Kam Williams
is a syndicated film and book critic who writes for 100+
publications around the U.S. and Canada. He is a member of the
New York Film Critics Online, the
African-American Film Critics Association,
the NAACP Image Awards Nominating
Committee and Rotten Tomatoes.
Kam has compiled his list of
the best books for 2008 (Non-Fiction).
Click here to read his list
of the best books, the honorable mentions and the worst book of
2008. 25 Things That Really Matter In Life by Gary A.
Johnson received an honorable mention. Congratulations
Gary!
According to Kam, the worst
book (non-fiction) of 2008 was written by __________.
Click here for more.
When I walked into the meeting room of the
Howard University Book
Store, the first person to greet me was an energetic, Victoria
Rowell – the actress best known for her role as the feisty Drucilla,
on the daytime drama, The Young and the Restless. Rowell,
now a New York Times Bestselling author, was in the nation’s capitol
promoting her memoir: The Women Who Raised Me.
The Women Who Raised Metells the story of Rowell’s life as a foster child, and how the women in
her life, loved, nurtured, and guided her into the woman she is today.
The New York Times Bestseller has already garnered Rowell literary
awards to include the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary
Work: Debut Author.
Rowell spent her entire childhood in foster care; never adopted. Yet
she is gracious and thankful for the course of her life. Compassion and
an unyielding commitment propels Rowell to travel the country bringing
awareness about foster care, and just how little it takes to change the
life of a foster child. In celebrating the women from her past, in this
wonderfully written memoir, Rowell brings her story and her work with
foster children, full circle.
Ready to get the interview started, Rowell asked me to walk with her on
the campus of Howard University. Rowell’s book signing was part of the
commencement events for the Howard University graduating seniors. And
she looked forward to hearing the commencement speech. To get there on
time, we walked briskly through crowds on the sidewalk, and crossed busy
streets, as Rowell talked into the recorder. Her passion and intensity
about her childhood, and the lives of children who share her story,
shined through.
How do you rise from being a ward of the state of Maine to living the
American dream? The Women Who Raised Me captures the
essence of how a nurtured spirit can soar, no matter how life began.
The Victoria Rowell Interview
BMIA: What inspired you to write about your past and the women who
helped guide you through it?
Victoria Rowell:
Well first of all I want to say, it is May 10th, my Birthday
and we’re on the campus of Howard University in D.C., it’s also National
Train Day, and, ah…I’ve been invited on this very fun and celebratory
day…for the graduation of Howard University seniors, to have a book
signing. And I couldn’t think of a bigger and better Birthday present
than to be invited here at Howard University to sell my New York Times
Best Seller, The Women Who Raised Me. Ah…I was inspired to write
the book because the women…not only women in foster care, but my ballet
teachers, my friends, my academic teachers, my social workers, were
incredible…so many of them did such incredible work. And they never
were recognized in an award show…and they didn’t necessarily expect even
a thank you. They did it because they were truly mentors. And I wanted
America and the world to know about their work because it’s emblematic
of millions of people who are raising other people’s children in our
nation.
BMIA: Did you keep a journal as a child?
Victoria Rowell:
I kept all my letters from the women who raised me. I kept photographs…I
kept things that people gave me… Ah, I really believed in holding on to
my inheritance no matter how small or insignificant other people thought
it was it was important to me because it held the energy of those
important people in my life.
BMIA: At what point in your life did you accept the circumstances of
your childhood as more of a treasure?
Victoria Rowell:
Well, I accepted my circumstances very early on because my primary
foster mother…she was from New Bern, North Carolina originally and
migrated to Massachusetts, to Boston, Rocksberg, Massachusetts. And she
had ten children of her own…I was her second family. And she was a
senior citizen when she raised me. And she taught me…you know don’t be
a victim of your circumstances…look at it as a cornerstone of your
strength…these are the circumstances…this is what your life truly was.
She did not try to hide the truth from me. Which was the best gift…it
was a treasure…that she gave me. She presented my mother to me. I saw
how fragile and how ill she [natural mother] was and how unable she was
to be a parent of six children, all of different paternity. There was
no way that this woman had the fortitude. So Agatha [primary foster
mother] presented her to me and said this is your mother…love her…love
because of her weakness. Don’t resent her because of her weaknesses
and, ah…that was part of my inheritance.
BMIA: How do you feel about you biological mother?
Victoria Rowell:
I love her. She’s dead now. I love her. Like I love all the
other women who have gone on and the women who are still alive I
celebrate. I celebrate them posthumously as well as in life. But my
natural mother, you know I go to the root of it. She never had
prenatal care with me. She birthed me, I was healthy, she loved me.
She tried to reach back on numerous occasions with very little
resources. She always wanted to be reunited with her children but it
was just never going to happen. It was just heart-breaking for her. So
Agatha, my primary foster mother, saw how hard this woman wanted to be
reunified with her children. In those times there was no
visitation rights with parents, so Agatha set it up. It was pretty
amazing. That’s what I love from my mother Dorothy [natural mother]. I
take my daughter to her gravesite. It’s important that we pass
important things on to our children though it may not be their lives.
Like my children’s lives are much different. My daughter is 18 and
my son is 12, and their lives are obviously much different than mine,
but that doesn’t mean that I don’t tell them the history of where they
came from.
BMIA: Now let's talk about your nonprofit, the Rowell Foster Care
Positive Plan (RFCPP). Do you personally get to meet any of the
children your initiative helps?
Victoria Rowell:
Sure. RFCPP,
was started in December of 1990/91. And, it speaks to foster and
adoptive youth who have an interest in Arts. Whether its dance, or
music, or drama...ah, we offer full scholarships in
Massachusetts…various parts of Massachusetts, and in Los Angeles. And
we do long term mentoring...meaning that we offer ten years in some
cases, ah…of classes, ah…camp exposure. And ultimately we hope to offer
financial stipends to foster children going to college. There’s a young
man who’s graduating this spring semester with an Architecture Degree.
He’s not the first collegiate, of RFCPP, so we’re proud that
starting with Fine Arts ends in a college degree…we’re very proud of our
youth.
BMIA: Do you have a fundraiser?
Victoria Rowell:
Yes, we do an annual Fund Raiser. This year Stephanie
Mills will be singing for RFCPPin Los Angeles at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Last year
Patti
Austin sang for our Fund Raiser...and it’s a fabulous time…it’s a
high tea on May 18th at the Beverly Hills Hotel. But I want
to go back to something else, which is…you know I grew up, ah…absent of
my father who is African-American and it does leave a hole in a child’s
life. And I want to appeal to our fathers, especially our Black
fathers, to be around, even when things are difficult, to stay with the
family, because you’re missing an incredible opportunity to be a
parent.
We
need you [fathers]. And I’m speaking from experience. Yes, I’m a
successful woman. I’m a parent myself today, but I have never
stopped thinking of that absent father who is a ghost to me. He is in
me, I am of him, but I have never laid eyes on him. So I want our
fathers out there, our Black fathers in particular, to remember that
Black children make up the predominate population of foster care and we
are heading towards 600,000 children in foster care today.
We
have 110,000 children available for adoption--we need foster parents.
And we need our fathers to help us stay together. Maybe if my father
had stepped up when I was a baby instead of leaving me in that hospital,
ah…you know…I don’t know what it would have been…and I don’t want to
speculate. There are no coincidences and I don’t believe in
luck…everything happens for a reason. So perhaps God knew that I would
speak out on the importance of family and how badly young girls and boys
need their fathers.
There’s something missing when we miss that experience with our
fathers. So on that note, I want to thank 100 Black Men and
100 Black Women for doing all that they do around the issue of Black
parenting. And also, I wanna say thank you to the Casey Family
Program up in Seattle and the Bill Gates Foundation.
They do a fabulous Black fathers appreciation dinner which I was asked
to keynote recently on the heels of the Child Abuse Prevention
Conference. It was a beautiful evening. We need to celebrate
our Black fathers, more than we do. We always hear the negative. Just
like in foster care, we always hear the negative stories but we need to
hear the positive stories as well. There were some extraordinary men in
my life who helped raise me up, and I write about them, and I love
them. I wanted to say all that as well.
BMIA: Why is it so important for you to advocate for and bring awareness
about foster care on a national level?
Victoria Rowell: Well, I’ve been a national spokesperson for the
Annie E. Casey Foundation for the past decade. It’s very
important for me to talk about my New York Times best seller, The Women Who Raised Me, because you know I was fortunate, in
that I had social workers who cared. I had teachers that cared, I
had extended family that cared, but I also want to let people know that
it can be an enriching experience when you take care of a child.
Whether you’re a foster care parent, whether you’re a court appointed
special advocate, whether you’re a guardian at light or a volunteer Big Brother, or
Big Sister.
There are so many different ways that you can interface with these
children. Some of us aren’t equipped to be a full time foster or
adoptive parent, but everyone can volunteer to some degree. People
minimize what they have to offer--don’t do that. Let’s say all you can
do is bring pampers to a teen pregnancy home. That’s doing
something. Maybe all you can do is take a sibling group to church for a
foster grandmother. That’s a big thing. Maybe you can bring the
can goods and turkey at Thanksgiving to a family. That's big! If
you can think it, we need it. All of it is important; don’t minimize
what you have to offer.
Time spent with Rowell was special in many ways. It was her birthday;
May is Foster Child Awareness Month, and the interview was
conducted on the eve of Mother’s Day.
Women Who Raised Meis testament to how a little love goes a long way, but a lot can change
the course of life.
The story of a remarkable woman's rise out of the
foster-care system to attain the American dream—and of the unlikely
series of women who lifted her up in marvelous and distinctive ways.
Born as a ward of the state of Maine—the child of an
unmarried Yankee blueblood mother and an unknown black father—Victoria
Rowell beat the odds. Unlike so many other children who fall through
the cracks of our overburdened foster-care system, her experience was
nothing short of miraculous, thanks to several extraordinary women who
stepped forward to love, nurture, guide, teach, and challenge her to
become the accomplished actress, philanthropist, and mother that she is
today.
Rowell spent her first weeks of life as a boarder
infant before being placed with a Caucasian foster family. Although her
stay lasted for only two years, at this critical stage Rowell was given
a foundation of love by the first of what would be an amazing array of
women, each of whom presented herself for different purposes at every
dramatic turn of Rowell's life.
In this deeply touching memoir, Rowell pays tribute
to her personal champions: the mothers, grandmothers, aunts, mentors,
teachers, and sisters who each have fascinating stories to tell. Among
them are Agatha Armstead, Rowell's longest-term foster mother, a
black Bostonian on whose rural Maine farm Rowell's fire to reach for
greatness was lit; Esther Brooks, a Paris-trained prima
ballerina, Rowell's first mentor at the Cambridge School of Ballet; Rosa Turner, a Boston inner-city fosterer who taught Rowell lessons
of independence; Sylvia Silverman, a mother and teacher whose
home in a well-kept middle-class suburban neighborhood prepared Rowell
for her transition out of foster care and into New York City's wild
worlds of ballet and acting and adulthood.
In spite of support from individuals and agencies,
Rowell nonetheless carried the burden of loneliness and anxiety, common
to most foster children, particularly those "orphans of the living" who
are never adopted. Heroically overcoming those obstacles, Rowell also
reaches a moment when she can embrace her biological mother, Dorothy,
and, most important, accept herself.
Ultimately, The Women Who Raised Me is
a story that belongs to each of us as it shines a glowing light on the
transformational power of mentoring, love, art, and womanhood.
To
learn more about Victoria Rowell,click here to visit
her official web site.
Click here to
visit the Woman Who Raised Me web site.
Click here to
visit the Rowell Foster Children Positive Plan web site.
Buy
The Book
To
schedule interviews and speaking engagements contact Lee
McDonald, The Renaissance Group
at
301-856-8273.
Paul
Woodring's Inventions
What
inspired you to write Inventions?
Race
continues to be just below the surface in all aspects of American life.
I wanted to take my experience in corporate America and express the
challenges that blacks face as they try to navigate the subtle racism
that still pervades our country, especially in the work place. I wanted
to write a novel that provides a blueprint for increasing African
American wealth, as well as encourage all to understand our different
perspectives of the American experience.
What
are the book's themes or messages?
There
are two major themes in the book. The first theme is the African
American experience in this country as it developed in the years before
the civil rights movement as well as in the 1960s and 1970s following
the height of the movement. I also wanted to pursue the experience of
African Americans in the white business world that started to open up
for some after the civil rights movement. As part of this, I wanted to
inspire young African Americans to pursue entrepreneurship as a means of
pursuing wealth, and I also wanted to give non-African Americans a look
at these experiences through the lens of the African American, a view
that most non-African Americans have not seen.
What
message would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs?
I feel
strongly that young people should pursue the best education they can
afford, pursue a profession or craft through experience in that field,
then go out on their own and build their own business. I believe this
is particularly pertinent to African Americans who need to begin to
build wealth they can pass on to subsequent generations. My view is the
best way to do this is through creating their own businesses. I also
believe that corporate careers and corporations no longer provide the
types of jobs and security that can support the American middle class.
In today's global economy, the best future is through creation of your
own business.
Are
there any takeaways as it relates to the race dialog that has been
raised by the Democratic primary?
The
democratic nomination process has opened up the dialog about race. With
a black man running for the nomination, this was inevitable. Like
Barack Obama, I believe there is still much that we can all learn about
each other. I hope my book adds to this understanding.
Inventions tells the story of a young man who, like you, became a
successful entrepreneur. Is the novel autobiographical in any sense?
You
always draw upon experiences in writing. I drew upon many of my
childhood experiences in the novel, as well as experiences of others
that I observed. Certainly, as an African American, I drew upon life
and business experiences. I also drew upon my experience in technology
and business in creating the story.
What
can you tell us about Robbie's love interests in the book?
Like
most of us, Robbie has flaws. One of Robbie's major struggles is the
battle between his rational self and his emotional self. His rational
self is responsible for his professional success and it is difficult for
him to sort through his relationship with the women in his life as he
distrusts his emotional self. The women in his life offer different
perspectives and degrees as it relates to logic and emotion. His
challenge is to determine what will make him a more complete person.
Who are
your favorite authors, and why do you admire their work?
There
are many authors I like, both fiction and non-fiction. It's hard for me
to pick one or two. My interests range from Milton, to Thomas Hardy, to
Sinclair Lewis, to contemporary authors such as James Patterson and
Richard North Patterson. In most instances, I like the structure of the
older authors, the output of James Patterson and the research reflected
in Richard North Patterson's work.
Can you
describe your writing process for our readers?
I awake
around 4:30 a.m. each day and work out. Around 6 a.m., I read the major
news of the day on the Internet. I start my writing process around 7
a.m. I usually outline my book, and then spend five to six hours
writing, then revising and refining the outline, and then continuing to
write. After the first draft, I go back and assure the plot holds
together and sometimes incorporate new passages. I don't write every
day, but when I do, I usually can crank out as much as twenty pages in a
session.
What
will your next book be about?
My
next novel is about global warming and how nature is self-correcting in
protecting itself. It is a science fiction/political drama that offers
one solution to the challenges we face in protecting our environment.
Rise and Walk!
Seven Steps to
Purposeful Living by Michael D. Teague
Q: How does your
book, Rise and Walk! address the issue of people who are
challenged to overcome their life-limiting situations –addictions,
weaknesses, growth areas, and bad habits?
A: In Rise and
Walk! my strategy is two-fold. One, it is to discuss what I call
seven principles for purposeful living. This is a step-by-step
process, meant to take men from problem to solution in any area of
their lives. The principles are the following:
•
Acknowledge your
infirmity
•
Stop making
excuses
•
Tap the Source
within
•
Powered by God,
learn to help yourself
•
Face your absent
father
•
Let your mind
and your money be of service
•
Hit the mark
My second strategy is
to provide my readers with a brief exercise at the end of each
chapter to assist them to implement each principle.
Q: For Rise and
Walk! you developed and shared seven principles for purposeful
living. How did you come upon them?
A: I developed the
seven principles by asking myself, based on the infirm man who is
healed (featured in John 5:1-15), “What process did this man have to
go through in order to go from debility to wholeness?” In addition
to this, I superimposed aspects of my own journey to wholeness, a
journey that I continue to travel upon, to really test these seven
principles.
Q: Your book is based
on a biblical passage, John 5:1-15, where Jesus helps an invalid of
38 years to rise up and walk. Do you believe men today have their
own infirmities that are non-physical, such as life-limiting
behaviors or beliefs or patterns that can destroy their lives?
A: I believe that
there are men who engage in life-limiting behaviors, beliefs and
thought-patterns that, if not addressed, definitely can undermine
and even destroy their lives. I think that all men are “under
construction,” so to speak. All of us are at varying stages of
development. There are those of us for whom the process of
construction has been delayed because of our thinking, actions, and
beliefs. I am writing Rise and Walk! for these men.
Q: I suppose as a
pastor you believe there is a connection between faith and God and
one’s inner strength to help himself. Please explain this.
A: I believe that
faith in God provides men with a few things. One, it provides us
with clear outcomes that comprise manhood. Two, desiring to live
lives pleasing to God gives us the motivation that we need to
change. Three, faith in God enables me to access divine power to
change. Finally, biblical instruction gives me the tools to
actualize my outcomes, act on my motivation, and access God’s power.
Q: What are some
examples of the destructive habits or limiting beliefs exhibited by
men that you speak of?
A: These habits and
beliefs embrace the total spectrum of life, from unhealthy eating
habits to unhealthy sexual practices, from substance abuse to poor
money management. Men may have poor relationships with spouses,
children, and extended family, to poor productivity at work. We can
engage in self-defeating thinking, in which we excuse or rationalize
away our behaviors. We can also engage in negative, destructive
thinking by convincing ourselves that we cannot change when the fact
is, we can all change if we desire to do so badly enough. We also
must change. We possess the tools to change.
Q: You admit you
don’t live a perfect life, so are you in the best position to write
about getting one’s life together?
A: I have not lived a
perfect life. However, I’m striving to grow in every area of my
life. I’ve walked the difficult road to total self-improvement –
physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. I think that this puts
me in a good position to write to men. I have road-tested these
principles. They have worked for me. I believe that they will work
for others who read this book.
Q: You had an absent
relationship with your dad. How do you advise others to move past
their pain if in a similar situation?
A: The only way to
address your pain is to face it, head on. We can’t run from it,
because it is there and will not go away. In order to face the pain
of my relationship with my father, I had to admit that I was in pain
because we had not related well. Also, I had to process the pain –
to talk about with those that I trusted, who could hear my pain.
Then, I had to work hard to resolve the issues that kept my dad and
me apart. I’m happy to say that we’re working through that.
Q: Your first of
seven principles is to acknowledge your infirmity but isn’t it
tremendously difficult to admit we have a problem and to accurately
identify who or what holds us back?
A: It is tremendously
difficult. Yet, it is the first step to be able to rise and walk!
I’ve heard it said that the worst form of deception is
self-deception. The bottom line is, we’ve got to take an inventory
of our lives and be honest with ourselves concerning the areas in
which we need to change.
Q: You also suggest
we tap the power within ourselves to heal from our wounds or
transgressions. How does one go about finding a strength they’ve
never used or don’t even know they have?
A: Rise and Walk!
is a clarion call to let men know that God has created all of us
with power, inherently. All people have the Imago Dei, the image of
God, within us. Timeless and time-tested spiritual practices, such
as prayer, meditation, and the reading of sacred literature, as well
as secular practices of
Rise and Walk! Seven
Steps to Purposeful Living counseling and therapy, can help us to
become conscious of, harness, and release the power within.
Q: Interestingly you
implore people to find help through many means, including worship,
working out, and psychotherapy. But don’t some find it difficult
seeking professional help?
A: Yes, I know it is
difficult because I found it difficult. At the same time, I think
that, when we get serious about wanting to change, we take the
restraints off as it concerns our pride and ego. We say to
ourselves, “I will do what I have to do because I don’t want to live
this way any longer!” I think it is only at this point that we
become open to professional help if seeking it was difficult in the
past.
Q: Your life-changing
book, Rise and Walk!, concludes with a wonderfully inspiring
message that men must heal themselves so they can then be in a
position to give back and help others –through family, community,
charity and on a global scale. Why don’t more people contribute to
society?
A: For those who
don’t, I think that there are several reasons. One, people may see
the problems of the world as too overwhelming to take on. Two,
people may not know how to help. Three, especially here in the
United States, many of us are stretched to the limit simply trying
to survive. Sadly, there are some, perhaps a very small number, who
are too self-absorbed to get involved.
Q: Michael, during
your time of ministering to others, do you find it painful to see
good people who could live amazing lives if they simply changed
their habits and saw things differently?
A: Yes. The fact is,
change is difficult. Change will cost you and me something.
Oftentimes, change is painful. Yet, as one who has sought to change,
the change is worth the work. Unfortunately, some people don’t want
to engage in the hard work of change. Others don’t have the tools to
change. Hopefully, Rise and Walk! will provide the
motivation and the tools that will help men change, who seek
improvement in their lives.
Q: There are tons of
self-help and faith-based healing books, out there and yet the world
still has wars, bad marriages, drug addicts, depressed masses, and
people who fall short of their abilities. Why?
A: At the end of the
day, to live in a world of peace, to make marriages work, to
overcome drug addiction and depression, and to fulfill our
potential, we must make an unyielding commitment to do so. Once we
have done that, there is an abundance of resources, in Heaven and on
earth, which we can utilize as we seek to achieve our goals.
