Are you looking for some inspiration for your next project? A lot of stuff gets posted during March for Women’s History Month, so I thought I would save a little inspiration for April! Here are four women I came across in my content consumption that might give you a great idea for a story.
- Berta Fanta—On my visit to Prague, of course I visited the Kafka Museum. In one of the exhibit cases, there was a collection of items related to Berta Fanta who ran an intellectual salon for intellectuals in Prague at the turn of the 20th century. The guests included heavy hitters, even Albert Einstein who taught in Prague for a time. For more information, see here.
- Chicago Poisoning Epidemic—from the book, Lady Killers by Tori Telfer, which is all about female serial killers. There is plenty to be curious about here, but in particular the chapter on the poisoning epidemic in Chicago during the 1920s and Tille Klimek. Her cousin Nellie became involved in poisoning unwanted husbands and other people, too. The book on the whole is extremely chilling, but the main thesis is that women were not considered serial murderers, and even if they were, they were “excused” or trivialized because of their gender. The author contends that both men and women can be equally culpable and heinous in their criminal acts.
- Women of Early Hollywood—before World War I, women had clout in Hollywood. Women like Florence Lois Weber. But then, kind of like in the literary world, as soon as it became clear there was money and influence on the table, men started changing the rules to keep people out. Listen to this podcast for a walk back in time to a different era of Hollywood.
- Zoe Anderson Norris—a Gilded Age journalist who fought poverty with her pen. Maybe you’ve heard about Nellie Bly, but not Norris? Is it time to learn more about other female journalists who fought for everyday people? Listen to the Gilded Gentleman episode to find out more. I can’t wait until the biography comes out.
I can’t wait to see what stories you come up with!
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