Please welcome my fellow Wild Rose Press author Debra Doggett!
My Mother’s Journey
I have always been a very visual person. Even as a writer, my stories come to me as pictures in my head, as scenes that gradually collect into a coherent form. Maybe it’s because I started out as a playwright, but the whole process for me is one of pictures married to words. So it’s probably a surprise that I have never attempted any form of painting or drawing. Actually, that’s not true. I did attempt to take a drawing class with a friend, who firmly believed anyone could learn to draw. After all, I had told her that according to family history, my great-grandfather (whom my family knew little about because of his early death) had been a painter. I made it through about three weeks of the class. Then we got to the part where the teacher expected us to draw something. Silly woman. Later my cousin told me she was pretty sure my great-grandfather had been a house painter, not an artist. Could explain the complete lack of talent I displayed.
In spite of that minor setback, I decided to add a creative jolt to my repertoire a couple of years ago and attempt some mixed-media art. It’s been fun for me and beneficial for my three daughters, who are now able to say “that’s beautiful” with straight faces and believable sincerity. All kidding aside, I am fascinated by the way objects, colors and words bring out meaning. And I now have a project that is dear to my heart that I hope to turn into an art journal.
A few weeks ago I received a packet from a lawyer that contained my mother’s file from a collective lawsuit over defective breast implants she received in the 1970s. My mother passed away almost fifteen years ago and the file brought both sadness and revelation. Among the papers and undecipherable medical terminology I found a letter she had written, detailing her feelings and the pain she had suffered through this process. And there were pictures that gave my heart a few tears. So I am girding up my inner writer to create a story where I can share this journey that my mother took through a loss that changed the way she saw herself, changed the way she felt about her body and her emotions. It’s going to be one of the toughest stories I ever put together but reliving the journey may open up an artist in me yet.
I know that she is only one of many women who have been affected by this operation and I would love to add other stories to my journal as well. I hope to hear them as I walk through this process and would love if you would share them with me.
Blurb:
Vampire Gates McHenry has waited eighty years for a chance at sexy shapeshifter Ava Harper. When she shows up at his bar with a wolf trap and a nasty attitude, he knows the time has come to deal himself into the game. And the stakes for this game are higher than any he’s ever faced before because someone or something has taken an interest in Ava as well. A deadly interest. If he can find the threat and keep Ava from staking him in the process, he just might be able to make the move that will win Ava Harper’s heart.
Excerpt:
He grinned up at her and a slow smile spread across her face, something that sparked a bit of concern inside him. When she bent down and leaned over him, he stopped thinking at all. Then she put those moist lips by his cheek and he was glad he didn’t breathe, for the feel of her against him would’ve driven the air from his lungs. In spite of his touted control, having her this close had him struggling not to reach out and take what he wanted. His mind started to wander, envisioning all the ways he could make her…
“What the—”
His words were cut off by the pressure of the stake tight against his heart. Ava leaned down close, that satisfied smile broader now. The point of the wood nipped at his clothing and drove all the nude images out of his brain.
“What’s the matter, gambler? Don’t like the stakes?”
“You carry a stake with you? Where the hell did you have that hidden?”
Ava pointed to the flowerbed by the porch. “There. You were so deep in your horny daydream I could’ve pulled out a Mac truck and you wouldn’t have noticed.”
“Why is it every time I try to get romantic with you, you whip out a stake? What have you got against having a good time?”
She plopped down on the ground next to him. “Your obsession with playing almost got you killed.”
A Giveaway!
Turn Up The Heat contest: From July 29th through August 31st, I’m celebrating the end of Summer and I’m looking for stories about how you turned up the heat in your relationship (no graphic details allowed, just fun and romantic ways to put the spice back into things). Post your story on my Facebook page during this time and you will be entered in a chance to win a basket of New Mexico culinary heat – things like chocolate with chile, jelly with chile, you get the idea. New Mexicans believe everything goes better with chile.
Bio:
Being a writer is more than something I do. It is the way I see the world, the way I process it. I believe in the power of stories. They make us smile, make us think and give us untold moments of enjoyment. I am proud to be a storyteller, and I hope my work leaves you both satisfied and entertained.
You can find Debra at:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Debra-Doggett
You can find Gambler’s Moon at:
babettejames.com 
Best wishes writing your mother’s story. You’ve set yourself a daunting task, but a healing one.
A very poignant post and one that, in part, resonated with me. I, too, had a creative career before I became an author – I was an actress in NYC in theatre, as well as being a cabaret performer. I wrote a play, too, before I gave up the performing career to become a caretaker for my Mom (emphysema and my mentally challenged youngest brother living at home along with my 99 year old grandmother also in Mom’s care). Now I write, but I’ve embraced a number of other artistic endeavors, including knitting, quilting and paper art. Yes, the drawing and painting? I gave that a shot. I have a great-great-great aunt who was an artist – oils, and other, which I actually have several of. That gene didn’t come by way. Though I have a lovely rendering in crayon of an apple. But I use my artist’s eye, my acting experience in creating character, and my creative energy to craft stories that can immediately grab a reader. Good luck with the latest project and I know you’ll do justice to your Mom’s experiences.
It is nice to try my hand at some other things. I miss the stage but the time requirement keeps me off of it these days.
I am so sorry to hear about your mom. And I am looking forward to reading this one! Your mom is up there beaming I just know it!
Debra, you have a challenge on your hands for sure, writing your mom’s story, but somehow I have no doubt you’re more than up to it. I wish you the very best in your own journey.