06/25/2025
Just heard that Fern Kupfer's book had a mention in The Ames Tribune today. Here is the text from the website:
How local author Fern Kupfer is empowering women with her new novel set in Ames and Chicago
Fern Kupfer's latest novel, "Strong Women in Chicago," blends feminism, humor and science fiction.
Inspired by real-life events and concerns, the novel features a vomitoxin-based self-defense system for women.
The book is set in Ames and Chicago and follows a group of women who become vigilantes.
Set in both Ames and Chicago, the characters in local author Fern Kupfer's new novel combine feminism with a little bit of sci-fi and humor.
Kupfer, a retired creative writing professor at Iowa State University, began working on “Strong Women in Chicago” long before the movement.
“I started working on it about 15 years ago,” Kupfer said. “I’d take it out every couple years and would think, ‘This is pretty good.’ Then I’d piddle around with it and put it away again.”
The inspiration is based on real people, although the plot contains a sprinkling of science fiction.
Finding inspiration in vomit, big city life
At a dinner party years ago, one of Kupfer’s friends, who worked at the Iowa State Veterinary School, told her about vomitoxins. While it may seem like an unusual topic for a party, the theme of the event was “Contagion,” coinciding with the release of the Gwyneth Paltrow movie. Thus, it was quite appropriate.
Vomitoxins can develop in contaminated livestock feed and result in severe antiperistalsis. In other words, they make pigs vomit.
The other thread of the novel's realism was drawn from Kupfer's three daughters living in big cities — London, New York and Chicago. The daughter in Chicago had previously lived in Wichita, Kansas, as the BTK killer was spreading fear in that area.
One daughter was regularly taking the train in Chicago at night. Another daughter’s friend was mugged in front of her apartment, and the third daughter in London worked with homeless people, many of whom had substance abuse issues.
“So I was worried," Kupfer said. "Not crazy worried, but it was in my mind."
The worry inspired Kupfer to imagine a self-defense system where a vomitoxin can be released from a woman’s pendant. Unlike mace, there’s no pushback. And the gas causes the bad guy to vomit uncontrollably.
Novel combines feminism, humor and a little science fiction
"Strong Women in Chicago" opens with a scene in a bathroom at Union Station. Lily, the daughter of a vet school instructor from Ames, is attacked.
“He’s very upset by it, of course,” Kupfer said. “He's a very nice man, and he serendipitously discovers when he has these vomitoxins, when he inadvertently mixes it with some chemical cleaner, it causes him to have severe, violent antiperistalsis — vomiting all over his lab.”
The story is comedic but has a serious undertone, as women become empowered by joining a chain of women’s exercise facilities called Strong Women in Chicago.
“The women become these vigilantes, so they get the self-defense mechanism which can be worn as a pendant or brooch, and they share it throughout Chicago,” Kupfer said.
Fern Kupfer opts for small publisher for sixth book
“Strong Women in Chicago” is Kupfer's sixth book, which includes four novels and two memoirs. Kupfer is also a former Ames Tribune columnist.
“The first four were published by really big houses in New York,” she said. “I had an agent and went on big book tours. I went to eight cities in 10 days, but the times are so changing.”
Kupfer has recently collaborated with smaller publishers. “Strong Women” is published by Culicidae Press, a small firm in Madison, Wisconsin.
At age 78, Kupfer said this will likely be her last book. She and her husband, Joe Geha, are both writers and have an account on Substack, where they regularly contribute their work. Geha recently published a cookbook, titled "Kitchen Arabic," stocked with several family tales.
Ronna Faaborg covers business and the arts for the Ames Tribune. Reach her at [email protected].
