#WritingWithPurpose: Her Kind of Man by Elle Wright

Her Kind of Man by Elle Wright

When Mr. Right is Oh So Wrong

I’ll never let you go…Allina had always dreamed of hearing those words. But when her fiancé, Isaac, utters them, it isn’t a promise—it’s a threat. Scared and confused, with only moments before the wedding, Allina knows what she must do. Forget walking down the aisle; it’s time to run. Back to Michigan. Back to Kent.

Kent has loved Allina for longer than he can remember. Out of respect for their friendship, he’s never crossed the line, but when she turns up on his doorstep wearing her torn, tearstained wedding gown, the fire inside him ignites. He’ll do whatever it takes to make Allina feel safe—like the beautiful, desirable woman she is. But as Kent and Allina grow closer, and their passion pushes deeper, it’s clear that something bigger than a botched wedding still lingers between them . . .

Elle Wright Book Reviews 

“Simply put… Fantastic!!!”
– Tanishia Pearson-Jones on Her Kind of Man

“My favorite romance of 2015!!!”
–Tiffany Tyler on His All Night

“Scandal never read so good! Elle Wright wraps passion, desire and taboo into a delicious read.”
– Cheris Hodges on The Forbidden Man

“What an emotional journey! Elle Wright’s debut release, The Forbidden Man, will hit the right chord for romance readers. From the first few pages, drama unfolds and maintains a steady pace that keeps any sagging bits out of sight. The launch of this new series – Edge of Scandal – starts with a strong, compelling introduction of family and friends. Through Wright’s craft, we see the characters at their best and at their worst. As a result, tension and conflict intertwine to test the boundaries and stamina of the hero and heroine, providing us with rich content to devour. So now that Wright has us hooked, we eagerly await the next installment, His All Night.”
– USA Today on The Forbidden Man

“This gripping debut is packed with drama and a love triangle that will certainly tug at the old heartstrings. Ms. Wright’s entry into the world of romance is a memorable one that I’m sure readers will enjoy from the first page to the last.”
– J.D. Mason, Bestselling Author of the Beautiful, Dirty, Rich series on The Forbidden Man

“4 stars! Scorcher! An emotional story that causes one to evaluate just how much one’s past experiences should color one’s present. The portrayal of the heroine’s huge struggle with allowing anyone to get close to her and the hero’s patience and support are outstanding.”
– RT Book Reviews on His All Night

“From the first sexy encounter, it’s obvious this couple belonged together. Elle Wright weaves an angst-ridden story with smoking hot love scenes that will make you keep reading until the perfectly sweet conclusion.”
– Delaney Diamond, USA Today bestselling author on His All Night

Excerpt: Her Kind of Man by Elle Wright

The doorbell rang. Kent rushed to the front door and swung it open. Allina stood before him in the doorway, her head down, clutching her purse against her chest. Closing his eyes, he slumped forward in relief.

“Allina?” He tilted her head up to get a good look at her face.

Letting his gaze wander over her, he took in the lightweight jacket she wore and the…wedding dress. It was dirty and ripped at the bottom. She was soaking wet, from head to toe. Her hair covered her face like a veil, her hands were clenched together, and her shoulders were slouched. Swallowing, he reached out and swept the hair out of her face.

“Allina,” he called to her softly. “Are you okay?”

Slowly, she raised her head. When their gazes met, he was hit with an overwhelming urge to hold her, which wasn’t really new. It just wasn’t normal. But he’d do anything in that moment to make it better. Her bottom lip trembled and he inched closer to her. When she let out a whimper, he pulled her to him in a tight hug.

As she cried into his chest, he whispered that she’d be okay, that he’d protect her, that he’d help her. But the more he assured her, the louder she cried. His chest tightened as he rubbed her back. His thoughts were spinning. What the hell had happened? He had so many questions, but God, please let her stop crying. It was pure torture. And he’d had the nerve to think Morgan was soft. He hated to see anybody he loved cry. But Allina…she wasn’t an overly emotional person. In all the years he’d known her, he’d only seen her cry a handful of times. That last time had been here, the last time he’d seen her. An ache settled in his throat as she sobbed.

When the tears finally tapered off, he glanced out the door and noticed the cab still sitting in the driveway. Reluctantly, he tapped her arm lightly. She pulled back and her big, glassy eyes stared back at him. He swept his thumbs under her eyes.

“Let me go take care of the fare, okay?”

She nodded, setting her purse on a small table by the door.

“I’ll be right back,” he said gently.

He pulled his wallet out of his pocket and ran out to the cab. After he paid the driver, he returned to the house and kicked the door closed behind him. Wrapping an arm around her, he led her into the living area.

She tugged off her small jacket, giving him a complete view of the form-fitting silk dress. Without a word, she dropped down on the couch. He sat down next to her, their knees touching. “It’s going to be okay,” he murmured, rubbing her arms. “I’ll take care of you.”

Peering up at him, a pained expression in her eyes, she let out a slow breath. “I didn’t get married. I ran. I didn’t even think to change clothes. I just had to get out of there. I bought a train ticket, and then I fell at the station. My dress is ruined,” she cried. “Everything is ruined. I’m ruined.”

He grabbed a box of Kleenex off the coffee table. “You’re not ruined. Stop saying that. Can you tell me what happened?”

“I don’t have anything with me, obviously,” she continued. He could tell she was trying to pull herself together. She cupped a hand over her mouth and let out a muffled sob. “My phone broke. I dropped it, and then Isaac took it.”

He’d replace her phone in the morning, but he had to know… “Did he…hurt you?” he asked. Kent steeled himself for her answer. If he hurt her, I’ll hurt him.

Allina closed her eyes and hugged herself. Shaking her head, she said, “Not really, not physically.” Her hands gripped her elbows.

Her tears continued to fall unchecked. He grabbed a few tissues and wiped her eyes, then her cheeks. “What did he do?” he asked.

“I’ll tell you. I promise. But do you mind if I take a shower, get out of this dress? I can’t stand being in it another minute.”

Sighing, he nodded. “Whatever you need.” It wasn’t a surprise that she’d changed the subject without answering his question. Allina did things on her own time, in her own way. And he’d wait. He always did.

( Continued… )

© 2016 All rights reserved. Book excerpt reprinted by permission of the author, Elle Wright. Do not reproduce, copy or use without the author’s written permission. This excerpt is used for promotional purposes only.

Purchase Her Kind of Man by Elle Wright
Series: Edge of Scandal (Book 3)
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Purchase: http://amzn.com/1455560405  

Check out the books in the Edge of Scandal Series

Edge of Scandal Book One – The Forbidden Man (released July 28, 2015)
Tag Line: She’s walking out on her no-good fiancé… and into the arms of his brother.

Edge of Scandal Book Two – His All Night (released November 24, 2015)
Tag Line: No expectations, no commitments, no one gets hurt…or so she thought.

Order all of the books in the Edge of Scandal Series
http://www.amazon.com/Elle-Wright/e/B00VMEWB78 

Meet the Author
Born and raised in Southeast Michigan near Ann Arbor, Elle learned the importance of reading from her mother. It was also her mother who, later on in her life, gave Elle her first romance novel: Indigo by Beverly Jenkins. From that moment on, Elle became a fan of Ms. Jenkins for life and a lover of all things romance. An old journal she wrote back in college became her first book (which she still wants to publish one day).

Visit Elle’s Amazon Author Page
http://www.amazon.com/Elle-Wright/e/B00VMEWB78

 

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#WritingWithPurpose: Earth’s Quiet Chaos: A Novel by Tomeekha Pitre

Earth’s Quiet Chaos: A Novel
by Tomeekha Pitre

Earth’s Quiet Chaos is set in a historically significant community in Los Angeles, California. Earth Hartley is an African American businesswoman whose life is consumed by caring for her older sister, Moon, and trying to save Moon from the consequences of her careless behavior and substance abuse.

Moon is paranoid, violent, erratic, and irrational. She thrives in her life of chaos, and has no regard for the pain it causes her family.

Ra, their brother, is the lifeline between his two sisters. He’s the glue that holds the family together until a horrible and violent act results in Moon’s arrest.

The story of Earth’s Quiet Chaos is about finding and holding onto true love while dealing with family issues that are considered to be taboo in the African American community, but are relatable to all.

Excerpt: Chapter 2

Rashidah and I giggle at ourselves as we walk from store to store in the open-air mall called The Grove. It’s a hot summer day and we duck into my favorite store to temporarily escape the blazing heat.

“I love the artistic vibe of the designs and fabrics in this store.”

Rashidah holds the tag on a cute shirt and murmurs

“Look at these high ass prices!”

We pick out some outfits to try on. I find some tops, pants and a dress to add to my wardrobe. We walk out of the store and look for a shady spot where it’s cool.

“Xavier will like me in the long summer dress, don’t you think?”

Rashidah doesn’t respond. After a short break, we continue shopping.

We hit up the computer store where she buys herself an iPad for scheduling client appointments. We grab a half veggie sandwich and salad from The Veggie Grill. We hit up every store at The Grove before heading to the Beverly Center.

“I want to treat myself to one of those small flat Louis Vuitton cross body purses.”

We find it at the Louis Vuitton store and then check out other stores that aren’t at The Grove.

Pleased with my purchases and delighted to spend time with Rashidah, the one who knows me best, I’m all shopped out.

“Rashidah, can you believe that I don’t have any plans tonight other than dinner with Ali and a dress rehearsal for the play?”

“Well, you never know. Maybe Xavier will surprise you and he’ll be the one sitting at the dinner table when Ali brings you to the restaurant.”

She has a half grin. She’s in the know of something that I’m not.

“Now that would be the surprise of a lifetime, but if something goes down, I’m ready to dress and impress. That’s for sure.”

Then it hits me to check my cell phone for the time. “Speaking of time, its 3:45. Are you ready to roll?”

“Yep, I think we’ve done enough financial damage for the day.”

“You’re right about that!”

We make our way to the parking lot, fill the trunk with our bags, and drive off.

We go to my place and, like we always do when we go shopping together, Rashidah comes in with her bags and we go through each and every item, trying them on as we help each other change. Rashidah takes down my locs and sections them into twisted bantu knots all over my head.

“Okay, here you go Earth, give it an hour and then we’ll take down the bantu knots and your locs will be slightly curly and I’ll do a quick style for your date tonight.”

“Please, dinner with Ali is not a date. We are friends and are going to catch up with each other. That’s all. Now, if Xavier is at the table that will be an entirely different story.”

“And that is what I’m talking about. We have to stay ready so we don’t have to get ready. So, you are going to pick out your dress and we are going to do your hair and makeup as if Xavier will be somewhere waiting to surprise you tonight.”

She’s in her beauty makeover mood. I’m excited about the thought Rashidah planted in my head. We begin our mission for me, Earth Hartley, to look like a million bucks for my man tonight wherever he may be and at whatever time he decides to show up.

“Besides, it is my B-Earth-Day today, I can look fabulous all day if I decide to do so.”

I need to keep myself in the moment and not get too excited and set myself up for a letdown.

This time of the year in southern California, the weather is unpredictable. But today is nice and hot so we go with it and choose the long summer lounge dress. It’s a sheer fabric so I glide into a white ankle length cotton slip to wear underneath. The dress fabric has water colored flowers of purple, yellow, orange, and green. The butterfly sleeves are elbow length and the front of the dress has a low V-neck. Since I am going out with Ali, who stands six feet, five inches, I put on my four inch gold sandals that tie up the leg.

When I turned 16, my Baba gave me one yellow gold and one white gold chain necklace, one with an Ankh pendant and the other with a Gye Nyame pendant. Both pendants have a crystal planted in the middle. I fasten the white gold chain. The end of the Ankh hangs perfectly at my cleavage. I keep on the earrings that Rashidah gave me and add white gold and yellow gold bangles, and the gold Ankh ring that Momma gave me a long time ago on my right hand and a turquoise ring that Baba gave me on my left hand.

Rashidah takes down the bantu knots, pins up the back and allows the locs to fall in the front to frame my face. She beams with the look of a proud Mother.

( Continued… )

© 2016 All rights reserved. Book excerpt reprinted by permission of the author, Tomeekha Pitre. Do not reproduce, copy or use without the author’s written permission. This excerpt is used for promotional purposes only.

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#WritingWithPurpose: When a Man Loves a Woman 2: A Love Divine

When a Man Loves a Woman 2: A Love Divine
by Tumika Patrice Cain

Have you ever been in love? Has your path ever crossed with someone that caused every cell in your body to wake up and take notice?  Meet Jacquie & Michael!  Share their love, the journey, in When a Man Loves a Woman 2: A Love Divine.  It is a story of hope, accepting love, embracing one’s personal truths, and making no apologies for it. 

Jacquie remembered a time when she was once a tender, caring, hopeless romantic. But happily-ever-after’s and once-upon-a-time fairytales, proved over time to be just that – fairytales. After what she feels has been “a lifetime” of true love eluding her, she loses all hope, resigning to live a single (and loveless) existence. As time passes, she shifts her focus, choosing to concentrate on her career and makes the best of it…alone.

Gorgeous, artsy and charismatic was the man who Jacquie’s eyes fell upon, causing her heart to beat in a rhythm she’d forgotten existed. Michael was more than enough man to make her lose herself inside dreams of a future interwoven with the very fabric of all that defined the beauty of being in love.

But just like in fairytales, there’s always something out of place. For alas, this knight in chocolate armor, was twelve years her junior – an age gap that defined a cultural difference and a major problem for Jacquie’s overbearing mother. Will pressure from family and other obligations turn their love into a nightmare? Or can Michael and Jacquie tune out the rest of the world, embrace the sweetness that they share, and build a foundation that lasts?

Excerpt: When a Man Loves a Woman: A Love Divine

Jacquie didn’t know exactly when it happened. She just knew that it did. She found herself in love. And what was funniest of all was how different he was than what she’d always thought she wanted or been told she should want. He was twelve years her junior, but more man than anyone who had ever come before him. Dealing with him was like a welcomed cool lakeside breeze on a scorching summer day.

Michael was everything she’d ever dreamed of, but didn’t know that she needed or wanted. Tender. Sweet. Attentive. Strong, but not overbearing. All things cool. So opposite of her in many ways, yet so like her in many ways that mattered. It was a perfect fit.

There was a vibrancy about him that instantly caused everything in her to perk up and take notice. He made her want to wear bright colored clothing and flowers in her hair. Big hoop earrings and sexy sandals to show off blood red toenails and fresh pedicures. This was such a huge shift for her. Always prone to muted colors and conservative clothing, she had been raised to subdue everything about herself, almost to the point of extinction of her authentic self. At times she didn’t quite know what to make of the changes taking place in her life. When it became scary, she urged herself to press on pass the fear. This was such a great time to be alive, and for the first time in her life, she actually found that she was happy to be in the land of the living.

It’s funny, but she hadn’t realized how much of a drag her life was until being in his presence made her feel so alive. Made her wonder how long had she been walking around half dead just waiting on someone to breathe life into her. Well, whatever he had, made her spirit soar high above the clouds. In his presence, she became a bird; free to roam, to fly unhindered, to just be. He was the key that unlocked the cage she’d lived in her entire life. Suddenly, she felt years younger. Almost how the teenage years should have been if she hadn’t been so bogged down with responsibilities and pressures. Finally, she felt like other girls looked: youthful, carefree, lovely. She was loving every minute of it!

Old behaviors didn’t just disappear overnight. The practicalities making up her personality were still very much alive and at work. What was different was a newness to get out from under the mundane and do something…anything…new. This newfound state put her in a place where she could dream again. Come to think of it, she couldn’t remember the last time she’d dreamed about doing anything. Clueless as to how to change her life, the dreams slowly faded away like the last refrain of a song. Repeat, repeat, then fade, fade, fade until finally it was gone. Over. Finito. That’s what happened to Jacquie. Her dreams had died into the empty pause that lives between songs. He was her new song.

This season would start with a fresh hairdo. The signature wrap, although lovely and perfectly coiffed, would have to go. Surely she could find some sort of sweeping updo that could be versatile enough for both day and night, work and play. Until the right look came along, Jacquie found herself really studying the looks of other women who had some of what she felt being birthed in her spirit. That’s what made her decide to finally let the soft coral nail color go in search of something vibrant and popping. Yep….fire engine red. How about that?! She found a similar color for her lips, as well as a plum, bronze and a translucent shade to switch up her looks.

Clothing was next. Flirty skirts, fitted tops, and big belts replaced stiff suits and pleated pants. And for leisure, she went all out. Wide-legged pants, fitted jeans, long tops, high heeled boots, funky jewelry. She was absolutely loving this transformation. Her new colors were extreme. Orange, fuschia, lime green, hot pink, reds, plums, emeralds, bronze, cobalt – even in the winter. A host of jewel tones to help celebrate her new found Queendom. Yes, it was high time a daughter of royalty looked like one. She had been a King’s kid living beneath her privilege for far too long.

For as much as she came into the self that had been hidden all those years, the more the world presented other opportunities for her to embark upon. Her appetite had been whetted and a deep desire to explore the world had been birthed. Even alone, she found herself doing all sorts of things she would not have done before.

This transition had her giving serious thought to her future and what she really wanted to do with the rest of her life. She knew that being an executive assistant wasn’t it, although she had not figured out exactly what it was. Inside she could feel a stint with school coming. And travel. Lots and lots of travel. She was looking forward to all of it.

( Continued… )

Copyright 2016 Tumika Patrice Cain – excerpt from When a Man Loves a Woman 2: A Love Divine.

Book 1: When a Man Loves a Woman: A Season of Change
Book 2: When a Man Loves a Woman: A Love Divine

A novel of enduring strength, undeniable empowerment, and the compelling ability to overcome incredible odds, book one in the When a Man Loves a Woman series is a powerhouse that will impact readers long after the last words have been read.

Purchase Book 1: When a Man Loves a Woman: A Season of Change
Link:  http://amzn.com/B019HLV65U 

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When a Man Loves a Woman: A Season of Change
by Tumika Patrice Cain

The stars seemed to have been aligned for Avery and Alicia. From the outside looking in, Lady Luck passed their way and left a fortune! They had a whirlwind, fairytale romance filled with all the little things that make dreams come true, a wedding of grace and beauty, and perfectly magical careers that produced almost enough money to burn. They were the picture-perfect couple.

Unfortunately, time has a way of revealing fissures in what appears to the naked eye as impenetrable. The results send this fairytale romance spiraling out of control.

Avery, as perfect and so right as he seemed, struggles to free himself from his demons. He clings to this delicate relationship that he desperately needs as if his last breath depends on it. Alicia, on the other hand, struggles to make the necessary corrections that will release her from a prison of unexpected, agonizing turmoil.

A novel of enduring strength, undeniable empowerment, and the compelling ability to overcome incredible odds, Book one in the When a Man Loves a Woman series is a powerhouse that will impact readers long after the last words have been read.

Excerpt: When a Man Loves a Woman: A Season of Change

That was one of the best days of my life. I’d finally gotten what I’d wanted forever. Someone who loved me. Loved me so much he wanted to tell the world. Wanted to make me his forever.

We slowly made our way out on the balcony, where all of the preparations had been made. It was all so lovely. Michael had black wrought iron patio furniture where we sat and ate the tantalizing dishes the caterers had prepared. There was fresh steamed lobster with lemon butter sauce, New England crab cakes, seafood kabobs and a wide range of other seaside resort foods that reminded me of the first weekend we’d spent out of town.

At Avery’s request I’d gotten off of work early one Friday and met him at the airport. The spontaneity of the whole weekend made everything seem so fresh. Northwest Airlines took us to Massachusetts where we spent four glorious days at Martha’s Vineyard. Just lying on the beach and soaking up the rays. I didn’t even have a change of clothes. Ave said not to worry about it; we’d just go shopping when we got there. That’s exactly what we did. A perfect weekend spent miles away from reality. In a cove on the beach is where we first made love. I’ll never forget it.

Once the sun set and we were slow dancing on the verandah, Avery touched my arm and motioned for me to look out across the river. I couldn’t believe my eyes. Usually the Cadillac Club in Windsor was all lit up at night in white neon. But instead of the marquee reading “Cadillac Club” it read, instead, “Alicia Will You Marry Me?” I remember being speechless for endless moments as tears welled up in my eyes, the lump in my throat rendering me incapable of speaking. The only response I gave was to gently touch his face and shake my head yes, while tears of happiness poured down my cheeks. So much for my mascara. He picked me up and swung me around for the longest time, whispering in my ear “I love you” time and time again.

It was several long minutes before I could compose myself. All remaining memories of that night are now a blur, except for us nibbling on the most succulent strawberries a mouth could feast on. And us making slow, sweet love all night under the stars while the moonlight caressed our skin.

Book Reviews: When a Man Loves a Woman

Tumika Patrice Cain has poured her abundant faith, wisdom and passion for helping others into a new book that tackles one of the toughest of family crises. Tumika’s extensive experience ministering to others through writing and counseling, as well as many years in human services, make her a voice worth hearing. 
~ Sheri Fink, Pulitzer Prize Winner & Author of War Hospital

Tumika Cain did an outstanding job on this novel and I am just still reeling from the contents. 
~ OOSA Online Book Club

This has to be the best book I have read this year. 
~ Book Referees

It is tragedy and triumph in its most raw form. 
~ Matthew Keith Reviews

Cain is a true wordsmith, and her writing has a refreshing maturity. 
~ Sweet Georgia Press

This reviewer urges you to give Tumika Cain’s premiere novel, When a Man Loves a Woman: A Season of Change, a chance today! These pages leave no stone unturned, and no heart untouched. 
~ Lindsay McDonald, Indyscribable

A powerful read with many powerful messages, When a Man Loves a Woman: A Season of Change shows we have to be willing to move on in order to grow. 
~ Cyrus Webb, Conversations Live


Purchase When a Man Loves a Woman: A Season of Change
Link:  http://amzn.com/B019HLV65U 

Meet the Author
Tumika Patrice Cain is an award-winning author, media personality and publisher whose works centers around uplifting, encouraging and empowering others to live the abundant life. She is also an accomplished poet; founder of the Say What?? Book Club; and host of the internet radio shows Living Abundantly with Tumika Patrice Cain, In The Spotlight, and Say What?? Author Spotlights. In addition, she is a respected book reviewer and columnist for PEN’Ashe Magazine, a contributing writer for BLOG and Belief Magazines, and editor for two smaller publishing companies.

A champion for indie authors, she works tirelessly to level the playing field to bring exposure to those authors who excel at their craft, but whose marketing budgets are limited. Inkscriptions, her publishing company, offers a myriad of book publishing services. Living by the motto of each one reach one, each one teach one, Tumika shares her passion for purpose and for life with all who cross her path.

She is the 2013 recipient of a Spoken Word Billboard award for her debut novel, Season of Change (December 2012), a novel that has since been picked up by Shan Presents and will be re-released as When a Man Loves a Woman – A Season of Change in December 2015. To her publishing credit, she is also the author of After the Rain…a Poetry Collective (March 2014) and The Heart of a Woman (August 2015). Tumika’s works have been published in numerous magazines, anthologies, newsletters and periodicals.

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#WritingWithPurposeTour: Crime Thrillers by Sage

Introducing the Black Bird Detective Series by Sage

When you begin to read Assumptions Abound you step inside of the book and journey along with the characters. Assumptions Abound will keep you on the edge of your seat as you ride every twist and turn.

Assumptions Abound is a murder mystery, thriller and thought-provoking novel combined into one. This novel is told through the words of Monét Worthington.  Monét is a naïve girl with a tumultuous past and a troublesome childhood. Subjected to rape, mental and physical abuse, Monét is terrified to think about her future. Her terror continues as she finds herself running for her life! Lucky for Monét she has Victoria to protect her. Victoria loves Monét and she is willing to do anything for her, including commit murder. Only Monét has no idea that Victoria exists.

Monét tells her life story as her loved ones and those around her are brutally murdered. The plot twists and turns as the murder investigations ensue. This psychological thriller has all of the key ingredients to create an explosive literary masterpiece.

Detective Nina Kelsey is also introduced in this series. Detective Kelsey is not who she appears to be. A complex person with her own dark past, Detective Kelsey is always searching for more. She is determined to solve the Cold Creek murders before another life is lost.

Fireworks will ignite when Detective Kelsey and Monét Worthington meet and someone ends up dead.

Through this story, the Black Bird Detective Series is born. Assumptions Abound is the first book in the Black Bird Detective Trilogy. This series features characters from Assumptions Abound, including Raven Carter. Raven is a young African-American detective determined to solve murders in the small town of Cold Creek.  As she solves mysteries, she also works to uncover the truth about her past. The trilogy continues with Seeking Truth and Sweet Revenge.

Assumptions Abound by Sage
Assumptions Abound is a murder mystery, thriller and thought-provoking novel combined into one. This novel is told through the words of Monét Worthington. Raised by her father and stepmother during a difficult part of their marriage, Monét is on a mission to find true love and answers. Monét is a naïve girl with a tumultuous past and a troublesome childhood. Subjected to rape, mental and physical abuse, Monét is terrified to think about her future. Her terror continues as she finds herself running for her life!

Lucky for Monét she has Victoria to protect her. Victoria loves Monét and she is willing to do anything for her, including commit murder. Only Monét has no idea that Victoria exists.  Monét tells her life story as her loved ones and those around her are brutally murdered. The plot twists and turns as the murder investigations ensue.

Enter Detective Kelsey. Someone is murdering the citizens of Cold Creek County and Detective Nina Kelsey is determined to find out whom. Lonely and running from a haunting past, she finds solace in her work. She has pledged to solve this mystery at all costs.

Will her life be the ultimate price?

Prologue

The darkness enveloped my room as I lay in bed with my eyes shut tightly and my arms wrapped across my chest. My heart beat steadily and rapidly against my chest. I said a silent prayer that tonight would be different, but I knew in my heart that tonight would be like so many other nights before it.

When I heard his footsteps in the distance I closed my eyes tightly and prayed that he would walk by my room. He quietly opened the door and pried the covers away from me. He lay in the bed next to me and I cried as another night passed by without an answer to my prayer. I decided that if I wanted to get away from him, I would have to take matters into my own hands.

He kissed my cheek and whispered “good night” in my ear. I didn’t respond. I was hoping that he would die right there. He didn’t care about me. My thoughts were swirling around in my head. I realized that nobody could save me from this monster. Then suddenly I heard a voice.

The voice whispered in the darkness, “You must do it. Who else will protect you, but you?” I listened to the voice. “Have you ever killed anyone?” said the voice. “No!” I responded. I was only seven years old. I knew nothing about death. I thought to myself. The voice heard my thoughts. “True you are only seven, but we can show them that it doesn’t matter how old you are. You can still make a difference.” The voice calmly replied.

And so it began…

Have you ever killed anyone? I have and I must say it is the most exhilarating experience in the world. If I had to quantify it I would say that committing a murder is more exhilarating than sky diving, surfing or skiing down a hill at top speed. There is something powerful about watching the life leave a person’s body and hearing them take their last breath.

The first person I killed was my mother’s boyfriend Luciano. He was a handsome Italian man with dark hair and dark brown eyes. I remember everything about him. He would touch me in my special place, even after I told him that he shouldn’t. He took advantage of me and I promised myself that I would never let another person take advantage of me again.

I took a knife out of the drawer in the kitchen and hid it under my pillow. I knew that once my mother fell asleep, he would creep into my room and that particular night I was ready for him. I pretended like I was sleeping when he slowly opened the door and walked into my room. I felt him climb into the bed behind me and snuggle close to my back. I felt his breath on my neck. When he reached around to take my nightgown off of me, I grabbed the knife. Before he could react, I shoved the kitchen knife into his throat.

I still remember the look on his face. His eyes bulged out of his head and he grasped at his throat trying to stop the blood. My heart was beating so fast and I felt a rush of pure adrenaline. I watched him closely as he struggled to breathe. I put my ear close to his face; smelling the metallic scent of his blood and listening to him mumble inaudible words.

I watched intently as his chest rose and fell for the last time. As I watched the life leave his body, I knew that this could not be the end.

Luciano died that cold rainy night, he was the first person to meet the real me. Luciano met Victoria as his life slowly crept away from his body.

( Continued… )

© 2015 All rights reserved. Book excerpt reprinted by permission of the author, Sage. Do not reproduce, copy or use without the author’s written permission. This excerpt is used for promotional purposes only.

Order Book 1: Assumptions Abound (Black Bird Detective Series) 
Link: http://amzn.com/B00642W77M 

Seeking Truth by Sage
The characters from Assumptions Abound are all grown up and searching for answers. Detective Raven Carter is on a quest. For years her mother lied to her about her past and now that her mother is dead, Raven wants to know the truth.

Joel knows that his past is riddled with secrets, whispers and lies, but wait until he finds out that it also involves murder. Joel and Raven are engaged and planning their future together. Little do they neither past will be the ultimate deciding factor for their future.

Meet Raymond Thomas, the Superintendent of Cold Creek Public Schools. As the Superintendent of a large school district, Raymond has alot to prove. When his employees are systemically murdered, Raymond may have more to prove than he could ever imagine.

Order Book 2: Seeking Truth by Sage
Link: http://amzn.com/B008D2ZARA 

Sweet Revenge by Sage
A high profile murder sets Raven on a wild goose chase to find the killer. Her boss is pressuring her to handle the case and he is personally involving himself. Raven must be careful; as she chases the next criminal, someone is chasing her. She hasn’t forgotten about her estranged husband. He is the love of her life, only problem…he wants her dead, or does he?

The wealthy son of a local socialite and businessman are adding to Raven’s headache. He is demanding answers that Raven does not have. When the case heats up, Raven may end up burned.  Raymond is back with an ax to grind. He has enacted a plan to take down those who damaged his reputation, stole his money and ruined his life. Will he succeed?