Q: You admit to
committing many sins in your life. Confess to us what you have asked
to be forgiven for.
A: I want to define
sin as missing the mark of what God has intended for us. Having said
this, I have had to ask God to forgive me for divorcing my first
wife, because divorce does not represent God’s best for us. I have
asked God to forgive my periods of sexual activity outside of
marriage, because within Christianity, abstinence outside of
marriage is God’s standard. Finally, I have asked God to forgive me
for any pain that I have caused Tawanna, my wife, as I have
struggled to rise and walk!
Q: Do people find it
difficult to ask for and/or receive forgiveness for their
shortcomings?
A:
Yes, both are true. We find it difficult to ask for -- and to
receive -- forgiveness. In addition to this, we find it difficult to
forgive. At the risk of generalizing, I think we all struggle with
this. We struggle to ask for forgiveness because to ask for it we’ve
got to admit we’ve done something wrong. We struggle to receive it
because we, sometimes, continue to feel guilty for what we’ve done
wrong. We struggle to forgive because it feels better, at least
initially, to continue to hold a grudge.
Q: Why do you possess
a burning desire to see people grow and change?
A: I possess a
burning desire to see people, especially men, grow and change. I
love people. I am a helper of people. I feel fulfilled when I can
help people. As a man, I believe that I can help men, for I am a man
who has sought to help himself.
Q: As the spiritual
bereavement coordinator at a hospice, what lessons have you learned
from people on their deathbeds?
A: I have learned a
great deal. I’ll attempt to summarize here. I have learned that,
regardless of race, class, gender, or orientation, we all die the
same. Death is the great equalizer. Also, death, like birth, are
profoundly spiritual experiences. I don’t want to sound morbid, but
death can be a very moving experience. It can also be a horrible
experience. Lastly, seeing death on a daily basis has made me
appreciate life more and more.
Q: What do you mean
by living with God-empowered self-help?
A: By this I mean
that there are times when we cannot bring about change in our lives,
even by our own best efforts. Unfortunately, the man by the pool
could not. It is at these times that we need God’s intervention to
help us to jump-start the process of change. After that initial
push, we have to develop the capacity to continue the process of
change on our own. We can ask for God’s help as needed, but we
cannot use God as a crutch. At some point, we’ve got to learn to
“walk” on our own, realizing that God is always there.
Q: Though your book
is a work of Christian non-fiction, you also take into account that
a man’s more than simply a religious being and that the
psycho-emotional nature of man must also be addressed. Are you
saying religion is not enough for one man to grow and get his life
in order?
A: For me, as a
minister, religion comprises the starting point for change. It is my
frame of reference. At the same time, God created human beings with
the capacity to be creative and to develop additional means to bring
about growth and change, including those of psychotherapists,
counselors, and physicians. In addition to this, we must look at
human beings in their totality, as physical, psychological,
emotional, and spiritual beings. Hence, we must consider
interventions appropriate for each dimension of who we are.
Q: How can women help
men rise and walk?
A: Rise and Walk!
can serve as a gifted book, from women to men. Also, women, you
can help your husbands, sons, fathers, nephews, cousins, and friends
to rise and walk by praying that they will embark on the life-long
journey of change. Also, support, love, and be patient with us as we
walk this difficult road. When we hurt you, know that most of us are
not doing so intentionally, so forgive us. Finally, hold us
accountable to change, because stagnation is not an option. All of
us will be better because of it.
So what do you think? If
you would like to respond to this article
click here
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Q & A with Ivan Wright
Author of Black People For
Entertainment Purposes ONLY
What inspired
the books title?
The book's title
is born of the observation that too many of our young African
American minds have subconsciously lowered the achievement bar while
continuing to be being misled by the light of fleeting glitter.
Is race
relations a sore issue with you?
In a sense, no.
I am objectively calm in the understanding that physical or
geographical differences, any differences, have always given mankind
cause for either attraction or separation. It is not always evil. A
walk through the park will reveal kids playing with kids, seniors
chatting with seniors and teenagers content in their respective
gatherings.
The problem, of
course, arises when the "superiority factor" kicks in.
Is Jurney
actually Ivan?
Jurney is his
own man. I will however, confess that we do speak to one another on
occasion. he can be obtrusive.
How should
the reader feel when she/he finishes your book?
I am satisfied
if the reader made some connection with a character or two and was
reminded of the many situations and people who made them into what
they are today.
Perhaps the
reader will have a better understanding that the one who they touch
today, is also being touched by those who once influenced them.
Did you try
to maintain a certain theme?
Even though the
title might infer that the book is a "judgmental" read, the true
theme actually deals with a revisit of personal values.
From where do
you draw your characters?
My characters
are composites of the many people that I have been privileged to
either meet or observe in this life. Some characters embody the
expressions of two or three people.
Have you
always had a connection to "old-time" values?
I have been told
that I possess what the elders might call, “an old spirit.” Still
not sure if that's a compliment. I do give a lot of respect to those
whose journey was much more troubled than mine. I am committed in my
belief that a sound society must be braced by certain
"value-pillars."
Who is your
audience?
My characters
are primarily African American, but my stories speak to the human
spirit of all communities.
What is your
background and profession?
I was born and
raised in a plain, yet vibrant neighborhood in Trenton, NJ. My
father, a former member of Darlington, SC, joined my mother in
guiding eight children in a small single home.
Years ago, the
Respiratory Therapy profession summoned my interest and it has
proven to be a rewarding adventure.
What is your
next project?
My next book is
entitled:
INDENTURED
SCHOLARS, THE INNER CITY SCANDAL.
This book is
also a suspense thriller that evolves around the discovery of a
secret free tuition academy that is geared toward the academic
excellence of disadvantaged children. The problem is that the child
must be essentially "given" to the school and the parents must agree
to minimum contact throughout the child's learning years.
Before we judge
the trembling mother who "signs away" her six-year-old son, we must
understand her walk. Even if she did have the money to make a
purchase for grumbling bellies, her neighborhood is claimed by drug
merchants and their clients. Both have the acute ability to
recognize instant prey. It's certainly and thankfully not a given,
but her son is destined to soon join one side--if he lives that long.
About The
Author
Ivan
Wright was born and raised in Trenton, NJ where he attended
Trenton’s public school system. His affinity for the sciences led
him to Indiana University of PA where he received his Bachelor of
Science in Respiratory Therapy.
Writing began for Ivan while in college and continued as a “serious
hobby” for many years. His formalized literary work and fiction
novel development began several years ago and has resulted in two
novels: Black People: For Entertainment Purposes Only (publication release April 2007) and Indentured Scholars: The
Inner City Scandal (publication release Sept. 2007).
Ivan’s books deal dramatically and humorously with the many threads
of the African American experience. His characters are rich in
content and speak to the interests of the seasoned and introspective
readers. Woven within the pages is the appreciation of human values
that were once common pillars in all communities. Through “ancestral
whisperings,” we are reminded that love, family and acceptance, name
us all. Be it romance, suspense, violence or relationships, Ivan’s novels
will give the reader a chance to laugh, shiver, cry of just
reminisce. Most of all, his stories will offer all an opportunity to
continue the dialogue regarding our wondrously dynamic African
American journey!
BLACK PEOPLE:
FOR ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES ONLY
Reading Group Guide
If you have discussed this novel or answered these questions, please
send us an email. We’d love to know your thoughts!
1) When you first read the title of the book Black People: For
Entertainment Purposes Only, what thoughts did it provoke?
2) What are your thoughts/ experiences with Mental Illness? Do you
think it can run in the family? Do you think our military men/ women
are left with some forms of Mental Illness from war? Do you think
they were exposed to chemicals?
3) At age twenty-eight, Jurney’s mother died of breast cancer. Has
cancer affected your family or friends?
4) Jurney’s father died while in the Army. Do you feel Jurney
suffered in anyway not having his father and mother at such a young
age? What do you think would have happened to Jurney if he had not
had his Grandmother? What did you think of Jurney’s Grandmother?
5) Was Aunt Mavis wrong not to report her thoughts about Darius with
Kevin Henderson’s bike? Do you think Darius is responsible for
Kevin’s death?
6)What were your thoughts about Jurney? Did you like him?
7) What were your thoughts about Selena? What about her past? How
did you feel when you learned she could not have children and the
reason why?
8) What about Carla? Was she selfish? Discuss her actions, how she
treated her sister Sandy and little Nia.
9) Do you think something like this could happen? Do you think
people, writer’s, journalist, etc.. are forced to be silent by the
Government or Politician’s? Do you think people like Darius exist?
That they do whatever by any means necessary to achieve?
10) Do you feel the media has used black people for entertainment
purposes? Discuss examples and events.
11) What do you think about this story? Do you feel the author did a
good job with the issues that surround this story?
This reading group guide is provided to enhance your group
discussion. Feel free to post it on your website. Please credit
Platinum Book PR. www.platinumbookpr.com.
So what do you think? If
you would like to respond to this article
click here
and sign our
Guestbook to leave a public or private statement, comment or reaction.
African American
Psychology Through The Eyes of Faye Z. Belgrave
Dr. Faye Belgrave is
professor of psychology at Virginia Commonwealth University
and founding director of the Center for Cultural Experiences
in Prevention. Dr. Belgrave received her Ph.D. degree from
the University of Maryland, her Master’s degree from the
University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and her B.S. degree from
North Carolina A&T State University.
Dr. Belgrave is currently the
principal investigator on several grants funded by SAMHSA,
NIH, and the Department of Education. Some of these projects
have implemented and evaluated cultural interventions for
African American adolescent females in the areas of
substance abuse and HIV prevention.
Belgrave has published
extensively — including more than 60 articles, two books and
several monographs — and is an invited speaker on the topics
of culture and gender issues. She serves as expert adviser
on several national committees and agencies including the
National Institute of Drug Abuse, Substance Abuse and Mental
Health Services Agency, and the Center for Substance Abuse
Prevention. She has received numerous national awards for
her work with ethnic minority populations.
Thanks to a mutual colleague,
Mr. Edward E. Smith, we were able to conduct and exclusive
interview Dr. Belgrave. Thank you Ed.
The Faye Z.
Belgrave Interview
BMIA.com:
First of all, Dr. Belgrave, thank you for taking the time to
participate in this interview. Your book
African AmericanPsychology, co-written with Kevin W.
Allison, has been described as a textbook for
undergraduate and graduate students in Psychology and in
Ethnic and Black Studies.
What made you want to write a
book about African American Psychology?
Faye Belgrave: There was no textbook in African
American psychology. When I taught the course, I would have
to pull readings together from various sources to
comprehensively cover the major topics in African American
Psychology. A second reason for writing the book was to
provide a resource book for any individual interested in
learning more about the psychology of African Americans.
BMIA.com: Wow. It’s hard to believe there was no
textbook on Black psychology. Tell us about your
background. I know you’re a professor of psychology at
Virginia Commonwealth University and the founding director
of the Center for Cultural Experiences in Prevention.
Faye Belgrave: I grew up in a Newsoms, a small
rural town in Virginia of less than 500 people. My family
was poor as were about 75% of the Blacks who lived in the
county. Growing up rural poor influenced my beliefs that
every one deserves basic housing, food, education, and
health. As a child (and to this day) I loved to read (in
fact it was a treat to find a book I had not read in the
mobile library that came to town every week). I also loved
pets especially dogs and have two today.
There
were nine children in the family and as the third from the
top I had responsibilities for the care of my younger
siblings. I attended N.C. A&T for my undergraduate degree,
Nebraska for my Masters degree and received a Ph.D. from the
University of Maryland, College Park. I was fortunate to
come along at the time in which Blacks got support for
getting our education. I am sure I would not have made it
today.
I
founded the Center for Cultural Experiences in Prevention as
a way to organize the research and community work we were
doing in the area of prevention among African American
youth. The Mission of the Center is to promote healthy
youth, families, and communities. The Center seeks to
empower youth and families to make positive choices and to
change lives through knowledge of self. The Center
develops, implements and evaluates programs and services
that are sensitive to cultural and community needs.
Community programs and partnerships educate and empower
youth and families in the areas of (a) sex and drug
prevention; (b) school and vocational success; and (c)
physical and psychological well-being. We have several
on-going intervention and research projects funded by the
federal and state governments.
BMIA.com: Who are some of the most impressive
people you’ve met in your life?
Faye Belgrave: These are ordinary people who have
been extraordinary supportive of others. My graduate school
mentor, Dr. Judson Mills taught me how to think and write;
Dr. Bernice Johnson, my first grade teacher encouraged me
that I could be successful; my mother, Grace Rawlings has
always demonstrated appreciation for the value and worth in
everyone.
BMIA.com: Can you talk about the research process
and some of the people that you interviewed?
Faye Belgrave: The research process consisted of
gathering, organizing, and summarizing information. While I
did not formally interview individuals for the book, several
prominent African American psychologists are cited including
the notable Kenneth and Mamie Clark (known for the work they
did on Black children’s racial identity on behalf of school
de-segregation in the 1950’s). Contemporary psychologists
include James Jones, Thomas Parham, Na’im Akbar, Wade
Nobles, Kobi Kambon, Daudi Azibo; Henry Toobs among many
others.
BMIA.com: What were some of the key findings in the
book that every black person should know?
Faye Belgrave: While
all of us are unique, there are some core attributes found
among most people of African descent. We are not always
sure how these values and beliefs were retained but they
seem to be prevalent among most of us. Chapter 2 on
Africentric values is a good chapter to read to understand
more about these attributes and how most people of African
descent have retained them in some form.
BMIA.com: That’s interesting. What else does the
book address?
Faye Belgrave: The book also addresses social
problems, relationships, and contemporary issues. For
example the chapter on drug use discusses why we use drugs
and ways to prevent drug use as well as culturally based
drug treatment programs. The chapter on health and
disability reviews our state of well-being as well as some
of the leading medical conditions among African Americans.
At the same time, it discusses ways in which our health
outcomes can be improved. The chapter on family and kinship
systems provides information on what the African American
family looks like and also how African American families can
be strengthened. The chapter on cognition and language
discusses learning and speech and how educators can
facilitate the learning process among African American
children.
BMIA.com: When you look at black psychology at the
turn of the century and black psychology today, what are the
major differences?
Faye Belgrave: Black psychology at the turn of the
century was very deficit focused and concerned with showing
difference between African Americans and Whites. In fact,
most of the studies showed that African Americans were
deficit in most areas of abstract reasoning, intellect, and
cognition. Today, research is not generally done to prove
intellectual inferiority.
Also
there is much more research on differences among African
Americans, i.e., how do people survive and even thrive in
sub-optimal conditions.
BMIA.com: What do you want people to learn as a
result of reading your book?
Faye Belgrave: I would like people of African
descent to read the book to learn more about themselves and
others in their communities. Maybe, there will be an
“aaahh moment.” People who are not of African descent would
gain a better understanding of our attitudes and behaviors.
My hope is that discussion and interactions would be more
frequent and improved.
BMIA.com: What’s the state of black psychology
today? Do you think we need more black psychologists in our
community?
Faye Belgrave:
We have a very viable national association, the Association of Black Psychologists and our association
is doing a lot of advocacy, programming, and dissemination
of information on the psychology of African Americans (www.abpsi.org).
It is
still difficult to find African American psychologists in
some places, especially in rural communities. So yes, we do
need more psychologists in practice. We also need more
psychologists teaching and doing research because often the
classes we teach and the issues we research have meaning and
value to people of African descent.
BMIA.com: What role do you see psychology playing
in the black community?
Faye Belgrave: We can play a strong role in
advocating for the mental health of all people but
especially those who do not have the resources to advocate
for themselves. Psychology is the study of how to change
behavior. It is a broad discipline but all areas of
psychology focuses on understanding and changing behavior.
So we can inform educators of how students learn best,
organizations about workforce diversity and productivity,
medical systems about how to promote patient health, and
communities on how to implement prevention interventions.
BMIA.com: Are black psychologists held to a higher
standard? Should they be?
Faye Belgrave: There are professional licensing and
ethical principles and guidelines we have to follow as
psychologists. I think the differential comes into play in
that we are less likely to be admitted to doctoral training
programs (see Chapter 1 in book). The requirements for
entering most doctoral programs have become very competitive
and the criteria for admission (previous research
experience, prestige of undergraduate university, and GRE
scores) do not always favor us – so we are less likely to be
admitted.
BMIA.com: In your opinion what’s the biggest
challenge facing black men in America?
Faye Belgrave: I am not a Black male and would hope
to learn more about this myself. I have a son who just
turned 18 and a daughter and I worry much more about his
well-being and safety as an adult male than I do my
daughter’s. I believe racism and fear continues to promote
negative reactions from many (including Blacks). The
challenge for Black males is to develop the strong identity
they need to thrive.
BMIA.com: How can people reading this article
support you?
Faye Belgrave: Read and learn out more about Black
people throughout the Diaspora.
BMIA.com: What advice would you give to someone who
wants to be an educator?
Faye Belgrave: Being an educator is a commitment.
The goal with every student you teach is to encourage them
to be inspired and motivated to learn.
BMIA.com: Thank you Dr. Belgrave.
Faye Belgrave:
Thank you, Gary Johnson andBlack Men In America.com.
So what do you think? If
you would like to respond to this article
click here
and sign our
Guestbook to leave a public or private statement, comment or reaction.
Back To
Lemon City with Elaine Meryl Brown
Elaine Meryl
Brown has done it again. She has written another winner with
“Playing By
The Rules,"
the sequel to Lemon City.
I
spoke with Elaine last week about “Playing By The Rules.”
We talked about her writing habits. Elaine loves “Lemon City”
and that helps her stay focused when she writes. Elaine writing
style allows the reader to escape. You can visit “Lemon City”
and escape into another place, another time and another world.
It took
Elaine a year to write
Lemon City
and two years to write “Playing By The Rules.”Why two years? Elaine explained that she strived to
maintain a healthy balance between her job at HBO, her writing,
family and travel. You can’t blame her for that.
Good things
come to those who wait.
“Playing By The Rules”
has finally arrived and Elaine Meryl Brown does not disappoint.
So kick back, relax and check out our exclusive interview with
author Elaine Meryl Brown as she takes us back to
Lemon City, Virginia.
The Elaine
Meryl Brown Interview
BMIA.com:
Lemon City
was your first novel and it was very well received. In fact,
the reviews were great. Did you feel any pressure to duplicate
the success of “Lemon City”
when you were writing
“Playing By The Rules?”
EMB: Yes. I felt great pressure
to duplicate success, but I tried not to focus on the pressure.
My focus was on writing an entertaining novel that was a natural
extension of
LEMON CITY,
carrying the same humorous tone, homespun style, building on the
characters that fans care about, and engaging them in another
story they couldn’t put down.
BMIA.com:
Lemon City is an isolated
town in the foothills of Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains settled
by freed slaves before the Civil War.
Most people in town take the rules very
seriously; but not all of the town's inhabitants are able to
accept the rules without question. What can readers expect from
“Playing By
The Rules?”
EMB:
I think all Lemonites are able to accept The Rules, but like any
rules that are put into place, all are subject to
interpretation.
BMIA.com: What prompted you to
write a sequel to
Lemon City?
EMB:
To my surprise, my agent actually made a two-book deal with
Random House. Of course when I found out I was thrilled and
immediately began thinking about the next story.
BMIA.com:
What do you want people to get or take-away as a result of
reading “Playing By The Rules?”
EMB: I want people to be
entertained and to escape to a wonderful place. I want people
to smile and feel as if they’re off on vacation while reading
PLAYING
BY THE RULES even though
they may be sitting on their living room sofas or reading in
bed. I want people to get away from every day stress and relax
and enjoy the experience of being in
LEMON CITY
where there’s a strong sense of family, love and community.
BMIA.com:
Character development is important. Do you have a favorite
character in “Playing By The Rules?”
EMB:
I love all my characters, but I have to say that in this story
my favorite character is Ruby Rose.
BMIA.com:
Did you conduct any research in preparation for this book?
EMB:
I conducted lost of research on the time period and explored
information on herbal medicine as well.
BMIA.com:
How long did it take you to write
“Playing By The Rules?”
EMB:
I believe it took two years to write the sequel.
BMIA.com: Were there any writers who inspired you when
you were growing up? Who were they?
EMB:
Toni Morrison, Ralph Ellison, Ishmael Reed. (There weren’t that
many Black authors being published while I was growing up).
BMIA.com: What’s the best part of being Elaine Meryl
Brown?
EMB:
The best part about being me is that I’m juggling an executive
job at the same time I’m fulfilling a life-long dream.
BMIA.com: What kind of books do you like to read?
EMB:
I like to read books that are fun entertaining, like LEMON
CITY and PLAYING BY THE RULES – books
about relationships, personal challenges, with characters I care
about, those that when you get towards the final pages, you slow
down to read because you don’t want the story to end.
BMIA.com: What advice would you give to aspiring
writers?
EMB:
Two words: Focus and Discipline, and check out my
web site for more information on that.
BMIA.com: How can people reading this interview support
you?
EMB: Buy
PLAYING BY THE RULES
for yourself, get one for a friend, as a gift, and tell everyone
you know. Send out e-mails and spread the word that life in the
LC is hot!
BMIA.com: I agree. Buy this book.
