Life and times

The author and fashion journalist on her tour of Trump’s America

Author and fashion journalist Plum Sykes

I can honestly say that I have never experienced a par ty-planning frenzy quite like the one I find myself in this week. I’m about to set off on a threeweek book tour of the United states to promote my new novel, Party Girls Die

in Pearls. the american designer Zac Posen, an old friend, is throwing a party for me with Brooks Brothers in new york to launch the book. I am going to wear a Brooks Brothers by Zac Posen cocktail dress – something very preppy-looking, pale pink, embroidered with twisting black vines, with strings of pearls. I am then visiting another eight cities, and Burberry is throwing parties in all those places. When I get back to england, chanel will host a party in london for the UK launch.

now, I certainly can’ t complain about t he good for tune of having 10 parties to plan at once. It is great fun to be taken away from my usual writing and instead be discussing whether rhubarb or elderflower cordial is the chicer drink, or whether our guests would prefer rose-petal or violet macaroons. however, party planning has become a great deal more pressured in the age of socia l media. this is because, as t he publicist at chanel told me, the guest of the moment is a ‘Kol’. I soon learnt that a Kol, or key opinion leader, is a beaut i f ul young woman wit h a massive online following. the most important Kols a re g i rls like soraya Bakht ia r, alice naylor-leyland and anyone with Delevingne as a surname. their influence is such t hat t hey get invited to absolutely everything. they only go to the things they want to go to. let’s hope they come to one of my parties.

With my Us trip only a few days away, it’s impossible not to think about being in america wit h tr ump f ully installed. I lived in new york from 1997 until 2006 and experienced the massive cha nge in tone f rom clinton to Bush in 2001. If new yorkers thought that Bush was extreme, he was nothing on trump. my new york friends – all Democrats – have been in a st ate of shock a nd disbelief for t he past few months, as have I. When trump was f i rst elected, I t hought t hat I would get used to the idea eventually. But as time has passed, my amazement has simply increased. I am left with unanswered questions. how did this happen? What does it say about the world? Is melania ok?

In my other job as a fashion journalist( I am a contributing editor at american Vogue ), I am always on the hunt for new designers to write about. this week I was invited to a presentation at afriend’s house in aid of the rainbow trust, a charity that helps the families of very, very sick children. a young designer called anna mason showed a select group of women her summer dresses. as one divine look followed another, my resolve crumbled, and I was soon ordering an emerald- green silk-crêpe-de-chine dress with wonderful billowing sleeves and a sash tied at the waist. It will be perfect for everything from a summer dinner party to a day at ascot. I can’t wait for the sun to come out.

Party Girls Die in Pearls, by Plum Sykes (Bloomsbury Publishing, £14.99), is out on Thursday

How did this happen? What does it say about the world? Is Melania OK?