The Accidental Book Parody

Our guest blogger is Leah Carson who writes parodies of books including Fifty Shades of BenGay: A Parody.

The Accidental Book Parody

As a reader, you probably imagine that writers begin each new book with a grand vision plus a twenty-item list for a killer marketing campaign.
As a writer, I’d have to say: Ha! I wish!
I write parodies. Sometimes they’re on mainstream topics like pets, weddings, or home improvement, and I know exactly where the book is going. But recently I stumbled upon a spoof topic purely by accident.
An email popped up for the Amazon account my husband and I share: “Thank you for your purchase of ‘Fifty Shades of Grey.’ ”
Hmmm…I didn’t download that book. I phoned Hubby at his office. “Did you buy ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’?”
“Yeah.”
An instant of relief: Our Amazon account wasn’t hacked after all. Then a new worry: Is Hubby secretly hooked on overheated S&M? “Um, hon, do you know what it’s about?”
“No, but it’s been on the bestseller list for a year, so I figured I should check it out.”
A moment of silence. Then: “Ohh-kaaayy. Let me know how you like it.”
As it turned out, Hubby never got beyond chapter 2 of “Fifty Shades.” But guess who started reading it on her Kindle? Yup. And when I reached the part about a contract (“The Submissive will walk five paces behind the Dominant, bow when he faces her, and respond ‘Yes, Anjin-san’ to his commands”) it hit me: This book begs to be spoofed.
And so I did. Spoof it, I mean, in Fifty Shades of BenGay. Which just goes to show you that accidents sometimes have happy endings.