COMPLICIT is The New York Times’ monthly book club pick!

Posted on August 31, 2022 by admin

Hello everyone!

My second novel COMPLICIT is now out in the world — and in the US, it was recently selected by The New York Times for their monthly ‘Group Text’ book club! Over on Instagram, you can tune in to my IG Live chat with The New York Times Book Review on Aug 31! (And if you miss it, you can still watch it on their Instagram Reels)

I’ve had the pleasure of chatting with loads of journalists, activists, and fellow writers about Complicit and the issues it explores — at a series of events and media interviews. I’ll continue to update my Media pages with some of the key interviews and event recordings here. And so many wonderful readers and book bloggers have been in touch to say the book has been unputdownable, thought-provoking and authentic. So thank you for that. This is the stuff writers dream of.

In the meantime, I hope many more of you get the chance to read Complicit, reflect upon it, talk about it. (And don’t forget: one of the best ways you can support a book you like is by posting a rating or review of it on Amazon, Goodreads, or any number of bookselling sites. Authors always appreciate that!) I gotta go finish writing a screenplay now and prepping for my New York Times interview !

COMPLICIT is out this summer!

Posted on May 24, 2022 by admin

Just a quick update to let you know that my second novel COMPLICIT will be hitting bookshelves this summer! You can pre-order the UK edition from Orion Fiction here (out on June 23), and the US edition from Emily Bestler Books / Atria Books (out on Aug 19) here. There’s even a very special limited UK edition (numbered & signed, with fancy sprayed edges), which you can get from Goldsboro Books in the UK here!

If you’d like to pre-order it, I’d be incredibly grateful. Pre-orders help both authors and booksellers immensely — and count towards a book’s crucial first week of sales. So any advance support will make a difference.

You are also very much invited to our special public launch event of COMPLICIT, which you can attend either online or in person at Birkbeck College, London on June 22 at 6:30pm. I’m especially thrilled to be in conversation with a distinguished panel of activists, writers and researchers about my novel: Marai Larasi, Professor Liz Kelly, Rowena Chiu, Katherine Angel, with the eminent historian Professor Joanna Bourke chairing. Reception and book signing to follow! For more information and to book tickets click here. (Book your ticket ASAP, as our bookseller needs to know how many copies of COMPLICIT to stock on the night!)

And if you live near Frome, Somerset, there’s also a nice in-person launch event there on June 23 where I’ll be in conversation with bestselling author Libby Page. In fact, I’ve got a busy line-up of events (both online and in person) this summer, so check out my events page if you’d like to come to one!

A mystery set in the world of filmmaking, COMPLICIT owes much to the stories that emerged in the #MeToo movement. But I also wanted to channel my own experiences working in the film industry as a young woman — and as a sexual violence survivor, who has done a lot of thinking and consulting on how we tell these kinds of stories in the media. While capturing my own passion for cinema, and the supposed fun and glamour of Hollywood, COMPLICIT questions how much our individual ambitions affect our moral decisions, when our workplaces are already such an unequal playing field.

So a great deal has gone into the writing of COMPLICIT. And it means a great deal to me that so many other authors — across a range of genres — have enjoyed it. COMPLICIT is included in The Irish Times’ List of Books to Look Out For In 2022, and book connoisseur Simon Savidge has tipped it as ‘one of the most talked-about books of the year.’ See below to see what other authors have been saying!

My 13-month book tour is coming to a close with TEDx London!

Posted on June 30, 2018 by admin

So I’m writing this on the eve of my 13-month, seemingly never-ending book tour for Dark Chapter FINALLY coming to a close. If you told me a year ago, that I’d still be at public events talking about my first novel on July 1st, 2018… well, I’m not sure I’d have believed you. But some 80 or so public talks later, I think I’m finally at the end.

Quite fittingly, I’ll be finishing with TEDx London at the SouthBank Centre, where I’ll be speaking in the 4-6pm section on social justice. This is live in front of an audience of 2,000 with no notes or teleprompter… so it’s a bit terrifying and definitely a step up from any of my previous talks! But at least a way to finish in style. You’ll be able to watch the live-stream on the TEDx London social media channels, like Facebook Live.

