Behind the Scenes Updates Part One

As a teenager, I wrote poems and I still have many poems in notebooks and writing pads with my thoughts and imagination. My Grannie always expected me to read a book each summer. Not only did she expect me to read but she wanted me to tell her the story. That was the beginning for my love of books. Beforethat I only read textbooks for school, and I found it to be boring.Summer reading was different. For the first time, I could choose a book which interests me.

I fell in love with Daneille Steele books. Her stories introduced me to romance, family, heartache, and many unexpected journeys. As a young African American girl, I began imagining those kinds of stories through my own experiences, dreams, and perspective.

In 1999, I heard a heartfelt story, and I wanted to put ink on that story. My first novel was born. I researched the publishing industry. In 1999-2000 traditional publishing was still primary path for aspiring authors. I wrote to many publishers, if they responded, it was always the same response, “We are not looking for new manuscripts.” Or “We were not interested in that genre.” I read my 1st book several times but with each response from publishers I became defeated. I put the manuscript in manilla envelope and put it in a bin. I did not stop wanting to create and develop the story, but life simply became louder. The dream of becoming an author lay quietly inside but it was buried beneath responsibilities, circumstances, and life experiences. 

I had simply put the manuscript away – not the writer. 

In late 2025, I began toying with idea of creating characters and developing a story. Whenever I travel, I take my notebook with me. I began creating characters, developing their personalities, imagining their lives, and writing down pieces of their stories. 

I began to see the shape of a novel. 

As 2025 came to an end, I prayed for God to keep my mind focused. There were fewer distractions and I knew it was time to put ink on the pages. I did not pick up the manuscript I wrote in 1999. Nearly three decades passed. Time changed me. Life haschanged me. My experiences have changed me. When I thought of those pages, I realized the ink might look the same but the person who wrote the ink was not the same. My voice and characters are wiser. My understanding of people was deeper. And the characters I created now came from a place of greater life experience.

 The passing of my mother gave me a new and different perspective on life. My mother left a legacy of countless lessons, so many lessons that she taught me, my siblings, and her grandchildren. She said countless times “You can take a horse to a well but can’t make him drink.” It’s a saying as old as time but the words, now she is gone, I do not hear the words, but I stop to understand the meaning. I began to understand you can give advice, love, encouragement but ultimately, that person must decide what is best for themselves.

 It’s January 2026, the dead of winter beside watching movies, and series on Netflix, Prime, and/or Paramount, I am sitting writing an outline for my characters. As the author I can use my imagination to present Black families in a positive manner, I create a young black professional woman navigating dating. She is facing dilemmas of dating, which come with relationships and she is surrounded by the unconditional love of her family. 

More importantly, I can show characters imperfect but determined to grow. Characters making decisions only by what is best for them, not forced to make decisions because of desperation, poverty, or financial circumstances, which can force their hand. We all know, heard, some of us have lived it, making decisions because money is not right.

 It is important to show characters trying to elevate themselves despite their flaws. People are learning from mistakes. People who love, struggle, make difficult choices, and keep moving forward. It’s important to hear their stories, show resilience, families supporting one another, and women showing up tosupport each other. I want to remind readers that despite life’s challenges we can triumph. 

That became more than a story I wanted to write.

It became the reason I needed to write.