ABOUT THE
AUTHOR
Elaine
Meryl Brown is Vice President, Special Markets in Creative
Services at HBO. She is responsible for on-air promotion for HBO
Family and HBO Latino, off-channel HBO image branding,
subscriber acquisitions campaigns, target marketing and brand
promotion for Direct TV and Dish Network. She is also
responsible for internal sales, training, and corporate brand
presentation tapes, as well as content creation for new business
platforms—HBO Mobile, Domestic, Vodafone International, and
Podcasting initiatives. In addition, Brown has launched a new
revenue generating business for HBO to provide branding and
video services to outside non-competitors. Prior to HBO, Brown
was a creative director in Creative Services at Showtime
Networks where, in addition to her other duties, she directed
promotional campaigns with such stars as Sidney Poitier,
Angelica Huston and Louis Gossett, Jr. She is an Emmy®
Award-winning writer for the ABC TV series, “FYI” and has won
numerous awards in the broadcast industry. Her first novel,
Lemon City, was published by Random House in 2004.
Playing by the Rules is her second novel. Elaine Meryl
Brown lives in New Jersey with her son David. You can
learn more about Elaine by visiting her web site at
www.elainemerylbrown.com.
Playing by the
Rules Written byElaine Meryl Brown Category: Fiction Publisher:One World/Ballantine Format: Trade Paperback, 288 pages Pub Date: June 2006 Price: $13.95 ISBN: 978-0-8129-7034-0 (0-8129-7034-9)
This interview was
conducted by Gary A. Johnson.
So what do you think?
If you would like to respond to
this article
click here and sign our
Guestbook
to leave a public or private statement, comment or reaction.
Barry Beckham Proves That
One Man Can
Make A Difference
I’ve known
Barry
Beckham
for over 10 years. Our interactions back in the
early days were almost always social. I knew that Barry was a
good writer, but it took a colleague to tell me that he was
better than “good.” One day while having a causal conversation
with my friend, Barry’s name surfaced. Her entire demeanor
changed. She immediately turned to me and asked: “Is this the
Barry Beckham from Columbia University?” I responded in the
affirmative, to which she replied, “You know him?”
When Beckham published his first novel,
My Main Mother (Walker) in 1969, he had just graduated from Brown
University and was writing for the public relations office of
Chase Manhattan. President David Rockefeller dubbed him
Chase’s “first bona fidenovelist,” and the
New York Times Book Reviewhailed the work as a
forerunner of “remarkable things to come.”
Beckham taught at Brown University for 17 years and directed the
graduate writing program before going to Hampton University in
1987. There, with a Xerox Foundation grant, Beckham directed
the country’s first summer high school writer’s workshop for
black students.
While at Brown, he edited the first of five editions of the
Black Student’s Guide to Colleges(Dutton,
1982)—also the first of its kind. His other guides include the
Black Student’s Guide to
Scholarships and the College Selection Workbook.
His second novel,
Runner Mack (Morrow, 1972) was selected
by the New York Times as one of the year’s most
noteworthy books.
He
is also the author of Double Dunk(Holloway
House, 1981), the innovative autobiography of Manhattan
schoolyard basketball legend Earl (the Goat) Manigault. The HBO
biopic, Reboundstaring Eric Lasalle
and James Earl Jones is based on the Goat’s life.
Employing novelistic touches of scene setting and dialogue,
Beckham sustains the second person point of view throughout the
work—about which the Newark Star Ledger said: “Every high
school and perhaps junior high school student should read.”
The Barry Beckham
Interview
BMIA.com: Barry thanks for taking
time out for this interview. Let me start by asking you to talk
about your new novel, “Will You Be Mine?”
Barry
Beckham: Well first Gary, it’s my first in 20 years—I
can’t believe it! I’ve been working on running my publishing
company and other projects and trying to find time to get back
to a novel that I started thinking about at least 20 years ago.
Since I used to break everything down into three categories when
I was teaching—style, theme and structure—may I could approach
my own book from that perspective.
BMIA.com: Talk about some of the other books that
you’ve written.
Barry
Beckham: My book length creative prose works are the
three novels, My Main Mother, Runner Mack, and
Double Dunk. I began my first novel, My Main
Mother, when I was a senior at Brown University. The
first person narrator sits in a broken-down station wagon and
tells the reader that he has just poisoned his mother and is
waiting for the police.
My second
book, Runner Mack, is a novel of the absurd, where
the main character hopes to become a professional baseball
player but of course doesn’t make the team. He is drafted to
fight the war in Alaska against an unseen enemy, and gets
involved in a plot to take over the White House.
I call my
third book Double Dunk, a novelized biography
because I did fictionalize some of the scenes of basketball
player Earl Manigault’s life. He was the legendary Harlem
basketball player who invented the double dunk shot, fell victim
to heroin addiction, and then kicked the habit cold turkey in a
prison.
My other
titles are educational guides like the Black Student’s
Guide to Colleges, the Black Student’s Guide to
Scholarships, the College Selection Workbook and
Beckham’s Guide to Scholarships. These are books
produced because I saw the need for them when I was teaching.
BMIA.com: What prompted you to write this book?
Barry
Beckham: First I wanted to present a black male
narrator who is a romantic at heart. He wants to love deeply and
passionately. And he’s not afraid to express his tender side.
That theme also allows me also to play with the challenge of
presenting erotic scenes that don’t relay on the pornographic.
Then I
wanted to explore some other themes. How does the serious,
dedicated artist survive in a world that lauds commercialism?
How does control of images play into the way that society sees
the black man? And maybe most importantly, what role should the
African-American community play in the direction of our country?
BMIA.com: What do you want people to take away or get
as a result of reading your book?
Barry
Beckham: Since good literature should entertain and
instruct, I want the reader to appreciate the entertainment—the
absurdities, the comedy, the characters, the scenes—as well as
think about the issues that are raised. Also, I hope that the
reader recognizes that I’m trying something new—thematically and
structurally.
BMIA.com: Tell us about your background. Where were
you born and raised?
Barry
Beckham: I was born in Philadelphia and grew up in
Atlantic City, New Jersey, fictionalized as the world’s
playground in the novel. From there I went to Brown University
where I started my first novel in a senior English class, got a
scholarship to Columbia Law School, dropped out after two
months, got a job as a public relations writer for the then
Chase Manhattan Bank, and from there got invited back to teach
at Brown where I stayed for 17 years.
BMIA.com: Who influenced you the most?
Barry
Beckham: My deceased mother was a voracious reader, and
I’m sure that is why I began writing detective stories around
age seven or eight. At first I wasn’t writing stories. I was on
the floor at her feet, copying stories from women’s magazines
that she read. I’ll never forget her telling me, “You have to
write your own stories, you can’t keep copying.” Five decades
later, I can still hear that voice.
BMIA.com: How did you start The Beckham Publications
Group (BPG)?
Barry
Beckham: My current publishing company incorporated 10
years ago is the outgrowth of several part-time ventures I
formed over the last 20 years just to get one or two books at a
time produced. I guess the beginning could be traced to my
deciding to publish the second edition of my Black Student’s
Guide to Colleges in 1984. That project was funded by
fraternity brothers from Phi Beta Sigma.
BMIA.com: What distinguishes your publishing company
from many of the other book publishing companies?
Barry
Beckham: We differ from the conventional publishers who
handle all expenses and pay royalties in this critical respect:
a published novelist and former English professor direct our
entire approach. Consequently, our view of what is important
differs markedly, particularly when multiculturalism, royalty
rates, and contractual terms are considered. We are not
directed by businesspeople, many of whom don’t even read and
whose editorial bottom line is profit.
In our
unique joint venture program, we help a wide range of authors
who have specific audiences they want to reach without taking on
the responsibility of “self publishing.”
BMIA.com: What is joint venture publishing?
Barry
Beckham: It started about 10 years ago when a deceased
friend, Ike Tribble, then president of an educational
foundation, asked for editorial help with a book that had been
rejected by several publishers. That led to our editing,
publishing, marketing and distributing Making Their Mark:
Educating African-American Childrensuccessfully through
three printings as partners.
I’ve
modified our joint venture program to make it unique,
particularly after the print on demand phenomenon. Our partners
get professional services, have control of their work, get
national distribution where needed, and receive returns on their
investment in the 20 to 30 percent range. In addition, our POD
royalty rate is the highest in the industry. Two of our authors
are now receiving rates greater than 25 percent of the list
price. This fact is particularly important when you realize that
almost all POD companies use the same distribution and printing
services of Ingram. That’s the dirty little secret that these
companies don’t tell you. So the bottom line question for the
author should be, “What else am I getting?” Based on some
manuscripts that are submitted to us after being “published” by
POD companies, I can assure you that they aren’t getting much
editing.
BMIA.com: What kind of resources does your company
provide for writers?
Barry
Beckham: We have access to all the resources that a
writer needs. We do what Penguin Putnam and Random House
do—contract for needed services. Do you know that Penguin’s New
York office has a publicity director and an assistant or two?
How do they handle the media for hundreds of authors? They hire
outside publicists. Our sub-contractors are not just up the
street; they are also in India, Argentina, Canada, the
Netherlands, and Ukraine. And we probably use the same printer
in China that the larger houses contract with.
Clearly we
don’t need a high-powered publicist for every author. The larger
questions then are what is the budget and will the investment
pay off? Remember that one-third of the books shipped to stores
are returned—at the publisher’s expense. And remember also that
50 percent of all the books published by all of us don’t earn
back their investment.
BMIA.com: Bill Cosby endorsed your book,
“The
Black Student’s Guide to Colleges.” How did that
happen?
Barry
Beckham: Someone told me that he had spoken favorably
about the first edition, so I called his office. Who should
answer with “Hello Professor Beckham!” but his daughter, Erica!
She was quite familiar with the guide.
At a meeting
in his dressing room, I asked Bill Cosby to endorse my book with
a photo of him holding the second edition. He insisted that I
stand next to him in the picture. Then he encouraged me to use
the photo in my advertising—without any cost to me of course.
After I decided to publish a companion volume, The Black
Student’s Guide to Scholarships, I got him to endorse
that also. If there is a lesson for other writers, it’s this:
don’t be bashful, that will get you nowhere fast. Gary, now I
can admit that it took me months to get up enough nerve to make
that first call.
BMIA.com: What’s your connection with Historically
Black Colleges and Universities?
Barry
Beckham: I taught at Hampton for two years before
finally deciding that I wanted to pursue publishing full time. I
have given presentations at almost two dozen HBCUs and still
consider president William Harvey as a good friend, and I have
other close friends at Morehouse (president Walter Massey),
Xavier, Tennessee State, and others. My emotional connection is
that I always tell students that their self esteem will never be
reduced at an HBCU. For many of our young people, this is an
extremely important point when considering a predominantly white
institution versus an HBCU.
BMIA.com: As a former college professor, talk about the
importance of college for our black youth? Is college is for
everyone? What are some alternatives?
Barry
Beckham: A college education gives you thinking skills
and the almost guaranteed ability to make six or seven times
more income than the person who doesn’t have a college degree.
But we must remember that the word education comes from
the Latin term, educo meaning to draw out, to develop
from within. All the specialized knowledge in the world won’t
show you how to reach your potential, to be creative, to expand
and fulfill your dreams. You must learn how to use that
knowledge to reach your dreams. College doesn’t teach you how to
use your knowledge.
You can
study history and be educated. Or you can study history like
Dubois and Nkrumah did and use that knowledge to change the fate
of black men.
So college
is not for everyone. Other alternatives include trade schools
like culinary academies, apprenticeships in the electrical or
plumbing industry or variations of college experiences like
cooperative education where you alternate work and class work.
Unfortunately, this major, major decision is made without a clue
to its importance. Parents spend more time deciding which SUV to
purchase than on which college to send their child and spend
$30,000 yearly. I still can’t believe I chose Brown without even
visiting the campus. Worse, students are still choosing so
uncritically today, not aware that it’s the most important
decision they will make in their young lives.
BMIA.com: Who are some of your favorite writers?
Barry Beckham: Except for Nigerian Wole Soyinka, most
of my favorite novelists are dead. My favorites are those that I
can learn something from. If you can’t help me become a better
writer, why would you be my favorite? I can get cheap
entertainment on the television.
At the top
of the list is Ralph Ellison, whom I knew personally and
admire greatly for Invisible Man. I taught a
seminar course on that novel and may offer an email course. It
is one of the most significant fictional accomplishments in
American fiction. Then I would add Franz Kafka for his absurd
vision, Gustave Flaubert and D.H. Lawrence for their erotic
intelligence, Charles Dickens for character and comedy, and
Dostoevsky for totality of perspective. Well, let me add Mark
Twain not only for his comic gifts, but more importantly for
having the courage to deal with the issue of slavery in Huckleberry Finn.
BMIA.com: In your opinion what’s the biggest challenge
facing black men in America?
Barry Beckham: It’s no different from yesterday:
overcoming the slave mentality that keeps us crawling like crabs
in a barrel so that the other won’t reach the top before us.
There’s a line from Cassius in Julius Caesar to remember:
“The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves,
that we are underlings.”
BMIA.com: How can people reading this interview support
you?
Barry
Beckham: They can take advantage of the special
pre-street release offer, and they can stay in touch like the
old days when authors and their readers communicated regularly.
I’m planning to build more community between myself and other
authors I publish.
Recently I
received orders from the Amazon Advantage program for 22 copies
of Double Dunk. Gary, I don’t have a clue about
those 22 people. I can’t contact them! Writers must work on
getting to know who their readers are, and sites like yours are
a terrific resource.
BMIA.com: Thank you Barry
Barry
Beckham: Thanks for the time you have put in, Gary, and
continued success with your great site.
A
recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship,
Beckham is on the board of the Author’s League Fund and the
George Polk Awards, and has served on the boards of PEN American
Center and the Author’s Guild. He is one of the judges of the
2005 Hurston Wright Foundation Award for the best novel by an
African American. He has published prose in Esquire,
Black Enterprise, Crisis, the New York Times,
Educational Record, The Washington Post,
American Visions, and elsewhere.
Beckham lives in Silver Spring, MD with his wife, Monica Scott,
general counsel of the United Planning Organization in
Washington, DC. He has a son and daughter from his first
marriage.
You can
learn more about Barry Beckham and the Beckham Publications
Group by visiting their web site at:
www.beckhamhouse.com/behmine.html.
This interview was conducted
by Gary A. Johnson.
So what do you think?
If you would like to respond to
this article
click here and sign our
Guestbook
to leave a public or private statement, comment or reaction.
Nothing But A Gracechild: A Chat With Moses T.
Alexander Greene
Moses T. Alexander Greene is the author of the book, “My Proposal: Nothing But A Gracechild.”
He’s also the main man behind the popular gospel music
reviews on this site (In
The GreeneRoom). His latest book gives readers a peek
at the private journal, life-thoughts and intimate struggles
of a 20-something Christian man. Greene attributes his
success to God’s grace.
We asked Moses what he thought was the divine purpose of his life and
how he discovered it? “I think I am still discovering the
fullness of the “divine purpose” of my life,” says Moses.
He acknowledged that he’s still growing in understanding his
purpose. Moses is a teacher who seeks to empower others to
acknowledge all parts of their lives so that they can live a
life of great personal freedom and balance. He also
acknowledges that he discovered much of his purpose in life
in the deep places of pain, loss, surprise, and the
consequences of being simple.
Folks this is a deep interview, submarine deep. In our interview Moses
T. Alexander Greene talks candidly about what he wants
readers to learn as a result of reading his book, his
appreciation for black women, how his book can help people
and of course, his love of gospel music.
Moses T. Alexander Greene
BMIA.com:
What is the divine purpose of your life and how did you
discover it?
MTAG:
Wow. Great question. I think I am still discovering the
fullness of the “divine purpose” of my life; but as I am
growing in understanding it, it is to, through transparency,
empower and teach others to 1) acknowledge ALL parts of
their lives so that they can live in greater personal
freedom; 2) see the amazing role of Grace in their
existence; and 3) create a paradigm shift such that we live
more balanced lives. I discovered it in the deep places of
pain, loss, surprise, and the consequences of being simple.
BMIA.com:
Why did you decide to write this book?
MTAG:
The “decision” to write the book was actually a response to
the revelations I was learning. I reached my mid-20s and
couldn’t pretend anymore that my life, my childhood or my
upbringing were perfect. The intention was to just get it
out of my mind and heart; not to write a book. But once I
knew it was meant to be a book, I wrote mindful of a
generation of men and women, sons and daughters who were
supposed to be stronger than me; whose seasons of indecision
and struggling could be lessened because I spoke. I wanted
them to be able to quietly exhale because they were no
longer alone in their experiences.
BMIA.com:
What do want readers to “take away” or learn from your book?
MTAG:
The main “take away” for the readers is first, the gift of
acknowledgement for the self. As humans we owe it to
ourselves to acknowledge, take responsibility for and
surrender every part of our lives, hearts and behaviors to
God. I had to own the pain and proclivities of my heart—even
when I felt I did nothing to warrant them, couldn’t explain
where they came from or why they remained. To be healed and
so that I wouldn’t have to wade through all of my unresolved
mess for the rest of my life, I chose to own and surrender
everything—that which is still vile and that which has
become beautiful.
I want readers to be empowered to, in their
private moments with God, acknowledge their total lives and
their feelings about their total lives. Secondly, I want
readers to “listen for the water”. Depression, financial
strains, the impact of seeing domestic violence as a child
on your own adult life, addictions, loneliness and issues of
sex and sexuality are real—even for Christians. So if YOU
cannot experientially identify with the book, there
is—GUARANTEED—someone around you who needs to go through
whatever they have been providentially designed to with your
love and not your judgment. Listen for the water of their
experiences. When someone says, “It hurts so much I could
die” these are more than just words. It is their subtle cry.
I want readers to walk in greater compassion for others in
their life from reading the book.
BMIA.com:
Is there any significance to the title of your book?
MTAG:
Absolutely. The proper title of the book is “my proposal:
nothing but a gracechild (revelations of a prodigal son NOW
in God-caused exile).
“My Proposal”—this is a “proposal” of sorts
to God to say, “Hey DAD…will you still use me?” To a woman
the proposal is, “Can you read about these aspects of my
life and still see beauty in me, my life and its purpose
such that you are willing to walk with me?” If the answer is
“yes”, then even if we are not meant for one another
there are thousands of other men who have similar
experiences who need you to say “yes” to them. And,
“Revelations of a Prodigal son NOW in God-caused exile” is
the fact that the greatest revelations of my life thus far
came in seasons when, in hindsight, I believe God caused an
exile from everything familiar so that I would be forced to
learn lessons and not be rescued. Some revelations didn’t
come until I was by myself, in a foreign place and Made to
stay.
BMIA.com:
Moses, your book is different. Can you briefly describe
what the book is about?
MTAG:
The book is about the thoughts, stories, hopes, memories,
failures, struggles and experiences which congregate in the
heart of a twenty something Black man in the very season
that he takes his first steps of independence. It happens
to be the same time when he feels God is—by the nature of
the number of adverse circumstances in his life—bringing him
to a point of acknowledgement of a lifetime of secrets:
feelings of rejection, sexual abuse, his perceptions of the
boundaries of acceptance for being sexually abused, what
really happens to people who DARE to deal with their past,
and his sheer dismay and disillusionment at the response of
the church he served his entire life while he comes to grip
with it all.
BMIA.com:
How has the book been received? (By book clubs, friends,
family).
MTAG:
African American female book clubs have really welcomed it.
Thank God for Black women! The target demographic for the
book was African American women 25-54 because we believed in
our guts that most of the time, by the time a woman has
reached her mid 20s, she is ready to acknowledge life. Even
if pain keeps her from doing it, a part of her is ready to.
We knew that these women—whether the sisters, girlfriends,
lovers, best friends, wives or mothers of Black men—would be
influential in getting more men to read the book; and they
have. And for the record, Black women READ the ENTIRE book.
(Laughter) I walked into my first book club meeting in
Washington, DC with the “African Violets” and before I could
get through the door this 40-something voluptuous sister
said, “Now baby—were you an escort or not?” as if had I said
“yes”, she would have had a list of takers. (More laughter).
By strangers who come into bookstores where I
have a book signing, it’s amazing to me that their stories
are literally on the surface waiting for someone to say
“it’s okay…talk about it”. So my book becomes a vehicle for
them to express themselves, not necessarily identify with my
experiences.
I have the greatest friends. Many of them—who
had not known half of what I had gone through—supported me
in ways that made shame and guilt nonexistent. Most have
found ways to communicate gentle affirmation of being proud
of me for daring to be honest.
My family members, for the most part, had
opportunity to read the book in its entirety before it went
to print. While the things I write about in the book
sometimes were about our family, I think because they knew
it was something I “had to” do for myself, they have been
supportive.
What has blessed me the most is that not one
person who has read the book—not a review or synopsis of
it—has ever reduced the book to any one theme or idea in the
book. So it means they are getting the complexities of the
totality of life.
BMIA.com:
How would you describe your writing style?
MTAG:
I would agree with the descriptors of my writing used by the
magazine Black Issues Book Review: “Unusual, eccentric,
creative and insightful”. My writing style is really an
extension of me as a person—totally unconventional. Not in a
rebellious way but in a way that does not fit preconceived
molds and paradigms. It is creative and Hemingway-esque in
the fact that I agree with his theory of writing on the
principle of the iceberg—for every 1/8th that you
see above the line, there are 7/8ths beneath the surface.
Likewise, my writing isn’t complicated; it’s just not
obvious. What is the meaning buried underneath the obvious?
Every word has meaning, every title is significant and every
literary piece is meant from the onset to require you to
think more deeply and from a different, perhaps a “new” part
of yourself.
