ISBN: 1598000586

The following interview was conducted by: NORM GOLDMAN:  Editor of Bookpleasures. CLICK TO VIEW  Norm Goldman's Reviews       

Click to View Norm's Review of Unbridled Injustice

Today, Norm Goldman, Editor of Bookpleasures.com is pleased to have as our guest, Ellie Boatman, author of Unbridled Injustice.

Good day Ellie and thanks for agreeing to participate in our interview.

Thanks so much for having me Norm:

Norm:

Please tell our readers a little bit about your personal and professional background.

Ellie:

I was born in Franklin, TN, the daughter of a large cattle farmer. I was raised in what used to be a tiny little town. After high school I attended a girls school, then on to Univ. of Tenn in Knoxville where I majored in Interior and Fashion Design. Many years later I moved to Lexington, KY, and had 3 lovely retail stores, which I sold when my first child was born. I am an avid horsewoman, and farmer, and adore the land. That is where my strength comes from!! I serve on several Boards that range in nature from The Governor of Kentucky’s Ag Policy Board, which entails nothing but Agricultural Progression in KY, Boards for Abused Children, and the facilities that run homes for them, and other civic boards.

Norm:

Unbridled Injustice seems to have a broader mission than simply entertaining or storytelling. Can you talk more about that mission and what you hope readers will take away from reading the novel?

Ellie:

I hope readers will finally understand that the justice system is not always “just” for all! Family law Judges have much broader perimeters than Circuit Judges, and can take you down based on how they feel that day, the color of your hair or even perhaps how well connected one of the litigants might be. Readers should understand that I am a “poster child” or an example that some judges will use to show the community of just what they are capable of doing. I will assure the reader that if Ellie were not married to who she was married to, and if the judge was not tied to the same law firm that her ex husband used for 35 years, the circumstances might would be different. But there is real corruption in the halls of justice, and it’s a “catch me if you can” world for the judges. Also, since my book was released, I have had several readers who recognized the judge, and emailed me to tell me their night mare stories-and the funny thing is, the victims are always victims of the same law firm that opposed me-funny how the judge sides with one specific firm all the time!! Also, you cannot give up the good fight-not when children are involved-you have to set yourself aside, and go for “what’s best for the children.” In my case my children were strictly pawns for the taking-and the louder I cried, the harder the judge came down on me-but don’t stop-you must always do what’s right for your children’s needs.

Norm:

What challenges or obstacles did you encounter while writing your book? How did you overcome these challenges?

Ellie:

It took me a year and half to write and complete the novel, as I was faced with re-visiting all of these nightmares over, yet again, when I brought them to paper.

It sent me into a depression, that I couldn’t buy into. I had to make myself get up and continue to finish the novel, and put some laughter in it too-which was no laughing matter!!

Norm:

How much real-life did you put into Unbridled Injustice? Is there much “you” in there?

Ellie:

Yes, this is based on my own sad saga that happened in Kentucky. There is a lot of fiction as well, but most of the most shocking events that happened are truth, not fiction. There are stories I did not put in because NO ONE would have believe them-seriously, there were some things done to the children by the ex husband and his girlfriend/lawyer, the public would not believe it.

Norm:

Did you have a hard time fleshing out characters initially?

Ellie:

Yes, at first I had 3 more characters. Then after having met with my Editor, we decided to make it “very tight” with just a few characters-all of whom the reader will continue to read about or “need” during the book.

Norm:

When you wrote Unbridled Injustice, did you have a particular audience in mind?

Ellie:

Yes, my audience was to be for mother’s mostly. Since the publishing, I have a strong “Equine” audience that loves reading about the horse show world.

Norm:

You include some very detailed dialogues in the book, where did that dialogue come from?

Ellie:

 I was well versed in depositions, and also had my Editor on hand to help “recreate” some of the dialog from my past circumstances.

Norm:

When writing Unbridled Injustice did you ever have in the back of your mind that you can turn it into a television or movie drama?

Ellie:

Well, hahahaha, yes, I can’t tell you how many of my friends would say to me “this is a made for tv movie-you have got to write a book-it’s better than Lifetime TV Movies-it’s really real!! I think it would make a dandy TV Drama

Norm:

What is next on your agenda and is there anything else you wish to share with our readers?

Ellie:

I just finished a children’s coloring book that my daughter co-authored with me (she’s 11 now). It’s called Nana and her Baby and its about a broodmare on our farm, and how the baby was born with “not so perfect legs” and how Nana teaches her baby to be “the best that she can be” even under very difficult circumstances. That little book makes me smile-you truly can be the best you can be, if you persevere, and put one foot in front of the other, and just keep going.

I am working on a second book-not really a sequel to UI, but it’s about what transforms after Ellie gets the children, and what she finds out the children actually endured at the hands of their father and stepmother. It also talks about how Ellie lobbys with the legislature (which I am doing now in real life) and tries desperately to change the “landscape of the KY judicial system.”