Showing posts with label domestic violence. Show all posts
Showing posts with label domestic violence. Show all posts

Friday, October 21, 2016

Ungolden Silence by Lydia E. Brew - Virtual Book Tour & Domestic Violence Awareness



Picture
Genre: Woman's Fiction
Published: Xilbris Publishing
Released: December 13, 2007
Buy At: Amazon​
Ungolden Silence will explore the world of rape and expose the myths through articles that are based on facts. The main question that needs to be answered is why one human being would rape another human being. These reasons are explored in a compelling story that will make the reader ask questions. Beatrice James wanted to take her co-worker Elaine on her first professional trip, she had to convince her employers and Elaine’s parents that she wanted to take Elaine on the trip. Elaine was in charge of the campaign.

Thomas Paige is a well-respected community leader, however, there is whole other side of side of him. The man can be charming when he needs to be and that is why he can get away with sexually harassing and raping women. He began to harassed Beatrice did not want Elaine to have to deal with it. Beatrice did not want to deal with the fact that she was being sexually harassed.

When any crime takes place, the families of the victims as well as the criminal are involved. Ungolden Silence will illustrate that the criminal is a real person, and rarely does he commit crimes just for the fun of it.

It is important to know that rape is a part of violence. Through the characters of Ungolden Silence it is hoped that society will begin to find a way to eliminate the acceptance of violence, which includes the act of rape.

It is through Beatrice, Elaine, and their colleagues that Ungolden Silence begins to explore the world of rape. Each of the main characters discovers what he has believed about rape and violence is not entirely true. A good example of this is when the firm’s secretary is told what happened on the trip. She discovered that some things that she was told when she was young was a myth.

Through all of the characters, Ungolden Silence offers an alternative to the everyday acceptance of violence. When it comes to rape, it tells us that the rapists are human beings and there is a way to curb the crime.

What does the author wants the reader to take away is that the story is about a woman was rape while she and her business partner was away on a business trip. Her business partner is disabled but that is an important part of the story. However, it is not the main story.

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About Lydia E. Brew:

Lydia E. Brew has Cerebral Palsy and as a child she could not go outside and play with the other children like she wanted to, so she daydreamed about that and other things she felt unreachable instead. This allowed her mind to journey in unimaginable places. With a love for drama, daydreaming and writing, Lydia combined them when she started writing. Her essay, “Why Do You Think They Call It Dope?” was place on the front bulletin board of Roosevelt Elementary School. Lydia had no idea that was the beginning of her writing journey.

When she took literature in Junior and Senior high, Lydia to write composition papers. One in particular was about a talking horse; another one of Lydia’s daydreams put on paper. The teacher would give out the assignments at the beginning of class, and most of the time Lydia would have the story in her head before the end of class. She realized then that being a great storyteller with the written word wasn’t something she had to dream about but she could actually achieve it.
​
When she turn fourteen years old Lydia met Edith Irby Jones, M.D. When Lydia walked into office and the walls are covered with award and plaques and she knew that there was a story behind the walls. She wanted to tell the story. Lydia attended Texas Southern University and with the help of her Journalism Professor, she wrote Edith, The Story of Edith Irby Jones, M.D.
Lydia, along Mrs. Annie Brew, her mother and Mrs. Helen Lewis, her aunt wrote an activities book, Our Learn Together Book, base on the biography.
Lydia is the author of Ungolden Silence, a thought provoking novel about rape and how it affect not only the victims but the people that surround them. Go to Ungolden Silence.com and Amazon.com.

Author Links:

www.lydiaebrew.com
https://www.facebook.com/Ungoldensilence/
​Twitter - @UngoldenLydia
​



Thursday, October 11, 2012

Chatting with Senica Evans - Married to Him (VBT Cafe' Tour)


Welcome to Mass Musings Senica! Senica is currently on virtual book tour with the Virtual Book Tour Cafe' and is giving you a chance to win a copy of her book, Married to Him.