Everyone is out for revenge….but as the saying goes, Revenge is a dish best served fast and cold!

Order Book 3: Sweet Revenge 
Link: http://amzn.com/B012P17C1Q 

The Butterfly: A Novel by Sage
Meet the Butterfly, sexy, intelligent and lethal but severely lacking in self-esteem. With nothing to lose and everything to gain she is on a journey. A journey to make everyone who hurt her, pay. As confident as she is about her journey, there is one thing that she never considered. Will that thing be her ultimate destruction?

Order  Book 4:  The Butterfly:A Novel by Sage
Mystery, Thriller & Suspense
Black Bird Detective Series
Link: http://amzn.com/1522738673 

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#WritingWithPurpose: The Sisterhood: Book One by Nichol Bradford

The Sisterhood: Book One 
(The Sisterhood Trilogy)
by Nichol Bradford

The Sisterhood: Exploring mental freedom through fiction!

The Sisterhood tells the story of what becomes possible when intelligence and hope are channeled into an outrageous mission. Founded by Vivian Delacroix, The Sisterhood Foundation is a non-government organization funded by MSK Incorporated, a massive multinational built over decades by an organization of black women. The women invest billions into leading edge technology, pooling their profits into communities, schools, and treatment centers in the battle against Cocanol, a new and addictive drug.

The group is overwhelmingly successful until their progress is noticed by the Raptor, a ruthless enemy with pawns in the US government and ties to the Cocanol manufacturers and international power houses intent on controlling the world. As a first step in a war on the Sisterhood, Vivian is assassinated, triggering a Homeland Security investigation, a Senate inquiry, and a series of increasingly dangerous events.

To survive, the women, led by Chief Security Officer Tonia Rawlings, must fight against unseen forces. Battling across a public stage of media coverage and Wall Street, the women rush against all odds to outwit their foes—even as they execute the final stage of Vivian’s secret plan.

As their enemies draw near, the women risk everything, testing the bonds of faith, marriage and friendship. Along the way, they discover awful truths, make strange alliances and learn why they are the most dangerous women the world has ever seen. Together, they put everything on the line—testing themselves and the limitations the world tries to place on them.

EXCERPT: CHAPTER 1

Friday, December 5th – 2:00 am

Sisterhood Headquarters – Middleburg, VA, outside Washington D.C.

Tonia Rawlings strode down the long, empty corridor. Her urgent steps made sharp echoes on the granite floor. Outside, her security team was assembled, awaiting her command. It seemed fitting that she was the last to leave…given what she was about to do. Tonia took one last look to sear the memory in place before stepping out into the night.

“Do it,” Tonia ordered.

Flames exploded through the windows, shattering glass across the grounds. They licked the sky in swaths of bright hungry reds, violent oranges and insatiable yellows. The fire jumped from building to building, laying waste to years of effort and thousands of sacrifices. “Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.” Tonia whispered.

Pamela Griffin turned. The mother in her heard a strange break in Tonia’s voice. Pamela shivered, feeling the severe night chill that found its way under collars and inside gloves. An acrid cutting smell of smoke filled the air. She stole another glance at Tonia but could read nothing from the woman at her side. How awful it must be to give tonight’s order, to destroy something loved, even to preserve something valued. But, following Vivian Delacroix’s lead had always meant sacrifice. No one was exempt.

Pamela touched her lightly on the arm. “Tonia, it was planned.”

“Yes, it was,” she nodded without turning. The last thing Tonia needed right now was direct eye contact with Vivian’s first recruit. Architects had created the exterior of the Sisterhood’s headquarters, but Tonia was the one who massaged the plans to meet their unique need – a fortress, destructible from within but impregnable from without.

Was it really so long ago that she and Vivian had found the site? Tonia remembered how Vivian had jumped out of the car and sprinted, laughing, across the property. Tonia ran right behind her, eyes trained on the tree line for enemies, ever Vivian’s protector. Vivian stopped, spun around, her arms held high. Her eyes sparkled with destiny. “Here, Tonia. Can’t you see? This, this, is where we will gather our strength.”

They had laughed then, in the exact spot where Tonia now stood. Every computer system in the Sisterhood’s vast holdings updated to servers in a man-made cavern beneath her feet. Their entire history, recorded in bits and bytes, was a maze of money and covert investments. One explosion would obscure hundreds of millions of dollars in assets as well as their research, the research that had likely brought disaster to their door.

“Move out,” Tonia bellowed, her voice returning to its normal boom. The women, jolted into action, leaped into their Jeeps. They divided into pairs and raced away. Any law enforcement officer worth his badge would take one look at their expressions, unblinking eyes, bodies rippling with strength, and become suspicious. The women were not assassins or Marines, but they sure as hell looked the part. They were more than capable of protecting their own; after all, they were their Sister’s Keepers.

( Continued… )

© Reprint 2015. All rights reserved. Book excerpt reprinted by permission of the author, Nichol Bradford. Do not reproduce, copy or use without the author’s written permission. This excerpt is used for promotional purposes only.


Download The Sisterhood: Book One 
Amazon Link: http://amzn.com/B006IMLCRE
Afro-futurism, African American Fiction; Mystery; Thriller & Suspense

About the Author
Nichol Bradford, CEO/Founder, Willow.  Nichol Bradford is fascinated by human potential, and has always been interested in how technology can help individuals expand beyond their perceived mental limits to develop and transform themselves to the highest level. She spent the last decade exploring these ideas in the online game industry, serving as a senior executive with responsibility for strategy, operations and marketing for major brands that include: Activision/Blizzard, Disney, and Vivendi.

Most recently she managed the operations of Blizzard properties, including World of Warcraft, in China. Now, as the CEO of the Willow Group, Nichol is applying same skills to the realm of elevating psychological well-being. Willow is a transformative technology company focused on employing rigorous scientific research to develop training protocols, hardware and software that can produce a reliable and positive change in the human experience.

Nichol has an MBA from Wharton School of Business in Strategy, and a BBA in Marketing from the University of Houston. She is a fellow of the British American Project, currently serves on the board of the Brandon Marshall Foundation for Mental Health, and is a former term member of the Council on Foreign Relations. She is the author of The Sisterhood, and an amatuer boxer.

Website: http://www.nicholbradford.com 
Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/nicholbradford
Ebook: http://www.amazon.com/The-Sisterhood-Book-One-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B006IMLCRE

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Intimate Conversation with Chicago Sistahs and Friends Book Club

Intimate Conversation with Chicago Sistahs and Friends Book Club

Founders of Sistahs and Friends – Yvette Barrett, Malinda Burden and Priscilla Myers. In December, 2014 we lost our 4th founder, Theresa Jackson.

BPM: Please tell us about your book club! How did your club get started?  Does the name of the club have a special meaning? How many members do you have? 
Sistahs and Friends Book Club started in 1997, in Chicago, when 4 young professional co-workers, Priscilla Myers, Theresa Jackson, Malinda Burden and Yvette Barrett discovered they shared a common passion. That passion was the love of reading and the desire to share their thoughts with each other. We had our first book club discussion in a conference room during our lunch hour. It was such a great experience that we decided to continue and called ourselves, Sistahs Bookclub. Later on we had a male that wanted to join us. So in fairness to him and other potential males, we changed our name to Sistahs and Friends Bookclub. We started with 4 and currently have 12 members.

BPM: What is the purpose for your organization? Is there something in particular that makes your group different from other groups? 
Sistahs and Friends unites mature women and men from diverse backgrounds together in sister and brotherhood. We promote spiritual, motivational and intellectual development and awareness through the reading of fiction and non-fiction books, embracing the style and diversity of each member and each author. What we thought would be just a past time, for getting together among friends and sharing views on literature, led to so much more. We increased our membership, produced a mission statement, elected officers, created by-laws, paid dues, and 19 years later we are still Sistahs and Friends Book Club.

BPM: What legacy will your club leave for those watching in the community?
Sistahs and Friends exemplify the true essence of sisterhood. Our legacy will be that true Sistahs support, lift and motivate each other not tear them down.

BPM: Tell us about your members. What is the demographic of your group? How would you describe the personality of your group as a whole? 
Our members are mature professionals who all grew up from various backgrounds and areas in the city of Chicago. We started this group 19 years ago as “Bubbies” and have grown into mature outgoing, outspoken women who love a great book, with a great meal, a great glass of wine and a great discussion. These is no room and no tolerance for pettiness and or catiness. We may not always agree on the rating of a book but we will always have a great debate regarding the merits of our selections or lack thereof.

BPM: When accepting members into the group, what are you looking for in the person? Has it been difficult to get people to join the group or to stay in the group? Do you have an online version of the group?
We look for someone who will fit in our circle and have the passion for reading as we do. When a vacancy occurs, we invite the potential member to a meeting to ensure that their personalities mesh with the current membership. We have never had a problem attracting members however in the beginning we had problem retaining them. Some members were not committed to reading which lead to the creation of bylaws which have proved to solve the problem. Our current members have been active 10 years or more.

BPM: In your opinion, what makes a good book club conversation? Do you keep the conversation on topic, or roam? Does the availability of a reading guide help with the discussion?
By everybody sharing their own opinion of the book it leads to great conversations. Sometimes we can walk into the meeting ready to give a low rating and after much discussion it can easily be adjusted higher. Our sistahs are definitely not shy, they are very outspoken and will tell you like it is with no regrets. Many authors have experienced the brutal truths of Sistahs and Friends. Sometimes a reading guide is helpful but we don’t always use. We have very creative members who come up with games, quizzes, etc. to engage the group and stimulate conversation during the meeting.

BPM: How do you make your book selections for the month? Do you read and discuss books outside of the book of the month? Do you use social media to share your featured books with other readers? 
Sistahs and Friends Book Club’s season is from September – May. During the May meeting members randomly select a month to host for the next season. It is the responsibility of the host to select the book for the month which she is hosting. Most of the members make their selection based on recommendations from family and friends, reading over the summer or just reading reviews on-line. There have been times when some of us have read another book and discussed it outside of the book of the month for the bookclub. We share our book selections (2011 to present) on our website.

BPM: Do you prefer to read books by authors of color? Do you support self-published authors? Do you borrow books from the library?
In the early years of Sistahs and Friends we only read books by African American authors. However over the years we have developed an appetite to broaden our horizon and not limit ourselves. During the years we have supported all authors as well as self-published authors and invited some of them to attend our bookclub discussions (via in person, Skype, FaceTime and conference call). Yes, a few of our members still borrow books from the library but the majority have Kindle or a Reader.

BPM: What genre/types of books do you prefer to read as a group? Have the types of books changed over time? 
The types of books we prefer to read has changed over the years, in the beginning we read books by authors like E. Lynn Harris, Michael Baisden, James Patterson, Eric Jerome Dickey, Terry McMillan, Zane and J. California Cooper. The books dealt with short stories, sex and relationships respectively. As we have matured so have our books. Today, we read books by authors like Brandon Massey (Don’t Ever Tell), Khaled Hosseini (Kite Runner), Pamela Samuels Young (Anybody’s Daughter), Dwayne Alexander Smith (Forty Acres), and Daniel Black (Perfect Peace) and Naleighna Kai (Every Woman Needs a Wife). As you can see our selection of books have expanded and our members have welcomed all authors regardless of ethnicity.

BPM: Can you share a few 5-star books that have expanded your horizons?
Here are a few that received the highest rating that we give – (5stars) Good To The Last Drop.
Standing at the Scratch Line – Guy Johnson
Forty Acres – Dwayne Alexander Smith
Perfect Peace – Daniel Black
Kite Runner – Khaled Hosseini
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks – Rebecca Skoot
The Red Tent – Anita Diamant
My Soul to Keep – Tananarive Due
Redeeming Love – Francine Rivers
The Douglass Women – Jewell Parker
No Regrets – Patricia Haley

BPM: Do you host special events during the year or do you work for any charities? Do you get together as a group to socialize outside of your book club meetings?
Sistahs and Friends started out doing a grab bag each Christmas but decided that we wanted to give back to the community instead. So now we do just that. We have worked with Chicago Public Schools, DCFS, and St. Joseph Children’s Hospital. Through them we have provided children with everything from clothing, school supplies to toys. This year we decided to change our focus gave to a domestic violence shelter. We provided them with purses filled with all the day to day necessities. We are very proud of our accomplishments and it fills us with such satisfaction to see the smiles. Sistahs and Friends have an outing once a year in the summer (during our break) to do something fun with each other (dinner, painting, plays, and architectural tours). We have also hosted a luncheon, had weekend trips to Wisconsin, San Francisco and next year our 20th Anniversary (TBD).

BPM: Do you have any words of wisdom for other readers who are in or who might want to start a book club?
Don’t be discouraged if you don’t start out with committed members. It took us at least 10 years before we had truly committed members. We had to develop bylaws to vet out serious readers versus those who were only in the club to eat, drink and be merry. As a result, some members have come and gone. Also, don’t look for members who are all exactly like you. You will end up with the Stepford Book Club and this will make for very boring conversations. What has kept us going over the years is our passion for good reads, our like of each other and our mutual respect of each others differences.

BPM: Can we invite you to future events and discussions? Do you have a website or social media pages?
We would love to receive an invite for future events, chats and discussions. You can follow us below on our website and Facebook.

Website: sistahsandfriendsbookclub.com
Facebook: Sistahs and Friends

 

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Intimate Conversation with Re’Gena Bell-Roberts

Intimate Conversation with Re’Gena Bell-Roberts

Re’Gena Bell-Roberts was featured on the Steve Harvey Show as one of the Harvey’s Heroes!

Re’Gena Bell-Roberts is an actress, poet, award-winning playwright and author whose published work includes a collection of prose and poetry. She earned a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of California at Los Angeles and raised her four children as a single parent while continuing to pursue a career.

Re’Gena won the Rockefeller Foundation award for her play “Eclipse”; and a Prose award from Culver City Community College. She produced and directed an NAACP Martin Luther King Day celebration event; and received numerous awards for her community service. She was featured on the Steve Harvey Show and honored as one of “Steve Harvey’s Hero.”  Re’Gena resides in Murrieta, California.

BPM: Tell us about your passion for writing. Why do you write? What drives you? What impact do you want your book to make on the readers?
My passion for writing began at an early age while searching for a voice among my seven siblings. It was then that I discovered the power of the written word in the form of poetry or short stories. I am driven to write because it empowers me as an artist to evoke my inner feelings, thoughts and emotions and share them with others.

I want Walking on Thin Ice to take the reader on an unforgettable journey of love, pain and heartbreak that will inspire, motivate an empower them to make better choices and decisions in order to have a better quality of life.

BPM: Can you share a little of your current work with us? Introduce us to your book. 
Walking on Thin Ice is a love story told amid the backdrop of passion, betrayal and pain. The book opens up with all the candor –– frustration, love, trial, tribulation and humor –– indicative of the human spirit. I wrote the book after cultivating it mentally and physically for many years.

Walking on Thin Ice, a memoir of love, hate, envy, and greed traces a young woman’s pursuit of stardom down a dangerous road that leads to shattered dreams and a harrowing fate.

The young woman longed for fame and fortune until at last a man comes to set her free – only to be betrayed again. The saga portrays her tumultuous life as she struggles to deal with a tragic life-threatening event. Against life’s most overwhelming odds, she fights back with unshakable strength, courage, and a will to survive.

BPM: Finish this sentence- My writing offers the following legacy to future readers… 
My writing offers the following legacy to future readers… a message of hope in the face of adversity.

BPM: What was your primary quest in publishing this book?
My primary quest in publishing the book was to share my story–– my struggles, my truths and my journey to convey a message of love, hope and redemption.

BPM: Who did you write this book for? Why?
I wrote this book for young girls and women who are craving the love of a man, as I did, and who are interested in or can relate to the ups and downs of a tumultuous relationship, and the risks of following your heart and desires into dangerous territory. I wrote this book for anyone who has ever been in an abusive relationship whether it’s physical, emotional or psychological. The story is as relevant today as it was decades ago.

BPM: Walk us through your journey to success. How did you get to this point? What has been your greatest challenge and how did you overcome it?
My success came after my lowest point and on the threshold of losing faith until I surrendered the reigns of my life to God. My faith allowed me to trust God and understand that sometimes the plans we make for ourselves is not the plan that He has for us. At that point I prepared to use my gift of writing knowing that it would be a long and arduous task.

My greatest challenge was facing reality –– the truth about the choices I made and how they impacted not only my life, but the lives of my family and friends—my loved ones. I overcame the experience first by accepting responsibility in the detrimental role I played in self-destruction and second, accepting the amazing grace of a second chance.

BPM: At what point in your career did you discover your real worth and own it?
I discovered my real worth the moment I regained use of my hands and placed wet ink on paper. I claimed it and took ownership of it.

BPM: Was there anyone early in your career that recognized your talent and help cultivate it?
Yes. It was definitely two of my English/literature teachers in high school who encouraged my writing talent and offered personal selections of books for me to read.

BPM: Do you feel as if your writing is making a positive impact on readers, women, or the world?
Yes. I do believe my writing is making a positive impact on readers of both gender, male and female. I feel that my book causes readers to pause and examine their relationships. It draws them deep into the very fiber and psyche of how it feels to be “Walking on Thin Ice.”

Connect with Re’Gena Bell-Roberts 
Twitter:  http://twitter.com/rlbroberts 
Website:  http://walking-on-thin-ice.com
Facebook:  http://facebook.com/regena.bellroberts


Order Walking on Thin Ice by Re’Gena Bell-Roberts
Download Link:  http://amzn.com/1491764759 
Genre:   True Story. Non-fiction. Memoir 

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Intimate Conversation with Tia Williams

Intimate Conversation with Tia Williams

Tia Williams is the ultimate style insider. For fifteen years, she was a magazine beauty editor (at Elle, Lucky, Glamour, Teen People, and Essence.com), and created one of the first style blogs, the award-winning Shake Your Beauty. She’s the best-selling author of The Accidental Diva and the It Chicks series, and co-writer of Iman’s The Beauty of Color. Currently a copy director at Estee Lauder Companies, Tia lives in Brooklyn with her 7-year-old diva daughter and their various accessories.

BPM: When did you get your first inkling to write, and how did you advance the call for writing?
TW: I’ve always been a writer. I can’t do math, I have zero business sense, and I’m a disaster in the kitchen. But writing always felt right to me. I wrote my first book at age 7! And two weeks after I graduated from college, I moved to New York to become a magazine beauty writer. I also knew I wanted to publish books, but at twenty-two, I felt like I hadn’t had rich enough experiences to inspire juicy fiction. But after five years in New York – falling in love with a couple of charismatic lunatics, having my heart broken, experiencing a career in fashion magazines, finding a colorful community of young black journalists and authors in Brooklyn – I felt like I had enough material for my first novel, The Accidental Diva!  Five books later, I’m still at it.

BPM: Tell us about your passion for writing. Why do you write? What drives you?
TW: Growing up, I loved Jackie Collins and Judith Krantz’s books…their protagonists were always strong, glamorous women with creative jobs, passionate love stories, and exciting lives in cities like Manhattan or L.A. But I never found books like this with black characters, so I made it my mission to change that.

As a kid, I wanted to be the black “version” of their main characters. With all my novels, whether they’re adult, like The Perfect Find and The Accidental Diva, or YA, like my It Chicks series – I try to create dynamic, fabulous characters so this generation of readers won’t have to be the black “version ” of anything! It’s so satisfying for me to introduce quirky, weird, witty, sexy, brainy, fully three-dimensional characters from all backgrounds – just being black and excellent, out in the world.

BPM: Can you share a little of your current work with us? Introduce us to your book and the characters.
TW: The Perfect Find is a juicy, hilarious story about star-crossed love and starting over! Jenna Jones a 40-year-old fashion editor who, in one nightmare week, gets dumped by her fiancé of two decades, fired by Darling magazine, has a nervous breakdown – and then reinvents herself at an online fashion ‘zine, where she’s working for her evil rival from the ‘90s, Darcy Vale. But Jenna, who doesn’t have Facebook and has never “Twittered,” finds herself in over her head and surrounded by uber-cool millennials who think she’s a dinosaur. 

Worse? At her first party back in NYC, she gets tipsy and hooks up with a fine 22-year-old, Eric Combs, who ends up driving her nuts in all the right, but also wrong ways (especially since he has a secret identity that makes him the one person who could destroy her big comeback). Will she risk it all for love? Read it to find out!

BPM: What genre is this book? Do you write all of your books in this category? Why?
TW: The Perfect Find is chick lit (my favorite genre). I’ve always been drawn to big, sexy love stories set in the world I know best – the beauty and fashion industry, in New York. There’s so much material in that world; so many delicious characters.

BPM: Are any scenes from the book borrowed from your world or your experiences?
TW: Absolutely. Jenna Jones is the alter ego I created when my own life imploded. I was laid off from my magazine, got divorced, lost everything, and had to start again. I lived vicariously through her fight to start-over, and such a late stage. Jenna was a type-A weirdo like me, a perfection addict, and when things fall apart she discovers what she’s truly made of – and comes out on the other side, more powerful than ever before. She inspired me to chase my own comeback!

BPM: How may our readers follow you online?
TW: Readers can check out my website, shakeyourbeauty.com, or follow me on Twitter and Instagram at @shakeyourbeauty, and Facebook at Tia Williams.

Follow Tia for chit-chat, beauty babble, and book updates:

Shake Your Beauty Blog
http://www.shakeyourbeauty.com 

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/shakeyourbeauty
Pinterest:  https://www.pinterest.com/shakeurbeauty 
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/TiaWilliamsWrites 

Purchase The Perfect Find by Tia Williams
Available on Kindle, Nook, and in Paperback
Chick Lit, Steamy Romance, Workplace Drama, Fashion Fiction
Check out a free chapter! See more at: http://www.shakeyourbeauty.com  

 

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Intimate Conversation with Elle Wright

Intimate Conversation with Elle Wright

Born and raised in Southeast Michigan near Ann Arbor, Elle learned the importance of reading from her mother. It was also her mother who, later on in her life, gave Elle her first romance novel: Indigo by Beverly Jenkins. From that moment on, Elle became a fan of Ms. Jenkins for life and a lover of all things romance. An old journal she wrote back in college became her first book (which she still wants to publish one day).

BPM: How did you get to be where you are in your life today? Who or what motivated you?
I would not be where I am today without God. Without Him, I’d be nothing. My mother used to sing a song when I was little that says “Without Him, my life would be drifting like a ship without a sail.”

I’m where I am as a writer because of hours spent daydreaming, hard work, and perseverance. I’ve always wanted to do more, be more. My mother inspired me to read. My children inspire me to create, to follow my dreams. How can I instill in them follow their dreams if I don’t lead by example?

BPM: Who does your body of literary work speak to? Do you consider authors as role models?
I think my body of literary work speaks to lovers of romance and drama! I love to write love stories and delve into how people find love, sustain it. There are so many authors that I consider role models; authors who are doing their thing in this genre and others. I’m always amazed and very grateful for the many authors who’ve given awesome advice, shared my book, and read my work.  It’s been a wonderful experience meeting authors I’ve read and getting a chance to pick their brains or just chat with them.

BPM: What inspired you to sit down and actually start writing this book? Why now?
Her Kind of Man is book 3 in my Edge of Scandal Series. When I started the series, I wanted to explore the dynamics of a close-knit group of friends. There is a theme in each of the books. This book delves into unrequited love. There is something about Allina and Kent that is pure magic. There’s an innocence to their relationship. I had a good time heating them up, but I especially loved the bonding scenes. They had an ease and genuine affection for each other that made me smile. I love it!

BPM: What did you enjoy most about writing this book?
Actually, the best part of writing this book was that was so challenging. I really had to push myself with this one. There are disturbing moments in the book, but mostly, it’s a journey to happiness. Allina and Kent had to climb out of that box they put themselves in; in their careers and in their relationship with each other.

BPM: Where do your book ideas come from? Are your books plot-driven or character-driven? Why?
Usually, my book ideas come from weird questions posed by friends or family. The Forbidden Man came about when a friend asked the simple question, “What would happen if a woman was torn between two brothers?” From there, it became my goal to write a book where the reader would sympathize and even root for the forbidden relationship.

Character-driven. I want my characters to make sense, so I spend a lot of time with characterization. My cousin always tells me “if it doesn’t make sense, don’t do it.” For example, Allina was a runaway bride. She left her wedding, her parents, and her groom behind because she felt like she was in danger. She was dealing with so much in the present that was bringing up demons from her past. So, I had to slow the romance part down because it didn’t make sense for her character to rush it. Also, Kent was so noble, he would have never taken advantage of her.

BPM: Could you tell us something about your most recent work? Is this book available on Nook and Kindle?
Engaged to a prominent preacher, Allina Parker is the envy of Cleveland. But instead of walking down the aisle, she’s running out the door. After her groom-to-be reveals his true nature, she flees to Michigan, back to Kent. Kent is the man she left behind, the one man she knew she’d always love. He is also one of her dearest friends. When she appears on his doorstep, Kent makes it his mission to protect her and finds out that there is more to her story than she’s telling him. The book is available on Nook, Kindle, iBooks, Kobo, and Google Play.

BPM: Give us some insight into your main characters or speakers. What makes each one so special? 
Allina is incredibly intelligent and creative. She’s the friend that you know is going to support you through whatever while remaining calm and collected. Her dream of dreams is to design wedding gowns, but she’s left that behind to marry. Unfortunately, she didn’t realize that her Prince Charming was a sociopath. The best thing about Allina is that she surprises me. On the surface, she seems one way. But there’s so much more to her. I enjoyed figuring her out.

Kent is… loyal, dedicated, handsome, strong, protective, and funny. I absolutely loved him in all three books. He was my comic relief, but he’s also the type of friend everyone needs. He’s creative and extremely hardworking: the perfect book boyfriend.

BPM: Are there under-represented groups or ideas featured in your book? 
Yes! I love to write African American romance. I love writing diverse characters. It’s my reality.

BPM: How does your book relate to your present situation, spiritual practice or journey?
Honestly, I think I was Allina. I was the good girl. I married my best friend. I’ve struggled with living up to people’s perception of me. Yep, she’s me and I am her. LOL

BPM: Did you learn anything personal from writing your book? Can you share some stories about people you met while researching this book?
One thing I always learn when writing my books are new ways of thinking about things. Each character approaches decisions differently. Most of the time in ways I would never think of.

I’m laughing because I found out that yoga pants are apparently sexy to some men. So I put that in the book. I also had to learn about different sketchpad apps for a particular scene, which was neat.

I’m from Michigan (GO BLUE), and part of the book takes place in Cleveland, so I got a chance to talk to a few friends who are from the Buckeye state. I learned about a few festivals and restaurants there that I’d want to visit one day.

BPM: What were your goals and intentions in this book, and how well do you feel you achieved them? 
My goal was to write a different book. I didn’t want all the books in the series to be the same. Each couple was very different. They all had their own crosses to bear, things to overcome. I needed to do each character justice. I feel that I achieved that in this book. It’s nothing like the first two books of the series, in my opinion.

BPM: What projects are you working on at the present?
At the moment, I’m plotting two contemporary romance series. Both feature secondary characters introduced in the series. Also, I’m plotting a romantic suspense series and a Women’s Fiction.

BPM: How can readers discover more about you and your work? 
Website: http://www.ellewright.com
Twitter: @LWrightAuthor
Instagram: @lrwright09
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ElleWrightAuthor

Purchase Her Kind of Man by Elle Wright
Series: Edge of Scandal (Book 3)
Genre: Contemporary Romance

Check out the books in the Edge of Scandal Series

Edge of Scandal Book One – The Forbidden Man (released July 28, 2015)
Tag Line: She’s walking out on her no-good fiancé… and into the arms of his brother.

Edge of Scandal Book Two – His All Night (released November 24, 2015)
Tag Line: No expectations, no commitments, no one gets hurt…or so she thought.

Order all of the books in the Edge of Scandal Series
http://www.amazon.com/Elle-Wright/e/B00VMEWB78

 

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Intimate Conversation with Nichol Bradford

Intimate Conversation with Nichol Bradford

Nichol Bradford, a proud Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority sister, is fascinated by human potential, and has always been interested in how technology can help individuals expand beyond their perceived limits to develop and transform themselves to the highest level.

She spent the last decade exploring these ideas in the online game industry, serving as a senior executive with responsibility for strategy, operations and marketing for major brands that include: Activision Blizzard, Disney, and Vivendi. Most recently she managed the operations of Blizzard properties, including World of Warcraft, in China.

Now, as the CEO of the Willow Group, Nichol is applying those same skills to the realm of elevating psychological well-being. Willow is a transformative technology company focused on employing rigorous scientific research to develop training protocols, hardware and software that can produce a reliable and positive change in the human experience. She is also a member of the African-American MBA Association

Nichol has an MBA from Wharton School of Business in Strategy, and a BBA in Marketing from the University of Houston. She is a fellow of the British American Project, currently serves on the board of the Brandon Marshall Foundation for Mental Health, and is a former term member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

BPM: How did you get to be where you are in your life today? Who or what motivated you?
I wrote the book I wanted to read about strong yet vulnerable and intelligent black women committed to a great and grand goal — mental freedom and empowerment for all. I was tired of not seeing heroes that looked like me. I wanted to see someone like me save the world, not as a side-kick or agency head, but as the actual, certifiable central hero. I wanted to read about Olivia Pope back then, but since she didn’t exist yet, I wrote my own. I also wanted really well-developed characters who had something on their minds other than men. So some of the characters are happily married, and some are single, but most of all their focus is not just on their men (or lack thereof) but on their friendship and common goals. I also love technology and so wanted the women to be deeply immersed in that world.

