Eliza Knight is the author of the new novel Confessions of a Grammar Queen. Her many other books include the novel The Mayfair Bookshop. She lives in Florida.
Q: What inspired you to write Confessions of a Grammar Queen, and how did you create your character Bernadette Swift?
A: A few summers ago, I met Frank in a bar in Columbus, Ohio. The Frank. A towering Harlequin Great Dane who clearly thought he was the bar. He strolled from table to table like a four-legged mayor, greeting everyone with the casual confidence of someone who owned the place.
It’s no secret I’m a dog person, and Frank had me at hello. I turned to my husband and oldest daughter and said, “That dog needs to go in a book.” I just didn’t know which one yet.
A month later, on a book tour, I found my answer. I was somewhere between cities, driving and blasting Taylor Swift’s “The Man,” when an idea started to take shape. By the time the song ended, I had the bones of a story—and a heroine named Bernadette, with Frank faithfully by her side.
The story kept growing. I wandered the public library in New York City, soaking in its magic. By the time I reached Maine, I was on the phone with my fantastic agent, pitching a concept I couldn’t stop thinking about: an intelligent, stylish woman new to publishing, hungry to rise to the top—and determined to become the first female CEO of a publishing house.
Set in the early 1960s, Confessions of a Grammar Queen is inspired in part by the Equal Pay Act of 1963, when women finally gained the right to ask for the same salary as their male colleagues.
Bernadette is sharper than most, a copyeditor with a killer instinct and a soft heart. She’s ambitious, loyal, and fiercely supportive of other women. She’s also unapologetically feminine—she paints her nails , wears unique headbands, cooks like Julia Child, and loves the color pink. Not because it pleases men but because it pleases her.
And yes, her best friend is a Great Dane named Frank, who struts through the story like he owns every room he’s in.
Q: The writer Madeline Martin said of the novel, “Confessions of a Grammar Queen is the ultimate women-supporting-other-women book.” What do you think of that description?
A: I think it’s a perfect description! Bernadette doesn’t just want equality for herself—she wants it for every woman in her orbit. She’s the kind of friend who’ll nudge you to ask for that raise, apply for the promotion, or speak up in a meeting.
And when she stumbles into a secret book club reading bold, feminist literature, it lights an even bigger fire in her. The discussions go deeper—should women be asking for more not just at work but at home, too?
Bernadette’s answer is a resounding yes. She’s all in. She cheers on her mother to chase a lifelong dream and encourages her to ask her husband to share the load at home.
Bernadette takes it a step further, too. She organizes women’s marches, rallying others to stand up and speak out. She hosts what she calls “Confessions of Office Buffoonery And Occupational Malapropos” at her favorite neighborhood coffee shop—a safe space where women gather to talk openly about the challenges they’re facing and get real advice on how to navigate them.
But she doesn’t stop at conversation or coffee shop support. As she climbs the publishing ladder, she reaches back to pull other women up with her—mentoring, advocating, and creating space for voices that deserve to be heard.
Bernadette is proof that ambition and empathy aren’t mutually exclusive. She believes in women helping women, and she lives it—loudly, proudly, and without apology.
Q: How did you research the novel, and what did you learn that especially surprised you?
A: The research for this novel was deep and wide—because I’d never written anything set in the 1960s before. I’ve also never been a copy editor, though I’ve had to work with many.
I had to do more than just learn about the decade; I had to live in it, in my mind at least. I started with the big picture: the cultural shifts, the politics, the music, the books, the fashion. Then, I narrowed in on the lives of women—how they moved through the world, what they were fighting for, and what doors were still firmly closed to them.
I dove into the publishing world of the era—what bookstores looked like, what was on the bestseller lists, what kinds of stories were being told (and which ones weren’t). I looked into what was on TV, what kind of makeup women wore, and how they styled their hair.
I wanted every detail to feel real so readers could be fully immersed in Bernadette’s world—like they’d stepped into 1963. Bernadette’s character is also based on several women who paved the way for others in publishing: Eleanor Gould Packard, Phyllis E. Grann, and Anna Wintour.
But what surprised me most? How much of what women were demanding then—equal pay, maternity leave, respect in the workplace—is still being fought for now, more than 60 years later. Different decade, same battles. That realization stayed with me throughout the writing process, making the story feel not just historical but heartbreakingly relevant.
Q: How was the novel’s title chosen, and what does it signify for you?
A: I always knew Bernadette was going to be the queen of grammar—sharp-eyed, sharp-witted, and unafraid to wield a red pen. So, from the very beginning, I wanted “Grammar Queen” to be part of the title. It just fit.
Then, as I was writing the scenes where Bernadette hosts her hilariously blunt workplace forum—“Confessions of Office Buffoonery and Occupational Malapropos”—the title hit me like a well-placed em dash: Confessions of a Grammar Queen. It had just the right ring to it. Witty, sassy, and a little tongue-in-cheek. I just couldn’t let it go.
And then, in a bit of serendipity, I stumbled across a book during my copyediting research: Between You & Me: Confessions of a Comma Queen by Mary Norris. I nearly dropped my coffee. It felt like a sign from the grammar gods themselves—I was on the right track.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: I’m currently working on a new novel, tentatively titled Lost in the Summer of ’69, set to release in Summer 2026. It follows a soon-to-be empty-nester whose world is turned upside down when her mother—recently diagnosed with dementia—suddenly goes missing. With nowhere else to turn, she enlists her withdrawn, college-aged daughter for an unexpected road trip to track down Grandma.
But this isn’t your typical missing person case. Their search takes them on a wild, cross-country adventure through the iconic music festivals of the summer of 1969 (Woodstock!). From New York to California, they follow a trail of flower crowns, vinyl records, and swirling rumors—until they discover that Grandma has become something of a legend, now known on the circuit as the Dame of Rock’ n’ Roll.
Along the way, the story weaves together family bonds, generational healing, and a deep love for music, memory, and reinvention. And, of course—no book of mine would be complete without a literary soul—so the daughter? She’s a budding writer, searching for her voice just as her grandmother once found hers.
Q: Anything else we should know?
A: Confessions of a Grammar Queen is a story full of heart and humor—with a healthy dose of wit, wordplay, and a love for all things literary.
At its core, the book is about a woman who’s head over heels for life and the written word--a self-proclaimed logophile. Bernadette is passionate about books, fiercely loyal to her friends, devoted to her dog, and determined to make her mark in the big city.
She’s a lover of language and chocolate cake, someone who edits with precision but lives with passion. And while her focus is firmly on building a career and lifting up the women around her… she just might find herself opening her heart to love along the way.
The story is charming and empowering—a celebration of ambition, friendship, and finding your voice, both on and off the page. It’s a feel-good read with depth, and I think readers will fall in love with Bernadette the same way I did.
--Interview with Deborah Kalb. Here's a previous Q&A with Eliza Knight.
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