Join us as we chat with Anna Black, author of Now You Wanna Come Back. Learn more about Anna's books, her future goals, and her literary journey.***Contest Alert***
Leave a comment (with an email address) and be entered to win a copy of Now you Wanna Come Back by Anna Black. For Contest Details see side panel. This contest ends March 31, 2010.
1) Tell us about yourself? I am originally from Chicago, but I now reside in Texas with my husband and daughter.
2) How long have you been writing? I have been writing a little over ten years now.
3) What drove you to pick up that pen for the first time? Stress...really. I was going through a divorce with my ex-husband and writing was a way to relax.
4) Your novel, Now You Wanna Come Back, featured a plus size heroine. Please tell us about this novel and why you choose to feature a plus-size heroine. Well, my main character Leila is based on a plus size sister who wasn't always full-figured, but after marriage and settling into her life, she put on a few pounds. She got pregnant and that added on more pounds, and by then Devon, her husband no longer wanted to be with her. He treated her horribly and took away her self esteem. Hurt and ravaged, she didn't believe that Rayshon, the new guy was interested in her full-figured frame. Rayshon came along and treated her the way her husband Devon should have treated her, giving her back her confidence, causing Devon, to want her back. This book also offers a twist, because drama brews with Rayson and Leila's relationship too when Katrina a woman from Rayshon's past shows up out of the blue. In the end you'll wonder who Leila will go back to.
5) How did you get your first publishing deal? Well, I self-published first with a company called DeNovo Publishing and it was awful because my book released September 2008, but the company sent me an email November 2008 saying they were going out of business and my book didn't go anywhere. After a few months with that disappointment on my shoulders, I was still determined and I self-published with Infinity Publishing and my only complaint with them was having my book being a POD, that limited who could order my book and that kind of held me back too because places I wanted to have signings wouldn't order a POD book. Then after a few months I meet up with Tamika Newhouse, a driven sister who had just started her own publishing company and we just hit it off. I signed with her on Delphine Publications and I'm happy because there are no restrictions and I don't have to promote and push my novels by myself. I have a publishing company that helps me in marketing, promoting, etc.
6) Are there any more books featuring plus-size heroines in the works? Not in the works, but complete. I have my next book Luck of the Draw that will release April 2010. I have two others that are complete on called Truth Is and the other Relax Your Mind. Don't have a release date for those two yet, but they also feature plus-sized heroines.
7) Tell us a little about your next release Luck of the Draw? When can interested readers purchase a copy of your book? Luck of the Draw is about friendship, jealousy and trust. My main character Kennedy is a beautiful plus-sized sister that is envied by her size four bomb-shell best friend Cherae. This is a twist because no one would expect the slim, gorgeous friend to be jealous of the big girls life, but one man, Julian gives Cherae a rude awakening when she has to face that fact that skinny don't make you better. Friendships and relationships are destroyed in this tale, but a major lesson is learned for all at the end.
8) What is the biggest challenge you have faced as a writer? Getting people to give my book a chance I would say..lol. I am promoting my book everywhere I go, by giving out cards, brochures, etc and folks, even if they are avid readers are scared to try someone new. Its hard always trying to convince someone that your book is a good read, because they think, of course its good to you because you wrote it...lol. That is my biggest challenge I think, but I still push.
9) Where do you see yourself a year from now? Still writing and growing as an authoress. This is a tough industry and I know it will take me more than one more year to really see the fruit of my works. Now in five years, I see myself everywhere, on every shelf, having a fan base of a major author.
10) What are you reading now? Who are your favorite authors? Right now I'm reading The Bum Magnet, by K.L. Brady and I'm really enjoying it. I don't have a favorite author honestly because I enjoy so many novels, so a favorite author I don't have, but my favorite book is The Coldest Winter Ever.
11) Tell us about the on line and offline personal appearances you have planned over the next couple of months. Where can readers connect with you up close and personal? How can readers get in contact with you? Do you have a website?
I will be at Jokae's African American Books, 3223 W. Camp Wisdom Road, Dallas, Texas 75237 2 p.m. - 4 p.m. and AAMBC 1st Annual Bowl-On-A-Lane For Literacy Forum Bowl, Grand Prairie, Texas, February 27, 2010 1 p.m. - 5 p.m. Readers can catch up with me by email at annablackreaders@ymail.com, on Facebook and Twitter and my website is www.annablack.net and my publishing company is www.delphinepublications.com.
12) What is the one thing you would like all of your readers to know about you? That I'm easy going and laid back. I would love to attend book club meetings in person or by phone to get more readers reading my work. When I write I try to make realistic stories for average, curvy, plus-sized, full-figured women like myself. We all want and need to be love and I want average everyday women to feel the same butterflies reading my novels thinking this could happen to me, verses the hot sexy slim chicks that always get the guy.
About Anna Black: Anna has been writing for ten years and she has completed a number of romance/drama/suspense stories. She started writing short stories and poems, and moved over to full length novels about six years ago. Her talents have been enjoyed by a select few in the past, now she is here to deliver her page turners to you. Originally from the southside of Chicago, she was raised to dream big, and now her dreams of publishing her work has come true. "Now you Wanna Come Back," is her debut release, but Anna is not taking a break. She is anxious to also release "Luck of the Draw," April 23, 2010. Anna is here to WOW her readers, and give the readers of today, something to talk about.
