Loads of love

I'm reading Black Water Rising by Attica Locke. (It's good y'all!) The opening scene includes the protagonist Jay remembering the black church ladies that came to court daily when he was on trial for being a young revolutionary. He remembers them looking at him like "We got you, son. We're not gon' let you fall."

It reminds me of the way black readers often are with black authors. One of the great joys of being a writer is having readers who prop you up when you feel like you're falling. I know we authors yell a lot over here about attracting other readers, but let me say for the record, we love, love, love us some black readers! And wouldn't make it at all without you!

I recently was blessed enough to receive an award from the Black Caucus of the American Library Association. The way those black librarians talked about books and writers! Oh my, it was balm for the soul! My brother-in-law attended and he said "the waves of love crashing over the podium" spilled out into the audience over to him and left him feeling warm inside.

So I offer a heartfelt thanks to all the readers who don't let us fall. And here are some links about some other authors that we (no matter our race) can share some love with:

E. Lynn Harris, who recently passed, gets a tribute from other writers at The Root.

Karen Simpson, friend o' the blog, recently announced the sale of her first novel! Read her story of deciding to go with Plenary Publishing after many rejections from mainstream (read mostly white editors/publishers) because they felt that black readers only wanted urban or romance and white readers won't read black authors. Oy. Act of Grace (speculative fiction) will be published in spring 2011 and we will definitely host a chat with Karen and/or review to celebrate!

Victor LaValle's 3rd novel Big Machine, to be released August 11, could be his big breakout. This Wall Street Journal article about the support he's getting is exciting. Here's a link to an excerpt from the book.

Yellow Moon Jewell Parker Rhodes' African vampire story comes out in paperback next month.

Cornered, Brandon Massey's latest thriller hits also stores next month.

Eisa Ulen lovingly reviews Paule Marshall's memoir of the writer's life, Triangular Road.

The Bottom of Heaven gives some geek love to Samuel R. Delaney's fantasy Nevèrÿon series.

Publishers Weekly showers the upcoming The Girl Who Fell from the Sky by Heidi Durrow with some pre-pub love.

Color Online is looking for love for authors of color. They're looking for reviewers for August who will read brown.

USA Today ran an interesting profile of author Stephen Carter, who is able to do something pretty amazing in his latest, Jericho's Fall: not identify the protagonist's race. I'm not sure less successful authors could pull this off. Publishers and marketers usually want to know the characters' race so they know how to position the book. So I'm willing to give Carter some love for breaking out of that box.

Speaking of publishers identifying race, by now you've probably heard of the YA book Liar with the black protagonist and the white author that has a photo of a white girl on the cover. But in case you haven't, I'll include a few links. First though my question: Does this mean the publisher believes that white readers will read a book by a white author about non-white characters, but only if a white person is on the cover? From the author of the book. Publisher's Weekly. Young, Black, A Reader responds. Another blogger asks white readers to respond to the publisher. I would suggest lovingly telling them that they're full of shit.

Now some love for a bookseller, a white bookseller who takes up the "White Readers Meet Black Authors" cause. The Inkwell Bookstore blog challenges readers to step outside their comfort zone: "I see this a lot at our bookstore. More often than not, White customers buy books by White authors. While this in no way makes them racist, their unwillingness to explore something outside their comfort zone does make them dull. What makes these FUBU buying habits even more frustrating is the fact that the majority of these White readers consider themselves to be highly liberal thinkers. They listen to world music, they donate money to Darfur, and they campaigned en masse to make Barack Obama the President of the United States. Still, I dare you to try and push Chester Himes' If He Hollers Let Him Go on a fan of Joan Didion's Play It As It Lays."

Meet: Attica Locke, author of BLACK WATER RISING

I'm delighted to announce that my new "White Readers Meet...." feature begins with Attica Locke.

About the author

Attica Locke is a writer who has worked in both film and television for over ten years. A graduate of Northwestern University, she has written movie scripts for Paramount, Warner Bros., Disney, Twentieth Century Fox and Jerry Bruckheimer films, as well as television pilots for HBO, Dreamworks and Silver Pictures. She was a fellow at the Sundance Institute’s Feature Filmmaker’s Lab and most recently completed an adaptation of Stephen Carter’s The Emperor of Ocean Park. She is member of the Writers Guild of America, west, and is currently at work on an HBO miniseries about the civil rights movement, based on the writings of historian Taylor Branch. A native of Houston, Texas, Attica lives in Los Angeles, California, with her husband and daughter.

About the book

Black Water Rising was Booklist's Best Debut Crime Novel 2009 and a July Indie Next Great Read. Just some of the smashing reviews it has received:

"...[Locke] is able to write with a serious, stirring moral urgency akin to that of George Pelecanos or Dennis Lehane."– New York Times

"...a strong and whip-smart debut..." – Seattle Times
"Black Water Rising is a near-perfect balance of trenchant social commentary, rich characterizations and an action-oriented plot..." – Los Angeles Times

Following is my conversation with Locke. After you read it, please go to your favorite bookstore or online site and buy it!

White Readers Meet Black Authors: Describe your work for someone unfamiliar with it. What's your writing style like? What subjects/themes do you explore?

Attica Locke: I once described my work as a cross between John Grisham and the filmmaker John Sayles. I appreciate the forward moving engine of a good plot (and am drawn to stories about lawyers), but I also like telling stories set against the backdrop of larger socio-political themes.

WRMBA: What's your goal(s) as a writer? Do you set out to educate? entertain? illuminate?

AL: My first goal is to entertain, always. It’s the gateway to everything else. My ultimate hope is that people come to love the characters they read about, especially characters they may have the least in common with. That feeling of love and fellowship – for a stranger, no less – is one of the ways we are able to survive as a species on this planet. I am deeply interested in love.

WRMBA: You're a screenwriter too. How is writing a book different or similar to writing a script for a movie?

AL: I have pointedly made the two experiences different. As a paid screenwriter, I am often asked to stick closely to an approved outline. But I wrote Black Water Rising without a clear outline at all. I had a very strong sense of the opening and only a vague sense of the ending. I would plot just enough to get me through the next few chapters, knowing that I could always circle back and rewrite if I hit a wall (which I did, many times). Staying open about the story and its structure left room for many surprises. It made the writing experience feel almost like reading.