Since my Korean promotional tour, I’ve been back to the US twice: for the Edgar Awards and the Bay Area Book Festival in April, and more recently for a three-city US book tour in Chicago, Washington, DC, and New York/New Jersey. At the Edgars, I had the pleasure of meeting fellow crime writers in the Mystery Writers of America, including MWA President Jeffery Deaver, who now has his own signed copy of Dark Chapter.
Sadly, I didn’t win in the Best First Novel Award category, but it was certainly an honour to be nominated. Literally hours after the awards dinner ended, I caught an early morning flight to San Francisco, where I was in Berkeley for the glorious Bay Area Book Festival. I had the pleasure of speaking there at three different events, and meeting lots of amazing authors.

You know who else now has her own signed copy of Dark Chapter? JOYCE CAROL OATES. Yes, that’s right. I did the fan-girl thing and handed her a copy after her talk. And she TWEETED ABOUT MY BOOK FOUR DAYS LATER. So yes, that kind of made my year.

In June, I started another US round of my book tour at the Printers Row Lit Fest in Chicago, the Midwest’s biggest literary festival. This time I was in conversation with NYT- bestselling author Michelle Knight, one of the survivors of the Cleveland kidnapper. We had a powerful discussion about overcoming trauma and abuse.

My US book tour was a lovely (albeit busy) time to reconnect with friends from different parts of my life, some of whom I haven’t seen in decades. One of the most powerful events for me was in the private home of Mary Lou Hartman, who is the inspiration for the character ‘Barbara’ in Dark Chapter. In real life, she was the person I called minutes after my rape, and to be in conversation with her years later was truly humbling.

I also returned to New Jersey (the state I grew up in). This interview with me ran on the front page of The Wayne Today (my hometown paper) and in the digital edition of The Record, which I used to write a few articles for in high school. The past few months also saw interviews with me in The LA Review of Books, The Chicago Tribune, Ms. magazine, CrimeReads. And this personal essay of mine ran in Goop.

Back in the UK, I was shortlisted for The Author’s Club Best First Novel Award. Again, I didn’t win, but guest adjudicator A.L. Kennedy called Dark Chapter: ‘extraordinarily courageous… A remarkable book to read in this time.’ On TV, I appeared on Sky News and London Live, and wrote this piece for The Belfast Telegraph on the 10th anniversary of my rape.

While the past 13 months have been beyond anything I could have predicted, I am REALLY looking forward to a break from all this promoting. On July 2nd, I start writing Novel No. 2. I’m also one of the judges for the SI Leeds Literary Prize this year. So this summer, I’ll be doing a lot of reading and writing. Which sounds just about right, for a writer!

Edgar nomination, Korean book tour & LOTS of public speaking

Posted on April 11, 2018 by admin

So I really need to be updating this site more often, but if I thought last year was busy… the first quarter of 2018 sent me to Los Angeles (twice), San Francisco, Berlin, Cork, Seoul, and of course my home base of London. It’s been great to have the chance to talk about Dark Chapter, #MeToo and sexual violence in so many different places. I’ve just returned from an amazing (and intense) promotional tour in Seoul, where the Korean edition of Dark Chapter just launched. And next week, I’m headed to New York, where the US paperback edition will be published on April 17th.

The big news is that Dark Chapter has been nominated for the Edgar Awards for Best First Novel. These are the most prestigious mystery & crime writing awards in the US, and have been won in the past by Stephen King, Dennis Lehane, Gillian Flynn, Viet Thanh Nguyen, etc. So I completely wasn’t expecting this – in fact, I woke up one morning in January, and my Twitter timeline had exploded. Before the Edgar Awards Ceremony in New York, I’ll be participating at the Edgar Week Symposium featuring some of the country’s top crime writers — AND there will be a launch of the US paperback at the Mysterious Bookshop in Tribeca, on Saturday, April 21st. Feel free to come by! (After that, I’m at the Bay Area Book Festival April 28-29, so looking forward to being in San Francisco again.)

