My dear friend, Su Lute, is a gifted writer who is one of the co-authors of the witty and important blog, "See Jane Publish".
Today, she reminds all of us of a frightening reality of a woman's life. She shares the story of a fellow nurse and good friend who was killed this week by domestic violence.
What is there to say when this tragedy occurs?
I'm sure there are 'helpful' people who will scold Su for "not getting her friend out of there" or "not alerting the authorities". To these people, I gently remind them - stopping domestic abuse is not as simple as riding in like the Lone Ranger and saving the day with a Grand Gesture.
For the rest of us, I say that that romance is important. Abuse is one reason why. Women must have hope that they can survive an angry man. We must have hope that love will mitigate the violence that is rampant against women.
When we are fatigued and hopeless from the odds stacked against us, romance gives us a chance to restore our souls and refresh our bodies. Then, we can go back into the world and fight the good fight for our rights.
Fear can drag us down, convince us that we are trapped by a world that hates us, wants us to be silent, wants us to disappear, wants us to be available as sexual objects only, and that dismisses our intellect and our talents.
Anything that gives us hope, bandages up our courage, that helps us remember our fallen sisters, cannot be dismissed.
In the meantime, I'll look at lots of pictures of the Topkapi Palace for inspiration.
On the publishing front - the release date for Dracula's Secret has been pushed back (again) to early fall.
I am pleased to say that this is due to the natural growing pains that happen when a publishing house starts a new line. (As you may remember, Dracula's Secret is one of the flagship books for Kensington's brand new e-book line).
So when you ask me when my book will be out, the answer will be, "I don't know, but I will certainly tell you as soon as I find out!"
I was going to talk about how I watch men for inspiration - not so much with their looks, but for the way they carry themselves, their smiles, the body language they exhibit around people they might be attracted to.
Jeremy? Call me. ;)
But instead, I got caught up looking at pictures and videos of Jeremy Renner.
I've had to watch it in small bits and pieces, simply because the truth is so very painful - that with the proliferation of new media, the representation of women and girls has gotten even worse. And it had been bad enough when I was younger.
I railed against a system that refused to teach girls how to resolve conflict or how to call out injustice. In college, I studied history - a male dominated field - where I was told there were no great women historians.
When I was a young girl, I often expressed frustration at the society that judged women on their looks. I distinctly remember my father, a serious advocate for women in the sciences, calling my mother over from making dinner to, "Look at this beautiful PhD!"
Being a literal sort, I assumed Dad meant that this particular diploma had been hand painted with calligraphy and gold leaf illumination; a document that looked like something from the Book of Hours.
Unfortunately, no. It was about the way she looked, not what her dissertation was about, or her research advances.
And I now see that the system has gotten worse.
This is for all those out there who judge a female on her looks alone, who write advertisements, books, movies, and web content that minimize a woman's talents - I'm watching. And I'm going to let you know when you diminish me and other women.
