Like in the Netflix Maid series, there were strict rules, including no visitors, no alcohol, and there were routine drug tests. Yes, Land was loaned a car by someone she had been on a date with, but not a place to live. Land now lives with her two daughters, two dogs and her husband Tim Faust in Missoula, Montana. Except for some extra cash here and there and some live lobsters, she doesnt receive any other perks from serving the rich. Stephanie Land (@stepville) Instagram photos and videos stepville Verified Follow 2,875 posts 95.1K followers 1,996 following Stephanie Land she/her Author NYT bestseller MAID (on Netflix!) The couple met in 2018 and started dating shortly after. Peoples prejudice against those who are low income makes their already difficult lives more difficult, which we do not really see in the Netflix drama. And its because they took a true interest in learning, and used their own experiences, to truly understand how it feels to be food, work, and housing insecure. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. US residents can opt out of "sales" of personal data. Netflixs Maid isnt a one-to-one recreation of the source material, but that doesnt mean it isnt true to Lands experiences living in poverty. My desire for that happy ending especially as a woman whod been a single mom for almost a decade was a rushing current too strong to fight. She didn't want the series to stick too closely to the book since the memoir is tightly focused on her and two of the years that she worked as a house cleaner.Her tenth meeting was with actress Margot Robbie (representing her production company, Lucky Chap) and TV writer/director John Wells (Shameless, The West Wing, ER). Like in the show, Land's boyfriend, whose name in the memoir is Jamie, was upset with her decision to keep the baby. Obsessed with travel? The series does not really touch on this systematic issue, but focuses more on Alex's individual struggle. Yes. What influences of yours can you see in the final product? In Stephanie Lands bookMaid: Hard Work, Low Pay, and a Mother's Will to Survive, which inspired the series, Land is focused on the struggle to persevere in a system built for failure. She said that he had kind of gradually built up to being violent. Not only are hours lost to filling out paperwork and waiting in offices, but time is also spent going to required classes and seminars on how rental assistance works or how to use electricity most efficiently. Yes. The couple first met in the year 2018 and began their relationship just a few months later. Why do you think your story resonated so strongly with readers at that time, and why do you think it continues to entice audiences? On an interesting side note, actress Andie MacDowell is the real-life mother of Margaret Qualley, who portrays Alex in the Netflix Maid series. Land called the police for help three months after getting married. My passion is giving a voice to the invisible populations who live, work, and raise their families while experiencing food and housing insecurity in America. She began working as a freelance writer and became a writing fellow at the Center for Community Change. While living in Alaska, they spent a lot of time giving to families in need as something to do during the holidays with their church. In that same conversation, almost a year after it happened, he still blamed our bad relationship on him hurting me. What I saw makes me never want to be rich. The Mountbatten-Windsors have been recastagain. "They offered to fictionalize the story and I really appreciate that because my story is tightly focused on me." My four-year-old daughter had started to mimic his posturing, his finger-pointing, and even told me to go away because my face looked bad. Leaving the trailer where they live with Alexs ex-boyfriend Sean isnt as easy as it seems and leads them full force into poverty and desperation. Our protagonist onscreen in Maid seems to be a lone wolf, with virtually no friends and barely any family. In the real story, none of this happens. She is from American. [8][9] Although she did not grow up in poverty, she spent the next several years living below the poverty line and relied on several welfare programs to cover necessary expenses; this later inspired her writing on issues of poverty and public policy. The series follows Alex, a hardworking mother played by Margaret Qualley, who grapples with leaving an abusive relationship as she struggles to survive in a system that seems destined to fail her. Netflix's newest acclaimeddrama,Maid, (opens in new tab)tells the story of a single mother's resilience and recovery from domestic abuse. was ian petrella in back to the future. She also thanked the show's team for their work on the show. But I tried to kind of give them a gut punch on how the safety net programs and the government assistance programs and that what we think of as welfare is actually a system that works against you. 69.163.234.236 -NPR, Yes. -The GuardianLife would improve for Stephanie Land. And it just, like - so one time, I looked, and I'm like, well, how many antibiotics are they on, and, like, if it was for her or for him." Theending ofMaid (opens in new tab)shows Land's fictional avatar Alex moving to Missoula, Montana, to study creative writing in college. And it really affected me for a really long time. Since the series' release, Land has shared multiple pictures of the IRL events written inMaidthe book and depicted inMaidthe show. No. Meanwhile, he told me repeatedly that hed kill himself if he was convicted of the felony or if he had to go to prison. It seemed he was, even saying 25% of the reason in choosing to be with me was because of that. When Land first met and married her now-estranged husband, she says he was supportive of her writing career. ", Yes. The author says that memes began to circulate in 2008 comparing people on food stamps to wild animals. Land has remarried and lives with her husband, Tim Faust, and their blended