Growing up in Durham, novelist Amanda Davis knew that her Southern heritage would have a profound influence on her, but she never thought she'd spend her life writing about it.
"Writers were these magical people who created other worlds.... Looking back, it would be hard to grow up in the South and not be a part of storytelling," Davis said.
So, storytell she did. Unable to resist the powerful draw of writing, Davis pursued her dreams and moved to New York City after college. As this transplanted southerner lived in a Brooklyn warehouse next to two circus troupes, she developed the inspiration for her debut novel Wonder When You'll Miss Me. Intrigued by the fast pace of life under the big top, she joined the circus, which also, strangely enough, doubled as a publishing company of radical media. Every night for two months, she performed handstands in costume as a sales device to sell books on the circus' own bookmobile.
Although her Durham experiences weren't nearly as colorful, Davis nevertheless refers to the Bull City as home, and her development of characters reflects that.
For instance, the inspiration for her most recent novel, Wonder When You'll Miss Me, stems from her experiences with the various cliques and social hierarchies that prevailed during her time at local Jordan High School.
Clearly, Davis' past is also her present.
"This is where I came of age and this is a book of coming of age," she said.
Not autobiographical, but based upon a character who "wouldn't shut up" in her head for years, Wonder When You'll Miss Me revolves around a girl so haunted by the ghost of her former fat self that she attempts to strike back at the boys who mercilessly ridiculed her in high school. Oh, and then she joins a circus.
The characters, though quirky, are so powerfully created that this novel has blossomed into a surprising first hit for Davis - Elle Magazine dubbed it its number one reader's choice book for March. With success a long-time coming, Davis is pleased with her newfound "home girl makes good" status.
"You spend three years writing, and you don't know how it's going to work out," Davis said. "I'm very happy doing what I'm doing... and I'm fortunate that people are receiving it so well."
- Malavika Prabhu
March also marks Davis' return to Durham with a reading of her novel at The Regulator on March 10th.
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