Welcome to April’s Featured Blog, something I’ll be posting here on Lit and Scribbles most of the month to introduce all of you to perhaps some new future friends and get to know a little more about your blogging community.
Today we talk with Amal, writer of the blog The Misfortune of Knowing and fellow aspiring author (some of you may know her as AMB). Tell the peeps who you are Amal:
AMB: I’m a Philadelphia-based blogger, writer, and practicing lawyer and my perspective as a legal advocate for women and as a mother informs my writing. I have three daughters, five-year-old redheaded twins who are technically monozygotic, but don’t look alike to their parents, and an almost two-year-old lover of books. Stop by my blog, The Misfortune of Knowing, to say hello and to join the discussion on books, writing, and related legal issues.
J: When did you first start blogging and what is your blog about?
AMB: I have been blogging about books, writing, and the law since June 2012. I review books, everything from literary fiction to children’s books, and discuss legal issues relevant to writers and readers, such as copyright lawsuits and the First Amendment implications of book banning.
J: Which of your posts was the most fun to write and why?
AMB: My favorite posts to write are the ones about children’s books or early literacy that feature my children. Why? Because my daughters are adorable (if I do say so myself), and I love chronicling their childhood on my blog. My recent favorite is Is This How Writers Are Born?, which focuses on my youngest daughter, Zayla, who shares my obsession with books. I have high expectations that she will grow up to be a writer, but I won’t be disappointed if she loves math instead. It’s her future.
J: What type of stories do you write?
AMB: The common term for the type of fiction I write is “Women’s Fiction” because it focuses on a female protagonist’s personal growth, but I would hope that the label would not turn away male readers who are interested in the types of issues I write about, including socioeconomic privilege, sibling and twin relationships, and family violence.
J: Protagonist excluded, which of your characters is your favorite?
AMB: In Two Lovely Berries, my 81,000 word manuscript, my favorite character is the protagonist’s identical twin, whose perspective on life is quite different from her sister’s view. She’s my favorite character because she doesn’t lie to herself or to others — with two glaring exceptions — and her struggles are, sadly, common experiences for many women in our society.
Lit and Scribbles with Jae 