JONESBOROUGH – New author, Jeanne G’Fellers of Jonesborough, is proud to announce the April release of her first novel, "No Sister of Mine."
Published by Bella Books, the tale is set in a world with parallel cultures: patriarchal Taelach and matriarchal Autlach. Doomed by evolutionary forces to be dependent on the Taelach for reproduction, the tensions that result between the Amazonian Autlachians and their patriarchal opponents sets the stage for a unique storyline with endless possibilities.
LaRenna, the young protagonist with years of military background, serves the matriarchy as a Kimshee or rescuer of Autlach infants. Without Kimshee rescue, the babies were doomed to be the victims of infanticide at the hands of the fanatical Taelach, whose strong misogynist religious convictions dictated continual ethnic and racial cleansing.
As a 35-year-old mother of three, G’Fellers has quite a busy life. Publication of her novel while raising her family indicates the strength of character, which echoes in her novel's heroine, LaRenna. G’Fellers children, ages 14, 12 and 5, keep their mom busy with the usual hurly-burly life of parenting. “They keep me busy,” Jeanne says, in what every parent knows as a colossal understatement.
G’Fellers lives in Jonesborough in Washington County , Tennessee ’s first town and first county. The Jonesborough/Washington County Historic Center located there is a repository for the history of the area and offers insight into the area’s backgroundm dating back to the 1770s.
This super-mom is also a graduate student at East Tennessee State University in nearby Johnson City with the goal of attaining a Master of Arts in English. She also works there as a graduate teaching assistant.
G’Fellers' interest in writing came about in the days before she came out as a lesbian. Living in a world not to her liking, she began to create fiction that would provide an escape from her day-to-day reality.
Publication of the novel came only after many rejections. Encouraged by her partner, Anna, she finally submitted the manuscript to Bella Books who agreed to publish it. Bella Books, located in Tallahassee , Fla. , is a lesbian-owned publishing house. They focus exclusively on fiction by and about lesbians, covering the areas of general fiction, romance, mystery/thriller/sci-fi/fantasy and erotica.
“I live with a retired marine gunnery sergeant,” remarks G’Fellers, referring to her partner Anna. The two met online and have been partnered for more than two years. She credits the publication of her book to Anna, whose encouragement and direction helped her realize her goal.
G’Fellers hopes to develop a series of novels with “No Sister of Mine” as the springboard for the series.
Bella Books is located online at www.bellabooks.com.