Friday, June 27, 2008

A Well Behaved Woman's Life

What do you do when you discover that your entire adult life has been a lie? What do you do when you realize everything you believed in and trusted in was nothing but an illusion painted with deceit and framed in your own stupidity?

At fifty-two, the only fact that she is certain of is that her life is just about over. Standing, looking at herself in the mirror, the ravages of time and The Truth have turned her into a bitter, lonely, hateful, spiteful old woman. The peaceful, proper, well-behaved existence that has defined her entire life has gotten her absolutely nothing except an ocean of tears and a lifetime filled with regrets.

However, whether she likes it or not, Bee must gradually begin to face the fact that perhaps God has not quite finished with her … yet.

A Well Behaved Woman’s Life is a story that reminds us that even in our darkest times, God has anticipated our needs, reassuring us that anything is possible and it is never too late – even for love, dreams, laughter and happiness.


Each of my books start in my head with a vivid image that I just can't ignore. For this book - my first foray into contemporary story writing - the initial image I had was of the rather bizarre "shower scene" in the first chapter. My main character, Bee, is so bleak at the start of this story that she describes her life as "numbing grayness." I wanted to create a character that had, on first glance, nothing much to live for. Unquestionably, Bee's had a raw deal in life. When she says, with great bitterness and sarcasm, "all my life I've been so well behaved and look what it's gotten me" I wanted the reader to empathize with her. Yet, I firmly believe that there is always hope. My good friend Kate said it best when she told me, "At the start of the story her life's a disaster and at the end of the story I wanted to be just like her!"

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