In the UK, Dark Chapter has also been long-listed for The Author’s Club Best First Novel Award, and I was particularly busy with public talks around International Women’s Day, speaking at the WoW Festival at the SouthBank Centre, the House of Lords in Parliament, and meeting HRH Camilla the Duchess of Cornwall among other activities. I also returned to Cork, Ireland where I studied as a Mitchell Scholar at UCC in 2000-2001 for an MA in English (Gender & Sexuality in Irish Writing). To give a talk with my former professors in the Dept of English there was very much like coming full circle! Here’s a feature The Irish Examiner ran on me, following my visit.

With Cliona O Gallchoir, Piaras Mac Einri & Pat Coughlan, my former profs from UCC!

Of all places I never expected to go, I was flown out to South Korea, which has been rocked recently by a wave of #MeToo allegations. My Korean publishers pulled out all the stops, launching Dark Chapter there with a full press conference, coverage in all major newspapers, and multiple TV interviews. (Try doing this all while jetlagged, with a translator!) I also gave a talk at Ewha Women’s University and a Sebasi lecture (the Korean version of TED). You can watch my Sebasi lecture (in English) below:

Along the way, I got to meet some of Korea’s leading feminist scholars, fellow survivors and advocates. It was a truly eye-opening experience for me — and all due to my incredible publishers at Hangilsa. (The only other foreign literary writers they publish are Karl Ove Knausgard, Elena Ferrante, and Rachel Cusk. Nice to be in that select circle!)

My Korean translator Byeol is herself a survivor & advocate, which means a lot to me

I mentioned Los Angeles, where I attended a pre-Oscar party for the Oscars Wilde Awards, run annually by the US-Ireland Alliance and hosted by… JJ Abrams at the Bad Robot headquarters. At one point in the party I turned around and saw JJ Abrams speaking to Ava DuVernay and I promptly freaked out. I’ve also been speaking to various film companies and producers about screen adaptation rights to Dark Chapter… if you’re interested in those, contact my agents at Pontas!

Needless to say, while this is all exciting, it’s also exhausting. I luckily squeezed in a weeklong vacation on Jeju Island in Korea, and later Coron in the Philippines. I’m leaving with this photo of me at Kayangan Lake, where I wish I still was… yes, the water really is that color!

Happy New Year! Not The Booker Prize, US Book Tour & more

Posted on January 5, 2018 by admin

Happy New Year, everyone! I’m glad we’re in 2018 now, because 2017 was a serious endurance test for me, both exhilarating and exhausting… Since I last posted here:

Dark Chapter won The Not The Booker Prize
The UK paperback came out and became an Amazon bestseller
The Weinstein scandal broke and #MeToo & sexual assault dominated headlines
I was nominated for Irish Tatler’s Women of the Year Awards
We had the 2nd edition of the Clear Lines Festival, of which I was Artistic Director

So first of all, thank you so much, those who voted for my novel in Not The Booker. I honestly wasn’t expecting a novel about rape to win, but I think recent news stories indicate how much the issue resonates with many people. #MeToo also made me reflect on my own experiences in the film industry, so I wrote this opinion piece for The Guardian, another one for The Scotsman, and this one for journal.ie

Because all I ever wanted in life was to have my photo printed right next to Harvey Weinstein’s in a newspaper spread…

I also had the pleasure of discussing #DarkChapter and the #MeToo movement on BBC Woman’s Hour with Jane Garvey and fellow novelist Anne Cassidy. Here’s me in the green room!

After Not The Booker, there was a 5-way auction for translation rights to my novel in Taiwan, where my parents come from. It’ll be coming out in November 2018 with Delight Press, who also publish bestseller Celeste Ng. Needless to say, my extended family are very happy about this one. It was also an honour to be nominated in a Special Recognition category for Irish Tatler’s Women of the Year Awards, which I attended in Dublin the day after my birthday.

In November, I spoke at Goldsmiths on the Creative Writing Programme MA course, the day the paperback edition of Dark Chapter was published. It was particularly memorable to be in conversation with my former tutor Ardashir Vakil, talking about a novel I had started writing while on that very course four years ago! Later in November, I also got to discuss Dark Chapter as a guest speaker at the annual NAWE Conference in York; at a unique evening with fellow rape survivor Madeleine Black at Waterstones in Glasgow; and in a lunchtime discussion for the Survivors’ Network conference in Brighton.

http://www.independent.co.uk/video/rape-sexual-assault-life-survivor-new-video-series-introducing-media-justice-metoo-a8062251.html

Needless to say, I was very busy this year for 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence! This video series with The Independent launched — I’d helped shape the concept for the series through The Angles Project.

