4 posts tagged “african-american fiction”

Color Me Jazzmyne by Marian L. Thomas

I would like to introduce you to a fantastic new book, Color Me Jazzmyne. Readers of Color Me Jazzmyne have been captivated by the depth of the emotional journey that the book takes them on. It digs deep into what it takes for women to embrace who they are no matter what size, color, educational background or social status. Sisters will learn to love themselves despite what society says or the voices that surround them!

Marian L. Thomas is native of Chicago but currently resides in Atlanta.She first awakened her desire to write while in her second year of high school. She majored in Journalism but received her Bachelor of Art degree in Business Communication, graduating Magna Cum Laude. 2009 the dream of becoming a published author was realized when she was able to debut her first title Color Me Jazzmyne. She is a wife and supporter of victims of abuse and was recently featured in the Atlanta Skirt! Magazine as one of Atlanta's 9to5 Women in the Media Industry.

Motivation Behind Color Me Jazzmyne
Color Me Jazzmyne addresses a major issue in our society today..."Rape is often the "hush" word in our lives. It's the thing that we prefer to put into the closet of other skeltons that we pray no one has the key to.

Child abuse often occurs at a young age and more than often it is done by someone that is very close---a family member or friend of the family.  It's a difficult thing to get over, it's even more difficult to explain.

According to one statistic.... one out of every six women will be raped over their lifetime and 73% of all rape victims know their assailants.  In fact, studies have shown that 60% of all sexual assaults are not reported. I hope that women who read this book and have gone through something similar will find the courage to reach out and talk to someone about it."

Color Me Jazzmyne Book Excerpt
Read Chapters 1-3 and give us your opinion.
http://www.freado.com/book/4169/Color-Me-Jazzmyne

Intimate Conversation with author Marian L. Thomas

Ella: What impact do you want your book, Color Me Jazzmyne, to make on readers?
Marian: "I hope that women who read this book and have lived the life of Naya Mona in some form or fashion will find the voice, strength and motivation to push past the pain and live."

Ella: Why do you write?
Marian: For me, writing is more of a release from the reflection of the world around us. It is a way to express the obvious using tones that soothe,excite, uplift and allow the reader to step out of their comfort level.  That is my goal when writing. That is what drives me to create characters such as Naya Mona.

Ella: Are your characters, in Color Me Jazzmyne, a portrayal of real people?
Marian: Reality is always a part of us and as such what we read must adhere to some form of it in order to make it so that one can relate to the story that is being told. Naya is clearly a reflection of the many women that I have met over the years and the struggles that they have gone through. I do not remove myself from that reflection. Misty represents all the so-called friends that revolve in and out of our lives and Chris is what I term the 'life-time' type of husband. He represents the compassion and love that we as women need, want and deserve.

Contact Marian Online
Email: larrita@lbpublishingco.com
Website: http://www.marianlthomas.com
Author's Blog: http://findingmycolorwithmlt.blogspot.com

Pickup Your Copy Today!
ISBN-10: 0615270670; ISBN-13: 978-0615270678

Amazon.com
Kindle Download
Barnes & Noble.com

Hallelujah Love Series featuring
Sex In The Sanctuary and  Love Like Hallelujah

 The "Hallelujah Love" series centers around two best friends,  Tai and Vivian, who just happen to be preacher's wives. Tai's husband, King, is over the rapidly growing Mount Zion Progressive Baptist Church in the Kansas City area, while Derrick, Vivian's other half, oversees the mega-church Kingdom Citizens Christian Center in LA.
 
In the just released novel, Love Like Hallelujah, the storyline takes up where the series debut, Sex In The Sanctuary, leaves off. We get updated on the lives of the Montgomerys , Brooks, Hope, Millicent and Cy. We also some minor characters from SITS to the forefront: Stacy, who's in love with KCCC's minister of music, Darius Crenshaw, Lavon Chapman, who's been hired by Derrick Montgomery to head up his television ministry, and Janay Tootie Hans, King's old flame from back in the day, who returns to Kansas City to care for an ailing mother. But drama starts to rise when Tai learns that Tootie has a teenaged son, a son who could be Kings.