MM:  Many authors relate their characters to people they know.  Is this the case with your characters and do you see yourself in any of them?
SE: Of course… Married to Him is based on my tumultuous marriage. It’s my journey from deceit and abuse to peace and deliverance. 


MM:  Who is your favorite character in your book and why?
SE: Since Married to Him is a memoir, I’m a little biased. I think I show great strength and humility but must admit… I make some serious mistakes along the way. 


MM:  Who is your most favorite character from any book of all time?
SE: Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. I love her journey through spirituality, food, and learning to love herself


MM:  If you could dive into the pages of any book, which book would it be and what character would you be?
SE: Jodi Picoult’s Handle with Care. Her book had me emotionally bound. I cried, empathized, and laughed. I felt every characters pain and sadness. I can’t remember the mom’s name but I would be her. As a mother, I understood her fight. I felt her desire to do anything she could to save her child and provide a best quality of life. While I didn’t agree with everything she did, I still felt connected to her character. Must be the bond of motherhood.  


MM:  If your book was to become a movie, which actors/actresses do you see playing the parts of your characters?
SE: Hmmmm… I could see Sanaa Lathan playing me and Mike Epps – after seeing his role in Sparkle - playing Spank. Both of these actors embody our characteristics. 


MM:  What can we expect from Senica Evans in the future? Any new projects?
SE: I have a couple book projects I’m working on right now; Woman Free Yourself and Bourgeois Diaries. 

Woman Free Yourself: A Guide to Healing from Divorce or a Heart Wrenching Breakup by Starting Over, Rediscovering You, & Crushing Bitterness, Anger, and Resentment is a practical guide to assist women in overcoming a relationship’s demise and how to get back out there successfully. This book includes real life examples and exercises.  

Bourgeois Diaries takes readers on a journey through a woman’s desire to mend her bourgeois facade with her mediocre lifestyle. She portrays the opulent lifestyle in her dress, mannerism, and even the men she chooses but there’s one problem… she’s living on a shoestring budget with barely enough money to pay her rent, let alone afford this bourgeois lifestyle. She has to make some decisions and quick or she runs the risk of being found out by those around her especially Jonathan, her uber successful boyfriend who believes he’s met his equal. 



MM:  Where can readers connect with you?
SE: I blog at www.sennysen.com and readers can connect with me on Twitter @SennySen11 or on Facebook. 

Thank you so much for taking time to chat with me today. It's been a wonderful pleasure.






Author:
Senica Evans as author, relationship coach, radio host, and speaker is passionate about helping women overcome the destruction in their life to reveal their true beauty and greatness. As a survivor of domestic violence, sexual assault, and destructive relationships, Senica founded SennySen to be a guiding light to women and teen girls. Senica is the author of Married to Him, an autobiography of the destruction she faced in her abusive destructive marriage.  Senica is preparing to release her second book later this year; Woman Free Yourself: A Guide to Healing from Divorce or a Heart Wrenching Breakup by Starting Over, Rediscovering You, & Crushing Bitterness, Anger, and Resentment. Visit her at http://www.sennysen.com .


Married to Him by Senica Evans
Retail $9.99
ISBN: 978-1475010152
Published via CreateSpace July 31, 2012 (Originally published December 2011)
Non-Fiction/ Memoir & Inspirational

Purchase – Amazon  |  B&N   |   Book-A-Million  

About the Book:
One woman's story of overcoming a marriage filled with deceit, infidelity, and abuse to living a life filled with joy, peace, and deliverance.

From Senica Evans, comes a riveting, heartbreaking, drama filled autobiographical tale of her tumultuous marriage to Spank. He is verbally and mentally abusive and can't seem to control his incessant cheating. But it didn't start that way! They met and became the best of friends. Almost inseparable from the start. As Spank's true self was slowly being revealed the relationship picked up speed and eventually began to spin out of control. She saw the signs but her desire to keep her family intact was far greater. Despite the craziness, her love for him fueled the drama fire and his selfishness was the wind that kept it ablaze. There was a lesson to be learned from all of this and she was determined to figure it out.