And then, in December, we had the 2nd edition of Clear Lines! This year, it took place in the Rich Mix arts venue, and highlights included a Comedy Night with Sara Pascoe, Bisha K. Ali, Alice Fraser, and my dear friend Tiff Stevenson; some sterling theatre performances; and panels dedicated to the experiences of BAME (ethnic minority), disabled, and LGBTQ survivorhood. Our Film Night featured three documentary films about survivors from the UK, Norway, and Ireland, with the international filmmakers flying in to discuss their work. There is lots of discussion about bringing Clear Lines to other locations, and already a team is in place to make Clear Lines USA happen!

As for 2018 and me, my US book tour kicks off this week with an event in Los Angeles on Sat, Jan 6 and another one in San Francisco on Tue, Jan 16. Click here for my upcoming events schedule — and in the meantime, ah yes, I’ve started my next novel… Happy New Year!

An Irish documentary, a South African literary festival, and the final stages of the Not The Booker Prize!

Posted on October 11, 2017 by admin

Hello – I’m writing this on a train up to Yorkshire, after a few weeks in South Africa. Lots to update you on, but in brief, I have a busy week of events coming up, starting with tonight’s launch of the 2018 SI Leeds Literary Prize at the Ilkley Literature Festival. It will be great to return to Ilkley — last time I was here, as one of the 2016 prize winners, I was deep in the edit of Dark Chapter and one year on, it’s amazing to present it as a tangible book!

Tomorrow, I’m back in London for a panel with the other short-listed writers in The Guardian’s Not The Booker Prize, chaired by Sam Jordison, the prize founder and a Guardian book critic. The panel takes place 7-9pm at the Big Green Bookshop. Looking forward to meeting the other shortlisted writers, as well as Sam, who called Dark Chapter ‘an impressive debut… defiant and urgent… conveyed with skill and emotional force’ in this great review. In fact, we’re in the final stage of the Not The Booker Prize — so if you liked the book, please consider voting for it before midnight, GMT, Sunday, Oct 15th. All you have to do is vote in the comments section of this article, providing a brief review of the book. Many thanks to all who have supported the book thus far in getting to the shortlist!

You’ll see my October events list above, which also includes speaking on panels about feminism, change, and online spaces at WoW Exeter; about recovery after rape at FiLiA (formerly the Feminism in London conference); and about sexual harassment in institutions at the London School of Economics. On Monday, Oct 16 from 5-6pm, I’ll also be part of a BBC World Service radio programme for BBC 100 Women, broadcast live from the London Transport Museum about sexual harassment on public transport.

I’m one of the four women in this TV3 Ireland documentary…

I’m also headed to Dublin in late October, where I’ll be at the awards ceremony for Irish Tatler’s Women of the Year Awards. I’m nominated in the Special Recognition category, and it has been an honour to be part of a larger, much-needed conversation in Ireland about sexual assault. In September, TV3 Ireland aired ‘Unbreakable: True Lives,’ a two-part television documentary featuring four Irish stories of sexual assault and rape. I was one of those four survivors, and the documentary follows my return to Belfast to revisit the park where I was violently raped by a stranger in 2008. When we filmed last autumn, the thought of returning to that park (which features heavily in my novel) filled me with great deal of trepidation and anxiety. But the actual return was not as awful as I expected — and the huge public reception generated by the documentary this autumn has made everything worth it. The social media reaction has been incredible, connecting a great number of survivors, and we even elicited a statement from George Hook, the Irish journalist who recently came under fire for his questionable comments about rape victims. For those in Ireland, you can still watch the show on TV3 player until Oct 26. My story is in Part 2, which aired on Sep 28th.