And Tootie isn't the only one who returns. So does a woman named Robin Cook, the woman who helped Derrick out in his first ministry. Robin believes if it wasn't for Vivian, she'd be first lady of KCCC by now. She comes back to claim what's hers.
 
What happens when love looks more like hell than hallelujah? There's only one way to find out...

 
Book Details
Publisher:  Kensington Dafina
ISBN-10: 0-7582-1753-6
ISBN-13: 978-0-7582-1753-0
 
Distributors
Penguin, Baker & Taylor, Ingrams (in bookstores everywhere; B&N, Borders, Waldenbooks, Wal-Mart, independents and Amazon.com.)

SLS Currently reading : Sex in the Sanctuary By Lutishia Lovely Release date: 01 February, 2007

SLS Intimate Conversations Showcase

Recently Ella Curry, CEO of EDC Creations (www.edc-creations.com) and founder of the Sankofa Literary Society (www.sankofaliterarysociety.org)  had the opportunity to talk with the author of book Sex In The Sanctuary and  Love Like Hallelujah, Lutishia Lovely

Tell us your latest news?
Oh my goodness!!! I just found out that my first novel, Sex In The Sanctuary, was on MosaicBooks bestseller list for all of 2007! And that it also was a regular bestseller at Black Expressions Book Club. So I am very excited about seeing the latest release, Love Like Hallelujah, enjoy even greater success!

When did you first consider yourself a writer?
While I've written off and on since junior high school, I think the label felt legit when my first professional piece, a stageplay called Knowledge - Or What, was actually produced. In addition to writing it, I also co-starred. The show did well and got good reviews.

What inspired you to pen your first novel?
Honestly, Spirit. See this title, Passion In The Pews, dropped in my head years ago. I had just finished writing a stageplay and tried to do the same with this idea. It went nowhere. Fast forward a few years and after finishing yet another project I asked Spirit, "what am I supposed to do now?" Clear as day came the answer: "Sex In The Sanctuary...and it's a book."

Who or what has influenced your writing, and in what way?
 I think everyone I've ever met, seen, heard or felt is somehow contributing to my work. Of course, life itself is a wonderful source of information and inspiration. For instance, not only did I literally grow up in church but I'm also a preacher's kid, so the "Hallelujah Love" series is a very easy one for me to write.

How has your environment/upbringing colored your writing?
I am blessed to have experienced and continue to enjoy a very rich, culturally, socially and geographically diverse life journey and it allows me to relate to a wide variety of situations. I've travelled extensively, forty states,  over a dozen countries, and even lived in Israel for six months. My work background has been diverse, from radio personality to magazine editor. I've lived in almost all-White towns and in mostly-Black urban communites. So really, I feel more like a global citizen, than I do any label that would tie me into one place or even ethnicity.
 

What are your current projects?
I just finished book three in the Hallelujah Love series, A Preacher's Passion, AND my first romance novel, Lies Lovers Tell, which comes out in October under the pseudonym Zuri Day. I'm also working with a friend on a non-fiction project about living ones dreams. So...lot's going on y'all - and I'm grateful!

 
Do you have any plans outside of novel writing?
 Actually I do, when I can find the time! My agent is actively shopping the Hallelujah Love series for conversion to film and I also have soundtrack ideas for both novels; original songs in which part of the lyrics appear in the books. I also have a stageplay idea that is SOOOO good!!! I wrote it years ago and hope to one day soon be able to focus on getting it produced. But I'm already contracted for at least four more books so....we'll see...

Do you feel that the explosion  in African-American writers is a fad or another renaissance?
Definitely another renaissance. We've re-discovered the Black voice and it is stronger, more vibrant, and more diverse than ever! There is so much talent out here, so many creative storylines and genres to choose from when it comes to Black works. All of my fellow penners make me proud to spell my name w-r-i-t-e-r!!!

