionate supporter of authors’ rights, and is currently Chair of the Society of Authors. She also plays with the Storytime Band, who perform a live music/theatre/storytelling show based on Joanne’s fantasy writing. 

Website: joanne-harris.co.uk

Twitter: @joannechocolat

Welcome back to the Hive, Joanne!

Your latest novel Broken Light has been described as an exploration of how women can feel invisible as they grow older, and what then happens when they take back control. What else can readers expect from Broken Light?

It’s a kind of riff on the theme of women’s rage, inspired by Stephen King’s Carrie. Basically, imagine Carrie White had lived a normal, unremarkable life, and developed her paranormal powers at menopause, instead of puberty…

Tell us more about your protagonist, Bernie Moon…

Bernie Moon is 49, unhappily married to her high school sweetheart, and living in London’s East Finchley. Having given up her studies to give birth to her son, she has sacrificed her dreams to the men in her life – her husband Martin, who is still nursing a crush on a one-night stand from thirty years ago; her son Dante, whose affection seems mostly directed towards his grandmother. Her life is mostly spent online, watching the lives of others who seem to be doing Life so much better than she is, or working part-time in her local indie bookshop. And she is starting to experience frightening menopausal symptoms, which her (male) doctor seems not to think are anything she should worry about…

When Bernie begins to go through the menopause, it awakens a latent gift inside her. What was your springboard towards exploring the menopause as a catalyst for female power?

There are so many stories out there about teenage anger, talented girls, and the trope of the Chosen One. In those stories, older women (if they appear at all) are usually either antagonists, or the mother of the main character. I wanted to write something about a woman who has never seen herself as special, whom no-one has chosen, and whose rage has been suppressed for years – until it finally erupts. I wrote this book against the background of #MeToo, #BlackLivesMatter, the Covid pandemic, and the murder of Sarah Everard. I think perhaps it shows.

Broken Light also delves quite deeply into violence against women, incel groups, and the role social media plays in these online hate wars. It’s a seemingly unavoidable issue currently, so what made you want to explore it in your writing?

I’ve been using social media in my writing for years, either as a background to plot (BLUEEYEDBOY), or as a delivery mechanism for stories (HONEYCOMB). Social media is where many of us show who we are without the usual filters, where we interact with like-minded souls, or in the case of those of bad faith, where we attack others without fear of real-world consequences. It’s a fascinating, volatile medium, which reflects the world at its worst – and at its best. Like it or not, it’s part of the world, and to avoid it in fiction has become almost impossible.

Just for fun, how would you pitch Broken Light as a 1-star review?

Sheesh, BROKEN LIGHT. So much blood. And not just regular blood, like man-blood, but woman-blood. Menstrual blood. No-one wants to read about that. And why are the women so angry? And the men! Woah! So much hate for the men. Did you know #NotAllMen are rapists? Also, I’m pretty sure I’m in this book, and I don’t appreciate the implication that I’m a loser who needs to roofie a girl in order to get laid. Also, the spine was creased. And those stains were there before I read it. Okay? 

Perfect Joanne, thank you!

Can you tell us anything about any upcoming projects? Or can you tell us a few teasers for your sequel if there will be one? 

My new novel (title as yet to be announced) is coming from Gollancz next year, and it’s a love story, set in present-day London, against the background of two warring tribes of the Fae. Think Romeo and Juliet, with fairies, and a lot more swearing. 

Who are the most significant women in SFF who have shaped and influenced your work? 

Angela Carter; Shirley Jackson; Joanna Russ; Mary Shelley.

Who is a great woman in SFF who we should be reading? Any hidden gems?

If you’re not already, you should all be reading Becky Chambers, Charlie Jane Anders and Shelley Parker-Chan. 

Finally, what is the one thing you hope readers take away from Broken Light? 

Being an older woman is to feel invisible much of the time. I hope I can make you look. 

Thank you so much for joining us for Women in SFF!

Broken Light is available now, you can pick up your copy on Bookshop.org