I am deeply motivated by the memory of my mother, Vivian Jones Bradford. My mother is the model for the visionary leader of the Sisterhood, Vivian Delacroix. My mother was an entrepreneur. She was completely committed to helping women and supporting the efforts of black women in particular. She believed most in defending the defenseless and used her legal education to do so. I started volunteering by her side when I was a child and she made sure that my values included service to the betterment of society.

Like the CEO on the book, my mother died suddenly and unexpectedly (months after I graduated from college). She was a young fifty, healthy, and we were very much alike. My last conversation with her was the morning of her death, and I’m so grateful for that. I was devastated. It took at least a year for me to reorient myself. The shock of losing her shaped the way I approach life. It instilled a sense that there’s plenty of time, but no time to waste. I believe in being passionate about the work that you do and who you do it with, because none of us knows how much time we have. I believe in being mission driven. I have the loss of my mother to thank for what I feel is a highly effective approach to a full life.

I’m deeply motivated by the idea of empowering people to free their minds in order to create choice and options in their lives. That thread runs through most of what I’ve done — from writing the Sisterhood, to working at a senior level in the video game industry, to launching an online meditation course, to pioneering the transformative technology sector.

Transformative Technology is about making the technology in our lives support our well-being and not just our productivity. The last decade found me exploring the idea of transformative technology in the video game industry, where I served as a senior executive with responsibility for strategy, operations, and marketing for games internationally for major brands that include: Activision/Blizzard, Disney, and Vivendi.

Most recently I managed the operations of Blizzard properties, including World of Warcraft, in China. During this time, I also began to meditate and saw interesting parallels between it and gaming. Both enable delight, flow, and access to dynamic states of consciousness. Meditation, though, goes even further and can profoundly and positively impact well-being. It seemed logical to me that technologies that directly impact human experience could do so as well, but no one seemed to be seriously working on it. So, I left Blizzard to pioneer Transformative Technology.

BPM: Who does your body of literary work speak to? Do you consider authors as role models?
My books are for women who want to make a difference with their lives — women who care about their communities, families, and lives and want to make positive change. Black women have a beautiful heroic nature, and I wanted to show that you don’t have to be wearing head-to-toe spanx to be heroic. The “Superwoman” meme sells us short. It makes us think that there’s something wrong with our heroism. We believe that our heroic nature will ensure that we are single and have nine cats so we reject our nature in order to not be alone.

Or we believe that we can’t be heroes and also be vulnerable so we build walls around our hearts while we work ourselves to death. Real heroism is the flexibility to be strong AND vulnerable AND all of those things – while keeping focused on our wider mission. As far as role models go, I think that anyone who is positive and lives with integrity can be a role model — so if an author is doing that, then yes — she or he is a role model.

BPM: What inspired you to sit down and actually start writing this book? Why now?
The Sisterhood started on a late night drive home from a success workshop I gave during college. That night, I had this group of beautiful young black women stand in a circle and tell each other, one at a time and by name, that they were smart, beautiful, and could have anything that they wanted and worked for. It was a hard session, each and every young women cried when the group told her that she could actually have what she wanted. And I realized that we don’t know this…not really (even I didn’t always believe this and still have my moments where I don’t).

As I drove home, I felt really inadequate. I know that workshops can help, but they don’t last long enough to really shift someone…or help someone shift themselves. I started thinking about how I could show what it would look like, to be women who believed they could have what they wanted and worked individually and together to make that a reality. So I decided to write the Sisterhood. I conceived of an organization of women, who faced a series of challenges. Addressing those challenges would allow me to show versus tell how an individual can be successful. I went home and jotted the basic plot down which today is more or less the same.

However, it was another eight years before I actually started writing. The events that prompted me to write the book in the Fall of 2000, to actually sit down and type the first word was a break-up that triggered a recommitment to myself. I was in business school and had been dating a sweet man, who though wonderful in many way, was not the right person for me. I also had been interviewing for jobs that truthfully, I was only interested in for the security and the salary. Essentially, I was headed towards a life that was not aligned with my inner North Star. Luckily, the man did something break-up worthy (and so we did) and none of the jobs came through (thank goodness).

I’m a Virgo baby, so every September I do an assessment on my life — where am I mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually, and professionally. During this period, I also try to clean things up — I ask forgiveness, forgive, clean out my closets, and think about what my goals are for the following year. As a part of this, I had been thinking about my goals, and realized that I had put “write the Sisterhood” on my list for eight years — and I just refused to start another year without having taken an action. Taking that action, after all the difficult things that had happened that year, was a proxy for a commitment to myself, to my intuition, to the life that I truly wanted to lead. It took another eight years to write the entire book, and then two more to publish it.

BPM: Give us some insight into your main characters. What makes each one so special? 
All of the Sisterhood characters are smart and strong…yet flawed like all real human beings. They aren’t perfect — but by working together they complement one another and accomplish great things. Tonia Rawlings is the main character that you follow and I just love and admire her. She’s the head of security for the Sisterhood and carries the weight of her best friend’s death on her shoulders because Vivian, the CEO of the Sisterhood, is assassinated on the first page.

Vivian’s death triggers a chain of events where Tonia is tested more than ever — which is saying allot given a life story that includes an abusive husband, a drug conviction, and the death of a child. In order to navigate the danger, she has to change herself. Watching her wrench a new version of herself from the old is a powerful illustration of how to do the same thing.

The nine leaders in the book are based on ALL the women I know – from the amazing women I grew up around, to those I pledged AKA with in 1990, to the women I met at in the African-American MBA Association at business school, to all the women I’ve met along the way . One of the things I love about this book is that it represents the full diaspora – every size, shape, and hue of black women.  The women come from all backgrounds, educations, and geographies but they share a common bond through their desire to positively impact their world. They are all women who have integrity with themselves and with their Sisterhood, showing what that looks like and the real possibilities it can create in our lives.

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Intimate Conversation with Sage

Intimate Conversation with Sage

Sage was born and raised in Huntingtown, MD. She has been married to her best friend, for over ten years and they have two amazing sons. She is also an Autism advocate and a parent of an autistic child, which inspired her to write a non-fiction book on raising a child on the Autism spectrum, The Optimistic Autistic: Our Testimony.

Sage also writes mysteries centered on characters that are close to the heart. She has vowed to produce books that encourage the reader to deliberately read; not just for entertainment but to read with the intention of solving the mystery along with the Detective.

Her belief that, “if you don’t see the books you’re searching for write them” has inspired her to write with a purpose and a passion.

BPM: When did you get your first inkling to write, and how did you advance the call for writing? 
Reading and writing are life-long passions of mine. I have been indulging in my passion of writing since I was 13. I want to share my passion of writing psychological thrillers with the world.  My mother was the first person to place a book in my hands. My father taught me how to work hard at the things that I wanted in life. I worked at achieving my Master’s Degree in Computer Science in 2009. I am now funneling that same determination and tenacity in marketing my book series.

BPM: Tell us about your passion for writing. Why do you write? What drives you? 
I love to read different types of books, but I have a preference for mystery and thrillers. I enjoy a heart pumping adrenaline rush type of book. It was my love of mysteries and thrillers that stoked my interests in writing. The under representation of African American characters in the books I read resonated within me. I am inspired to fill the void with my murder mystery series.

BPM: What hurdles, if any, did you have to overcome as a new author and business owner? 
It’s difficult to get noticed in this industry as a mystery author. It seems like the publishers want to pigeon hole authors into one genre. It is my goal to abolish the myth that we only write urban themed books. My goal is to show through my books that black authors write thought provoking, suspense-driven novels as well.

BPM: What’s the most important quality a writer should have in your opinion? 
Passion is the most important quality a writer can possess. Passion invokes determination, which in turn creates a hunger so intense that the writer can’t sleep, eat or function without transferring their story from their mind to paper. That is what I consider pure magic. If passion doesn’t drive you then you can’t make magic happen.

BPM: Our life experiences, challenges and success help define who we are on many levels. At what point in your career did you discover your real worth and own it? 
I started writing when I was a teenager. The turning point in my life was when my oldest sister suddenly died of a heart attack, then less than four years later my other sister was diagnosed with heart failure. I became determined to see all of my dreams come true. No matter what, I want to see my book in the hands of every reader. I’m driven by the spirit of my sister and the support of my family; with determination such as that I will be successful.

BPM: What genre is this book? Do you write all of your books in this category? Why? 
The Black Bird Detective Series is a mystery book and a psychological thriller, combined. I love to write mystery books because they keep the heart pumping with the turn of each page. 

I also wrote a non-fiction book on Autism. Autism has touched our family in such a tremendous way. Both my 10-year-old son and 10-year-old nephew are Autistic.  Through the years we have experienced many different emotions while raising Jordan. As I write to you today, the strongest emotion that I feel is pride. I am proud of our children for their ability to be independent of the label that society has placed on them.  Many times parents hear the word Autism and have no idea what it really means. The moment we received Jordan’s diagnosis our lives changed. Initially, we thought the world was closing in around us. Then, we found our strength. We realized that through telling our stories we gain strength. So we wrote, The Optimistic Autistic – Our Testimony, which is also available on Amazon.com.

BPM: Do you set out to educate or inspire, entertain or illuminate a particular subject? 
I set out to entertain my readers. I want readers to be entertained and while they’re being entertained, they’re learning something. I conduct a great amount of research for the developing of each book to ensure that readers learn something they never knew. I love to inspire readers to continue reading.

BPM: Do you have any advice for people seeking to publish a book? 
Believe in what you are writing. As long as you believe in your writing and the purpose for what you do, there is nothing that can stop you. You must take the first step though. If you want to write a book, start writing. Don’t put it off any longer. If you need assistance with writing or publishing your book please contact me at rcscomputerpros@gmail.com.

BPM: What should readers DO after reading this book? 
Once readers have put down Assumptions Abound, make your next purchase of Seeking Truth,  Sweet Revenge and The Butterfly: A Novel. I tell you to purchase them both, because you will not want to wait for the book to ship to find out what happens next.  The book series is so enthralling that you will not want to miss a beat.

BPM: What are your career goals as a writer? Have you accomplished most of them?
My career goals as a writer are to assist others with living out their dreams of writing a book. I have written and published over 10 books and I don’t plan on stopping. I want to show others that there is a way to get their thoughts, words or message out there and I am willing to help them.

I have accomplished many of the goals that I have set regarding my writing, but there is so much more work left to be done. I plan to turn my mystery trilogy series into a mini-series. I would love to see Raven on the big screen.

Website:  http://www.blackbirddetectiveseries.com
Instagram: sageauthorsitall;   Facebook: Sage

Check out Books by Sage
The Optimistic Autistic: Our Testimony by Sage (Non-fiction)
http://www.amazon.com/Optimistic-Autistic-Our-Testimony/dp/1480108782

Assumptions Abound Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Assumptions-Abound-Black-Bird-Detective-ebook/dp/B00642W77M

Seeking Truth Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Seeking-Truth-Black-Detective-Mystery-ebook/dp/B008D2ZARA

Sweet Revenge Available on Aamazon: 
http://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Revenge-Sage-ebook/dp/B012P17C1Q

The Butterfly: A Novel Available on Aamazon: 
http://www.amazon.com/Sage/e/B01CC290ZE

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Intimate Conversation with Sadeqa Johnson

Intimate Conversation with Sadeqa Johnson

Sadeqa Johnson is a former public relations manager who spent years working with well-known authors such as JK Rowling, Bebe Moore Campbell, Amy Tan and Bishop TD Jakes before becoming an author herself. Her debut novel, LOVE IN A CARRY-ON BAG was hailed by Ebony.com as “this summer’s hottest read.”  It was the recipient of the 2013 Phillis Wheatley award for Best Fiction and the 2012 USA Best Book award for African-American fiction. Originally from Philadelphia, she now resides in Virginia with her husband and three children. SECOND HOUSE FROM THE CORNER is her second novel.

BPM:  When did you get your first inkling to write, and how did you advance the call for writing?
I’m originally from Philadelphia. As a kid, I started off wanting to be an actress. When I graduated high school, I moved to New York and attended Marymount Manhattan College as a Theatre Arts major. It was as a student that I started fooling around with poetry, which turned to playwriting, screenwriting and ended up with novel writing. I landed a job working in publishing after college and it was there that I became very serious about my writing. My first novel, Love in a Carry-on Bag took me over ten years to finish. I started writing it when I was a publicity manager at G.P Putnam’s Sons.

Every day I would close my office door at four o’clock and write for the last hour of the workday. On my commute home, I edited the pages. Once I got married, I left my corporate job to write and raise my children, but still nursed a burning desire to tell stories. I wrote during naptimes, between feedings, in the midst of sleep deprivation and my kid’s ear infections. The daily pressures of caring for a young family motivated me to finish the book. I was very much like Felicia in Second House From the Corner. As much as I loved being a mother, I didn’t want that role to be my only claim. I knew that it was important for me to carve out something that was only for me, and writing novels was it. My novels are my legacy.

BPM:  What makes your writing different than others?
I’m a lover of words and keep a thick, old school thesaurus on my desk, which I use to deepen the meaning of the text. I don’t like to rush when I’m writing, and I’ll work on a paragraph for three days if it takes that long to make it sound good. Although I’m a commercial fiction writer, I work to bring poetry, beauty and music to my work. My goal is to make readers pause over a delicious sentence, giving them no choice but to read it again.

BPM:  Can you share a little of your current work with us? Introduce us to your book and the characters.
I love everything about Second House From the Corner. In the novel, Felicia Lyons, a stressed out stay-at-home mom struggles to sprint ahead of the demands of motherhood, while her husband spends long days at the office. Felicia taps, utters mantra and breathes her way through most situations but on some days, like when the children won’t stop screaming her name or arguing over toy trucks and pretzel sticks, she wonders what it would be like to get in her car and drive away.

Then one evening the telephone rings, and in a split second Felicia’s innocent fantasy becomes a hellish reality. The call pulls her back into a life she’d rather forget. Felicia hasn’t been completely honest about her upbringing, and her deception forces her return to the Philadelphia of her childhood, where she is forced to confront the family demons and long buried secrets she thought she had left behind.

BPM:  Did you learn anything personal from writing this book? 
I wrote Second House From the Corner in about a year and a half, which was much different from my ten-year haul with Love in A Carry-on Bag. I learned to outline and draft quickly, and then to just punch the story out and fix it later. There were a lot of loving hands that touched Second House From the Corner and for that I am so grateful and utterly proud of the finished product.

BPM:  What would you like to accomplish after this book is released? 
Don’t laugh, but my deepest desire is to be on the New York Times best sellers list. I have been putting that out into the Universe since day one so I know it’s going to happen. I also plan to sell the movie rights and be paid (well) to consult on set as the movie is being filmed. My children are going to love walking the red carpet. Selling the foreign rights and seeing my novel printed in several languages would also make me happy. Eventually I’d like to teach a writing group and get out on the motivational speaking circuit.

BPM:  Are any scenes from the book borrowed from your world or your experiences? 
Oh, yes. I am a mother of three children. My kids were about the age of Felicia’s when I started writing the book and a lot of her experience of feeling overwhelmed and worn out with the duties involved with caring for small children was what I felt as a young mother. I still feel it at least four times a week. She taps her way through it, I go to hot yoga, run and meditate to find my center.

BPM:  What should readers DO after reading this book? 
Tell all of their friends to buy a copy. I really believe it takes a village to make a best seller. Word of mouth is the best form of advertising so please, please tell a friend. Your review on goodreads.com and all of the retailer’s website would also be wonderfully helpful.

BPM:  What are your career goals as a writer? Have you accomplished most of them? 
Right now I really admire Attica Locke. She wrote a book called The Cutting Season that I couldn’t put down. Then one night I was watching the show Empire, and her name popped up in the credits as producer and writer. Immeditately, I had goosebumps. I’m so proud of my fellow writers when they cross over and do big things. As I sat watching, I thought, could I write for television?  Mmmm, I’m just going to let that thought marinate. Hosting a show on television would also tickle my fancy.

BPM:  What have you realized about yourself since becoming a published author? 
I’ve realized that I am exactly where I am supposed to be. Every moment in my life from going to college in New York City as Theatre arts major, to my first two jobs in publishing as a publicist, to starting my own publishing house and having to do everything possible to get the word out on Love in a Carry-on Bag has led me to this moment. I’ve worked hard, I deserve to be right here and my future is even brighter. I can’t wait to see what God has in store for me.

BPM:  What are you the most thankful for now?
I’m grateful for my health and the health of my family and close friends. I enjoy waking up every morning, getting my kids off to school (most times without arguments and tears but not always), putting on a pot of coffee and going to work in my robe. God is always amazingly good to me. Oh, and I have a sexy, supportive husband to boot.

BPM:  Do you have any advice for people seeking to publish a book?
Don’t quit. Writing takes time and dedication and it is very important to be true to the craft. Take writing classes, form a writing group and read as much as you can. Give yourself time and permission to grow, and be patient with yourself. Believe in your creativity above all. Allow the magic to flow.

BPM:  What’s next?
I’m working on my third novel, And Then There Was Me. It’s about deception and betrayal. It’s scheduled to be published by Thomas Dunne Books spring of 2017 so stay tuned. And click right over to my website, www.sadeqajohnson.net and subscribe to my blog. I’ll keep the latest news listed there. I’m on all of the social media outlets so get in touch with me. I’d really love to hear from you.  

Love, Light and Laughter.

Connect with Sadeqa Johnson
http://www.sadeqajohnson.net
https://twitter.com/sadeqasays
https://instagram.com/sadeqasays
https://www.facebook.com/SadeqaJohnson 

Purchase Second House from the Corner: A Novel
iBooks:  http://smarturl.it/SHFCAWIB
Indiebound:  http://smarturl.it/SHFCAWIN
Walmart:  http://smarturl.it/SHFBAWWAL
Amazon:  http://smarturl.it/SHFCAWAM
Barnes & Noble:  http://smarturl.it/SHFCAWBN
Books-a-Million:  http://smarturl.it/SHFCAWBAM

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Intimate Conversation with Tumika Patrice Cain

Intimate Conversation with Tumika Patrice Cain

Tumika Patrice Cain is an award-winning author, media personality and publisher whose works centers around uplifting, encouraging and empowering others to live the abundant life. She is also an accomplished poet; founder of the Say What?? Book Club; and host of the internet radio shows Living Abundantly with Tumika Patrice Cain, In The Spotlight, and Say What?? Author Spotlights. 

In addition, she is a respected book reviewer and columnist for PEN’Ashe Magazine, a contributing writer for BLOG and Belief Magazines, and editor for two smaller publishing companies. A champion for indie authors, she works tirelessly to level the playing field to bring exposure to those authors who excel at their craft, but whose marketing budgets are limited. Inkscriptions, her publishing company, offers a myriad of book publishing services. Living by the motto of each one reach one, each one teach one, Tumika shares her passion for purpose and for life with all who cross her path.

She is the 2013 recipient of a Spoken Word Billboard award for her debut novel, Season of Change (December 2012), a novel that has since been picked up by Shan Presents and will be re-released as When a Man Loves a Woman – A Season of Change in December, 2015. To her publishing credit, she is also the author of After the Rain…a Poetry Collective (March, 2014) and The Heart of a Woman (August, 2015). Tumika’s works have been published in numerous magazines, anthologies, newsletters and periodicals.

BPM: When did you get your first inkling to write, and how did you advance the call for writing?
I was an early reader, so the love of words was already there. A classroom assignment when I was in the second grade would become my raison d’etre. I found my reason for being early on. The teacher introduced poetry and gave us the opportunity to write a poem. I loved how the words came together and that feeling the completed work gave me. The seed had been planted and I continued to write. Growing up in turmoil and being very shy, writing gave me a voice when I felt voiceless. For many years I didn’t know that I had any talent, I only knew that I liked to write. By the time I was in junior high, I had started to receive recognition for my work and in high school I started winning awards. It wasn’t until I wrote my first novel while in my early twenties, which many years later became When a Man Loves a Woman: A Season of Change, that I decided I wanted to do something professionally with the gift. Combining my love of writing with my passion for empowering others seemed the ideal solution.

BPM: Tell us about your passion for writing. Why do you write? What drives you?
Through my writing I am able to give a voice to the voiceless, to shine a ray of hope for someone who has lost their hope. Even through fiction, lives can be changed. I write to empower others. I write to free myself. I write to free others. I write because I have something to say. I write because others have something to say and many have yet to find their own voice, so I tell their stories. I write to uplift. And I write to impart the message that with each new day, we can have a fresh start. We can decide in this moment to start living authentic, abundant lives. Writing gives me wings. My tag is Changing lives one word at a time…. It’s more than just a quote, it’s a lifestyle. It’s not just what I do, it’s who I am.

BPM: What hurdles, if any, did you have to overcome as a new author and business owner?
When I first wrote the novel and tried to get it published almost twenty years ago, the market was very different and there wasn’t really a place for me. I put the book up for quite a few years knowing that eventually it would be published. Around 2011 I started getting the “feeling” to pull it back out and look into publishing it again. While I had done my research years before, lots had changed that I had not kept up with. When someone that I knew started a publishing company, I just went with it. Since it was a vanity press, once she received her money, her commitment to me was done. I learned very quickly that in choosing to work with people on your vision; your dream, it’s important to connect with those who are as concerned about your success as they are their own. Many services that had been provided were only marginally done and I had to pay out of pocket to have things redone. It was stressful and very frustrating.

However, the silver lining is that out of that experience was birthed Inkscriptions, my publishing company, and Say What?? Book Club. Being a solution-focused person, I was able to put systems and programs in place to streamline and improve the process for other writers. In the end the challenges I experienced turned out to be a tremendous blessing.

BPM: Success leaves clues, whose clues did you follow on your journey?
I read I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings when I was in elementary school. Maya Angelou had a way with words that didn’t just tell me that what I had to say was important, her words told me that who I am is important. Through her writings, I felt encouraged to share my sacred truth, and to keep writing that truth. Through her writings, I learned that I had a voice worth hearing.

My paternal grandmother was also a woman who used her words with power. She was classy and elegant and could put you in your place without raising her voice, swearing or belittling. I saw her write to corporate heads when products and services she’d spent money on left her displeased….and change would come as a result of her expressing herself. That was very powerful and had a lasting impact.

When the literary market began to change about twenty years ago, the writings of authors like Beverly Jenkins, Pearl Cleage and Terry McMillan gave me hope that my works could also be in print. I am thankful for reach one and how their lives have impacted my own.

BPM: Can you share a little of your current work with us? Introduce us to your book and the characters.
In When a Man Loves a Woman: A Season of Change (book one in the When a Man Loves a Woman series), readers meet Avery and Alicia Ayers. They are a couple who appear to have the perfect life. To their credit they are attractive, wealthy, successful, and esteemed. It’s a life anyone would want. However, what others can’t see are the cracks that exist in their persons and in their relationship. They’ve built an amazing life on a shallow foundation. Each must face themselves and determine if the life they are living is true, is healthy, is empowering and decide where to go from there.

This award-winning, full length, standalone novel is a gripping tale in women’s contemporary fiction that will make readers think, feel, celebrate love when it’s beautiful and right, and reflect on its demise when it’s not.

BPM: What should readers DO after reading this book?
I would encourage readers to stop for a moment and reflect. Think about which scenes in the book left a lasting impact and why. I would tell them to reflect on the areas of their lives where they have not been living their truth and make a decision to live authentically from that point forward. Life is short and to spend it unfulfilled is a great travesty. If the book struck a chord and they felt a sense of connection to it, I’d encourage them to share information about the book so others can purchase it. And of course, I’d ask that they leave a review on Amazon so I can know what they thought about it – good or bad.

BPM: What are you the most thankful for now?
I am thankful for Shan Richardson seeing potential in my work, enough where she signed me to a three (3) book deal. Working with her has been a great blessing. We are able to share ideas and work together as a team. I am thankful to be able to reach a larger platform of readers with my work with her help.

I am also very thankful for my family and handful of people who support me behind the scenes. It takes many hands and lots of effort to get and keep our works in front of the others. I could never do it all on my own, or have gotten as far as I have without them. I am truly grateful.

BPM: Do you have any advice for people seeking to publish a book?
Believe in yourself. Not everything is for everyone, so some people will not buy into your work. That doesn’t mean you can’t write. That person just may not be your audience. Hone your skills, take classes to make sure you are putting out a quality product, learn the business of writing, and keep forging on. At some point you will connect with those who will help make your dream a reality.

BPM: How may our readers follow you online? Please share your social media links.
Email: inkscriptionsllc@ymail.com
Website:  http://www.TumikaPatrice.com
Twitter:  https://twitter.com/TumikaPatrice
Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/TumikaPatrice
Pinterest:  https://www.pinterest.com/TumikaPatrice
LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/TumikaPatrice
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/Tumika-Patrice-Cain-254769847981922

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Intimate Conversation with Lynn Emery

Intimate Conversation with Lynn Emery

Mix knowledge of voodoo, Louisiana politics and forensic social work, and you get a snapshot of author Lynn Emery. Lynn’s recent titles include murder mysteries set in Vermilion Parish, Louisiana featuring a Creole psychic and a Cajun deputy. The titles in this series are: A Darker Shade of Midnight (#1), Between Dusk and Dawn (#2), and Only By Moonlight (#3). Into The Mist (#4) continues the harrowing case files of LaShaun Rousselle and Deputy Chase Broussard. Into the Mist will be released in fall 2016.

BPM: When did you get your first inkling to write, and how did you advance the call for writing? 
I read The Murder of Roger Ackroyd when I was ten years old. I already loved reading, but that book with its twist at the end did it. I closed the book and decided I wanted to write mysteries. I didn’t even know who Agatha Christie was, or that she was a white Englishwoman who was already dead by then. I didn’t think about being a poor little black girl living in the south who couldn’t even get to a library. I didn’t consult anybody, which meant no one told me my aspiration was outlandish and impossible. I simply said, “I’m going to write a murder mystery. Life happened. High school, college and my entrance to the adult world of working nine to five. Yet twenty years later I went back to my dream and started writing again.

BPM: How did you initially break into the publishing industry? Did you ever self-publish? 
I attended a writer’s conference within driving distance of my hometown. I took a fellow author’s advice to attend writing events where editors and agents would be presenters and taking appointments. The advice I didn’t take was to schedule an appointment with them, a mistake that almost cost me dearly. You see Monica Harris, the founding editor of Arabesque, was there. But I lacked confidence because I hadn’t finished my first book. I was told more than once not to expect to sell that first book. I also was told editors don’t consider, much less buy, unfinished books, certainly not from first time authors.

Another published author who belonged to my RWA chapter was horrified when I told her I hadn’t scheduled to meet with Monica. I was literally the only writer of color at this conference, and Monica was hungry for submissions. A young editor, Monica had been only recently hired by Kensington Publishers and her big assignment was to launch the first, and at that time only, line of African-American romances. My work-in-progress was romantic suspense.

This published author pushed me, not so gently, into approaching Monica during a break between her presentations. I went to my hotel room and quickly practiced a three to five minute pitch. I sweated during her workshop, and then screwed up the guts to follow Monica and introduce myself. In the hotel lobby I breathlessly pitched my book in the five minutes she graciously allowed me. About five or six weeks later, Monica called to offer me a contract. I sold my first book, and even though Monica knew it was unfinished. Night Magic was released in 1995.

BPM: What’s the most important quality a writer should have in your opinion?
I would have to say courage, with a capital “C”. If I hadn’t pushed up my own courage, I wouldn’t have met Monica at all at that small conference. So writers should have courage, which will lead you to another capital “C” word, confidence. Courage will give you the confidence you may lack in your developing skill as a story teller and promoter of your own work. Courage will help writers overcome the tendency to stay in their isolated, insulated little worlds. When you step out of your comfort zone, you’re willing to network with and talk to other writers and publishing professionals.

BPM: Can you share a little of your current work with us? Introduce us to your book and the characters.
Into The Mist is the fourth title in the LaShaun Rousselle mystery series set in Vermilion Parish, Louisiana. LaShaun teams up with Cajun Vermilion Parish Sheriff’s Deputy Chase Broussard to solve grisly killings in this lovely bayou setting. Using her psychic abilities and Chase’s crime fighting skills, they fight human and supernatural killers.

LaShaun Rousselle led a bad girl life in her teens and twenties, using the spells Monmon Odette, her beloved grandmother, taught her for all the wrong reasons. The results led to such a horrible string of events, that she left Beau Chene, Louisiana. LaShaun moved to Los Angeles with the thought that she would never return to Louisiana, much less Beau Chene. The series opens with her arriving back because of Monmon Odette, and over the course of the first three books she builds a life that she didn’t expect to have at all, including or especially in Beau Chene.

Into The Mist opens with LaShaun being drawn into yet another of Chase’s cases, a kidnapping. As the story unfolds, the evil that that seems to have put a child’s life in danger creeps ever closer to those LaShaun loves the most. Everything LaShaun holds most dear is on the line, and she has to find answers to protect her family and the world.

BPM: Are any scenes from the book borrowed from your world or your experiences?
As a clinical social worker, I’ve been involved in child welfare cases, attended school conferences to advocate for children, and conducted abuse investigations. I also worked as a juvenile court consultant and in a psychiatric hospital. Although I do research even with my experience, a lot of the issues about children in the child welfare and special education systems come from what I’ve seen up close. The children in Into The Mist face these same challenges for a unique reason, and flaws in both systems only add to their vulnerability, as LaShaun and Chase discover.

