• Abstract and Figures
• Public Full-text

ALLEN & UNWIN’S Conversation Starters CONTENTS About the book About the author Conversation starters Just for fun If you liked this book You should never talk about books on an empty stomach! Cater your book club with mouth- watering Aussie classics such as the always popular cabanossi and cheese platter, sausage rolls and lamingtons with a sparkling wine. Seasoned hosts can also make a night of it with a BBQ and pavlova to finish. Better yet, bust out a family recipe, be it chicken parmigiana or casserole, that never fails to satisfy. ABOUT THE BOOK ‘Vanessa was suddenly gripped by panic. She was a dental assistant, for goodness sake. For twenty-three years she’d been sterilising orthodontic pliers and ingesting humanity’s fetid breath. That might quality her to scribble a handbook on flossing etiquette, but a romance novel? Who was she kidding?’ ‘A first novel from seasoned television writer Elizabeth Coleman, this is a warm and very funny read. Four Stars.’ Who Weekly Poor Vanessa. While her ex-husband Craig is living a grand romance in real life (with their marriage counsellor Natalie, but that’s another story), it seems Vanessa will have to suffice with fiction. She’s finally plucked up the courage to fulfil her lifelong dream of writing a romance novel – but to her horror she finds it plagiarised by her idol, celebrity author Charlotte Lancaster. Timid Vanessa sues for breach of copyright, and before she knows it, her unremarkable life starts taking dramatic twists and turns that she never could have plotted. Two romantic heroes appear on Vanessa’s horizon and she finds herself teetering on the brink of either wealth or public humiliation. It’s only when she learns to take control of her own story by confronting her denial about a painful past, that Vanessa can truly conquer the injustice and write the first chapter of the rest of her life. Losing the Plot is a funny story about serious stuff, filled with characters who are easy to love. ‘I loved it! It’s got a kind of Bridget Jones feel and such a page turner. Great fun but with such beautiful heart. I’ve already cast the film/series in my head!’ Rebecca Gibney ABOUT THE AUTHOR Elizabeth Coleman has been writing funny and fabulous female characters for over twenty years as a playwright and screenwriter. Her hit play, Secret Bridesmaids’ Business, broke box office records when it premiered and has since been performed all over the world. It was adapted as a telemovie for the ABC and is the inspiration for a new six part series coming soon to Channel 7. Elizabeth has also written fabulous females in many of Australia’s most popular dramas, including SeaChange, The Secret Life of Us, Wanted, Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, and Bed of Roses, which she co-created with Jutta Goetze. Losing the Plot is Elizabeth’s first novel. For more information about Elizabeth, please visit www.elizabethcoleman.com.au CONVERSATION STARTERS DISCUSSION: Is romantic fiction a cause or a consequence of its readers’ unrealistic ideas about love? QUESTIONS ABOUT THE BOOK: • Why does Vanessa seek escape in romantic fiction? Is it because of her natural personality, her upbringing, her circumstances, or a combination of all three? • Is Joy responsible for Vanessa falling for a sexy but shallow man like Marcus, or is Vanessa 100% responsible for her own choices? • Just as Vanessa tells herself a story about her father Jack to deny the fact that he was largely absent from her childhood, Dave tells himself a story about Ms Izetbegovic’s past in order to explain her appalling behaviour. By reinventing the past, how do we damage our present? • Does Vanessa handle Jackson’s ‘attack’ on Nickie appropriately? If not, why not? • Vanessa doesn’t tell Marcus about the incident with Nickie because she wants to respect Jackson’s privacy, but is that letting Marcus off the hook? Should Marcus be made to face Jackson - and the consequences of his own actions? • Does Craig bear any responsibility for Jackson’s unfortunate move on Nickie? If so, why? If not, why not? • Joy has been acting the part of ‘sex bomb’ and denying her deeper self as a means of coping with the pain of Jack’s infidelities, and her grief following his sudden death. Dave has failed to follow his true dreams because of guilt and grief arising from his mum’s death. Is grief a valid reason for not being true to yourself, or a handy (if painful) excuse? • What do you think happens to Marcus after the book ends? Do you think Vanessa has left her mark on him, or he’ll return to his vacuous life unchanged? • Charlotte Lancaster ends up hosting a national TV show after being publicly exposed as a thief and a plagiarist. What does that tell us about the priorities of our society? • Does the kind of romantic fiction written by Charlotte Lancaster perpetuate dangerous myths about love, or is it a harmless form of escapism? • Finally, who is the biggest dickhid? Craig or Marcus? JUST FOR FUN . • Who would you cast in a screen adaptation of Losing the Plot? • If you could have a chat with any character from the novel, who would it be and why? What three questions would you ask them? • Pick out a passage that strikes you as particularly moving or hilarious and read it to the group. IF YOU LIKED THIS BOOK . May we suggest the following? Girl In Between by Anna Daniels Chocolate Cake for Breakfast by Danielle Hawkins Dinner at Rose’s by Danielle Hawkins .

Load more

  4

Copy Link