family in Missoula, Montana. And she worked as a nurse. According to one study, caseloads across all safety net programs rose to over 300 million recipients throughout this period however, Land and those like her were unfairly discriminated against in their daily lives, all the while still not getting enough assistance to live sufficiently. The reality is the way we go about educating our country leaves millions stretched to their limits, with almost of half of students wondering how theyll find their next meal and even more than that drowning in debts theyll owe for a lifetime.". I really felt like the only time I had any value as a human being was when I was actively working. On that line is a circle with a triangle-shaped chunk thats absent from it. Its one womans story of inching out of the dirt and how the middle class turns a blind eye to the poverty lurking just a few rungs belowand its one worth reading. 2023 BDG Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Land said about the book, "When we think of economic insecurity we often think of the down and out. 2021 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. Stephanie Land is the author of Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay, and a Mother's Will to Survive, out in January 2019 Topics Divorce Domestic violence Relationships features Reuse this content The series is based on author Stephanie Land's memoirMaid: Hard Work, Low Pay, and a Mothers Will to Survive. In. What if Andie stayed with Duckie at the prom in Pretty in Pink, and didnt go out into the parking lot to chase Blaine?, What if Johnny didnt come back to do the final dance number of the summer in Dirty Dancing, and the end scenes were him opening a dance studio and Baby joining the Peace Corps?, Mia, whos 11, and by now accustomed to these types of outbursts, chewed her cheese quesadilla, then said: But it wouldnt be a story if it ended like that., What do you mean, like it wouldnt be complete?, Yeah, Mia said. Something for everyone interested in hair, makeup, style, and body positivity. Stories like Stephanie Lands (and subsequently, Alexs) are far too common, yet rarely get heard. There was a part of me that knew why they were listening. She lived in Europe with a husband who was much younger (he was only seven years older than Stephanie). It has also changed how we act in real life. However, Land and Jamie's story is different than Alex and Sean's. Whereas Alex met Sean after an open mic, Land met Jamie while she was walking home after a shift at the . There were a lot of memes going around at the time about how people should be drug-tested for welfare, and a lot of my friends would post on Facebook and social media some type of hatred for people on food stamps. I know how grueling the job can be, and I swore I'd never ask. When she isnt writing or checking Twitter, shes probably watching the latest K-drama or giving a concert performance in her car. A Pell Grant, SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), TBRA (HOME Tenant-Based Rental Assistance), LIHEAP (Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program), WIC (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children), Medicaid, and a childcare government grant are all the programs that she and her daughter needed to barely survive and not starve. "I felt like if I could possibly do that, then it would show Mia that she could do the same," Land told NPR. People think that the janitor in the airport has less dignity than the pilot does and really the janitor is supporting that pilot and making that pilot's job possible. My husband was already down at the station. It's been weird what has come up for me physically and how it feels to talk about that time in my life again. Wealthy clients of hers would go on racist rants about Mexican families using food stamps and being dressed to the nines, while not realizing that the maid they were saying this to was also on government assistance. [2] Land and her eldest daughter occasionally lived in homeless shelters, transitional housing and a camper in a driveway, before securing an apartment in low-income housing. She handled the potentially awkward moment with grace. My answer has always returned to a strong desire of not wanting to disappoint. In Stephanie Land's book Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay, and a Mother's Will to Survive, which inspired the series, Land is focused on the struggle to persevere in a system built for failure. The next morning, I couldnt get out of bed, but a voice rose up and said no with such agency. Land says that this fictionalization also allowed more diversity to be brought into the series.Though Maid is not a highly accurate representation of Land's own experience and the people involved, she described it in an Instagram post as "an obscenely authentic visual representation of what it's like to struggle to get by. Thats hardly the whole story, however. But in Land's real life, these were everyday occurrences. Then she asks to be covered by the blanket. I didn't want to give him more space than he deserved, so if focused more on how it affected me. Throughout Maid, Land juggles her responsibilities as a mother with her cleaning job and studying for college. Stephanie then became Mrs. Grisham in 2004, after she and Todd Grisham tied the knot. Its really hard to absolutely know how hated you are for needing assistance. "He was proud of me," she says. I think even though it's exhausting for me, I see an importance in my role in advocating. When I told my husband to move out at the end of spring, Coraline was about to turn four, and she started sleeping with me again. The heart-wrenching show has captivated fans, who have been asking whetherMaidis based on a true story. Heres what you should know before watching Maid on Netflix: The basics of Lands memoir remain unchanged in the new Netflix series. I have a hard time seeing it that way. Let us know below! The show almost makes you root for the abuser