BPM: What genre is this book? Do you write all of your books in this category? Why?
Into The Mist is a mystery with paranormal elements. I write mysteries now, though my first seven books are romantic suspense. What’s interesting is I never intended to write romance. The first writing group I found, or rather a member found me because we worked in the same building, was a local chapter of RWA (Romance Writers of America). I even told her that I wasn’t writing romance, but she said that didn’t matter. So I joined. A published author who belonged to that RWA chapter advised me to try writing romance because editors were in the market for them in a big way (this was the mid-1990s). Breaking into the mystery genre was tough, but for writers of color it was pretty much impossible back then. I felt very discouraged until she told me about romantic suspense, the subgenre I hadn’t even heard of at the time. Once I found out I could kill people, the words started flowing on my first book.

BPM: Are there any areas of your writing career that you wish you could go back and change? 
I’ve learned and been blessed to see the lesson in everything that has happened in my journey, so I can’t honestly say I’d change much. Even the bad helped make me either a better writer or better professional writer in terms of the business side of publishing. In 2000, I was blessed to have BET produce a made for television movie based on my novel After All. Holly Robinson Peete starred as Michelle Toussaint, a character I created. Seeing her on the screen saying that name gave me chills. Still I couldn’t really celebrate because BET used the old publishing contract I’d signed, and they were known at the time, to pay well below the industry standard for the movie rights. That was one bitter pill to swallow. Even worse, I couldn’t stop them from making the movie. Thankfully the script, performance and production came out fine. The only thing I would change, if I could, was for myself and the other Arabesque authors to have more leverage, support or legal alternatives back then. Still, I had fun throwing a premier party at my house. I got to ride in a limo to BET studios twice for interviews. And it’s kind of fun to say, “My second novel was made into a movie.”

BPM: How may our readers follow you online? 
Readers are welcome to visit my website at http://www.lynnemery.com. I’d love for them to sign up for my monthly newsletter while they’re there. The newsletter includes exclusive free books and other goodies available only to subscribers, in addition to fun articles. Let’s socialize!

Connect with Lynn Emery on Social Media 
Tweet: @LynnEmeryWriter
Lynn Emery website: http://www.lynnemery.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/lynn.emery.author
Twitter: https://twitter.com/lynnemerywriter
Pins: https://www.pinterest.com/lynnemery/
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/lynnemery

 

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Intimate Conversation with Pat C.

Intimate Conversation with Pat C.

Pat C. was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Pat C. is a mother, grandmother, poet, trainer, a certified life coach and now author. Pat C. possesses a natural gift for coaching and encourages all to live and love to the fullest.

BPM: When did you get your first inkling to write, and how did you advance the call for writing?
My first inkling that I was a poet came when I was separated from my second husband. I began to write as if journaling. It kept going in a sporadic sort way and then I came to realize that I possessed talent in poetry writing. I was inspired by my hurt of a broken marriage, as well as good memories of the marriage. My writings continued over the next 14 years before I published my book and are continuing.

BPM: Tell us about your passion for writing. Why do you write? What drives you?
I love writing because my writings surprise me. They come out of no where, are spiritual inspirations, epiphanies, and emotional, concerning things happening to me or around me. My writings fulfill my need for self-expression. Life experiences with love drive me to write. When I least expect it, I find myself with pen to paper, writing about a situation. I write as long as the words come. I don’t change them nor do I rearrange them. I don’t use a particular style or form, I just let it flow I know that when the inspiration comes, the words must be written at that moment, because that moment of inspiration cannot be recaptured. I don’t work on a poem, I simply write, once and done. I write because I want to be heard and understood concerning my views of love, as I feel that love is the most beautiful thing in life. I am a communicator and writing poetry further enhances that.

BPM: Our life experiences, challenges, and success help define who we are on many levels. At what point in your career did you discover your real worth and own it?
My life struggles with life and love certainly have been a challenge and continues to be. After realizing that people seem to gravitate to me for advise, which is why I am now a certified life coach as well, I wanted to own my challenges by writing a book to encourage people to love and not be afraid to love. And also to let the world know that romantic love is somewhat the same at any age, as it encompasses joy and pain. Real worth was felt after writing each poem and is confirmed when readers, say to me that my words are words they want to express and can now do it!

BPM: Can you share a little of your current work with us? Introduce us to your book and the characters?
My poetry career began as an alternative to keeping a personal diary of the account of my daily emotions. My talent as a poet surprised me at first. I always loved writing and considered myself to be good at it. As time went by, I came to accept that I was a a writer of love & romance.

The contents of my book were inspired by by personal journey. Thus the tile was born: Life & Love: The Journey In Verse. The writings expel the joy and pain of love and shares them with the reader, helping him to relate and evaluate their journey. As the reader takes in the words he may begin to understand things like butterflies do count! You can’t have love without them! My words go on to tell of the pain in love and that you can survive and start over again.

Here is a review that sums it up perfectly:
“Life and Love – The Journey in Verse speaks from the heart of the author as she revisits, observes and fantasizes the beauty of love. It immediately becomes apparent that the reader will be personally escorted by verse to observe and to understand the language that only love speaks. The couplets and the tone capture the beauty of the soul, the mindset and compatible lives being joined together in unity by the power of love. The mood has been meticulously established for reading. I was captivated.” – Dr. Claudia Wells Hamilton, Secondary School Principal

BPM: What genre is this book? Do you write all of your books in this commitment? Why?
The genre of my book is poetry. I plan to write a cookbook, as cooking is another a passion of mine. Poetry invokes and summons emotion. Read my book and allow your senses to yield to all that love has to offer life.

BPM: Did you set out to inspire, entertain or illuminate a particular subject?
Yes, love on all counts. I feel that love is the most important thing in life. “And the greatest of these is love.” I Corinthians 13:13b)  I want to tell to world to NEVER give up on life and love! You must allow yourself to become more transparent, allowing all the beauty that love has to offer into your life!

BPM: Are any scenes from the book borrowed from your world or personal experiences?
Yes, this book is about many of my personal experiences. You must stand up for love and most of all communicate with your partner all of your feelings. Your best speech may be when you are in pain. Love involves fluffy and real. Experience it all to the good of your life! My book lives it for you and helps to understand and accept who you are!

BPM: What should readers DO after reading this book?
I want readers to love more passionately and gain or regain a zest for life and never be afraid to give love away! Don’t be afraid to tear down the curtain, allow yourself to be seen and to be vulnerable. Let love in! Pursue love and allow yourself to be loved!

BPM: What are some of the benefits of being an author that makes it all worthwhile?
The pleasure of readers expressing that my book helped them through a difficult time and that my words help them to express themselves.

BPM: What are you most thankful for now?
My joy and pain in love helped me to see myself in a better light and to know who I really am. Being happy is essential and it enables you to contribute to the happiness of others.

BPM: Do you have any advice for people seeking to publish a book?
Do you have something to say that people want to read about? If you have a thought or an idea in your head, begin to create a manuscript. Keep a journal near at all times. Research publishers and read their offerings and compare their offerings to your goals. Gather up those small efforts and collectively, they may just equal a bestseller!”

BPM: A legacy is something that is handed down from one time period to another. Finish this sentence; “My writing offers the following legacy to future readers and authors.”:
“My writing offers the following legacy to future readers and authors: To live your life without fear, step out on faith if you truly believe in yourself and what you are writing about. Just close your eyes and jump, I did! For me, when an idea pops into my head, I put pen to paper and it just begins to flow out of me!

BPM: We are here to shine the spotlight on your new book, but what’s next? 
Watch for my new book, “Gems of Life & Love,” to be released later this year. A cookbook, “Queen’s Soul-Full Gourmet”, is also in the works.

BPM: Please share your social media links with the readers.
Pat C. can be found on social media at:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/copperlovely
Her website: http://www.thomaspatricia360.wix.com/patc
Facebook: Pat C, Author – http://www.facebook/PatCauthor

Life & Love: The Journey In Verse by Pat C. 
“Life and Love – The Journey in Verse speaks from the heart of the author as she revisits, observes and fantasizes the beauty of love. It immediately becomes apparent that the reader will be personally escorted by verse to observe and to understand the language that only love speaks. The couplets and the tone capture the beauty of the soul, the mindset and compatible lives being joined together in unity by the power of love. The mood has been meticulously established for reading. I was captivated.” – Dr. Claudia Wells Hamilton Secondary School Principal

Purchase Life & Love: The Journey In Verse
 

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Intimate Conversation with Phyllis Dixon

Intimate Conversation with Phyllis Dixon

Phyllis Dixonis the author of two novels Down Home Blues, and Forty Acres, and Let the Brother Go If… which she co-wrote with Ms. Dupree, formerly of the syndicated Tom Joyner Morning Show. She is a contributing writer to Chicken Soup for the African American Woman’s Soul, and has written for American Legacy magazine and the Memphis Commercial Appeal. She is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and a National Bank Examiner. She is a native of Milwaukee, Wisconsin and resides in Memphis, Tennessee. Visit http://www.phyllisdixon.com for additional information.

BPM: How did you get to be where you are in your life today? Who or what motivated you?
While many have influenced me, my mother has always been my number one cheerleader. She stressed self-reliance, education and faith. My motivation has always been not to disappoint her.

BPM: Who does your body of literary work speak to? Do you consider authors as role models?
My themes are universal, but my primary audience is mature black females, because that’s what I know. There are several authors whose work I admire, but I can’t say they are role models. Being a writer is a very solitary endeavor and each person’s style and motivation is very personal.

BPM: What inspired you to sit down and actually start writing this book? Why now?
I have been writing for years, but didn’t consider writing as a career while I was in school. I didn’t know any writers and rarely saw books by African Americans. Since I did enjoy reading, I opened a bookstore in the 1990’s. I met many authors and learned they were regular people. So I decided if they could do it, I could too.

BPM: What did you enjoy most about writing this book?
The characters. They are like family members and I enjoyed their journey.

BPM: Where do your book ideas come from? Are your books plot-driven or character-driven? Why? 
The situations and issues come from real life; although maybe not my real life. Someone asked Smokey Robinson (my favorite) how he came up with song lyrics, he said some are from his experience, some are from others’ experiences and some he makes up. I think that’s a good description of my writing process. My novels are character driven. Some of their experiences aren’t things I initially planned. But because of their personalities, the plot evolves.

BPM: Could you tell us something about your most recent work? 
Down Home Blues is a family drama that asks – am I my brother (or sister’s keeper)? Is it always best to mind your own business? Divorce, foreclosure, domestic violence, and an all-expense paid trip (also called prison) disrupt the Washington siblings’ perfectly planned lives, and they end up back down home in Arkansas. Instead of serenity, sibling rivalries, divided loyalties and money squabbles resurface. Even the good news, that there may be natural gas on their father’s land, causes conflict. Down Home Blues has themes of family ties and secrets, and the dilemma of whether to speak up or keep secrets. In the African American family in particular, there is a tradition of “what goes on in the house stays in the house”. Some say this practice contributes to closely knit families, others say this perpetuates dysfunction. Down Home Blues continues this conversation. It is available on Nook and Kindle.

BPM: Give us some insight into your main characters or speakers. What makes each one so special? 
The characters are special because they are people you know, or you may identify with one of the characters yourself. The stories are about relationships between men and women, the usual things, boys meets girl, boy and girl break up. But boy and girl may or may not get back together, and maybe they get back together, but they shouldn’t. In addition to the male/female relationships, the characters also deal with family relationships. What makes the characters special, is that you see their situation from multiple points of view. Sometimes things look different when you see it from another perspective.

BPM: Are there under-represented groups or ideas featured in your book? If so, discuss them.
Positive black men are featured in Down Home Blues. Sometimes it seems that African American men are only portrayed as thugs or preachers. Somewhere in between are everyday brothers that go to work every day, take care of their families and love their women. Those are the Washington men. Another underrepresented idea in fiction is the impact of incarceration on communities of color, and one of the main characters is dealing with those issues. Also, I explore domestic violence. How does it start? Why do they stay? What, if anything should friends and family members do? Again, something not often written about in fiction.

BPM: How does your book relate to your present situation, education, spiritual practice or journey?
With Down Home Blues, I am practicing what I preach by pursuing my goals and getting out of my comfort zone. Given the changes in the publishing industry, I did not really even search for a mainstream publisher. There is a long gestation period in the book industry and I did not want to wait. I have a banking background and have owned a bookstore, so I have the knowledge and skills to produce a quality product. Therefore, I put the book out myself. Now I know there is a negative connotation with self-publishing. That’s why I prefer the term independent publisher. An independent filmmaker is admired and musicians are cutting out the middleman. Given our history in this country, it seems foolish to rely on a handful of large conglomerates to tell our stories. Also, I lost my husband a few years ago and he was very involved in marketing my books. Now I have to toot my own horn. I’m not comfortable with that, but as the old folks say, “a closed mouth don’t get fed.” That is a long answer to say, at this point in my journey, I have the knowledge, confidence, and faith to be the master of my own destiny.

BPM: Did you learn anything personal from writing your book? Can you share some stories about people you met while researching this book?
I would refer to the previous answer for the first question. Something I learned while researching the book is the extent of challenges that ex-offenders face when trying to reintegrate in their communities. The majority of those incarcerated will eventually get out. But many do not have even a high school diploma or a marketable skill. How are they supposed to support themselves? Also I didn’t realize the laws varied so much from state to state. In Maine and Vermont, inmates can vote while in prison. On the flip side, there are four states where ex-offenders lose their voting rights permanently, unless pardoned by the governor.

BPM: What were your goals and intentions in this book, and how well do you feel you achieved them? 
My goal was to continue the story of the Washington family. But I didn’t want this to be a “sequel” in the normal sense. Each book stands alone and you won’t be lost if you haven’t read Forty Acres. I feel I met those goals, but the reader is the ultimate judge.

BPM: What projects are you working on at the present?
I am working on another novel and also a nonfiction business book.

BPM: How can readers discover more about you and your work? Share all of your social media links.
My website is: www.phyllisdixon.com  and other social media links are Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/phyllis.dixon.376  and Twitter – @phyllisrdixon.

Order Down Home Blues by Phyllis Dixon
Genre – Contemporary Fiction
Amazon – http://tinyurl.com/qg4nuhh
Barnes & Noble – http://tinyurl.com/o5g7l7l

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Intimate Conversation with Bridgett Renay

Intimate Conversation with Bridgett Renay

The only thing best-selling author Bridgett Renay loves doing more than writing is breathing. If you let her tell it, the first spoken words from the quiet but observant Navy veteran were, “I should really write this down”.

As a young girl she undoubtedly had the gift. Everything from poetry to short stories filled her PeeChee folder with fantasies as well as the realities of life growing up in south central Los Angeles. And her talents didn’t go unnoticed. A Thanksgiving poem she wrote in elementary school found its way into the neighborhood newspaper, but it wasn’t a sign of what was to immediately come.

Before pursuing her dream of becoming an acclaimed novelist, the pragmatic Bridgett Renay believed she had to first make good on a promise she made to God. That promise revolved around the pursuit of higher learning and community service and was made after He healed her from a traumatic childhood incident.

The years of personal triumphs earning a Bachelor of Science in Technical Communication and a Master of Business Administration, as well as professional growth as a corporate operative and Navy Reservist, tells the story of a journey that took her to faraway places, introduced her to intoxicating people, and shaped the way she viewed the world and her place in it.

Now that she has reached the top of her pyramid, per se, Bridgett Renay is ready for the novelistic spotlight. The pen is back, the passion never left …another journey begins.

BPM: How did you get to be where you are in your life today? Who or what motivated you?
The United States Navy motivated me and has played a huge role in where I’m at today. Before 9-11, I was a regular Navy Reservist – a weekend warrior – who was also very comfortable in my cushy, corporate job. But after 9-11, I was recalled to active duty where I served in the Middle East as a security patrolman. Not only did I spend ten months seeing first-hand how other cultures lived in dire straits, but I also saw a lot of my military comrades either lose their lives or lose their ability to function normally. It reminded me how fortunate I was to have so many opportunities in America that I made a promise to myself and God that if he returned me home in one piece, I would follow each and every dream I’ve ever had. I can honestly say that I have. 

Since returning home I’ve earned a B.S. and a Master’s degree, purchased my own home as a single black woman, finished out my military career and retired with twenty-four years of service, and I’ve written and published my first novel, best-selling Corporate Thugs. And every day is a new journey in pursuit of my true calling.

BPM: Who does your body of literary work speak to? Do you consider authors as role models?
My work speaks to black Americans and the challenges we face in our pursuit of happiness. And yes, I definitely consider authors as role models. I admire the way some take risks and trail blaze into new territories. I admire how they’re unapologetic with their words. That’s what I’ve strived for in this new release.

BPM: What inspired you to sit down and actually start writing this book? Why now?
We’re in campaign season and I wanted to write a drama based on the political mayhem that goes on behind the scenes. LLP – Lust, Lies & Propositions is actually based on an incident that happened to me in the work place that I considered office politics. I was letting off a lot of steam by making a mountain out of a molehill and penning a book based on that incident. And honestly, this book is more non-fiction than it is fiction because when it comes to being black in corporate America, there’s a lot of inequalities that should be brought to the forefront.

BPM: What did you enjoy most about writing this book?
I enjoyed learning the truth about corporate America. It’s only when we truly understand our environment when we can make change. This experience has taught me what my life was destined for and I’m absolutely positive that it’s just the beginning of an extraordinary journey because everything I’ve done in my life has led to this spectacular moment in time.

BPM: Where do your book ideas come from? Are your books plot-driven or character-driven? Why?
I’m an observer of human behavior and I pay very close attention to how people handle their drama. This book is more character-driven because I love taking interesting characters through their life’s drama in a way that would mirror how I handle my own mess.

BPM: Could you tell us something about your most recent work? 
LLP – Lust, Lies & Propositions lightheartedly explores the political lives of black America within three distinct principalities – corporate America, romantic relationships, and government itself. It’s available Super Tuesday on Tuesday, March 1, 2016 on Kindle and Nook.

BPM: Give us some insight into your main characters or speakers. What makes each one so special? 
The main character, Essence St. Clair, is a rich daddy’s little girl who grew up in a conservative environment. She believes that based on her upbringing, she’s entitled to a life where she calls all the shots. The novel takes us through her trials and tribulations as she discovers that the world does not revolve around her. What makes her unique is that she’s also trying to learn how to fit in as opposed to expecting everyone to go against their convictions and live by hers.

BPM: Are there under-represented groups or ideas featured in your book? If so, discuss them.
Essence St. Clair being a black conservative definitely falls into the category of being under-represented. In America, there’s a stigma against black conservatives and my goal was to change that – giving my readers an opportunity to look inside their worlds and realize that we’re basically all the same; everyone wants to be acknowledged, accepted, and respected. We are so focused on the wrong things that it hampers us from living our best lives. This book brings that point to life – it focuses on what we should really be talking about and the changes we should really be making within our communities.

BPM: How does your book relate to your present situation, education, spiritual practice or journey?
I currently work in corporate America so I know what I speak of. There are so many wonderful opportunities for blacks, but there are also too many stigmas to have to tolerate – equal pay, promotional opportunities, but mostly respect. Corporate America gives a lot of us very comfortable standards of living, but much more has to be done before we can say with confidence that we’re mutually represented.

BPM: Did you learn anything personal from writing your book?
What I’ve learned is the exact same thing I learned with my first book – that you don’t have to be famous to have a voice. The reality is in the majority of cases, you don’t become famous until you let your voice be heard. I’ve learned that my voice is just as important as anyone else’s and I plan to use it to be a part of the solution and not a part of the problem. I’ve learned that I don’t have to always sit in the stands. I have the talent and courage it takes to be center stage.

BPM: Can you share some stories about people you met while researching this book?
My journey over the last year has allowed me to meet black women of true distinction. I have met women like Lisa Nichols, Dr. Venus Opal Reese, Vicki Irvin, Cassandra Bradford, Tamika Newhouse, and Nicole Roberts Jones who are playing a huge role in shaping my tomorrow. The influence they’re having on my writing and my being are immeasurable. Every day I wake up with an amazing sense of purpose.

BPM: What were your goals and intentions in this book, and how well do you feel you achieved them?
Black Americans contributed to every aspect throughout history to build what should be a great nation, but we’re still underappreciated throughout enough entities that I wanted to express my feeling towards. Writing is the absolute best remedy to relieve frustrations and bring about awareness.

BPM: What projects are you working on at the present?
I am currently transitioning into non-fiction writing. I have been so inspired by the above-mentioned women that my true calling has emerged. There are so many women I see on a daily basis that are in pain and I want to see them through it. There’s enough abundance for each and every one of us and I am destined to play a role in leading those distraught women into their greatness.

BPM: How can readers discover more about you and your work? Share all of your social media links.
Website: http://www.BridgettRenay.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BridgettRenay
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bridgett.renay.3
Blog: http://www.bridgettrenay.com/
Instagram: Bridgett Renay (@undistractedbridgettrenay) 

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Intimate Conversation with Lydia E. Brew

Intimate Conversation with Lydia E. Brew

Lydia E. Brew was born with cerebral palsy but has not allowed her physical limitations to stand in her way. Her writing provides insights into the world of the physically challenged. She graduated from Texas Southern University where she received The Society of Professional Journalist Sigma Chi Citation for Achievement. She was a member of the drama club and pledged Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.

Miss Brew founded Lydia’s Educational and Charitable Organization (LECO) when she decided to encourage young people to write.  LECO did this by sponsoring a yearly contest in which the contestant had to write about positive role models who were alive and from the Houston area. Each student who wrote an eligible essay was given a certificate of participation. Winning writers received cash prizes.

Her second book titled Our Learn Together Book is a book for young readers based on the biography of Edith Irby Jones, M.D.  It tells her story in a simplified format on one page and allows the reader to write their own biography on the other.  There are activities in the back where younger children can learn developmental skills and older children can learn to do research.   She is a Christian and attends St. Stevens United Methodist Church.

BPM: Lydia, tell us about yourself and how you started writing.
I was born with cerebral palsy but never allowed my physical limitations to stand in my way. I hope that some of my writing also provides insights into the world of the physically challenged.  Under the leadership of one of my journalism professors, I penned my first book Edith, The Story of Edith Irby Jones, M.D.  about the first African-American to graduate from The Arkansas School of Medicine. Upon finishing college, I worked with the Houston Association of Black Journalists. I am a Christian and attend St. Steven’s United Methodist Church.

BPM: What motivated you to sit down and actually start writing this book? 
When I did the first draft of the Ungolden Silence I did no research and I wrote from my daydreams. Like another author said; she made up and wrote the story. That is what I did. People who read the first draft of the story told me that I needed to do some research, which I ultimately did. My research showed that my story was not that far off.

One thing the book shows is that we do not know what a rapist looks like; it could be anybody. In my story, two women go to the nation’s capitol on business. When they first meet an African American man they did not think that they needed to be careful as if they were in a dark alley.  He was a serial rapist. Most rapists are.  People do not know what a rapist looks like.

I like both reading and writing drama. I chose this particular subject to write about because I did not like the way that the media was so-called “protecting” perpetrator of rape by withholding their names. Yes, rape is a violation, but so is murder. The minute a murdered victim’s family is notified, then the name of the victim is released. Domestic violence crimes are just like any other crime. In Ungolden Silence readers can see where secrets were kept and it led to other problems. Yes, I want to entertain with drama, but I also want readers to think about the problem of rape, which is a part of domestic violence.

BPM: Do you ever let the book stew – leave it for months and then come back to it? 
My stories are from my daydreams and I guess you can say that they stew in my head until I put them on paper. I have many ideas in my head, but when I actually write them down, they may end up being something totally different, but will still represent the basic idea/concept. So, yes, a story must stew until everything is mixed in the pot and comes together to create a delicious literary feast.

BPM: Where do your book ideas come from? Are your books plot driven or character driven?  
As I mentioned earlier, my ideas come from my daydreams. My stories are my daydreams transformed into the written word. In order for me to create a good character I need to see the character. What I do is use the body of a person that I know or am familiar with. I then give them the personality I need them to have to fit the role in the story that I’m placing them in. When it comes to saying whether my books are plot driven or character driven, it’s hard to say. Perhaps a little bit of both.  In Ungolden Silence, it’s definitely more plot driven because even though I wanted to create engaging and memorable characters, I did not want them their drama to overshadow the important subject matter of the story. It was a challenge to find that proper balance.

BPM: What separates this story from the millions of other books on the shelves? 
Society needs to change the way that is deals with the social taboo of rape.  Ungolden Silenceis a novel that will leave the reader with many questions. It will also attempt to answer some of the questions that society asks but never seem to want the answers to. We must look at the history of how men have been allowed to treat women. It is important not to just know the information, it is important to act on it.

Ungolden Silence will illustrate that the criminal is a real person, and rarely do they commit crimes just for fun.
What makes Ungolden Silence different from the millions of other books out there, namely that deal with the issue of rape, is that it tells the story of rape and focuses on more than just the victim. There are many people affected by the crime, including the rapist and his family. Am I kidding? No. In a lot of cases the rapists are well respected. The novel is divided into four parts, The Silent Problem, The Aftermath, Hard to Come Forward, and Something to Consider. I specifically set out to break down all aspects of the issue, versus just the single one that most books about rape address.  The book is available in digital forms.

BPM: What topics are primarily discussed? Did you learn anything personal from writing your book? 
Ungolden Silence is about changing the way that society thinks about sexual abuse as well as the issue of protecting the name of sexual victims. In my opinion, we need to focus on the abuser and putting him or her away. Society hears the words “sexual abuse” and they start blaming the victim by asking what was she wearing or doing. We do not do this for any other crimes.  For example: When a person is murdered, the name of the victim is given when the family is notified.  But when a person is sexually assaulted then it is said that the person needs privacy because he or she had been violated.  Hello, taking someone’s life is the ultimate violation. Society needs to understand that abuse of any kind is wrong. Ungolden Silence is an attempt to make society think about victims of rape and how other domestic crimes are treated.

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Intimate Conversation with Tomeekha Pitre

Intimate Conversation with Tomeekha Pitre

Tomeekha is a successful business professional within the corporate world of medical healthcare. She is a zealot for multi-media art and community advocacy for artists.

Tomeekha is the co-owner of Black Cotton, LLC where she is Publisher of literary projects for the Black Cotton Publishing division. Her expertise in business and the arts allows her to enjoy consulting for startup businesses and creative projects.

Her debut novel, Earth’s Quiet Chaos, is a fictional narrative inspired by life experiences. She is spirit-led to share stories that will uplift, empower, educate and inspire individuals to live in the highest version of self.

BPM: Tell us about your passion for writing. Why do you write? What drives you?
TPE: This is an interesting question because it reminds me of a haiku I wrote to address questions about why I paint. It goes like this,

Music is the reason
Painting is my life
I write to tell the story

In the past, I mostly wrote poems and short essays. It wasn’t until the year of 2012 that I acknowledged my passion to tell stories. I love to write. If I’m thinking it, I have a strong need to write it.

What drives me is being of service. I’ve adopted something my husband always says, “We were born of creativity to create.” This statement resonates with me because I strongly feel that we show each other the way by sharing our stories.

BPM: How did you initially break into the publishing industry? Did you ever self-publish?  
TPE: In 2013, my husband and I published our first book. That book is an art photography coffee table book titled, “Black Cotton”. The development and research took so much time and we learned so much that we decided to birth an LLC named after our first published book, Black Cotton LLC. Our business is a media and publishing company. The purpose of our business is to create an opening for independent authors with the intent to (not just publish their book) work side by side. This way the author learns each step of the publishing process. The goal is to provide them with the tools to self-publish their next project and create their own businesses.

BPM: What hurdles, if any, did you have to overcome as a new author and business owner?
TPE: WOW! Let me start with business owner; and I’m going to keep it real because I’m all about sharing lessons learned. Our biggest hurdles were accounting, marketing, sales and promotions. These “lessons learned,” taught us that we couldn’t do everything as well as we thought we could on our own. We had to come real in knowing our skill set, know our weak areas and pay someone with the proven skill to fill our weak areas and trust them to do what they do. The other lesson is there has to be a benefit value for everyone and everything you do and plan for, for the best results.

As an author, my biggest hurdle writing conflict. Oh, my goodness. I was so scared because I know the power of written words. I was scared to write some deadly horrible for a character or have a character get shot or anything. OH MY GOODNESS… I had to get over it. It was the hardest thing as a writer for me to overcome.

BPM: Our life experiences, challenges and success help define who we are on many levels. At what point in your career did you discover your real worth and own it?
TPE: YES! Great question. I’m 42 and I didn’t get this until the age of 37 or 38 and it’s something that I wish I had discovered at 28. We can’t expect others to respect our worth if we don’t own it ourselves. What that means is – I know I’m really good at taking an idea and through the planning, development and implementation phases. So if I’m going to be of service for anyone in this area, I have a minimum and maximum price for my services. Because I’m serious about what I do, putting a price tag on my work will only attract those that are serious about their work and will pay for what they need.

BPM: Success leaves clues, whose clues did you follow on your journey?
TPE: I followed and follow the clues left behind from my ancestors.
However, in 2012 I attended a healing retreat with Queen Afua. After that retreat, the group decided to continue our meet ups via conference call. We were doing the gateway work outlined in Sacred Woman by Queen Afua. The first gateway was: Sacred Words. Within each gateway we’re to create an altar in the spirit of the spiritual guardian and in gateway 1 the Kemetic Spiritual Guardian is Tehuti (The scribe). The altar is to consist of specific artifacts that carry the energy of each gateway. It also calls for adding pictures of ancestors, elders, and contemporaries to follow in their footsteps. So I posted the following pictures on my wall and typed out each of their names under their pictures:

Ancestors: Zora Neale Hurston and Phillis Wheatley
Elders: Sonia Sanchez and Maya Angelou (living at the time)
Contemporaries: Sister Souljah and Edwidge Dandicat

I wasn’t thinking of writing a book of any kind at this point. My purpose in conquering this gateway was to journal every day. Little did I know, that God had another form of journaling in store for me. During gateway 1, is when I began writing the story of Earth’s Quiet Chaos.

