Scarlett Harris

It took Dunham eight-and-a-half years to write her follow-up—and it shows. With the benefit of hindsight and time away from the bright spotlight that swallowed Dunham during her Girls years, she writes about that time in her life with a clarity, self-awareness and bittersweet wit.

Carving out a sustainable career as a freelance writer requires incredible tenacity, but as a recent memoir shows, it wasn’t always this hard.

Film and TV sold aspirational media and arts workers the idea that the prestige of glamorous jobs would be worth the long hours and low pay. But in the aftermath of the financial crisis, a generation of exploited and burnt-out workers are increasingly disillusioned by the idea of ‘doing what you love’. 

Television is bringing us more shows led by selfish female protagonists – women who are narcissistic, vain and self-centered. These women are often criticised as ‘unlikable’, but what exactly is our problem with seeing women be selfish on screen?