Wakefield Press is delighted to announce the acquisition of ANZ rights to Katharine Pollock’s comedic second novel, provisionally titled Starry Eyed, via Benython Oldfield of Zeitgeist Agency. Publication is projected in March 2025.
Read on to find out more about this exciting new acquisition.
Addilyn Acker lives an unremarkable life, except when she’s thinking about Josh ‘Jolly’ Courtney, director of 1990s cult sci-fi film Scarlett Fever, and subject of her meticulously maintained blog. She works in a dreary (and extremely dodgy) call centre, lives alone with her pet rabbit, and shares tense weekly dinners with her disapproving mother.
When Addilyn is invited to New York’s biggest sci-fi convention to interview Josh on stage, she jumps at the opportunity. But soon the line between fan and celebrity is blurred, and the rumours about Josh that Addilyn has been denying become harder to write off. Between a sordid affair, her unbelievably beautiful new friend Sal, and the very cute comic store owner Anthony, Addilyn’s universe has expanded exponentially. So why does Addilyn suddenly feel like her world is spinning out of orbit? Starry Eyed is a zany, wholehearted exploration of identity, creative expression, and false narratives.
‘I’m so excited to be working with Katharine on Starry Eyed,’ says editor Maddy Sexton. ‘Addilyn is a delightfully left-of-centre nerd, who is impossible not to like from the very first awkward situation she somehow finds herself in the middle of.
‘Starry Eyed is a gleeful sendup of the culture of celebrity worship, parasocial relationships, and the performative quasi-feminism of male-dominated media, while also being a tender exploration of identity, relationships, and finding your place in the world.’
In writing Starry Eyed, Katharine says she was ‘was equally invested in the complexities of feminism, friendship, mother-daughter relationships, and the joys and dangers of unchecked fandom.’
‘I’m beyond thrilled to be working with Wakefield Press to bring Starry Eyed into the world. It’s an earnest and funny novel with some dark undercurrents, and is as much a celebration of fandom as it is a cautionary tale. I sensed immediately that Maddy Sexton and Wakefield understood Addilyn and everything she represents. Although my novel interrogates the darker side of fandom and explores post #MeToo issues, it was important for me to write something optimistic and celebratory. We’re living through dark times, and while art has a responsibility to reflect reality to some extent, I wanted Starry Eyed to also be an escape. I’m excited to work with the dedicated team at Wakefield, and to be associated with such an iconic independent publisher.’
Katharine Pollock (PhD) is the author Her Fidelity (Penguin Random House, 2022), the comedic coming-of-age story of a young woman working in an indie record shop and trying to figure out who she is and what really matters. It was included in The Age’s The Books That Made Their Mark in 2022 list, was shortlisted for the ABA Best Commercial Cover Award, and received great critical reception, including from Annabel Crabb and Melina Marchetta. She has been published by the Guardian, Fremantle Press, Hear Us Scream, Vitagraph Publishing, and elsewhere.
Katharine holds a PhD in Creative Writing from Western Sydney University’s Writing and Society Research Centre, and mentored a PhD candidate in 2023. As well as a university tutor, she is a high school English teacher, and was named 2023’s English Teacher of the Year. Katharine lives and writes on unceded Eora land. She is represented by Benython Oldfield at Zeitgeist media.