Do you feel more African-Americans are reading?
If not, how can we help increase this. While I think the number of African-American readers are increasing, I wish it were more. Reading is such a wonderful, inexpensive yet creative way to be entertained. I think to increase these numbers it has to start early, in the home, with children who are 4, 5, 6 years old and on. The earlier the habit of reading is instilled, the deeper will be the love. And I can tell you from personal experience - that love will last a lifetime!
 

What advice would you give someone who wants to write a book.
 I'd tell them to stop thinking about it and "just do it." Get on a computer and start writing whatever you have: an idea, an outline, an incident, whatever. The more you write, the more that will flow. Then I'd encourage them to join a writer group or take a college course, anything to get you in the atmosphere of your dream. Lastly the internet is a wealth of information. You can just google "write a book" and about a million choices will pop up with folk trying to tell you how to make it do what it do! But bottom line, if you want to be a writer...WRITE!

Authors Bio
Lutishia Lovely has been enthralled with the world of words since saying her first one, Tuffy, the name of the family dog, at less than a year old. She is an actress, publishing consultant and spiritual life coach who in addition to writing novels, screenplays and stageplays enjoys sports, especially football and tennis, the arts, international travel and serving up mouth-watering vegetarian cuisine. She lives in Manhattan Beach, CA with her family.

www.LutishiaLovely.com

www.myspace.com/lutishialovely

Author of Sex in the Sanctuary, and the sequel
Love Like Hallelujah... in bookstores now and at Amazon.com
 
The miracle you're looking for is in your mirror...Lutishia

 Hallelujah Love Series featuring:
Sex In The Sanctuary and  Love Like Hallelujah

LLH-FrontCover

Synopsis:
The "Hallelujah Love" series centers around two best friends,  Tai and Vivian, who just happen to be preacher’s wives. Tai’s husband, King, is over the rapidly growing Mount Zion Progressive Baptist Church in the Kansas City area, while Derrick, Vivian’s other half, oversees the mega-church Kingdom Citizens Christian Center in LA.
 
In the just released novel, Love Like Hallelujah, the storyline takes up where the series debut, Sex In The Sanctuary, leaves off. We get updated on the lives of the Montgomerys , Brooks, Hope, Millicent and Cy. We also some minor characters from SITS to the forefront: Stacy, who’s in love with KCCC’s minister of music, Darius Crenshaw, Lavon Chapman, who’s been hired by Derrick Montgomery to head up his television ministry, and Janay Tootie Hans, King’s old flame from back in the day, who returns to Kansas City to care for an ailing mother. But drama starts to rise when Tai learns that Tootie has a teenaged son, a son who could be Kings. And Tootie isn’t the only one who returns. So does a woman named Robin Cook, the woman who helped Derrick out in his first ministry. Robin believes if it wasn’t for Vivian, she’d be first lady of KCCC by now. She comes back to claim what’s hers.    What happens when love looks more like hell than hallelujah? There's only one way to find out...
 
ISBN-10: 0-7582-1753-6

ISBN-13: 978-0-7582-1753-0

 
Distributors: Penguin, Baker & Taylor, Ingrams (in bookstores everywhere; B&N, Borders, Waldenbooks, Wal-Mart, independents and Amazon.com.)

 
Genre (2); women's mainstream fiction

 
Book Reviews
 
Love Like Hallelujah is a very good sequel to Sex in the Sanctuary. It picks up where the first book ended. I enjoyed the way Lutishia kept the plot going - (also) the way the story flowed…  Jackie for Urban-Reviews.com

 
 absolutely loved Love Like Hallelujah...Lovely's honest voice matched with great story-telling abilities captures your attention and speaks to the church experience. (This book) continues a saga full of promise and great characters. I can't wait for A Preacher's Passion… Erica J., Boston , MA

Authors Bio
 

Lutishalovely-long

Lutishia Lovely has been enthralled with the world of words since saying her first one, Tuffy, the name of the family dog, at less than a year old. She is an actress, publishing consultant and spiritual life coach who in addition to writing novels, screenplays and stageplays enjoys sports, especially football and tennis, the arts, international travel and serving up mouth-watering vegetarian cuisine. She lives in Manhattan Beach, CA with her family.