We'd love to get to know you better. Can you tell us more about yourself?

The logline of my life story would be something like "Feisty Black girl from inner city Chicago will stop at nothing to make her dream of becoming a music critic come true."

I grew up on the now notorious south side of that city nurtured by a large family of musicians and dancers and some of the strongest women I've ever known. One of those women was actually Emmett Till's invincible mother, Mamie, who was my 5th grade teacher. And being immersed in music from the day I was born, I eventually began writing about it in "Creem," "Rolling Stone" and lots of local and national papers and magazines during my college years. And soon, the "Chicago Sun-Times" made me an offer I couldn't refuse. It was a fantastic job for a woman in her 20s, traveling with all the popular bands and celebrities of the 70s and early 80s. But it was also exhausting and introduced me to a competitive and sometimes cutthroat world that we're now being introduced to through scandals making headlines right now. So, I left that world behind after five years of nonstop "overboogie" as we called it back then and moved to the beautiful Southwest where I married a Hopi Indian artist, moved to his picturesque, other worldly reservation in Arizona, and gave birth to our amazing daughter. I also started to freelance for several women's magazines and started to write poetry and fiction stories mostly for my own amusement. And when I read about Margaret Atwood writing for Wattpad, I decided to follow her lead. And that was the beginning of yet another wild adventure!

What made you take up the pen and start writing?

I started writing before I could actually "write." As a toddler, I would babble little stories to myself and pretend to write them down with a pencil, pen or crayon. I was in love with books and wanted to create my own, I guess. And I've still got all of the diaries and journals I wrote from middle school on--what a wonderful story they tell!

What inspires you as an author?

I don't know if this counts as inspiration or not, but if I had to take that psychological test that asks if you hear "voices," I would have to say "Yes." Characters start nudging me months before I ever start writing. They're in my dreams, they nag me while I'm trying to read a book or watch a TV show or listen to a favorite song, trying to tell me how their story could unfold. So, while I always tell people I'm a dedicated pantser, the stories I tell have been "dictated" to me almost completely before I begin. All I have to do is jot down and what I've been "told," and make a few minor adjustments along the way. So, I don't have to wait to be inspired. The stories find me.

What inspired you to write your first steamy scene? Could you tell us more about that experience? Was it a slow buildup to a not-so-innocent kiss, or did your characters jump right into the action?

I think the first steamy scene I wrote was a not-so-innocent kiss that quickly escalated--it's been a long time since that first sexy story. But I wrote it because I felt that most of the really steamy scenes I'd read or even seen on the screen weren't... well, physically "accurate." Not for women, anyway. They didn't turn me on as a viewer or reader because I was always wincing and thinking, "OUCH." There was too much sturm und drang and not enough attention to what most women really want and feel, I think because so many of the movie ones were and still are written by men. So, I decided to try to write scenes that would feel more real to women and be somewhat "instructive" for men who really cared about pleasing a partner. But I also tried not to be too "clinical" about it--another turn off for me. I wanted those scenes to flow just as smoothly and compellingly as the rest of the story, without getting too technical or minutely descriptive. Took me a while to strike the right balance, but by actually "becoming" my lead female character as I was writing those scenes, I started to feel more comfortable and confident about them. If "we" didn't feel it, it wasn't working.

Was writing "after dark" material something that occurred naturally to you, or was it a craft that you practiced till you perfected?

It really wasn't that difficult because as I've said, my characters tell me what to do. So, when they wanted to go there, they pretty much told me what to do. The steamy stuff happened naturally as the story unfolded, motivated by the strong emotions the characters were feeling. They did improve over time, but because those scenes were part of the emotional journey portrayed in those stories, they almost wrote themselves.

Do you have any challenges that you face during writing, especially spicy or mature topics? And how do you overcome them?

I've joked that though the human body is an amazingly versatile machine, I sometimes feel like the people at Taco Bell trying to find all kinds of new and hopefully exciting ways to work with the same very limited ingredients. And of course, in this day and age, when readers can read and watch some pretty sexy stuff on the Net--or even create their own with AI--I've got some serious competition. So, just finding new language to express what's going on is difficult. I want to avoid cliches and come up with new and more exciting ways to entice readers who've seen it all or can just toss my book aside and let AI tell them an even better story.

What is one thing about writing that no one told you about, or what is one piece of advice you would like to share with other writers especially when it comes to writing AfterDark material?

I'm going to repeat something I said earlier, "If you're not feeling it, your readers won't, either." You can be as poetic as you please, but if it your reader doesn't sweat at least a little bit, you didn't do the job. Put yourself in the scene as you're writing and see how it "feels." You can go back and pretty it up later but get the body language right first.

