Drop Girl: An Unauthorised Autobiography

The first thing you need to know about Frankie Thomas is that she falls down a lot. Most of the time she is perfectly fine but then, suddenly, she drops down to the floor, paralysed. She’s not in a coma but fully conscious, and simply cannot move. This can be inconvenient when she wants to be a barista, or impress a guy with gloriously green eyes and a crooked smile. Various doctors, therapists, psychologists, and family members have theories about what causes these episodes of paralysis, which can sometimes last for fourteen hours. In 2020 Frankie travels to the north of England to be with her father, hoping to leave her mysterious condition back in Cape Town, South Africa. She has developed an ironic and humorous approach to her condition and refuses to allow it to get her down. Frankie immerses herself into the life of the small Derbyshire town of Buxton, and meets Gemma, Dan and Devin, who sweep her up into their life of allotment parties, bonfires in Grin Low wood, train trips to Manchester and pool games at the Queen’s Head pub. So begins the story written by Michael Williams in 2020. A year later, his daughter Emma discovers the discarded manuscript. She is so incensed by this unauthorised biography, she decides to disrupt her father’s narrative. Her interludes explore the challenges of living away from home, her sexuality, how to accept the death of a close friend, and how to navigate life post-paralysis. Drop Girl is the result of an unintended father-daughter collaboration. Michael Williams is a writer and the CEO of the Buxton International Festival. He is the author of several books, including the highly praised young adult novels Crocodile Burning, Now is the Time for Running and Diamond Boy . He has written the libretti for symphonic operas that have premiered around the world. He finds writing fiction to be the perfect antidote to the drama of keeping an opera festival alive in the Peak District. Emma Williams is a recent Fine Arts graduate from the University of Stellenbosch, a film-maker and performance artist. She has worked as a barista in Buxton, a waitron in Stellenbosch, and has done an artist residency with the Tankwa Artscape Residency programme in 2023. —- ISBN: 9798866863921