Isolation Junction by Jennifer Gilmour - Book Tour + Giveaway
Information about Isolation Junction:
First published in 2016, Jennifer has republished a second edition with the changes in Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
This is the republication of Isolation Junction and what a difference it is. A make over with a new book cover, new content, with Pict Publishing, third person only (as opposed to third and first in first edition) and the incidents in correlating order.
Synopsis:
Rose is the mother of two young children, and finds herself living a robotic life with an abusive and controlling husband. While she struggles to maintain a calm front for the sake of her children, inside Rose is dying and trapped in ‘Isolation Junction’.
She runs an online business from home, because Darren won’t let her work outside the house. But through this, she meets other mums and finds courage to attend networking events, while Darren is at work, to promote her business.
It’s at one of these events that Rose meets Tim, a sympathetic, dark-haired stranger who unwittingly becomes an important part of her survival.
After years of emotional abuse, of doubting her future and losing all self-confidence, Rose takes a stand. Finding herself distraught, alone and helpless, Rose wonders how she’ll ever escape with her sanity and her children. With 100 reasons to leave and 1,000 reasons she can’t will she be able to do it? Will Tim help her? And will Rose find peace and the happiness she deserves? Can Rose break free from this spiralling life she so desperately wants to change?
Based on true events.
Author Q&A
What
is the first book you remember reading or having read to you?
I
remember this well, because my mum gave me a set of the Beatrix Potter books
when I was under 10 years old. It was a
perfect gift for me as I loved both the stories and the illustrations. I still
have the books to this day and will pass them onto my eldest to enjoy.
Who
is your favourite literary character?
Without
question my favourite character is Hermione Granger from the Harry Potter
series because I relate to her. I was always in the library studying when I was
at school and seemed to be outside the most popular but like Hermione I had a
few close friends who stuck by my side throughout my time at school. I used to
always ask for extra homework and try to work my hardest despite not knowing my
career path and where I wanted to go with my life.
Which
book have you always meant to get around to reading, but still not read?
Believe
it or not for around 6 years I have been meaning to read the Twilight Saga
which was given to me as a gift. I must say I spent quite a few years in my
young adult life without reading and this was one of those must reads then.
Perhaps when I read it I will feel young again!
What
are you currently reading?
The
Carrero Effect by L.T.Marshall
Why
did you write a book?
In
brief, after my relationship had ended I found that I simply couldn’t believe
that some of the things that other women were saying were exactly what I had
gone through but just in a slightly different format. Domestic abuse tends to
go in a cycle and whichever way it begins, the behaviour spirals again and again.
At first it could be months between incidents but for me, as time went on,
there were many instances within one day. It is quite normal to try to prevent
the cycle from starting again by changing your behaviour as much as possible.
The help I received by attending a course meant that I began to understand that
we were all subjected to the same behaviour and that no one knew before that
this could even happen to someone ie that a relationship can be so unhealthy
and soul destroying. I realised that others simply needed to know more about
this unacceptable behaviour; they needed to see the warning signs before the
relationship goes further or the behaviour gets even more controlling. On the
other hand, I needed others to see the behaviour for what it is. If people are
in a relationship and the behaviour within it is not acceptable, it is not
their fault and it can't simply be changed by changing yourself.
I
knew that I had a story to tell and with my previous unfinished written work I
realised my first novel had to be more than a book - it had to be a message - a
way for others to be able to pass on the story to help other victims and to get
the penny to drop and bring about realisation of what is happening sooner than
it might otherwise have done. This means that when the relationship ends
victims and survivors realise they are not the only ones out there and it is ok
to talk about the abuse.
Does your work take its toll
on you emotionally and make it difficult to achieve a work/life balance?
I do have a lot of women confide in me and ask for support,
guidance or help. I also have had quite a few men who have spoken to me and I
was glad to have a male perspective in my second publication Clipped Wings,
which collates survivors real experiences together to show what domestic abuse
looks like. I am thankful to have spent a lot of time on self developing,
beginning with a recovery programme, a retreat, a life coach and reading. I am
however passionate and sometimes the line is crossed, someone may need some help
at a specific time and if I am available and have seen the message- I will
respond to them. I signed up for this to happen and the fact that I am able to
help others is a reward in itself. I do also moderate a forum on my website
which is available 24/7 and FREE, most know they are able to gain support
through this if I am unavailable.
How do you direct people who
may need support after reading your books?
At the end of my books there is
a message from me which include the UK 24-hour free-phone National Domestic
Violence helpline, which is 0808 2000 247. There is also a support page on my
website; http://jennifergilmour.com/support/
I do receive a lot of messages
and I have personally referred to local centres, once I directed someone in
Africa to her local support service. I have been a listening ear to many as
well, the first step is telling someone about whats happened to you and so I
urge anyone to speak to a ‘safe’ person or service. ‘safe’ meaning someone who
isn’t involved with the perpetrator or who you most certainly can be trusted
and will help you.
What else do you do with
regards to your work?
In October last year I opened a weekly Twitter chat
under #AbuseTalk for anyone to discuss domestic abuse each week. It has grown
each week and we have talked about a lot of themes under the heading of
domestic abuse, people have responded in being the hour they are understood
each week. This did however lead on to me opening a forum which is on my
website, it acts like a sister to the Twitter chat and gives a bit more privacy
which some members may require. The forum is sponsored by a solicitor and other
businesses and lucky to have this support.
I also speak at events across the UK about my personal
experiences of domestic abuse and how I have come out the other side.
About the author:
Born in the North East, Jennifer is a young, married mum with three children. In addition to being an author, she is an entrepreneur, running a family business from her home-base. Her blog posts have a large readership of other young mums in business.
From an early age, Jennifer has had a passion for writing and started gathering ideas and plot lines from her teenage years. A passionate advocate for women in abusive relationships, she has drawn on her personal experiences to write this first novel. It details the journey of a young woman from the despair of an emotionally abusive and unhappy marriage to develop the confidence to challenge and change her life and to love again.
Links:
Website; www.jennifergilmour.com
Facebook; www.facebook.com/isolationjunctionbook
Twitter; www.twitter.com/JenLGilmour
Amazon Profile Link; http://author.to/JenniferGilmour
Goodreads author profile; https://www.goodreads.com/JenniferGilmour
Huffington post blogger profile; http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/author/jennifer-gilmour
Giveaway – Win A copy of Isolation Junction- eBook
1 Comments
Well done hun, you should be so proud of yourself xx
ReplyDeletePlease try not to spam posts with the same comments over and over again. Authors like seeing thoughtful comments about their books, not the same old, "I like the cover" or "sounds good" comments. While that is nice, putting some real thought and effort in is appreciated. Thank you.