Danielle Jackson, the author of The Accidental Pinup, celebrates Black love and plus-size bodies in her newest novel Accidentally in Love, which is about two enemies forced to work together during Chicago’s annual street festival circuit.
Jackson also addresses issues of career burnout, self-care, body image, and mental health in a way that readers can relate to.
Jackson spoke with rolling out about her book, relationships and Black love.
What led you to write this book after releasing The Accidental Pinup?
The Accidental Pinup was my debut, and it came out last July. They correlate in that the two main characters in Accidentally in Love are side characters from the first book. The first book takes place at a photography studio in the River North area of Chicago. In this one, the office manager of the photography studio is the main character and then her love interest is the brother of one of the main characters from the first book.
What inspired me to write this book is I actually wrote the first draft of Accidentally in Love during the summer of 2020. I was really writing the kind of summer I wanted to have. I wanted to be out with my friends at street festivals, going to concerts, or trying out new places to eat and things like that, so I infused that summer [with] what I felt like I was missing, and I put that in this book.
How does this book tackle issues such as burnout, mental health issues, etc.?
Burnout is a big part of Sam’s journey. She’s recently been promoted to office manager, but it’s one of those promotions where she still has to do everything else that she was doing. She’s the type of person that loves to-do lists and wants to get things done. She does all these tasks and she’s overwhelmed, and it gets to a breaking point for her where she realizes she’s burned out. I think this happens to a lot of people and I went through it in my mid-20s.
You want to put your best foot forward and do whatever you can to prove that you’re good at your job. You just keep saying “yes.” I’ve had those conversations with superiors where I tell them I can’t take on more. I’ve been lucky that I’ve had bosses where I can say, “I don’t want you to think I’m not up to the challenge, but I also know my limit.” That’s something young people in their mid-20s have to learn how far they can go with, and they also have to learn how far is too far. That’s a big conversation toward the end. You definitely have to be able to stand up for yourself and make sure you [don’t] just feel like you’re being supported by your boss, but also respected.
