Welcome back to a new installment of Bookmarked, a series where our favorite authors, readers, and bookish people share their best book recommendations and reading rituals.

I’m thrilled to share today’s guest with you. Rufi Thorpe is the author of Margo’s Got Money Troubles, the feel-good novel I’m enthusiastically recommending to…pretty much everyone right now. It’s a rare gem of a book that perfectly balances heart and humor, featuring a main protagonist you’ll want to root for. It deserves every bit of buzz it’s gotten.

In our chat, Rufi shares how exactly she got all those details on how OnlyFans works and lots of other fun tidbits, like which bookstore café’s biscuits changed her life and some strong feelings about Chappell Roan. TL;DR Rufi IS as cool and fun as you think she is. :)

Have you read Margo yet? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments. Enjoy! –Alisha

Get to Know Rufi Thorpe, Author of “Margo’s Got Money Troubles”

Hi, Rufi! For readers who haven’t read your new book yet, can you please give us a little teaser about what it’s about?

The book follows Margo, who has money troubles indeed! She is a community college student who gets knocked up by her English professor, keeps the baby, and supports herself with an OnlyFans account. Her dad, an ex-pro-wrestler fresh out of rehab, moves in and helps with childcare. His wrestling insights help her account take off, which is of course when all the real trouble begins.

Your book has such a unique and fresh concept. What inspired it?

For years, I dreamed of writing a sex-worker mother character, taking the Madonna/Whore complex and attempting to fuse them into one figure. But it seemed impossible for so long because the cultural stigma against sex work is so strong, and the pedestal we put mothers on is so vertiginously high. When OnlyFans started to blow up, I noticed people were talking about it in a much less judgmental way, and I thought: Here’s my chance!

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The biggest question that came up for me in reading this book was what did the research look like for it?! You get into a lot of specifics about pro-wrestling and how creators on OnlyFans build audiences. Were you just…on OnlyFans a whole lot?! :)

I really was! I wrote this during the pandemic, while overseeing Zoom kindergarten, so spending time on the site felt wonderfully subversive, like my artistic life was still alive. There wasn’t a way to get the information I needed just by sliding into girls’ DMs, as you can imagine—everyone and their dad is trying to slide into their DMs. So, I would send a $50 tip and a message on OnlyFans, explaining I was a novelist and asking if they would answer questions for money. Some were interested, some weren’t. It was a long and super fascinating process.

With wrestling, I got obsessed almost coincidentally at this time. At first, I didn’t think it would go in the book, but there is this wonderfully rich tradition of wrestlers writing memoirs, and the stories are OFF THE CHAIN. I was just reading one after another like candy.

Your book is being adapted into a series by Apple, starring Elle Fanning and Nicole Kidman. What are you most excited about in this adaptation?

I mean, the whole thing is just so surreal. I think because it’s becoming a series instead of a movie, there will be more space to expand. I hope they are able to really bring in the larping! I had it all set up; it’s right there, but I could never make it relevant enough to the plot to fully bring it in. I’m hoping they can in the show. I want to see Suzie’s orc boyfriends around the apartment, you know?

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Who are your top literary influences?

Nabokov, John Irving, Shirley Jackson, and James Baldwin shaped me growing up. In terms of writers writing now who I admire and feel an artistic kinship with: I’m such a huge Jane Smiley fan; I just think she’s incredible, and Kevin Wilson is a big favorite for me too—I would read his grocery list.

Any current pop culture obsessions?

I'm into Chappell Roan right now, much to the dismay of my children, who keep begging me to return to our usual rap-only playlists and stop playing “Pink Pony Club.”

I’m obsessed with historical cooking content, especially Tasting History with Max Miller. He has an amazing YouTube channel and a great cookbook that I love. I've been making “Napoleon’s favorite chicken dish.”

Rufi’s Reading Rituals

What does your reading routine or ritual look like?

A lot of my reading time is spoken for in the form of giving blurbs or reading galleys, so I have a big old stack on my desk with due dates in sharpie on the cover. My for-me reading I mostly do on audiobook while I do dishes or walk the dog or fold laundry. 

What's your dream reading setup?

Best reading is, hands down, when you get out of the shower but don’t get dressed yet and decide you are allowed to read naked in bed, preferably in the middle of the afternoon, and then you wind up reading for like three hours and suddenly it’s dinner and you get dressed then stumble out hungry and bleary-eyed. This is not very attainable for someone with kids, but I remember it well from my youth. 

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Favorite indie bookstore?

You can’t do that to me!! I love them all! But I will say, I love Skylight in LA for their massive tree, and Vroman’s for being just fucking massive. I love Elliott Bay in Seattle because their cafe is insanely delicious, I had a biscuit with jam there that changed my life.

How and where do you discover new books to read?

Honestly, my mother. My mom reads an insane amount (like four books a week) and sort of acts as a pre-screen, telling me what to skip or what is not to be missed and she has killer taste.

Can you show us where you read?

Our main book storage is in the living room—it’s just white IKEA bookcases we have had forever, but they make me so happy, the chaos of the books on them. I also have stacks and stacks of books on my desk, my night table, and everywhere, really. Here are the living room bookcases:

Rufi’s Book Recommendations

A book you’d recommend to all your friends:

The Knockout Artist by Harry Crews

A book that impacted you during your childhood:

I Am The Cheese by Robert Cormier

A book that would make a great book club pick:

Come and Get It by Kiley Reid

A book that gave you all the feelings:

Friday Black by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

A book you’d pack on vacation:

One-Star Romance by Laura Hankin

Thank you so much, Rufi!

Have you read Margo’s Got Money Troubles yet? What did you think? Leave a comment below.

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• Purchase Margo’s Got Money Troubles on Bookshop, Barnes & Noble, Amazon, or your local bookstore.

• Follow Rufi on Instagram @rufithorpe.

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Previously on Downtime

Bookmarked with Michelle Martin Alisha Ramos · Jun 4 Read full story

The books on my summer reading list and an escape to the South of France Alisha Ramos · Jun 7 Read full story