BPM: Do you set out to educate or inspire, entertain or illuminate a particular subject? 
TPE: My purpose in displaying any of my gifts is done in the spirit of healing and inspiring others. I used to co-host a poetry venue and one of the things I’d always say is that we learn and heal from each other. Which is why it is a requirement in life for us to share our stories (even those we are ashamed of) and our gifts, because for every person who thinks you or your story or your gift is whack, there is that one that will be healed and inspired to BE. So, with that, I’d say I set out to inspire and heal.

BPM: Did you learn anything personal from writing this book? 
TPE: Although this book is fictional, it was inspired by my relationship with my youngest sister. Writing it was healing for me. It was like I gave birth to something new and refreshing. One of the big things I learned was taking it one step at a time. Don’t rush the process. This was really hard for me because I have a project manager background, so I was stressing and getting overwhelmed when I wasn’t sticking to the timeline. Then a soft voice said, “Why are you rushing? This book isn’t being created for you. Let it take its time and it will be the right time.” I was like, “Yeah. Right on!” So, I learned how to take my time and not rush.

BPM: What was your primary quest in publishing this book? Why now?
TPE: My quest in publishing this book is to make it available for people to read in hopes that it reaches the eyes of those in need of it. Why now? Well, because the book chooses its own time to be released.

BPM: What should readers DO after reading this book?
TPE: Well, after recommending the book and/or purchasing for their friends or family – Pray, meditate, and give thanks for no longer allowing another person’s journey to compromise their own.

BPM: Readers you can follow the author online at the links below.
Tomeekha’s website: http://www.tomeekhapitre.com
FB: TomeekhaPitre
Instagram: Tomeekha
Twitter: @tomeekha

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Intimate Conversation with Monica Lynne Foster

Intimate Conversation with Monica Lynne Foster

Monica Lynne Foster is an international selling author of fiction novels and Non-Fiction inspiration. Her novels focus on the lives of relatable characters who continually find themselves at a crossroads. Sometimes they make the right decisions…and sometimes they don’t.

In addition to being an author, Monica and her husband own American Gas Works, a gas contracting company in Michigan. She’s also the co-founder of Women Who Run Their World, a women’s organization whose purpose is to Encourage, Inspire, and Support our Sisters in Our Pursuit to Live Our Lives on Our Terms.

BPM: When did you get your first inkling to write, and how did you advance the call for writing? 
I started writing when I was seven. I wrote a four page story titled Charlie and the Dunce. I remember reading it to my family and receiving applause. Only God knows if it was actually any good. Interestingly enough, my aunt kept it and showed it to me recently. I re-read it and it was pretty good, if I do say so myself. LOL. But it was the beginning of the 2000’s when I read Temptation by Victoria Christopher Murray that the desire to write novels was truly sparked within me. I remember reading her novel and it was the first time I’d read a novel that I enjoyed and didn’t blush my way through it! In 2003, I began working on Bad Choices Can Be Deadly and, because of my corporate career, it took me over eleven years to finally bring it to life.

BPM: Tell us about your passion for writing. Why do you write? What drives you?
I write because I love it. It gives me life. I write both novels and inspirational non-fiction. With my novels, I enjoy the feeling of freedom that I experience when my mind gets to break away from reality and enter the realm of fantasy. I can be as outrageous or as tame as I want to be. My characters can say and do things that Monica would never say or do! And I always hope and pray that my readers get to take that same mental escape when they’re enjoying my work. When I write my inspirational pieces, I share my life story and how I transitioned from being a corporate executive to an entrepreneur and author. And I write a blog that is a by-product of my quiet time with God.

BPM: How did you initially break into the publishing industry? Did you ever self-publish? 
I am a self-published author and I love it. If I’m being honest, I’ll say that when I first published, I had a negative view of self-publishing. As though self-publishing was inferior to traditional publishing. But what I’ve learned through several bumps in the road is that being a self-published author, with the right team, can be very lucrative and rewarding.

BPM: Do you ever let the book stew – leave it for months and then come back to it?
Absolutely! I let my first book stew for eleven years!  LOL. But seriously, I do put books on pause for various reasons. The books and the characters tell me when they’re ready to be written. I give myself target dates to complete my work, but I’m gentle with myself and if it takes a little longer than I’d anticipated, then I just flow with it.

BPM: Are there any areas of your writing career that you wish you could go back and change? 
Not at all. Because every step we take, even the steps that hurt, lead us to where we are. And I’m very happy with where I am and where I’m going.

BPM: What’s the most important quality a writer should have in your opinion?
There’s more than one that rank side by side at the top of the list. Writers need to be observant. A great idea for a storyline can come from anywhere. Writers need to have thick skin. Everyone has an opinion and some will have opinions about our work that are complimentary, and others may have negative views. And the same Internet and social media worlds that we need to support us, are the exact same worlds that can crush our bubble. Give everyone the space to have their own thoughts about our work and be okay when it’s less than flattering. Understand that writing is only part of the journey. If we want people to read our work, then we have to be ambassadors for our brand and let people know what we have to offer. And finally, keep the joy. It can be tough at times, dealing with the ancillary parts of the business and the industry. But it’s necessary. Just remember how great you feel when you’re creating. And when you have a particularly tough day, go write something. You’ll feel better!

BPM: Can you share a little of your current work with us? Introduce us to your book and the characters.
My upcoming novel, Hands Off My Man is the second book in my Chanelle Series. It asks the question, “How far would you go to protect your relationship?” It’s a story that many women will initially find familiar. The title character, Chanelle, has kissed a lot of frogs and now has her Prince Charming. However, her happily ever after is threatened when her man’s ex-wife resurfaces and decides she wants him back. The situation is further complicated by his ex’s mental illness. Is Chanelle able to hold onto her relationship without pushing his ex over the edge? You have to read it to find out. ?

BPM: What genre is this book? Do you write all of your books in this category? Why?
The Chanelle Seriesis Women’s Fiction/Chick Lit. My novels are all written in this genre. My non-fiction work is Christian motivation/inspiration. I write in the genres that I enjoy reading.

Listen to a reading from Bad Choices Can Be Deadly – Book 1 in A Chanelle Series.
http://www.audioacrobat.com/note/CRkzZSqx

BPM: Do you set out to educate or inspire, entertain or illuminate a particular subject? 
In my novels I like to explore the imperfections in people who have good hearts and mostly good intentions, but who make costly mistakes. And I do that in an entertaining fashion. With my inspiration, I hope that by being transparent with my life, my shortcomings and challenges, as well as my triumphs, I can inspire others to go after what they want out of their own lives.

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#WritingWithPurpose: The Butterfly Memoir Series by M.J. Kane

The Butterfly Memoir Series by M.J. Kane

Butterflies symbolize change, evolution, the shedding of the old and bringing out the new. A memoir is a story, a narration told first hand, of someone’s personal experiences.

Like butterflies in the spring that disappear into cocoons and emerge, completely changed, my characters are no longer the same when their story ends.

The Butterfly Memoirs are stories told by the characters themselves. It is Women’s Fiction, Contemporary and Interracial Romance.  Each story addresses  the realistic trials every woman and man face in a relationship. My goal is to inspire hope, comfort, and encourage anyone who may be able to relate to these stories.

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Download A Heart Not Easily Broken by M.J. Kane
**Download for FREE on major ebook retailers**
A Heart Not Easily Broken is a Amazon Bestseller in Multicultural Romance, African-American Literature & Fiction, African-American Women’s Fiction, and Romance

Butterfly Memoirs Book 1 – Amazon Bestseller
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B016QAXZ04

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A Black Pearls Magazine Conversation with M.J. Kane

M.J. Kane stumbled into writing. An avid reader, this stay at home mom never lost the overactive imagination of an only child. As an adult she made up stories, though never shared them, to keep herself entertained. It wasn’t until surviving a traumatic medical incident in 2006 that she found a reason to let the characters inhabiting her imagination free.  Upon the suggestion of her husband, she commandeered his laptop and allowed the characters to take life. It was that, or look over her shoulder for men caring a purple strait jacket. And the rest, as they say, is history.

BPM:  How did you get to be where you are in your life today? Who or what motivated you?

MJ:  Life experiences and curiosity. I learned first-hand that you can’t look at someone and assume you know what’s going on in their lives or what type of experiences they have had that make them react to situations the way they do. That motivates me to write stories that explore how and why people react to life changing events, good or bad.

BPM:  Who does your body of literary work speak to? Do you consider authors as role models?

MJ:  I write for the reader who is looking for a story that deals with the reality of life. I don’t do fantasy or unrealistic stories. It’s all life…an exploration of relationships between family, friends, and lovers. It’s about discovering yourself, and evolving into something better. I write stories my readers can relate to, see themselves in, and hopefully find peace or motivation to try something new. Do I consider authors as role models? Of course! If it weren’t for my love of reading and discovering authors who have taken their talent and created stories that touched me, I would never have been able to discover how to find my writing voice, much less get brave enough to put my work in the hands or readers.

BPM:  What inspired you to sit down and actually start writing this book? Why now?

MJ:  I wanted to take a conventional idea of a BW/WM romance and explore the reality of what it would be like realistically for two people to open their minds and hearts and look beyond skin color to discover a love neither of them were looking for. I also wanted to see what would happen when the relationship was tested by outside forces that had absolutely nothing to do with race. In today’s society people are finding love openly in relationships some of us may not be able to relate to, I thought it would be good to recognize that despite the external differences a couple has, when it all comes down to it, we all face the same issues and problems.

 What makes us strong is the way we address them.  How we handle them is shaped by our beliefs and past experiences. I don’t write un-flawed characters. We are imperfect and we make bad decisions…its how we learn and grow. If we’re lucky, we survive the journey and come out on the other side as stronger individuals.

BPM:  What did you enjoy most about writing this book?

MJ:  This is the first book I’ve ever written, so the entire experience was wonderful! I had the most fun diving into the heads of the characters and for once, allowing my imagination to run free and listen to the ‘inner voices’ that became my characters. Each one is like a real person to me, so I guess it’s like having family that will never leave!

BPM:  Where do your book ideas come from? Are your books plot-driven or character-driven?  Why?

MJ:  The ideas for my novels come from watching and listening to people around me. It can be something I’ve heard in the news or an idea I’ve seen in a movie. My stories are definitely character-driven. I will take a ‘what if’ scenario and see what would happen if two people from various social, economic, and racial backgrounds fell in love and had to face a life changing situation.

BPM:  Could you tell us something about your most recent work?  Is this book available on Nook and Kindle?

MJ:  The series I am writing now is called The Butterfly Memoirs. The first novel in the series is A Heart Not Easily Broken. My most current release is the fourth novel, Nobody’s Business. For this part of the series, I decided to flip the script a bit and focus on a male character and the issues he faces when he discovers he has a two-year-old son with a past girlfriend, and his son is ill. To make matters worse, he has an eye on a women he met during a one-night stand, but is fighting an internal war with his heart. Should he rekindle the romance with the mother of his child and build the perfect family for his son, or should he follow his heart and seek out the woman who’s captured it. All of my novels are available on Kindle, Nook, iTunes, Smashworks, as well as paperback. A Heart Not Easily Broken can also be found on Audible.

BPM:  Give us some insight into your main characters or speakers. What makes each one so special?

MJ:  My goal with all of my novels is to allow readers to hear the characters voices as they go about their lives. By writing in first-person narrative, you get a chance to see inside of them, to know what they are thinking and what motivates them to make the decisions they do. It’s so much easier to ‘experience’ emotions and feelings instead of being ‘told’ how someone feels. It draws readers into the story on a true emotional level and allows them to learn and grow along with the characters. One recent reader told me that she had just finished ‘walking’ with the character and loved it!

The Butterfly Memoirs Series

Butterflies symbolize change, evolution, the shedding of the old and bringing out the new. A memoir is a story, a narration told first hand, of someone’s personal experiences.

Like butterflies in the spring that disappear into cocoons and emerge, completely changed, my characters are no longer the same when their story ends.

The Butterfly Memoirs are stories told by the characters themselves. It is Women’s Fiction, Contemporary and Interracial Romance.  Each story addresses  the realistic trials every woman and man face in a relationship. My goal is to inspire hope, comfort, and encourage anyone who may be able to relate to these stories.

BPM:  Are there under-represented groups or ideas featured in your book?  If so, discuss them.

MJ:  No, but what I do have are themes that deal with real-life issues faced by men and women, regardless of race or background. I try to represent each characters race and background to the best of my ability.

BPM:  How does your book relate to your present situation, spiritual practice or journey?

MJ:  I like to write characters I could imagine becoming friends with, characters that could be you or me, the neighbor next door, or your cousin. I come from a middle-class family, so do my characters. I don’t try to represent a lifestyle that I am not familiar with. I’ve either had some personal experiences that have inspired scenes and conversations, or I have done research on them. I try to keep an open mind with my characters and let them be who they want to be. I don’t try to push any of my personal feelings or beliefs into their lives. Writing this way makes it easy to create real people who come from various walks of life and easier for all readers to be able to relate to at least once character in some way.

BPM:   Did you learn anything personal from writing your book? Can you share some stories about people you met while researching this book?

MJ:  Honestly, the most interesting person I’ve met along the way has been myself! I know that sounds crazy, but as a mother of four kids who, at the time I started writing the first novel in the series, were between elementary and middle school, I needed something to keep me grounded and allow me to have something that didn’t revolve around children’s’ school activities. I’ve learned that I have a talent for storytelling and the ability to affect readers in ways I never would have expected. Since then, two of my kids have graduated high school, and my youngest are both in middle and high school. Now that I have my writing to focus on, I don’t have to worry about empty nest syndrome!

BPM:   What were your goals and intentions in this book, and how well do you feel you achieved them?

MJ:  My first goal was to write a story, period. I didn’t exactly have dreams of getting published, but as friends and family read the book, I got encouraged to pursue it. I’d written book two, Jaded, and three, Lonely Heart, as an afterthought to see if I could continue telling the stories of the main character Ebony’s best friends. And what do you know, I did! I feel proud of my accomplishments as an author. I have been blessed to have readers reach out to connect with me both online and in person. I’ve been able to have the paperback copies of my novels available in the Barnes & Nobel store in my area.

And recently, the first three novels of The Butterfly Memoirs have been added to the library collection in the county where I live which means readers in Georgia who are connected to the Pines Library System have access to them. I’ve been able to accomplish the two major goals I’ve had since the day I signed my publishing contract. What’s left? Signing a movie or TV deal and talking with Oprah!

BPM:   What projects are you working on at the present?

MJ:  My current project is the fifth novel in the series, Alone. When I was signed to 5 Prince Publishing, it was for a six book deal. From there, I have ideas of other stories I want to write. I am also looking forward to having the next three novels turned into audio books. One step at a time…

BPM:   How can readers discover more about you and your work?

MJ:  Readers can find me anywhere on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and more! Just search MJKaneBooks and you’ll find me. To learn more about my books and writing tips, visit my website, MJKaneMedia.com.

 
Books by M.J. Kane, The Butterfly Memoirs
Contemporary Romance, Women’s Fiction, Interracial Romance

Order all of the Books in this Series (4 Books)
*  A Heart Not Easily Broken (Book One of The Butterfly Memoirs)
*  Jaded (Book Two of The Butterfly Memoirs)
*  Lonely Heart (Book Three of The Butterfly Memoirs)
*  Nobody’s Business (Book Four of The Butterfly Memoirs)

Connect with MJ Kane Online
Twitter:  @MJKaneBooks
Website: http://mjkanemedia.com/about-me
Books:  http://www.amazon.com/M.J.-Kane/e/B009DN708U
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/MJButterflyBooks
Instagram: https://instagram.com/mjkanebooks/

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All That Glitters By Tumika Patrice Cain

All That Glitters By Tumika Patrice Cain

All too often I see women lay aside the truth of who they are to receive the lies or misguided opinions of another.  And they accept those lies as truth.
The truth is women were created to be a gift to their partner, to their children, to the body of Christ.  To the world.  Life bearers in body, in speech, in actions, in deeds.  And so it appalls me when I see the callous disregard by which we are treated, that we accept as the norm.  We have forgotten who we are.  That it was the Lord’s own hands that formed us and presented us in the form of Eve to Adam.  Eve who stands symbolically as all womankind, she was his gift.  Even as we today are gifts to this world.  But we don’t see it.

Too many days of being disregarded.  Too many nights of being abandoned.  Too much time between a gentle touch and a kind word.  Just too much.  And we have internalized it to mean that we are not worthy of anything more…despite the silent screaming going on inside of us that begs to be heard, saying that we do.

And so instead of looking in the mirror and reminding ourselves that we are wonderfully and fearfully made, we criticize the minuscule pimple and magnify the imperceptible blemish.  Instead of hugging ourselves tight and crooning words of love into our own selves, we belittle ourselves and speak ill about ourselves…regurgitating the foul words that have been spewed at us from people who were at the very least unaware.  Having forgotten that none of us is perfect, including those who are trying to push the idea of perfection on us.

Myles Munro said it best, “when you don’t know the purpose of a thing, it is inevitable that you will abuse it.”  To abuse is to abnormally use something.  How does this apply to what I am saying about you, about me…it is in our not knowing our own purpose, not knowing our own selves that we invariably end up mistreating ourselves or allowing others to mistreat us, too.  That mistreatment comes in so many forms: unhealthy relationships, poor diet, lack of exercise, allowing folks to bring their drama into our inner sanctum….you name it.

It is not necessary to make ourselves over to be some idea or image that a man has in his mind that he wants.  Who you are, just as you are, is enough.  In fact, it’s more than enough.  How do you compete with a fantasy?  Fantasies aren’t real.  All you can do is be the best you that you can be.  So often we see people go for the spectacular and sensational.  While the quietly brilliant gem is right there in plain sight.  All that glitters is not gold.  Sometimes it’s tinsel….and you can get that from the dollar store.  It is not necessary for you to make yourself over to shine as bright and sparkly as tinsel when it is not an item of substance or value.  Nothing precious in it.  It stands as an illusion…giving the appearance of brilliance and glamour.  But a gem is precious.

Even a diamond in the rough is STILL a diamond….a priceless treasure that has been produced by much pressure over time.  And it takes a skilled artisan to pull out ALL of the beauty that lies in that mass of rock.  It takes someone who is skilled, who knows just what to look for and who has the patience of a trained eye to find it.  Someone with a quiet spirit to hear that which has not been spoken but which speaks so clearly.

Ladies, it is time to stop throwing your pearls before swine.  To stop giving up your power to someone who isn’t worthy to have it.  Love yourself just as you are, right where you are.  And despite what men say….let a woman fully come into her own, where she feels wonderful and lovely and valuable and precious in her own right, according to her own terms, and he will seek her out.  In the midst of that, he discovers that SHE (in all of her natural and rare beauty) is his fantasy…not anything he has been fed from the media, not what he has seen in a Playboy magazine.  Not even anything his mind may have conjured up.

The greatest gift to the world we can give, is to be the very best that we can be.  So go ahead and embrace your brilliance…whether you are a diamond, a pearl or an emerald….or maybe even one of those rare stones we hardly ever hear anything about.  There is beauty in each one…as they were created to be.  Just as there is beauty in each one of us…just as we were created to be.  Define your life today and if you don’t know where to start, start with a conversation with your Maker and ask him to show you yourself through HIS eyes.  Then ask him to help you get rid of any thoughts or images of yourself that are tied to lies or untruths that others have fed you.  And begin to build from there.

You are a rare and precious gem…embrace your power and own it!

Changing lives one word at a time…Tumika Patrice Cain
Meet the Author
Tumika Patrice Cain is an award-winning author, media personality and publisher whose works centers around uplifting, encouraging and empowering others to live the abundant life.  She is also an accomplished poet; founder of the Say What?? Book Club; and host of the internet radio shows Living Abundantly with Tumika Patrice Cain, In The Spotlight, and Say What?? Author Spotlights.  In addition, she is a respected book reviewer and columnist for PEN’Ashe Magazine, a contributing writer for BLOG and Belief Magazines, and editor for two smaller publishing companies.

A champion for indie authors, she works tirelessly to level the playing field to bring exposure to those authors who excel at their craft, but whose marketing budgets are limited.  Inkscriptions, her publishing company, offers a myriad of book publishing services. Living by the motto of each one reach one, each one teach one, Tumika shares her passion for purpose and for life with all who cross her path. 

She is the 2013 recipient of a Spoken Word Billboard award for her debut novel, Season of Change (December 2012), a novel that has since been picked up by Shan Presents and will be re-released as When a Man Loves a Woman – A Season of Change in December 2015. 

To her publishing credit, she is also the author of After the Rain…a Poetry Collective (March 2014) and The Heart of a Woman (August 2015).  Tumika’s works have been published in numerous magazines, anthologies, newsletters and periodicals.

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The Princess Within By Tumika Patrice Cain

The Princess Within
By Tumika Patrice Cain

Inside every woman is an inner princess.  That place which beckons to be pampered, adored, adorned, and treated with the kidskin gloves of royalty.  It is not in the fantasies of little girls because Disney created Cinderella and a host of princesses thereafter.  Instead it stems from a reality that we are from the stock of true royalty.  Divinity, even.  We are the result of having been created from the ultimate King.  The Most High, the most royal, the most divine is our Father. 

And just like in the fairytales, we earthly princesses have come across evil witches, possessed octopuses, and bitten into poisonous apples given by beguiling serpents who have planned our demise.  All in an attempt to strip us from our rightful place in the kingdom.  All in an attempt to convince us that we are not who we were born to be; created to be.  All in an attempt to persuade us that the only life that lies ahead for us is that of a pauper.

And for many years, many of us choose to believe these lies.  We begin to attract men who tear us down with their harsh words, hard hands and complete ignoring of our needs.  In our attempts to get our needs met, we chase them.  Chase them hard.  We think, I don’t want him to forget me.  Maybe if I call him more, buy him what he wants, make myself available to his beck and call, then he will be willing to stand up and be the prince I know I need.  It is with each attempt that we lose more and more of our layers of divinity.  No longer do we walk with our heads held high.  The straight ramrod posture we used to have is replaced with slumped shoulders.  The princess has begun to carry burdens she doesn’t have the strength, the stamina or the stature to hold.  She wasn’t created to; we weren’t created to.  What was once a sparkle in her eyes falls away to a dull glimmer and eventually the light extinguishes altogether.  In the midst of all of this, she has forgotten who she is; we have forgotten who we are.  She doesn’t dress the same, walk, talk or move the same. 

Meanwhile the evil one plotting her demise sits along the sidelines laughing, convinced she will lay down and die.  Convinced we will lie down and die.  But princesses are strong.  We are made that way.  For how can you care for the needs of others and make life better for those who haven’t tapped into their inner power if we are weaklings.  No, the call of a princess is to offer a better chance for those who have not yet found their way.  Truly things look as if there is no answer in sight.  There appears to be no knight in shining armor or prince whose kiss is so potent it can withstand the walls of darkness, but I remind you again that we come from the root of all royalty.  And our champion is there to save, to heal, to rescue and to set us on the right course leading back to our rightful place.  That is, if we are willing to do the work.

This is the piece the fairytales fail to mention.  There is work involved in getting back to a place of wholeness.  But as the old adage goes, “When the student is ready, the teacher appears.”  There are times it feels we will never reach the end from all the damage that has been done.  But truly we are able.  One step at a time, albeit however slow those steps might be.  Slow and steady.  That is the key.  And, of course, obedience to the One who knows the very path we need to take in order to get out of the enchanted forest and back onto the palace grounds.

Like Esther who went through a year of beauty treatments before being presented to the king, our lives should reflect that same level of care.  Our skin should glow from the delicious, healthy foods that have been placed on the earth for us to eat.  We should be rubbed with the finest oils as the tension is massaged out of our bodies.  Our teeth should gleam because we take the time to take care of them.  There should be so much bounce in our hair that a slight breeze causes it to lift and fall right back into place.  And our eyes should sparkle like starlight because we get enough rest.

As daughters of the King, it is important for us to take time to reflect; to figure out if we are on course, and if not, design a plan to get us where we want to go.  Everything in the universe was designed to help us maximize our life’s experience.  It is not for the kingdom princesses to be burdened down with relationships with those who cause stress, discord and unrest. 

The life of a princess should be easy.  Easy on the eyes, easy on the mind, easy on the body, easy on the spirit.  And of the ladies in waiting, we have no time for jealousy, backbiting, or rude attempts to tear down.  Not everyone will be where we are and that is okay.  But it is not for us to sacrifice the life we are destined to have to those who have not stepped into their own kingdom position.  Living the life of a princess means embracing who we were created to be.  It may be necessary to cut some people loose, but don’t lose heart, dear one.  He who sees all, created all, will send others to fill that place.  Keeping our hearts open and full of light is our only job as it pertains to this part of life.

Love those who have hurt us – even if we have to love them enough to let them go and love them from a distance.  Whatever was done isn’t worth the turmoil and lack of peace it takes to keep reliving the experience.  Hurting people hurt people…and they hurt themselves, too.  Since we know who we are and we know what we give, it is a hurt to their own selves when they mistreat us and have the access to our lives severed.  Their leaving is not a reflection on us, no matter what evil words they let spew from their own mouths.  It is out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks.  So we love them and pray blessings of healing and love, direction and deliverance, health and prosperity into their lives – never forgetting the kiss that woke us up out of a terrible slumber and started us on the road to our own place in the kingdom.  We don’t forget, but we don’t have to be part of everyone’s journey either.

So, today go and get pedicures, after all we cannot have chipped toenails while wearing glass slippers.  And when we step out, it is with confidence and assurance in who we are and what we deserve.  We are daughters of the Most High, princesses in our own right.  If perhaps we have not been willing to truly accept our role, today we make the decision to step into our rightful  place.  If we have accepted that we are princesses, then we take some time to reflect to make sure all is as it should be.  Either way, there is an amazing life awaiting each one of us.  Today is the day we decide will not live beneath our privilege.  Others are waiting on us to take our rightful place to see by example that they can do it too.  This is our role as princesses:  to encourage, uplift and help others realize their own potential for greatness.

Changing lives one word at a time…Tumika Patrice Cain

 Meet the Author
Tumika Patrice Cain is an award-winning author, media personality and publisher whose works centers around uplifting, encouraging and empowering others to live the abundant life.  She is also an accomplished poet; founder of the Say What?? Book Club; and host of the internet radio shows Living Abundantly with Tumika Patrice Cain, In The Spotlight, and Say What?? Author Spotlights. 

In addition, she is a respected book reviewer and columnist for PEN’Ashe Magazine, a contributing writer for BLOG and Belief Magazines, and editor for two smaller publishing companies. A champion for indie authors, she works tirelessly to level the playing field to bring exposure to those authors who excel at their craft, but whose marketing budgets are limited.  Inkscriptions, her publishing company, offers a myriad of book publishing services. Living by the motto of each one reach one, each one teach one, Tumika shares her passion for purpose and for life with all who cross her path. 

She is the 2013 recipient of a Spoken Word Billboard award for her debut novel, Season of Change (December 2012), a novel that has since been picked up by Shan Presents and will be re-released as When a Man Loves a Woman – A Season of Change in December 2015.  To her publishing credit, she is also the author of After the Rain…a Poetry Collective (March 2014) and The Heart of a Woman (August 2015).  Tumika’s works have been published in numerous magazines, anthologies, newsletters and periodicals.

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#WritingWithPurpose: When a Man Loves a Woman 2: A Love Divine by Tumika Patrice Cain

When a Man Loves a Woman 2: A Love Divine by Tumika Patrice Cain
The paperbacks will be released on 4/15

When a Man Loves a Woman: A Love Divine, is a story of hope, accepting love, embracing one’s personal truths, and making no apologies for it.

Jacquie remembered a time when she was once a tender, caring, hopeless romantic.  But happily-ever-after’s and once-upon-a-time fairytales, proved over time to be just that – fairytales.  After what she feels has been “a lifetime” of true love eluding her, she loses all hope, resigning to live a single (and loveless) existence. As time passes, she shifts her focus, choosing to concentrate on her career and makes the best of it…alone.

Gorgeous, artsy and charismatic was the man who Jacquie’s eyes fell upon, causing her heart to beat in a rhythm she’d forgotten existed.  Michael was more than enough man to make her lose herself inside dreams of a future interwoven with the very fabric of all that defined the beauty of being in love.

But just like in fairytales, there’s always something out of place.  For alas, this knight in chocolate armor, was twelve years her junior – an age gap that defined a cultural difference and a major problem for Jacquie’s overbearing mother.  Will pressure from family and other obligations turn their love into a nightmare? Or can Michael and Jacquie tune out the rest of the world, embrace the sweetness that they share, and build a foundation that lasts?

#PowerReads:  Read an excerpt from Book 1: When a Man Loves a Woman by Tumika Patrice Cain,  go here today:  http://conta.cc/1RvH7kX
 
Book 1:  When a Man Loves a Woman: A Season of Change
Book 2:  When a Man Loves a Woman 2: A Love Divine

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ARE YOU AWARE OF LOVE-BITES? by Re’Gena Bell-Roberts

ARE YOU AWARE OF LOVE-BITES?
by Re’Gena Bell-Roberts

 Hey, everybody my name is Re’Gena Bell-Roberts, author of Walking on Thin Ice.

Today I’d like to share with you my personal experiences on what I thought was true love.  But what is true love? What does it look like… feel like?

