Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?
I grew up in Detroit and although it was rife with crime and violence, my mother gave me words of advice. “You can live in this world, but the world doesn’t have to live in you.” With that, she gave me power to choose what affected me and how I was influenced.
Detroit became my world of uniqueness and any Detroiter will tell you, you really have to love this city and all its faults in order to live here. I do and its soul has influence me as a human being, a woman, a mother and especially, as a writer.
What do your fans mean to you?
EVERYTHING! I wish I could write fast enough to please them, but that would mean not sleeping or eating. Well, I wouldn’t mind, but I don’t think I’d live very long.
Hearing someone say, I loved your work, makes me giddy and nervous inside.
Originally, I wrote for me. I know that sounds selfish, but when I received so many rejection notices, I surmised maybe only I liked what I wrote. So I didn’t stop writing and I didn’t stop publishing, but I really thought no one else would like what I was writing. When I posted my book up for sale and got the first Paypal notification I had sold a book at three in the morning that was the best sleep I’d ever gotten. I think I smiled for two days and I didn’t even know who had purchased the work.
Now readers are saying the same thing I’ve said to myself and It’s truly amazing to me each and every time. When they share my work, do a review and even comment on a blog post, I’m honored each and every time because I’m still in a state of “I can’t believe they liked what I wrote” all the time.
By becoming my superfan, I conquered the fear of failure and didn’t give up. I love my fans for their support of all my literary endeavors and I pray I can continue to entertain them for years … or even centuries to come. (I bet Shakespeare thought the same way.)
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