I could write an ode to the power of social media with the story of how Sorchia and I first connected, but the details are universal. One clever post led to a few more clicks and here we are! Sorchia's blog sparked my interest and I was happy to be her guest on her theme of paranormal. (Yes, my books have a thread of paranormal running through them. Have you ever been to Ireland? To deny that other dimension is impossible.) I was also intrigued with her take on women as authors and as main characters and asked her to give her thoughts on Friday Features' prompt on Strong Women.
Read on. You'll be glad you did. -cjh
Not One—But Too Many To Count by Sorchia DuBois
Read on. You'll be glad you did. -cjh
Not One—But Too Many To Count by Sorchia DuBois
When I was trying to pick a woman for this post, I just couldn’t think
of a single woman who had inspired me.
Not one—but too many to count.
So many women have encouraged, supported, or inspired me. I’ve been
lucky enough to meet a few of them in person, but most are online acquaintances.
Some are family or close friends. Some are women I’ve only read about—women
whose stories made their way even to my middle America town. The first
biography I ever read was of Marie Curie and that was an eye-opener. In my
small town, women didn’t do the sorts of things she did.
We don’t all agree on every issue. We don’t all go at life in the same
way. We are as deliciously diverse as the rest of the Universe. But one thing
we need to be absolutely unified on is support for each other. I believe most
women are supportive of other women despite those few who were probably mean
girls in junior high and never evolved beyond that.
In the end, it’s going to take all of us to make a difference. It’s all
of our voices combined that will be heard over the very loud clamor of
tradition, culture, religion.
The sad truth is women are still being terrorized, tortured, held
prisoner, killed for the simple pre-existing condition of being born female. Less
dramatic, but just as life altering, some women are in emotionally abusive
relationships, underpaid, or unable to achieve their potentials because of
their gender. Though a patriarchal culture is easy to blame, some of us are
complicit by our tacit acceptance, our silence, our apathy.
So I want to devote this post to shouting the praises of a few strong
women I know. These are only five of the many dynamic ladies who’ve made my
2017 brighter and who are sources of inspiration and encouragement. There are so many more! And because I’ve been
concentrating on writing this year, these ladies are also of the authorial
bent.
Casi MacLain writes romance
and suspense with a bit of magic. She’s a tireless supporter of fellow authors,
yet she also releases a book or two or her own every year. Check out her Amazon
author page at https://www.amazon.com/Casi-McLean/e/B0053XXRJU/
or her website at http://www.casimclean.com
.
Nicole Tillman is a prolific
young writer with a fulltime family. She’s active in her community and as Mom
to a couple of the cutest kids you will ever see. I’m constantly amazed by her
ability to juggle those things and still have published over 20 books. Find her
Amazon page and enjoy the covers and content of her novels. https://www.amazon.com/nicoletillman/e/B00KDNHBO2
Velda Brotherton has written
over 30 books including western romances, historical romance, and her steamy Twist
of Poe mysteries. She does workshops and imparts wisdom and joy wherever she
goes. Find her Amazon page at https://www.amazon.com/Velda-Brotherton/e/B001KCC0ZU and peruse her fantastic array of titillating
tales.
Laura Strickland writes
historical romance and her award-winning Buffalo Steampunk Series. She’s
published around 25 books filled with strong women, humor, and damn good
writing. Find her at Amazon and take a look at the wonderful array of stories
she’s released. https://www.amazon.com/Laura-Strickland/e/B001KHSACW
K.D. McCrite writes under the
pen names Kathaleen Burr, Ava Norwood, and Sidney Archer. She’s known for her Confessions of April Grace series for
middle graders and her cozy mysteries via Annie’s Attic, but she delves into
the darker side of the human condition from time to time. KD supports new
writers and is a constant and abiding positive voice. Find out more at http://kdmccrite.com/ or go to Goodreads to
find info on all of her personas and books. https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4463765.K_D_McCrite
Do you know women who write or paint or run a local business? If you
can comfortably share their names, their stories, and maybe a FaceBook or
Twitter connection for their businesses, please leave in comments.
Look around your community. Find those gals who run businesses or
provide services and put your money where your mouth—and your heart––is. Frequent
their establishments, sing their praises, and tell them how important they are.
We’ve come a long way, baby—but current events show we’ve not come far
enough.
Sorchia Dubois Bio
Award-winning author Sorchia Dubois lives in the
piney forest of the Missouri Ozarks with seven cats, two fish, one dog, and one
husband. She enjoys a wee splash of single-malt Scotch from time to time and
she spends a number of hours each day tapping out paranormal romance, Gothic
murder, and Scottish thrillers.
A
proud member of the Ross clan, Sorchia incorporates all things Celtic
(especially Scottish) into her works. She can often be found at Scottish
festivals watching kilted men toss large objects for no apparent reason.
Her stories blend legends, magic, mystery, romance,
and adventure into enchanted Celtic knots. Halloween is her favorite time of
year (she starts decorating in August and doesn’t take it down until February)
and her characters tend to be mouthy, stubborn, and a bit foolhardy. Nothing
makes her happier than long conversations in the evening, trips to interesting
places, and writing until the wee hours of the morning. Well, chocolate cake
makes her pretty happy, too.
And Contact Links:
Blog/Website: www.SorchiaDubois.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SorchiaDubois
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/SorchiaDubois/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/SorchiaD
Amazon author page: http://www.amazon.com/SorchiaDuBois/e/B00B60NOUQ/
Goodreads author page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6879978.Sorchia_DuBois
Sorchia’s latest book, Zoraida Grey and the Family Stones, is the first
in a Gothic romance trilogy.
Granny’s dying, but Zoraida can save her with a magic crystal of smoky
quartz. Too bad the crystal is in Scotland––in a haunted castle––guarded by
mind-reading, psychopathic sorcerers.
Getting inside Castle Logan is easy. Getting out––not so much. Before
she can snatch the stone, Zoraida stumbles into a family feud, uncovers a
wicked ancient curse, and finds herself ensorcelled by not one but two handsome
Scottish witches. Up to their necks in family intrigue and smack-dab in the
middle of a simmering clan war, Zoraida and her best friend Zhu discover Granny
hasn’t told them everything.
Not by a long shot.
· Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/ZGandFSBN
· KOBO: http://bit.ly/ZGandFSKOBO
· Wild Rose Press: http://bit.ly/ZGandFSWR (e-books are 40% off through Cyber-Monday)
The second book, Zoraida Grey and the Voodoo Queen, will be released
Winter 2018.