WRMBA: What's next for you? Would you consider a series based on Jay Porter?

AL: I definitely think about writing about Jay again. I, like a lot of readers, want to know how he’s doing, or if he’s managed to get himself in any more trouble. Right now, though, I am writing a mystery that takes place in Louisiana. There’s a woman at the center.

WRMBA: What's the best book (or who is the best writer) that not enough people know about?

AL: Fay by Larry Brown – a hauntingly beautiful book with a character at its center who is from a world most of us know nothing about.

Thanks Attica!

Meet: Bernice McFadden

Some quick links before my conversation with novelist Bernice McFadden:

Congrats to friend of the blog Felicia Pride, whose new YA novel Patterson Heights is newly on shelves!

Martha Southgate brings together black male writers for a reading in Brooklyn. The Defenders Online writes about it.

Publisher's Weekly is launching National Bookstore Day, November 7, to celebrate indie bookstores.

Octavia Butler's papers to be housed with Jack London's.

The obituary for Sarah E. Wright makes me wish I had known of her work long ago.

If you have an iPhone, get the Lol Book Blogs ap and follow White Readers Meet Black Authors on your phone.

There's nothing I like better than discovering an author I haven't read who has lots of books for me to read. If author Bernice McFadden is new to you, you're in for a treat. Bernice has been an online friend since I started blogging at the Pajama Gardener, and was one of the inspirations for this blog. Blogging about her journey to get get a publisher for her literary novel Glorious (after blurbs from the likes of Toni Morrison, excellent reviews, and awards for her previous novels including Sugar, This Bitter Earth, and The Warmest December), she shared with readers, authors and wannabe authors the hard truths about publishing, especially when it comes to literary fiction. Being a creative person in a society that doesn't much value creativity is hard. Her blog made me feel not so alone and a little less crazy. Happily, the story behind the story of Glorious has a happy ending: it will be published next year by Akashic Books! In the meantime, read this Q&A and get to know Bernice and her work:

White Readers Meet Black Authors: Describe your work for someone unfamiliar with it. What's your writing style like? What subjects/themes do you explore?

Bernice McFadden: I like to think that I have a lyrical style. I enjoy history and so there is often a historical slant to my novels. I write about every day people, who once they hit the page are transformed into extraordinary characters.

My most recently published novel, entitled: Lover Man which was written under my pseudonym, Geneva Holliday. Lover Man is the sequel to my 2008 book, Seduction. The story centers around a man who I can only describe as a serial lover....(smile)

WRMBA: What's your goal(s) as a writer? Do you set out to educate? entertain? illuminate?

BM: My goal as a writer is to honor my ancestors, while writing the book that I want to read. I do hope that once the book is published that it would go on to educate, entertain and illuminate.

WRMBA: What's next for you?

BM: Next up for me is the 2010 release of my historical novel, Glorious. The novel is set against the backdrops of the Harlem Renaissance and the post-war South, and blending fact and fiction, Glorious is the story of Easter Venetta Bartlett, a fictional Harlem Renaissance writer whose tumultuous path to success, ruin and finally revival not only represents and pays homage to those gifted artists that came before me but offers a candid and true portrait of the American experience in all its beauty and cruelty.

It is a novel informed by the question that is the title of Langston Hughes famous poem: What happens to a dream deferred? Based on years of research, this heart-wrenching fictional account is given added resonance by factual events coupled with real and imagined larger-than-life characters.

WRMBA: What's the best book (or whose the best writer) that not enough people know about?

BM: I think one writer to definitely watch is William Henry Lewis (I Got Somebody in Staunton).

Meet: Jacqueline Luckett, author of Passing Love

Our first "White Readers Meet" Q&A of 2012 is with Jacqueline Luckett, author of Searching for Tina Turner. She's here to tell us about her new book Passing Love, which getting lots of other good buzz! The glowing Publisher's Weekly review called it "a dreamy and lyrical paean to all things French..."

Contest!

Passing Love hits stores (and e-readers) January 25th. But Jackie is offering WRMBA readers an incentive to pre-order. She's going to send a lovely journal to the first 10 people who pre-order and email proof of receipt to info AT jacquelineluckett DOT com!

Passing Love is a story about a woman who has had a lifelong dream to go to Paris. She goes and discovers more than she imagine. Win one of the free journals and use it to reflect on your own life and dreams.

On to the Q&A with Jackie:

White Readers Meet Black Authors: Tell us about your new book. What's the plot? Who are the characters?

Jacqueline Luckett: The new novel is titled PASSING LOVE. It’s quite different from Searching for Tina Turner, and I hope that readers will enjoy. The story alternates between two very different women. Publisher’s Weekly wrote a lovely review. The novel will be a Good Housekeeping February Book Pick.

Moving back and forth in time between the sparkling Paris of today and the jazz-fueled city filled with expatriates in the 1950s, PASSING LOVE is the story of two women dealing with lost love, secrets, and betrayal and how the City of Light may hold all of the answers.

In the present day, Nichole-Marie Handy has loved all things French since she was a child. After the death of her best friend, determined to get out of her rut, she goes to Paris, leaving behind a marriage proposal. Ruby Mae Garrett lives in rural Mississippi in the late 1940s. Ruby believes that she is destined for a big life, and she’s determined to make sure that happens.

"Without fail, each woman had (or was forced) to decide what came next. The only way to figure that out is to take a journey to self. We have to re-discover ourselves, make choices about what comes next, re-invent who we are, and move forward. A hero’s journey is the crux of a good story. I like to show that an emotional journey is just as interesting as a physical one."

WRMBA: Why France? You wrote about it some in Searching for Tina Turner, and now more in Passing Love. Were you French in a past life?

JL: Good question. I’m not sure where the fascination comes from. It’s been a part of me my whole life. My father was in the Army and spent some time in France. The only thing I recall him telling me about his time in France was that the French treated the black American soldiers better than their own countrymen. Both my sister and I have French names, so I figure that something rubbed off on him.

It wasn’t my intention to write about France in Searching for Tina Turner, but once I discovered that she makes her home in the South of France, my character had to go there.