BMIA.com:
Describe the ways that you think your book can help people?
MTAG:
My Proposal helps people because it frees them (their
pain, their victories, their survival, their exploration for
meaning and significance, etc.) to be included in a
universal family, which acknowledges that life, at times,
hurts. For me, the revelation brought me closer to God than
ever before. For others, my “disclosure” may just symbolize
that they are never alone. A more perfect example comes from
a student I have right now who said “God put me in your
class at this time for a reason.” Her sister began reading
my book and wouldn’t give it back. Because of a selection we
read in class weeks ago, the student left class and that
night was empowered to, with her family, do an intervention
with her sister in regards to an addiction. That is the
quality of Jesus Christ in my life through this book! My
book helps people love the people in their lives in a more
refined way because they can see the people they love as
they are yet love them stronger than ever before.
BMIA.com:
Who were the people who have inspired you?
MTAG:
The secrets of resilience inherent in the stories of African
Americans inspire me beyond measure. One of my majors in
undergrad was African American Studies and the amount of
literature I read on what Negro slaves had to do to gain
their freedom, the Great Migration, the Harlem Renaissance
thru to the Civil Rights movement of the late 1950s to late
60s changed my perception of myself.
More contemporary persons each embody one of
my favorite quotes, “And now, with God’s help, I shall
become myself.” Oprah Winfrey is a monumental inspiration
for me, in that, season after season, regardless of the
obstacle, she evolves into herself. Other people include
Pastor Shirley Caesar, Jack Canfield, Jamie Foxx, Dr. Bill
Cosby, Quincy Jones, Mary J. Blige, the entire cast of The
Color Purple on Broadway, Dr. Maya Angelou, Tyler Perry,
Will Smith, Patti LaBelle, Gary Dourdan, Debbie Allen, Bill
and Melinda Gates, Kirk Franklin, Jimmy Carter, Randal
Pickett and Denzel Washington.
The persons who inspire me the most week
after week are my students. I am an English professor at a
local college and have the BEST students. Because I am
transparent in class (my book is part of the curriculum) and
intentional with each lesson, I hear their stories of TRUE
grace. Regardless of their religion or nationality, my
students from Ghana, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Ukraine, Guatemala, Jamaica, Dominican Republic,
Central America, China, Pakistan and America inspire me to
live without regret, to value every part of my journey and
to be ever cognizant of the opportunities that I have in
being an American.
BMIA.com:
How can people reading this interview support you?
MTAG:
My books are meant to enter the literary canon. I am
convinced of that. For that to happen, they must be studied
on college campuses and they have to transcend just “popular
culture”. So one way for immediate support is to buy the
book and contact Gracechild Publishing so we can get
information out to the English, sociology, and African
American Studies departments of your colleges and
university. Secondly, in early January 2006 we are
launching, www.mosestalexandergreene.com and they can purchase
the book and other products directly from my company,
Bethesda Nu’ach. For now, log ontowww.Karibubooks.comand buy the book. Also, go to
Barnes and Noble and Borders and request that the book be on
their shelves. I am in their system (so they know of the
book), but many larger chains will not include a book until
they know that there is a market for it. Additionally, log
into “In The GreeneRoom” on BMiA.com or read it in Xii
Magazine and hear about the music offerings of some
outstanding Gospel/CCM music artists and producers. Lastly,
I enjoy the book clubs, the workshops on the book and making
concrete some of the ideas of the book. Let’s schedule
author appearances and make personal freedom and surrender
to God realized.
Moses T. Alexander Greene’s sophomore project,
“astounded that I am okay: Wisdom, laughter, forgiveness
and poetry—compassion, understanding, life and self-love
of an escaped soul” is set to be released in 2006.
New Author
Kelvin Lassiter Is Changing Lives
Kelvin
Lassiter is a new author and motivational speaker. His book,
“May
The Force Be With You: Learning How to
Achieve Goals & Dreams Successfully”
is a book that helps people tap into their potential to realize their
dreams. Kelvin sat down with Gary Johnson to talk about
his life and the experiences that led him to this point in his life.
Lassiter, who
lives in Baltimore, MD, recently turned 40, spoke lovingly about his
deceased mother. Lassiter said that he can still hear her voice and
that she tells him: “You’re not doing the right thing. We didn’t
raise you like that.” Lassiter described his relationship with his
father (still alive) as great, albeit, a little late. According to
Lassiter, he really didn’t know his father until he was about 7 years
old. He stated, “by that time, my personality had pretty much been
formed.”
Looking back
Lassiter acknowledged that he grew up in a dysfunctional home. His
latest book spends a lot of time talking about his relationship with
his mother and her relationship with his father. I thought Kelvin’s
book was very inspiring but the story “left me hanging” with regard to
his father. When I shared my opinion with him, Lassiter told me that
he’s already working on a follow-up, tentatively called “The
Interview,” where he would pick up on the relationship with his father
and his sister.
Lassiter, who
married into fatherhood, immediately gained a 14-year-old son. He
finds that to be an awesome responsibility and he does not take it
lightly. “I hope to inspire young men,” said Lassiter. His goal is
to approach these brothers one-by-one to share his life experiences in
hopes that they can do the right thing with their lives.
Kelvin
Lassiter is one man who is making a difference. He’s not wealthy, or
filthy rich; he is simply giving his time and sharing his experiences
to make a positive difference in his community. This is something
that all of us can do. The stakes are high, the hours are long and
the rewards are priceless. Read our interview with Brother Lassiter
and learn how this one man, who used to be part of the problem, made a
conscious choice to become part of the solution.
The Kelvin
Lassiter Interview
BMIA:
What prompted you to write “My The Force Be with You?”
K. Lassiter:
I originally did not attend to become an author. This was generated
as an avenue to reach the masses of people. Motivational Speaking is
my true passion.
BMIA:
How long did it take you to write this book?
K. Lassiter:
It took six months to write.
BMIA:
Growing up, what was your earliest or most vivid recollection of being
different?
K. Lassiter:
While growing up, I had issues in school because I like to talk during
class. I was taken to the child psychiatrist’s office. The doctor
determined there was nothing wrong with me. I just liked to talk to
people.
BMIA:
What’s the hardest part of writing this book?
K. Lassiter:
Reflecting back on when my mother was struggling with breast cancer.
Also reliving the moments of growing up as a teenager in high school.
BMIA:
Who would you credit as your inspiration for writing this book?
K. Lassiter:
I would like to credit God for allowing me to live to share my
testimony. Then I owe credit to my family for their support.
BMIA:
What’s the greatest life lesson that you learned from your father?
K. Lassiter:
The greatest lesson that I learned from my father was how to be a
strong black man. He taught me how to be a gentleman, take pride in
myself and standing up for my rights.
BMIA:
What’s the greatest life lesson that you learned from your mother?
K. Lassiter:
My mother taught me how to be loving.
BMIA:
In your opinion what’s the biggest challenge facing black men in
America?
K. Lassiter:
The biggest challenge facing black men in America is to overcome the
remnants of slavery. It all started 400 years ago while our ancestors
were brought to this country against their will. A famous slave
owner by the name of Willie Lynch had a famous method of controlling
slaves, which he introduced to other slave owners during a meeting in
the year 1712. He outlined a few things that they must do in order to
control the slaves. The very one thing that blacks have a problem
with today is getting along with each other. This is something
Willie Lynch indoctrinated in the slaves, which we still do today.
BMIA:
What have you learned as a result of writing this book?
K. Lassiter:
I have learned that there was a lot of baggage that needed to be
released from my soul. I also learned that lives can be reached and
turned around by proclaiming that Jesus Christ’s plan is the only way
to live for eternity.
BMIA:
What do you want people to learn as a result of reading this book?
K. Lassiter:
I want people to realize that if they do not quit, they can
overcome any situation by putting God first. If people lean on
their own understanding, there lives will remain at a standstill.
BMIA:
Tell us about Lasstime, LLC.
K. Lassiter:
Lasstime, LLC was started from my volunteer work at D.C. General
Hospital Detox Clinic. I conduct a spiritual faith base group every
fourth Saturday. From there, I wanted to do something on a worldwide
level of changing lives through worshiping Jesus Christ.
BMIA:
How do you define success?
K. Lassiter:
Success is doing what you dream of doing. It's not about financial
rewards. Do what you dream of doing for free and the money will
follow.
BMIA:
What advice would you give to other men and women who grew up in
dysfunctional environments and want to move forward?
K. Lassiter:
The advice I want to offer is as follows:
1.Get on your knees and pray constantly for yourself and for others.
2.Love one another until it makes the other person sick! Love is the
greatest gift of all!
3.Never give up on your dreams! Life can through us many challenges.
Usually when things go wrong, the first thing to go is our dreams.
The time is now to do what you dream of doing! Future generations
depend on your success!
BMIA:
How can people support you and buy your book?
K. Lassiter:
Go to
www.lasstime.com and check out my website! Send a request for me
to come to your company to speak, do a workshop or buy my book. We
can also provide catering services and personal career coaching
services through my sister company Divine Inspirations, Inc owned by
my wife Gwendolyn Baker-Lassiter at
www.divinenspir.org.
BMIA:
Anything else?
K. Lassiter:
No. Thank you and may God Bless You!
So what do
you think? If you would
like to respond to this article
click here
and sign our
Guestbook
to
leave a public or private statement, comment or reaction.
Welcome to Lemon City:
An Interview with Elaine Meryl Brown
Folks, I get some
of the best story ideas from the general public. A few months ago at a
4th of July picnic my friend Gardenia strongly suggested that
I interview her cousin, who was a first time author. She gave me a
postcard and told me that the name of the book was “Lemon City.” After
a brief conversation, I told Gardenia that I would follow-up. About a
month later, while working on another project, a publicist who works
with Random House asked me if I would be interested in interviewing a
new author named Elaine Meryl Brown, who wrote a book called, “Lemon
City.”
Lemon City? I know I've heard
that book title before. I immediately started digging in
my “Inbox” searching for that postcard and discovered that this was the
book written by Gardenia’s cousin. I immediately began to make
arrangements to meet this hot new author. I met with Elaine Meryl Brown
in downtown Washington, D.C. Elaine is one of the nicest people that
you could ever meet. She is very down-to-earth and the warmth that she
writes about in her book comes through in person. Elaine Meryl Brown
was an absolute delight and her book is wonderful. There is a new voice
in African-American fiction and her name is Elaine Meryl Brown.
Set in 1973,
Lemon City is an
isolated town in the foothills of Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains
settled by freed slaves before the Civil War. This small black-built,
black-owned, black-inhabited town has rules that all townsfolk must
abide and live by. Most people in town take the rules very seriously;
but not all of the town's inhabitants are able to accept the rules
without question. And, thus, the story begins.
This book is an
easy read, however, it is not without it’s twists and turns. Brown’s
writing styles makes the characters come to life. In fact, at times I
felt as if some of the characters were an extended part of my family.
So who is Elaine
Meryl Brown? Elaine Meryl Brown is the Vice President of Special Markets in Creative
Services at HBO and has held the position of Creative Director at
Showtime Networks. She is also an Emmy Award-winning writer. Brown has
written for national publications including Essence and Women's World.
Here’s your
chance to learn more about Elaine Meryl Brown and her hot selling book
Lemon City.
JOHNSON:
Hello Elaine, it is a pleasure to finally meet you. I
want to ask you some questions about Lemon City.
BROWN:
Great! I'm excited, let's get started.
JOHNSON:
There is a good buzz about your book.
Lemon City
has garnered some great testimonials by some good people like Connie
Briscoe and Yolanda Joe. How does it make you feel?
BROWN:
I am floating on a cloud. Even though I am sitting in this
chair, I am really floating on a cloud. I have been walking on air for
the past few weeks because it really took – for the longest time it felt
like all of this was happening to someone else. It just felt very
surreal until my launch party—which was last week—at the Time and Life
Building, and suddenly I was in front of these people and that’s when it
became real. And, I’ve been floating ever since. But Connie Briscoe is
one of my favorite authors. And for her to have said those great things
about “Lemon City”, really gives me, you know, makes me
breathless, but it also validates me as an author. I have to say, when
you have an author that you respect and whose work you love – it just
makes me feel great.
JOHNSON:
Have you had your book reviewed by the
RAW Sisters?
Are you familiar with that group?
BROWN:
No I am not.
JOHNSON:
The RAW Sistaz stands for reading and writing sisters.
BROWN:
Okay.
JOHNSON:
You need to get your book down there. Reading and Writing
Sistaz – S I S T A Z, because they do great book reviews. A good
review by them can mean an increase in book sales. I'll get you
their contact information.
BROWN:
That would be great.
JOHNSON:
Have you always wanted to be a writer?
BROWN:
Since I was in 7th grade I thought I would write a
novel. And, that’s when I first discovered that I enjoyed writing. I had
an assignment, an English assignment, and I think the assignment was to
write whatever, and I chose to adapt the kid’s story of the five Chinese
brothers into screen play form. And I really enjoyed it. I just
remember really enjoying it and thinking that this is fun. This is
really cool. Since then I’ve been writing, while I was in school,
writing poetry, writing short stories and when I was in college I
majored in English and Drama with an emphasis on writing and directing.
And got out of school and actually won an Emmy for writing and also had
my first published article in “Essence” around that time as well. And,
you know, writing several articles for several editors and several
publications, I decided one day, maybe I can do this for myself. I’ll
just write for me. I’ll write something I really enjoy.
JOHNSON:
I know you are VP of Special Markets and Creative Services at
HBO. What is that?
BROWN:
Creative Services is the creative area – when I tell people I
work at HBO and they say well either, “How come my cable is so high,”
and I say, “No, sorry I don’t work on that part,” or they say, “ where
do you shoot Sopranos?” “No, don’t work in programming.” Creative
Services is the area, creative area at HBO – because HBO is commercial
free – in between each show Creative Services creates / produces the
promos – the trailers – that air between the shows to get subscribers
to, you know, to retain subscribers so they’ll see the next show that’s
about to come on or so that they will continue their HBO subscription.
JOHNSON:
They’re pretty sexy.
BROWN:
So, that’s what promos do. Now – I don’t do the main services.
I do image pieces for the flex channels – the digital feeds – meaning
HBO Family, HBO Sound, Signature, Latino and Comedy and also I’m
responsible for advertising for HBO Pay Per View – promoting the fights
and also doing the advertising the brand marketing advertising
off-channels. So most of my work is off-channel, it’s that creative kind
of job. Basically we do commercials and brand advertising.
JOHNSON:
Oh, okay. I think you already answered this question about
what prompted you to write “Lemon City?
BROWN:
I just want to say that I wrote
“Lemon City” because I wanted
to write something that was good for community. I had the idea to write
a novel, maybe ten years ago and I didn’t know what I was going to write
about but whatever it was I knew I was going to write something that
entertaining and fun that would make people smile, because that’s the
kind of book that I wanted to read at the end of my long, crazy, hectic,
stressful day. And I wasn’t finding enough of that literature by African
American authors. So, I decided, well I am going to write the kind of
book that I’d like to read. You know, a fun story, easy read, and
provide an escape for people. You know, working in the entertainment
business that’s kind of what I do.
JOHNSON:
Right. That’s good because that kind of answered my next
question. My follow-up question was going to be, “What do you want
people to take away after reading the book?”
BROWN:
Yea. I really want people to feel entertained and I have to
say that I think it’s more relevant today because people just need a
reason to smile; people just need to have an escape. You know, there’s
so much going on in the world that “Lemon City” is a nice
place to be. It’s a fun place to be. (Laughter)
JOHNSON:
A nice place to raise a family. Who’s your favorite
character?
BROWN:
Wow! Who’s my favorite character?
JOHNSON:
Or, maybe I should ask, “Do you have a favorite character?”
BROWN:
I’ve not been asked that question. I love all of my
characters. I like the relationships between my characters. Faye’s my
main character. Louise is her sister. Nana, you know, old Ms. Johnson.
There’s a little bit of myself in all of my characters. So, I haven’t, I
don’t really have a favorite.
JOHNSON:
Okay. I am going to bounce around here. But, do you find it
difficult to balance work, writing, and family?
BROWN:
In addition to “Lemon City” being a fun story, it’s also a
story about family and community. I just wanted to add that.
JOHNSON:
Okay.
BROWN:
Now I’ll move on. The balancing -- well, you know what. It
took me eight years to write “Lemon City”. I had the idea ten years ago
and it took me eight years to write it. And six years on my own and then
two years with an editor – sort of helped me. So it wasn’t – it was
challenging to balance, but manageable. I’d write -- I would get up in
the morning – and I’m not a morning person. I would like pray, I would
pray to God – please let me get up at 5:00 in the morning. Really, a
series of that so that I could just get up at five and write until
seven, seven thirty, then jump in the shower and get to work. And I have
long days in the city, so at the end of the day I might not get home
until 8:30, 9:00, 9:30 at night and I would stay until midnight or maybe
one in the morning. Just taking hours – stealing away time in the
morning, stealing away time at night and on weekends. And, not
consistently, because you do need to take a break and step away from it.
And sometimes, I would step away for a month or six weeks and then I
would come back. And, I was always afraid, taking that step back that I
wouldn’t get back into the energy and sometimes it was hard but I just,
you know Gary, I just like, I have to do this. I have to do this. Now is
the time to do this. I started it and I have to stick with it. So that’s
when --- and when I started with the first sentence I was totally
committed. And I didn’t sit down and start writing until I knew I was
going to be totally committed. Because I didn’t want to disappoint
myself or not be able to fulfill that commitment. And, the other thing
is I often tell myself that I was writing a story. I never used “the
book.” I never used the B word. I didn’t want to overwhelm myself.
JOHNSON:
Right.
BROWN:
I’m writing a story. It just helped to make it more manageable
for me.
JOHNSON:
Okay. I like that. I like that. Writing a story. Not the B
word.
BROWN:
Not the B word.
JOHNSON:
I am going to try to ask you some questions that I think maybe
you haven’t been asked before.
BROWN:
You ask me anything. It always comes out differently.
Somebody said, “let's review questions with me so you know how to answer
them.” I’m like, no – I don’t want to have standard answers, I always
want to be spontaneous. I don’t want to know what people are going to
ask me.
JOHNSON:
Good. How about this one -- What was your earliest or most
vivid recollection of being or feeling different?
BROWN:
Oh man, that was early. How do you know I am or was feeling
different?
JOHNSON:
I don’t know.
BROWN:
What do you mean by that?
JOHNSON:
It’s up to you.
BROWN:
(Laughter)
JOHNSON:
You define – how
BROWN:
I always feel different.
JOHNSON:
See, however you define different.
BROWN:
I was an only child for twelve years, so it’s like, I don’t
know but, -- I don’t know if you have siblings?
JOHNSON:
I have a sister, a younger sister.
BROWN:
Younger?
JOHNSON:
But close in age.
BROWN:.
Yea. See it’s like when you spend a lot of time by yourself,
you play by yourself. You know, I had friends – it’s not like I didn’t
have friends, but I think it kind of allowed my imagination to run – to
create things. And I think I am very visual. “Lemon City” is a very
visual book. So, you know, I see things in terms of pictures.
JOHNSON:
The artwork on the book is good – and by the way, I want you
to sign this before you go.
BROWN:
Absolutely.
JOHNSON:
The artwork on the book kind of gives you a feel for the town.
BROWN:
Right. The homey feeling. And I have to tell you. That’s the
third cover for the book. There had been other visual images thrown out
there and that’s the one that we decided on. The one that we feel works
really best for “Lemon City”. It is a beautiful cover – I don’t get
tired of it – I hope it doesn’t seem like I'm bragging or anything, but
I love the cover.
JOHNSON:
It’s your book.
BROWN:
Yea, you know. I love it. I love the colors. Hopefully it is
very inviting and very engaging and very warm.
JOHNSON:
Yea. It’s warm. It kind of lures you in – like let’s open
this thing up.
BROWN:
Yea, what’s going on inside that house – I wonder about the
people who live there. Um.
JOHNSON:
Now. What’s the best thing about being Elaine Meryl Brown?
BROWN:
I don’t know right now. Working at HBO – I work behind the
scenes. I’m never the center of attention. I’m never in the spot light.
I’m never – I’m the one who’s making sure the person in front of the
cameras. What’s the best thing about being Elaine Meryl Brown?
It’s just wonderful being me. I just think now is an extra special
time in my life.
JOHNSON:
Cool. I know you spent a lot of time getting the book
prepared and edited. Was it difficult to find a book deal?
BROWN:
I have to tell you. I feel really blessed, because my agent
put the book out there in like September – Labor Day weekend. And, by
the middle of October, towards the end of like October 24, I had a two
book deal.
JOHNSON:
Wow!
BROWN:
It’s a miracle. I know. So that’s why I feel. You know, I
just feel like I’m being carried. I am a very spiritual person.
JOHNSON:
It’s your time …
BROWN:
– it’s my time. And things are really falling into place and
I’m really happy about that.
JOHNSON:
The only person that I know or met who’s had that kind of
success with a book deal – that I’m aware of or met – is Pamela Thomas
Graham, President of CNBC.
BROWN:
Well you know what? I didn’t know any agents. See she had the
advantage of having a successful published husband. But for me, I asked
– seriously, I mean, I grew up across the street from a family, like a
guy who I went to high school with his sister – who was the last person
in the family I met. I happened to see her one day and asked her if she
know of any agents. And that’s how I – that’s how it happened. Hey!
JOHNSON:
It was your time.
