Dorothea Benton Frank: Domestic violence isn't fiction

Dorothea Benton Frank, author of The Hurricane Sisters, takes on a difficult subject in her latest release and works to raise awareness.

Dorothea: On June 3, William Morrow published my 15th novel, entitled The Hurricane Sisters. It reared its pretty little head at No. 3 on the NYT list as I traveled to more than 30 places to promote its sales. Everyone was thrilled. But I had written about a topic that is the latest shame of our society, domestic violence. My readers had plenty to say. Some people told me in strong words to shut up, that they didn't buy my books to read about ugly things. They wanted books from me that made them laugh. They wanted to be amused, entertained. I had suspected some people would react that way long before The Hurricane Sisters made it to the stores. Fortunately, they were the minority.

You see, here's the thing. I have built my career writing novels about the majesty and almost magical power of the Lowcountry of South Carolina. I am mighty proud indeed to call myself one of its daughters. My ancestors have walked that land for over 300 years, fighting in every war in our nation's history. And, here's the bad news, until just recently South Carolina was ranked as the No. 1 state in America where more women were murdered by the hands of their husbands, lovers or ex-husbands and ex-lovers. No. 1. When I read this, I felt deep embarrassment and profound shame the depths of which I have never known. I could barely believe it. But it was true and the more I researched it, the more horrible the truth became. Domestic violence is a national epidemic. And even though I'm not an expert in the field of domestic violence, was I supposed to keep this information to myself? Absolutely not. If this news had not punctured my bubble thus far, then perhaps others didn't know about it as well. Isn't it my job to provoke and inform as well as to entertain? There was no doubt I was going to write about it and let the proverbial chips fall where they may.

At my first signing on this book tour, I gave a brief talk about domestic violence, then went on to talk about other aspects of The Hurricane Sisters, had a short Q&A session and finally sat down to sign books. Someone slipped me a note. I opened it while she stood there, obviously on the verge of tears. It said, I'm a survivor. I looked up at her and before I could think of what to say, she quickly took the note back. She didn't want anyone else in the room to know. It was a secret. A dirty, terrible secret. She was an elegant-looking, seemingly intelligent, middle-age woman of means. I didn't know if she was still in that relationship or not, but it was clear she carried deep emotional scars.

As I went from signing to signing, my publisher donated books to whatever the local battered-women's shelter happened to be in that town or city. We invited a representative to say a few words and to hand out brochures seeking support. At every single event at least one woman came forward to say she had lost a sister, a niece or a colleague to domestic violence, and in most cases they had not known that their loved one was living in danger. If they'd only known, they said. But then a wonderful thing began to happen. People sent money, goods, offered their time as volunteers to battered-women's shelters everywhere — a grass-roots effort began that is slowly gaining momentum. More than that, a conversation had begun. Conversation about solutions.

Coincidentally, by the end of my first week on the road, Vice President Biden had announced his plan to stop violence against women on college campuses. An eye-opener. Soon after, The Post & Courier of Charleston published a long exposé on domestic violence. Their articles talked about what's behind the abuse and showed what other states are doing to curb the crimes, offering solid ideas and plans. Newspapers and magazines all over the country began to publish articles about domestic violence. It was all over television news and the Internet. Then the NBA and the NFL turned up the volume, and suddenly it seemed like the whole country was talking about domestic violence and yes, even domestic homicide. Awareness has finally been raised. But has it been raised high enough to change and pass the laws that demand real consequences? Will it hold our attention long enough to solve it? We have to keep the conversation going because there are over 1 million people in this country who are terrified and suffering and who don't know where to turn. And every year over 1,800 women die.

I know that I am forever changed by the experience of learning about the pervasiveness of these crimes against women and yes, men and children, too. And I want South Carolina, which has recently moved to the No. 2 position (behind Alaska), to have no role to play in this uncivilized and evil quagmire except to be a role model against it. I have struggled to understand the reasons why domestic violence happens at all. I have heard the stories from women of how they blame themselves and how he promised he'd never do it again. Wrong. Domestic violence only escalates. Believe this; it is never the woman's fault or the man's or the child's when they are abused. Never. Because, in simple terms, there is no good reason, none whatsoever, to intimidate, bully, control or to raise your hand against someone you ever love. Not one.

Find out more about Dorothea and her books at www.dotfrank.com.

Visit www.domesticshelters.org for information on domestic violence and how to get help.