As a young independent woman raised in the United States, I had some negative reactions to Paul’s words in Ephesians 5: “…you wives should submit to your husbands in everything.” Ephesians 5:24b Submission was not something I was looking for. “Submit? In Everything? You’ve got to be kidding!” Still, I believed then, as I do… Read More
empowered or not?
Can an historical novel about women struggling through life in a patriarchal society speak into women empowerment issues? Perhaps we should start with a definition. A quick perusal of the world-wide web showed that most groups agree on a definition similar to the one below: Women’s empowerment focuses on identifying and redressing power imbalances and giving… Read More
the basics
What does it take for you to feel at home? Many of us would make a list of things: temperatures, safety, conveniences, rights… Now pick a different country, culture, financial stratum, time in history, and ask yourself the question again. What does it take for you to feel comfortable and content? Did your list change… Read More
I need a good dose of self discipline
One of the hardest things about writing–for me, at least–is the constant application of self discipline that is required: At the beginning, and at every ensuing stage, the task can look overwhelming. There is a plethora of chaos that needs to be organized and structured into an interesting and readable format. I have to make bargains… Read More
Our words reveal our character
The words that come out of the mouths of the the people in a book are vital clues to their character. In the book I am currently writing, the mother of one of the lead characters had a big influence on his life. We get to know her–in the most part–by the maxims she repeated often.… Read More
Can empowered women exist in patriarchal societies?
What is it like to live as a woman in a patriarchal society? I’ve been asking that of Ruth, the protagonist in my historical novel, Less Than a Widow? While researching this subject, I listened to a Tedtalk called “My daughter, Malala” by Pakistani educator Ziauddin Yousafzai. You can watch this video at: http://www.ted.com/talks/ziauddin_yousafzai_my_daughter_malala#t-273074. Mr.… Read More
On deadline for my historical novel: 5 months and counting
After twenty years of writing for others, I am seriously working on my own first novel. Let’s be honest, I’ve been working on it for a few years—am actually rewriting it for the seventh time. Why is this taking so long? It started out as a movie script for a variety of reasons, but the… Read More
Kathleen S Evenhouse 