Karen McLeod – författare

The serious sits alongside the subversive; autobiography crashes into wild imagination. You could crack this book at random and find something that grabs you by the throat or makes you laugh out loud possibly both - bold, uncompromising, and thrillingly itself.'- Eric Page, Scene Magazine. Championing new and emerging writers alongside established authors, the anthology features voices across all narrative forms including fiction, poetry, memoir, essay and flash-fiction. The anthology will comprise of 40 pieces, the winning entries from an international competition to capture the best of queer writing today. The first volume, published by Muswell Press in November 2021, has reprinted five times and praise was widespread. This is writing that explores characters, stories and experiences beyond the mainstream. Celebrating the fascinating, the forbidden, the subversive, and even the mundane, but in essence, the view from outside.

Brimming with vertiginous loops and extreme globe-trotting, This is the account of Karen’s experience flying as cabin crew for British Airways over a 12-year period, and the profound impact that experience had on her life. Told with the wit and verve that characterised her debut. Lifting Off is about seeking identity in a heterosexual world, whilst dealing with the fall-out from fractured family relationships. When a colleague suggests to Karen that she should hide her sexuality to make others feel comfortable, she has no idea what the personal cost will be. Having come out as a lesbian she goes back in. Whilst gay male cabin crew are accepted, gay women are forced to hide their true selves. Against a backdrop of exotic locations, hotel bars and nightclubs, Karen slowly unravels as the inability to truly be herself begins to impact on her spirit. In essence it’s the story of how Karen came into land. How she learned to look after herself and discovered her true strength. Ultimately, it is about love and creativity: unconventional love for her gay best friend, the rarity and transformative release through lesbian love, and the freeing impact of her dad’s death.