BROWN:
In the street. Literally, “hey (inaudible),” in the
neighborhood. You know, I live in that kind of neighborhood. And it
wasn’t the first agent she referred me to. In fact, it might be
important to say the first agent wanted me to write like somebody else.
And, having worked in this business for a long time, and having had a
voice that I was deliberately set out to create for this book there was
like – no way – I’m not going to change his voice. This is me. This is
how I want to write it. So, I asked her very politely, if she could
recommend another agent, which she did. And that second agent became my
agent.
JOHNSON:
Wow!
BROWN:
So, that’s how that happened.
JOHNSON:
How about the research for the book? Do you like doing the
research for the book?
BROWN:
Well, I love doing research. It’s something about me that I
discovered. Like when I won the Emmy for the show "FYI" at ABC,
it was sort of a research driven show and what we did as writers – we
took this research and translated it for laymen. And, it was very
informational and I did spend a lot of time – cause the book takes place
in the early 70’s – researching the social climate and the political
climate around and at the time -- and various local libraries and I
really enjoyed doing that piece of it. Because there are references, I
think, just so that the reader has been transported back to the 70’s
there are references by the characters. Either by the characters or
either what was woven into the story that make it seamless that
hopefully puts people in the mindset. Or puts people back into that era.
JOHNSON:
Now, this question I really, really like. (Laughter)
BROWN:
So, I’d better answer it, right?
JOHNSON:
What advice would you share with aspiring writers? Now I’ll
tell you what’s behind that – I mean it’s kind of obvious but, I really
believe that particularly in the black community it’s very important for
people to see people who are successful who look like them. So, what
advice would you share? You’ve got a lot of experiences, corporate, life
experiences – what would you share?
BROWN:
I would just stick with it. I mean, if you’re a writer, and
you have a story to tell, I would -- just stick with it. Let me go back
to the first step – which is practice your craft. I think it’s
important to practice the craft. I was privileged, given the opportunity
to meet August Wilson several months ago – though a work related
function. I asked August – being one of his biggest fans – if he had 10
or 15 minutes and he said, “yes.” And that turned into an hour and a
half conversation. And, one of the things I asked August was, “August,
my first novel is about to be published – I’d never written a short
novel – and he looked right through me – and it may be a dumb question,
but I don’t know. And he said, of course you don’t have to do that, you
studied or practiced your craft enough to know how to do it. So I would
just say to people to study and practice your craft. People want to be
published – they don’t have bylines. I mean, I just got my first byline
writing for free at a local newspaper and sort of gradually moved up you
know to writing stories and to writing “Lemon City”. Oh,
and also writing television to writing “Lemon City”, so
it’s almost been a part of my job / part of my career. I would say
practice the craft and then when you have a story to tell -- tell the
best story you possibly can. Meaning, not the best story, but write the
story the best way you can. And, find an agent and kind of stick with
it. You know, I’ve heard stories where people have had like 30 – 31
rejections. And the 32nd they get a letter back and finally
got it accepted. I don’t know if that answers your question?
JOHNSON:
It does. It does.
BROWN:
And, let me tell you something else that is really key.
JOHNSON:
What is that?
BROWN:
A lot of people have told me that I am an inspiration for them
and I think one of the main things that separates a published author or
writer from someone publishing a book and someone wanting to publish a
book is just being able to have the discipline to sit down and write it.
Because, there are a lot of people who say, “Oh, I want to write,” or “I
have been working on…” And it’s like well, be committed, have the
discipline to finish it—because it does take a lot of discipline – it’s
not easy. It’s hard and sometimes it’s painful.
JOHNSON:
I’m glad you said that because I run across a lot of writers
who come by my office who want to do things and I try to help them. But
sometimes I have to cut them loose because they don’t have the
discipline on their end to sit down and follow through.
BROWN:
That’s really key Gary. It’s really key. You have to say no to
a lot of people. You have to sacrifice a lot of things. And you can’t go
out and you can’t do a lot of things – because you have to sit down and
write.
JOHNSON:
Stay committed.
BROWN:
And stay committed. But the upside to that is you, from a
woman’s standpoint, you save a lot of money because you can’t go
shopping on weekends.
JOHNSON:
(Laughter)
BROWN:
So, all those weekends I stay at home writing, I just think
about all the money I saved.
JOHNSON:
And, there’s a payoff. As Dr. Phil says, “How’s that working
for you?”
BROWN:
(Laughter)
JOHNSON:
It’s working pretty good for you right now. “Cause there’s a
payoff. How important was it?
BROWN:
Was that helpful Gary?
JOHNSON:
Yes, that was it.
BROWN:
I wasn’t sure.
JOHNSON:
No, No. That was it, because it made me think of this question
about mentors. I have two questions in my head that will about wrap it
up for me. Mentors – how important were mentors for you?
BROWN:
I have had a lot of mentors in my life. I have not had one
person in particular – I know a lot of folks have like one person sort
of brought them up through the ranks. I have, you know, and I got into
this business at a time – and I don’t want to reveal age – but in for
the most part there weren’t that many of us working in television at
that time. And, there weren’t that many of us who had been there for a
while to look up to as a mentor. So, I just think I had a lot of people
sort of help me along the way. There are a lot of names that I could
mention. A lot of great folks, you know, even at HBO, there are a lot
of great folks there. And, I still stay in touch with one of my first
editors at Essence Magazine.
JOHNSON:
I tell people in my seminars that part of your success is how
well you build and maintain relationships along the way.
BROWN:
Yea.
JOHNSON:
Because, sometimes you don’t have to be the smartest person to
be successful in your endeavors. A lot of it is built on relationships.
Competence is assumed.
BROWN:
Relationship is key. It is important to know and have
relationships in the area that you are working in, but even outside of
it. And it’s even becoming more important to me, not necessarily in
writing “Lemon City”, but to marketing and promoting
“Lemon City” – ‘cause that’s when the relationships that you
have really help because people will be rooting for you and they will
tell their friends, they’re tell their friends.
JOHNSON:
I want to read it first. I have been traveling and I have all
these books. That’s why I brought it. I skimmed it but believe me, by
the time this feature gets posted on the site I will have read it and I
will be able to talk from personal experience.
BROWN:
Thank you Gary.
You
can learn more about Elaine Meryl Brown and order her book by visiting
her web site at
www.elainemerylbrown.com. You can also buy her book,
LEMON
CITY, at these online retailers:
Authors and book
reviews have become so popular on this web site that we wanted to
expand our offering by interviewing a wider pool of authors. We
start out with New York Times bestselling author Karin Slaughter who
talks about her latest book, INDELIBLE.
Slaughter came across as very relaxed and very easy to talk to.
The book isn’t Afrocentric, it's just a good book that has
already appeared on other bestseller lists across the country.
INDELIBLE is the prequel to Slaughter’s incredibly successful
first novel, Blindsighted.
I must admit that I wasn’t very familiar
with Karin’s work and had to do some study in preparation for this
interview. I did learn that Karin Slaughter has sold about 3.5
million books. Here are a few “Cliff notes” on Karin Slaughter:
--Her novel Blindsighted
was a New York Times, USA Today, and Publishers
Weekly bestseller in mass market and was a People “Page
Turner of the Week.” Of course, your publication selected this title
as one of the Best Books of 2001. It received the same recognition by
the Washington Post and the Florida Sun-Sentinel. It was
nominated for the Barry Award for Best First Novel and the Macavity
Award for Best First Mystery Novel. It was short listed for the CWA
John Creasey Memorial Dagger Award for Best First Crime Novel of 2001
and Slaughter was named by Book Magazine as the author to watch for
2002.
--The mass-market edition of
Kisscut, her second novel in the Grant County series, hit the
New York Times extended list and the USA Today
bestseller list.
--A Faint Cold Fear was
a New York Times extended list bestseller in hardcover and was
a selection of the International Book-of-the-Month club. It is the
third novel in the Grant County series.
--Karin’s books have been published
in 23 different languages.
--Karin is also considered one of the
top three suspense writers overseas.
--Karin is even a top-ten bestseller
in Holland.
So what is
INDELIBLE about? When medical examiner Sara Linton and police chief
Jeffrey Tolliver take a trip away from the small town of Heartsdale --
an escape from all the pressures which complicate their relationship
-- it should be a straightforward weekend at the beach. But they
decide to take a detour via Jeffrey's hometown and things go violently
wrong when Jeffrey's best friend Robert shoots dead an intruder who
breaks into his house. Jeffrey and Sara are first on the scene and
Jeffrey's keen to clear his friend's name, but for Sara things aren't
so simple. The sear marks around the bullet-hole don't tally with
Robert's story. Robert's wife, Jessie, is incoherent and confused. And
when Jeffrey appears to change the crime scene, Sara no longer knows
who to trust. Twelve years later, Sara and Jeffrey are caught up in a
shockingly brutal attack that threatens to destroy both their lives.
But they're not random victims. They've been targeted. And it seems
the past is catching up with both of them.
Deftly interweaving present and past,
Slaughter offers another brilliant knife-edge tale of suspense that
cements her place among the most outstanding practitioners of crime
fiction writing today.
I recently sat down with Karin Slaughter
when she was in Washington, DC. Karin Slaughter is
young. She came across as being extremely bright and incredibly
focused, and I think this comes through in our conversation.
The Karin Slaughter
Interview
BMIA.COM: Hello Karin. I
am kind of curious about some things here.
SLAUGHTER:
Okay.
BMIA.COM:
Your bio is not very revealing. It doesn’t say too much.
SLAUGHTER:
Yea. (Laughter)
BMIA.COM:
Small town in Georgia? That’s pretty much it.
SLAUGHTER: Yea. I’m real
private – for obvious reasons. I mean there are a lot real weird
people out there.
BMIA.COM: I understand.
SLAUGHTER: And I’ve had some
difficult situations.
BMIA.COM: Oh, okay.
SLAUGHTER: So, I’m real
close with my private information.
BMIA.COM: In terms of an
occupation, did you do anything before you became like a full time
writer?
SLAUGHTER: I owned a sign
company, and I had that for about five years and realized that I had a
successful sign business but wasn’t actually doing what I wanted to
do. So, I sold it to a friend of mine and took a huge pay cut and just
went out on my own and worked for him in exchange for having time off
so that I could write and concentrate on trying to be a writer. And it
paid off but at the time people said, “Oh, you’re crazy,” you know,
“no one ever gets published,” its just an uphill battle.” And I knew
all that, but I didn’t want to be 40, 50 and say, “You know, why
didn’t I take that chance.” So, I had to do it.
BMIA.COM: That’s good,
‘cause you’re young. I interview a lot of authors and it’s a hard
hustle to get a book deal.
SLAUGHTER: Yea, well I
started early though. Right when I got out of school and was in
college I was working on getting published. So, from the age of 18 and
it took about ten years before I even got an agent.
BMIA.COM: Okay, I
understand you started writing when you were young. What were you six
years old?
SLAUGHTER: Yea, yea, yea.
BMIA.COM: What prompted you
to write this Grant County series as one of your novels?
SLAUGHTER: Well, you know
they always say write what you know. And, I know small towns. But I
also think you should write what you want to know. And I want to know
about violence and how it affects communities and not just small
communities, but even in Washington you have neighborhoods that mimic
small community life. And, I travel all the time; I’m in 23 languages
now. So, I go to Holland, Germany or wherever and there’s one thing
that binds them all together is there are small communities in these
countries – just like we have small communities here. It’s the same
case of characters, you know, the busy body, the slut, the preacher,
and everyone thinks they know everybody else. But the truth is, you
really don’t. And I want to write about that.
BMIA.COM: Do you see
similarities when you travel? In terms of themes, or similarities in
people?
SLAUGHTER: Yea, yea.
Whether black, white, Italian, Jewish, whatever – we like to be with
people who make us feel like we belong to something. And, I think
that’s what small communities are all about. Even in New York, you
have Hell’s Kitchen you have the Italian area, its everywhere.
BMIA.COM: People groups.
SLAUGHTER: Exactly. And I
have a friend who works in a large high school in Atlanta. And, when
you look at the lunchroom you can see separate groups – where the
Italian kids are together, the black kids, and its not segregated, per
se, but its just these are the people I find something in common
with.
BMIA.COM: Comfort.
SLAUGHTER: Exactly.
Exactly. And girls stay with girls and boys with boys. I mean, its
what we do as human beings – is we pair off.
BMIA.COM: So you kind of
have to educate people – change of paradigm.
SLAUGHTER: See, I think
that’s what makes us interesting as people, is the diversity in our
culture.
BMIA.COM: Oh, yea.
SLAUGHTER: And in America
where we have the melting pot everyone thinks you should be like
everyone else. And, we should all blend in. And that sort of homogeny
doesn’t interest me. It doesn’t exist. It’s sort of like family
values – well what is that? – What family? You know. We have our own
ways of dealing with things and our own communities and people we want
to be with. And, there’s nothing wrong with that.
BMIA.COM: That’s why I want
to interview you for this site because it brings another dimension of
diversity and letting people know – good writing comes in all kinds of
packaging.
SLAUGHTER: Exactly.
BMIA.COM: So, we’re going
to highlight your work and help you sell some books – not that you
need any help selling books – you’re doing pretty good.
SLAUGHTER: (Laughter)
BMIA.COM: What is it about
your style of writing that you like?
SLAUGHTER: Well, I’m a
southerner and I want to show the south the way it is – not the
typical Hollywood, barefoot playing a banjo sort of thing that they
have going out there. You can always tell if something’s in the South
because they use steel guitars as music on the overlay. And you know,
we have a lot of interesting folks who came from the South. Some of
the best American writers came from the South. You have the Civil
Rights Movement – you know, Martin Luther – his church is right of the
street from where I live. So there’s a lot of diversity in the South.
There’s racism, but – walk through Watts, you know, in South Central
BMIA.COM: Walk through this
town (Washington, DC).
SLAUGHTER: Exactly. So we
have a lot of different ways of looking at things that I think
contradict what Hollywood shows us as being, and what some books show
us as being. Certainly, we have our eccentricities, but I think
everyone does. If you live with a person all your life, or you have a
crazy aunt, you just assume everyone has a crazy aunt. You know. So,
it’s nothing big when someone says, “Oh, I have a crazy aunt.” “Join
the club.”
BMIA.COM: Let’s talk about the
characters in your book, particularly your main characters. Do you
have a favorite character?
SLAUGHTER: It varies,
really. It depends on where I am in the story and I guess I have ADD
(Attention Deficit Disorder) because the one I am writing about at the
moment isn’t the one I really like. I like the character Jeffrey a
lot. I think because, he, to me he’s not a typical male character in a
book written by a woman because he can be a jerk sometimes. And that’s
okay.
BMIA.COM: Jeffrey is the
Police Chief.
SLAUGHTER: Yea. And Sarah’s
ex-husband. And, you know. That’s how it is in real life. I tease a
friend of mine who writes a series and she’s got this guy and he’s
always doing the woman’s laundry and vacuuming – let’s be honest.
Guys are genetically incapable of vacuuming, you know.
BMIA.COM: (Laughter)
SLAUGHTER: So, she has this
idealized vision of …
BMIA.COM: Did you just say
that men were genetically incapable of vacuuming?
SLAUGHTER: Yea, it’s on the
chromosome I’m sure. But you know I tease her and say, “she’s in a
lesbian relationship with a man.” Because no guy is going to be this
perfect. And, honestly, the woman I know who are strong women aren’t
interested in men like that who worship them. They want someone who’s
going to challenge them and be intellectually engaging and have ideas
of their own.
BMIA.COM: So a bit of
opposite but something we can sit down and really have some spirited
conversation.
SLAUGHTER: Exactly. Exactly.
And at their core Sarah and Jeffrey both have the same values. And I
think that’s what matters – they both believe in the same sort of
right and wrong.
BMIA.COM: Let’s talk about
your book reviews. All of the reviews about your new book are good.
How much stock do you put in book reviews?
SLAUGHTER: Well, you know,
always the bad reviews are going to matter more than the good reviews.
And I don’t know why that is. I just -- I know some reviewers, I know
that sometimes my book doesn’t appeal to them, sometimes it does. All
I can think is well hopefully this will sell some books, hopefully
some people will be interested in it. If I took them personally,
especially Amazon, I don’t even read Amazon anymore.
BMIA.COM: Really?
SLAUGHTER: Oh yea. It’s just
that you never know. Well, they say, “Opinions are like assholes …”
BMIA.COM: Right.
Everybody’s got one.
SLAUGHTER: Yea. Yea. And
some people will get on there and they just – met me at a signing,
maybe they know me or think they know me and they’ll just say
something about me personally. And I don’t think that’s what it should
be about.
BMIA.COM: How does it feel
to have your book debut at number 23 on the USA Today bestseller
list?
SLAUGHTER: It feels great.
My first book got to, I think, number 14, on the list and in England
it got into number 2. So, it’s done pretty well.
BMIA.COM: Are your family,
friends proud?
SLAUGHTER: Yea. My dad is
real proud and whenever I’m in People Magazineor
whatever he always clips it out. That’s the only time he ever reads
People Magazine.
BMIA.COM: Are the
characters in your book based on the some of the people that you grew
up with?
SLAUGHTER: I’m sure it is.
There is one character who’s loosely based on one woman who lived on
my street. And, she came to my signing and I thought -- Oh God, is
she going to say, “How could you put me in that book?” “And she said,
“I know who that character is.” And I said, “Oh, really.” And she
said, “It’s so and so down the street. Isn’t it?” And I thought, ‘oh
my God.’
BMIA.COM: Laughter ---
Okay.
SLAUGHTER: But you know, you
never recognize yourself in fiction – ever.
BMIA.COM: That’s cool. We
know you like to write. Do you like to read?
SLAUGHTER: Yea. I love
reading.
BMIA.COM: I read somewhere
that you read a couple of books a week, or something like that?
SLAUGHTER: I try to. Yea. I
think of it as part of my job. And, not from a marketing standpoint,
or anything like that, but I think for writing the best thing they can
do is read. It teaches you and helps to hone your ear. It also gives
you a rhythm for storytelling, that sort of thing. That’s how I grew
up. My dad always told us stories. And in the South we have that
tradition of oral history. And, listening to stories has helped me as
a storyteller to say the things I want to say. So I read all the
time. I just finished Peter Moore Smith’s book, Los Angeles
that’s coming out soon; Laura Lipman is one of my favorite authors;
its just – I’ll read across the board though. I love Catherine
Harrison.
BMIA.COM: I want to tell
you, to be 33 years old and to be doing what you’re doing is great. I
know this is your full-time occupation, so it does make sense that you
would be an avid reader.
SLAUGHTER: I’m on planes a
lot so I have plenty of time to read.
BMIA.COM: So who are some
of your favorite authors?
SLAUGHTER: Well Catherine
Harrison, of course. And Peter Moore Smith; he wrote a book – he wrote
a book called Ravelling that’s out. And, it’s just a fabulous
little book. I love Emma Donnohoe; Sarah Waters; basically anybody who
can tell a good story – I’m into it.
BMIA.COM: OK, here’s a
question for you. What’s the best part about being Karin Slaughter?
SLAUGHTER: Um. I’m doing the
job I want and enjoying it. I mean, how many people do you know that
are doing the job that they actually want to do? It’s such a gift to
be able to do full-time the job that I’ve wanted to do since I was a
kid. And, you know, it’s work still – there are parts of it that I
don’t necessarily like – like when a plane’s late; or I have a
six-hour layover somewhere; or whatever. But at the end of the day I‘m
doing what I want to do and that’s a really nice thing to be able to
do.
BMIA.COM: What’s the worse
thing part about being Karin Slaughter?
SLAUGHTER: Gosh! That’s a
good question. I never really thought about it. I try to keep a
positive attitude about things. I got some good advice on this
issue. “The problems you have when you’re successful are better than
the problems you have when you’re not successful.” So when you look
at it, you know, author touring – yea that’s kind of hard, but at
least they’re touring me. I’m going to Australia at the end of this
month. And this is going to be fabulous trip – to tour in Australia.
BMIA.COM: When you put it
in perspective, things could always be worse.
SLAUGHTER: Yea. Exactly. I
could be making signs or -- not that making signs is a bad job.
BMIA.COM: Does it take a
special skill or talent to be a murder mystery writer?
SLAUGHTER: I think it takes
a special skill to be a writer period. I think if you can plot a
mystery – you can plot anything. If you look at the books that have
endured – the books that are taught – and held up as these great
novels that we should learn from, The Great Gadsby -- that’s a
mystery; Hamlet – that’s a murder mystery. Snow Falling on
Cedars, has a murder at its heart.
BMIA.COM: I never thought
about that.
SLAUGHTER: The Lovely
Bones, that’s crime fiction. Without the crime – that wouldn’t be
a book. So, we have all these great novels that people don’t
necessarily think of as murder mysteries because they always think
Mary Higgins Clark; and I love Mary Higgins Clark, but, you know,
there are different, different sects within the genre where you can
have a Mary Higgins Clark. With an Alice Seabold, you know it’s the
same kind of narrative where you have a question at the beginning
that’s answered at the end. And, that’s what good books are all about.
Even, Gone With the Wind. – What’s Scarlet going to do next?
That’s a question about the mystery of character, which is something
that Flannery O’Connor was really in to. What’s this person going to
do? So, I think it’s really good for me to be writing in this genre,
because it teaches me about story, and plot, a lot of so-called
literary writers, I think, don’t really know about plot. They just
have tons of character development and, you know, you get to the last
page and you think – what happened in this book? – Why do I care about
this character? What’s going on with this? So, I like being in this
genre and I think that it teaches you better than anything else, just
how to plot a book.