My original idea for PASSING LOVE was to write about an American woman who wanted to make a change in her life and live abroad. Since I was so familiar with France and had spent time in Paris—I decided to write about what I knew. That’s what all the books tell us to do. So, Paris was my logical choice for an ex-pat.

The story changed, as your readers will find out, but it all takes place in Paris.

I once asked a psychic why she thought I was so fascinated with France. She told me that in a past life I was French royalty. Hmmm. I didn't take much stock in her reading, though it does make sense if you believe that we have past lives. Her theory was that I had unfinished business. You could say that I’m taking care of that business in this life.

I studied French in high school, a couple of years in college and now I take weekly lessons. I can understand and make myself understand when I’m in France. I’ve traveled to France several times, and I feel comfortable there. It’s weird, but I learned long ago to roll with it. And look what it’s done for me!

WRMBA: You seem to write a lot about women finding themselves. Why do you think that is?

JL: I want my characters to mirror real life, and “finding” is what all of us will have to do at some point in our lives.

When I first started writing Searching for Tina Turner, I was lost. I mean that in the emotional sense, of course. I still had a home, friends, and my mother lives in a nearby city. I’d just gotten divorced. After all the “dust” settled, I was determined to make a new life for myself.

It took a while to figure out my direction and it occurred to me that other women were probably on the same emotional roller coaster. I spoke to quite a few women who were divorced or in the middle of one. Most were baby boomers with “empty nests.” They all described this feeling of being lost. Disconnected might be a better word. Some of those feelings came from no longer being grounded by children; some from having to start all over again in midlife. I’ve only known of one woman who supposedly planned out her departure from her marriage, but I’m sure she still had to take this same journey to self.

In most cases, divorce, and the lifestyle change, was unexpected. Without fail, each woman had (or was forced) to decide what came next. The only way to figure that out is to take a journey to self. We have to re-discover ourselves, make choices about what comes next, re-invent who we are, and move forward. A hero’s journey is the crux of a good story. I like to show that an emotional journey is just as interesting as a physical one.

WRMBA: You know a bit about wines, I believe. What type of wine(s) would you recommend to readers to enjoy as they read Passing Love?

JL: This is my all time favorite question!

I enjoy wine and recently took a Wine Tasting class to refresh my skills and expand my interest in European wines. Besides champagne (only the French can use this appellation) and sparkling wines (describes the bubbly from any other country), California wines remain my favorite. Frankly, I’m torn. For white wines, I love robust, creamy Chardonnays with a lot of oak. Full-bodied, fruity cabernets, merlots, and zinfandels are my favorite reds, in that order.

At the beginning of PASSING LOVE, Nicole pulls out a bottle of 100-year-old tequila to celebrate her trip. In Paris, she’s introduced to red wine. Ruby doesn’t drink; she’s in love with strong French coffee with lots of milk.

I suggest a combo. A nice shot of your favorite tequila—and a good one is smooth and worth sipping. Since the first two chapters introduce Ruby and Nicole, tequila works well. Then I’d switch to a nice Chardonnay for the rest of the book. Switch to a cabernet when Nicole does.

Finish with a glass of your favorite bubbly—that’s what I intend to do!

WRMBA: What's next for you?

JL: I’ve got several ideas brewing that I want to turn into reality. Novel number three, for sure. (This book will not even have the word Paris in it, but my fingers are crossed behind my back.) I sketched a lot of scenes in a frenzied month-long NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) writing spree.

A few readers have asked about a sequel to Searching for Tina Turner, but unless there’s a lot of demand, I don’t expect to write one (never say never, right?). I’d like to see the novel turned into a movie or a Broadway musical. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for either one of those dreams to come true.

This past summer, I took a class at Berkeley Repertory Theater and wrote a one-act play. At the end of the class, we staged public readings in front of a small group of my friends. It was exciting to hear my words read out loud. I’m going to look for theaters and try to get the play produced.

I have an idea for a screenplay that I’ll probably outline in 2012.

So, I have a lot of ideas. What’s next? Implementation. And maybe, Paris.

WRMBA: What's the best book (or who’s the best writer) that not enough people know about?

JL: Best is hard to say, because I’ve read so many beautiful books by authors well- and little-known. Dianne McKinney-Whetstone is a writer I love. Though she’s received a lot of awards, few people I speak to seem to know her work. I’ve read four of her five novels and loved them all. She lives in Philadelphia and her novels take place there.

McKinney-Whetstone inspired me. Before I started writing, I read an article of how she worked full-time and managed her family, then wrote in the wee hours at her kitchen table. I’m not sure if the story is true, but as a working mother, it gave me hope.

She may be better known than I think, but I haven't seen anything new from her in a while. I checked her website and I see she teaches at the University of Pennsylvania. I don’t see a new novel listed. I wonder if she’s writing.

If I could mention another author, it would be Emily Raboteau (The Professor’s Daughter).

Thanks, Carleen for this opportunity.

WRMBA: You're very welcome! Thank you for telling my readers a little about you and your work!

Meet: Patricia Raybon

Today, I'd like to introduce you to my friend Patricia Raybon, another Colorado-based writer and author of one of my all-time favorite memoirs, My First White Friend: Confessions on Race, Love and Forgiveness. This Q&A discusses her two new books. (I was honored to receive copies of them and especially enjoy the lovely coffee table book Bound for Glory.) I think you'll get a real feel for her as a person and a writer here, and once you do, I know you'll want to check out her work.

White Readers Meet Black Authors: Tell us about your latest work(s).

Patricia Raybon: I write memoirs. My two new books, however, shake me out of that box. God’s Great Blessings is a One Year® devotional—or a daily study guide—published by the Christian publisher Tyndale House for its One Year® brand. It explores 52 virtues that God promises to bless. A life-changing project. I loved wrestling over this subject and writing it!

My second book, Bound for Glory, also from Tyndale, is a beautiful tribute to African American spirituals. A full-color gift book, Bound for Glory features the art of renown calligrapher Timothy Botts, with me acting as contributor. But Tim desired a Black voice on the pages, that is, so he invited me to collaborate. The book showcases 52 illustrations by Tim of 52 spiritual songs, plus his reflections on 26 of his pieces along with a Bible verse. For the other 26 illustrations, I wrote short reflections in free verse—a new format for me. More than anything, the book honors the African slaves in America who wrote this amazing music, and Tim did an astounding job telling this story through art. So it’s a stunning book. Great for showing off on coffee tables and book shelves. But the message inside is one of deliverance and hope. It’s truly a gorgeous book.

