A Little City with a Big Heart: Localising the Chick-lit Formula in Kate O’Keeffe’s Wellywood Romantic Comedy Series

Abstract

This article discusses the Wellywood Romantic Comedy series (2015-2016) by New Zealand author Kate O’Keeffe as localized versions of the global chick-lit format. The novels filter prototypical concerns of the genre through a specific cultural nationalist lens and explore questions of national identity through their unique urban setting. I read the novels in the context of the city-branding initiatives aimed at consolidating New Zealand’s capital, Wellington, as a creative city. I also argue that the novels construct their protagonists as prototypical Kiwi heroines who confront their problems displaying prototypical Kiwi values like ingenuity, resourcefulness and pragmatism. Whereas the Wellington setting serves to interrogate the dominance of western chick-lit mega-cities, the discussion of local identity predicaments reveals exciting thematic expansions of the original formula. Yet, the novels’ potential to innovate is limited because both the urban setting and the identity predicaments of the characters reinforce mainstream visions of the city and the country’s hegemonic cultural narratives.

Keywords

• aotearoa new zealand
• chick lit
• city branding
• national identity
• wellington