BMIA.COM: That makes sense
now that I’ve heard your answer. My sense about your work is that you
take quite a bit of time flushing out your characters. Is that true?
SLAUGHTER: Definitely.
BMIA.COM: Do you feel like
a famous person?
SLAUGHTER: No.
BMIA.COM: You can still
walk outside and not be recognized?
SLAUGHTER: Sometimes I have
people recognize me, but I’m not a famous person. I’m just a goofy
writer. And you know. I’m not a movie star or anything like that.
BMIA.COM: Speaking of
movies. Are any of your books going to be optioned into a movie?
SLAUGHTER: We’ve had some
offers but we’re waiting for the person who really sees it for what it
really is. I don’t want a “slasher” movie. You know. I have certain
things that I try to do in my books – where I don’t show women as
these helpless creatures. We’re in a position where can wait for the
right opportunity.
BMIA.COM: What advice would
you give to aspiring writers?
SLAUGHTER: Read, because you
just learn so much from reading, even if it’s a bad book – you’re
learning something. The other thing is, you need to look at publishing
as a business and that’s a really hard thing to do. I struggled with
that.
BMIA.COM: Is that because
you’re a creative type?
SLAUGHTER: Yea. It really is
a business and you need to look at yourself – not necessarily your
story, but of course, you need to write what you want to write, but
you need to understand that at the end of the day publishing is there
to make money. You know? That’s the end of the line for them. It’s
okay if you end up being a mid-list writer – if you sell two thousand
books a year, or whatever, but if that’s the sort of book you’re
writing, I think you should realize that and be happy with it,
because, it is so hard to get published. And, just because you don’t
instantly go to the bestseller list or you’re not on “Good Morning
America,” or whatever, you shouldn’t consider yourself a failure,
because there are so many people out there who are just dying for a
book contract. And, once you get to that point – it’s great.
BMIA.COM: I’m glad you said
that because I run across a lot of authors who are trying to get their
book out there. And I really believe everybody has a story to tell.
But, it is a hard hustle. So I’m I glad to hear you say that because
you’ve experienced success, and when other writers, particularly the
ones who read this article read this, hopefully it will be a source of
comfort inspiration – not to give up – to keep trying – to persevere.
SLAUGHTER: That’s the
thing. You must keep trying. Patricia Cornwell was rejected 17
times. John Gresham – all these top writers – they’ve faced rejection
and I think it’s when they say, “its 90% perspiration” it’s true. You
just can’t give up. And all the writers I know who are successful –
that’s what they did -- they just kept going, kept going. Another
important thing is -- you need to pick someone to read your work who
can be objective and won’t tell you what you want to hear.
BMIA.COM: Someone who will
be straight with you.
SLAUGHTER: Yea, exactly.
Don’t give it to your mom. She’s not going to say, “You need to do
this or you need to do that.”
BMIA.COM: (Inaudible)
(Laughing)
SLAUGHTER: Exactly.
BMIA.COM: Well the
business? How involved are you in the business aspect of your
career?
SLAUGHTER: Well, I ran my
own business so I’m probably more involved than most authors. But, I
want to know statistics – I want to know, just what’s going on with my
books. And most authors I know, who are doing well, are aware of the
business end of it.
BMIA.COM: Whether they like
it or not – that’s important.
SLAUGHTER: Yea.
BMIA.COM: Okay. Here’s one
for you. I don’t have too many more.
SLAUGHTER: That’s fine.
BMIA.COM: What was your
earliest or most vivid recollection of being or feeling different – if
you’ve ever felt that way?
SLAUGHTER: Oh, definitely –
just from the get go, because my family isn’t a family of readers. My
dad knew I liked to read so he would get books for me and let me go to
the library and the bookmobile, but I would just sit in my room and
read, all the time. And when we would travel, we’d go to London or
wherever, I would just sit in the hotel room and read because that was
something I enjoyed doing. And in school, I read all the time and was
always in a book or daydreaming. So, I always felt that differentness
and also I am interested in violence. I dated a mortician in high
school and I’ve never been one to shy away from letting people know
that I’m interested in that. And, it’s not particularly lady-like;
especially in high school when you supposed – girls are kind of taught
not to be different and to not express interest in anything other than
what the cute boy is doing.
BMIA.COM: I’m trying to
think of anything else that would be interesting to know about you.
How much research do you do in preparing to write a book?
SLAUGHTER: It varies from
book to book. There‘s a lot of medical stuff in my books. So, I have
a doctor friend of mine who will go through stuff of mine and tell me
what’s right or what’s wrong. I do a lot of reading – a lot of medical
journals, that sort of thing. I would say about 30% of it all is
research.
BMIA.COM: I’m really
excited about this feature on you because we just haven’t featured
writers that write with your style.
SLAUGHTER: Well, thank you.
BMIA.COM: Thank you Karin,
I’ve really enjoyed this.
For Linda F. Delaney, Stewardship Has It's
Privileges
Linda F. Delaney has traveled
from coast-to-coast as a motivational speaker and trainer.In her book, “Stewardship:
A Matter of Principle,”
Delaney challenges readers to “dare to become stewards” in every facet
of their lives.In her book
and in her public appearances, Linda Delaney talks about stewardship and
the abundant rewards of diligence and commitment to principle-based
living.
As a result of her life
experiences, Delaney reminds anyone who will listen that her message does
not discriminate along racial, ethnic, religious and other lines of
difference.“Too often, in
our arduous pursuit to become successful in our given professions, we
forget what makes our struggles worthwhile,” says Delaney.
I became aware of Linda Delaney
in 2001, through artist extraordinaire
Larry
“Najee” Dorsey.I
met her April 2002 in Memphis, Tennessee at
Lawrence
Wayne’s Annual Black Writers Conference and Southern Film Festival.Wayne’s conference serves as a mentoring pool for writers and
filmmakers and attracts the likes of Rosalyn McMillian, LaRita Shelby,
Errol Anthony Wilks, J. D. Hawkins, Channon Date, Tina Andrews, Jessica
Tilles, Collen Dixon and Damita Shaw.
From
the moment Delaney’s book arrived in our office it had a magnetic effect
on people.One of the reasons
it took so long for us to interview Delaney is that we couldn’t keep the
book on the shelf long enough to read it.“Stewardship: A Matter of Principle”is a favorite with the local book clubs in this area.Last month we caught up with Delaney to talk about her book and her
life of stewardship.We are
happy to share this interview with you.
The
Linda F. Delaney Interview
BMIA:What
prompted you to write “Stewardship:A Matter of Principle?”
I was asked to conduct a series of training sessions on
stewardship as a conference speaker for a church in Baton Rouge,
Louisiana.Shortly before
completing the research, I received a call from the pastor to share that
they had postponed the conference indefinitely.I had put a lot of time and effort into this, and I knew that it
was great information.Therefore,
rather than just placing it aside, I wrote “Stewardship:A Matter of Principle”.It gave me an opportunity to share the revelations of stewardship
as a way of life, not merely a term that implies financial overseer.The process helped me to take a panoramic view of my life and see
how God-given principles align with my own experiences and observations.By writing the book, my message is shared on a higher platform with
a massive audience.
BMIA:How
do you define a “steward?”
A steward is one who is actively concerned with
the direction of the affairs of an organization.The Greek origin of stewardship is
oikonomiameaning administrator or an employee in the
capacity of manager or overseer.
God has entrusted us as stewards of ourselves,
our families, communities, schools, businesses, nations, etc.We have been entrusted with talents, power, and love, which only
multiply when we share them.It is an injustice to bury or take our talents to the grave
with us.We are each uniquely
purposed by God to fulfill a task that affects the entire universe.So rather we’re governing our financial affairs, raising our
children, taking care of our bodies, etc., we have to remember that we are
employed to do the best job that we can do, ask questions of God and
others for guidance, and be willing to complete our tasks.We’re all stewards.
BMIA:In your view, what are some of the limitations that some
black folks put on themselves?
The first
thing that I would share (in my humble opinion) is that we sometimes limit
ourselves so much by our distrust in ourselves.This inadvertently affects our ability to trust others –
especially other black people.Yet,
we unfortunately have a blind trust for “non-blacks”.If we trusted ourselves more we would be willing to take wiser risk
opportunities and collaborations with others.
Secondly, emotional
religion is so prevalent in our culture.We want to feel more than we act.We expect God to
implement his word without taking the necessary actions required by us.I meet a lot of religious people that speak in tongues and will
shout in church every Sunday, but they are not being very productive.They merely want to talk others into being “saved.”We are spiritual beings and a religious people who could more
easily live a sermon to win souls rather than tell one.In short, I would like to see our culture evolve from so much
emotional religion into principle-centered living.We put such a premium on religion that we use it as a basis to
justify why we are not where we should be.The church is still the center of black culture.Our church leaders need to raise citizens’ awareness of public
policy because as long as there is the question of morality, church and
state can never be separate.We
are so heavily impacted by decisions in which we had no say.Historically (and for too long), the few people involved in the
political process have reaped minimum benefits and communities of color
have remained in disarray.
Lastly, I
would love to see us balance our social and political advancements with
financial growth and wisdom.We
limit ourselves tremendously by not using our economic resources to make
our own communities thrive.We
have money passing through, but we have to start using it more wisely to
make our families and communities self-sustaining.To cut a long story short, we need to establish funds to “feed”
future generations rather than have each one start from the bottom rung of
the ladder.
BMIA:How can someone be a “better” steward?
By studying the Basic Instructions
Before Leaving Earth (BIBLE) and applying what we
learn to our lives to enhance our personal relationships with God.In this manner we become validated by our own convictions with
strength and confidence.We
will then be more likely to risk and seek mission clarity and fulfillment
because we will find that our successes are made up of the ingredients of
our failures.Anyone
who focuses on principle-centered living will become a better steward
because they will find freedom from various bondages.Principles are no respecters of persons, so regardless of our race,
creed, color, ethnicity, education, religion, age, or gender we will
benefit by using them as guidelines for joy in our lives.
BMIA:What do you want people to learn or take away as a result of
reading your book?
I want people to gain and understand:
·A clearer discernment of their own personal
stewardships.
·Value in the power of a relationship with God
and purpose fulfillment.
·How important it is for an individual to
identify his/her purpose and how others will help to make it happen.There is an old African proverb that states, “If one understands
the why(s), the how(s) will take care of itself.”This concept should inspire people to do a self-evaluation and more
strongly pursue purpose.
·Stewardship is not merely about finances, but
it encompasses your entire life journey.
·We all must take leadership responsibility over
our lives and our influence upon others.
BMIA:Did you conduct any research in preparation for your book?
Definitely.The Bible, my own personal journal, many personal development
references, and mentors helped me to align governing principles with my
own experiences.But most
significantly, I researched my life.I lived this book through my own experiences.It was my three sisters and my father
that died as I stood at their bedsides praying.The pain of their deaths caused me to focus on the contributions of
their lives.The printed page
helped me to research and immortalize the existence of purpose-filled
beings who impacted the lives of others that they touched during their
journey in humanity.
BMIA:Does the business side of writing ever get in the way of the
creative side?
If you’re not careful, it unquestionably can.However, I find that if I check my motive for writing a particular
story I can better stay on track.Of
course I had to edit some raw thoughts, but as my work became more
formalized, I had to insure that the balance of what I wanted to say and
how it was said stayed intact.
What are some of the myths that black folks
continue to fall prey to?
I think that in many cases we stress too much
on the idea that white folks are always out to get us.What we think on expands because we give power to it and create our
own self-fulfilled prophecies.We
diminish God’s power and principles that must govern adversarial
actions, attitudes, people, and issues.
I also believe that the attitudinal concept
that “somebody owes us something” is destructive.We need to utilize our faith in God to take action guided by
principles with persistence and consistency to reach clear goals.Generations have died and we’re still expecting to receive the
equivalency of 40 acres and a mule.It’s
fine to desire it, but what we do while waiting determines our destinies.Dr. MLK, Jr. stated, “To ask God to do everything while we do
nothing is not faith, but superstition.”
This leads me to the fact that we sometimes act
as though we believe submission and conformity to other people will be
rewarded.It’s as if the
unspoken thought is that if we abandon our culture and individualism, we
will be accepted.Only
submission and conformity to principles (God-given) will help us to change
our circumstances rewardingly and accordingly.
Last but not
least, the myth that the Democratic Party is and should remain the
generational party of black people has worked against us for some time.We need to think for ourselves.We need to work and vote to get the best people in office.Secondly, we need to put our money into these campaigns and gain a
voice that will pull the coat tails of our politicians.We shouldn’t always go to them with our hands out, but we need to
give and receive from whomever or whatever party holds the winning
ticket.Again, to
paraphrase Dr. King, “when we go to the bargaining table, we have to
bring more than our appetites.”When
we don’t participate, perhaps we get just what we deserve.
BMIA:Did
you have any mentors?What
role did they play in your personal and/or professional development?
Yes, I think mentors are required for
successful living to any degree.My
greatest mentor was definitely my father.With his strong foundation as a minister of the gospel, his life
was a sermon to me.As a
child, I used to think my father was omniscient.He was a wise man and he raised 12 children on a PhD in love and a
minor in discipline.He
helped me to understand the importance of respect for authority from both
sides of the coin.He was
always the person that I wanted to make proud of me.He taught me the essence of familial love, loyalty, and respect for
all mankind based upon a Godly foundation.This openness helped me to evaluate my life as I grew and gained
exposure.Anyone that displayed my father’s traits and roles earned
my attention to learn from them (teachers, ministers, etc.).Though I had many mentors, he was the most prevalent and consistent
even after his death because his life had the most impact in my personal
and professional development.He laid the groundwork.
BMIA:What
was your earliest or most vivid recollection of being different?
I’ll take this
question from the perspective of when I began to understand that I have a
unique purpose that I was equipped to fulfill.I recognized in elementary school that to get what I wanted, I had
to work for it.As much as I
admired my father, he couldn’t just pour all of his knowledge into my
head.No matter how much I
liked my teachers, they still gave me F’s when I deserved them.I didn’t always make the highest grade, so I had to figure out
how to quench my competitive spirit by learning more and evaluating my
errors.Expressing myself
clearly was important to me grammatically and conceptually.When my teachers started nominating me for various awards and
competitions in public speaking, I recognized that I had a special gift.
BMIA:Is
there anything that I haven’t asked you that you would like to share
with our readers?
In my book, I impress upon readers that life is
about relationships.People
are vital in pulling together our teams to fulfill our dreams.I share the importance of focusing more on issues rather than
personalities – it’s a Godly perspective/a high-road attitude.This is essential for value added living in tragedy or triumph.There will be mentors, protégés, intercessors, encouragers, and
even enemies that are needed to help us ascend to the next level.When people read my book, they will be inspired to live by my own
guiding principle of dealing with people:“Don’t outsmart ‘em, out God ‘em!!!!”
Linda F. Delaney
currently resides in Marion, Arkansas.She specializes in skill and principle-based training and has
conducted workshops for Fortune 500 companies, schools, churches, civic
organizations and governmental agencies.
So what do
you think?
Click here to post your opinion, or leave a private comment
in our Guestbook.
Lana Reid is a newcomer
to the poetry scene. She has a passion for writing about Black men and
we like that around here. Her book, "My
Love Notes to a Black Man," is an artfully sensual
collection forty poems with just the right blend of erotica. Complete
with illustrations, Reid provides the reader with insights into her
experiences and devotion to Black men. From the "ups and
downs" of the love game to the personal struggles of maintaining a
relationship, Reid has a bona fide winner. We love this book!
Black Men In America.com
She
Honors Black Men
The Lana Reid Interview
Lana Reid has always loved to read and write.She recalled that as a child she got in trouble for reading after her
mother sent her to bed.When her
mother would check in on her, she would often find a young Lana under the
covers with a flashlight trying to read a book.“I was the kid who would take the library assistant job for extra
credit just so I could sit in the corner of the library somewhere and
read,” says Reid.
Reid said that even as a child, writing was a source of therapy for
her.She writes when she’s
happy and when she’s sad.She
also said she writes purely selfish reasons, writing out her thoughts which
help her maintain a healthy balance.According
to Reid, her grandmother used to opine that little Lana was wise beyond her
years.“I’ve always been a
thinker, always pondering, which makes you vocalize thoughts that are ahead
of your years,” said Reid.
In
terms of her background, Reid says that she’s from “southern stock” (North Carolina).Her Dad was in the Air Force and she left the U.S.around the age of 7 and
did not return until she was 16.Reid
lived in Japan,
Europeand roamed all around
those countries expanding her worldview.Along the way, Reid was exposed to what she says was the “complete
adoration and embracement that other cultures have of black people.”It was not until she came back to the U.S.that she
rediscovered what it meant to be Black and a U. S.citizen.“When you experience how other people live, you begin to see there
are many roads to the same path; you lose the concept of being “closed
minded.”So solutions and
possibilities are a common theme in my writing.”’
Reid credits her parents as her main source of inspiration.She gives them full credit for her becoming the woman that she is
today.She also credits the
birth of her daughter with giving her the creative energy to write again.Before the birth of her daughter, Reid had stopped writing for a
brief period.Reid said that the
experience of becoming a mother and the ramifications and responsibilities
that came along with it inspired her to pick up her pen again.As a result, her book is dedicated to her daughter.
So how did Lana Reid settle on writing about black men?“I was sitting in one of those “waiting to exhale” sessions
with my sister-friends and they were going on and on about how “brothas
ain’t this” or “brothas ain’t worth that” and I was just sitting
there silent because I thought so much differently than they did.I had so much positive input to say about Black men.When I walked away from that session I felt so sheepish because I did
not stand up for my brothers, so the concept for the book came about so I
could tell the masses how much I love Black men.I think Black men are awesome and Black women need to support them as
best we can.”
Gary Johnsonrecently
caught up with Reid who graciously agreed to be interviewed.My Love Notes to a Black Man
is a wonderful book that truly honors Black men.We hope you enjoy this interview and strongly encourage you to
support Lana Reid and purchase her book.
Click On Photo
To Enlarge
The Lana
Reid Interview
BMIA:How does it feel to see your book getting positive reviews by readers,
and book clubs?
L.
Reid:I’m still trying to grasp that.It’s
all a pleasure, but for the creative individual you are your own worst critic.
Sometimes I can look over the book
again and say “I should have changed this” or “I should have made my
point this way.” As long as
folks are taking something away from it and possibly enhancing their lives,
I’m thrilled.
BMIA:How would you describe your style of writing?
L.
Reid:My writing is a lot like my thought pattern.Random and whatever is on the menu for the day.Sometimes it’s structured and I can break it up into those nice
little packaged stanzas and at other times it’s just one never ending
thought that goes on and on with no breaks and no punctuation.
BMIA:In your view, is there a difference between a writer and a poet?If so, what’s the difference?
L.
Reid:I don’t think there is a difference between the two.Most times you will find a poet who writes short stories or novels and
you can also find the novel writer who dabbles with poetry.Writing is similar to enslavement, the writer has no control, and you
do what the master (your pen) tells you to do that day.
BMIA:What’s the hardest part of being a new writer?
L.
Reid:For me, the hardest part is coming to terms with sharing my inner self.
As I said earlier, my writing has always been personal to me… words and
paper that collected in my closet in journals that documented my feelings.I have to share that with the world now and sharing yourself publicly
can be unnerving at times.
BMIA:What’s the easiest part of being a new writer?
L.
Reid:Getting the feedback from your audience.
That
one to one an author has with someone who took something away from your words,
its motivation to write again and again.
BMIA:Does the business side of being a writer interfere with the creative
side of being a writer?If so, how
do you manage this?
L.
Reid:At this time, the business side does not cause too much stress or
interference, but ask me that question again in about a year.I’m a little fish in a big pond at the moment, so everything is still
manageable.
BMIA:Who are your favorite authors?
L.
Reid:Always in the house, mom would play The Last Poets or “For Colored
Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf” by Ntozake
Shange. Then I would go to school
and devour books like “The Diary of Anne Frank.”Of course there was that awkward teenage time frame where I read every
romance novel I could get my hands on.I
appreciate a lot of the new authors today, but I believe that foundation of
authors from my formative years makes me the writer I am today.
BMIA:Are you a self-published author?If not, how did you get your current book deal?
L.
Reid:I’m self published. I did not even try to submit this manuscript and
get a book deal. I wanted complete
control over the quality of the finished product.
BMIA:Do you do a lot of promotion for your book, and do you like it?
L.
Reid:I’m on tour for my book now and I make other appearances to promote
it. It’s a concept I still
struggle with because I like to be in the audience watching everything and
everybody, now everybody and everything is sitting there watching me.The only thing I can think about when I stand up in front of a group of
people is “why are they all looking at me?”
BMIA:Whose idea was it to have cursive fonts for your book?
L.
Reid:That was actually my graphic artist’s idea, to give it more of an
“intimate handwritten note” feel to the book.
BMIA:Do you have a management or support team?
L.
Reid:I have a wonderful support team. Especially
when it comes to the promotion side, you can not get out there and do what you
do, give to your audience without a team in your corner.As far as management, right now I do that myself.
BMIA:Is writing your fulltime occupation?
L.
Reid:Well, motherhood (one 9-yr old daughter) is my full time occupation,
after that writing is next in line.Now
I suppose if this writing thing does not work out in few years you might see
me selling Avonor Tupperware.
