Echoes Series Women

I recently received a comment from a reader suggesting I should give the women in the Echoes Series stronger voices. She especially would like to hear from Jennifer, she said.

I've thought about the roles of my women characters since I started the Echoes Series. When I wrote Heather, originally, I was going to show only her mean nature and sharp tongue. But I softened her a little because I didn't want to simply produce a stereotype. Heather has turned out to be a fun and sometimes warm character, and definitely a main stay of the series.

And I wonder too why I write primarily from the male perspective. It's a challenge, for one thing, and I always like a challenge. And I have lived in a male-populated (and often male-dominated--drop by our house on a Sunday during football season and you'll see what I mean) family for 25 years. If any woman can understand how guys think, I should be able to. (It's not generally that hard, really.) And of course Joshua has made a most compelling character.

But I have not forgotten Jennifer. Like her mother, she has a quick tongue--though she's a little better about controlling it. Like her father, she's energetic and sometimes restless. And of course she needs her turn at narration.

I'm working on her story right now in Ripples, the fourth book. But she has two coconspirators, and conarrators. Kyle, Brad's son, and Isaiah, Chris's son, both make strong appearances in Ripples.

Jennifer is growing before our eyes--from a toddler to a young woman. And she will continue to grow to the end of the Echoes Series.