Clichés for a Cause

I've got a great guest today - my good friend Bobbie and her hubby. He writes, she draws. They have a story together in a charity anthology, Clichés for a Cause.

Tell me about this charity project. Who are they and what is their purpose? 

Bobbie: The goal of Clichés for a Cause is to take a trope and produce a beautiful book each year of completely donated artwork and short stories.  This is their second year and this year’s charity is RAINN.  The full name is the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network.  They help support survivors of sexual abuse and sexual violence in so many ways.  They have hotlines both online and phone:  https://ohl.rainn.org/online/  and they support and sponsor awareness programs and a whole bunch of victims services.  They even have parenting tips on talking to your kids about sexual assault and abuse.  Most impressive is that 92 cents of every dollar donated goes straight to the cause as opposed to so many other charities.

There is so much more you can see on their website.  As for me, as a survivor of sexual abuse, I am so very excited to be using my skills to help this wonderful group.  Everyone at Clichés for a Cause is excited to do our best to help this year.

Steve: It's a great cause and it's been tremendously rewarding to play even a small part in it.

What are the stories in the anthology like? Tell me more about yours. 

Bobbie: This year’s Clichés for a Cause cliché is Once Upon a Time. All the stories are reinterpretations of fairy tales. There is one about the sea witch in Little Mermaid, illustrated by the illustrious Jessica Douglas.  Another story is called Maiden Tree and Michelle Papadopoulos’ picture for it is just lovely. 

I inked 2 pictures for my hubby’s story Bridgette and the Gruffz.  Steve’s story is hilarious, oh and charming.

Steve: These are vicious, vicious lies. Our story is based on a heated, late-night conversation about how the 3 Billy Goats Gruff is a monoculturist misrepresentation of troll courting rituals. As a warrior of truth, I needed to make the facts known.

Bobbie: That’s my hubby, ever the champion of truth, or at least a more entertaining version of it.  We were watching TV one night and during some end credits the name Trowbridge popped up and I misread it as Trollbridge.  I started laughing so I had to point it out to Steve.

Tell me more about you and your hubby. 

Bobbie: There we are as Franken-Steve and the Bride of Franken-Steve.

Steve: I am not interesting.  My wife is a transcendent muse of depthless inspiration, posing as a mild-mannered independent artist. She works in jewelry and curios, (www.metallicvisions.com)  but most important is her pen-and-ink work (http://bobbieberendson.deviantart.com), some of which you can see if you buy the book… *grin emoticon*

Bobbie: Flatterer. He is so humble, in actuality he is a magnificent spinner of tales grand and simple. And he has spent countless years building amazing and detailed worlds for his friends to run around in and ruin. In truth he is the most amazing and frustrating man I have ever known, and I am very grateful to have him to create with.

Thanks so much for sharing. The book sounds like a lot of fun.

Check out Bobbie's blog about her experiences and buy the book to support RAINN.