While the documentary was airing in Ireland, I was actually in South Africa, where I’d been invited to speak at the Articulate Africa Book Fair, part of the Essence Festival Durban. It was my first time in Durban, and I’ve always been keen to connect with readers in South Africa, which the media rather salaciously calls ‘the rape capital of the world.’ Needless to say, a great number of survivors and activists are eager to change the situation around sexual violence in South Africa —I hope my talk resonated with many. It was also great to meet with eminent writers like Chris Abani and Christopher Merrill from the US, and South African authors like bestselling crime writer Deon Meyer, debut phenomenon Mohale Mashigo, literary critic Karina Szczurek, and the renowned Etienne van Heerden (whose novel Ancestral Voices, I’d first heard about as a 14-year-old in New Jersey).

After the book fair, I took the opportunity to travel around South Africa for a week. I got to traverse the Sani Pass and stay at the highest pub in Africa (in Lesotho), explore the Drakensberg Mountains, hike in the Golden Gate Highlands, sample the art and dining scene in Clarens, and meet three of the Big 5 game animals on safari in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park. Nothing quite like turning a corner and finding an elephant right there next to the road! I hope to return to South Africa soon (especially if my book finds a distributor there), and it’s great to see readers of Dark Chapter already enjoying it down there.

Finally, my novel came out in the US and Holland in September, with Polis Books and Harper Collins respectively. I wrote this piece for LitHub, on how my background in film influences me as a writer (with a special nod to the car chase scene from The Bourne Supremacy). Already, Dark Chapter has been included among the top 2017 debut novels by Library Journal and top autumn thrillers by Book Riot. In the UK, Dark Chapter continues to generate buzz, both in the media, with those working on the issue of sexual violence, with book bloggers, such as Books Beyond Borders, Book Muse, and From First Page to Last.

The paperback will be out on November 1st, and already I have an exciting line-up of events in London and elsewhere around the UK. Looking forward to meeting more readers and seeing how far the book can go in reaching both individuals and organisations on the issue of sexual violence. If you read the book and think it’s a worthy read, spread the word! And don’t forget to vote for Not The Booker!

Dark Chapter is shortlisted for The Guardian’s Not The Booker Prize

Posted on August 28, 2017 by admin

It’s been nearly three months since Dark Chapter’s publication in UK/Ireland — and here’s the most exciting news yet: my novel’s been shortlisted for The Guardian’s Not The Booker Prize! You may wonder why the prize exists (the winner receives a mug, and nothing more), but it was set up partly to challenge the elitist, insider world of literary prizes. So the prize is entirely crowdsourced. This means that of the 160+ longlisted titles, Dark Chapter was among the top five books receiving the most votes from the public — more specifically, we tied for second place. This means a great deal to me, as it can be tough for books with independent publishers to gain traction. But it looks like the novel has already started to connect with readers, and I hope the attention Dark Chapter gets from the shortlisting will introduce it to even more. By complete coincidence, The Guardian also ran this excellent interview with me (unrelated to the Not The Booker), on July 31st about the book and after-care for rape victims.

In other news, the US/Canada publication is two weeks away — Polis Books will be publishing it on September 12th, and you can pre-order the book at all major booksellers in North America. Trade reviews have been fantastic:

“A gripping debut… Li does a fine job exploring how one incident can change the course of a life in this astute psychological study.” — Publishers Weekly

“That Li was able to write this novel, as both personal catharsis and public service, speaks volumes about her inner strength. Li’s novel is both a valuable social document and a riveting page-turner.” — Kirkus Reviews

“Li skillfully compels the reader to examine life stories that have converged through a nightmarish act of violence.” — Library Journal (Starred Review)

“A thoughtful, empathetic portrayal of the challenges rape victims face when seeking justice.” — Booklist

I also got to write this short piece for Publishers Weekly. (I am of course open to any media interviews or event suggestions in the US) I’m currently on vacation in California and just opened a box full of the US copies…

Five days after that on Sept 17th, Harper Collins Holland will publish the Dutch edition. Here’s what the cover looks like, it’s pretty different from the British and American versions!

Needless to say, Dark Chapter has started to reach international readers even before translated editions come out. Die Zeit online newsletter ran this interview in German with me, and someone even blogged about my book in Greek. This summer, we also sold translation rights in German, Czech, Korean, Italian, and Icelandic. That makes a total of nine territories where the novel will be published!

Meanwhile, I continued my book tour in the UK and Ireland this summer, speaking at more events in Bristol, Brighton, London, before returning to Belfast for the Feile an Phobail. I was in conversation with the eminent Belfast writer Glenn Patterson at a standing-room only event at the Culturlann Arts Centre in West Belfast, the area of the city where my real-life assault and the novel’s events took place.

