Karma Brown: Every Novel Is So Different
Karma Brown is the author of seven bestselling novels, including the #1 international and USA Today bestseller Recipe for a Perfect Wife and her debut, Come Away with Me, a Globe and Mail Best Book of 2015. She is also the author of the nonfiction bestseller The 4% Fix: How One Hour Can Change Your Life, and has co-authored two bestselling holiday rom-coms under the pen name Maggie Knox.
An award-winning journalist, Karma has been published in SELF, Redbook, and Today’s Parent, among others. She lives just outside Toronto with her husband, daughter, and a Labradoodle named Fred. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram.
Karma Brown
In this post, Karma discusses how each book is different, how her most recent novel went through several iterations before finding its way, and more.
Name: Karma Brown
Literary agent: Carolyn Forde, Transatlantic Literary Agency
Book title: What Wild Women Do
Publisher: Dutton (US) / Viking (Canada)
Release date: October 24, 2023
Genre/category: Commercial/Historical/Women’s Fiction
Previous titles: 8 books, including Recipe for a Perfect Wife
Elevator pitch for the book: What Wild Women Do is a story of self-discovery about an aspiring contemporary screenwriter, a 1970s socialite-turned-feminist, and the camp in the woods that ties their stories together forever. Set in the beautiful Adirondacks, this novel tackles ambition, betrayal, and the wildness that exists in all of us.
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What prompted you to write this book?
The idea for this book went through so many iterations! From a thriller about identical twin You-Tuber sisters, to a story set during the second wave of feminism that used a magic letter device, to a young couple locked in a doomsday bunker for 30 days…it took some time for the final idea to reveal itself.
Uncovering Eddie and Rowan’s stories, and the heart of the novel (which was always going to be about women finding independence) was a journey and a half, but I’m proud of the end result. It’s exactly the book I was meant to write.
How long did it take to go from idea to publication? And did the idea change during the process?
It took a while. From initial idea to publication, we’ll be bumping up against four years.
Of course, during those four years we went through a global pandemic, I released multiple books, and life went a touch sideways as a result of all that chaos. We also spent a long time—nearly a year—editing the story, to make sure it was the best book it could be. Every novel is so different, in terms of process, and this one was no exception.
Were there any surprises or learning moments in the publishing process for this title?
During edits something significant happened in the U.S. Roe v. Wade—the landmark case from 1973, in which a woman’s right to abortion was protected thanks to the 14th Amendment (right to privacy)—was overturned. The 1970s storyline of this book doesn’t feature the case (it’s merely mentioned), but it was certainly a shining moment for second wave feminism, which is integral to the story.
Like so many others, I was heartbroken by this Supreme Court’s decision, even though I don’t live in the United States. But it reminded me why feminist themes are always central to my stories, and why I will never stop including them—we can be critical of the hard work that came before, but we can never forget it.
Were there any surprises in the writing process for this book?
I did something with this book that I’ve never done before. Rather than writing consecutive chapters, alternating between Rowan and Eddie (present and past), I wrote Rowan’s entire storyline first, then Eddie’s. It wasn’t my plan, it just happened!
But if I’ve learned anything after writing nine books, it’s that each one needs something different, and being too strict with process can get in the way.
What do you hope readers will get out of your book?
I hope readers—regardless of age and stage of life—can see parts of themselves in the two women in this story. Also, that bravery, courage and resiliency can show up in both bold and quiet ways.
Perhaps most importantly, I hope a take-away is that you can never go wrong making the most of the life in front of you. Nothing is guaranteed beyond today.
If you could share one piece of advice with other writers, what would it be?
I’m hesitant to share advice, per se, because every writer is different and what makes me tick may not work for someone else. But here are two mantras I stand by in my own writing: butt in seat and, as Ann Patchett says, “word by word” for getting a book written; and, you can always fix a bad draft, but a blank page will get you nowhere.