Tracy Clark-Flory and Kate Schatz, both Bay Area feminist writers, recently shared insights into their new books inspired by their mothers' experiences in 1960s homes for unwed mothers. Clark-Flory's memoir 'My Mother’s Daughter' recounts her DNA reunion with a sister her mother placed for adoption, while Schatz's novel 'Where the Girls Were' fictionalizes similar isolation and secrecy. Their conversation highlights research challenges, family traumas, and joyful sibling reunions.
A mutual friend introduced Clark-Flory and Schatz last fall, connecting them over books releasing months apart. Clark-Flory, a journalist and author of 'Want Me', details her journey piecing together her late mother's story through histories like Ann Fessler’s 'The Girls Who Went Away' and a rare resident-run newspaper from the University of Chicago Library archives. 'Librarians are the best,' Clark-Flory said of uncovering the 1960s artifact revealing gallows humor amid trauma in these secretive homes. Schatz, known for the 'Rad Women' series and 'Do the Work' with W. Kamau Bell, chose fiction to grant her characters community her mother lacked after two pregnancies and adoptions in private homes. 'By creating this fictional home... that was something that my mom never got to have,' Schatz explained. Both authors reflected on inheriting shame and silence, linking it to their feminist writing. Clark-Flory confronted her mother's alcohol use as trauma response, while Schatz recalled childhood 'mystery' obsessions uncovering family hints like a newspaper clipping. Post-Dobbs in 2022, Schatz finalized her novel after reuniting with her brothers via 23andMe in 2019 and 2020. DNA tests also united Clark-Flory with sister Kathy in Atlanta, sparking an intense bond. 'It felt like no less than a spiritual revelation,' she said of shared quirks like leg-crossing and food dances. At events, readers share similar secrets, evoking emotional responses from that era's women. Clark-Flory’s book is from Gallery Books; Schatz’s from Dial Press.