About Eleanor
Eleanor's Background
Eleanor knew she was meant to be a writer since one distinct and peculiar moment on her elementary school playground. Although the event was compelling and provided transcendent communication between her spirit and the Divine, it would be nearly 30 years later before Eleanor believed that moment was authentic.
Eleanor lives in gorgeous and vibrant Chattanooga, Tennessee, but loves calling North Carolina home. Greensboro was her whole world for 21 years. After working at several radio and television stations, she graduated from High Point University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Media & Communications. She moved to Chattanooga, and out of hundreds of applicants, she was given the opportunity to create the first-ever promotions department at heritage radio station, WDEF-FM. In less than two years, Jefferson-Pilot Communications powerhouse WSTR-FM asked her to join them as Executive Assistant to the VP of Programming.
After six years in Atlanta, marriage and family life carried her back to Tennessee. She loves being a mom, and considers that her greatest honor and responsibility, but needed work outside the home that coordinated with the kids’ schedules. In that search, she accidentally discovered that her number-loving left brain can generate income too! She landed a job at a CPA firm and worked there for seven years until breaking off on her own, and now works as an independent bookkeeper for several companies.
But the relentless ache of not honoring her love of writing drove a wedge of discomfort into her psyche. It reminded her of that fateful autumn day on the school playground. In October 2017, she decided to feign courage and launch her writing career at EleanorHoward.com --as well as revealing the personal blog she kept anonymous for years at FranticFinch.com.
Eleanor enjoys reading, traveling, antiquing, and attending concerts and book signings and lectures by ANY author.
Eleanor's Writing Style
Eleanor writes with everything she feels. She records what she sees, but not a one dimensional view, she creates work that makes the reader feel like they are in the pages, completely immersed in the paragraphs.
Readers of Eleanor's writing often describe her work as convincing. They can feel the chill of an autumn breeze, smell the fragrance of a character's cologne or count the wrinkles around a man's eyes.
She writes a scene without bogging the reader with unnecessary words. Her prose is informal, fresh and easy to read. All of her conversational sections are familiar, relaxed and believable.
Her work is best matched with lifestyle magazine articles, newsletters of current events and upcoming projects, website tweaking and long form book.
Book Reviews
Dreams of Falling
Here's your favorite Southern summer read from New York Times best selling author Karen White. Check out my review of Dreams of Falling for Southern Lit Alliance.
http://www.southernlitalliance.org/single-post/2018/06/01/Dreams-of-Falling
Calloustown Review
I'm honored to share my latest book review for the Southern Lit Alliance.
George Singleton's book "Calloustown" displays his unique storytelling ability with a collection of comedic tales that weave through life in this small fictitious South Carolina town.
Read the full review here:
http://www.southernlitalliance.org/single-post/2018/04/03/Review-of-George-Singletons-Callousto
Fire Sermon
I'm thrilled to announce my first book review for distinguished Southern Lit Alliance.
It is such an honor to blog for them and what an absolute thrill to write a review of Jamie Quatro's novel Fire Sermon.
http://www.southernlitalliance.org/single-post/2018/02/23/Guest-Book-Review-of-Fire-Sermon
Chattanooga Moms Blog Posts
When Parenting Ideas Change (but Strong Opinions Remain)
We have great ideas about how we'll raise our kids before we have them and then things change! Read the latest for Chattanooga Moms Blog.
https://chattanooga.citymomsblog.com/parenting/change-opinions/
Tricycles to Wheelchairs
Are you caught in the middle caring for toddlers and parents?
https://chattanooga.citymomsblog.com/parenting/caring-tricycles-wheelchairs-moms-caught-middle/
The Lasts are about You - The Firsts are about your Kids
Here's my most recent contribution to Chattanooga Moms Blog about remembering the lasts but celebrating the firsts with your kids.
https://chattanooga.citymomsblog.com/motherhood/lasts-firsts-kids/
Gender Roles
How are parenting roles divided in your family? Read my latest post from Chattanooga Moms Blog.
https://chattanooga.citymomsblog.com/parenting/parent-gender-roles-arent-used-im-glad/
Quiet Children in a Noisy World
So proud to have been selected to contribute to Chattanooga Moms Blog.
I'm excited to share my stories with this amazing group of women.
Read my first blog post here:
https://chattanooga.citymomsblog.com/motherhood/quiet-children-noisy-world-stimulati
Writings
Current Project
*NaNoWriMo Winner*
Participating in November's National Novel Writing Month encouraged me to start the novel I was destined to write. Here is a sneak peek.
*Undisclosed Title*
....As the storm moved inland, the winds were tempered but the rains were relentless. The Hurricane girls, skipped up the coastline, then drifted further inland, swinging their buckets of rain. The winds changed their course and pushed their journey beyond the reach of where hurricanes before them had ever gone. Their path defying the latitude and longitude odds and carried them through South Carolina’s midsection, and crossed state lines into the most western edge of the North Carolina’s mountains. Their unceasing power strong enough to carry them 300 miles away from the coast and settle in for days of soaking rains.
The mountains wept, then cried, then flooded it’s people and towns it loved. The strength of the hills were weakened from the pounding rain. Rocks loosened into mud and slid off the mountains. Quiet, peaceful bubbling streams became hostile roaring lions chewing river banks and ripping homes away from their foundation. The Appalachian mountain worked so hard to maintain her dignity. Gripping its massive trees and holding back its rivers. The mountains clung to the farmland topsoil as it loosened and washed away the crops. She couldn’t shield her people from this misfortune because the Hurricane girls were wicked and unforgiving. The youthful, reckless storm, wreaked havoc on the proud mountain matriarch and her beloved children.
A Few of My Favorite Lines
Some of my favorite pieces of work were those when my heart was in an uncomfortable place and it was burst open from unexpected events.
Here are a few of those.
The Bird and The Prayer
... My car prayer with God was going through the same mid-level obstacle course that I could run in the dark, blindfolded. I knew every step well enough that I wasn't challenging my spirituality. I'm climbing the same walls, elbowing my way underneath the wires, and hammering my legs like pistons to make it through the tires. I convince myself that I'm a Christian Athlete but when the course is the same, absolutely no strength comes from the conditioning.
Read more at:
http://www.franticfinch.com/seeds-to-share/2016/6/13/the-bird-and-the-prayer
Name in Lights
...She looked down and said, "So I prayed to Jesus when I was just a girl to put my name in lights. I could've been praying for my dad not to be an alcoholic and take my Buffalo Nickels away from me. I was so sad that day, but I figured he needed them nickels more than I did cause that's why Jesus let me have 'em for just a little while. You know that's why on this earth you only have things a little while. But praise Jesus, He never forgets a prayer even the ones you don't know your heart prayed without telling your brain...
Read more at:
http://www.franticfinch.com/seeds-to-share/2016/2/1/name-in-lights
Future Plans & Events
2018 is going to be a big year for me. The wheels of creativity and writing are rolling at smooth pace and I intend to keep moving in a positive direction. I have several conferences to attend, book clubs to keep me sharp, recently joined writing groups, and new NaNoWriMo friends encouraging one another to write another chapter.