Women Born In The 1940s

"One cannot go through life without facing obstacles of various types. We have to remain focused, barrel over the obstacles, see the light at the end of the tunnel, and by the Grace of God, keep moving."

"The women of Kenya have made Kenya proud through our athletes, the late Wangari Maathai, and the rest. I am so overjoyed because the women have done it."

"As I said, my next project is a prequel to Under the Witness Tree. I fell in love with Nessie Tinker. Nessie was a 90+ year old black supporting character who challenged me to know more about her and where she came from. I wanted to know what her life would have been like growing up in Georgia in the 1900’s. What were her dreams and hopes, her disappointments? And, what of love, between two young women, one black and one white? This next book is the result of that curiosity and search."

"The character created most closely from my personal experiences is Jean Carson, the teacher in Mirrors. Her struggles were mine, her hopes and fears were mine. She struggled to protect her job, while trying to help a bullied student. I kept my job, but lost a student to suicide."

"Within the circle of friends, Kasey and Connie have the most stable relationship. My hope is to leave the reader with the sense that this couple has the tools to work through the challenges that long term relationships face."

"The hate crimes described in Love in the Balance are based on the hate crime murders of Susan Pittmann and Christine Puckett, committed in Huron Township in Michigan. I was honored to have their daughter, Cynthia Pittmann, write the poignant Foreword for the sequel, The Indelible Heart."

"As have so many LGBT people, I formed a family of choice throughout the years – people who accepted and nurtured and loved me for who I am. During the writing of The Indelible Heart, I lost three of those people. There wasn’t enough time for me to recover from the grief of one loss before I was faced with another. The once solid ground beneath me was gone. And, at the same time that I was trying to get through my own grief, I was having to take Sharon back to hers. It has made this the most difficult book for me to write."

"One of the reoccurring challenges I incur is that my stories don’t fit neatly into one category – there is too much social commentary for the romance genre and too much romance for general fiction. It makes marketing a challenge, as well as award nominations."

"I believe there are a number of similarities, common struggles to change social attitude. But, unlike the racial struggle, the LGBT community, for the most part, has had the option of the closet – to stay hidden, to live the lie. And, I think in the long run, that has lengthened our struggle. Without that option, we would have had to fight harder and sooner."

"I have a great amount of respect and admiration for a number of authors. It’s difficult to single out one as a favorite. Each offers me something special, unique to their style and presentation. Alice Walker offers introspection and a raw, yet palatable honesty. Harper Lee gave us an unrivaled one-time shot to the gut challenge to our humanity. Sarah Waters masterfully weaves her fictitious characters through places and time in history. And, I have yet to find an author whose craft is more impeccable, or plotting more effective, than Val McDermid."

"It seems as though I was always writing something – little stories, poems. All through school, whenever there was a choice between a written or oral assignment, I always chose the written. Later, writing became affordable therapy. I taught in the public school system for 25 years, as closeted a profession as there is, except possibly the religious sector. Expressing and exploring who I was as an individual, as a whole person, had to be done secretly and during those times when I wasn’t teaching, coaching, or losing my mind. It is the need to express beliefs and thoughts and feelings that had been suppressed for so long."

"My next book will be a prequel to Under the Witness Tree. I never say never, but I don’t foresee featuring these three characters again."

"I have written 9 books. Each has something that makes it special to me. The first, Legacy of Love, for the obvious reason. Love in the Balance has an emotional connection to my mother, and to a hate crime that was committed near where I live. Mirrors emerged from my teaching experiences, and losing a student on my watch. Losses in my personal life, and an unexpected connection with the daughter of the hate crimes victims, made The Indelible Heart a difficult and unforgettable effort."

"For me, a story must be relatable and believable. As a writer, I want to immerse the reader in the lives of my characters, in hopes and dreams that may be lofty but reachable, and in struggles that are realistic and frustrating, and even frightening. If I can do that, the reader will be able to live the story with my characters."

"What is unfortunate is that our community is still embattled, facing ongoing challenges to our rights and security. I would think that as long as those exist, there will be a need and opportunity for me to write stories of how those struggles effect our lives."

"Without the test of heat, no metal proves its strength; without the test of life, no love can prove its worth. Rare is the love that survives the tests of the life she knew, but the pain from loves that failed those tests could fill more than one lifetime.”"

"Most surprising, I think, was the depth of my sense of injustice. At times it bordered on anger, and it was such a cleansing, therapeutic experience to be able to express and explore that through my characters."

"My biggest writing challenge is embracing the freedom that I have now from page and word restrictions. My first few books were published by Naiad Press, and were subject to restrictions. I learned to make every word count, minimalize description, and move quickly from scene to scene, all of which improved my craft. But, now I can expand the scope of my story lines without fear of drastic cuts."

"That’s the dilemma the group of friends in The Indelible Heart had to face. And, as in our larger society, their opinions ran the gamut from indifference to merciful release to let him rot in hell. As I wrote, I found myself weighing and evaluating my own belief. As it turns out, I find myself leaning closer to Sharon’s ‘let him rot’ opinion, with a gentle nudge to force justice to take the hand of forgiveness."

