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The writing of Biker Chicz of North America -pt.5
By Wil De Clercq
Do I have a favorite biker chick? Well, uhm … no. I found them all equally interesting and engaging because they’re all survivors and strong women – women who break down barriers and stereotypes. Women who know who they are and comfortable being who they are – women who know what they want out of life and who have gone after it on their own terms and continue to do so. Women who have made a difference!
As I interviewed the ladies I wished I could have met some of them a long time ago. Like I’m asking myself, where were these women when I was young? I’ve always been attracted to independent, gutsy women and it’s safe to say that all twenty-two women featured in the book are independent and gutsy. Their stories would have been worth writing even if they didn’t ride motorcycles. Then again, riding motorcycles is part of what defines them and sets them apart from their non-riding sisters.
During the writing of the book, I developed a kind of friendship with the women that is unique to a writer and the persons he or she writes about. Although, technically, befriending the people you write about is a no-no. There is an old saying in the world of journalists (which I consider myself to be only by definition), that if you make friends with your subjects you’re not doing your job, you’re doing blowjobs. In other words you lose your objectivity and you start pulling punches.
Let me assure you that no punches were pulled in the writing of the book. All the women were very candid and spoke freely about the things that have been good, bad or indifferent in their lives. Ultimately, they all turned whatever was bad or indifferent in their lives into something positive. A lesson we can all learn from.
I still touch base now and then with the wonderful ladies who populate Biker Chicz of North America and I’m hoping to eventually meet up with some if not all of them, including Lorrie Penteluke, who lives about twenty minutes down the road from me. I’m also looking forward to revisiting the discussions I had with Lucky Belcamino to co-author or ghostwrite her autobiography. Lucky is extraordinarily amazing and she could be sitting on a best seller. Her book needs to be written, with or without me.
The writing of Biker Chicz of North America was one of the most worthwhile and satisfying projects I have ever been involved in. Ed and I recorded the lives of twenty-two amazing women bikers for posterity. No woman or man, riders and non-riders alike, can read this book without getting something out of it. I’m sure quite a few women who don’t ride a bike will want to after reading Biker Chicz. I believe the book will be as relevant in twenty years as it is today.
Although quite a few of the women knew each other, or of each other, the book ended up being a platform for all of them to connect and become acquainted. It indirectly led to the founding of West Coast Biker Chicks, an offshoot and sister club of East Coast Biker Chicks, which was founded by Lucky. The book also spawned Internet sites like http://bikerchicz.blogspot.com and an open group page on Facebook aptly called Biker Chicz of North America.
Although Milwaukee hasn’t made any comments about the book, it received a four-page feature in the August issue of HOG Magazine Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Quite a few motorcycle journalists and non-riding journalists have reviewed Biker Chicz of North America. The reviews, which so far have turned up in magazines, newspapers, Internet e-zines and blogs, have all been favorable if not downright flattering.
It was an honor and a pleasure working on Biker Chicz of North America with Ed and all the women we profiled. Although we are currently not collaborating on a new project, Ed and I both look forward to the day that we will again. Since we first met in Washington, we have become not just co-authors but brothers – another book is inevitable.
Below are some links to interviews and reviews of the book.
http://wwwbookbabe.blogspot.com/2011/04/biker-chicz-of-north-america-by-edward.html
http://www.lady-ryder.com/2011/03/roadside-reading-biker-chicz-of-north.html
http://www.cyrilhuzeblog.com/2011/08/13/the-biker-chicz-of-2011-sturgis-bike-week
http://www.wgntv.com/news/middaynews/wgntv-author-biker-chicz-of-north-america,0,5014596.story
http://www.pr.com/press-release/343387