Vocal Expressions

I have come to expect Mary B. Morrison’s style of over the top drama in her novels and I’d Rather Be With You was no different. This novel is the second installment in the If I Can’t Have You Series and although I didn’t read the first novel, Mary B. provided enough backstory to acquaint me with the characters and their situations. Madison is a beauty who always gets what she wants. She thought she had hit the jackpot after marrying Roosevelt “Chicago” DuBois, a wealthy football Executive VP/GM. Little did she know that the marriage would be short lived after he was shot three times by Granville Washington (her stalker) at their wedding reception. She blames herself for Granville walking into her life but sleeping with him was a bet she made with Loretta, her Christian girlfriend, who dared her to sleep with her ex. This bet was scandalous and I know I couldn’t do it. It gets even better – there’s a sex tape with her and Granville to prove she won the bet which Granville stole...

Author’s Bio: Puja Guha began writing in 2010 by participating in the National Novel Writing Month (Nanowrimo). She lives in the Washington DC area where she divides her time between writing, travel, and consulting work on international development programs. Her experiences around the world are a key component of her inspiration and weave their way into each of her stories. What inspired you to write your book? The idea for The Confluence came to me during a business trip with the World Bank in Sudan. The setting there is what inspired me. I had many expectations of Khartoum, the capital, all of which were completely contradicted by the city itself, and I found myself imagining a story set there. After that, the pieces fell into place. Is there any particular author or book that influenced you in any way either growing up or as an adult? Growing up I read all the books off of my dad’s bookshelf. In particular I loved all of the thrillers, especially Frederick Forsyth’s b...

Recently, I wrote a post about embracing the creativity in me in reflection upon the passing of my all-time favorite artist, Prince. In this post, I stated that I will be taking a page from the life of this genius of a men who enjoyed his life in a very artistic and creative way. With this being said, I'd like to share with you that not only do I enjoy writing romantic suspense novels, short stories and poetry, I also enjoy oil painting. Here are some of my latest art work currently being exhibited at the Columbia Art Center. Enjoy! Upper right hand side - "Afrolicious" 2nd down - "Flamenco Anyone?" 3rd down - "Dancing Queens" Upper left hand side - "Sunrise" 2nd down - "Dance This Way"

Author's Bio : Sharon Lucas is an author, founder/president of the Reading Divas Book Club, and the planner and host of the Black Authors & Readers Rock Weekend, an annual two-day literary conference. Since her retirement in 2010, Sharon has worked tirelessly as an advocate for African American authors and book clubs. Sharon and her husband David, the parents of three adult sons and grandparents of five, are both retired and reside with their two cocker spaniels, in Bowie, MD. What inspired you to write your book? I wanted to share what I had learned about how a well organized book club can be invaluable in spreading the news and about great books and talented authors, and there is no better way to achieve that than by bringing the two groups together in a well-planned and executed literary event. Is there any particular author or book that influenced you in any way either growing up or as an adult? No particular author or book has influenced my journey. I have, ho...

Recently, my all-time favorite artist…Prince left this universe. And when this iconic and musical genius left us, he left a void that is irreplaceable. Those close to me know that my admiration of this man stems from the fact he was creatively fearless: singer-songwriter, prodigy multi-instrumentalist, record producer, actor, etc. Like anyone else, he’s had his failures and disputes within the entertainment industry, but like cream, he always rose to the top time and time again. There are way too many songs that I love by this man that evoke many memories from my teenage years to adulthood.  So too are the many lessons to be learned from him about creativity. For now, the takeaway lesson that I’ll be incorporating into my life is to simply embrace being creatively me (fiction writer, painter, poet, etc.). And for this, I’ve penned the following poem about life. This Thing Called Life This thing called life, is a fleeting thing: it ebbs and flows, bumps and scrape...

This was the first novel that I’ve read by Diane McKinney-Whetstone and I must say I thoroughly enjoyed it. In Tumbling , McKinney-Whetstone weaves an intricate tale of family, love, commitment, sacrifices, and community. The novel which is set in South Philadelphia during the 1940s, finds Herbie in a tenuous situation. He is a man who loves his wife, Noon, but because of her “problem” of being unable to consummate the marriage because of a horrible incident in her past, he finds comfort in the arms of Ethel, a sultry jazz club singer. These two women were worlds apart:  Noon, a good churchgoing woman is comfortable wearing sensible shoes and Ethel; a woman built to be chased by men and wouldn’t be caught without wearing her red high heels. One night after coming home from the speakeasy, Herbie finds a cardboard box with a baby in it swaddled in a “loosely knitted bright pink blanket,” with eyes as “dark as coals.” He and Noon decide to raise the child whom they called Fannie ...

Author’s Bio: A native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Shermell K. Ward now lives in the State of Maryland. Growing up all over the United States as an Air-Force brat gave her diverse experiences and upbringing. Ms. Ward has one son. She graduated and received a dual Degree in Business Management and Marketing (2009), along with a Master's Degree in Management (2011). Ms. Ward continues to strive for awareness in the community by speaking at various events empowering women and men to learn, leave their past behind, and focus on their future. Her hobbies are writing, reading, exercising, traveling, and continually gaining new profound knowledge, spiritual growth, and rebirths. What inspired you to write your book? What inspired me to write the book was the process to heal from my pain, disappointments, of relationships, marriage, divorce, and losing a baby. I am not ashamed. I am not a failure. I am a successor, why? Because I survived all of those experiences. Is there a...