Kate Elizabeth Russell (born 1984) is an American author. Her

debut novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to pu ...

, ''My Dark Vanessa'', was published in 2020 and became a national bestseller.

Biography

Russell was raised in the town of Clifton, Maine, attending John Bapst Memorial High School in

Bangor, Maine Bangor ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Penobscot County, Maine, United States. The city proper has a population of 31,753, making it the state's List of municipalities in Maine, third-most populous city, behind Portland, Maine, Portland ...

. She subsequently studied as an undergraduate at the

University of Maine at Farmington A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Uni ...

, earning a B.F.A. in creative writing in 2006, and went on to earn an M.F.A. from

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a state university system, system of Public university, public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. The system has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration o ...

and a Ph.D. in creative writing from the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States. Two branch campuses are in the Kansas City metropolitan area on the Kansas side: the university's medical school and hospital ...

''My Dark Vanessa''

Russell's first novel offers a fictional account of a traumatic sexual relationship between its protagonist, Vanessa Wye, and Jacob Strane. Wye is 15 years old and a lonely student at boarding school when Strane, her 42-year-old English teacher, begins grooming her for a sexual relationship which will come to cast an appalling shadow over her life. The novel is a

first-person narrative A first-person narrative (also known as a first-person perspective, voice, point of view, etc.) is a mode of storytelling in which a storyteller recounts events from that storyteller's own personal point of view, using first-person grammar su ...

, jumping forward and backward in time amongst 2000, 2007, and 2017, with this last year affording Russell the social context of the

Me Too movement #MeToo is a social movement and Consciousness raising, awareness campaign against sexual abuse, sexual harassment and rape culture, in which women publicize their experiences of sexual abuse or sexual harassment. The phrase "Me Too" was init ...

. It is implied that Vanessa is, at least in part, an

unreliable narrator In literature, film, and other such arts, an unreliable narrator is a narrator who cannot be trusted, one whose credibility is compromised. They can be found in a wide range from children to mature characters. While unreliable narrators are al ...

owing to her reluctance to see herself as a victim or Strane as a predator. ''My Dark Vanessa'' was a

national bestseller National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

. It was selected for translation and publication in 22 countries, and optioned for the screen. Reviewed positively in a number of publications, ''My Dark Vanessa'' brought Russell into a public conversation regarding the novel's treatment of abusive sexual relationships, as well as an individual's right to privacy regarding past trauma. Russell was shortlisted for the 2021

Dylan Thomas Prize The Dylan Thomas Prize is a leading prize for young writers presented annually. The prize, named in honour of the Welsh writer and poet Dylan Thomas, brings international prestige and a remuneration of £30,000 (~$46,000). It is open to published w ...

for ''My Dark Vanessa''.

Plagiarism accusations

Before ''My Dark Vanessa'' was published, author

Wendy C. Ortiz Wendy C. Ortiz (born 16 May 1973) is an American memoirist, essayist, writer, poet, and psychotherapist. She lives in Los Angeles. Early life and education Wendy C. Ortiz was born in 1973, in Los Angeles, California. She is of Mexican heritage ...

complained that it had received different support from that given to Ortiz's memoir concerning a relationship with her 8th grade English teacher. Ortiz had not read Russell's book, but discussed Russell's alleged appropriation on

Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...

with

Roxane Gay Roxane Gay (born October 15, 1974) is an American writer, professor, editor, and social commentator. Gay is the author of ''The New York Times'' best-selling essay collection ''Bad Feminist'' (2014), as well as the short story collection ''Ayiti ...

. Gay subsequently published Ortiz's essay "Adventures in Publishing Outside the Gates," which alleged ''My Dark Vanessa'' bore "eerie story similarities" to Ortiz's memoir; the article began with an illustration of one artist copying another's work. The ''

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

'' reported, "Reviewers who looked at both books saw no evidence of plagiarism," a conclusion echoed by Lila Shapiro of ''

New York Magazine ''New York'' is an American biweekly magazine concerned with life, culture, politics, and style generally, with a particular emphasis on New York City. Founded by Clay Felker and Milton Glaser in 1968 as a competitor to ''The New Yorker'' a ...

''. Nevertheless, in response to social media comments, and in the wake of the controversy over '' American Dirt'',

Oprah Winfrey Oprah Gail Winfrey (; born Orpah Gail Winfrey; January 29, 1954) is an American television presenter, talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and media proprietor. She is best known for her talk show, ''The Oprah Winfrey Show' ...

, who had originally tapped ''My Dark Vanessa'' as a selection for her influential Book Club, rescinded the selection. As a result of the accusations of plagiarism and appropriation, Russell made a public statement disclosing that ''My Dark Vanessa'' had been inspired by her own experiences with sexual abuse as a teenager.

Bibliography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, Kate Elizabeth 21st-century American women writers Novelists from Maine 1984 births Living people 21st-century American novelists People from Penobscot County, Maine University of Kansas alumni Indiana University alumni American women novelists University of Maine at Farmington alumni