Culturlann, Winnie M Li in conversation with Glenn Patterson about her new book Dark Chapter. pictured: Winnie M Li with Glenn Patterson, Councillor Geraldine McAteer and Daniel Lawton (US Consul General) 0408JC17

I also led a discussion group with women from the Falls Women’s Centre, and popped down to Dublin for a double book launch with the author Clar Ni Chonghaile at the legendary Hodges & Figgis bookstore there. In Belfast, there was a fair amount of press coverage, including articles with The Belfast Telegraph, Belfast Media Group, Irish News, and this television piece with UTV News.

Anyway, I’m supposed to be not working (though I have just spent time updating this webpage… ha), but when I get back to London next week, there’ll be plenty more events and news to announce. I have a busy autumn ahead of me!

Dark Chapter is available to buy now!

Posted on June 2, 2017 by admin

Well yes, it’s happened. Dark Chapter is out! In stores! Online! Do go buy it, as soon as you can, as first-week sales can provide a huge momentum boost for authors. You can get in the UK and Ireland at most major booksellers like Waterstones, WH Smith, Blackwell’s, Foyles, the Hive (to support your local high street bookshop), and yes, Amazon. In fact, the Kindle version is currently Amazon’s No. 1 bestselling title for ‘Northern Irish Crime’!

Our official publication day was yesterday, and I’ve been caught up in a flurry of media coverage and events for the past few weeks. I did a live TV interview with Nuala McGovern on BBC World GMT and here’s a few shots from it — you’ll be able to watch the interview once I figure out how to get the file up on this website (not the most tech-savvy over here…!)

Other media highlights include this radio interview with Jayne McCormack on BBC Radio Ulster, another radio chat with Sean O’Rourke on RTE Radio One, and these interviews with The Irish News and The Irish Sun. And I’ve especially relished the opportunity to write on the issue of rape for a number of outlets, including this 4-page spread for YOU Magazine and the Mail on Sunday, alongside smaller pieces like this one for The Pool and The Metro.

While most of the media interest has been about my real-life journey towards writing the book, it’s also been very gratifying to see people engaging with Dark Chapter as a novel in its own right. Here, book blogger Scott Manley Hadley has written a lengthy (and fantastic) review (also for The Huffington Post), and here’s a fascinating podcast I did with Rob Sharp for English PEN about freedom of expression and self-censorship around the issue of sexual assault. My launch event at Daunt Books Holland Park was really energizing (yes, we sold 100 hardbacks in one night!), and I have a very busy June ahead of me. In fact, I’m speaking at Byline Festival tonight, the London School of Economics on Wed, June 7th, and well… you can see the book tour schedule below for more details. Most importantly for me, I’m returning to Belfast on June 15th to present at the Belfast Book Festival — this event in particular will mean a lot to me, given that my rape took place in Belfast. Hope to see you at one of these events, and I’m always interested in speaking and fostering a more open conversation about sexual assault.

One month until DARK CHAPTER is out…

Posted on May 7, 2017 by admin

Yes I can’t *quite* believe it, but there’s less than 4 weeks to go until my debut novel Dark Chapter is available in the UK and Ireland. The hardcover arrived last week….

In the meantime, 1000 Londoners launched their short film of me as part of their ‘Century: 10 Decades x 10 Women’ series. 1000 Londoners are an award-winning project, showcasing short web films about, well, 1000 Londoners. It’s an honour to have been profiled by them, and especially to be their featured Londoner for the week of May 4-10.

On May 16th, I’ll be speaking at a pre-launch event for Dark Chapter, as part of UK Says No More Week, organised by Hestia to raise awareness about sexual and domestic violence. There will be 30 advance copies of my novel available to buy, so book your free spot here — space is very limited!

