What's it like to be on reality television?
Just ask Kara Alloway. We invited the Toronto businesswoman into our homes in 2017 when the "Real Housewives of Toronto" hit the air.
Barrie 360 spoke with her about her tv experience and her debut novel, "Most Hated," which centres around complicated female relationships.
During the filming of Housewives, Kara was labelled as "The Villain,' a title she didn't expect from the beginning but one she late embraced.
" I went in thinking this is going to be a great experience, I'm going to share my life, my family, and I'm going to have a lot of fun with this. Alloway explains. "However, in these kinds of shows, you really need drama. People watch for the drama; it's an escape for us."
Although it wasn't her plan to be the villain initially, she says she often had to stir the pot to spice things up.
" I went in with the mindset that 'I have to make this the best show to merit a spin-off.' So when no action or drama was happening, I would say to myself, 'Oh my goodness, people are gonna change the channel. Let's bring it!' "
Although filming the show was an interesting experience, Alloway admits that the reception she got from viewers, especially women, once filming wrapped was brutal.
" I was in a bad place because of the social media backlash and who people thought I was. What was presented as my character was far from who I was or what actually transpired."
These events and her experience with female relationships in general inspired Alloway to write her first book, "Most Hated," which is in stores now.
"Most Hated" novel by Kara Alloway available in stores now
She stresses that the story is fiction, not an autobiography, although there are some similarities with the Housewives shows.
"Its story is set on a backdrop of a reality television show, but it's really about female relationships and women interacting with other women, and none of the characters are based on any housewife stars from any franchises," she explains.
It's a fun beach read, it's not dark, but there are a lot of layers to it that explore female relationships.
One of Alloway's inspirations for "Most Hated" was a research novel a called "Woman's Inhumanity to Women," which explores how women can have misogynistic behaviour toward other women."
"I used this book to form a lot of the characterization within my novel because I think this is something within the sisterhood that we have to delve into," Alloways explains. "As women, we have to celebrate our differences."
Alloway will be signing copies of "Most Hated" at the Barrie Chapters-Indigo on Mapleview Drive on Saturday, June 10th from 11am-3pm.
feature image taken by Bobby Quillard
