Tell me more about Glow Up, Lara Bloom?
‘Glow Up, Lara Bloom’, is my debut novel and is coming out in February 2023 💃🏽💃🏽💃🏽
Humorous and heartwarming, it follows teenage catastrophe, Lara, as she shares her innermost thoughts in her secret online journal.
From bad hair days to ultra-embarrassing moments, there’s never a normal day in Lara’s life. How will she ever convince her super-cute crush, Caiden, to like her back? Lara thinks it’s time to give herself a glow up.
But should you ever glow up for a boy?
Glow Up Lara Bloom is a love letter to friendship, girlhood, adolescence and all the joyful, messy craziness of that transitional phase.
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How did you get your agent?
I applied for Write Mentor’s Summer Mentoring Programme and was selected by the lovely Holly Race (an amazing UK author). We spent four months working on my manuscript (not Glow Up Lara Bloom), and it transformed the way I thought about the industry/publishing. Just getting to speak to a published author regularly made getting published myself seem more attainable.
I decided to enter the Agent Showcase that was held at the end of the programme, and my amazing agent, Hannah Sheppard (DHH Literary Agency), was one of the agents who requested to see my full manuscript. And the rest…is history 😊
How did you come up with the idea for Glow Up, Lara Bloom?
Hannah, my agent, initially signed me for another book. While we were working on it, she asked if I’ve ever considered writing a girly teen novel. I hadn’t, but I was open to it as I devoured such books as a child. I started brainstorming and realized I had TONNES of ideas. I couldn’t believe I’d never thought of writing such a book myself.
I drew heavily on my own personal experiences as a teenager insecure about my afro hair, learning to accept it, and finally coming around to fully embracing and loving it.
I was also inspired by my two daughters. These days, girls seem to be collectively more aware of the conversations around body positivity and feminism, and yet are still personally plagued by insecurities and the urge to compare themselves with ‘perfect’ images on Instagram, etc. Glow Up Lara Bloom takes some of the timeless issues faced by tween/teenage girls and gives readers a kinder approach to dealing with them.
Dee Benson 