I absolutely love connecting with fellow writers, especially when their work speaks to something so many of us are quietly (or not-so-quietly!) going through. When I read about Peg, Unhinged, I instantly knew it was a story I wanted to share here. The mix of humour, honesty, and midlife reality felt incredibly relatable—and let’s be honest, we could all do with a bit more laughter when it comes to menopause.
Teri is currently on a virtual book tour, so the timing couldn’t have been more perfect to welcome her onto the blog. Today, she’s sharing the inspiration behind Peg, Unhinged—and I think many of you will see a little bit of yourselves in Peg.
The Inspiration Behind Peg, Unhinged
I’m super excited for Peg, Unhinged to make its debut. This book has been a long time coming, and it started long before I knew I would be an author!
As a pre-teen, I read Are You There God, It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume at least four dozen times. Like Margaret and her friends, I couldn’t wait for all things adolescence, like sprouting boobs and starting my period. My friends and I participated in the chest-growing exercises and swore to tell one another what it was like when we finally started. Of course, once menstruation arrived, I was the first one to decide I no longer wanted it! What were we thinking?
Fast forward to sometime in early 2023. Are You There God was slated to become a summer movie, and everyone who had ever read the book couldn’t wait to see it on the big screen. I even purchased a copy of the book to read one again for old time’s sake.
During the hype, I asked myself a question, “I wonder what happened to Margaret?”
My answer stunned me. “She goes by Peg and is dealing with the crazy known as menopause.”
Immediately, Peg began to reside in my head. She had a story to tell, and I couldn’t wait to get it down on paper. But I learned really quickly that writing a humorous women’s fiction story with a dash of romance wasn’t easy. Too much humor feels slapstick. Too little humor means Peg’s voice has been lost.
Plus, I am always one for strong women characters with a full arc. I couldn’t just have Peg bumbling along on a hormonal roller coaster.
And to top it all off, my husband was dying of brain cancer.
Because of all this, the novel took over two years to write, but I’m ecstatic with the final result!
My Peg is not Judy Blume’s Margaret. However, my hope is that Peg will be to everyone who has ever dealt with menopause like Judy’s Margaret was to every pre-teen girl. My hope is that women see themselves and can laugh as Peg makes some terribly unhinged decisions. My hope is that a strong mid-life woman main character makes women of a certain age feel seen and heard. My hope is that through laughter, women come to understand that life is really just beginning at fifty – or sixty – or even ninety!
My hope is that we all fall in love with Peg the way my generation fell in love with Margaret, and that as we experience this thing called menopause, we realize we are not alone.
Born in Athens, Greece as an Air Force brat, Teri M. Brown now calls the North Carolina coast home. In 2020, she and her husband, Bruce, rode a tandem bicycle across the United States from Astoria, Oregon to Washington DC, successfully raising money for Toys for Tots. Teri’s debut novel, Sunflowers Beneath the Snow, is a historical fiction set in Ukraine, her second, An Enemy Like Me, is set in WWII, and her third, Daughters of Green Mountain Gap, is a generational story about Appalachian healers. 10 Little Rules for a Double-Butted Adventure (Feb 2025), is an inspirational look at the life lessons she learned riding across the United States on a tandem bicycle. Little Lola and Her Big Dream, is a children’s picture book helping children realize that it is okay to have big dreams even in the face of opposition. Her newest work, Peg, Unhinged (April 2026), is a humorous contemporary women’s fiction looking at menopause. Learn more at www.terimbrown.com.
A huge thank you to Teri for sharing the story behind Peg, Unhinged. I love how this book embraces something so many of us experience but don’t always talk about openly—and does it with humour and heart.
If you’re in the midst of this stage of life (or heading towards it), this sounds like one of those reads that reminds you you’re not alone… and that maybe we’re allowed to laugh at the chaos a little too.
Let me know in the comments—does Peg, Unhinged sound like your kind of read?