What's the most scandalous thing you've ever written? (could be posted or deleted material)

Totally deleted a mutual masturbation scene in a story I never posted to Wattpad that just didn't feel like the characters would actually do what they were doing--it just seemed gratuitous. Like I was adding it for shock value. So, I deleted it. I still haven't finished that story...

Do you have a favorite novel from the titles you've written and why is it your chosen one?

I love "The Middle Passage" just because it's a "rags to riches" story about a Black woman closer to my own age. Through the eyes of the Texas billionaire she meets when she wins a trip to his luxury resort, she learns to see the beauty of her curvy body and allows herself to feel worthy of the love and good fortune she finds after years of sacrificing herself for her family and friends. Talk about wish fulfillment--I loved writing that novel!

Are you a panster, or plotter, or both? How does that work for you?

I've talked about that. I'm a panster who plots most of the novel along with the voices in my head for weeks before I actually start writing. So, I'm sort of a "plantser," but I'm very flexible as I write. The story might veer off from the original plans we made in my head as it unfolds. And I don't mind that at all.

Is there a dirty secret or salacious tryst about one of your characters that only you know but are willing to share?

One of them got very drunk on champagne and had sex with his mother's best friend during a huge Christmas party his family threw back when he was a teenager. A scene that couldn't be included in a Wattpad story now, for sure, but it was hilarious and fun to write for a whole bunch of complicated reasons to do with his family and their lofty status in society.

Do you have a mentor or someone you look up to when it comes to writing?

My most memorable mentor was my friend Blake "Save the Cat" Snyder, who passed away so suddenly a few years ago. The late great Roger Ebert, the film critic, literally saved my sanity daily at the Chicago Sun-Times back when, too. But these days, Wattpad's own Xavier Garcia-Gallardo is my favorite and most trusted "cheerleader." Nobody believes in me more than that man, and I couldn't be more grateful.

Do you have any writing projects you're currently working on? Any future titles your readers should look forward to?

I'm finishing up "My Seoul Man" right now, but a couple of new characters have been nudging me to write down a few little ideas. I think that one will be called something like "K-Bae," but I'm not sure yet. Another K-pop inspired romance based on some of the current and constant controversies swirling around in that world.

If you were a character in your story, who would you be and why?

Oh, the lead of course. I've lived such a remarkable life that I can't imagine taking a backseat to anyone else. I've been interviewed for a few books about Black women in music and journalism et al recently, by authors who were inspired by my journey. So... there you go!

If you had the opportunity to live anywhere in the world for a year to write a book that took place in that same setting, where would you choose and why?

Right now, it would have to be Korea. When I stumbled upon K-pop many years ago I became fascinated by the whole K-Wave experience and the culture in general. I'd like to experience it firsthand. And I think doing it as a Black woman my age would be particularly unique.

Do you have a favorite author? (On or off Wattpad)

It's a tie between Cormac McCarthy and Gabriel García Márquez.

What is the most captivating novel you've read? Bonus points if it has spice.

Uh, oh. No bonus points, though there's a lot of passion in it. But I have to be honest, it's "Love in the Time of Cholera," by Gabriel García Márquez. He almost made me stop writing because I just could not imagine how anyone could make magic like that with mere words.

Do you have any hobbies?

I sometimes take a break to listen to music from all over the world via an app/site called "Radio Garden" that lets you manipulate a big green map of the world to find radio stations. I can't begin to tell you how much amazing music you can find as you slide that cursor over all the continents!

What's your favorite movie or TV series?

The K-drama "My Mister" is my hands down favorite. Visionary author Paulo Coelho, who also used to post on Wattpad, loved it, too, I'm proud to say.

What's your favorite food or cuisine?

The soul food I miss so much from the southside of Chicago and "down South" where my parents were born.

What would be your version of a perfect vacation?

I used to love heading for the North Rim of the Grand Canyon to rest and write while gazing upon that absolutely breath-taking view. Nothing else compares.

If you could, what is one thing you would tell your younger self today?

"Every setback is the set up for a comeback."

Before we wrap it up, do you have any message for your readers and possible future readers?

Believe in yourself and that you're a writer the minute you start writing, even if you never sell a single book or article. If you're like me, you're not necessarily writing to publish or even to be read--that's hard to explain to some people, but if you know, you know. Writing is life for some of us. It's how we work our way through life. So just do it. And eventually, your audience may just sneak up on you...