Authors Interviewing Characters: Teddy Jones

A FAMILY OF GOOD WOMEN

Imogene Good finds herself wrestling with this question when, still grieving her mother’s death, she abandons a promising teaching career to open a boarding house in the near-lawless oil boomtown of Borger, Texas. Alone.

The business thrives, love arrives in the form of mysterious Texas Ranger, and Imogene takes in a stray dog and a runaway cousin from the Good family farm in East Texas. But months later, as fatigue, mounting threats, and violence against her business threatens to overwhelm her, she finds refuge in the contents of a trunk she carted to town after her mother’s death.

In it, Imogene finds secrets about the women who raised her that changes her life and her understanding of family. Can the Good women build a new life from the ashes of hardship on the inhospitable plains of the 1920s Texas Panhandle?

Inspired by historical events, A Family of Good Women is a compelling tale of inner strength, the bonds of family, and the power of the human spirit.

Interview with Big Guy from A Family of Good Women

Interviewer: “Hello readers, I’m pleased to introduce today’s guest, in what may be (this hasn’t been fact-checked) a first—the first time an author interviews a character who is a dog. Welcome, Big Guy our character from A Family of Good Women.” Interviewer gestures to a chair covered by a colorful quilt. “Sit. Please make yourself comfortable.”

Big Guy: Big Guy positions himself in the chair as if he owns it, smiles alertly at the interviewer, then says, “Thanks for inviting me. Let me ask, do you have any difficulty understanding me? Some humans are, unlike me, strictly monolingual. They don’t speak or understand canine language.”

Interviewer: “Trust me, Big Guy, I understand perfectly. Dogs have been my companions for most of my life and have taught me much. Let’s begin—when did you first meet Imogene Good?”

Big Guy: “June, 1929. I followed the scent of fresh food cooking.”

Interviewer: “What did you think when she invited you in?”

Big Guy: “I could hardly believe it. To be truthful, I was only interested in food. I hadn’t eaten in two, maybe three days. I’d been there since I was old enough to remember. I don’t know how long. Those people at the place before kept me tied to a post in the back of the house. Their excuse was that they had no fence. So they kept me out there no matter what the weather and threw out food scraps. Then one day the woman who always dumped the food didn’t turn up. Just gone.”

Interviewer: “Dumped the food?”

Big Guy: “Yes, I never had a food dish before I met Miss Good. You know, some people just shouldn’t be allowed to have a dog.” A sad expression crosses Big Guy’s face, the dog version of a frown, and a sigh escapes. “Never had anything, not even a water bowl, before Miss Good.”

Interviewer: “What did you do when those people left you?”

“For a while, maybe a day, I waited. Then I got so hungry and thirsty and that woman didn’t come, so I chewed the rope I was tied with until I was free.” Big Guy cocks his head toward the interviewer and says, “Let’s talk about better times. I’ve put those bad days in my past. Imogene Good fed me and took me in her house. I was expecting she might run me off after I ate, but after I had a meal, she led me down the street to another kind person, the vet. He examined me, gave her medicine for me, and told her I’d be fine. Then she did the nicest thing; she bought me a collar and a leash. Told the vet to burn that piece of rope I’d been tied with.”

Interviewer: “How did you get the name Big Guy?”

Big Guy: “I think it might have been a little joke. I was a walking bag of bones, so she wanted to make me feel good about myself. Called me Big Guy and it stuck. She fed me twice a day plus treats for quite a while. Now I weigh around sixty pounds. So the name fits better. Before you ask, people often wonder what breed I am. No one knows. So my answer is half brown and half white large dog.”

Interviewer: “What was it like having a place to sleep and regular meals after Imogene took you in?”

Big Guy: “Hard to believe. After a while, when she kept feeding me and talking to me, I relaxed and went outdoors to do my business without worrying I wouldn’t see her again. Then she told me I had a job, being watchdog. Then her cousin came to live with us, and we started to be a family.

Interviewer: “You and the two Good Women.”

Big Guy: “Not just them. A cat turned up next.” Big Guy smiled a doggy smile. “And there were chickens.”

Interviewer: “Did you get along with the cat?”

Big Guy: “I learned to keep my distance. I’d say we respect one another.”

Interviewer: “What’s a usual day like for you?”

Big Guy: “Get up early, check to see that the two Good women are up and getting started with their days. Then I go out and do my business, check around the yard for anything out of the ordinary, usually have my breakfast on the back porch, then go to the private side of the house while the men who come for breakfast come in. That’s our arrangement. I tend to our private space, our bedrooms and bathroom and the parlor, when those diners are here for meals. 

When the diners are gone, then I keep an eye on everything during the day. I nap a couple of times.” After a few seconds, he adds, “Another part of my day is paying attention to the moods of people in my family. If they’re upset, having a bad day, then I stay close to let them know I understand. I sleep light at night, ready to deal with intruders if anyone comes around. I know who belong here and who doesn’t.” 

Interviewer: “There are visitors that you approve of?”

Big Guy: “Sam and Ben come around. I can tell they’re friends of the Good women, so they’re okay.”

Interviewer: “Sounds like you have a good life now. Have there ever been bad days?”

Big Guy looks away, then turns back and says, “I try hard to forget bad times.” 

The interviewer waits.

Big Guy: “Trouble has come our way a few times, but we’ve handled it. The only time I really was upset and still am if I think about it much, was during the fire. You’ll need to read about it, but I’ll just say that I thought I might die. Then those Good women told me I saved them by barking and waking them up, I knew I had to do all I could to get well, and I did. 

Interviewer: “Thank you for sharing that. Is there anything we haven’t talked about that you’d like our readers to know?”

Big Guy: “Yes.” He pauses, as if organizing his thoughts. “Lots of people think that dogs are only as smart as the people who train them. They think that otherwise, dogs are simple beasts only dealing with basic urges and responding to threat. Maybe there are dogs like that, but many of us are capable of much more if we live in an environment with humans who appreciate our intelligence.”

Interviewer: “One last question; why do you think you were included in A Family of Good Women?”

Big Guy: If dogs shrug, that was what Big Guy did before answering the question. He said, “It wouldn’t be the whole story if I’d been left out.”

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Category: Interviews, On Writing