Imagine Ginger's horror as she watches the snow build up on the white sugary sand outside her beachfront cottage on Florida's Gulf Coast in summertime in the short story, "A Cold Day in Hell." Think of Irene's fear after her lover shoots and kills her husband in "The Blue Steel Special." In "Flowers and Foie Gras," laugh with Polly as she worries about flowers for Valentine's Day. Worry with Susie, a young teen, about her older sister's multiple personalities and how she is affected by it in "Butterflies and Rap Music." Plan with Annette the next adventure for "The Pink Ladies." Meet these five women and the other nineteen major characters who comprise the twenty-four whose stories are told here. Walk in their shoes. Travel their roads with them. But, be prepared for a sometimes smooth and a sometimes bumpy ride! "SHE IS WOMAN: COURAGEOUS, COMPELLING, AND CAPTIVATING (And Sometimes Outrageous!) is a collection of twenty-four short stories about twenty-four women of all ages who demonstrate one or more of the traits in the title. Some are courageous; some are compelling; some are captivating. Some, especially Pink Lady Annette, are totally outrageous! You will find that some are both compelling and captivating, while others are courageous as well. All of the heroines are fascinating, but that word just couldn't work its way into the title! Each story is entirely different from the last, dealing with wildly different topics and emotions. Think of young love. Think of betrayal and love gone sour. Think of vampires! Think of responsibility. Think of fun activities, friendship, global warming. Imagine the job of a lifetime and if it could, or would, be your choice. Imagine growing up in a small town where everyone knows each other - and each other's business. These stories are fiction, but they are drawn from life. Any one, or more, of these stories could have you as the main character. Perhaps they do. See if you can find yourself in these stories. Many of these twenty-four stories are about things the author knows, or has heard about, or are stories handed down for generations and each generation has put its own spin on the tale. The stories are retold, and by tweaking them a bit here, and a tad there, the author makes them her own. There are other stories, however, that just appear in our imaginations as if some alien has opened our skulls and installed it in our brains. There are no aliens to thank for these stories, but thanks go to the people whose stories may have morphed into something else entirely once entered on the pages. Whatever the inspiration for the stories in this book may be, the author is grateful that a song, a movie, a word heard in passing, a phrase or poem, or any interesting topic can inspire her to write it down and develop a story around it. One such example is a photo she took of three Pink Lady jackets hanging from the backs of three chairs in a cafe. Voila! A story was born. You will recognize the story here. You will also recognize the photo as it is used on this book's cover. Read these stories and find out about these fascinating women. Enjoy reading them as much as the author enjoyed writing them and compiling them together for this book. Then go have some champagne and Pate Foie Gras and discuss them with your friends!
About the Author: Lyla Faircloth Ellzey is a board member of the Tallahassee Writers Association and lives in Tallahassee, FL in a retirement community with her husband Frank. She is a graduate of USF in Tampa with a double major BA in English and Speech. Her M.Ed comes from UF in Gainesville. Her career was primarily spent in Administration, teaching for only one year before becoming a stay at home mom while rearing her two children and being everyone's emergency contact person! Returning to work, she served a dozen years as the Administrative Assistant at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Woodbridge, VA. She then worked for Lutheran Social Services of the National Capitol Area before working in administration for two contracting companies in the Washington DC area. Lyla returned to Florida upon her marriage to Frank in 2001 and has been enjoying her early retirement. Past retirement age now, she finds she is far busier than when she was gainfully employed! She is thoroughly enjoying life and its opportunities. She is an actress in student films, working with the FSU Film students She also enjoys stage plays, both watching and participating. She is a member of the Players Group in her retirement community. Travel, particularly to foreign countries, is a true passion. She and Frank have now visited five continents and have traveled to China, Egypt, Russia, Peru and the Amazon, and much of Europe and the UK. More travel is planned. Lyla also enjoys, along with writing, reading, acting and travel, other pursuits like arts and crafts, scrap booking, painting and volunteering. Lyla and Frank have five children between them and four grandchildren, all of whom, as Garrison Keillor says, "are above average!"