Our dragon’s name is Debs.
Debs is a delightful dragon named after our friend and author Debra Kemp.
We called her Debs. She said that only her friends could call her Debs. She also said that if you wronged her, she would murder you in her next book. She was a perfect mix of friendly and fierce.
Gals Guide founder, Leah Leach, met Debs at the Indy Writers’ Group. Debs was quiet, reserved, and always thinking. She was eager for feedback and quick-witted for those who didn’t like her feedback.
Leah and Debs became fast friends. They would drag each other to writers’ retreats, conferences, and would participate in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). Debs always looked forward to who would be written off by the Shovel of Death (TSOD) in her NaNo pages while sitting in a crowded cafe, next to Leah, with RUSH blaring from her headphones.
Debs was the author of the House of Pendragon Series. Debs wrote stories about Camelot, asking a simple question: What if King Arthur had a daughter? The company that published the House of Pendragon Series went out of business and Debs’ books went out of print. In 2023, Leah was gifted the publishing rights from the family.
Debs was an early supporter of Gals Guide. She was in the room when we were coming up with the name Gals Guide to the Galaxy, for the record, she preferred the name, Dames of Note.
Debs died suddenly in 2015. By naming the dragon in our logo, Debs we hope to keep her legacy alive and inspire more people to “carry on the tale.”
Learn more about Debs in our podcast episode, video series, links, and pictures below.
Pictures
Podcast Episode
Podcast Show Notes
- We’re in the library this month! So we’re drunker!
- The gal pals this month are Dr. Leah Leach, Bonnie Fillenwarth, Katie Harris, and Mary Miller.
- Bonnie already talked about Cokie Roberts
- Get to know you question – have you ever thought of writing a book or have you ever written a book?
- Secrete or Secretes or Irony or Iconic
- Bonnie might write a book!
- Leah wants Katie to write a cook book!
- Leah’s books as Kate Chaplin The Belief Test, Shoki’s Bag, The Celebration Diet, Ingenue: Portrait of a Film
- History repeating thanks to Facebook memories
- Leah’s in the dedication of Debra’s book The Recruit (picture below)
- Leah’s 1 Cool Author Gal is Debra Kemp
- Doctor Who room
- Born in “Da Region”, Highland, IN
- Early fan fiction
- Camelot movie “Carry on the tale”
- At 13 years asked “what if King Arthur has a daughter?”
- Helin –> Lin
- Marriage & kids
- Lived 20 miles from Stonehenge
- The Firebrand 2003 (book 1) (Gal’s Guide Library)
- Delivering books to local bookstores
- Debs & Leah meet in 2006
- The Recruit 2007 (book 2) (Gal’s Guide Library)
- Amazon Author Page of Debra Kemp
- Passion
- National Novel Writing Month
- CORRECTION: The Traveling Shovel of Death is actually what it’s called or TSOD. It’s a thing (House of Anansi) (WikiWriMo)
- “Well behaved women seldom make history” quote is by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich
- Died in 2015
- Writing trip to Chicago to the Write Inn & Union Chapel
- Organist plays “With a Little Help From My Friends” (video below)
- Katie remembering Debs
- Doctor Who Christopher Eccleston Fun
- Star Trek tears
- Debs books are in the library!
- Autographed copies story (pictures below)
- Keeping book in the family
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