An Interview with Award-Winning Author Ellen Deery Freeman, author of Just George

Ellen Deery Freeman has just won a 1st Place EVVY Award for her most recent book, Just George, published by Outskirts Press in December 2015. Her next book, Duke (Plus One)  will be published soon.  Will it also be nominated for a coveted EVVY Award? We’re keeping our fingers crossed!

Ellen Freeman is a retired public-school science teacher who has always loved animals. In fact, she has rescued many over the years, including a Pileated Woodpecker, several Mocking Birds, baby possums, and even a baby deer! Her classroom always housed live animals, including snakes. In 2005 she moved into her Grandmother’s 100-year-old home, fulfilling her lifelong dream of living in the country where she can enjoy nature to its fullest. She lives there with her husband, Buddy, and two rescue dogs, Duke and George.  Ellen is donating ten percent of the profit from the book sales of Just George to the current management of the Hampton County Animal Shelter in Varnville, South Carolina.

In honor of World Animal Remembrance Month all September long, Outskirts Press has donated $1000 to the Dumb Friends League at this link and invites other animal lovers to join us.  In the meantime, we had an opportunity to ask Ellen Freeman a few questions about her award-winning book, its sequel, and her love for animals:

OP: Your story, Just George, is heart-wrenching as well as heart-warming. How long did it take you to write your story?

EDF:  I am not sure how long the writing of Just George took, but probably in the range of six to eight months. Because it is a true story, the writing consisted of remembering and describing the events of his first year after being rescued and correlating the pictures with the script….which was possibly the most difficult part!

OP: You’ve rescued a baby deer? Tell us about that…?

EDF: I did, indeed, rescue a baby deer, but that’s one chapter in the sequel to Just George, entitled  Duke (Plus One), and you need to read it!

OP: What advice would you give to someone who discovers an injured animal in need of rescuing?

EDF: In Just George I stressed a strong warning to children when it comes to sick or injured animals and told them to NEVER attempt to help, but to CALL AN ADULT and let them take care of the situation!

OP: How can others help in the support of animals?

EDF: Buying a copy of Just George and the soon-to-be-published sequel, Duke (Plus One) is one quick way you can help homeless animals, because 10% of my profit from every book sold goes to the Hampton County Animal Shelter in Varnville, S. C.

OP: Any additional books about animals in your future?

EDF: Yes! Duke (Plus One) will be published in the next few weeks. It is the true story of Duke’s life, as told by Duke, and if you’ve read Just George, you can probably guess who the “plus one” is! I hope that everyone reading this will get a copy of Duke (Plus One), and of Just George if you haven’t already. Both are books that will be enjoyed by animal lovers from the school-age child to senior adults!

OP: We’ll have to read them both! Thank you, Ellen.

MYW: Thank you! This is so exciting!

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