Well I believe we can all agree that love is food for the soul…tasty and satisfying right? But what happens when love goes sour? Well, if you fall head-over-heels in
love like I did, it can bite you in the butt.

Before I was blind-sided by love, I didn’t know the chances were likely that he’d cheat on me, lie to keep the peace, and while he cheated, he’d lie to keep that other relationship going as well.

Now, when I confronted him about the other woman, it triggered a cycle of abuse. The assaults came in the form of physical, emotional and psychological pain. I call these “Love-Bites” because his brand of love literally bit me in the butt.

When he dished out these sugarcoated morsels I was either: savored with pleasure and affection, chewed bittersweet, and used to satisfy a specific desire, or nibbled on for awhile then tossed aside.

All three portions of love-bites were harmful and lead to explosive consequences for me. In light of this little scoop, have you ever been bitten by love? Read my memoir, Walking on Thin Ice. It will peel  your eyes wide open.

About the Author
Re’Gena Bell-Roberts earned a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of California at Los Angeles. She is an award-winning playwright and author whose published work includes a collection of prose and poetry.  

She has released her memoir entitled “Walking On Thin Ice.”   The book shares her journey starting at the age of 21, Re’Gena gave birth to a set of triplets on Memorial Day May 30, 1972.  Exactly 2 1/2 years later she was shot in the neck at the age of 24. The doctors were unable to remove the bullet and told her she would never walk again, she was paralyzed from the neck down (diagnosed as a quadriplegic). The doctors even suggested that since she was unwed that she put her children up for adoption. She never once considered that as an option. She was a very strong, driven and determined woman, refusing to be a victim. She hopes that her story will inspire people, encourage them and to give them strength and hope in the face of adversity.

Prior to the shooting, Re’Gena was an aspiring actress, play writer, producer, director, singer and honor student at the University of Washington. She was a resident member of Black Arts West Theatre & Touring Ensemble where she performed leading roles. 

Re’Gena has served her community in many capacities over the years:

She served 2 years on the Governor’s Committee for Disability Issues & Employment.

Re’Gena served 7 years as member and vice-chair on Seattle Housing Authority Board of Commissioners and was appointed the National Housing Commissioner (NAHRO). She also served as Chair of Department of Social & Health Services Committee-youth detention liaison.

Re’Gena served 3 years as Convalescent Ministry Leader and on the Women’s Prison Ministry.

Re’Gena served 4 years as a cabinet member and secretary for the Women of Worship for Mountain View Community Church.

Bell-Roberts lives in Murrieta, California, and has four grown children.

Twitter:  http://twitter.com/rlbroberts
Website: http://walking-on-thin-ice.com
Facebook:  http://facebook.com/regena.bellroberts

Order Walking on Thin Ice by Re’Gena Bell-Roberts
Link:  http://amzn.com/1491764759
True Story > Non-fiction > Biographies & Memoirs

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HAVE YOU EVER BEEN A SLAVE TO LOVE? by Re’Gena Bell-Roberts

HAVE YOU EVER BEEN A SLAVE TO LOVE?
by Re’Gena Bell-Roberts

 When I revisit my past and recall the beatings I suffered by the hands of a man who constantly professed his love for me, I shudder.  How is it possible for one to inflict pain on another and call it love?  On the flip side, how is it possible to love that person back? But I did … I was madly in love and I held on to the belief and trust that he loved me too.

That man, on occasion, had a way of making the pain his foreplay. His words dripped with honey, and his touch was gentle with sweet caress. His powerful arms held me tight, his thick, sweet lips kissed me right and our passionate sex set my soul on fire.

Was I stupid? Was I naïve? Was I blinded by love? Honestly, I’d go with all three and toss in the most important answer––I was uninformed and uneducated.  And I was a slave to loving that man, no matter what he did, no matter how much pain I experienced, no matter how many times he broke my heart.

I wrote my memoir, Walking on Thin Ice for anyone who is a slave to love. I re-lived the pain and trauma to get your attention and help you in ways that I couldn’t do for myself, back when it could have made a difference. I wrote my book as a warning and a wake-up call. I hope you hear it!

When you’re a slave to love, you think you can take any and all kind of pain that your beloved inflicts upon you. When you’re a slave to love, you give your power away in the name of that love.

I wrote the book to send a message to you: If you are in an abusive situation, walk away. Now, don’t wait! Regain your freedom and spread you wings! Maybe if I’d done that, I would not have experienced the tragedy that changed everything for me and my family. Maybe if I’d known that, I’d have been spared years of heartbreak and grief. Maybe if I’d listened when people tried to tell me…

My hope is that if you’re in this kind of situation, where the love is so overpowering that you override your own survival instincts, your own common sense; where you hear your loved ones’ warnings, but choose not to listen because you’ve chosen to be a slave to love…. that you will listen this one time. That you will understand. And that you will empower yourself and learn from my experience. Read my memoir, Walking on Thin Ice. It could save your life. Or your sanity. Or both.

About the Author
Re’Gena Bell-Roberts is an actress, poet, award-winning playwright and author whose published work includes a collection of prose and poetry. She earned a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of California at Los Angeles and raised her four children as a single parent while continuing to pursue a career.

Re’Gena won the Rockefeller Foundation award for her play “Eclipse”; and a Prose award from Culver City Community College. She produced and directed an NAACP Martin Luther King Day celebration event; and received numerous awards for her community service. She was featured on the Steve Harvey Show and honored as one of “Steve Harvey’s Hero.”

Re’Gena resides in Murrieta, California.

Twitter:  http://twitter.com/rlbroberts
Website: http://walking-on-thin-ice.com
Facebook:  http://facebook.com/regena.bellroberts

Order Walking on Thin Ice by Re’Gena Bell-Roberts
Link:  http://amzn.com/1491764759
True Story > Non-fiction > Biographies & Memoirs

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#WritingWithPurpose: Assumptions Abound: A Novel by Sage

Assumptions Abound: A Novel by Sage

Assumptions Abound is a murder mystery, thriller and thought-provoking novel combined into one.  This novel is told through the words of Monét Worthington. Raised by her father and stepmother during a difficult part of their marriage, Monét is on a mission to find true love and answers.

Monét is a naïve girl with a tumultuous past and a troublesome childhood. Subjected to rape, mental and physical abuse, Monét is terrified to think about her future.  Her terror continues as she finds herself running for her life!

Lucky for Monét she has Victoria to protect her. Victoria loves Monét and she is willing to do anything for her, including commit murder.  Only Monét has no idea that Victoria exists.  Monét tells her life story as her loved ones and those around her are brutally murdered.  The plot twists and turns as the murder investigations ensue.

Enter Detective Kelsey.

Someone is murdering the citizens of Cold Creek County and Detective Nina Kelsey is determined to find out whom.  Lonely and running from a haunting past, she finds solace in her work. She has pledged to solve this mystery at all costs.

Will her life be the ultimate price?

The Black Bird Detective Series by Sage is a bookclub favorite!
Listen to the author reading:  http://www.audioacrobat.com/note/CRSH3Htk

Meet the Characters

Monet Worthington – The teenage daughter of Richard and Denise Worthington.

Richard Worthington  – Monet’s father and the patriarch of the Worthington clan. Richard is willing to do anything for his family, even commit murder.

Nicole Worthington – Monet’s stepmother. She is a beautiful woman with a head turning smile and long brunette hair.

Jessica Stransfield – Monet’s best friend. She is also hiding a secret from everyone, a secret that could get her killed.

Detective Nina Kelsey – A police detective, hiding secrets from her own troublesome past. Nina is in love with her partner McLaughlin and carry a terrible secret.

Detective Richard McLaughlin – Detective Kelsey’s partner and secret lover

Cameron DeLocasta – Monet’s first boyfriend.

Carlotta DeLocasta – Cameron’s Mother, originally from St. Thomas, USVI, she is a strict West Indian mother with strong roots and a penchant for control.

Joel Miles – Joel is the son of Monet Worthington. He is also unaware of his connection to Luke and Lucas Miles. Joel is a handsome caramel complexioned young man with a lean, muscular build.

Luke Miles – Luke is the son of Lucas Miles and the former lover of Monet Worthington. He is the protégé of his father, Lucas and as handsome as he is lethal. Luke is a handsome, 5’7 muscular man. He is also a mercenary and an assassin.

Lucas Miles – Lucas is the father of Luke and he also believes that Joel is his son. Lucas is a tall caramel complexion man with sparkling green eyes and a stunning smile.

Excerpt
 
The darkness enveloped my room as I lay in bed with my eyes shut tightly and my arms wrapped across my chest. My heart beat steadily and rapidly against my chest. I said a silent prayer that tonight would be different, but I knew in my heart that tonight would be like so many other nights before it.

When I heard his footsteps in the distance I closed my eyes tightly and prayed that he would walk by my room. He quietly opened the door and pried the covers away from me. He lay in the bed next to me and I cried as another night passed by without an answer to my prayer. I decided that if I wanted to get away from him, I would have to take matters into my own hands.

He kissed my cheek and whispered “good night” in my ear. I didn’t respond. I was hoping that he would die right there. He didn’t care about me. My thoughts were swirling around in my head. I realized that nobody could save me from this monster. Then suddenly I heard a voice.

The voice whispered in the darkness, “You must do it. Who else will protect you, but you?” I listened to the voice. “Have you ever killed anyone?” said the voice. “No!” I responded. I was only seven years old. I knew nothing about death. I thought to myself. The voice heard my thoughts. “True you are only seven, but we can show them that it doesn’t matter how old you are. You can still make a difference.” The voice calmly replied.

And so it began…

Have you ever killed anyone? I have and I must say it is the most exhilarating experience in the world. If I had to quantify it I would say that committing a murder is more exhilarating than sky diving, surfing or skiing down a hill at top speed. There is something powerful about watching the life leave a person’s body and hearing them take their last breath.

The first person I killed was my mother’s boyfriend Luciano. He was a handsome Italian man with dark hair and dark brown eyes. I remember everything about him. He would touch me in my special place, even after I told him that he shouldn’t. He took advantage of me and I promised myself that I would never let another person take advantage of me again.

I took a knife out of the drawer in the kitchen and hid it under my pillow. I knew that once my mother fell asleep, he would creep into my room and that particular night I was ready for him. I pretended like I was sleeping when he slowly opened the door and walked into my room. I felt him climb into the bed behind me and snuggle close to my back. I felt his breath on my neck. When he reached around to take my night gown off of me, I grabbed the knife. Before he could react, I shoved the kitchen knife into his throat.

I still remember the look on his face. His eyes bulged out of his head and he grasped at his throat trying to stop the blood. My heart was beating so fast and I felt a rush of pure adrenaline. I watched him closely as he struggled to breathe. I put my ear close to his face; smelling the metallic scent of his blood and listening to him mumble inaudible words. I watched intently as his chest rose and fell for the last time. As I watched the life leave his body, I knew that this could not be the end.

Luciano died that cold rainy night, he was the first person to meet the real me. Luciano met Victoria as his life slowly crept away from his body.

( Continued… )

© 2015 All rights reserved.  Book excerpt reprinted by permission of the author, Sage.  Do not reproduce, copy or use without the author’s written permission. This excerpt is used for promotional purposes only.

Purchase Assumptions Abound by Sage
http://www.blackbirddetectiveseries.com/index-1.html
Kindle Short Reads > Novella > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense

About the Author
Sage was born and raised in Huntingtown, MD. She has been married to her best friend, for over ten years and they have two amazing sons.  She is also an Autism advocate and a parent of an autistic child, which inspired her to write a non-fiction book on raising a child on the Autism spectrum, The Optimistic Autistic: Our Testimony.

Sage also writes mysteries centered on characters that are close to the heart. She has vowed to produce books that encourage the reader to deliberately read; not just for entertainment but to read with the intention of solving the mystery along with the Detective.

Her belief that, “if you don’t see the books you’re searching for write them” has inspired her to write with a purpose and a passion.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sage.inspires
Sage’s author website: http://www.blackbirddetectiveseries.com

Check out all of the books written by Sage

The Optimistic Autistic: Our Testimony by Sage (Non-fiction)
http://www.amazon.com/Optimistic-Autistic-Our-Testimony/dp/1480108782

Assumptions Abound Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Assumptions-Abound-Black-Bird-Detective-ebook/dp/B00642W77M

Seeking Truth Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Seeking-Truth-Black-Detective-Mystery-ebook/dp/B008D2ZARA

Sweet Revenge Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Revenge-Sage-ebook/dp/B012P17C1Q

The Butterfly Available on Amazon: 
http://www.amazon.com/Butterfly-Sage-ebook/dp/B01BVLG8RK

Lost and Turned Upside Down on Amazon:  
http://www.amazon.com/Lost-Turned-Upside-Down-Sage-ebook/dp/B01CBY45P8

The Black Bird Detective Series by Sage is a bookclub favorite!
Listen to the author reading:  http://www.audioacrobat.com/note/CRSH3Htk

Use the share buttons to support Black Pearls magazine! Please rate the article. What do you think?

 

#WritingWithPurpose: Seeking Truth: A Novel by Sage

Seeking Truth: A Novel by Sage

The characters from Assumptions Abound are all grown up and searching for answers. Detective Raven Carter is on a quest. For years her mother lied to her about her past and now that her mother is dead, Raven wants to know the truth.

Joel knows that his past is riddled with secrets, whispers and lies, but wait until he finds out that it also involves murder.  Joel and Raven are engaged and planning their future together. Little do they neither past will be the ultimate deciding factor for their future. 

Meet Raymond Thomas, the Superintendent of Cold Creek Public Schools.

As the Superintendent of a large school district, Raymond has alot to prove.  When his employees are systemically murdered, Raymond may have more to prove than he could ever imagine.

Meet the Characters

Detective Raven Carter – Raven is the daughter of Detective Kelsey from Assumptions Abound. She is a tall, long sultry blonde hair and bright blue eyes, she is mixed with African-American and Caucasian and a sight to behold.

Raven is determined to solve a cold case that has haunted her since her first day on the job. Little does she know the cold case that she is investigating may threaten the very fabric of her relationship with Joel.

Raymond Thomas – Raymond Thomas is a new character in the series. He’s a medium height, chocolate man with broad shoulders and a bright mischievous smile. While running the local school system; he is also enjoying a life of secrets and scandal. As bodies pile up, his scandal is threatening not only his career but also his life.

Joel Miles – Joel is the son of Monet Worthington. He is also unaware of his connection to Luke and Lucas Miles. Joel is a handsome caramel complexioned young man with a lean, muscular build.

Luke Miles – Luke is the son of Lucas Miles and the former lover of Monet Worthington. He is the protégé of his father, Lucas and as handsome as he is lethal. Luke is a handsome, 5’7 muscular man. He is also a mercenary and an assassin.

Lucas Miles – Lucas is the father of Luke and he also believes that Joel is his son. Lucas is a tall caramel complexion man with sparkling green eyes and a stunning smile. Lucas is prepared to build an army with his son’s Luke and Joel at the helm.

The Avenger – The Avenger is looking out for his family, or so he believes. He is a common criminal turned, criminal mastermind. 5’5 with a head full of unruly curly hair and a perpetual 5 o’clock shadow.

Excerpt

He received his assignment and set the plan into motion. He knew that this last job would secure his future forever. He watched his victim, intently. He knew what was required and the payoff was much more than he could ever want for a job this simple.

The Avenger was eager to set his plan in motion. He had been preparing for months, making sure that everything would go off without a hitch. He had been watching her for weeks. He knew her routine better than anyone and he would soon use that to his advantage. She was very predictable and very rarely changed her daily routine.

He affirmed that she would be his first. He watched her through her office window, working diligently. He focused the lens on his binoculars, enjoying her facial expressions as she typed. He loved the way she intently worked as if her job was the most important thing to her. She didn’t know it, but she would be famous when it was all said and done. They would trace it all back to her and finally, finally he would get the results he was planning for.

Cybil Rene sat at her desk wondering where the time went. Wow time sure does fly when you are busy, she thought to herself as she looked at the clock. Two hours had passed since the last time she looked at the clock and now it was after 5:00. She watched the heavy raindrops fall from outside her office window as she chastised herself for not bringing her umbrella with her to work.

She knew that arriving at the daycare center late would be a mistake. The daycare warned her last week when she picked her son up after their closing time. She did not want to be late to daycare again, but she also had a job to do. She had to make sure that their budget closed on time this year without any issues and her staff had been dragging their feet the entire time.

By the time she made it to the door, the sky had darkened, evidence that a storm was brewing. She darted out of the building and ran toward her car. The car alarm chirped loudly as she hit the button on her remote to disarm and unlock the door. She was soaking wet when she finally settled in the driver’s seat of her car.

Before she could turn the key in the ignition, she felt a small sting on her neck. She looked in the back seat and noticed him sitting there, smiling back at her. Instinctively she tried to scream and run, but her body wouldn’t move. Her mind was telling her to fight back, use the lessons learned in her defense classes, but her body sat in paralyzed fear. She felt helpless as her body was hoisted in the air and clumsily thrown into the back of a vehicle.

Then everything went black.

 ( Continued… )

© 2015 All rights reserved.  Book excerpt reprinted by permission of the author, Sage.  Do not reproduce, copy or use without the author’s written permission. This excerpt is used for promotional purposes only.

Order Seeking Truth by Sage
Kindle Short Reads > Novella > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense
http://www.blackbirddetectiveseries.com/index-2.html
 
About the Author
Sage was born and raised in Huntingtown, MD. She has been married to her best friend, for over ten years and they have two amazing sons.  She is also an Autism advocate and a parent of an autistic child, which inspired her to write a non-fiction book on raising a child on the Autism spectrum, The Optimistic Autistic: Our Testimony.

Sage also writes mysteries centered on characters that are close to the heart. She has vowed to produce books that encourage the reader to deliberately read; not just for entertainment but to read with the intention of solving the mystery along with the Detective.

Her belief that, “if you don’t see the books you’re searching for write them” has inspired her to write with a purpose and a passion.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sage.inspires
Sage’s author website: http://www.blackbirddetectiveseries.com

Check out all of the books written by Sage

The Optimistic Autistic: Our Testimony by Sage (Non-fiction)
http://www.amazon.com/Optimistic-Autistic-Our-Testimony/dp/1480108782

Assumptions Abound Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Assumptions-Abound-Black-Bird-Detective-ebook/dp/B00642W77M

Seeking Truth Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Seeking-Truth-Black-Detective-Mystery-ebook/dp/B008D2ZARA

Sweet Revenge Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Revenge-Sage-ebook/dp/B012P17C1Q

The Butterfly Available on Amazon: 
http://www.amazon.com/Butterfly-Sage-ebook/dp/B01BVLG8RK

Lost and Turned Upside Down on Amazon:  
http://www.amazon.com/Lost-Turned-Upside-Down-Sage-ebook/dp/B01CBY45P8

The Black Bird Detective Series by Sage is a bookclub favorite!
Listen to the author reading:  http://www.audioacrobat.com/note/CRSH3Htk

Use the share buttons to support Black Pearls magazine! Please rate the article. What do you think?

 

#WritingWithPurpose: Sweet Revenge: A Novel by Sage

Sweet Revenge: A Novel by Sage

A high profile murder sets Raven on a wild goose chase to find the killer.

Her boss is pressuring her to handle the case and he is personally involving himself. Raven must be careful; as she chases the next criminal, someone is chasing her.

She hasn’t forgotten about her estranged husband. He is the love of her life, only problem…he wants her dead, or does he?

The wealthy son of a local socialite and businessman are adding to Raven’s headache. He is demanding answers that Raven does not have. When the case heats up, Raven may end up burned.
Raymond is back with an ax to grind. He has enacted a plan to take down those who damaged his reputation, stole his money and ruined his life. Will he succeed?

Everyone is out for revenge….but as the saying goes, Revenge is a dish best served fast and cold!

Meet the Characters

Detective Raven Carter – Raven is the daughter of Detective Kelsey from Assumptions Abound. She is a tall, long sultry blonde hair and bright blue eyes, she is mixed with African-American and Caucasian and a sight to behold.
 
Raymond Thomas – Raymond Thomas is back again and he is ready for his revenge. A once large figure in the school system, he is now a broken man, seeking closure and solace.

Carlotta – Carlotta is back and with each book series you find out just how deep the abyss of her mind can go.

Richard Worthington – Monet Worthington father is out of prison after serving nearly 30 years.  Tall, dark and handsome with aged wisdom and salt & pepper gray seasonings, he is a tantalizing sight. He has his heart set on two things, finding his children and revenge. With all the danger going on around Cold Creek County, Richard may be the most dangerous.

Joel Miles – Joel is brown-eyed handsome assassin. He is the son of Monet Worthington.

Luke Miles – Luke is the son of Lucas Miles and the former lover of Monet Worthington. He is the protégé of his father, Lucas and as handsome as he is lethal. Luke is a handsome, 5’7 muscular man. He is also a mercenary and an assassin.

Excerpt:  Sweet Revenge

Chapter 1
 

“Revenge, what did that word really mean?” he asked himself with a smirk on his face. The rhetorical question made him chuckle as his gaze followed the massive brick structure. It stretched across the 2 acre slightly wooded lot like a castle. This was it. He knew that there was no turning back. He had to do what he promised. If he didn’t…well he didn’t want to think about that part. It was agreed, that this was his responsibility.

He walked around the back of the mansion, tiptoeing through the beautifully manicured back lawn. He knew how he would enter the home. It was already planned. He knew the home like it was his own. He would slip inside unnoticed, do what he planned to do and then slip out unnoticed.

According to his plan he would be in and out in no time. No one would ever suspect that it was him. He climbed the steps of the wooden deck and stopped at the third step. He smiled when he noticed that the window was slightly ajar.

He knew that he was home free. He gingerly opened the window and stepped inside the mansion. All of this money and no motion detector set. Naivety was the reason why he was so successful at what he did.

The massive structure was still and quiet. He suppressed the urge to scream at the top of his lungs and wake everyone in the home. Instead, he took off his shoes and quietly padded up the winding hardwood staircase. He passed by three guest rooms, all of the doors were closed.

He breathed a sigh of relief. Everyone turned in for the night. He counted the rooms as he made his way to the largest room at the far western end of the home. The master bedroom door was closed tightly. He quietly pried at the door. Once he heard the soft click of the doorknob, he let out another sigh. His heart began beating once again. He opened the door.

The gleaming imported bamboo floors were the perfect backdrop to fluffy white rug on the floor. Two flat screen monitors hang on the wall facing the bed. He hated them. Everything was in excess. Who in the world needed two flat screen televisions in the same room? The thought alone infuriated him.

He stood there watching him sleep. How could someone like him sleep so soundly? He was a deviant. A person of low character, who stopped at nothing to make a dollar. He was about to get all that he deserved. “Well, it all ends tonight” he thought. He would soon eat the words that he so eloquently displayed on the local television channels.

He siphoned money out of his clients and treated people like pawns in a game of chess. Yet he slept so peacefully. He reached in his back pocket and pulled out the weapon. It was lovely. A silver chrome plated 9mm gun with a silencer attached. Nothing but the best.

He inhaled deeply and squeezed the trigger on the gun twice as he exhaled. The first bullet made perfect impact with his skull, he died instantly. The bullet traveled so quickly and quietly, his wife didn’t stir as her husband’s lifeless body lay next to her.

He looked at his watch as he descended the stairs. It was after midnight. He hopped in his car and prayed that no one saw him leave the apartment.

As he drove at top speed towards Pennsylvania Avenue he said a silent prayer, hoping that his plan would go on without a hitch. Only time would tell if he was successful, he thought as his red Dodge Charger made a left onto Route 4 and he drove towards his home.

Things would never be the same after tonight…

( Continued… )

© 2015 All rights reserved.  Book excerpt reprinted by permission of the author, Sage.  Do not reproduce, copy or use without the author’s written permission. This excerpt is used for promotional purposes only.

Order Sweet Revenge by Sage
Kindle Short Reads > Novella > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense
http://www.blackbirddetectiveseries.com/sweet_revenge.html

About the Author
Sage was born and raised in Huntingtown, MD. She has been married to her best friend, for over ten years and they have two amazing sons.  She is also an Autism advocate and a parent of an autistic child, which inspired her to write a non-fiction book on raising a child on the Autism spectrum, The Optimistic Autistic: Our Testimony.

Sage also writes mysteries centered on characters that are close to the heart. She has vowed to produce books that encourage the reader to deliberately read; not just for entertainment but to read with the intention of solving the mystery along with the Detective.

Her belief that, “if you don’t see the books you’re searching for write them” has inspired her to write with a purpose and a passion.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sage.inspires
Sage’s author website: http://www.blackbirddetectiveseries.com

Check out all of the books written by Sage

The Optimistic Autistic: Our Testimony by Sage (Non-fiction)
http://www.amazon.com/Optimistic-Autistic-Our-Testimony/dp/1480108782

Assumptions Abound Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Assumptions-Abound-Black-Bird-Detective-ebook/dp/B00642W77M

Seeking Truth Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Seeking-Truth-Black-Detective-Mystery-ebook/dp/B008D2ZARA

Sweet Revenge Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Revenge-Sage-ebook/dp/B012P17C1Q

The Butterfly Available on Amazon: 
http://www.amazon.com/Butterfly-Sage-ebook/dp/B01BVLG8RK

Lost and Turned Upside Down on Amazon:  
http://www.amazon.com/Lost-Turned-Upside-Down-Sage-ebook/dp/B01CBY45P8

The Black Bird Detective Series by Sage is a bookclub favorite!
Listen to the author reading:  http://www.audioacrobat.com/note/CRSH3Htk

Use the share buttons to support Black Pearls magazine! Please rate the article. What do you think?

 

#WritingWithPurpose: The Butterfly: A Novel by Sage

The Butterfly: A Novel  by Sage

Meet the Butterfly, sexy, intelligent and lethal but severely lacking in self-esteem. With nothing to lose and everything to gain she is on a journey. A journey to make everyone who hurt her, pay. As confident as she is about her journey, there is one thing that she never considered.

Will that thing be her ultimate destruction?

Raven is on the trail of a mass murderer who enacts revenge on an office full of people. Using her skills of perception and intuition she is ready to attack, but is she jumping too soon?

Raven may be up against something that she’s never dealt with before.

If she doesn’t learn the lesson soon enough it may cost Raven, her life.

Meet the Characters

Detective Raven Carter – Raven is the daughter of Detective Kelsey from Assumptions Abound. She is a tall, long sultry blonde hair and bright blue eyes, she is mixed with African-American and Caucasian and a sight to behold.

Carlotta – Carlotta is back and with each book series you find out just how deep the abyss of her mind can go.

Dr. Arial Frederickson – A drug addicted, Xanax and Percocet popping Psychiatrist. She is there to help her patients, if only she can save herself first.

Richard Worthington – Monet Worthington father is out of prison after serving nearly 30 years.  Tall, dark and handsome with aged wisdom and salt & pepper gray seasonings, he is a tantalizing sight. He has his heart set on two things, finding his children and revenge. With all the danger going on around Cold Creek County, Richard may be the most dangerous.
 

Book Review by Devonia Johnson – Verified Purchase
I am giving the butterfly five stars. I love Sage books because she always keep you wanting for more. There is never a dull moment when you get to know her creative characters. Everyone would love to be like a beautiful butterfly but do we know what it takes to reach that point and be free? I recommend The Butterfly, Sage never disappoints.

The Butterfly Excerpt

Prologue

“You must stand up for yourself” she kept hearing in the back of her mind as she continued to climb the stairs.

She smiled to herself, knowing that she was about to take a stand. The wind whipped through her hair as she stood there staring, almost in a trance. She grasped on to her tiny butterfly pendant and said a silent prayer.

Who would have guessed that she would be doing something like this? She felt powerful.

She thought about the people and the reasons that had her at that point in her life.
No one truly cared about her. If she were no longer living, she knew that no one would be affected.

She allowed the tears to stream down her cheeks, no longer caring about her makeup.

It was almost symbolic thinking about it; here she was considering how she looked and not the seriousness of the situation she was facing. She gathered her composure and took a deep breath; today was the first day of the rest of her life. Today, she would make them all pay for what they did to her.  These people would pay for the crimes of everyone. This would be their sacrifice.
The blood pumping through her body was almost as electrifying as the music pumping through the headphones she wore.

She let the old Kanye pump her up and make her ready.  There was something about the way Kanye rapped, the intensity in the words that made her feel invincible. She was convinced that the new Kanye was suffering from a mental illness, but who was she to judge.

She was currently taking five narcotic medications, just to control her impulses. Not today, though. Today she was herself.  In her own lucid mind, she was taking the bull by the horns and standing up for herself.  She turned the corner and opened the door, allowing the smell of the place to permeate through her nose and senses.

She waved to the security guard and gave him a fake smile. He didn’t care about her smile; he was too busy watching her ass as she headed to the bank of elevators.

The sound of the elevator bell woke her from her mental slumber. She smiled and pressed the 6th button, feeling assured.

As she reached in her bag, she pulled out the 9mm Glock and began her mission.

Soon they would all remember her name.

They would all remember the day the met the Butterfly.

She smiled as she met the smiling face of the receptionist. As she raised her hand to wave, the bullet caught her square in the chest.

Everyone will die today, not just one.

( Continued… )

© 2016 All rights reserved.  Book excerpt reprinted by permission of the author, Sage.  Do not reproduce, copy or use without the author’s written permission. This excerpt is used for promotional purposes only.

About the Author
Sage was born and raised in Huntingtown, MD. She has been married to her best friend, for over ten years and they have two amazing sons.  She is also an Autism advocate and a parent of an autistic child, which inspired her to write a non-fiction book on raising a child on the Autism spectrum, The Optimistic Autistic: Our Testimony.

