Meeting Margaret Atwood: My Literary Hero
I was originally going to title this: The evening I met the Queen of Speculative Fiction but I thought that was a tad over the top. Having said that, I feel out of all the times one could be over the top, I think this is an acceptable time.
There are many perks to working in the field of publishing, but probably the best and most important reason is the fact that you get to meet some of the most inspiring people in the world. These people can make you cry from across the world just because of the way they arrange words in a sentence. Margaret Atwood, for me, is one of these people.
Like everyone else who is an Atwood fan, I was introduced to her through the dystopian and disturbing realms of The Handmaid's Tale. The raw inevitability of her character Offred was truly remarkable and I added her to a list of writers who's style I had fallen in love with.
But then, in my third year of University, I read Murder in the Dark.
When I met Margaret, who is a wonderfully blunt and fiesty woman in the flesh, I remember spluttering something about the fact that this book changed my life. She looked at me in a confused way, I think, most probably because she didn't understand what I was saying since I was talking at about 100mph. But it was true. This was one of those books. The books you hold close to your heart and tell everyone about as though just suggesting for someone to read this book is a gift in itself. Murder in the Dark, a series of semi-autobiographical vignettes which are both beautiful and lacking in plot - though this is what makes them so beautiful - is a gift. A wonderfully straight and aching gift. My favourite passage is in the third section entitled 'Women's Novels' and it begins with a quote that I feel should accompany every single Feminist slogan:
1. Men's novels are about men. Women's novels are about are about men too but from a different point of view.
Meeting Margaret Atwood was an absolute privilege. If you ever get the chance to meet one of your literary heroes then embrace it and tell them how much you love their work, even if they can't understand a word that you're saying. More writers should be told how important their words are, and for me, Margaret Atwood's words are some of the most important of all.
Margaret Atwood's latest novel The Heart Goes Last is available on Amazon now.