| The "writing" bug: When did you first get bitten by it? Was writing something you've always wanted to do?
To be honest, I
would've been happy being a little old cartoonist, happily going about my business drawing comic strips. But I hooked up with a
children's ministry here in Philly, KIDS IN THEATRELAND, some years ago. They gave me my first shot at writing stage productions, actually putting words to my stories as opposed to just pictures and
I've been writing ever since.
It also doesn't hurt that, to me, writing is a little easier than having to layout, pencil and ink (sometimes color) a whole comic strip or comic book. The challenge is now keeping both my literary vibe and my drawing hand busy. Fortunately between CORINTHIA and some other projects,
it's been easy keeping the muscles flexed.
I enjoyed your book CORINTHIA: MY NAME IS CORINTHIA. It was refreshing to see a story featuring a young African American girl with positive attributes. For those who may not know, tell them about the book.
CORINTHIA is about a 11-year-old
girl who, over summer vacation, is given amazing powers and abilities by God to use in
the lives of her family and friends. She's the typical kid who loves jumping rope, hanging with her girlfriends, discovering boys and all that
stuff, but she knows that God must have a reason for giving her these gifts. Right?
This is a tale of young Corinthia's journey of self discovery and spiritual awakening as she learns more about her powers and
God's mission in the lives of her friends and family.
I'm trying to introduce a healthy respect for the role the Lord and His blessings play in the upbringing of children everywhere.
Plus, I wanted to give kids a positive role model who speaks and acts just like them but knows the coolness of being
"down with the G-O-D." I base her personality on my own 11-year-old, Olivia, and her girlfriends so I have plenty of examples and stories to tell.
I noticed the this book, along with some other work you've done, like playwrighting, has been geared toward children. Are children your main focus in your literary/creative works?
In truth, I kind of fell into the habit of writing for children from my time at KIDS IN THEATRELAND and
it's just continued from there. I suppose I've always kept a firm grip on the little boy within me (too firm a grip, if you ask some of my friends) so
that's helped me stay in touch with the world of "the little
ones."
I try not to write down to them, you know, dumb down the story in any way. I feel children enjoy a challenging read, trying to figure out exactly
what's happening for themselves. They don't need everything
gift-wrapped for them. Some of the imagination lost in this coming generation is a direct result of that approach to
children's entertainment.
With the recent explosion of the "street fiction" world taking the African American literary world by storm, no
one's writing anything for kids, or hardly anyone; especially the
"tweeners," age 8-12. So, HERE I COME TO SAVE THE DAY!
Man, I'm showing my age with that Mighty Mouse reference, ain't I? Do people even know Mighty Mouse anymore?
How much does Christianity play a part in your works? Like children, Christian themes can be found in other works of yours, including CORINTHIA.
My comic strips over the years had nothing to do with Christianity. They all dealt with relationships in one way or another. But, again back to KIDS IN THEATRELAND, when I joined them I really got a true sense of how much it meant to me. I also saw first-hand how that spiritual base grounded the lives of children involved with the troupe, and their example, I suppose, has informed all of my writing for kids ever since.
I think its shameful how some bookstores, book clubs and literary organizations shy away from Christian-themed works and when you have experience working in other genres as I have,
it's tempting to create work that appeals to the masses. However, I intend to keep my CORINTHIA tales coming so they better get used to her.
KICK IN THE DOOR, GIVE PRAISE TO THE LORD
ALL YOU HEARD WAS CORINTHIA, GIVE ME SOME MORE!
Reworked some of that Biggie stuff right there, folks! Cruze got
skillz, y'all!
If there was one thing you want reader to get from CORINTHIA, what would it be?
The lessons will seep in as you read the
story, but first and foremost, just enjoy the book. Enjoy Corinthia and her crazy ways, her loud grumpy Uncle Paul, her girlfriends Olivia, Tiffany, Adrianne, and Lezlee. Sit back and see her lead her neighborhood in touchdowns;
that's right, I said TOUCHDOWNS. Just relax with some lemonade and enjoy the book.
If I did my job right, the rest will take care of itself.
Who inspires you as a writer?
I've said it
elsewhere, but my daughter Olivia inspires everything I do because I do it for her and her future.
Plus, who doesn't want to shine for their parents? So, I keep plugging along so I can make my mom Beatrice and my late pop William proud. I know
he's checking me out from on high so I keep at it in his memory.
My friend and fellow author TL Gardner inspires me with his unflinching passion for the art of
writing, as well as his unsurpassed skill. I don't know of any and have read none who can get with him.
He's a beast at this, for real!
If you were not a writer...if you were not a creative person, what would be your dream career?
Cartooning is creative, too, so I
couldn't do that either, huh? I guess I would be a marriage or relationship counselor. Everyone who knows me knows I have an opinion on EVERYTHING.
LOL! But the one thing my friends will agree on for the most part is that
I'm good at helping them with their relationships. I like doing stuff like that. I try to be totally neutral, objective and fair; they appreciate that.
Like all of us, I don't always practice what I preach, but I preach good stuff. I think my dream would be to do one of those advice columns, get the male point of view on things.
That's REALLY what women need to hear most times. Maybe one day.
I know that CORINTHIA is the first of many books featuring the title's main character. Do you have other CORINTHIA books in the works? Any conferences or book signings in the near future?
The next CORINTHIA book, THE COOL & DOCTOR J, will be out during the Spring
of 2006 with the third book, PEANUT BUTTER MILK, the following Spring.
I'm hoping that I can place CORINTHIA with a full-blown publisher for wider distribution before
then, so wish me luck!
I'll also be at the Power of the Pen Conference in Lansing, Michigan on Sept. 9th as well as Karibu bookstores in Maryland later on in September and the Miami Book Fair in November. Folks can check out the whole itinerary on
Corinthiabooks.com.
I'm really bad at selling myself; that's why I got Belinda Williams / Literary Lifestyle in my corner. HI BELLY! |