Excerpt:
“The butterflies were swarming and I was warming up on the inside. He sat back on the couch and began to swirl his finger around the curls in my hair. He pulled me back to him and his lips touched mine. The kiss was so passionate it sent jolts through my body. Then all of a sudden he abruptly pulled away from me. “Go ahead and finish eating. I have more planned” he said with great confidence.”
“On one of the rare occasions  he would actually open up and talk to me, he told me, “sometimes you have to put things on the back burner to get what you want. Once I got you, I moved everything from the back to the front.” This explained it all! I was just something to be conquered. He didn’t love me, not one bit. It was all a game. “
 “You’re so silly! Why aren’t you taking pictures? What woman doesn’t take pictures on vacation? You’re just walking around looking like you’re a man or something. What was the point of you bringing the camera?
I didn’t know picture taking was gender specific! If you aren’t happy with the amount of pictures I’m taking or the lack thereof you are more than welcome to take them yourself.
I’m not doing anything. You’re the woman so you are supposed to do it. I don’t know why you want to be a man so bad. Senica you aren’t a man. You can’t be the man.
Huh?!? Ok whatever Spank!”

Follow The Tour

September 27 - Introduction at VBT Cafe' Blog
October 2 - Interviewed at The Official Blog-zine of Terra Little
October 4 - Guest Blogging at Margaret West's Blog
October 9 - Guest Blogging at Cindy Vine's Blog
October 11 - Interviewed at Mass Musings
October 15 - Guest Blogging at A Book Lover's Library
October 17 - Interviewed at BK Walker Books Etc.
October 19 - Author Fun Facts & Fav Recipe at Writing Innovations E-zine
October 22 - Guest Blogging at Cafe' Creations
October 24 - Interviewed at From The Mind of Omegia
October 26 - Guest Blogging at Lori's Reading Corner





Friday, July 9, 2010

Giveaway and Interview with Author Arlene Crenshaw




Please give a warm welcome to my guest Arelene Crenshaw,  author of Twelve Roses for Uretta.  This is a touching tale and I'm so happy to have Arelene here.  Thank you so much for stopping in Arlene.  Thank you for having me.


Please tell us a little bit about yourself.....

I’m a 48 yr woman with one son and two grandchildren, I raised my son on my own. We struggled many of days but we made it.  I blessed in so many ways.  I lost my job about a year ago for something that was not my fault.  It’s been difficult, finding work, and I prayed everyday for God to help me find something in this world I enjoyed doing, and in a dream a voice came upon me (God) and said to me. “You are here for a purpose and it is to write and inspire people.”  Something I’ve did all my life…inspire people, who would think that I would be writing novels today. Dreams do come true if you believe.


Is Twelve Roses for Uretta your first novel?

Yes it is, and I’m so very proud of myself.


What inspired you to pen this novel?

I had reached a point in my life that the pain became too much. I was tired of suffering mental and physically with my health and everyday life I was just plain unhappy no matter what I did or what other did for me. I realized I had be crying my entire life and sometimes I didn’t even understand why, so I decided It was time to go right to the cause and this was my way of healing within. Thank God, it worked now I feel like a whole new world has opened up to me.


Do you relate to your characters in any way?


In my book I am Erica who tells the story.


What was the hardest thing about writing this particular novel? 

This is a true story, the hardest thing was all the memories I had to deal with, and how the more I wrote the better I felt getting it all out of my system after 47 years of carrying this pain around. It was very hard for me but it was something I had to do for myself.  I wrote, I cried and I got it all out.  I got rid of the pain that claimed most of my life.


Have you received much controversy with this book?

If so, how do you handle it? I have… most people really enjoyed my book; they said it was a very emotional read. I did have some problems within my family, but I had to remind them this story was told through the eyes of a child.  It was not meant to hurt anyone, it was told for self healing and remembrance of someone that was so special to me.  And I also wrote it for awareness that things like this happen everyday, and It happens to those who you least expect it to happen to.  They just may be going through situation like in my book or going through something even worse.


