I have always loved to read and write. It was my way of relieving stress and experiencing adventure. I lived vicariously through the characters written down on paper. It started with Goodnight Moon, A Chair for My Mother, Oh The Places You’ll Go, and Anansi. Eventually that grew into Sarah Desson books and The First Part Last. Then I started reading series like Christen Feehan and The more I read, the more I wanted to write. To express my reality through words on a page and to draw in readers. There has been many nonstarters and incomplete stories. But they have all expressed a view uniquely special because they all reflect pieces of me. The more I read. The more I learned. The more adventures I went on. Eventually I was struck by the lack of diversity in the romantic and paranormal stories I loved. I come from an ethnically diverse background and wanted to read stories, which paid homage to that.
The Secrets, Lies, and Betrayal Series and The Virgins Club especially reflects my wishes in many ways. My stories explore a range of themes and my characters make mistakes. They are not cookie cutter; they do not fit into a box or familiar stereotypes. Jinx Wintr (Wintr’s Homecoming) is an overbearing, slightly abrasive, wine drinker with a heart of gold. She is willing to go to hell and back for those she loves. Anaya Jalloh (Jaguar Nights) is a strong independent woman, mother, and leader. She places a lot on faith on fate and the strength of love. Livia Penton (Pearl Moon) has had her life turned upside down and a parasite growing in her belly by the month. She learns that life punches do not have the ability to knock her out. Gleela Joseph (Shadowy Lights) has never known true acceptance among her own kind. She has spent her life living down and scorning her mother. Eventually she comes to appreciate her mother’s ability to thumb her nose at disapproval. These women come in different shapes, colors, ethnic background, and experiences. Their stories are interconnected but can stand-alone. I am constantly rereading these stories and thinking of ways to drive the series forward and explore more of the wonder that comes for expressing a new culture.
Wintr’s Homecoming was the first story I birthed and released into the world. A romantic comedy it deals with the fears and hang-ups of a commitment phobe. There is a slight reverse because the person running away for the bonds of endless love is the woman. She is smart independent with a haunted past and a lot of buried hurt. Jinx wants love but she hates the idea of risking it all for love. Dominic has lived a long life thinking his time would never come. His soul mate did not exist. In the end she comes to him in the form of an old friend grown up into a sensual woman. This is an interracial romance but that does not dominate the story. It is the story of a dominant woman meeting her match in the form of a dominant wolf.
Jaguar Nights is book two in the series and is inspired by the part “Lies” play in the destruction of a relationship. In book one, Wintr’s Homecoming, the reader met Micah. King of the Were-Jaguars. He does not play a major part in book one but small hints are given about his temperament and his marriage. In Jaguar Nights, the reader meets his wife Anaya. She is Queen of the Were-Jaguars by birth. A matriarchal society. Anaya was raised to lead her people with strength and dignity. Micah wanted nothing to do with their tribe and had spent his youth dreaming of a life outside of their small village. Anaya loves Micah as much as she hates the way their relationship. Now they both have to heal old scars in order to continue into a future together.
Pearl Moon is book three. Livia Penton is featured by some degree in the other two books. She is the pregnant ex-girlfriend of the King of Dragons. Hurt by her ex-boyfriend’s disappearing act after her pregnancy announcement. Livia is trying to figure out how to be more then just the party girl she was used to. She was just beginning to get comfortable with the thought of being a single parent when Seiji Kuang, the father of her baby, drops in looking like he had been through a warzone. He is saying all of the things she wanted him to say weeks ago. Doing the things she dreamed he would do. It would have been easy to forget he could not be trusted.
Shadowy Lights is book four. Gleela “Glee” Joseph deals with the part fear plays in a relationship. Glee has loved one man for as long as she can remember. She had been by his side and shared his bed. Yet there is a distance between them. Prince Andris Portè will is the only heir to the throne. All expect him to marry someone of pure blood. Definitely not the half-breed Glee. While she came from the right home, few were willing to overlook the fact her mother was not an Elf but a Nymph. They judged her based off of her mother’s indiscretions and wanted her as far from Andris as possible. Glee let their judgment create doubt and fear. It dominated her actions until finally it pushed Andris away. Now Glee needs to face her fears or lose her chance to be with the only man in her heart.
The Virgins Club was inspired by a phone call with a friend. We were talking about the part sex plays in a relationship and whether a committed relationship can venture anywhere without it. The Fixer (Book One) and The Planner (Book Two) are short reads but take a shallow look at romance where love is not found in the sheets but in the foundation these couples built between themselves. It was fun to write these stories and create these characters whom do not look at virginity as something to be ashamed of, but as something that can be navigated in the hopes that a health relationship can be had.
My inspiration comes from my observations. I watch people, movies, and television. I listen to my friends, and family. I apply the magic of the written word to come up with this unique storyline. These characters sometimes even amaze me. There are times when I am rereading while editing and am struck with the way the scene went. Sometimes it is not you writing and guiding, but your characters taking control. They will come out at the strangest times and will veer off the path you, as the writer, thought you were going to take.
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