Sep 26, 2024
Ruth Bonapace’s surrealistic comic novel The Bulgarian Training Manual is an Elle Magazine 2024 top summer read. Publisher’s Weekly called it a “whimsical delight.” Her work has appeared in The Southampton Review, The Saturday Evening Post, Hippocampus, The New York Times and elsewhere. A former women's magazine editor and sports writer, Ruth has an MFA from Stony Brook University.
In this episode:
The concept of The Bulgarian Training Manual, and how it morphed from a short story to a full length book
Putting local angle, sites, personalities and pop culture into a novel
Imbuing research into a fictional story
Advice from a popular novelist that gave Ruth the freedom to write without worry
Incorporating magic, fairy tales, myth and archetypes into story
Ambiguity and shape shifting as a throughline and plot device
Focusing on characters’ organic transformations
Working speculative elements and whimsy into a story
The historical genesis of the fad diet from the book
The power of going down rabbit holes while writing
How Ruth found her publisher, Clash Books
Other episodes referred to:
Episode #89 Level Up Your Novel By Mastering Visual Imagery and Research Featuring Amanda Churchill
https://estelleserasmus.com/89-level-up-your-novel-by-mastering-visual-imagery-and-research/
Episode #95 The Catalysts and Craft for Charting and Plotting Novels Featuring Ann Hood
Episode #35 Flying High with Storyteller Ann Hood
https://estelleserasmus.com/35-flying-high-with-storyteller-ann-hood/
Connect with Ruth
Website: https://www.ruthbonapace.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ruthbonapace/
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Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: https://rb.gy/5ihwp0
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