WRMBA: What are your goal(s) as a writer? Do you set out to educate? Entertain? Illuminate?

PR: I write to learn. Then I share what God is willing to teach me. With my first memoir, My First White Friend, I set out to learn how to forgive. The surprise? First I needed to forgive myself. Then with my second book, I Told the Mountain to Move, I vowed to learn how to pray. I grew up in church, but didn’t have a clue what prayer was. Writing a book to figure out a spiritual mystery—like prayer or forgiveness—changes my life. Readers tell me the books change their lives, too. My First White Friend came out in 1995. But people still read it to learn how to forgive. The same is true for Mountain regarding prayer. I give talks all over the country now on both prayer and forgiveness. Writing to learn has made all of that possible.

"I try to honor the dignity of that human spirit in my writing. So I try to give readers my best. To respect readers’ intelligence. To never talk down to an audience—whether they’re teen felons in a county jail or senior citizens in a church."

WRMBA: How does your faith inform your writing?

RP: It inspires me, first, to keep going. To stay with it. To finish the writing. To stay in the race—and if I fall out of my lane, to get back in it. This going the distance is central to the theology of Christianity. We follow a Savior who didn’t turn back, not from his calling—or even his crucifixion. In my own life, as a writer, the example of Christ inspires me to stay in the game. I love that about my faith.

Secondly, of course, my faith inspires what I write. My focus is spirituality, regardless of the topic. I did a piece on cleaning my windows for The New York Times Sunday Magazine, but the focus was spirituality. My faith is my life. As a writer, I aim to show that connection.

WRMBA: You went from journalism to writing books. Does your experience as a journalist affect your writing?

RP: It keeps me grounded. As a journalist, I wrote feature articles—called human-interest stories—most of my career. But even the feature pages of a newspaper focus on real life. And life is complicated. Life is hard. Life can be heart-breaking. But life is good! So people display amazing resilience, imagination, and downright sheer guts to make the journey the best way they can.

I try to honor the dignity of that human spirit in my writing. So I try to give readers my best. To respect readers’ intelligence. To never talk down to an audience—whether they’re teen felons in a county jail or senior citizens in a church. Both these groups deserve my best, from the story and message to the spelling and grammar. Journalism is a big part of why that matters to me.

WRMBA: I know you’re taught writing at the university level and you do workshops now. What advice would you give to a new writer?

RP: Figure out who you are. Your writing voice lives in that identity. In fact, your different identities—and everybody has several, depending on your life and where you are in it—is where your writer’s voice resides. I’m a journalist, yes, and I have written in that voice many times. But I’m also a wife and mom, and I’ve written and sold scores of personal essays about the complications and challenges of those relationships. In fact, my second memoir, I Told the Mountain to Move, is on prayer, but I wrote it as a wife—because the story takes place when my marriage is at a low point and, at the same time, my husband was critically ill. I had to learn to pray for my husband—but also learn again to love him—and write about it. Married Christian women really relate to that book!

A lot of aspiring writers run from who they are—and what they’re dealing with in life. But our stories reside in those places and spaces. Own up to your life! Walk in it. Write it!

WRMBA: What’s next for you?

RP: With God’s good help, I hope to develop a detective series with a faith angle. I finished a draft and got good suggestions back from my publishing house. So I’m excited to rework it—to start fresh and give it another go.

I’m also starting to blog again about life as a black writer of faith who works at home. I love every part of that description. So stay tuned.

Meantime, I’m having fun releasing my new books.

WRMBA: What’s the best book (or who’s the best writer) that not enough people know about?

RP: Great question! Surprising answer? The Holy Bible. I finally read it all. After a lifetime in church, I finally read the whole thing. And what did I learn? That everything I wanted to know about writing, and about life, is right there. Highly recommended!

Blessings and thanks to you, Carleen. Much peace and love.

WRMBA: Thank you for Patricia for your time! Can't wait to read that detective series!

National Buy a Book by a Black Author and Give it to Somebody Not Black Month is just around the corner! Which means...it's my blogiversary!

This public service announcement brought to you by White Readers Meet Black Authors is to remind you to pick up a book by a black author while you're doing your Chrismukkwanza shopping next month. The idea behind NBABBABAAGITSNBM is that we educate our paler (or equally pale) brethren who may not be hip to great books by black authors. However, it is perfectly cool to celebrate the holiday by buying books by black writers for people of color too.

As you can see, we've got thrillers, romance, chick lit, literary, paranormal, you name it. There's something for everybody. Over the next month I'll be posting more suggestions, and asking readers to chime in. Speaking of readers....

Leave me a note in the comments about what book(s) you're giving this year and/or leave me a note that you've blogged, tweeted or Facebooked this post and you'll be entered to win a free t-shirt of your choice! Also, 10 lucky winners will get a "I ♥ black authors" button.

P.S.

If you like the music in my PSA ("Afro" by Dirk Dickson), you can download it here.

Tomorrow is the one year anniversary for this blog! One year of links, interviews, reviews, discussions and suggestions. Has anything changed? I don't know. I hear from readers asking for suggestions of books to read. Perhaps the subject of black authors and how our books are promoted gets a little more space on blogs, a little more consideration in the industry. But there is obviously more work to be done.

Want proof? Author Bernice McFadden revisits the whole will-Obama-change-publishing question, which was part of what led to the creation of this blog. And she ran a great essay titled What White Publishers Won't Print, which was sadly written by Zora Neale-Hurston in 1950. Gah!!!!!!!!!!!!

And not just with authors of color. Lots of bloggers are mad at Publisher's Weekly's for their list of the best books of 2009, which had no Uterine American writers.

But enough of that for now. Be assured: I and my fellow authors will continue to fight the good fight.

Here are interviews with two interesting authors:

So many people have tapped their foreheads and told me they have their stories "all up here." I have to say I haven't believed them. Edward P. Jones makes me think I should. (Thanks to the fab Melody Guy for the link.)