What message do you hope readers will take away from your book?

My book “Twelve Roses for Uretta” takes this message seriously.  Love should not hurt and domestic violence can kill, don’t be a victim, there is always help. “Just reach out.”




What dreams have been realized as a result of your book being published?


My wildest dreams, that I able to do something wonderful and that is creative by me, something people enjoy and seem to really like and they want more and more.  I realized that dreams do come true.  I was once told that the only thing that comes to a dreamer is a dream.  Well I’m living proof that dreams do come true and I’m enjoying every bit of the ride.


Where do you hope your writing will take you in the future?

 I love writing I hope to put out as many books as I can but my goal is for someone out there to see my writing talent and pick me up to be one of the writers on HBO or Lifetime Channel.  I would love to be a writer on projects like 24, Treme, Flash Forward, Big Love or even True Blood I love those series.  Wish me luck…


Are you currently working on any new projects?

I’m always working on something, I have another book coming out in mid July 2010, a book of short stories and also I’m putting together another book for later this year.


What advice can you give to aspiring authors?

If people listen to what you say when you talk or even write it down, both in my case, and want more and more from you, give them what they want…write books.  I’ve always been told I was in the wrong career, which was the medical field all my life.  Then one day I decide to take charge of my life and do what I loved to do and that was.  “Write stories and quotes” and I do them both daily.


What is one thing your readers would be most surprised to know about you?

That would be I never thought I would be a writer. I can write stories all day but, my punctuation sucks…


Any events or news you would like to share with us today?


Yes, my next novel is called “Hidden Closets” due to be release the middle of July 2010.  This novel is a book of short stories about people’s hidden secrets that they keep hidden, and want to remain hidden.  There is a variety of stories that I challenged my self on, there is a lot of drama, suspense, comedy, and down right outrageous things that people hide. In this book, I really put secrets out there a truly must read.



Where can your readers connect with you?  Facebook, Myspace, Twitter?

I’m on facebook daily, where I do my daily quote of the day. I do that to encourage, enlighten, inspire and, motivate people to keep on keeping on, no matter how tough any situation in their lives may be, they can always come to my facebook for a quote of the day to be inspired. My website is http://www.mscrenshawbooks.com


Any parting comments?

Always inspire to be the best at whatever you are, and with you’re dreams there is no dream that can’t come true. It’s you’re world as well as mine spread your wings and soar high.


Thank you so much for taking time to chat with us today.

You’re so very welcome…stay blessed!

The Giveaway:



Leave a comment for Arlene and you will be entered into a drawing for a $10 Amazon Gift Card.  Drawing will be July 15.

Extra Entries:

  • Become a follower of my blog via Google Friend Connect or Networked Blogs (+2)
  • Become a fan on Facebook (+2)
  • Follow Me on Twitter (+2)
  • Share this giveaway,  and let me know where you posted it, or use share it in the side bar to the right (+2)
Please be sure to include your email so I have a way to contact you should you win.  Good luck!

Friday, June 11, 2010

Talking on Matters of the Heart with Cissy Hunt



Please give a warm welcome to my guest Cissy Hunt.  She is the author of A Rose Blooms Among The Thorns,  a fictional novel delving into the subject of domestic violence.  This title will take you through the storms of the life of LaRae,  from fear to healing. 

Cissy lives in the Ozark Mountains with her husband.  She loves working in her yard,  and the mountains give her serenity.  She is an ordained minister,  reaching out to help hurting woman,  helping them through the healing process.

Thank you so much for stopping in today Cissy.  I know domestic violence is something most people don't think too much about unless it is effecting their lives in some form.  I appreciate you discussing such a touchy subject.