Sage also writes mysteries centered on characters that are close to the heart. She has vowed to produce books that encourage the reader to deliberately read; not just for entertainment but to read with the intention of solving the mystery along with the Detective.

Her belief that, “if you don’t see the books you’re searching for write them” has inspired her to write with a purpose and a passion.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sage.inspires
Sage’s author website: http://www.blackbirddetectiveseries.com

Purchase The Butterfly: A Novel by Sage
Book 4: The Black Bird Detective Series
Amazon:  http://www.amazon.com/Butterfly-Sage/dp/1522738673
Kindle Short Reads > Novella > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense

Check out all of the books written by Sage

The Optimistic Autistic: Our Testimony by Sage (Non-fiction)
http://www.amazon.com/Optimistic-Autistic-Our-Testimony/dp/1480108782

The Black Bird Detective Series by Sage is a bookclub favorite!
Listen to the author reading:  http://www.audioacrobat.com/note/CRSH3Htk

Book 1: Assumptions Abound Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Assumptions-Abound-Black-Bird-Detective-ebook/dp/B00642W77M

Book 2: Seeking Truth Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Seeking-Truth-Black-Detective-Mystery-ebook/dp/B008D2ZARA

Book 3: Sweet Revenge Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Revenge-Sage-ebook/dp/B012P17C1Q

Book 4: The Butterfly Available on Amazon: 
http://www.amazon.com/Butterfly-Sage-ebook/dp/B01BVLG8RK

NEW RELEASE: Lost and Turned Upside Down on Amazon:  
http://www.amazon.com/Lost-Turned-Upside-Down-Sage-ebook/dp/B01CBY45P8

Use the share buttons to support Black Pearls magazine! Please rate the article. What do you think?

 

#WritingWithPurpose: Introducing the Black Bird Detective Series by Sage

Introducing the Black Bird Detective Series by Sage

When you begin to read Assumptions Abound you step inside of the book and journey along with the characters. Assumptions Abound will keep you on the edge of your seat as you ride every twist and turn.  Assumptions Abound is a murder mystery, thriller and thought-provoking novel combined into one.  This novel is told through the words of Monét Worthington.

Monét is a naïve girl with a tumultuous past and a troublesome childhood. Subjected to rape, mental and physical abuse, Monét is terrified to think about her future. Her terror continues as she finds herself running for her life!  Lucky for Monét she has Victoria to protect her. Victoria loves Monét and she is willing to do anything for her, including commit murder.

Only Monét has no idea that Victoria exists. Monét tells her life story as her loved ones and those around her are brutally murdered.  The plot twists and turns as the murder investigations ensue. This psychological thriller has all of the key ingredients to create an explosive literary masterpiece.

Detective Nina Kelsey is also introduced in this series. Detective Kelsey is not who she appears to be. A complex person with her own dark past, Detective Kelsey is always searching for more. She is determined to solve the Cold Creek murders before another life is lost. Fireworks will ignite when Detective Kelsey and Monét Worthington meet and someone may end up dead.

Through this story, the Black Bird Detective Series is born. Assumptions Abound is the first book in the Black Bird Detective Series Trilogy This series features characters from Assumptions Abound, including Raven Carter. Raven is a young African-American detective. She is determined to solve murders in the small town of Cold Creek.

As she solves mysteries, she also works to uncover the truth about her past.

The series continues with Seeking Truth, Sweet Revenge and The Butterfly.


The Black Bird Detective Series is a bookclub favorite!
Listen to the author reading:  http://www.audioacrobat.com/note/CRSH3Htk
 

Assumptions Abound Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Assumptions-Abound-Black-Bird-Detective-ebook/dp/B00642W77M

Seeking Truth Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Seeking-Truth-Black-Detective-Mystery-ebook/dp/B008D2ZARA

Sweet Revenge Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Revenge-Sage-ebook/dp/B012P17C1Q

The Butterfly Available on Amazon: 
http://www.amazon.com/Butterfly-Sage-ebook/dp/B01BVLG8RK

Lost and Turned Upside Down on Amazon:  
http://www.amazon.com/Lost-Turned-Upside-Down-Sage-ebook/dp/B01CBY45P8

About the Author
Sage was born and raised in Huntingtown, MD. She has been married to her best friend, for over ten years and they have two amazing sons.  She is also an Autism advocate and a parent of an autistic child, which inspired her to write a non-fiction book on raising a child on the Autism spectrum, The Optimistic Autistic: Our Testimony.

Sage also writes mysteries centered on characters that are close to the heart. She has vowed to produce books that encourage the reader to deliberately read; not just for entertainment but to read with the intention of solving the mystery along with the Detective.

Her belief that, “if you don’t see the books you’re searching for write them” has inspired her to write with a purpose and a passion.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sage.inspires
Sage’s author website: http://www.blackbirddetectiveseries.com

Use the share buttons to support Black Pearls magazine! Please rate the article. What do you think?

 

#WritingWithPurpose: Lost and Turned Upside Down by Sage

Lost and Turned Upside Down by Sage

Eliza and Lena Cummings are two sisters bound by love and responsibility. Eliza is the youngest sister with a naive mind and a broken spirit, she is willing to fall for anyone who gives her attention. Sadly, Raphael is right there to give her all she needs.

When a random vacation turns into something more dangerous, Lena is forced to make a decision. Does she listen to her sister, who has had her back since childhood or the man of her dreams?

Only time will tell who is out of Lena’s best interests.

Will it be too late for Lena?

Order Lost and Turned Upside Down by SageKindle Short Reads > Novella > Fiction
Download Link: http://amzn.com/B01CBY45P8

Check out all of the Books by Sage

The Optimistic Autistic: Our Testimony by Sage (Non-fiction)
http://www.amazon.com/Optimistic-Autistic-Our-Testimony/dp/1480108782

Assumptions Abound Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Assumptions-Abound-Black-Bird-Detective-ebook/dp/B00642W77M
 
Seeking Truth Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Seeking-Truth-Black-Detective-Mystery-ebook/dp/B008D2ZARA
 
Sweet Revenge Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Revenge-Sage-ebook/dp/B012P17C1Q

The Butterfly Available on Amazon: 
http://www.amazon.com/Butterfly-Sage-ebook/dp/B01BVLG8RK

Black Bird Detective Series by Sage is a bookclub favorite!
Listen to the author reading:  http://www.audioacrobat.com/note/CRSH3Htk

Use the share buttons to support Black Pearls magazine! Please rate the article. What do you think?

 

#WritingWithPurpose: Earth’s Quiet Chaos: A Novel by Tomeekha Pitre

Earth’s Quiet Chaos: A Novel
by Tomeekha Pitre

Earth’s Quiet Chaos is set in a historically significant community in Los Angeles, California. Earth Hartley is an African American businesswoman whose life is consumed by caring for her older sister, Moon, and trying to save Moon from the consequences of her careless behavior and substance abuse.

Moon is paranoid, violent, erratic, and irrational. She thrives in her life of chaos, and has no regard for the pain it causes her family.

Ra, their brother, is the lifeline between his two sisters. He’s the glue that holds the family together until a horrible and violent act results in Moon’s arrest.

The story of Earth’s Quiet Chaos is about finding and holding onto true love while dealing with family issues that are considered to be taboo in the African American community, but are relatable to all.

Excerpt: Chapter 2

Rashidah and I giggle at ourselves as we walk from store to store in the open-air mall called The Grove. It’s a hot summer day and we duck into my favorite store to temporarily escape the blazing heat.

“I love the artistic vibe of the designs and fabrics in this store.”

Rashidah holds the tag on a cute shirt and murmurs

“Look at these high ass prices!”

We pick out some outfits to try on. I find some tops, pants and a dress to add to my wardrobe. We walk out of the store and look for a shady spot where it’s cool.

“Xavier will like me in the long summer dress, don’t you think?”

Rashidah doesn’t respond. After a short break, we continue shopping.

We hit up the computer store where she buys herself an iPad for scheduling client appointments. We grab a half veggie sandwich and salad from The Veggie Grill. We hit up every store at The Grove before heading to the Beverly Center.

“I want to treat myself to one of those small flat Louis Vuitton cross body purses.”

We find it at the Louis Vuitton store and then check out other stores that aren’t at The Grove.

Pleased with my purchases and delighted to spend time with Rashidah, the one who knows me best, I’m all shopped out.

“Rashidah, can you believe that I don’t have any plans tonight other than dinner with Ali and a dress rehearsal for the play?”

“Well, you never know. Maybe Xavier will surprise you and he’ll be the one sitting at the dinner table when Ali brings you to the restaurant.”

She has a half grin. She’s in the know of something that I’m not.

“Now that would be the surprise of a lifetime, but if something goes down, I’m ready to dress and impress. That’s for sure.”

Then it hits me to check my cell phone for the time. “Speaking of time, its 3:45. Are you ready to roll?”

“Yep, I think we’ve done enough financial damage for the day.”

“You’re right about that!”

We make our way to the parking lot, fill the trunk with our bags, and drive off.

We go to my place and, like we always do when we go shopping together, Rashidah comes in with her bags and we go through each and every item, trying them on as we help each other change. Rashidah takes down my locs and sections them into twisted bantu knots all over my head.

“Okay, here you go Earth, give it an hour and then we’ll take down the bantu knots and your locs will be slightly curly and I’ll do a quick style for your date tonight.”

“Please, dinner with Ali is not a date. We are friends and are going to catch up with each other. That’s all. Now, if Xavier is at the table that will be an entirely different story.”

“And that is what I’m talking about. We have to stay ready so we don’t have to get ready. So, you are going to pick out your dress and we are going to do your hair and makeup as if Xavier will be somewhere waiting to surprise you tonight.”

She’s in her beauty makeover mood. I’m excited about the thought Rashidah planted in my head. We begin our mission for me, Earth Hartley, to look like a million bucks for my man tonight wherever he may be and at whatever time he decides to show up.

“Besides, it is my B-Earth-Day today, I can look fabulous all day if I decide to do so.”

I need to keep myself in the moment and not get too excited and set myself up for a letdown.

This time of the year in southern California, the weather is unpredictable. But today is nice and hot so we go with it and choose the long summer lounge dress. It’s a sheer fabric so I glide into a white ankle length cotton slip to wear underneath. The dress fabric has water colored flowers of purple, yellow, orange, and green. The butterfly sleeves are elbow length and the front of the dress has a low V-neck. Since I am going out with Ali, who stands six feet, five inches, I put on my four inch gold sandals that tie up the leg.

When I turned 16, my Baba gave me one yellow gold and one white gold chain necklace, one with an Ankh pendant and the other with a Gye Nyame pendant. Both pendants have a crystal planted in the middle. I fasten the white gold chain. The end of the Ankh hangs perfectly at my cleavage. I keep on the earrings that Rashidah gave me and add white gold and yellow gold bangles, and the gold Ankh ring that Momma gave me a long time ago on my right hand and a turquoise ring that Baba gave me on my left hand.

Rashidah takes down the bantu knots, pins up the back and allows the locs to fall in the front to frame my face. She beams with the look of a proud Mother.

( Continued… )

© 2016 All rights reserved. Book excerpt reprinted by permission of the author, Tomeekha Pitre. Do not reproduce, copy or use without the author’s written permission. This excerpt is used for promotional purposes only.

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#WritingWithPurpose: His Final Deal by Theresa A. Campbell

Watch the Book Trailer for His Final Deal from Theresa A. Campbell: https://youtu.be/-Iy6lAOog-0

His Final Deal by Theresa A. Campbell
Raymond Brown, popularly known as Smooth Suave, is one of Jamaica’s biggest drugs lords. With eight children by six baby mommas and counting, he’s a player for life. A true bailer, he lavishes in his wealth. He’s a shot caller with “soldiers” wheeling and dealing all over Jamaica. It’s Suave’s world, and everyone else just lives in it … or so he thinks.

However, his nemesis, King Kong, sees it differently. Rivals since childhood, King Kong is hell-bent on destroying Suave at any cost. As the war over power, drugs, and money intensifies-from Wilton Gardens (Rema) to Arnett Gardens (Jungle)-bodies are dropping like flies, washing the island of paradise in blood.
 
But it is the murder and kidnapping of two of Suave’s loved ones that bring him to his knees. Being framed for murder, hunted by the cops, pursued by his enemies, betrayed by friends, tormented by a horrid secret, and fighting to protect his family and empire, Suave is nearing his breaking point. Yet, he isn’t going down without a fight.
 
Voila! Suave makes a deal to eradicate his enemies-but if it backfires, it could very well cause him his own life. Then God counteroffers Suave’s deal with His own-one that will undoubtedly give Suave the victory he needs but requires him to give up his drug empire and turn his life over to the Lord. With his motto being, “I don’t do God,” will Suave accept God’s deal or take the risk of his own deal?

Order books from Theresa A. Campbell at: http://theresaacampbell.com

Meet the Author
Theresa A. Campbell is the author of the soul-fulfilling, entertaining novels, His Final Deal,  Are You There, God?  and God Has Spoken. She hails from Jamaica, West  Indies and has earned business degrees from Baruch College and Fairleigh Dickinson University.
  
Growing up in rural Jamaica without electricity until she  was about ll years old made Theresa read a lot. The lack  of modern amenities did not  detract from her  creativity; in a sense, it improved her ability to see the ending of a story from a different perspective.
  
Theresa’s sense of purpose is entrenched in the belief  that  God  is always there for us, and she knows in her heart that  she  has to share this with her  readers. It’s Theresa’s objective to keep it real at all times in her books so everyone can  relate to her characters.

Theresa A. Campbell’s website:  http://theresaacampbell.com

Order your copy today!
http://www.amazon.com/His-Final-Deal-Theresa-Campbell-ebook/dp/B018TKT3H8/
 Book Genre: Christian Fiction/Urban.  Primary subject matter: Redemption

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#WritingWithPurpose: The Optimistic Autistic: Our Testimony by Sage

Order The Optimistic Autistic: Our Testimony by Sage

The Optimistic Autistic is a testimony of how love, dedication and faith guided our family in the midst of adversity.  Nearly 1 in 68 children are diagnosed with Autism. The moment we received our son’s diagnosis our lives changed. As parents of a special needs student the odds were stacked against us.  There were times when we felt like giving up, but God kept us standing. When our 6-year-old son was expelled from school for 9 months, we decided to take charge of our son’s education. Through Jordan’s struggles and our faith, we found our strength.

Read about our story and learn how you can fight for your child’s education.

Join us on our journey of faith as we share our testimony.

The Optimistic Autistic: Our Testimony by Sage
Non-fiction.  Order Link: http://amzn.com/B01BZEY65O
Kindle Short Reads > Nonfiction > Parenting & Relationships > Special Needs > Disabilities

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#WritingWithPurpose: Down Home Blues by Phyllis Dixon

Down Home Blues by Phyllis Dixon

Down Home Blues is a story that asks the question am I my brother’s, (or sister’s) keeper? Is it always best to mind your own business?

Divorce, foreclosure, domestic violence, and an all-expense paid trip (also called prison) disrupt the Washington siblings’ perfectly planned lives, and they end up back down home in Arkansas.

Instead of serenity, sibling rivalries, divided loyalties and money squabbles resurface. Even the good news, that there may be natural gas on their father’s land, causes conflict. When their father, C.W. Washington, one of the largest landowners in the county, announces his engagement, barely six months after his wife’s death, his daughters fear Viagra is clouding his judgement (his sons say – go for it).

Homemade preserves and family dinners are welcome by-products of the move down home. Unfortunately, family members aren’t always singing in the same key. But just a few notes can switch a gloomy blues tune to the soundtrack for a good time. What song will the Washingtons play?

Is it always best to mind your own business and keep family secrets? In the African American family in particular, there is a tradition of “what goes on in the house stays in the house”. Some say this practice contributes to closely knit families, others say this perpetuates dysfunction. Down Home Blues continues this conversation.

Advance Praise for Down Home Blues by Phyllis Dixon

“Ms. Dixon has penned another riveting Southern family drama.” 
– Evelyn Palfrey, Essence Magazine best-selling author

“Down Home Blues does a fantastic job of exploring how individuals and families interrelate…” 
– D. Donovan, Midwest Book Review

“Great work! Characters true to life. Ending great.” 
– Motherwit, Radio Personality

“…Phyllis R. Dixon carefully portrays real life’s issues in this well-written story. Not everyone has a happy ending or the perfect life… A journey unlike any other…“
– D.Urban Reviewer/African Americans on the Move Book Club

EXCERPT:  Down Home Blues by Phyllis Dixon

“…the winter’ll soon be over, children.
And when we get on Canaan’s shore,
We’ll shout, and sing forever more.
Oh, the winter’ll soon be over, children.”  – Negro Spiritual

Chapter 1

WINTER SOON BE OVER

Just five more hours left in this year and I say good riddance. I lost my mother nine months ago. I never imagined my world without Lois Washington in it, and not a day goes by that I don’t think about her. I miss hearing her call me by my full name, Beverly Ann. Of course, that name is as country as a gravel road, and I always wanted something sexier like my sisters Carolyn and Cecelia. Now I’d give anything to hear her say it again. They say it gets easier with time. I’m still waiting. That’s how my year started, and the bad news kept coming.

My sisters and I didn’t speak for three months due to a silly dispute over my mother’s jewelry. I was in a car accident and couldn’t work for six weeks (although that could have been a blessing in disguise since that’s when my sisters and I started speaking again). My son enlisted in the military and is fighting some ridiculous war on the other side of the world. In July, my dog, Money, got loose. He usually finds his way home, but this is the longest he’s ever been gone. And my husband, Anthony, moved out after breaking his promise to be faithful – again. Not that I really believed him. After more than twenty years of marriage, I had gotten used to his roaming eye and other body parts.

We’ve been together since high school, and even though we’re separated, and I’ve been dating, he’s still the measuring stick — in more ways than one. But when his latest hussy posted pictures of the two of them online, I couldn’t keep looking the other way. My sisters said it’s about time, although Cecelia controlled her husband, and I didn’t want a docile man. Apparently, my brother-in-law didn’t want to be controlled anymore, since they just got divorced. And my little sister Carolyn is a newlywed. She beat the odds and actually found a keeper. It took her twenty years to find him, but he looks like he was worth the wait.

Anthony and I have been separated more than a year — although I still see him every week. We own The Oasis, a beauty salon and barber shop. A few years ago, we bought the house next door to our house and transformed the corner lot into The Oasis. Anthony still comes by to check on the barbers and keep up with handyman projects. Aunt Belle says he keeps sniffing around just enough to keep a claim on me, like a dog guarding a bone. He’s not going to gnaw on it, but doesn’t want anyone else to either. I know she’s right, and my New Year’s resolution was going to be to see a lawyer and start divorce proceedings. Then, our son Tony came home for Thanksgiving. That was the good news. The bad news was that he was being deployed to Afghanistan. Why should my baby put his life on the line trying to settle a dispute that’s been going on since Bible days? He was leaving the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, and he wanted to spend the holiday with both of us, so his father came home and the three of us spent the holiday weekend together. It was like old times, maybe even better. Anthony didn’t have to lie and I didn’t have to question everything he said and did.

Other than him not being able to keep his thing in his pants, he was a great husband. We rarely argued. He didn’t drink or do drugs. He was generous with his money and kept up with the house and salon repairs. We both enjoyed bowling, dancing, and the blues. He remembered all holidays and anniversaries. He wasn’t abusive and there were no complaints about our sex life. Even with all those positives, I know they don’t outweigh the scales of his messing around. When I decide I’ve finally had enough, he’ll do something to rekindle the flame I keep trying to stamp out.

I don’t know how I would have made it through Christmas without him. I hadn’t heard from Anthony since we took Tony to the airport. Then, he showed up the day before Christmas Eve and said he knew the holidays would be hard for me. He took me down home to see my father early on Christmas Eve. We came back that evening, and he hasn’t left since. My sisters will berate me for taking him back again, but this was the longest we’d ever been apart, and I really thought he had changed.

Anthony and I had planned to bring in the New Year on Beale Street with twenty thousand other partyers, then come home for private festivities. I’ve lived in Memphis twenty years, but had never been to Beale Street for the midnight guitar drop. As part of our vow to rekindle our marriage, we said we’d start doing new things together, and the guitar drop was one of them. We usually spent the days around the New Year down home in Eden, Arkansas. It’s just sixty miles from Memphis, though it seems like a world away.

Eden is a refuge and my daddy still farms and lives in the house he and Mama built fifty years ago. Every New Year’s Eve, I attended Watch Night service with Mama, while Anthony played cards and dominoes with his relatives. Daddy loved to play cards, so when Mama and I got home, we would all go to Anthony’s folk’s house for all night rise and fly bid whist. At dawn, we’d go home, sleep a few hours, then eat black-eyed peas for good luck, cabbage for money, and fried chicken because Mama’s was the best and it was everyone’s favorite. This is the first New Year since Mama’s death. I feel like I’m abandoning Daddy, but I couldn’t face that ride knowing she wouldn’t be there. My brothers said they would stay with Daddy so he wouldn’t be alone.

Anthony was making a daytrip to Eden to see his relatives from Chicago. His truck needed an oil change, so he took my car. I wasn’t going anywhere and he was coming right back to Memphis in time for us to go to Beale Street. That was the plan – until he called and said his brother from Chicago had just gotten there and would I be terribly upset if he stayed longer. I told him to stay put, since the roads were supposed to turn icy. I asked Anthony to check on Daddy for me, and to promise not to try to surprise me by coming back to Memphis. He promised, and said he would leave first thing the following morning.

With the change in plans, I decided to bring in the New Year with a pampering session. I lit jasmine candles, found my Etta James playlist, and opened the Moscato wine I had been saving. I texted all my siblings to wish them a Happy New Year, then called Daddy.

“Hey, Big Sis,” Carl said, answering on the first ring.

“I know I’m early, I just called to wish you guys a Happy New Year.”

“Same to you, but you’ll have to wait until next year to talk to Daddy.”

“Is he sleep?”

“He isn’t here.”

“Oh. Did he go with Aunt Belle to the rehabilitation center?” Aunt Belle volunteers at the Dwight County Rehabilitation Center. She says too many times people her age are just thrown away, and she wants them to know someone still cares. She planned a full itinerary that would culminate with Jell-O and line dancing at midnight. She made sure she had tapes for the electric slide, cupid shuffle, and the wobble, and invited Daddy to the party.

“He said that was for old people. He’s visiting his lady friend.”

“Which one?” I asked. Daddy is in his eighties, and other than a skin cancer scare a few years ago, he’s in pretty good health. He still drives and we had to make him promise not to go hunting alone anymore (we also hid his shotguns just to make sure). He’s got hair, most of his teeth, and his right mind. At that age, men with those traits are in short supply. My brothers think Daddy’s eligible bachelor status is cool and hope his stamina is hereditary. My sisters and I have been amazed at the women who swarmed around Daddy like flies on you-know-what before Mama was even cold in the ground. Even more amazing, Daddy seemed to enjoy the attention.

“Miss Emma. She looks like the front-runner.”

“Are you serious? Miss Emma Davis, our high school English teacher?”

“That’s her,” Carl replied.

“She doesn’t seem like Daddy’s type. She’s nothing like Mama. He shouldn’t be out driving on New Year’s Eve anyway. There are too many drunk drivers out and the roads are supposed to turn bad. Plus, folks will be shooting guns all night. It’s not safe.”

“I guess he forgot to ask your permission,” Carl said.

“Here I was thinking Daddy would be missing Mama but instead he’s hanging out. I asked Anthony to check on him, but looks like there’s no need for that.”

“He did come over this morning. He said we were his last stop, and he was heading back to Memphis. It was good seeing you guys together for Christmas. Maybe the New Year will bring you two back together. It just doesn’t make sense to break up after all these years.”

“Now you sound like Mama.”

“You should listen to her. I wish I had,” Carl said.

“Well, tell Daddy I called and you take care,” I said. I called Anthony’s phone and it went straight to voicemail. In days past, I would have immediately called his folks and asked to speak to one of his relatives. I enjoyed talking with them and they treated me like a daughter. While I was interested in their welfare, my real motive for calling was usually to make sure Anthony was where he said he would be. I thought we had moved beyond those days. I should have known better, I thought, as I scrolled through my cell phone apps.

I traded in my Navigator and got a new Lexus last summer after my car accident. I even dated my salesman a few weeks. He showed me how to use all the bells and whistles, including syncing the GPS system to my phone. It was supposed to help if the car was stolen or if you wanted to monitor a teen driver. Tracking down lying husbands wasn’t listed as one of the uses, but over the years I’ve had enough experience that I should patent an app for it. Although I have mellowed over the years, especially since the shooting incident a few years ago. I missed on purpose and wasn’t really trying to shoot that skank, but Carolyn said I’m lucky she didn’t press charges. Even Daddy, who usually stays out of his children’s marriage drama, said I went too far. Women are always flirting with Anthony, but to have a so-called friend betray me was too much.

( Continued… )

© 2016 All rights reserved. Book excerpt reprinted by permission of the author, Phyllis Dixon. Do not reproduce, copy or use without the author’s written permission. This excerpt is used for promotional purposes only.

Order Down Home Blues by Phyllis Dixon
Genre – Contemporary Fiction

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#WritingWithPurpose: LLP – Lust, Lies & Propositions by Bridgett Renay

LLP – Lust, Lies & Propositions
by Bridgett Renay

Bridgett Renay unleashes a political drama that would make all Presidential front-runners take cover.

With her having a fairytale upbringing, no one could blame Essence St. Clair for expecting every entitlement seen fit for the beautiful and elite. But it only takes one vice to wreak sheer havoc. And it’s going to take more than a fairy godmother if she wants to survive corporate America; even though she’s the daughter of the ultraconservative Marshall St. Clair, patriarch of Charlotte, North Carolina’s largest religious empires. But no longer in the comfort zone of daddy’s like-minded tribe, Essence is thrust into a world where black liberalism is the definitive.

Not only was she groomed to head a Fortune 500, Essence craved it. And she was used to getting what she wants, including whichever man she desires. But after the untimely death of her mother, a very distracted Essence became the cause of a devastating family secret. And the one thing she didn’t count on was being blackmailed because of that youthful indiscretion.

Now it seems everyone’s out to get her. She doesn’t know who she can trust. The walls are closing in and Essence has to act fast if she wants to preserve her sanity along with her family’s noble reputation.

Does daddy’s little girl have the street smarts it takes to crush her enemies? Will she overcome one distraction after another to fulfill her goals of corporate dominance? Can she keep the love of her life, the captivating Dex Dunnavant, from learning about her tainted past?

Anyone standing in her way is about to find out.

Prelude:  LLP – Lust, Lies & Propositions 

Once upon a time after a long and nefarious civil war was fought that ended in 1964, there survived a land where a gargantuan Golden Dome sat at its center. Its settlers were frequent visitors of the huge, beautiful park where forbidden lovers openly danced and children played with joy. Exotic birds of prey roamed free. Hawks soared through the air while Falcons glided on the surface. Brave gladiators defended their title as the toughest adversaries while Bulldogs protected the terrain with a rich history of total domination. It was called The Land of Opportunity and a new movement had begun.

Hidden in the outskirts lived a Nubian child who dreamed of greatness. She was the hardest working girl in school and knew one day she would triumph amongst the elite. All of the other children were jealous. They knew she was deserving of greatness so they tried every distraction they could to convince her she was not worthy of such – scandalizing her name, exposing youthful indiscretions, and even unfairly politicizing her world views. But the Nubian child’s thinking stood out from the rest, and therefore, she often stood alone. She paid no attention to such antagonism and just kept working harder and harder.

Then came the day she waited all her life for. She went to the ruler’s palace with a satchel full of accolades. With confidence in her stride and a huge smile on her face, she stood in front of the ruler and his servants and boldly stated, “I have come for my opportunity.”

The ruler looked over her proof as his servants held their breaths and patiently waited for him to respond. He scanned document after document taking notice of how she excelled to the top of her class in everything. Her academic scores were that of a genius, she set new standards with regards to community service, and her refined stance and beauty could only be matched by that of angels. He then raised his head staring intently at the Nubian child for what seemed like an eternity.

Giving her a glimmer of hope, the ruler began to smile. It soon turned into roaring laughter. He pierced into the Nubian child’s eyes and lashed out, “How dare you try to enter my kingdom with your dreams of grandeur! How dare you come to my face and ask me to grant you opportunity! Have you not looked into a mirror all your life? Do you not see that I am of pure white flesh while your flesh is muddied like dirt?”

He continued to taunt, “You think because we allowed that one muddied King to excel we will allow the same for you?” He flung his hand in the air as to swat away a pest, “Why he was just a fluke!” His eyes pierced even deeper as a more disdainful smirk appeared on his face, “And as for you…go back to the jungle where you belong.”

And they all laughed and laughed as the ruler raised his scepter and pointed it in the direction of the exit. Huge golden doors opened to display the most spectacular view of the land. The Nubian child looked across its rich acreage knowing she was unfairly denied the opportunity to frolic amongst the elite. She lowered her head in anguish.

Suddenly, after a burst of crackling thunder, a dark cloud appeared. It hung seemingly over only the Nubian child’s head. Rain drops the size of fairy pebbles could not compare to the tears drops that tumbled down her sculptured cheeks. As she turned around in despair, she slowly walked away and proclaimed to herself, “Vengeance shall be mine…and vengeance shall be sweet”.

And as told by the conservators of the land, this is her story.

Order LLP – Lust, Lies & Propositions by Bridgett Renay
Fiction, African-American, Drama, Political Thriller
Link: http://amzn.com/B01C6J2VEK 

About the Author 
The only thing best-selling author Bridgett Renay loves doing more than writing is breathing. If you let her tell it, the first spoken words from the quiet but observant Navy veteran were, “I should really write this down”.