Interview with romance author Beverly Jenkins (thanks to Kwana for the link!)

Meet: Dolen Perkins-Valdez, author of WENCH

I finished reading Wench last night and I still feel shaken. The language is spare, the characters hop off the page and live with you, and the story is powerful, powerful stuff. I definitely recommend it!

I'm delighted to introduce you now to the author, Dolen Perkins-Valdez, who was kind enough to answer some questions for the blog.

White Readers Meet Black Authors: Tell us about Wench. How did you come to write this story? What subjects/themes do you explore? What's your writing style like?

Dolen Perkins-Valdez: Wench began when I stumbled upon a fascinating footnote of history. While reading a biography of W.E.B. DuBois, I learned that during the 1850s, there was a summer resort near Xenia, Ohio notorious for its popularity among slaveholders and their enslaved mistresses. I was stunned to learn this little-known historical fact. I decided to do a bit of historical excavation and learn more. At the time, it was very popular among the country's elite to visit natural springs. This particular resort opened in 1852, and became popular among southern slaveholders and their enslaved mistresses. I knew that Ohio was a free state and many of the northerners were abolitionists. Yet I was fascinated to learn that because they did not enjoy vacationing with the southerners and their slave entourages, they stopped coming and business declined. The place closed in 1855. I began by asking myself: If the women entered free territory, why wouldn't they attempt to escape? Is it possible that they actually loved the men? As I made my way through draft after draft, I discovered that these were not questions easily answered. Even the answers I thought I would find turned out to be much more complicated than I'd imagined. (You can learn more in this NPR interview.)

WRMBA: What's your goal(s) as a writer? Do you set out to educate? entertain? illuminate?

DPV: Of course I set out to entertain. Always. I come to writing as a reader first. I judge any book by whether or not I am able to lose myself in it. I have a reading chair at home. With a good book and a stretch of time, I can disappear into that chair. I hope my book does the same for other readers.

WRMBA: What's your biggest surprise-good or bad- (so far) about the publishing biz?

DPV: My biggest surprise has been how nice other writers are. I was always a bit frightened by published writers. Yet I have met so many who are just the nicest people you'll ever meet. I suppose my fear was all in my head. There is a lot of love among writers in this industry, especially among women writers. It's a beautiful thing.

WRMBA: What's next for you?

DPV: At the moment I am concentrating on promoting Wench. Once things slow down a bit, I'll get started on the next one. By summer, I hope to be deep into my next project.

WRMBA: What's the best book (or whose the best writer) that not enough people know about?

DPV: There are so many!!! You are one, Carleen! I'm always telling people about you. Also, I am a huge fan of Tayari Jones. I hope people recognize her brilliance. [For Black History Month, I'm blogging about other writers you should know about over at The Divining Wand. Please stop in.]

WRMBA: Thank you!  Any advice for aspiring novelists? Someone asked me the other night how do you maintain some confidence through the long process of writing a novel. How did you do it?

DPV: So far, I have answered this question by saying "keep the faith" to every interviewer who asks it. But how does one keep the faith? There is no easy answer to that. I am driven by a passion for reading and the act of writing. Find what drives you. Gain energy from that. It is all that matters.

WRMBA: What else do you do with your time besides write--work? family? hobbies? Anything you want to share with readers?

DPV: When I'm not working/writing, I am spending time with my husband and daughter. That's about all I can handle.

Thanks Dolen and continued success with this book and all the ones to come! See you in April!

White readers meet: black sci-fi writers

Yes, Virginia, black folks write about the paranormal. The first specific request I received from a white reader was to highlight some sci-fi, fantasy and horror by African Americans. That's really easy to do as that genre or subgenre seems to be really taking off.

There seem to be three big, huge, stand-out writers in this area right now:

Tananarive Due: So far, I've only read her Joplin's Ghost, which I greatly enjoyed (I'd consider it literary fiction). I also have My Soul to Keep, which Stephen King called "An eerie epic...bears favorable comparison to Interview with the Vampire. I loved this novel."
L.A. Banks: She's the NY Times best-selling author of the Vampire Huntress Legend series, the latest of which is The Darkness. I have to admit I haven't read her work yet. The Darkness has been in my to-read pile forever! One big plus for her books is that her vampire hunters come from a wide variety of religious backgrounds, not just Christian. You can see Banks in part of the HBO special Trueblood Lines here.
Brandon Massey: Massey writes suspence thrillers like Don't Ever Tell, which has been called "relentlessly gripping" and "a diabolical rocket sled of a book." Go here for Book Roast's conversation with Massey.

Coincidentally, these three writers have a new book coming out (Amazon says it's available today) together called The Ancestors. Go here to read an excerpt from Due's novella "Ghost Summer," which appears in The Ancestors.

Of course, the grande dame was Octavia Butler. She wrote some deep, disturbing, powerful stuff. I'd start with Kindred and The Parable of the Sower.

Walter Mosley writes science fiction in addition to mysteries and other books. And Colson Whitehead's The Intuitionist might be called speculative fiction? Whatever you call it, it's very good. It's about a black woman elevator inspector in a society in which elevators are BIG things. (Lisa K., get thee to some Colson Whitehead!)

In his self-published paranormal novel, A Liar's Tale, Andre Coleman asks, "What would happen if all your lies came true?" Coleman says if you buy the book from him and give it to somebody non-black in December, he'll give you a discount! (Great promotional idea, black authors. Maybe for those who aren't selling directly, we can offer an autographed book or a little something for the person gifting the book to the non-black person? Anybody got any suggestions?)

Someone else to check out is Nalo Hopkinson, author of Mojo: Conjure Stories and The New Moon's Arms, amongst others.

Jewell Parker Rhodes' new vampire book, Yellow Moon, is supposed to be dynamite! It's her 2nd story about the Voodoo Priestess Marie Laveau.

Afro-Future Females: Black Writers Chart Science Fiction's Newest New Wave Trajectory, edited by Marlene Barr, sounds a little academic, but also very interesting.