Cissy Hunt speaks about Domestic Violence:

My book, A Rose Blooms Among the Thorns is a fictional story about a woman's journey from domestic abuse through healing to forgiveness. This book covers a subject matter that is very close to my heart. the subject matter it covers is domestic violence. Domestic violence is the willful intimidation, physical assault, battery, sexual assault, and/or other abusive behavior perpetrated by an intimate partner against another. It is an epidemic affecting individuals in every community, regardless of age, economic status, race, religion, nationality or educational background. Violence against women is often accompanied by emotionally abusive and controlling behavior, and thus is part of a systematic pattern of dominance and control. Domestic violence results in physical injury, psychological trauma, and sometimes death. The consequences of domestic
violence can cross generations and truly last a lifetime.

Did you know?
One in every four women will experience domestic violence in her lifetime. An estimated 1.3 million women are victims of physical assault by an intimate partner each year. 85% of domestic violence victims are women. Historically, females have been most often victimized by someone they knew. Females who are 20-24 years of age are at the greatest risk of nonfatal intimate partner violence. Most cases of domestic violence are never reported to the police.

Even though A Rose Blooms Among the Thorns is a fictional book it is taken from my own life experiences. I choose to make it fiction rather than non-fiction because I want every woman that has gone through domestic violence to be able to relate to it. I don't want them to just read about another woman who experience domestic violence. I want them to know that another man is not the answer that healing is their answer.
Jumping into another relationship after domestic violence without healing 90% of the time leads to another abusive relationship. Yet, if they take the time to heal then they can find a new life that does not include domestic violence.




I would like to leave you with this exert from my book.

After stepping to the podium, LaRae looked down at the urn holding Terri's ashes then to the picture displayed on the easel before looking back up and beginning to speak.

"Terri never made it to true womanhood for she was only nineteen years old when she died. She will never know what it means to be a mother or a grandmother because her life was devalued so greatly by
her abuser that it meant nothing to him to take it. Her life was snuffed out instantly with no thought of remorse because her life wasn't her own; it had been taken from her. She had become property not a human being.

Domestic violence and emotional abuse are behaviors used by one person in a relationship to control another. Do you know that every nine seconds a woman is assaulted and battered in this country, and 5.3
million women are abused each year, and that Domestic Violence is the single major cause of injury to women, more than muggings and car accidents combined. Fifty percent of all women murdered in the
United States are killed by a spouse or an intimate partner. Also, over 500,000 women are stalked by an intimate partner each year. An average of about four women per day dies because of domestic violence.

So you see on the day Terri died at the hands of her abuser so did three other women. Three other families in this country lost a mother, a sister, a daughter, an aunt, or a niece.  Terri Carter is not the first nor will she be the last this town will gather together in mourning over. I wish she would be the last, I pray she would be, but until this community starts changing and becoming aware of domestic violence; there will be more victims like Terri. Think about it! The next service could even be held for one of your family members...maybe even one of your daughters."


Thanks again for chatting with us on such an important subject Cissy.  Please visit Cissy's website at http://cissyh.webs.com  for more information about Cissy and her book.  Leave a comment today for your chance to win a copy of A Rose Blooms Among The Thorns or purchase at Amazon.

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

VBT Pit Stop with Arlene Crenshaw, author of Twelve Roses for Uretta



Today my guest is Arlene Crenshaw,  author of Twelve Roses for Uretta.  This title touches on a very meaningful subject...Domestic Violence.  Please give her a warm welcome as we discuss her book.


Thank you so much for stopping in Arlene? 

Thank you for having me.


Please tell us a little bit about yourself.....

I’m a 48 yr woman with one son and two grandchildren, I raised my son on my own. We struggled many of days but we made it.  I blessed in so many ways.  I lost my job about a year ago for something that was not my fault.  It’s been difficult, finding work, and I prayed everyday for God to help me find something in this world I enjoyed doing, and in a dream a voice came upon me (God) and said to me. “You are here for a purpose and it is to write and inspire people.”  Something I’ve did all my life…inspire people, who would think that I would be writing novels today. Dreams do come true if you believe.


