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I'm very pleased to welcome Women's Fiction author Ellen Butler who talks about strong female characters. (My favorite kind!) She's also running a promotional giveaway, so be sure to enter.
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As an author of Women’s Fiction and Romance, I’ve found that I tend to
develop strong female characters. Women who have high profile jobs, that
require a post-graduate degree, or entrepreneurs who run their own companies. I
like to create women with gifts of intelligence and creativity. Why am I drawn to
these types of characters? Perhaps, it’s because I like the idea of empowering
my characters. I don’t care for wall flowers who allow life to happen to them.
Do my characters have flaws? Of course, just as everyone is flawed, my strong
women aren’t perfect, and sometimes they even run away from their problems
before facing them head on. Who, after all, hasn’t procrastinated making a
tough decision or telling an awful truth at one time or another? I write women like this because it’s
important to show that women can accomplish whatever they want, and finding
love in the process of achieving their dreams is simply the cherry on top.
Friendships with other females can be some of the most important
relationships in a woman’s life, which is one of the reasons that I tend to
provide strong female bonds in my books as well. Personally, I’ve developed
friendships with other female authors who I find are the embodiment of my
empowered characters. These women run the gamut; retirees, full-time moms,
single parents, wives, grandmothers, working two jobs, lawyers, bankers,
journalists, the list goes on and on. The one thing I find we all have in
common is our ability to support and promote each other all the time. We
empower each other to continue striving for greatness, and better ourselves in
doing so. Publishing is a tough business, and the more we can help other women
achieve their goals the closer we’ll be to achieving our own.
Linda, thank you for hosting me at One Woman’s Write, and allowing me to
share my new novel Poplar Place with
your readers. The main character, Cara Baker, is one
empowered lady!
Excerpt for Poplar Place
“What do you know about the tenant?”
“His name is…”
At that, Jackie came out of her
speechlessness with a vengeance. “His name! The tenant is male?”
“Well, yes, but he’s harmless. As a
matter of fact, he’s a recluse. You probably wouldn’t even notice him. You see,
he’s some sort of computer programmer and rarely leaves the house. His
groceries are delivered once a week.” Anne gave a reassuring smile.
“Great. Some creepy computer nerd
that plays games all day lives on the third floor,” Jackie said derisively.
I looked at Anne. “Is he
agoraphobic?”
Jackie looked confused. “Agora-what?
“Agoraphobic. Does he have a phobia
of going outside his home?”
Anne took a moment to respond. “I
don’t really know. I do know that twice a week his psychiatrist comes to the
house to see him.”
“Who’s his shrink?” Jackie asked.
“Dr. Nolan from downtown on Bradford Street
Silence descended as we chewed on
this information. I looked at the small wrought iron balcony jutting out from
the third floor.
“What’s his name?”
“Dr. Jeffrey Nolan,” responded Anne.
“No, the tenant’s.”
“Oh, let me see. It’s right here in
my file.” Anne searched through her files. “Yes, this is it. Daniel Johnson.”
“I can’t see the apartment at all?”
“I have photos that were taken by
Mr. Stein before the tenant moved in. You can at least see what the finished
space looks like. It has a small kitchen, two bedrooms, a den, a bath and a
half and a large living room. All the utilities for the attic are billed
directly to the tenant, except for sewer and water.”
“How much does he pay in rent?”
Referring back to her notes, Anne
named a price that temporarily stunned me. The rent he paid would completely
cover my monthly mortgage.
“There’s also an automatic three
percent increase in rent every three years.”
“Is he ever late?” Jackie jumped
back into the conversation.
“No. Never. From what I understand
from Max, he pays punctually on the first of the month.”
I mulled over this new piece of
information. “When can I meet Mr. Johnson?”
“Well, that’s the rub. He doesn’t
see anyone besides his psychiatrist. I understand Mr. Stein met him when he
moved in, but Max seems to think he keeps to himself and he’s not sure his
father ever saw much of him.”
“Can I speak to Mr. Johnson on the
phone?”
Anne brightened for a moment. “I
have his e-mail address. I’m sure I could give you that.”
Jackie snorted but I pressed on,
“Can I talk to his psychiatrist?”
“Cara!” exclaimed Jackie. “You can’t
actually be thinking about buyin’ this house with this ridiculous condition.”
“Yes, as a matter of fact, I am
thinking very seriously about buying this house. Obviously, Mr. Stein, a
well-known local lawyer, thought enough of Mr. Johnson to give him a ten-year
lease. Clearly, the third floor is a full working apartment, quite separate
from the rest of the house. Most importantly, the rent from the apartment would
provide me a second income.”
Seeing a live one on the line, Anne
began thrusting documents at me. “Here’s the floor plan Mr. Stein used when he
had it finished. Here are some color copies of the finished product. I have the
full color photos back at the office if you’d like to see them.”
“But…but,” Jackie stammered, “he
could turn out to be some sort of lunatic that will murder you in the middle of
the night. Or maybe…maybe he has that pack rat illness and the attic is full of
newspapers and garbage…and RATS! The house could turn into a foul-smelling
pigsty. Or maybe he’s runnin’ a meth lab up there!” Jackie pointed one of her
pink manicured fingers at Anne. Turning back to me, she continued on her rant.
“That’s it! Drugs! The police will descend upon you at three in the mornin’,
guns a-blazin’, and the entire house will be blown to bits durin’ the raid.”
“This isn’t a war, Jackie. I’m sure
Mr. Stein wouldn’t have allowed a drug dealer to live on his third floor.
Right, Anne?” I calmly eyed Anne who shrank back into her chair during Jackie’s
rant.
Purchase Links:
Amazon – http://tinyurl.com/mnubd4l
Barnes & Noble -- http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/poplar-place-ellen-butler/1118976497?ean=2940149194650
Bio
Ellen Butler lives in the Virginia
suburbs of Washington , DC
You can find Ellen’s debut release, Second
Chance Christmas, at Amazon. Professionally, she belongs to the Virginia
Writer’s Club, the Northern Virginia Writer’s Club, and is a founding member of
the Tempting Romance blog. When she’s not writing, Ellen is either, running
around after her children, decorating a neighbor’s house, or holed up in her
favorite lounge chair reading. Ellen is an admitted chocoholic and confesses to
a penchant for shoe shopping. Book club questions for Ellen’s novels can be
found on her website.
**I’m running a
promotional give away. Readers can enter through the Rafflecopter link below.
ENTER TO WIN UP TO $100 IN LIA SOPHIA JEWELRY – WINNER’S CHOICE!
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