The white reader who asked me to highlight black writers in these genres turned me on to fantasy writer Leslie Ann Moore, author of Griffin's Daughter, which is about a half-human, half-elf woman. Check out Moore's great interview with Shauna Roberts here.

Lastly, but not leastly, Tina McElroy Ansa writes sort of African American magic realism that I really enjoy. Baby of the Family actually spooked me. Ugly Ways is one of my all-time favorite books. Ansa started her own publishing house to publish the sequel, Taking After Mudear. Order it directly from her and you might even get an autographed copy, like I did! Because she was also kind enough to send me a signed ARC (which I kept), I gave away the signed copy of the book to the president of the Wits End Book Club.

You might consider joining the Black Science Fiction Society to learn more about up and coming writers in the genre. Readers, what African American sci-fi, horror writers/books do you recommend?

Meet: Ernessa T. Carter, author of 32 CANDLES

32 Candles is one of my favorite recent reads. I loved it! And I've been so happy to get to know Ernessa's blog Fierce & Nerdy. Like the woman and the blog, the book is funny, charming and very warm.


It is my pleasure to introduce you all to someone I hope will become a very big name in readers' circles (and movie circles, the book's already been optioned) and I urge you to check out her book, which pubs TODAY!


Funnily enough, author Lori Tharps, won the Snubbr.com giveaway here and chose 32 Candles as the book she will receive. So congrats Ernessa on your pub day! And congrats Lori on winning the book! 


White Readers Meet Black Authors: Tell us about your new book.

Ernessa T. Carter:  It’s about Davie Jones, a girl growing up mute, poverty-stricken and unpopular in Mississippi. She sees the movie Sixteen Candles for the first time and decides that she wants her own “Molly Ringwald Ending.” Much drama ensues.

WRMBA: Describe your work for someone unfamiliar with it. What's your writing style like? What subjects/themes do you explore?

ETC: I set out to write what I would call a literary romance, and what others might call women’s fiction. The point was that I love romantic novels and I love literary novels, and I didn’t understand why they were so often mutually exclusive. I like to talk about love, dreams, sanity, and emotion in really different ways. Most of all, I like to write the books I want to read, but aren’t seeing on bookshelves. If I wasn’t a frustrated reader, I probably wouldn’t be a novelist. Also, I like original characters. If my main character reminds you of someone else’s main character, then I want to meet that novelist, because obviously she is a parallel universe me that has come here in some kind of multi-dimensional time machine, and I have a few questions for her.

WRMBA: What's your goal(s) as a writer? Do you set out to educate? entertain? illuminate?

ETC: 

I always say that if there was an apocalypse, I’d put together a troupe and travel the devastated country as a playwright and producer of quality entertainment. All I want to do is entertain and touch readers. The rest is gravy. Wait that’s not true. I also like to represent for awkward. I don’t think awkward black women have enough representation in literature. 

WRMBA: 

You started out as a screenwriter (So did Attica Locke). Why switch to novels? 

ETC: I think a lot people do this. They say, I adore movies and I adore writing, so I should be a screenwriter. That’s what I said to myself when I went and got my MFA for Dramatic Writing. I didn’t take into account that I don’t particularly like writing with other people or being told what to do or leaving the house for work. When you take that into account, I’m probably best suited to be a novelist. I think it’s important for people to keep on reassessing their personalities and make changes accordingly. I don’t regret my tangled journey, though. I got my first FT writing job and met my husband because of my MFA, so I consider it money well-spent, an investment in my future that paid off in really strange ways.

WRMBA: 

What's next for you? 

ETC: 

I recently finished up the rough draft of my second novel, THE AWESOME GIRLS GUIDE TO DATING EXTRAORDINARY MEN, which is about two years in the lives of three best friends, living, struggling, and dating in Los Angeles. I’m fixing for a heavy rewrite of that in the fall. 

WRMBA: 

What's the best book (or whose the best writer) that not enough people know about? 

ETC: That’s an interesting question. Most of the authors I like have tons of fans already. For example, I’ve recommended ORANGE MINT AND HONEY to quite a few people, but usually they’ve either heard of it, already read it, or were planning to read it before I came along. Still, It took me over a year to find the graphic novel, BAYOU by Jeremy Love (which The Bottom of Heaven blogged about here), so I’d like to spread the gospel about that terrific read. I also wish more people would read BLACK WATER RISING by Attica Locke (reviewed here in the L.A. Times) and I adore how Lisa Tucker writes. Her book premises are never the same, and man, is she suspenseful.

Argh! It's Book Blogger Appreciation Week

That's my attempt at pirate talk. Why? Because as part of Book Blogger Appreciation Week, I've been matched with The Book Pirate. We interviewed each other and today I'm running his interview.

Congratulations to all the BBAW Award winners! Please go over to see which of your favorite book bloggers won.

White Readers Meet Black Authors: What’s with the pirates?

The Book Pirate: I think the pirates mythology is pretty neat. The whole adventure seeking, treasure finding, swashbuckling to me seems like a pretty good time. I also one time dressed up like a pirate while working at Borders which lead to the creation of The Book Pirate persona.

WRMBA: Why do you blog about books? Does your blog have a mission or goal?

TBP: I blog about books because I find them interesting. I tend to read a wide range of books that a lot of readers may not have heard about. So one of the things I like to do is make others more aware of lesser known authors while at the same time, having fun with maintaining a blog. If I were to create a mission statement for my blog it would probably be something that states I blog about three things: Books, Pirates, and Writing.

WRMBA: What kinds of books do you blog about?

TBP: All kinds. I'm a big fan of satire novels so I am mainly drawn to those types of books. I like to keep an eye on smaller presses and see what books they have to offer. I tend to stay away from bestsellers. Also, as of late, I have been reading more graphic novels.

WRMBA: Who’s the audience for your blog?

TBP: In all honesty I have no clue. Ideally my audience would be people who like to read books similar to the ones that I do. Realistically, the people who visit my blog are probably my mom and a few other bloggers that I get along with. If I have other people out there reading, then they have not let me know they are.

WRMBA: You’re a book blogger and a book seller? You also write? What do you write and what’s going on in your writing career?