Is Twelve Roses for Uretta your first novel?

Yes it is, and I’m so very proud of myself.


What inspired you to pen this novel?

I had reached a point in my life that the pain became too much. I was tired of suffering mental and physically with my health and everyday life I was just plain unhappy no matter what I did or what other did for me. I realized I had be crying my entire life and sometimes I didn’t even understand why, so I decided It was time to go right to the cause and this was my way of healing within. Thank God, it worked now I feel like a whole new world has opened up to me.








Do you relate to your characters in any way?

In my book I am Erica who tells the story.


What was the hardest thing about writing this particular novel?

This is a true story, the hardest thing was all the memories I had to deal with, and how the more I wrote the better I felt getting it all out of my system after 47 years of carrying this pain around. It was very hard for me but it was something I had to do for myself.  I wrote, I cried and I got it all out.  I got rid of the pain that claimed most of my life.


Have you received much controversy with this book?  If so, how do you handle it?

I have… most people really enjoyed my book; they said it was a very emotional read. I did have some problems within my family, but I had to remind them this story was told through the eyes of a child.  It was not meant to hurt anyone, it was told for self healing and remembrance of someone that was so special to me.  And I also wrote it for awareness that things like this happen everyday, and It happens to those who you least expect it to happen to.  They just may be going through situation like in my book or going through something even worse.


What message do you hope readers will take away from your book? 

My book “Twelve Roses for Uretta” takes this message seriously.  Love should not hurt and domestic violence can kill, don’t be a victim, there is always help. “Just reach out.”


What dreams have been realized as a result of your book being published?

My wildest dreams, that I able to do something wonderful and that is creative by me, something people enjoy and seem to really like and they want more and more.  I realized that dreams do come true.  I was once told that the only thing that comes to a dreamer is a dream.  Well I’m living proof that dreams do come true and I’m enjoying every bit of the ride.



Where do you hope your writing will take you in the future?

I love writing I hope to put out as many books as I can but my goal is for someone out there to see my writing talent and pick me up to be one of the writers on HBO or Lifetime Channel.  I would love to be a writer on projects like 24, Treme, Flash Forward, Big Love or even True Blood I love those series.  Wish me luck…


Are you currently working on any new projects?

I’m always working on something, I have another book coming out in mid July 2010, a book of short stories and also I’m putting together another book for later this year.


What advice can you give to aspiring authors? 

 If people listen to what you say when you talk or even write it down, both in my case, and want more and more from you, give them what they want…write books.  I’ve always been told I was in the wrong career, which was the medical field all my life.  Then one day I decide to take charge of my life and do what I loved to do and that was.  “Write stories and quotes” and I do them both daily.


What is one thing your readers would be most surprised to know about you?

That would be I never thought I would be a writer. I can write stories all day but, my punctuation sucks…


Any events or news you would like to share with us today?

Yes, my next novel is called “Hidden Closets” due to be release the middle of July 2010.  This novel is a book of short stories about people’s hidden secrets that they keep hidden, and want to remain hidden.  There is a variety of stories that I challenged my self on, there is a lot of drama, suspense, comedy, and down right outrageous things that people hide. In this book, I really put secrets out there a truly must read.


Where can your readers connect with you?  Facebook, Myspace, Twitter?

I’m on facebook daily, where I do my daily quote of the day. I do that to encourage, enlighten, inspire and, motivate people to keep on keeping on, no matter how tough any situation in their lives may be, they can always come to my facebook for a quote of the day to be inspired.


Any parting comments?

Always inspire to be the best at whatever you are, and with you’re dreams there is no dream that can’t come true. It’s you’re world as well as mine spread your wings and soar high.


Thank you so much for taking time to chat with us today.

You’re so very welcome…stay blessed!

Arlene is on virtual book tour with Twelve Roses for Uretta,  so be sure to leave her a comment here today for your chance to win a copy of her book.  Her next stop will be June 15,  where she will be guest blogging at http://waterytart23.blogspot.com

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