In light of International Women’s Day, we caught up with Kitty Riggs, author of ‘What If Bowie Were A Woman?’ (WIBWAW) This is Kitty’s first published novel, despite having written many more, her first by aged 12. WIBWAW takes us through the life of Penny Jones, a female rock star that parallels with the late, great David Bowie. The book explores gender and womanhood throughout, addressing the misogyny and blatant hypocrisy within the music industry and society.
It highlights what many female stars are currently going through – the press writing only about your body whilst not acknowledging your talent, the constant objectification and sexualisation, the flurry of sleazy bookers and managers. Kitty spoke to us about her inspirations for the novel, her research into David Bowie for her protagonist Penny Jones and her favourite Bowie tracks.
What were your main inspirations for the novel? How did the idea to write about Penny Jones come about?
“My dad came home one day, and just said the words: ‘What if Bowie were a woman?’ I’d been writing lyrics instead of novels for about a year, and he knew I was looking for inspiration, and that one sentence just sparked SO many ideas. The question alone kind of blew my mind! It just got me questioning everything, I kinda spiralled that night down a BIG whole, questing everything about gender, and even my own gender! I love being a woman, it’s my favourite thing to be, and I never want it to stop or hinder my chances at being able to do something; exploring Penny’s life helped me to understand how I felt about my own gender and my outlook on feminism. I wanted to write a novel that discussed gender, and its massive impact on people’s careers. I think it’s absurd that your gender can influence your chance at succeeding in your career, and it needs changing desperately. Ultimately, I wanted to write a book that explored womanhood, and what it’s like to be a woman in a man’s world.”
Is there anything you’ve seen/heard about in the modern-day music industry that made you want to draw attention to the inequality women face?
“There was a lot of stories from the time Bowie was at his biggest that probably influenced me more to start. Actually, the lack of stories of successful women during that time was a big one. And when I say that, I never want to belittle the many women who were successful, there can just ALWAYS be more successful women doing what they fucking love. The world would never be a worse place if we had MORE women doing their thing; it can only be better!
I find the general misogyny in the entertainment industries one of the toughest things to swallow, because it can be so silent and hidden; we don’t even notice it. We’re all so fucking brainwashed to our own mistreatment. Lack of chances given to women; the sex appeal image forced upon so many talented women; the horrifying sexual, verbal, physical and emotional abuse women face from their ‘teams.’ The list goes fucking on, and it breaks my heart.
Sometimes, I feel that there is very little we can do, but I know that something we can always do is shine a light on this misogyny. We can always use our voice, even if it’s not heard; the mere act of using our voice is a very powerful thing. You never know who is listening.”
How did you go about researching a character like David Bowie, to create the parallel of Penny Jones?
I mean, it was the best few months of my life! ‘Sorry mum, we HAVE to watch him at Glastonbury for the fifth time this week, it’s research!’
I loved it a lot, and I was quite arrogant going into it. I figured I wouldn’t have to do too much because I already knew so much and already loved him enough. I didn’t expect to fall in love with him even more, but I just did. I didn’t care much for facts and figures, those weren’t as relevant to me and Penny. I needed to know more about him as a person: his character, his flaws, the way he spoke, what he wore, how he thought. Those were more important to me. But from the get-go, Penny and David were always very separate beings, so the research was I guess more to solidify what I was doing in my head, and reassure me more than the writing!
Penny goes through a lot throughout her story, facing many issues that women still face to this day. Were there any other inspirations, besides David Bowie, for Penny’s story, either from within music industry, in your own life or anywhere else?
I wanted Penny’s story to be pretty universal. Penny’s story is the story of women everywhere, so I drew inspiration from stories I’ve heard from countless women over the years. And my own. I’m a woman, I know what sexism feels like, and the thing about sexism is, it’s pretty translatable. Once you’ve been harassed and catcalled in the street, you’re welcomed into a club of know-how.
Being a woman, you live with this general misogyny that never gets any lighter, and I found my own mistreatment an easy inspiration for those general misogynistic scenarios. However, I can only imagine some of the other events in Penny’s life, her miscarriage, rape, addiction. Those are the translations, and brave stories of others. In all, women were the main inspiration. Women everywhere, who know the weight of their gender all too well.
Learning about Julian How and his story was amazing. How did you learn about him?
So, Julian Hows’ story is my favourite, and it’s even more so my favourite for the story of how I discovered him (which isn’t too exciting, don’t get too giddy). I was researching feminist revolts at that time, and I swear to god, at the very bottom of a very random article that I could probably never find again; I discovered Julian’s story. It was this photo, that was it, and I remember getting goosebumps. It kind of blew me away. Firstly, I loved the story and him. Secondly, his age, and the fact he lived so close to Bowie/ Penny. I just KNEW they would be friends and it was so perfect. I want as many people as possible to know about his story too, I think it’s still so relevant and important now.
I saw you self-published the novel. How did you find this process and is it something you will continue to do with upcoming?
YES! I have a lot of issues with the traditional publishing industry. I don’t like how money-driven they are; they don’t take chances; they just keep offering celebrities book deals that are written by ghostwriters. Spoiler: they have many outdated rules, and far too many regulations that zap the creativity out of EVERYTHING. I could go on! But, self-publishing is so freeing, and you can literally do whatever you want. Don’t get me wrong, it’s tough and the outreach isn’t the same, but I’ve always had the ethos of: ‘if you want something doing, do it yourself.’
I don’t see how I can’t be as successful as a traditionally published author, it might just take a little longer [doing it by myself]. My second book, Bamboo Til Two, is a collection of poetry. It was a real eye-opener to me, because I had this idea to put all these random bits of writing together, and I just did it. There were no strings, no waiting a year for an agent or book deal. I just made it exactly how I wanted, and it’s just so fun.
I recommend it to anyone who wants to do it, it can be tough, and I’m still finding my feet. You have to be so much more than just an author. You’ve got to be a promoter, social media manager, photographer, designer, editor, formatter, graphic designer and SO much more! But, it doesn’t stop me. I just figure it out as I go along. We’re all human, I think people quite like the humanness to it. They like knowing a human’s made every page, and not a robot or corporate money-making machine.
Finally, what’s your favourite Bowie track (or lyric) and why?
This is the toughest question on the planet, you know that right? My answer to this would probably change with the weather, but a lyric I will NEVER tire of is from ‘Seven.’ I found it especially poignant after the last year we’ve just had. It’s a bit morbid, but you know!: “I’ve got seven days to live my life, or seven ways to die.”
