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The Interview: Bookbag Talks To Marilyn Bennett (view source)
Revision as of 15:43, 29 August 2020
, 15:43, 29 August 2020no edit summary
* '''BB: I loved the title - ''Granny with Benefits''. How did you come up with something so brilliant?'''
MB: Thank you! As soon as I thought of it, I knew it was the right one. As I'm getting older I'm more aware of society's obsession with youthfulness. The book explores aging ageing and dating and I really liked the idea that pretending to be an older woman was a benefit rather than some kind of hindrance.
* '''BB: What was the inspiration behind the story?'''
The second conversation I had was with a male friend and I wanted to set up a blind date with one of his single friends. His friend gave him permission to select a 'suitable' date by viewing photographs of my friends, which I thought was rude and against the spirit of a blind date, so I was having none of it.
It made me think, if a lot of men are looking for their mothers, what would you learn about them and yourself if you pretended to be a surrogate mother. It presented me with an opportunity to look at dating and agingageing.
* '''BB: At the beginning of the story I didn't particularly like Grace: she lies too easily. Then gradually I started to root for her. Was the way we feel at the start of the book a deliberate ploy and was it difficult to gradually turn us all into fans?'''
MB: Grace is a deliberately flawed character that I knew people might dislike initially because of her actions, but at her heart , she is a caring and decent human being. Outwardly she appears to be in control, but inwardly she is incredibly worried about her future and this results in her rash choices and dubious behaviour.
I think we all make mistakes and poor judgement calls at some point. My hope was that readers would understand her motivation for the things she did and would also see how much she loved her friends and family, so would understand that she wasn't all bad.