Q&A: Judith Katherine, Author of Simply Beside Herself

Tell us about your book 

Simply Beside Herself is a gentle novel about reclaiming independence at every stage of life that explores complex issues around aging and family. The story opens when Elizabeth, in her seventies, finds her own dead body sitting on a park bench and is not that surprised. Having lost track of herself for many years, fulfilling the needs of others and the roles she felt were hers, she is confronted with how viscerally part of her has died. In leaving her retirement home and setting out to reclaim herself, Elizabeth begins a chain of events that cause both her daughter and granddaughter to reach their own tipping points and subsequently their own transformations.

What inspired the ideas behind this book?

I’ve always been struck by narratives around role and how it can either broaden or narrow our worlds. Getting caught up in doing the right thing, fitting in, negotiating boundaries and not making a fuss have a predominantly female bias, but are not exclusive to women. The female characters in this novel who have become stuck are not alone and I was interested in looking at the raw points for both my female and male characters; their sense of identity, belonging, purpose and meaning. The issue of invisibility as we age is real, and the idea that there might not be a reflection looking back from a mirror or that a body might be found on a park bench were compelling thoughts that developed Elizabeth as a character. Meanwhile, Lara’s character emerged from the often-acknowledged imperatives and responsibilities facing working mothers; and the unrelenting rise and reach of social media and its isolating pull to be worthy delivered Evie, Elizabeth’s granddaughter.

What was the most challenging part of writing this book?

Taking the time and sticking with it. I structured its development around courses, all online, and was buoyed on by experienced writing colleagues. I am not good at taking time for myself unless it is productive and I have been hard wired into an antiquated view of what that looks like.

What’s some great advice you’ve received that has helped you as a writer?

The words ‘just get on with it’ ring true for me. I am very experienced in procrastination and self-sabotage and will whine about thinking there is a right time, or a right way, to wait for before I start. Luckily, I have people around me who are aware of these tendencies and will give them little quarter.

Who are some of your favourite authors, or favourite books?

On reflection most of my favourite authors are women – Iris Murdoch, Faye Weldon, Margaret Atwood, Claire Keegan, recently, and Anne Tyler. John McGahern, Brian Friel and Lewis Grassic Gibbon write beautifully of country, both Ireland and Scotland, and I have been happily lost, and re-lost in their poetic language.

Buy a copy of Simply Beside Herself here.