Sex, Lies, and Online Book Clubs

Do you have a blog?

If so, is yours one of those "this is what I had for lunch, and, hey, look, cat pictures!" dealies or do you discuss all the things happening in your life?  Does this discussion sometimes include self-disclosure?  Do you ever write about highly personal stuff, such as what you're feeling and doing and how you feel about who you're doing it with?  But it's OK to write about topics such as your sexual escapades because it was totally consensual and because it's not like you're using full names and anyway, only your friends read it?

Are you aware of what can happen if your tiny, anonymous -- albeit dirrrty -- blog only your girlfriends know about gets linked by a giant political website?

And do you know that this newfound attention will then garner an international media circus?

And you're launched into not just reluctant fame but infamy as publishers and HBO and Playboy come calling? 

And you go from reading gossip sites to being featured on them?

And when the headlines FINALLY die down and Geraldo takes you off speed-dial, you find yourself again on the front pages as you battle a $20 million First Amendment lawsuit?

Do you know what that's like?

Well, Jessica Cutler does.

And this is precisely why I chose her roman a clef The Washingtonienne as the inaugural read in the MamaPopTalk Book Club.

Before I get into details of how we'll run the book club, here's a quick caveat about Ms. Cutler.  The media has been extraordinarily cruel to and about her.  Gossip mongers and journalists (is there a difference?) have painted her as a whore and a villian and an opportunist.  They've delighted in spilling all the sordid details of her life and now, legal proceedings.

Maybe these stories have already skewed your perceptions and you have no desire to read a smutty book written by a terrible person.

However, I beg you to reconsider.

Although I've never met Jessica in person, I've corresponded with her.  A couple of years ago, she did me an incredible kindness by endorsing my first book.  Since then, she's been nothing but supportive and friendly, even though doing so has been of no personal gain.  In our brief dealings, I've found her charmingly self-aware and I'm slightly awed at the way she's confronted every bit of negative publicity not by running and hiding, but by holding her head up and saying, "Oh, yeah?  Well, fuck you, too."  For sheer moxie alone, I'd recommend her book.  However, I actually read it, loved her writer's voice, and became fascinated with the narrative, so those are good reasons, too, and thus this is our first pick for the book club.

Here's how we'll do this thing:  First, get your hands on The Washingtonienne.  Since it's been in print a couple of years, it might not be in stock in every single bookstore, so you can always buy it online.  Because it's fairly racy, it's the perfect choice for beach, commute, or treadmill.  As it's a quick read, it shouldn't take you long to finish.  (I could put in a double entendre here about finishing quickly but I'm too freaking Amish to work that kind of blue.  Sorry.  But feel free to insert your own provocative punchline, OK?)

Anyway, in a couple of weeks, I'll open a new thread on MamaPopTalk.com and I'll post initial discussion questions.  You'll be welcome to respond to the set topics or add your own.

Like me, maybe you'll love the book and root for the protagonist in this riveting first novel.  Maybe you'll sympatize, maybe you'll hate, maybe you'll ping me for questions on how to get published, maybe you'll Google naked photos of Jessica, maybe you'll further explore all the ramifications of the First Amendment, and maybe you'll simply blush furiously at the sex scenes.

Or... maybe you'll be inspired to start your own blog?