(Smile)
BMIA:What would you like to do as a writer that you haven’t been able to
do at this point in your life?
L.
Reid:Touch people, inspire people, and motivate people, more than those
folks in my immediate circle.
BMIA:What has been your biggest failure or lesson learned as a writer?
L.
Reid:MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE RIGHT PEOPLE ON YOUR TEAM.Some people try to be around you for their own self gain and they
hinder your progress, so just getting the proper people in my corner took me a
second.
BMIA:What are the biggest challenges facing black men?
L.
Reid:Living past the age of 25, finding a “emotionally healthy” and
supportive significant other, acquiring the necessary tools such as education
and job training to maintain a legal and comfortable financial status,
fighting the mental stereotypes that media places on Black men and women,
finding inner peace outside of recreational drugs and abusive/unproductive
relationships. I can run my mouth
on this question, so let me stop here for now.
BMIA:Is there anything that black men should know about black women?
L.
Reid:
That we are dedicated.
Once
we are on your team, we are pretty much there to stay, just do your part in
making it a team worth playing on.Black
women can be a black man’s anchor, backbone, or rock and from time to time
he should take a moment a fully understand and appreciate what she brings to
the table and to him.
BMIA:Is there anything black women should know about black men?
L.
Reid:He is a man, in all of your dealings with him, never disrespect his
manhood.The rest of society
already does a good job of that, so why should he get it from his home front
as well?
BMIA:We’re near the end of this interview.What advice would you give to young writers?
L.
Reid:Keep writing, keep reading and keep getting feedback on your work so
you can see areas of improvement.
BMIA:What advice would you give to aspiring authors?
L.
Reid:Don’t give up!I used to
submit my poetry to some very reputable publications (not going to mention any
names) and time and time again they would tell me that my work was not
suitable for their audience, but here I am now, with a book that is greatly
received by those same audiences.
BMIA:What do you want readers to "get" as a result of reading your
book?
L.
Reid:I would hope that once two people take the time to figure out that they
are "right" for each other, the book could be a reminder that Black
love requires commitment and understanding.It's easy to be around someone when the days are bright, but when the
storm comes that's when the true test of a person's dedication to another
individual and the relationship they've developed.
BMIA:Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
L.
Reid:Let's see, in five years I'll proudly be 40, by that time I would
really love to put my poetry on CD and possibly put out another book or two.Some readers have been requesting a stage play, so maybe I might try my
hand at that by then as well.
Lana Reid currently resides in Los
Angeles,
Californiawith her daughter, a Rottweiler and two cats.Click on the link below to purchase her book:
So what do
you think?
Click here to post your opinion, or leave a private comment
in our Guestbook.
Imagine losing most of your
hearing in your early twenties. You can't hear your favorite music,
movies, or the laughter of your children. You adjust to your new life,
and after some time, adopt a brother and sister, one of whom is deaf.
Then, years after first going deaf, you take advantage of new technology and
have cochlear implant surgery which partially restores your hearing.
Bestselling author Connie Briscoe had this surgery in July 2003 and her
hearing is greatly improving every day.
Briscoe shares her personal
story in an essay, “Yes, You Can.” In this essay her courage and
triumph shine through. Read this "Yes, You Can," and
our
earlier interview with Briscoe and learn why she decided to get a
cochlear implant and how it has changed her life.
"Yes,
You Can" by Connie
Briscoe
I believe that no matter how tough things get, you can make them better. I have
my parents to thank for that. They never allowed me to think that I couldn't
accomplish something because of my hearing loss. One of my mother's favorite
sayings when my sister and I expressed doubt that we could do something was
"Yes, you can."
I first began losing my hearing when I was a senior in college at Hampton
University (then Hampton Institute). Although I was born with a mild hearing
loss inherited from my father's side of the family, I was able to do most things
that a twenty-year-old college student enjoys doing in her free time, like run
my mouth on the phone, listen to my favorite music, go to the movies and watch
television.
And then one day while sitting in my college dorm room reading, I noticed my
roommate Karen get up from her bed, go to the princess telephone we had in our
room, pick it up and talk without dialing.None
of that would have seemed odd, except for one thing: I never heard the phone
ring! I was too baffled--and embarrassed--to say anything to Karen or anyone
else. But I wondered why I couldn't hear a phone that I could hear just the day
before.
Late-deafened people can always remember the moment when they first stopped
being able to hear the important things in life. It's sort of like remembering
where you were when you learned that President Kennedy had been shot or when you
learned about the terror attack at the World Trade Center.
Unbeknown to me at the time, that
was only the beginning of my downward spiral. I graduated from college, landed
my first permanent job, got my first apartment and all the while I was slowly
losing my hearing. The sounds of keys jangling, the light switch clacking as
it's being flipped on and off, the tick of the turn signal in the car and much
more gradually disappeared. Many of these things I didn't even notice right
away. One day I just realized there was no sound where there had been sound
before.
I had another big setback when I was in my late twenties and attending graduate
school at The American University. One day in class I couldn't understand a
professor. I could hear his voice but I could not make out the words no matter
how much I tried. It sounded as if he was speaking a foreign language. I had
always missed a few words of professors who spoke softly, but this professor had
a clear voice that carried well. What was going on?
I was stunned. The next time the class met, I sat up front and that helped. But
it was obvious that if I wanted to graduate I would have to do something that I
had always dreaded--wear a hearing aid. I reluctantly bought one and things
seemed steady for a while. I went on with my life.
After graduate school I got a job as an analyst in the information technology
field, but my dream was to work as a full-time novelist. Yet that seemed totally
out of reach. So instead I went after another kind job that dealt with words but
seemed much more practical—-that of editor. I went to school and studied
publishing and soon quit my good-paying job as an analyst to work as an
editorial assistant in the publications department of a think tank. I was
starting at the bottom of the barrel but I would have taken anything to get my
foot in the door of publishing at that time.
And then I had what would be my biggest setback yet. Almost overnight, within
weeks of getting the new job as an editorial assistant, my hearing began to
plummet. Over a period of a few months, I went from about a 30 percent hearing
loss to an 80 percent loss. Suddenly, I had to ask people to repeat themselves,
again and again. I could barely use the telephone. I was lost in meetings. The
television, movies, music and many of the things I enjoyed became huge problems
for me. The last movie I saw in a theater was "The Color Purple." As I
sat there with my father, staring up at the screen, I knew it would be the last
one because I barely heard a word of it. I had read the book and could pretty
much follow the movie from scene to scene. Still, it was depressing not to be
able to hear the dialogue.
I was in a mild daze for several years, running around from one doctor to the
next trying to find a solution. This was when I first heard about something
called a cochlear implant, where a surgeon makes an incision above the ear and
inserts a device that helps people to hear better than they could with a hearing
aid. But at that time the surgery was in its infancy, results were
unpredictable, and it seemed so radical.
The only thing that kept me going was a supportive family, mainly my parents
since I was divorced from my first husband by this time, and my strong writing
skills. If you can write there is always a place for you, and my employer was
quite supportive. But there was only so much the company could do since I
couldn't use the phone or hear in meetings. My career progressed slowly. I was
stuck cruising when I wanted to soar.
It took me about ten years to awaken from that fog. I finally realized that
things were never going to change as far as my hearing and that I was going to
have to get on with my life. That was when I decided to take a stab at writing
that novel I had always dreamed about. I saw writing as something I could do and
be successful at regardless of how little hearing I had.
My first novel Sisters and Lovers, was published in 1994. Now I'm working
on my fifth novel, a sequel to the last one that I'm calling P.G. County, The
Return. I honestly believe that I would never have sat down at the computer
and banged out that first novel if I hadn't lost so much hearing. Instead I'd
probably be an editor somewhere and still dreaming about someday becoming a
novelist. That's why I sometimes think that losing my hearing was one of the
best things that ever happened to me.
So there I was, a successful author living my dream. Several years after my
first novel was published, I met and married a wonderful man, and we adopted two
children. The cochlear implant came up now and then. But I had finally gotten my
life in order, and other than the hearing loss things were perfect. Why disturb
that? Why let someone put me to sleep and cut my head open? Vanity also played a
part. I'll be honest about that. Until about a year ago, all implants consisted
of a bulky device about the size of a pager that extends down from your head on
a cord. This is the speech processor, and it has to be worn in a pocket or
clipped on a belt. I had enough trouble fidgeting with my little old hearing
aid, let alone all of that.
Then last year I was researching cochlear implants for my daughter, who is
almost totally deaf, and I learned that the cochlear implant had come a long
way. The technology has improved and it is now no bigger than a hearing aid. And
Johns Hopkins Hospital, one of the finest in the country and near my home, has
an entire department for cochlear implants. I also learned that people like me,
who lost their hearing late in life, make the best candidates.
Best of all, I discovered that most of my hearing could be restored. Suddenly
all the things I'd missed hearing for so long seemed within fairly easy reach. I
would be able to hear my husband talk in the car without him having to turn to
face me and endangering our lives and the lives of others. When I was driving
myself, I could hear and talk to others. I would be able to understand the
voices of my children and nieces clearly. And I could listen to the
audiocassettes of my novels.
The list went on. I would be able to hear movies, television, birds singing,
people talking in the next room, and yes, high pitched telephones ringing and
people speaking with soft voices. I would be able to use the telephone again.
When I finally decided to get the implant, my mother told me that she couldn't
wait to be able to talk to me on the phone again.
I also thought it would help my daughter to see me go through the surgery and
hook-up before she got one herself. A cochlear implant takes a lot of work on
the part of the recipient. There are several pre-op medical visits. The surgery
is done on an outpatient basis, but they put you to sleep. They shave a patch of
hair about the size of the opening of a tea cup. And then you face weeks of
after care at home and follow-up visits with the surgeon and audiologist. Tens
of thousands have been performed, and about half of them are done on children.
My implant surgery was in July. I got the outside processor, which looks much
like a hearing aid, a month later. No one knows exactly how well I'll do. With a
cochlear implant your hearing improves slowly over weeks and months, even years.
Everyone progresses differently. But I've been wearing the outside processor for
a couple of days as I write this article and already I've heard many sounds that
I hadn't heard in 20 years, some not ever. The telephones in our house ring loud
and clear. I hear the keys as I type on my computer and paper rustling as I
shuffle it. I'm told that understanding speech takes a little more time, and
indeed, voices sound very mechanical. But each day speech gets a little clearer.
My audiologist says that you make progress rapidly over the first few months and
then more slowly over the months ahead. That's fine. I can wait.
If this proves to be the medical miracle that I think it will, the next step
will be to have my deaf daughter implanted. She is in elementary school and has
been deaf since birth, so she will likely not do as well as I should do. But she
would be able to hear a lot better with an implant, and that's good enough.
When my husband and I adopted her, we decided that we would give her every
opportunity available to help her do and be the things she wants in life. I want
her to have dreams and ambitions and I want to give her the best possible chance
of reaching them. When she looks at me with expressions of doubt before trying
something new and challenging, I want to be able to tell her, "Yes, you
can." Just as my mother told me.
Connie
Briscoe is the former managing editor of the American Annals of the Deaf at
Gallaudet University and has been hearing-impaired for most of her adult
life. She lives in Ellicott City, Maryland.
So what do
you think? Click here to post your opinion, or leave a private comment
in our Guestbook.
She
Writes To Scare You
I was trying to remember how I came to know the work of
author L. Marie Wood.I’m not
sure if someone suggested that we do a feature on her or if she suggested it
herself.Here’s what I do
know--L. Marie Wood is a different kind of writer.She’s a horror writer, psychological horror to be more specific.She writes to scare you.That’s
right.She wants you to read her book and then look over your
shoulder and sleep with one eye open.I’d
say that is different.
Born in the early 1970’s, Wood grew up an only who often
entertained herself by concocting imaginative storylines.Now some twenty years later her debut novel,
Crescendo,
was released on last month and followed up quickly by her first short story
collection,Caliginy.
Crescendo
is a novel about fate and the lengths people will travel to avoid the
inevitable. Set in tranquil Rockland County, New York, this tale of
suspense and horror will take its reader on an emotional roller coaster of
anger, anxiety, compassion, and indelible fear.
Wood is a member of the
Horror
Writers Association and the
Mid
Atlantic Horror Professionals, as well as a graduate of
Howard University's School of Communications. If you’re a thrill
seeker who likes to be tested and challenged mentally, you’ll love the
work of L. Marie Wood.To peek
into the mind of the woman who writes to scare you, read this interview with
L. Marie Wood.
Click On Photo To Enlarge
The L.
Marie Wood Interview
BMIA.com:When did you first know you wanted to be a writer?
LMW:I figured out that writing was the thing I wanted to do when I was
nine years old.I snuck a copy
of a Stephen King novel off my mother’s bookcase and read it until she
caught me with it… and then again, after she left the room!I have always been a storyteller, entertaining my mom and friends
with my imagination, but when I read the words in the book, I felt
empowered.Reading words that
spoke of the darker side of life, the things that go bump in the night, made
me realize that it was ok to do, that I wasn’t the only one who liked to
tell stories that would scare someone instead of flowery, sunshine tales.
BMIA.com:Did you like to read as a child?
LMW:I loved it!Stephen
King quickly became my favorite author, and still is.You could always find me with a title of his in my hands.Not much has changed!
BMIA.com:Who were some of the people who inspired you?
LMW:Honestly, the only inspiration I had early on was
Stephen King.I know that
I’ve mentioned his name quite a bit, but I believe he deserves it.He is incredibly prolific, so unique.His ability to engross the reader is uncanny.Sure, there are other authors whose work I enjoy—Dean Koontz, Ann
Rice, John Saul, and John Grisham, to name a few— but Stephen King is the
author that turned on the light for me.
BMIA.com:How much of your personal life is reflected in your work?
LMW:Not a lot, though you can’t help but pull from
your own experiences as an author.What
I try to do is ground the piece in reality, that way the fear is palpable,
it’s something that could really happen if all variables align in life the
way they do on paper.So daily
life is captured in my work, aspects of which everyone can relate to.
BMIA.com:How would you describe your style of writing?
Infectious.Psychological horror, to me, is the most frightening of the sub
genres.The reader becomes
afraid, not necessarily of what is written on the pages, but of what lurks
within them.Everyone is afraid
of something, be it ghosts, vampires, snakes, or spiders.Psychological horror pulls that fear from you and lays it open on the
page.So where you are reading
about a woman trapped in a house with a ghost, your own skin crawls with the
feeling of a spider’s legs on you.My
writing nurtures that reaction.I
lead you to the well and watch as you force yourself to drink.
BMIA.com:What drew you to horror and suspense?
I’ve always leaned to the
spooky, the supernatural.I
love horror movies and always have, even as a young child.One of my favorite memories is of me sitting in a chair at my
grandmother’s house with my legs curled under me and a blanket held up to
my chin.I was watching the
television movie “Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark”, scaring myself silly.My grandmother had already left the room.It was too much for her, but I kept watching, my seven year old self
unwilling to pull away even though I knew I’d have nightmares.And I did.But I watched
it again the next time it came on.Horror
has been with me for a long time.
BMIA.com:When you sit down to write, is there a process or a ritual that you
go through or does it vary for each body of work?
I write when I think of
something, which can be at any time.I’ve
pulled the car over on the shoulder of a highway to write a paragraph or
more because it popped into my head and I didn’t want to forget it.I don’t have the luxury of planning my time to write – my mind
doesn’t allow that.The ideas
flow all day and I do my best to capture them.
I have a couple of rules, though.If I sit down to write a short story, I need to finish it then and
there.I write pretty
quickly—a 2000 word short story will take me 45 minutes to complete, at
most—so that has never been a problem.If I am writing a novel, I decide on the ‘why’ before moving
ahead into creation.If I
can’t determine a viable ‘why’, I don’t write it.
BMIA.com:What’s the hardest part of being a writer?
LMW:Finding the why.It can be elusive.
BMIA.com:What’s the easiest part of being a writer?
LMW:Finding the why.I love the hunt.
BMIA.com:What kind of books do you like to read?
LMW:Horror and suspense, naturally!Mystery also.I like a book that will keep me guessing. I love to be
frightened while reading.It’s
a rare book that does that anymore, but I enjoy trying to find one that
will!
BMIA.com:Looking back on your life, what was your earliest or most vivid
recollection of being or feeling different?
LMW:I don’t necessarily think I’m ‘different’.Everyone has a skill, either tapped or untapped, that shines above
the rest of their abilities.It’s
only when those people realize their skill that they are considered
different by those who haven’t.Having
known that I had the gift of imagination at a young age, I practiced it,
telling stories and writing out ideas for the future.Not all of my friends were doing that, but I did have some friends
that were doing the same thing I was in their own field.One of my friends found that she could pitch fast, so she practiced
and ended up with a scholarship to college.We had different talents, but the ambition was the same.
BMIA.com:Does the business side of being a writer interfere with the creative
side of being a writer?If so, how do you manage this?
LMW:Not so much for me, because I don’t let it, but it
surely could.It would behoove
every new author to self promote.Doing
that with or without the assistance of a publicist is a lot of work.But it is unavoidable work, so you learn to roll with it.The important thing is time management.You can’t let your creativity get lost while trying to promote that
very thing.
BMIA.com:What “pearls of wisdom” would you share with aspiring young
writers?
LMW:Put plainly KEEP WRITING.With each story, your writing gets better.Every completed piece is a step toward the ultimate goal of
publication.You can’t be
disheartened because you aren’t published if you don’t have a sound
product.Keep plugging away.
BMIA.com:Is writing your fulltime occupation?If not, what do you do to earn a living?
LMW:Soon to be, but not yet.I am a project manager in the IT field.
BMIA.com:Are you superstitious or have any special rituals?
LMW:At the completion of every novel, my husband and I
toast the project with a glass of Pepsi, my drink of choice.No, I’m not superstitious.
BMIA.com:What would you like to do as a writer that you haven’t been able to
do at this point in your life?
LMW:I used to say I’d like to be published, but that
has since happened.I also
might have answered that I wanted to edit a short story anthology, but I
have been lucky enough to edit three with three more on the burner.So what’s left?A
movie.I would LOVE to see
“Crescendo” made into a movie.That
is a dream of mine that I am looking forward to realizing.
BMIA.com:What has been your biggest failure or lesson learned?
LMW:I’ve learned that your excitement doesn’t
necessarily affect everyone.There
are people in the world who are just not interested in you and/or your
success.Nothing you do to or
for those people will be of any consequence and those are the ones that
you’ll have to leave behind.
BMIA.com:How do you define success?
LMW:The wide-eyed look of fear on someone’s face as
they read a passage of my book.That
look says it all.What else
could a horror author ask for?
BMIA.com:When you die, how would you like to be remembered?
LMW:As L. Marie Wood, author of some of the most deliciously insidious
works in horror, whose storylines remained in the minds of her readers,
strumming their fears ever so casually, for the rest of their natural lives.
BMIA.com:We’re near the end of this interview.Is there anything that you would like to say to our readers?
LMW:Thanks for taking the time to get to know me!If you’re in the mood for a good scare, pick up a copy of
“Crescendo” either in stores or online at Amazon.com, BN.com, Bamm.com,
Shocklines.com, or other locations – see
www.lmariewood.com/buyonline.htm
for a full list.If you like
short stories, check out my new short story collection due out in January
2004 titled “Caliginy”.See
the above URL for a listing of my other work.Want to keep updated on me?Sign
up for my newsletter at
www.lmariewood.com.And above all, keep reading!
L.
Marie Wood has published over a dozen short stories in print anthologies and
webzines.She is also an Editor
with Cyber-Pulp Houston\USA Publishing and has produced three anthologies to
date:Be Mine, Carnival of
Horror, and Hauntings.
To learn more about L. Marie Wood and/or CRESCENDO,
please visit www.lmariewood.com.
This
interview was posted December 1, 2003.
So what do
you think? Click here to post your opinion, or leave a private comment
in our Guestbook.
Living Water: An Interview
With Dr. Obery Hendricks
Dr. Obery
M. Hendricks was born in Farmville, Virginia. At age ten,
he began a life-long spiritual quest, eventually becoming an
ordained minister, biblical scholar and professor of
religion. He also recalled that even at age ten, he always
searched for the deepest meaning in everything. “I knew I
had more intellectual curiosity than my buddies, and yes, I
suppose that does bespeak a consciousness of difference,”
says Hendricks.
In the
first chapter of his book “Living Water,” the men were
portrayed as “ordinary men, doing extraordinary things.”
According to Dr. Hendricks, he tried hard to portray men
from his father’s generation as men who loved their
families. He said writing that portion of the story made
him cry. “I thought about what they [the men] had to go
through to maintain their humanity and their ability to
love,” said Hendricks. Hendricks said that he could not
recall his father telling him that he loved him. Further
reflecting, Hendricks recalled, “I never questioned that he
loved me. I hugged him once when I was a teenager and he
was so uncomfortable that he walked away. And yet he was
the most loving man that I’ve ever known. He demonstrated
love in so many other ways.”
Little
by little, momentum is building for “Living Water.” Major
reviews are coming out and word of mouth has been very
good. According to Hendricks, the marketing strategy
started with a goal to target black churches. The book tour
began at the
Trinity United Church of Christ with Reverend Dr.
Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr. According to Hendricks, when he
arrived at the church he had no idea that he was going to
see a couple of hundred folks who knew who he was and were
moved and inspired by the book.