in some episodes. There typically arent any magical, wealthy benefactors waiting to make your life easier. The "show don't tell" type of writing I guess. Especially to me. Three months after we got married, I called the police for help. It follows Alex, a young woman who leaves her abusive boyfriend and navigates the American welfare system while getting whatever work she can cleaning houses. [6] A car accident at age 16 led to her being diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, a condition which was later exacerbated by her financial struggles. In walking that path, one would surely detonate, possibly with my death. -NPR. A post shared by Stephanie Land (@stepville) A photo posted by on She's now living in Missoula, Montana, and working on a new book. For viewers watching the miniseries during the wage shortage, the shows timely subject matter may force the question: Is Maid based on a true story? Her mother, though not exactly "Mother of the Year" material, was the first in their family to go to college and earn a masters degree. From hair trends to relationship advice, our daily newsletter has everything you need to sound like a person whos on TikTok, even if you arent. But when I finally asked him to leave, it was in an almost primal push for survival. Land ended her dependence on welfare after she graduated from the University of Montana. A Maid fact-check reveals that the real Stephanie Land was 28 when she was pregnant with her daughter Mia (today, Mia goes by her middle name, Story). I wish I would have, wish I could have, admitted that it was against my own better judgment as well. The thing is, most of the people on safety net programs are working already and they're working two to three jobs just to feed their families. Government programs encourage poor people to have poor nutrition. She also had another daughter, who is seven, in addition to Storyknown as Mia in the book and Maddy in the shownow 14. I kind of saw that happening leading up to it and it terrified me. Only this time around, Lands character is named Alex, and her ex is named Sean (Nick Robinson) instead of Jaime. I feel like asking them: why on earth would I want that? [15], Land's first book Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay and a Mother's Will to Survive was published by Hachette Books on January 22, 2019. Yes, Stephanie is now happily married to her partner Tim Faust. When the couple met and married he worked at KOLD, they divorced in 2006. They had only known each other for four months. Instead, she cleaned houses for six years in Washington and Missoula and eventually took loans out to attend the community college in Skagit Valley. Was it important to show how difficult emotional abuse can be to categorize? For example, to qualify for Section 8, a house or apartment must meet several safety standards; if not, it becomes unavailable to a family with a voucher to rent. "[18], The book has received critical acclaim. Heres how it works. Stephanie Land is the author of Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay, and a Mothers Will to Survive, out in January 2019, Theres love, youll say, but is there any real point in getting married these days? Even though her advisor at the local community college told her, What youre trying to do here is pretty much impossible, referring to the course load along with being a single mother who worked full time, she found that being a student helped her case. My. Since then, the success of her book has led to more financial stability. As we continue to navigate this post-normal (an in-between period where old orthodoxies are dying, new ones have yet to be born, and very few things seem to make sense) world, I hope we see more representation of the working poor and their lived experiences on our screens not for entertainment, but to teach us solidarity. Author Stephanie Land's Official Website Stepville.com. The Netflix Maid series was shot in Victoria, British Columbia. Maybe that made them too nervous about their situation.. Ex-maid turns story of struggle into best-selling book. . He called it an "unflinching look at America's class divide.". It was an unplanned pregnancy and she wasn't married to the baby's father. I stood in front of the judge to plead for my husband to move back in with us, so we could go on being a family. Land was living in Port Townsend, Washington when she became a single mother and worked maid service jobs to provide for her child. Perspective by Stephanie Land. Yes. Just three months after we got married, I had called the police for help. Here are some of the biggest differences between the Netflix series and the memoir: Alex came from a middle-class upbringing. She describes her mom as being overweight and speaking with a fake British accent. She revealed that the show's creator, Molly Smith Metzler, and executive producers John Wells and Erin Jontow spent time with her and Story to learn more about her experiences. The police officers left me and the girls just after midnight. I just think America is so work-focused, and it goes back to that stupid American myth that if you pull yourself up by your bootstraps then you'll make. In addition to becoming my husband, Matt took on a fair share of housework and the . Stephanie Land's story happens in the middle of the 2008 financial crisis. Then I Hired a Maid", "She has a bestseller and hit Netflix series. Its also nearly impossible to socialize when youre a single mother living in poverty who has the time to go on a date between the rental assistance seminars, work, dinner, and then bath time with her daughter? This happens in the Netflix version more than once, between Alexs relationship with Nate, her budding friendship with Regina, and the hot-shot family lawyer who takes on Alex pro-bono. So before i watched the series, I was really nervous because there's so many ways you can get poverty wrong and perpetuate stigmas even more. 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