"That balance has been a real struggle for me. And, balance truly is the key, I believe. It’s a fluid thing, something that changes as our lives change. There were times when I could expend time and energy on marches and rallies and petitions, and there were times when I needed to secure my personal place in the world. The truth, I’ve realized, is that it takes a community, recognizing its fluidity and maintaining its focus. It takes leaders. It takes everyone doing what they can. For me, for now, it means writing stories of palatable consciousness."

"I have a couple of things niggling my mind. One, partly fueled by the importance of the women’s vote in the recent election, is to explore the history of our fight for the vote. Another is the problem of animal neglect and overwhelmed animal shelters. Of course, these issues will have to explored by characters in a storyline that balances love, hope, and social consciousness. I just can’t seem to help it."

"We placed a huge focus on ecommerce and digital marketing, both financially and strategically. This is our fastest growing revenue stream for the business and we are able to see a justified return on marketing spend and activity making it a really interesting and important part of our future growth."

"Bravery, ambition, empowerment, nurturing, passion, drive, optimism, joy, collaboration, vision, celebration, encouragement, pioneering, and kindness."

"This will be a long list of cheerleaders! I’ve been supported and guided by so many awesome women, many of whom have been pivotal to my decision-making and growth plans over the years. In"

"My inspiration to write poetry is my way of trying to make sense of the human condition and the circumstances in and around me in a succinct and powerful way."

"I never felt a poet’s presence as a child I suppose, but I did always have a great affinity to songwriting which I would argue is some of the best poetry if done with fervor and soul."

"Motivation is iffy because we are not usually able to turn it on when we want, so I mostly prefer the mundane act of being motivated by everyday life and everyday ups and downs."

"You don’t just become a writer, although honing is indeed part of the process, you just have to commit yourself to it like you would a marriage. Till death do you part."

"My degree put science, engineering, and chemistry all together. This brought me closer to the environment because we have the obligation to take care of mother earth. I have a responsibility to protect her"

"I had planned to be a pediatrician, then I read Silent Spring and this changed my direction away from medicine and towards chemistry"

"We took care of the land. We captured water in a cistern and used a pump from the well. Nothing was thrown away. You had to use everything because there was little or no money. This meant that we practiced canning, composting, and reusing whatever we could"

"Mom wouldn’t allow pesticides in her garden. Being a Brownie and a Girl Scout, we were taught about preventing forest fires, how to protect the environment, take care of animals, etc."

"Going to college, having a scholarship, never knowing where the money was coming from, but trusting, feeling blessed, and knowing it will come was a blessing. It came from God"

"We need a do it yourself approach for sustainable practices. I recall the sanitation strike of 1968 in Memphis, TN. The city came together and demanded change. It is essential to organize and use your community, church, and creative influence to prevail. You have a direct influence on solving our world’s problems."

"You are your brother’s keeper. You are responsible. You’re blessed to have what you have, and you’re responsible to take care of others, as God has taken care of you."

"I’m talking about the whole social justice system because it's not just the perpetrators. It is the victims, their families, everybody around them. So, this whole matter of bringing justice to victims has many dimensions."

"I consider myself to be an "Environmentalist for Nuclear Science--despite a lot of concerns and criticism because many benefits for mankind arise from the use of nuclear applications, specifically in health, food, agriculture and environmental protection."

"In a way, campaigning with The Hepatitis C Trust is business as usual. I've always felt that activism is my rent for living on this planet."

"Business itself is now the most powerful force for change in the world today, richer and faster by far than most governments."

"African farmers already suffer from drought, disease, internal trade barriers, corruption and lack of property rights; refusing them the benefits of genetically modified food is a cruel and nasty trick."

"If you do things well, do them better. Be daring, be first, be different, be just."

"Africa needs improved seeds. As climate change dries out its soil and struggling plants become ever more susceptible to pests and disease, we need new technologies to deal with these problems."

"Wow! That’s fantastic – I am absolutely thrilled. I look forward to working with the new executive board and, of course, with our fabulous staff in Trieste and to engaging with as many members as I can."

"Global Learning – is that the field becomes increasingly more than just knowledge, but it becomes a field that is about what you do with that knowledge."

"The use of every modern tool that can improve both productivity and nutrient value. If that involves genetically modified crops, indigenous knowledge, artificial intelligence, better use of grey water – no matter – go for what works best."

"When I was a young woman starting out in science I made a conscious decision not to have children as, in those days (1970s), that was the only way for me to realize my full academic potential. I don’t want other women to have to make that decision."

"As the first African American female graduate of the University of Pittsburgh School of Engineering in 1961, I did not have a role model,” she writes in part. “I understand that requests are not few, and her contacts must be very limited. If there is a way that a meeting can be arranged or a sighting, I am very interested. … Knowing of her has been an inspiration to me."

"I could do a split, but another African American girl could do a flip,” she remembers. “There could only be one African American cheerleader, and I couldn’t do a flip, so that was that."

"Girls always come up here, but they never finish, and you won’t finish either.” Then he glanced at her hands and added: “Besides, you’re never going to be able to draw with those fingernails.”"

"Some of it may have been racial prejudice,” she says, “but they didn’t even have to get to racial because being a girl in engineering, being female, was enough"