This post was originally published on Audible.co.uk.
Anna Brook-Mitchell’s debut novel, Motherfaker, is the story of Barri Brown, a happily child-free-by-choice teacher who decides to fake a pregnancy to get a year off of work, but soon discovers that pulling off an "immaculate misconception" is not quite as simple as she first thought.
Tricia Ford: While Motherfaker is your debut novel, many people will be familiar with your work as a screenwriter, actor, and filmmaker. What led you to make the jump to novel writing?
Anna Brook-Mitchell: I got rejected from a BBC writing scheme two years in a row. In the second year, one of the exercises they set us was to write a story that made them laugh or cry. I’d not written prose since secondary school and thought, "Wow, I love this." That one page was the start of Motherfaker–a woman who fakes a pregnancy for the maternity leave—so when I didn’t get on the scheme and had the double whammy of being made redundant from my day job, I thought, "Screw it, I’ll write that book!"
Was any part of this story inspired by a real-life experience?
The plot, most definitely not! Though, in the past year, a couple of fake pregnancy news stories have emerged and I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if someone had done this and got away with it! What is inspired by real-life experience is how, as a person without children, you can be othered or made to feel like your life isn’t as valid. I feel like we are so black-and-white with which relationships and life choices we value, and there is something about choosing not to have children or pointing out that people without kids often get a tough deal that still feels taboo. The book is also set in Guernsey, where my mum is from and a lot of my family still live, and I definitely think my love for that island and connection to it has made this story more textured and specific.
Motherfaker is laugh-out-loud hysterical! Without wanting to give too much away, what’s the funniest, most outrageous, or your personal favourite thing to happen to Barri over the course of events in the story?
I think one of my favourite scenes is when Barri is covering a food-tech lesson and her fake bump becomes impaled on a large kitchen knife. When one of her more naive students spots the knife plunged into her stomach, Barri has to use her most brilliant blagging skills to get out of it!
What do you hope people take away from the story?
I would like people to feel seen by this story. As someone who was on the fence about kids (a privileged position to be in for sure, but also very confusing and stressful), I was desperate to read a book about an unapologetically child-free-by-choice protagonist. Someone who had made the unconventional choice and was 100 percent happy with that decision. And I’m sure there are many readers also looking for that. But Motherfaker is universal because it celebrates the people in all of our lives who are not our biological parents but who play a role in shaping us—teachers, aunties, uncles, family friends, step-parents, etc. The best ones really do make their mark and I don’t think we talk enough about how important those relationships are. A big thing I’d love readers to take away is the message that just because people don’t “conform” it doesn’t mean they don’t add value.
What are you working on now? Do you have another novel planned for the future?
I’ve been working on the pitch for the TV adaptation of Motherfaker, which is in development with a brilliant UK production company. It’s been a lot of fun imagining Barri on screen, and it’s been great working with my screenwriting partner, Ang, on it. The two of us are also working on a comedy feature film, which is a bit like Thelma and Louise if one of them sprouted werewolf fangs, tore through the patriarchy and ate its intestines like a hot dog. We’re part of the Funny Features Film Lab and we’re going up to Glasgow Film Festival the week after Motherfaker comes out to pitch to a room of industry people, so if there are any eccentric millionaires reading this who are interested in financing a brilliant Cornetto Trilogy-esque indie film, let me know! And yes, book two is definitely in the works, too. Can’t say anything more as yet, but you can expect another book club novel with strong characters, lots of comedy, and plenty of heart.
