I really thought I had exhausted my thought process on the octuplet mom, who has now been revealed as Nadya Suleman, when I ranted discussed her choices on Friday. But then I saw the inevitable headline this morning that she has a publicist and is weighing a number of television and book offers.
Oh, I know I shouldn't be surprised--much less disgusted--but I just can't help it. (The article mentioned that one of the television offers involved this mother of 14 hosting a show about parenting. I can't even contemplate that without wanting to scream and throw things.) I can name 10 bloggers off the top of my head (and I swear that I don't consider myself one of them!) who should have had book deals years ago but continue to struggle, even with formidable talent.
Have you read Breed 'em and Weep lately? My God, that woman could write circles around 99 percent of the English-speaking population and she's trying to decide whether to go to nursing school or become a paralegal or something just so that she can pay her bills. Where is her damn book deal? Melissa McEwan writes like a house on fire and runs one of the most successful group blogs and Internet communities anywhere on the left. I'd love to see her face on the back of a book.
Look, I know that success is not a finite quantity and that, in theory, everyone with enough talent should be able to succeed in the field that they've chosen. But there are a finite number of publishing deals to be made, especially in this economy, and it's discouraging to see amazing women who have accomplished great things with words--the sort of people who should be writing books--struggle to stay afloat, while a woman whose talent appears to be based solely on bearing 14 children in seven years is awash with offers.
Women are more than the bearers of children, and fame and fortune should not be the automatic province of those who choose to be super-fruitful.