As a young girl she undoubtedly had the gift. Everything from poetry to short stories filled her PeeChee folder with fantasies as well as the realities of life growing up in south central Los Angeles. And her talents didn’t go unnoticed. A Thanksgiving poem she wrote in elementary school found its way into the neighborhood newspaper, but it wasn’t a sign of what was to immediately come.

Before pursuing her dream of becoming an acclaimed novelist, the pragmatic Bridgett Renay believed she had to first make good on a promise she made to God. That promise revolved around the pursuit of higher learning and community service and was made after He healed her from a traumatic childhood incident.

The years of personal triumphs earning a Bachelor of Science in Technical Communication and a Master of Business Administration, as well as professional growth as a corporate operative and Navy Reservist, tells the story of a journey that took her to faraway places, introduced her to intoxicating people, and shaped the way she viewed the world and her place in it.

Now that she has reached the top of her pyramid, per se, Bridgett Renay is ready for the novelistic spotlight. The pen is back, the passion never left …another journey begins.

Website: http://www.BridgettRenay.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BridgettRenay
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bridgett.renay.3
Author’s Blog: http://www.bridgettrenay.com/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/undistractedbridgettrenay/

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#WritingWithPurpose: Walking on Thin Ice by Re’Gena Bell-Roberts

Walking on Thin Ice by Re’Gena Bell-Roberts

Re’Gena Bell-Roberts was featured on the Steve Harvey Show as one of the Harvey’s Heroes!

Walking on Thin Ice, a memoir of love, hate, envy, and greed traces a young woman’s pursuit of stardom down a dangerous road that leads to shattered dreams and a harrowing fate.

Re’Gena Bell-Roberts found herself staring down the barrel of a revolver, and a wave of disbelief rippled through her. An explosion blasted her into a nightmare. The room swirled slowly. Click––click. The sound reverberated each time as the shooter pulled the trigger. She realized this woman was trying to kill her!

In Walking on Thin Ice, Re’Gena Bell-Roberts shares her riveting story against the backdrop of a childhood sexual molestation. She is one, among a few young girls from the small town of Pasco, Washington, who harbored dreams of fame, fortune, and a craving for the love of a powerful man.

After high school graduation, Re’Gena’s life transforms. Despite myriad warnings, she falls for the charming Max Clayton, a thirty-three year old streetwise hustler who entices her into a dark underworld of illicit sex and drugs.

When Max betrays her, their life takes a fateful turn. The gripping saga explodes in the Mount Baker area of Seattle, Washington; and depicts Re’Gena’s struggle to deal with a tragic life-changing event that threatens her very existence. But she fights back with unshakable strength, courage, and a will to survive.

5-STAR BOOK REVIEWS

By Brenda Bentley Parrrish 
This book is an awesome read. The determination and persistence of a woman with the willpower to begin productive and purposeful living after bad decision making based upon her love for a man almost cost her, her life. The story paints a picture of a beautiful woman of inner strength with her children giving her courage to become a champion. Her love for her man Max, consumed her very existence: mind, body, heart, soul and spirit. Finally she realized that she was starring in a role that was intended to be her final curtain call. After a near death experience she triumphant and find that God will sometime take you down a long winding road when he is teaching you a lesson to get you where he ordained you to be in this life. The story has several valleys and peaks and even a cliff. I am looking forward to the sequel. Great job ReGena Bell Roberts. Your bravery, persistence and determination are a powerful testimony to many who have fallen head over heels in love. Thank you for sharing your story with the world.

By Lionel Mitchell
This was a story that I could not put down. Re’Gena is so courageous to write her story. I pray that some young women will read it , so that they may not go down the same road. The words on those pages were so descriptive. Drawing you in and making you feel all the life in the story. There is love, laughter, and pain. As a first time author this story should be a best seller.

By Verlean Gladney 
This book made me laugh and cry. It made me happy, sad, angry and a host of other emotions. This book gave me strength and hope. Very well written and totally gripping. I could not put it down. A must read for all you ladies from any walk of life. This book could literally save your life. I thank the author for sharing her life with me. I can hardly wait for her next book!

The San Diego Union-Tribune Featured Story on Re’Gena Bell-Roberts

Re’Gena Bell-Roberts has a life story full of tragedy, pain and redemption. Confined to a wheelchair after she was shot at the age of 21 by a woman her fiance was seeing on the side, Roberts found a way to overcome her disability and, against considerable odds, create a nurturing and supportive environment in which to raise her triplets, who were just 2 years old at the time of the attack.

“You know, God gives you strength to do what you need to do,” Roberts said.

These days Roberts, who was an aspiring actress when she was shot, and managed to do some stage work even after she was confined to her wheelchair, is working on her autobiography and hopes to one-day see her story on the big screen.

In the meantime, she will get a little time on the small screen. Roberts will be featured Wednesday on the Steve Harvey Show in a segment called Harvey’s Heroes. Roberts’ daughter, LyNea Bell, one of the triplets, nominated her mother for the recognition.

Bell, 40, works as a talent agent for Media Artists Group in Los Angeles.

“We never had an excuse,” Bell said. “We couldn’t have an excuse because the example was right there. So it made it a lot tougher. You couldn’t cry, ‘No, I can’t.’ It was, ‘We have to.'”

The other triplets are Bell’s two brothers — McClain, an entrepreneur who lives not far from his mother in Southern California, and DeShae, who now lives in Seattle and is hoping to become a welder.

After she was shot in Seattle in 1974 while attending the University of Washington, Roberts briefly moved back home to Pasco, Wash., and in with her mother to rehabilitate from her injuries and get help with the children. But she quickly saw that was not going to be a long-term answer.

“My mother was working full-time and, you know, she’d (have to) get up all the time at night,” Roberts said. “And I saw this painful look in her eyes, like it was killing her. She was tired. And I made a decision that I was moving.”

Eventually, Roberts landed in Los Angeles, where her best friend from home, Cat Gibson, was living with one of Roberts’ sisters. Roberts was able to support herself financially on money she was eligible for through the Washington state crime victims compensation program.

Still, she had to cook, clean and manage the triplets, whom she called little rascals.

“They were a handful,” she said. “… plotting, doing what kids normally do.”

Roberts is a quadriplegic, but has limited use of her hands.

As the kids got older she enlisted their help, teaching them how to put the coins in the machines at the laundromat, and help her with the folding. After she arranged for an automobile with hand controls, a Chevrolet Monte Carlo, she trained the kids to collapse the chair and pack it in the trunk.

“We had a whole system,” Bell said.

Once the triplets got going in school, Roberts had more time on her hands and she went back to college, eventually graduating from UCLA with a history degree. Her mother came down from Washington to attend the ceremony.

“It was an accomplishment,” Roberts said. “My mom was very happy. She wore my cap and gown after I took it off. She didn’t graduate from high school. So she was very proud of me.”

Roberts was the first in the family to graduate.

The second act of her life, which followed, featured a move back to Washington where she jumped into producing, taking part in community theater and putting on gospel showcases. For a few years, she produced and directed the local Martin Luther King Day events.

She and Gibson formed their own production company. Everything was fine, as long as Roberts wasn’t part of a committee.

“I didn’t have the time to sit around in meetings,” she said.

But within a few years, that was exactly what she was doing. After moving the family to Seattle, she dove into government and politics, serving on the Governor’s Committee for Disability Issues and Employment, and later as a member of the Seattle Housing Authority Board of Commissioners.

For Roberts, acting and producing were replaced by organizing and advocating, although she still performs occasionally under the stage name Re’Gena Bell.

“What goes on behind the scenes in the city, that just mesmerized me,” she said.

She ran twice unsuccessfully for the Seattle City Council, on a platform of helping the disenfranchised.

Today, she sits in her comfortable, nicely appointed home in Murrieta, where she has lived with her husband since 2004, and muses about her bucket list. A hot air balloon ride is next up.

A new van would be nice, too. She lost her last one in an accident. The ever-resourceful Roberts is an entrant in an online contest to win just such a vehicle. Anyone interested in voting, can visit http://www.mobilityawarenessmonth.com.

Bell considers the full depth and breadth of her mother’s story, and marvels.

“This is why she’s my hero,” Bell said. “This is why I wrote in (to the Steve Harvey Show), because I look at all the things of this world, and I look at how much that she’s influenced our lives, and I am just so proud. And it’s right in front of me every single day.”

Original Source: The San Diego Union-Tribune Feature Story on Re’Gena Bell-Roberts

Photo credit: Regina Roberts of Murrieta was featured on the Steve Harvey Show in a segment called Harvey’s Heroes. Behind her are her children: DeShae Bell, LyNea Bell, Steve Harvey and McClain Bell.  Courtesy photo — Steve Harvey ShowCourtesy photo

Order Walking on Thin Ice by Re’Gena Bell-Roberts
Download Link:  http://amzn.com/1491764759 
Genre:   True Story. Non-fiction. Memoir 

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#WritingWithPurpose: Second House from the Corner: A Novel by Sadeqa Johnson

Second House from the Corner: A Novel
by Sadeqa Johnson

In the tradition of I Don’t Know How She Does It,  Second House from the Corner centers on the story of Felicia Lyons, a stay-at-home mother of three drowning in the drudgeries of play dates, lost pacifiers and potty training who occasionally wonders what it would be like to escape the demands of motherhood. But when an unexpected phone call threatens to destroy her life, Felicia is forced to return to her childhood home where she must wrestle with an ex-lover and long buried secrets to save the family and home she loves despite the daily challenges.

Felicia Lyons is a character who mothers can identify with and laugh along with. You can’t help but cheer for her in Johnson’s engaging and well-written novel.

PRAISE FOR SADEQA JOHNSON

“A captivating tale to savor…Felicia is a wonderfully flawed, compelling main character, one who has stayed with me long after I finished the book. A winning novel from a writer to watch.”
—Benilde Little, bestselling author of Welcome to My Breakdown and Good Hair

“Sadeqa Johnson is one of those authors you rarely find these days. Her gift of writing sings on every page. When reading her second novel, Second House From the Corner, you can’t help feeling like you just received a letter from an old friend…. or an old lover. It is a must read!”
—Here’s the Story Bookstore in Union, NJ

Excerpt from Second House from the Corner: A Novel

PART 1

To love means to embrace and at the same time to withstand many endings, and many many beginnings— all in the same relationship. — Clarissa Pinkola Estes


The Witching Hour

That four-hour window between after-school pickup and bedtime?  It’s like walking a tightrope with groceries in both hands. The slightest hiccup will land any mother in a quagmire with her legs in the air. For me the whole afternoon was a fail. I locked myself out when I went to pick the kids up from school, but didn’t notice the missing house keys until I pulled into the driveway. The snacks had been demolished at the playground, so the hunger meltdown began on the drive to my husband’s office for the spare key (a drive that usually takes seven minutes, but ended up being twenty round-trip because of traffic). Things got even shoddier once I discovered we were out of Kellogg’s Corn Flakes. My children will not eat baked chicken unless I dip the pieces in buttermilk, roll them in cornflakes, and bake until crispy. The oven was preheated, the potatoes were boiling for the mash, and I was thirty-three minutes off schedule without the magic cereal that makes my chicken finger-licking good. No time to change the dinner plan. So I swap in seasoned bread crumbs and cross my toes that they won’t notice.

“Mama, this doesn’t taste right.” My son, Rory, frowns.

“Just eat it. There are children right down the street who are starving.”

“But it’s disgusting,” whines Twyla.

How does a four-year-old know what disgusting is?

“Just eat.”

“I have to go pee pee and poo poo.”

“Stop smiling at me. Mommy, she’s smiling.”

“Can we just have dessert?”

“Maaaaaaaa.”

“Mommmmm.”

“Momeeeeeeee.”

Like a song on repeat. Like it’s the last word in the English dictionary. They call “Mommy” until my lips pucker, eyebrows knit. And it takes all my strength not to respond with that inside voice that nobody hears, that you wish would stay quiet, that tells the truth you don’t want anyone to know. That damn voice is hollering. Shut the fuck up!

At what point do I get to shout What the fuck do you want from me? I wouldn’t drop an F-bomb in front of the mommy crew at the park, and I hate to see parents on the street cursing out their kids. But here in my kitchen with everything working against me, I would like to liberate myself just once and let the profanity rip. It’s the nipping at my nerves that gets me. The feasting on my flesh like starved sea urchins. Them, fighting like thieves for their individual piece of me. Me feeling like I have nothing left to give. Any mother who says that she has never felt like her whole life was being sucked out through her nostrils is a damn liar. I feel it every day. Especially when I don’t get at least five hours of shut-eye, like last night.

Twyla (whom I call Two) walked her four-year-old self into my room every hour complaining about being scared. Scared of what? The curtain, the bed, the wall—she had an excuse for each visit. Never mind that she had to walk past her father to get to me. They never bother him. It’s always Mommy. So I upped and downed all night while he slept like a hibernating black bear. 

Breathe.  

I hate when I feel like this. My chest rising and falling. Momentum of failure piled. Anxiety has swept through my belly and is curled against my organs like a balled fist. Just one happy pill would make it all better. But I’ve been on the happiness-comes-from within kick for a few months, so no more pills. Instead I’ve started tapping.

Tapping out my emotions so I can get back to feeling right. It’s that new technique where I say what my issue is and use my fingertips and hit my meridian points until I’m back to even. It usually takes about five minutes and several rounds before I feel centered and strong. My husband, Preston, calls it woo-woo, but he’s not at home with three children all day. I am, and I have to use what I’ve got to carry me through. I turn my back to the kids at the kitchen table, take two fingers, and tap the side of my hand while whispering my setup statement.

“Even though I feel stressed out, anxious, and tired of being alone and responsible for my kids I love and accept myself.”

“Mommy, what are you doing?”

“Calming down.” I try whispering the statement again but Tywla is out of her seat.

“My stomach hurts.”

Rory puts his fork down. “I’m full.”

My fingers stop. I haven’t made it through one minute, much less the five I need. I take a deep breath and usher everyone upstairs. Maybe Preston will surprise me and come home early. The damn voice laughs. When was the last time he did that? He never makes it home before their bedtime and I bet that’s on purpose.

Rory moans. “That’s my boat.”

“Dad gave it to me.”

“No, he didn’t.”

Breathe. “Cut it out and get undressed.”

I run their bath and sneak in a quick tap. Repeating my setup statement, I move from my hand to my forehead, to the side of my eye, under my eye, under my lip, under my chin, full hand on chest, bra strap and top of the head. Fill my lungs with air and exhale. Twyla and Rory are back. I read my body. Better.

“Can I bring this in the tub, pretty please?” Twyla clutches the mesh bag with their toys.

“Sure.”

They climb into the bathtub and play. This should give me a few minutes alone with the baby.

“Guys, I’m going to change Liv into her pajamas. No water on the floor.”

“Can we have more bubbles?”

“No.”

“Awwww, man,” Rory replies, imitating Swiper the Fox. “You only gave us a little bit.”

I cut my eyes in the direction of my six-year-old and hold his gaze for a beat longer so that he knows I mean business.

The upstairs of our house is small, and it only takes three long strides to the girls’ bedroom. Liv, the baby, squirms in my arms and I find solace burying my head in her neck. I could sit and smell this child all day. At ten months old, she still has that fresh-to-the-earth smell that forces me to slow my pace. It’s hard to look at her without feeling deep sighs of relief. She is our miracle child.

When I was twenty weeks pregnant with Liv, a routine sonogram found something suspicious. I was sent to the Robert Woods Johnson Hospital in New Brunswick to see a pediatric cardiologist. There was a pinch in her heart that could hemorrhage. Her chances of being stillborn were high. When the doctor suggested that we terminate the pregnancy, I was bilious. By then I had already heard her heart beat, felt her flutter and kick, loved her. Preston didn’t even look my way when he simply told the batch of white coats that we would take our chances.

On our way home, the traffic on the Garden State Parkway held us hostage. I slobbered and blubbered against the passenger seat window, trudging through my past, knowing which karmic act brought this down on our family. My husband kept patting my hand, but when that didn’t work, he pulled our ice-cream-truck size SUV over to the side of the road and pressed the hazard lights.

“Foxy, look at me.” He is the only person who calls me Foxy, and even with hearing my personal pet name, I couldn’t bring my eyes to his. Tilting my damp chin, he forced eye contact. “This is not your fault.”

But it is.

“You trust me?”

I shake my head, of course, because there really is no other response when your husband asks you that question.

“So the baby is healed. It’s done, no more worries.” Preston clapped his hands, as if he had just entered a contract with God.

“Now stop blaming yourself, you didn’t do anything.”

As our vehicle crawled up the Parkway, he informed me that we’d name her Liv.

“Not short for anything. Just Liv.”

I knew what I had done to deserve this even though my husband did not. I wanted it to be all right. Needed something to cling too, so I agreed to everything that Preston offered because the only hope I had for a favorable outcome was him. I had burned my bridge with God a long time ago.

( Continued… )

© 2016 All rights reserved. Book excerpt reprinted by permission of the author, Sadeqa Johnson. Do not reproduce, copy or use without the author’s written permission. This excerpt is used for promotional purposes only.

Purchase Second House from the Corner: A Novel
Contemporary Women Fiction

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About the Author
SADEQA JOHNSON is a former public relations manager who spent years working with well-known authors such as JK Rowling, Bebe Moore Campbell, Amy Tan and Bishop TD Jakes before becoming an author herself. Her debut novel, LOVE IN A CARRY-ON BAG was hailed by Ebony.com as “this summer’s hottest read.” It was the recipient of the 2013 Phillis Wheatley award for Best Fiction and the 2012 USA Best Book award for African-American fiction. Originally from Philadelphia, she now resides in Virginia with her husband and three children. SECOND HOUSE FROM THE CORNER is her second novel.  For more visit: http://www.sadeqajohnson.com

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#WritingWithPurpose: Jacob’s Eyes by Anita Ballard-Jones

Jacob’s Eyes by Anita Ballard-Jones

In this dark time in our history, two brothers, Jacob and Jackson shared the same loving father, the same mansion home, but were separated by age and the circumstances of life; Jacob, a mulatto slave and Jackson, the sole heir to their father’s plantation. They were mirror images of each other, both tall and having golden hair, blue eyes and creamy white complexion. Jacob had the soul of a black man and Jackson’s soul was only fed by cruelty, possessions and hatred. Once Jacob was free it wasn’t long before he realized that passing for white was a powerful weapon to be used to free his enslaved family and friends, specially his black pearl, Sula who was pregnant with his child.

Nothing could stop him in his quest to reach the safety of Canada before the start of the Civil War, not even murder, assault, thievery or arson. He found great pleasure standing his ground against other white people.

Throughout Jacob’s triumphs, Brother Jackson was in hot pursuit of him, but little did Jackson know revenge was not in his favor. Jackson’s attempt to kill Jacob would end up causing him more inescapable pain than he could ever have imagined; pain that was a thousand times worse than the pain he allowed his overseers to inflicted on his slaves; pain that could not be undone.

Intimate Conversation with Anita Ballard-Jones

Anita Ballard-Jones is the acclaimed author of the novels, Rehoboth Road, The Dancing Willow Tree and Ashes, Ashes, They All Fall Down  and Jacob’s Eyes. She is a native of Brooklyn, NY and a graduate of C.W. Post, at Long Island University. She is retired from New York State’s Long Island Developmental Disabilities Service Office where she worked as a Treatment Team Leader. She is a long time resident of Long Island, New York and enjoys spending time in North Carolina and Florida. She loves hearing from her individual fans, as well as book clubs.

BPM: When did you get your first inkling to write, and how did you advance the call for writing? 
I was in my early fifties, not like most writers who say they had been writing for as long as they could remember. My unpublished manuscript, Broken Bond, is a memoir about my young life and relationship with my brother who had special needs. It was completed twenty years ago and it was not written for publication. I just needed a vessel to pour out my soul and to come to terms with the issue of the purpose of life for those individual having serious developmental disabilities. I had lived and worked with special needs children and adults almost all of my life and I was searching for their purpose. By the time I completed this manuscript I was at peace; I felt blessed and had my answers. A few months later, I believed the Lord handed me my gift of writing and I wrote the first one hundred pages of the acclaimed Rehoboth Road in just fourteen hours.

BPM: Tell us about your passion for writing. Why do you write? What drives you?
I love to write, but I don’t have a writing routine. I am retired and I am not looking for a career. My greatest joy is pleasing my readers. Sometimes I’ll write a very short story, and other times that short story could be as long as 7,000 words. I don’t push my writing or write outlines; I wait. I guess you could say I wait on the Lord; He sends me pictures and somehow I know it’s going to be another novel. I only create when I’m inspired by my pictures.  If I don’t have the inspiration to create, and I want to work, I use the time for refinement and editing.

BPM: How did you initially break into the publishing industry? Did you ever self-publish? 
Yes, after I completed Rehoboth Road, I sent out fifty query letters just to locate an agent and I received fifty rejections. Then, I self-published and sold over three thousand copies. Within that year I signed with a publishing company that never paid my royalties on time, if at all. The one great thing they did was sell my book to Black Expressions Book Club, and I knew I had arrived, even after being contractually cheated on this sale. I found a loophole in the contract and was released from my second book deal and vowed to remain a self-publish author. I told myself that my joy comes from writing and pleasing my fans, and with the proper branding agent and publicist, I could do a very good job marketing myself.

BPM: Do you ever let the book stew – leave it for months and then come back to it?
Yes, all of my books stewed with the exception of The Dancing Willow Tree. This book is the sequel to Rehoboth Road. I received hundreds of emails from my readers requesting a sequel; many people made suggestions of what they thought should happen. I was inspired, I had my visual images, my fans suggestions, and a few twist in mind; The Dancing Willow Tree was completed in three months.

BPM: Are there any areas of your writing career that you wish you could go back and change? 
Without questioning the Lord, I wish I had received my gift when I was younger, but the Lord knows best. I wonder if I would have appreciated it, would I have earn my lifetime experience badge or if I would have had the time to dedicate to the craft? Sometimes I think, if I could have accomplish writing success back in my earlier life I might have been another Alice Walker or Toni Morrison, not for the fortune, but for the pleasure of knowing something I created bought pleasure to so many people.

BPM: What hurdles, if any, did you have to overcome as a new author and business owner? 
I believe the real hurdle is the process of editing. I have hired a professional editor and have used my edit team and there were still problems. Other than the editing process, researching self-publishing and learning all of the aspects of the process are the hardest.

BPM: What’s the most important quality a writer should have in your opinion?
Be able to respond positively to constructive criticism. A writer should never believe they are so great that they have nothing to learn about their craft.

BPM: Our life experiences, challenges and success help define who we are on many levels. At what point in your career did you discover your real worth and own it?
Growing up, I always wanted to be a registered nurse. There were two professions I didn’t want any part of, a medical doctor or a writer. The novels, Little Women, Clarence Darrow and Return of the Native, and the likes, really turned me off during my high school literature classes. I cried through them; I am a pre-baby-boomer who attended George Wingate High School in Brooklyn, New York when the African American student enrollment was only two percent. No one told me about Langston Hughes, Zora Neal Hurston, James Baldwin and the others. If you didn’t know about the Harlem Renaissance, you didn’t know to ask and seek it out. I remember standing outside a theater on Manhattan’s Broadway, staring at the marquee and large posters of the play, Porgy and Bess.

 

 It was hard to believe these were black people like me, doing what white people did. It seems so funny now, but today’s young people believe they have been robbed of opportunity and I wish I could take them back to my early time and shake them. I discovered my worth as an individual early in life, having a very successful career and lifetime experiences. I said I didn’t want to be a doctor, but I became a Treatment Team Leader, whereas I managed an interdisciplinary treatment team which included medical doctors and twenty years of report writing was the precursor to my writing profession in retirement. And now I write.

BPM: Can you share a little of your current work with us?  Introduce us to your characters.
In this dark time in our history, two brothers, Jacob and Jackson shared the same loving father, the same mansion home, but were separated by age and the circumstances of life; Jacob, a mulatto slave and Jackson, the sole heir to their father’s plantation. They were mirror images of each other, both tall and having golden hair, blue eyes and creamy white complexion. Jacob had the soul of a black man and Jackson’s soul was only fed by cruelty, possessions and hatred. Once Jacob was free it wasn’t long before he realized that passing for white was a powerful weapon to be used to free his enslaved family and friends, specially his black pearl, Sula who was pregnant with his child. Nothing could stop him in his quest to reach the safety of Canada before the start of the Civil War, not even murder, assault, thievery or arson. He found great pleasure standing his ground against other white people. 

Throughout Jacob’s triumphs, Brother Jackson was in hot pursuit of him, but little did Jackson know revenge was not in his favor. Jackson’s attempt to kill Jacob would end up causing him more inescapable pain than he could ever have imagined; pain that was a thousand times worse than the pain he allowed his overseers to inflicted on his slaves; pain that could not be undone.

BPM: What genre is this book? Do you write all of your books in this category? 
This is a book of historical fiction, pre-Civil War (1860). With the exception of my memoir, most of the time I write fiction, but I tend to write in different eras from 1950 through 1990. As mentioned earlier, my inspiration comes in the form of pictures. I have my ideas of what I want to write about, but after a few paragraphs my story will take on its own life. Very often this dictates the era, storyline, characters and location. For example, someone once told me my grandfather walked from northern North Carolina to south central Virginia. I was thinking what it must have been like for a black man to walk alone on a country road around 1900. The next thing I knew I was writing Jacobs Eyes. My grandfather was a short, small framed man, with ebony colored skin and nappy hair, and Jacob was tall, well built, blue eyes, golden hair and a white complexion. The only thing they had in common was that they walked on the road.

BPM: Do you set out to educate or inspire, entertain or illuminate a particular subject? 
I don’t necessary set out to educate, but my goal is to keep my stories socially clean, historically accurate, entertaining and inspiring. I research even the smallest issue. In my book, Rehoboth Road, I wanted one of my characters to purchase a specific type of car. When I researched the car I found out it had not come out for another five years. In Jacob’ Eyes, I had to learn about growing cotton, the railroad lines that were running in 1860, what shipping lines were sailing. How Lincoln was placed on the ballot, and most of all, documents related to the sale and release of slaves and many other issues. To say the least, I was educated and inspired during the writing of this novel and I hope and pray others will learn from it too.

BPM: Did you learn anything personal from writing this book?
Yes, first of all I received a history lesson, and then I learned about herbal tea, juju bags secondary railroad cars, Southern myths and much more. Most of all I learn about myself and to appreciate my gift. I had not worked at writing a novel in some time. My pictures were there for me, but I allowed life and circumstances to pull me away from what I really love doing. I have to say thank you to Jacob’s Eyes for reminding me of my gift and to be grateful to my Lord for it.

BPM: What was your primary quest in publishing this book? Why now?
I did give mainstream publishing serious thought, then I remembered my previous experience and I was not willing to lose my literary rights to my work forever. But I am like an abused woman, time will tell.

BPM: What would you like to accomplish after this book is released?
I just want to keep writing and promoting my work. I love public speaking and traveling, so with the release of this book I will be destination bound.

BPM: What should readers DO after reading this book?
Just enjoy this book for its historical quality and storyline. This is not just another slave book; this is a book where the slaves win. This is a feel good book that will leave the reader saying, “Yes!” Spread the word: ask their local libraries to order it, ask their school board to place it in their high school libraries, introduce it to historically black colleges and universities, suggest it to book clubs, share the book with a young adult and don’t forget to write me and share their thoughts and feeling.

BPM: What are your career goals as a writer? Have you accomplished most of them?
I am retired and I write to please my readers. My goal is to continue writing and sell, sell, sell my work. Nothing makes me happier than to have my fans love my work. My goal is to have a well known name in the industry and I have no accomplished that.

BPM: What have you realized about yourself since becoming a published author?
There are people, other than my family, who appreciate what I have to offer. My family loves me unconditionally. My fans love me and my work; that’s why I always want to give them my very best.

BPM: What are some of the benefits of being an author that makes it all worthwhile?
Being an author, actor, singer or whatever, it really does not matter. We are all people first. Even if I were a filthy rich author it wouldn’t make a different to me; being a good person is more important. For me, the only benefits of being an author are my personal satisfaction and knowing I have made other people happy. This is my gift, but Dear Lord, I always prayed to be a great singer, but I guess You know what’s best for me, so thank you Lord.

BPM: What are you the most thankful for now?
I am most thankful for my Lord and Savior, life and good health, family, friends, my gift, fans and a good life. I am truly blessed; I have it all.

BPM: Do you have any advice for people seeking to publish a book?
Study and do your research before you decide, and then learn to do as much as you can for yourself.

BPM: Finish this sentence – “My writing offers the following legacy to future readers and authors…”
My writing offers the following legacy to future readers and authors because I try to write unforgettable novels that provide teachable moments without an expiration date.”

BPM: We are here to shine the spotlight on your new book, but what’s next? 
My long term goal for the next year is to produce my first manuscript, Broken Bond, my memoir, as well as a book of short stories and to continue as a columnist for the Orlando Sentinel monthly news magazine, A Better You,

BPM: How may our readers follow you online?
All of my novels can be purchased at Amazon.com or BarnesandNoble.com, or your favorite online bookstore!
* Rehoboth Road
* The Dancing Willow Tree
* Ashes, Ashes, They All Fall Down
* Jupiter’s Corner
* Jacob’s Eyes

Email Anita Ballard Jones:  blackdeerbooks@aol.com

Blog: http://anitaballardjones.wordpress.com

Goodreads
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/807519.Anita_Ballard_Jones

Barnes & Noble
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/%22Anita+Ballard+Jones%22

Facebook Fanpage
https://www.facebook.com/Anita-Ballard-Jones-Fan-Page-121616341210058/

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