This follows a successful pre-launch event at Waterstones Piccadilly on April 30, where I’d been invited to read in the New Crime Writing slot as part of the Writers of the World Unite Festival. Many thanks to those who came and bought advance copies of Dark Chapter! There wasn’t a spare seat in the house, and the reaction was fantastic… and very encouraging for this somewhat nervous first-time author. You can watch a clip of me reading the prologue to Dark Chapter here:

Earlier in April, I was on a much-needed holiday in Spain where I got to wander around fantastic places like the Pyrenees and Cuenca on my own. But I’d also been invited to Barcelona to attend the 25th anniversary celebration of my literary agents, The Pontas Agency. It was truly magical to meet other Pontas authors who had all been flown in from around the world and were being represented by such a uniquely passionate group of agents. We got a fair amount of press coverage within the publishing industry, and I’m quoted in this article from Publishers Weekly.

Anyway, things just kicked into a higher gear in advance of Dark Chapter’s UK publication date, so watch this space for more news on events and media coverage….

A Lancôme campaign, a live TV interview… People, remember my book!

Posted on March 11, 2017 by admin

We’re still in the buzz of International Women’s Day 2017, so I am very honoured (and slightly amused) to have been chosen by Lancôme as one of 40 powerful women to be featured in the My Shade My Power campaign for their new line of Teint Idole Ultra Wear foundation.

Wait, what? As their foundation comes in 40 shades of skin tone, the new campaign features 40 diverse women who have been impressive in different industries and professional fields. Very humbling to be in the same group as cultural icons like Gurinder Chadha, Bonnie Greer, and Malorie Blackman. The campaign will be in the UK and Ireland all spring, and you’ll soon see posters and handouts in stores as well!

Aside from makeup ads (for which I did NOT get paid, but this underpaid writer could definitely use the money), I’ve been pretty busy writing and speaking. I’ve started writing for Media Diversified, and my article on Hollywood’s Awards Season Obsession with Rape and Sexual Assault was quite popular. It’s true: each year, prestige pictures roll out with plum roles for actors to play rape survivors and rapists (and hopefully win awards), but how well do these films reflect the lived reality of rape and sexual assault?

I was in New York and Boston earlier this week, and did a live TV interview with i24 News — on their program ‘Stateside’ with David Shuster. The Marine photo scandal is still raging in the US, so they asked me to comment and gave me a chance to talk about my upcoming novel DARK CHAPTER.

Amid the marine photo scandal, @winniemli talks to @DavidShuster about her novel inspired by her own experience of being sexually assaulted pic.twitter.com/329BLiKVxN

— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) March 7, 2017

Guess I can tick ‘live TV interview with international news channel in Times Square’ off my list!

In Boston, I’d been invited to speak at my alma mater Harvard’s 50th Anniversary Symposium for the Folklore and Mythology degree. Yes, that’s what I got my BA in, and it was truly wonderful and reaffirming to talk about the impact of a humanities education on my life and how I am still using storytelling (to a very large degree!) in the work that I do.

Finally, my red-eye flight landed back in London on International Women’s Day, and I somehow made it through five hours of class to chair a fascinating panel discussion that evening for The Malala Fund. This was on the importance of girls’ education worldwide, and followed a charity screening of the documentary ‘I AM MALALA.’ I had the chance to speak with an impressive panel of women working on gender equality, including representatives of Women 4 Africa, Educate Girls, The Malala Fund.

But there will be plenty more of such panels this weekend at the sold-out 7th annual Women of the World Festival at the SouthBank Centre. It turns out I’m speaking/chairing at FOUR different events over the next few days there (all on rape and sexual assault, of course).

Saturday, March 11, 3pm: Deciding Whose Story Gets Told

Sunday, March 12, 11:30am: Q&A panel following the World Premiere of ‘Foreign Body’

Sunday, March 12, 6:15pm: Chairing the Discussion Group on Giving Testimony about Sexual Assault and Abuse

Tuesday, March 14, 5:30pm: Chairing a 7pm Discussion Group following South of Forgiveness

This last event is the re-programming of the controversial TED Talk speakers Thordis Elva and Tom Stranger (a rape survivor and her rapist who share the stage), which generated an angry online petition to have the event moved out of the WoW Festival. WoW, to their credit, moved the event and have felt it was important to enable conversation with survivors to hear their thoughts on the topic. So it promises to be a heady, but vital discussion. Hope to see some of you at the SouthBank this weekend!

Winnie M Li

author & activist

Category Archives: Public reading