Tag: books on domestic violence recovery

Fiction and Femicide – Writing Characters Who Survive Domestic Violence

Toni Morrison once said: “This is precisely the time when artists go to work…. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal.”

With her declaration in mind, and with many of our hearts heavy from a recent spate of lives lost to domestic violence—women whose stories ended too soon—I’ve found myself thinking about how the subplot of a woman in an abusive relationship is woven through my first three novels: Speak to My Heart, Nothing But the Right Thing and Watercolored Pearls.

Each storyline was born out of a desire to give voice to what so many women endure in silence—an issue I also spent a decade reporting on as a journalist, including interviewing nearly a dozen women who fled and sought help in a shelter.

Nothing But the Right Thing in particular showcases the fictional story of Erika, a woman navigating the complicated journey out of an abusive marriage — and the professionals and friends who become her lifeline.

There is more in this space worth your time, as well. My author friend Micki Berthelot Morency’s The Island Sisters follows a character’s journey through domestic violence amid a circle of friends she must learn to trust. My author friend Dr. Samone Brown’s novel (and Amazon Prime movie) Beneath the Scar shares the journey of a new bride facing abuse. There are also the novels Black and Blue by Anna Quindlen and Picture Perfect by Jodi Picoult.

If you enjoy books and movies, I’m sure you can add to this list.

Words alone can’t heal, but if you or someone you love is searching for understanding, courage or simply the reminder that there is a way forward, I pray these stories offer a measure of support.


You Are Not Alone: If you or someone you love needs help, please reach out to the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or text START to 88788.

Novels about domestic violence: Speak To My Heart, Nothing But the Right Thing, Watercolored Pearls, Island Sisters, Picture Perfect, Beneath the Scar

My Timeless Reads

As summertime reading season kicks in, I’m excited to share that under the wonderful Carol Hill-Mackey’s leadership, Recorded Books has developed 4 of my 9 novels into audiobooks.

And just in time for the release of these audiobooks is the paperback reprinting of two of these novels – 

Speak To My Heart,  my first nationally published novel which centers on two women friends (and a teen) making life-changing decisions that could make them or break them, 

and its sequel, 

Nothing But the Right Thing, a book that explores the emotional and physical toll domestic violence takes on victims and those who seek to support them, and how the things we sometimes long for most can arrive in unexpected ways.

The third book in that series, Watercolored Pearls, has been in 2nd printing for a while (with a brown cover) and remains a reader favorite (thank you, my reading friends!). However, this novel, too, is now available wherever audiobooks are sold (with the original blue cover).

The fourth book now in an audible format? My novel Finding Home, which tells the story of an ambitious woman named Jessica, whose life careens out of control until she realizes she must find a home within herself or risk chasing illusions forever. 

Please check them out – in print or audio! Listening samples are available on most audiobook platforms (and thank you to audiobook voice artists Susan Spain and Janina Edwards for doing a great job with each title).

As a dear friend recently declared: A book with compelling characters that explores still-relevant issues doesn’t have an expiration date. As you consider reading or re-reading my novels, or listening in the coming days and weeks, I hope you’ll find that to be true in these storylines.

(Side Note: Coming Home, one of my HarperCollins’ novels that preceded Finding Home, has been in print and audiobook form for years.)

While you’re reading or listening to these “Stacy classics,” I’ll be plugging away on my new manuscripts. My creative and inspirational endeavors flow in several lanes, yet completing my next few novels remains chief among my priorities.

Happy reading and “book listening” this summer! 📚✨

Screenshot