Hendricks acknowledged that
“Living Water” was
charmed from the beginning. The book did not receive one
rejection during the process of getting published. The
first editor who saw the book was immediately interested.
In addition, Hendricks shared that several of the top agents
in the country were willing to represent him. Hendricks
said he never sent out one query letter to a publisher or an
agent and acknowledges that he is very blessed.
According to Dr. Hendricks,
“Living Water” began as a
short story, a gift for his oldest daughter’s high school
graduation nine years ago. “My interest was piqued by the
biblical story of the woman at the well, of which “Living
Water” is a retelling, because it is Jesus’ longest
exchange with any woman in the Gospels,” say Hendricks.
Hendricks elaborated, “She was married five times in a time
and place in which women were denied the right of choice to
decide or even initiate marriage or divorce. Thus, rather
than being a loose woman, she would have been a woman five
times taken up and five times cast aside. However,
preachers too often indict the woman as loose or scheming,
and blame her for her own predicament.”
In
short, Hendricks, wanted to write a story that would set the
record straight, so to speak, yet would be entertaining and
inspiring. According to Hendricks, what was to be a
ten-page story took on a life of its own.
This
led to me asking Hendricks what readers are suppose to “take
away” from “Living Water.” He put it this way; “I
want to bring the biblical period to life for my readers.
In that it is an African American retelling of the biblical
story, I hope it helps Black folks see themselves in the
Bible rather than as those who not only claim that Jesus
looks like them, but God, too. I’d like to focus our gaze
on the ways that the legacy of oppression and the everyday
injuries of racism affect the ability of Black folks,
especially Black men, to be emotionally open and trusting
and truly intimate with those they love. I’d like my
brothers to begin to rethink some of the ways that we assail
the spirits and self-confidence of our women. But most of
all, I hope my readers, particularly women, are inspired to
keep reaching for the life that is their fondest hope.”
“Living Water”
has
attracted the attention of some well-known authors. Cornel
West, author of “Race Matters” said: “Living
Water” is an exemplary novel for our times…Hendricks
takes us to the rich Black heartlands of American life.”
And Iyanla Vanzant, best-selling author of “Everyday I
Pray” and “Up From Here,” wrote: “For all who
experience difficulty in life, “Living Water” is a
divinely inspired bridge to a new level of self-awareness.
A must read.” In talking with Hendricks I came away with a
clear sense that he deeply appreciates this praise. He
worked hard writing this book and explained, that much of
his preparation came from his academic study and teaching of
biblical history and literature. Hendricks took two trips
to Israel to do further research for the book and conducted
internal research by way of his heart. Hendricks explained
his internal research as follows: “I really searched my own
heart, interrogated the role I personally have played in
male/female relationships, and called on my deepest empathy
so I could recite some of the pain of women, while honoring
their stories.”
Hendricks said it took him nine years to write
“Living
Water.” “I began “Living Water” almost nine
years ago. I laid it aside for three years, then returned
to it in earnest three years ago. I wrote in hotels, on
airplanes, stayed up late at night, gave up weekends to
persevere. I resigned from my position to complete it. I
finished the last half of the book in seven months of eight
to ten hour days and six-day weeks of uninterrupted
writing,” said Hendricks.
Writing this book was a long time coming for Hendricks. He
shared with me that he wanted to be a writer since he was
ten years old. When he was twenty-one he credited a
spiritually enlightened teacher from India who told him that
one-day he would write a very significant book. Hendricks
said he tried to write a book then because of that
foretelling of his future but did not set out to write “Living
Water.” What began as a short story seized him and
would not let go.
Here
we are years later and Hendricks explained that “Living
Water” was written from what he observed or heard
about. “Some of the larger issues are my issues, such as
fear of intimacy. But most characters came from my
imagination and observations.” Hendricks credits several
folks as his mentor at one time or another. “Amiri Baraka
encouraged me to write when I was fourteen. But my most
profound encouragement came in graduate school, from Toni
Morrison. She told me that I write well. That was a
greater gift than she could ever imagine. That really is
what got me started.”
Once
he got started, Hendricks explained that he learned a lot
about himself. As he put it, “I learned much about myself,
particularly how deeply I struggle with intimacy issues. I
also came to understand my mother better; as a result, she
and I fully healed our relationship before her untimely
death. And I understand much more profoundly the pain we
men often bring on women.”
Now
that he’s a published writer, I asked Hendricks to describe
the best part of being a writer, to which he replied: “You
can do it whenever and wherever you feel like it.” During
our conversation, Hendricks and I talked about a wide
variety of things, from his daughters, to my sons, to our
past relationships with women. I wanted to get Hendricks’
perspective on the challenges facing black women and men in
America today. “I think the biggest challenge facing black
women in America is to fully believe in themselves, to see
themselves outside the definitions of men, and claim for
themselves a greater part of America’s opportunities and a
bigger slice of the pie of life. Also, black women have to
come to see themselves as beautiful enough that they don’t
have to conform to the dominant society’s standards of
beauty,” said Hendricks.
On
black men, Hendricks stated, “I think that to a large degree
Black men are emotionally crippled by the lingering legacy
of our oppression. Therefore, our biggest challenge, in my
opinion, is to get in touch with our emotions and jettison
the definitions of manhood that keep are hearts bound and
cripple us with the belief that as men we have a greater
right to the fruits of the tree of life than women.”
Finally, I asked Hendricks to identify success tips or
advice that he would share with aspiring writers as well as
his definition for success. Hendricks replied, “Read great
authors like Richard Wright, Toni Morrison, William Faulkner
and Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and see how they do what they
do. I learned characterization by reading and rereading “The
Bluest Eye.” Then write every day. Honor your gift and
your craft and it will honor you.” As far as his definition
for success, Hendricks defined success as: “Living the way
you want while doing the things that matter most to you.”
Gary A. Johnson
conducted this interview in March 2003. Special thinks to Miki Terasawa, at
HarperSan Francisco, a division of HarperCollins Publishers for arranging
this interview.
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you think?
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in our Guestbook.
An Interview With Author
Connie Briscoe
Best-selling author Connie Briscoe’s latest book is called “P.G. County.” P.G.
stands for Prince George’s County, an affluent black majority suburb of
Washington, DC. I caught up with Briscoe last month and asked her talk about the
book and her writing style.
Briscoe grew up in the Washington, DC Metro area and is familiar with Prince
George’s County. She explained, “Even though I never lived in P.G. County
myself I have family and friends who lived there so I was always going back and
forth. A lot of the articles that appear in the news about Prince George’s
County are negative about one segment of life and I wanted to show a different
side of Prince George’s County. Even though my book is fiction, a lot of the
characters are based on real places, events and people that I’ve known. I tried
to show a different side of Prince George’s County with a little bit of humor
thrown in.”
Briscoe says she writes from the head and the heart. “People consider my
writing to be commercial fiction. I try to write the kind of books that I like
to read. I like easy kind of reading,” says Briscoe.
By
and large Briscoe, who has written “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Sisters & Lovers” and
“A Long Way Home” says growing up as a young girl she always thought that being
an author would be a great career. “I didn’t actually think of being a writer
probably until I was much older for a number of reasons. When I was growing up
in the 60’s and 70’s there weren't that many black authors. It was not
something little black girls and teenagers believed that they could become.”
Obviously, Briscoe stuck to her guns and like other challenges in her life,
she’s managed to be successful.
“P.G.
County” is getting good reviews. Briscoe says she likes it when a reviewer reads
the book and realizes that it’s not a serious commentary on the real Prince
George’s County. Briscoe explained, “This is fiction and one author’s
viewpoint. I was not trying to write a story with a big message. It’s a fun
story and should not to be taken seriously. When the reviewer understands that
the reviews tend to be better.” On the other hand, Briscoe believes that some
reviewers try to read different messages into the book in an attempt to make the
book fit their image of Prince George’s County. If those images don’t match,
the reviewer tends to think that something is wrong with the book.
Being
a best-selling author is not all that it seems. Briscoe says the hardest thing
about being a writer is promoting the book. “I’m a writer and I tend to be more
of an introspective person, says Briscoe. In addition, Briscoe says book tours
require that you to be away from your family for large chunks of time. In
contrast, Briscoe says the best part of being a writer is actually sitting down
and creating. Briscoe says she likes thinking about the story, the characters,
the plot, the settings, doing research and getting everything together. She
simply enjoys the craft of writing. I got the sense that writing affords
Briscoe a certain sense of control, freedom and flexibility.
When
I asked Briscoe how she developed the characters for the book she explained that
she would never base the characters in total on any one person. “All the women
in “P.G. County” probably have some traits or characteristics of people I’ve
known or met.”
Briscoe is appreciative to have had such a wonderful life growing up. Born with
a hearing loss, Briscoe attended public schools and went on to college
with only a few problems. However, by the time she got to graduate school she
needed a hearing aid.
Briscoe took a job at Gallaudet University in Washington, DC and began to learn
sign language. Briscoe, like most people who have a hearing loss, never
considered herself to be disabled. The only thing she couldn’t do was hear.
“I've never let my hearing loss hold me back from doing the things I wanted to
do. I just adapt and go on.” And go on she did. Briscoe’s first novel “Sisters
& Lovers,” sold more than 100,000 hardcover books and about a half million
paperback copies. The book also appeared on the bestseller lists of the Chicago
Tribune, Washington Post, Boston Globe, Boston Herald, USA Today, and Publishers
Weekly. Her second novel, “Big Girls Don't Cry,” hit many of the bestseller
lists as well, including the New York Times. “A Long Way From Home”, the story
of her ancestors, was nominated for an NAACP Image Award.
So what do
you think?
Click here to post your opinion, or leave a private comment
in our Guestbook.
James Patterson
Author James Patterson is one of the top-selling novelists in the world
today. He has sold over 100 million books worldwide. His debut novel,
The Thomas Berryman Number, won
the Edgar Award for the best first mystery novel. Little, Brown
published it in 1976 when he was just twenty-seven years old,
after being turned down by more than two dozen other publishers.
Patterson
has since written a string of major national bestsellers that includes the
eleven
books from
Kiss the Girls
to
Mary, Mary
– November '06) is the top selling new U.S.
detective series in the last 20 years with over 25 million copies sold.
The next best selling detective series over the last ten years also
belongs to Patterson...the Women's Murder Club
(1st
to Die,
2nd Chance,
3rd Degree,
4th of July),
with over 8 million copies sold.
Maximum Ride: The
Angel Experiment
debuted at #1 on the
New York Times
bestsellers list on May 1,
2005 and remained in that spot for 12 weeks. And with
his 2005 debut of
Lifeguard
at #1 on the New
York Times list, Patterson broke another record of three
hardcover novels on two New York Times bestsellers lists
simultaneously – Fiction Hardcover and Children's
Chapter Books.
Paramount
Pictures' feature film adaptation of Kiss the Girls, starring Morgan
Freeman as Alex Cross, was a box office hit in 1997. Morgan Freeman reprised
the Cross role in the film adaptation of the first novel in the series, Along Came a Spider in 2001. NBC bought the rights to
1st To Die
with plans to produce a four-hour miniseries. Miracle on the 17th Green,
a novel co-written with Peter de Jonge, was also made into a television movie,
starring Robert Urich.
In
addition to writing novels, Mr. Patterson served as chairman of J. Walter
Thompson, North America from 1990 to 1996. He began his advertising career as a
junior copywriter with the company in 1971 and went on to become the youngest
executive creative director and youngest chief executive officer in the
company's history. He made his mark at the agency by creating award-winning
campaigns for Kodak, Burger King, Toys R' Us, Bell Atlantic, Bristol-Myers and
others. He collaborated with advertising colleague Peter Kim to produce the
nonfiction bestseller The Day America Told the Truth.
In June 2005, Patterson
announced his latest charitable project, the James
Patterson PageTurner Award, which are cash prizes
totaling $75,000 awarded to individuals, schools, and
other groups/organizations who are devoted to getting
people excited about books and reading. More information
about the Patterson PageTurner Award can be found at
www.pattersonpageturner.org.
Patterson grew up in
Newburgh, New York, graduated summa cum laude from
Manhattan College and summa cum laude from The Graduate
School at Vanderbilt University. Not surprisingly, both
degrees were in English. He now resides in Palm Beach,
Florida, with his wife and their young son.
A
Conversation with James Patterson About
"Four Blind Mice"
Q.
Will
Four Blind Mice describe the last Detective
Alex Cross case? A. I will guarantee readers this: if Alex returns, he will be very different
from the way he is now.
Q. The
NBC miniseries for
1st to Die is scheduled to air soon.
Did you visit the set? What did you think about the casting? A. What excites me the most about
1st to Die is that they set out to make a
movie movie rather than a TV movie. The director is from cinema and they really
went out of their way to get exceptional actors. Tracy Pollan, Pam Grier, and
Robert Patrick are exceptional in their parts. It was also gratifying that the
producer/writer stayed close to the story of the book. I can't wait to see
1st to Die, and NBC also recently bought
the second book in the series.
Q.
What's next for James Patterson? A. In March I'll be publishing a historical thriller called
The Jester.
It takes place around the time of the First Crusade. The publisher's line is
'every thousand years or so a truly great adventure story comes along.' The
Jester is the kind of historical novel that readers are used to, but at a
faster and more exciting pace.
Q. You
write two or three books a year. How do you come up with fresh ideas for that
many stories? A. I have a big thick folder of story ideas, far too many for me to actually
write. I'm incredibly fascinated by how a story will turn out once I begin to
write it. That's my chief motivation for doing two or three books a year.
Q.
Would you ever do a cameo in a movie based on one of your books? A. No way! I'm holding out for the romantic lead in
Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas.
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Walter Mosley
is the author of
nineteen critically acclaimed books and his work has been translated
into twenty-one languages. His popular mysteries featuring Easy
Rawlins began with
Devil in a Blue Dress
in 1990. Others in the series include
A Red Death,
White Butterfly,
Black Betty
and
A Little Yellow Dog
(both of which were New York Times bestsellers). Last year,
Easy Rawlins returned with
Bad Boy Brawly Brown
and
Six Easy Pieces.
Fear Itself,
the follow-up of
Fearless Jones,
Mosley's new mystery series featuring second-hand bookseller Paris
Minton and his friend
Fearless Jones
was published July 2003 by Little
Brown.
The Man in My Basement,
a novel of ideas set in contemporary time in a Long Island
community, was published in January 2004.
Little Scarlet,
an Easy Rawlins novel set five days after the 1965 Watts riots, was
published in July 2004. In 2005, Mosley published his first book for
young adult readers,
47,
an ingenious mix of history, science fiction, and adventure.
Mr. Mosley created with the City University
of New York (CUNY) a new publishing certificate program aimed at young urban
residents. It is the only such program in the country. Mosley also serves on
the board of directors of the National Book Awards, The Poetry Society of
America, and is past-president of the Mystery Writers of America. He lives in
New York City.
An Interview with Walter Mosley
Q: Now that Easy Rawlins is back and
is haunted by the voice of Mouse throughout
Bad Boy Brawly Brown, the question must be asked, is Mouse really
dead?
A: We have yet to find
out...that's my only answer. We have yet to find out.
Q: Do you plan to write another Easy
Rawlins mystery that will explain? A: The next Easy Rawlins
will explain.
Q: So the readers don't have that
long to wait. A: No.
Q: One of the recurrent motifs in
Bad Boy Brawly Brown is the complex relationship between Easy and
his son, Juice. You often speak about your father in public and
interview, is there any specific role in here? Why was it important for
you to write about this now? Does any part of this relationship come
from personal experience? A: What I write about are black, male heroes. A
big part of being a hero in a community is raising children from one way
or another. I don't have any kids. But, I know this role from my own
father. I wanted to write it specifically, which this book
Bad Boy Brawly Brown
does, and it talks about black men and their sons and their friends'
sons.
Q: You also often speak about your
own father. Does he have a role in here? A: He has a role in this just in as much as he was
my father. I don't think that he has a place...he's not doing something
in the book. There are some things in the book that Easy does that my
father would have talked about, but I don't know if he would have.
Q: The reason that Brawly Brown
finds himself in so much trouble is the organization that he joins, the
Urban Revolutionary Party. Ostensibly, this group's goal is to improve
the community, but they get involved in shadier endeavors as well. What
is the genesis of this group? Were groups like these common in the
mid-60's in Los Angeles? Do they continue to be? Do you think they were
more of a positive or negative force on the community? And in their
terms of their role in the community? A: When I talk about the Urban Revolutionary
Party, this was a time just before the big organization started out with
the Black Panthers and this was the beginning of all of those
organizations. I'm not talking about so much the organizations
themselves as I'm talking about the individuals that make up that
organization. When you look at the people who are in the organization,
there are all different kinds of people...some people who are
idealistic...some people are down to earth...some people who are tired
of it all...some people who are criminals...and some people like Brawly
Brown who is completely confused and trying to kind of edge out emotions
for himself in the world. And it's me talking about political groups and
people talking about political groups today as if...everything was a
monologue...everyone thought the same, acted the same and was the same,
but that's not true. Part of that is not true is when Easy goes to see
the group for the first time and the police say they know all about you
because somebody in here is a member of the police, which almost solves
the case because the police know that any organization is made up of
individuals and all of those individuals have strengths and weaknesses.
Q. And in terms of their role in the
community? A: Yeah, well the role in the community is very
strong, but the world in the community depends on who you are talking
about...it could be someone who preaches some kind of violent overthrow
of the society or somebody who wants to start giving breakfast to
children or somebody who says "hey, this would be a really good way to
deal drugs...so the idea is to say, "what is the purpose?" Well, the
purpose is for the organizations to change with time and they also
change from member to member.
Q: Easy says about his girlfriend,
"Bonnie was in every way my equal." Although she is a strong force in
the book and obviously has quite an influence over Easy, we don't see
that much of her in
Bad Boy Brawly Brown. Will she be returning in the future and where
does she come from? Will she be any kind of help to him in solving the
crimes? A: Do you mean from my head or from the world?
Q: Both.
A: A larger world in the next book. However, the
book is about Easy...I mean Bonnie played a significant role in the
previous book,
A Little Yellow Dog.
She's a stewardess, works for Air France, travels around the world. She
has a knowledge and a view of the world above and beyond Easys'. But,
the book is about Easy and about solving crimes but she's not doing
that. She's not a crime solver, but she was a victim of the crime...I'm
not going to do that to her again I don't think.
Q: Will she ever be more of a help
to him in solving crimes? No, no, I'm not going to do that. Easy is a
hard-boiled detective in as much as he works alone; he works by himself.
Every once in a while, sure, she helped him immensely by putting a
cigarette between his lips and stop smoking. But the truth is, what I do
with my work is that I'm writing about black male heroes and to make a
statement about that...a lot of people write about all kinds of other
heroes...white male heroes, white female heroes, black female
heroes...but there are not a lot of black male heroes and that's the job
I'm working on and that's the genre, that's what I'm working on.
Q: Since you do write about black
male heroes, she was just in interesting character since she is such a
strong person. A: Well, it's not only her...Ettamae Harris is an
incredibly powerful person who does things. And first, there are many
women throughout
Bad Boy Brawly Brown
and have a very strong purpose. The only person that Easy is afraid of
is a woman. Now this person can kill him and they're common in the book,
but not as detectives.
Q: So, speaking of your characters,
you create such memorable characters, Easy Rawlins, Mouse, Fearless
Jones, Socrates Fortlow, where do these characters come from? Are they
based on people who you know? Do you find the voice before the character
or vice versa? When you develop the characters, how do you work on them?
Do they develop as you write or do you know how they are going to be
before you start? A: I don't know...I don't know the answer to that
question. I do know these people, but not as individuals. You know how
in your mind there are all these templates for people you have had
experiences with...this kind of person...that kind of person from your
whole life and these templates are in my head from the thousands of
people I know in the black community. But it's not like you can go out
and find Jackson Blue somewhere ...though...there are hundreds of
them...or Mouse...there are thousands of them...or Easy Rawlins...there
are a lot of them too...but it's a type, not a person.
Q: And when you develop the
characters, how do you work on them? Do they develop as you write? Or do
you know how they're going to be before you start?
A: I start writing the book...I just start writing
and I write till I get to the end. The characters all appear. The
characters change and develop as I re-write, but it's not technical
like, "Oh, here's a voice. Now let me see, is this going to be a man or
a woman?"
Q: Of all the genres that you write
in, screenplays, essays, fiction, science fiction, what is your
favorite? A: I don't think I have a favorite...for me...it's
not that all writing is the same...it's all headed toward the same
place...and that place is what I love and it's when you write something
that works. I wrote a letter or recommendation this weekend and I just
love it...I'm so passionate about this letter. I think I said everything
exactly perfect and I think you can get as much out of that as
writing...
Q: You always have so many projects
going on at once. What else are you working on now? When can we expect
Fearless Jones to return? A: Fearless Jones will return next year. Right
now, I am working on the collection of short stories on Easy Rawlins. I
am re-visiting the book that Little Brown's going to put out in about a
year and half called, The Man in my BasementWhat Next and it's
kind of questioning the black reaction on the so-called war on
terrorism.
Q: And about the screenplays, are
any of them coming out in the near future? A: One never knows...so one cannot say.
Q: And is there anything in film
that you have written for film that is in the pipeline?
A: Well, I have written a screenplay for
Futureland.
I wrote it for HBO, but I don't think they are going to...so we're going
to go somewhere else, but I am working with Forrest Whitaker and a
couple of other people.
Q: Your books function on many
levels, you're fiction in any case, they're both easy to read,
pa
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