She currently resides in Texas with her husband Chris and daughter Tyra.
2) How long have you been writing? I have been writing a little over ten years now.
3) What drove you to pick up that pen for the first time? Stress...really. I was going through a divorce with my ex-husband and writing was a way to relax.
4) Your novel, Now You Wanna Come Back, featured a plus size heroine. Please tell us about this novel and why you choose to feature a plus-size heroine. Well, my main character Leila is based on a plus size sister who wasn't always full-figured, but after marriage and settling into her life, she put on a few pounds. She got pregnant and that added on more pounds, and by then Devon, her husband no longer wanted to be with her. He treated her horribly and took away her self esteem. Hurt and ravaged, she didn't believe that Rayshon, the new guy was interested in her full-figured frame. Rayshon came along and treated her the way her husband Devon should have treated her, giving her back her confidence, causing Devon, to want her back. This book also offers a twist, because drama brews with Rayson and Leila's relationship too when Katrina a woman from Rayshon's past shows up out of the blue. In the end you'll wonder who Leila will go back to.
5) How did you get your first publishing deal? Well, I self-published first with a company called DeNovo Publishing and it was awful because my book released September 2008, but the company sent me an email November 2008 saying they were going out of business and my book didn't go anywhere. After a few months with that disappointment on my shoulders, I was still determined and I self-published with Infinity Publishing and my only complaint with them was having my book being a POD, that limited who could order my book and that kind of held me back too because places I wanted to have signings wouldn't order a POD book. Then after a few months I meet up with Tamika Newhouse, a driven sister who had just started her own publishing company and we just hit it off. I signed with her on Delphine Publications and I'm happy because there are no restrictions and I don't have to promote and push my novels by myself. I have a publishing company that helps me in marketing, promoting, etc.
6) Are there any more books featuring plus-size heroines in the works? Not in the works, but complete. I have my next book Luck of the Draw that will release April 2010. I have two others that are complete on called Truth Is and the other Relax Your Mind. Don't have a release date for those two yet, but they also feature plus-sized heroines.
7) Tell us a little about your next release Luck of the Draw? When can interested readers purchase a copy of your book? Luck of the Draw is about friendship, jealousy and trust. My main character Kennedy is a beautiful plus-sized sister that is envied by her size four bomb-shell best friend Cherae. This is a twist because no one would expect the slim, gorgeous friend to be jealous of the big girls life, but one man, Julian gives Cherae a rude awakening when she has to face that fact that skinny don't make you better. Friendships and relationships are destroyed in this tale, but a major lesson is learned for all at the end.
8) What is the biggest challenge you have faced as a writer? Getting people to give my book a chance I would say..lol. I am promoting my book everywhere I go, by giving out cards, brochures, etc and folks, even if they are avid readers are scared to try someone new. Its hard always trying to convince someone that your book is a good read, because they think, of course its good to you because you wrote it...lol. That is my biggest challenge I think, but I still push.
9) Where do you see yourself a year from now? Still writing and growing as an authoress. This is a tough industry and I know it will take me more than one more year to really see the fruit of my works. Now in five years, I see myself everywhere, on every shelf, having a fan base of a major author.
10) What are you reading now? Who are your favorite authors? Right now I'm reading The Bum Magnet, by K.L. Brady and I'm really enjoying it. I don't have a favorite author honestly because I enjoy so many novels, so a favorite author I don't have, but my favorite book is The Coldest Winter Ever.
11) Tell us about the on line and offline personal appearances you have planned over the next couple of months. Where can readers connect with you up close and personal? How can readers get in contact with you? Do you have a website?
I will be at Jokae's African American Books, 3223 W. Camp Wisdom Road, Dallas, Texas 75237 2 p.m. - 4 p.m. and AAMBC 1st Annual Bowl-On-A-Lane For Literacy Forum Bowl, Grand Prairie, Texas, February 27, 2010 1 p.m. - 5 p.m. Readers can catch up with me by email at annablackreaders@ymail.com, on Facebook and Twitter and my website is www.annablack.net and my publishing company is www.delphinepublications.com.
12) What is the one thing you would like all of your readers to know about you? That I'm easy going and laid back. I would love to attend book club meetings in person or by phone to get more readers reading my work. When I write I try to make realistic stories for average, curvy, plus-sized, full-figured women like myself. We all want and need to be love and I want average everyday women to feel the same butterflies reading my novels thinking this could happen to me, verses the hot sexy slim chicks that always get the guy.
About Anna Black: Anna has been writing for ten years and she has completed a number of romance/drama/suspense stories. She started writing short stories and poems, and moved over to full length novels about six years ago. Her talents have been enjoyed by a select few in the past, now she is here to deliver her page turners to you. Originally from the southside of Chicago, she was raised to dream big, and now her dreams of publishing her work has come true. "Now you Wanna Come Back," is her debut release, but Anna is not taking a break. She is anxious to also release "Luck of the Draw," April 23, 2010. Anna is here to WOW her readers, and give the readers of today, something to talk about.
She currently resides in Texas with her husband Chris and daughter Tyra.
2 comments:
Both books sound good and I hope both do well.
lenikaye@yahoo.com
I really enjoyed reading "Now you Wanna come Back". Proud to say I have a autographed copy. Really looking forward to reading, Luck of the Draw".
collinsgina30@aol.com
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