Available October 2024
Because Fat Girl
A Novel
…warm, open-hearted and utterly inclusive.
— Katie T. on Goodreads
For everyone who’s ever felt too big, too weird, too queer—or just too much—comes a happily ever after for the rest of us.
Hollywood isn’t nice to women like Diana Smith, but that hasn’t stopped her from being unabashedly queer, plus-sized, and determined to make award-winning movies that showcase the diversity of her community. She was so close to her goal, appearing at festivals and gaining attention for her short films, when grief came and shattered Diana’s directorial dreams.
Forced to move to the suburbs with her sister, the closest thing Diana gets to the movies these days is dressing the stars of them at her high-end department store job. Until one day, she gets a pity invite to a gala full of Hollywood’s most elite, where she unwittingly attracts the attention of a famous action star.
The unexpected pairing shocks their friends–and the tabloids–forcing Diana to choose between the status quo and the silver screen. For the first time in her life, doors open for Diana and the possibilities seem endless. The chance to create unforgettable films. To shake up the industry. To inspire everyone who’s ever felt like they didn’t belong.
But fame always comes with a cost…and to get her Hollywood ending, Diana’s going to have to go completely off-script.
Join the BFG Insider Squad!
Enter your info to get a behind-the-scenes look at the publishing process + an exclusive sneak peek of the book + insider squad only givewaways!
The We're All In This Together Tour
Praise
This book is amazing and will resonate with anyone who has fought hard for a dream and to be respected for their worth. I couldn’t put it down and cried at the ending. It is fantastic!
Michelle Fleming
Goodreads
I absolutely loved it – I read it cover-to-cover in one sitting. I have honestly never read anything like it before. It tackles potentially tricky, but very real, topics with sensitivity and introduces a cast of characters you will miss when you finish reading. Mostly, it is warm, open-hearted and utterly inclusive.
Katie Treggiden
Goodreads
This is one of the few books I’ve finished in a matter of days, I could not put it down. The storyline has a ton of twists and it’s filled with laughter, heartbreak, and triumph. By the end you will have fallen in love with all the characters and finish wishing there was a sequel!
Kylee Singh
Goodreads
Lauren Marie Fleming’s delightful romance will have you laughing, blushing, angered, redeemed—but will also leave you whole, like all of her eminently memorable and succinctly drawn characters. It is a beautiful and nuanced story for our times, inclusive and revolutionary in its audacity to tell the romantic stories of folks with a wide range of identities. This is it. Your face will hurt from smiling too much, your eyes may be watery with empathy–and your heart may flutter a bit too.
Mirna Valerio
author of A Beautiful Work in Progress
Full of laugh-out-loud moments and characters who jump off the page, Because Fat Girl is a dazzling debut. I was rooting for Diana from the very start and completely fell in love with the colorful supporting cast. A perfect read for anyone who loves a behind-the-scenes Hollywood story full of heart, swoons, and empowering moments.
Holly James
author of Name Your Price
Lauren Fleming’s BECAUSE FAT GIRL is a punchy, couture, queer narrative that refuses to squeeze itself into a one-size-fits-all. This bold and bawdy story offers a refreshing and empowering take on love, art, and following one’s dreams. Smart. Sassy. Hungry. This fat girl gets the guy. If I wasn’t grinning or cheering, I was weeping with recognition.
More than mere wish fulfillment, this book delves deep into the systemic biases and stereotypes even body-loving, curvy folks have internalized. For everyone who has had life’s doors slammed in their faces yet dared to keep dreaming, BECAUSE FAT GIRL flings open windows of possibility, inviting us all to believe in ourselves.