TBP: I use to work at Borders back in the day. Working there started my love of both books and pirates. After that it was a slippery slope and my degree in Video Game Art and Design changed to a degree in English. At the moment I am a senior at Portland State. If I have free time in between all my class work, I work on what every writer calls "my first novel". It's a slow process because I don't devote that much time to it at the moment.

WRMBA: What social media (if any) do you recommend? Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, etc.?

TBP: Twitter and Facebook are a must in my opinion. They are useful tools for social networking and getting to know fellow readers/writers. I think every author should at least attempt to connect with their readers through at least one of these outlets. Goodreads I think is pretty neat but not essential. Recently I discovered Shelfari which I think it a pretty nifty site that can be used to display your book collection.

Black Romance Novels: Guest Blogger Dee Stewart

With Valentine's Day on the horizon, we're talking romance today. Guys, a juicy novel is a great way to let your sweetheart know how you feel. Smart Bitches Who Read Trashy Books will help you decide what she might like. Want more ideas for your sweetheart, your best friend or yourself? Check out APOOO's All About Love Virtual Tour for interviews with a variety of romance writers. And White Readers Meet Black Authors is also here to help!

Here's a great article about the genesis of black romance novels.

Some authors to try:
Donna Hill
Leslie Esdaile Banks
Brenda Jackson
Francis Ray
Rochelle Alers
Readers, what are your favorite romances?

And from Guest Blogger Dee Stewart comes her favorite overall romances (see, told you we read your books!) and her favorite black romance novels. Thanks Dee!
Everything below is from Dee:

I'm a big romance novel fool. So big I watch the Sound of Music weekly. I have Pride & Prejudice on my nightstand, a complete collection of Shakespeare and the brooding Thomas Hardy novels , and I have a huge, big crush on all things Chris Botti and Sade. I got it bad y'all. I can find romance in just about any good tale. But the novels below drip with heart-yearning love and are page turners. Enjoy!

1. Atonement, Ian McEwan. Tragic, heartwrenching love story. The title tells the tale, the plot kicks in the gut. heart break at its best.
2. Purple Hibiscus, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie- Teen angst set during the Biafran war. Beautiful prose despite so much national confusion
3. Zora & Nicky- a modernized version of Romeo & Juliette set between two racially divided megachurches.
4. Shopgirl- Steve Martin is a comic icon, but I crave his romanctic novellas. Shopgirl is poignant, succint, and pitch perfect.
5. Twilight, Stephanie Meyer.You're never too young to fall in love with a vampire. Really. Edward's tortured love for Bella makes you fall for him so badly.
6. Nella Larsen, Quicksand and Passing. Both novellas are about African American women during the Harlem Renaissance who chose to pass for white for a better life. But the love story, that thing we women want so badly, kills them.
7. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, Mary Ann Schaffer. I'm a sucker for period pirces with love stories intertwined. This one is set in WWII with a twinge of humor to get through the hard parts.
8. Revolutionary Road, Richard Yates. Skip the movie and read the book. Although I want to see Leonardo and Kate again. I urge you to relish the book soon after if you can't resist the cinema. What Yates does with a story is profound and the unraveling of a marriage/rebirth of a marriage is incredible. Your heart will tear apart reading this one.
9. Stardust, Neil Gaman. Oh, I love a good fairy tale. I love an adult one even better. This beauty is reminiscent of Princess Bride, but so much more. The idea of falling in love with a star reminds me of Stevie Wonder's hit "Twinkle Twinkle, Little Me." You'll love this fantasy.
10. Tess of the D'ubbervilles, Thomas Hardy. I love pastorals. I do. Mariette in Ectasy, Marilynne Robinson's Gilead. But Thomas Hardy...ooh what it does with a simple cow milking scene takes my breath away.
A bonus, an unconventional love story is Chuck Palahniuk's Fight Club. Forget Brad Pitt for a moment. What Chucky P does with the story frame is amazing. More importantly the premise of a disturbed man who believes the only way to a disturbed woman's hurt is to believe in his own reinvention of himself is what Crazy in Love has to mean. LOL.
Dee Stewart's Top 10 Black Romances
1. Zora & Nicky, Claudia Burney
2. Purple Hibiscus, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
3. Kindred, Octavia Butler
4. Abraham's Well, Sharon Ewell Foster
5. Quicksand, Nella Larsen
6. The Count of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas
7. Awakening Mercy, Angela Benson
8. Jewel, Beverly Jenkins
9. Too Beautiful to Die, Glenville Lovell
10. Love, Toni Morrison

Meet: Brandon Massey, author of CORNERED

I recently declined an opportunity to review a book for another website because I'm not really a reviewer. I'm a booster, a cheerleader. I shake my pompoms and yell "Yay books!" Some genres aren't my cup of tea, but they may be yours. Consider me a matchmaker. Here to introduce good writers to readers who might dig them.

So I link to reviews by others. Like this one of BEFORE I FORGET by Leonard Pitts Jr., which I loved! (Look for Pitts to do a Q&A here soon.)

And link to conversations about issues affecting black authors (and readers) and suggest lists of books. Lately, I'm running a series of Q&A's with various authors. Today, I'm thrilled to introduce you all to thriller writer Brandon Massey.

About Massey (from his website):

I was born June 9, 1973, in Waukegan, Illinois. I grew up in Zion, a suburb north of Chicago.I originally self-published THUNDERLAND, my first novel, in 1999. After managing to sell a few thousand copies on my own, Kensington Publishing Corp. in New York offered me a two-book contract, and published a new, revised edition of THUNDERLAND in December 2002. Since then, I've published up to three books a year, ranging from thriller novels such as THE OTHER BROTHER, to short story collections such as TWISTED TALES, and anthologies such as DARK DREAMS. My newest thriller, CORNERED, will hit stores in August 2009. I currently reside with my wife and our three dogs near Atlanta, GA. Want to know more? Check out my Frequently Asked Questions page.

About CORNERED:

With Nowhere To Run…Corey Webb is living the American dream—successful business, beautiful wife, gifted daughter—but the dream he worked so hard to achieve is about to become a nightmare. When a chance encounter brings him face to face with the dark past he’d long since left behind, Corey knows the threat to his life and family could be deadly.

