Not Safe For Work: Author of the viral essay 'My boyfriend, a writer, broke up with me because I am a writer'

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The story is delivered by an unnamed protagonist, a young woman, recently graduated from the prestigious Harvard university. Although I don’t think she would have described herself in this way, I thought that she was extremely strong willed and she had a firm understanding of her own boundaries. But the truth is that I feel most comfortable and empowered on the page, expressing myself at a safe distance and after extended reflection. Do I actually care enough about these systemic issues or am I also, in a way, exploiting them as literary material for my own professional gain? This summarises the theme of the book pretty well, as a Hollywood wannabe climbs the slippery slope to greatness.

So visceral is the narrator's voice that every time I opened the book felt like sliding into uncomfortable heels. I thought it was so insightful, even though it was about a subject that as a female, we can all relate to, we all understand and a lot of us have probably had some experience of. When rumours of an assault start to circle the office, and your close friend confesses her own disturbing experience, you know there is plenty to gain from staying silent.I wanted to know what the characters were feeling and what their next move was going to be and I think that was done really well. In fact, it pulled me right in through its mix of exploring serious topics such as sexual harassment and abuse, but told from the POV of a woman who is smart, sassy and not afraid of seeing the irony in a situation.

When someone senior tells you how pretty you look, you smile and thank him – and make a mental note never to wear that dress alone with him again.

My job straddles the worlds of Hollywood and publishing: I run book-to-screen development at a literary agency, which means I am responsible for identifying books that would be good for adaptation, whether as a movie or TV show, and then pitching and helping shepherd them from page to screen. This month, when my book was published in the US, he sent me a congratulatory message, saying how thrilled he was for my success. I thought it was important that even characters that were very in touch what what was acceptable or not fell into that trap. Not Safe for Work explores how women are victimised, judged and silenced and forever having to balance not speaking up when, for example, they’re abused or harassed, if the person who did it to them is more powerful. behind the glitter and the justice, everyone is tarnished and compromised - including even our narrator.