Unpredictable, intelligent, and terrifyingly ruthless, Corey’s stalker will settle for nothing less than complete submission. He’ll stop at nothing, and sacrifice anyone, to get what he wants. There’s no point in running, no chance of hiding, and no hope for Corey and his family to escape unscathed.

On to my Q&A with Massey:
White Readers Meet Black Authors: Describe your work for someone unfamiliar with it. What's your writing style like? What subjects/themes do you explore?

Brandon Massey: I write suspense thrillers about ordinary people caught up in extraordinary circumstances. Most of my work tends to revolve around families in danger. For most of us, the family unit is the foundation of our lives, and when it’s placed in jeopardy, we will do virtually anything to preserve it.

WRMBA: What's your latest thriller about?

BM: I like to think of CORNERED as my ultimate, family-in-jeopardy thriller. It’s about a family man who has some very dangerous secrets in his past . . . and those secrets suddenly come back to haunt him and his wife and daughter. I’ve always strived to write a fast-paced thriller, but in CORNERED, I wanted to pull out all of the stops and write a story that was impossible to put down. We’ll see if I succeeded.

WRMBA: What's your goal(s) as a writer? Do you set out to educate? entertain? illuminate?

BM: First and foremost for me, a thriller novel must always entertain. Beyond that, I like to shed light on various themes, to give the reader something to think about after they’ve turned the last page.

WRMBA: What's next for you?

BM: I’m working on a series that will follow the adventures of an intriguing new character. No publication date yet, though.

WRMBA: What's the best book (or whose the best writer) that not enough people know about?

BM: Steven Barnes is one of my favorites. He’s written a slew of sci-fi thrillers that haven’t gotten the audience they deserve. Check out CHARISMA and BLOOD BROTHERS for starters.

Meet: Karen Simpson, author of ACT OF GRACE

It is my great pleasure to present published author Karen Simpson! Karen was the first person to comment on my personal blog years ago, and will always hold a special place in my heart for marching into her local Borders and asking where the heck my novel was when she didn't see it in their inventory. Turns out it was right on the shelf and no one in the store would have known that without Karen's intervention. So I am thrilled that I can return the favor and march onto the internet and tell folks go get Act of Grace! Congratulations Karen on the publication of your first novel!

Q&A with Karen:




White Readers Meet Black Authors: Tell us about Act of Grace (read an excerpt here). How did you come to write this story? What subjects/themes do you explore? What's your writing style like?

Karen Simpson: First, I would like to thank you for this opportunity. I always dreamed of appearing as an author on your blog so I’m truly excited to do this interview.

Act of Grace is the story of Grace Johnson a bright, perceptive African American high school senior who saves the life of a Klansman named Jonathan Gilmore. Everyone in her hometown of Vigilant, Michigan wants to know why. Few people, black or white, understand her act of sacrifice especially since rumor holds that years ago a member of the Gilmore family murdered several African -Americans including Grace’s father. Grace wants to remain silent on the matter but Ancestors spirits emerge in visions and insist she fulfill her shamanic duties by bearing witness to her town’s violent racial history so that all involved might transcend it.

Grace begins a journal, but she warns readers upfront that if they are looking for a simple or rational explanation for her actions then they need to look elsewhere. She knows that her accounts of her ability to speak to the dead, along with her connections to a trickster spirit name Oba, will be hard for most people to believe. With insight shaped by the wisdom found in African American mythology and the book, The Velveteen Rabbit, Grace recounts a story of eye-for-an-eye vengeance that has blinded entire generations in her hometown.

Act of Grace is loosely based on an incident that happened several years ago in my hometown during a Klan rally. When what was supposed to be a nonviolent protest became violent, a young black woman saved a white man, (whose was simply wearing a confederate flag T-shirt), from being beaten by throwing her body over him. She got involved because she believed he had the right to his beliefs even if she and others felt he was wrong. For weeks after the event people argued about whether she was a guardian angel or just crazy. My opinion was that she was a compassionate and brave person, worthy of admiration and respect for living up to her values. Five years after this rally I had a very vivid dream about a young woman named Grace and during the dream she yelled out what is more or less the first line of the novel.

My novel fits in with my lifelong interest in how some people are able to forgive what seem to be unforgivable acts and deeds and the subjects of altruism and justice. Especially justice, because while I believe it is my duty as an artist and writer to illuminating injustice, I also believe it is my duty to acknowledge how complicated and sometime messy getting justice is.

WRMBA: What's your goal(s) as a writer? Do you set out to educate? entertain? illuminate?

KS: I set out to illuminate but in an entertaining way in my work. Act of Grace deals with serious and violent issues, but I tried to make sure there was as much sweet as bitter in the work. Grace is a strong, willful young woman being sent out to do strong women’s work, but she has an incredible sense of humor and knows or learns how to experience joy even in the mist of sorrow.

WRMBA: What's your biggest surprise-good or bad- (so far) about the publishing biz?

KS: How much of a business writing really is. I was warned up front that it was but I was still surprised how much marketing an author is required to do herself. I’m finding that I’m better at it than I thought though.

WRMBA: What's next for you?

KS: A new, so far untitled, work that one writer friend described as a historical novel with paranormal sprinkles.

WRMBA: What's the best book (or whose the best writer) that not enough people know about?

KS: I love Dr. Authur Flowers work and his blog: rootwork the rootsblog: a cyberhoodoo webspace: Timely Observations on Politics, Literature, Culture, Struggle and the Hoodoo Way

Dr. Flowers has a new graphic novel from Tara Books called I See the Promised Land on the life of Martin Luther King. He does the telling as a griot, while Patua artist Manu Chitrakar adapts King’s life to his art. Patua artists from Bengal in eastern India are traditional scroll-painters who create vivid art out of all kinds of narratives - from fables and classical tales to contemporary news items. It a wonderful book that gives a new and powerful take on Martin Luther King’s life.

WRMBA: Any advice for aspiring novelists?

KS: If you are serious about getting published, work at writing as you would a career or job. Learn the craft by become a part of critiques groups, go to as many conferences as you can afford. Read all kinds of novels and writing book, but, in addition, read books and blogs about how to conduct the business side of writing. A good book to start with is The Essential Guide to Getting Your Book Published by Arielle Eckstut and David Henry Sterry.