LaConnie Taylor-Jones

I’d be remiss if I didn’t salute the countless literary pioneers who paved the way for me and other African-American authors during the month deemed Black History Month. Although we’ve come a long way, we’ve got a long way to go.

During a recent interview with Shelia English, CEO of COS Production, we talked about the significance of Black History Month and ways African-American authors can be better promoted in the publishing industry. Our discussion was candid, and hopefully, lends to the implementation of strategies, which allow for parity to all authors regardless of ethnicity.

Enjoy!!

Until next time – stay well and be blessed

Tinsel Town is about to learn a few lessons from a Southern belle name Dr. Laney Olivia Houston. She has the courage to win the heart of a certain jazz man who swore no woman ever would in – If I Were Your Woman – due to be released March 4, 2010!

For months, I’ve tried to interview this petite-framed leading lady and finally succeeded. I was stuck by her warmth and honesty the moment she walked into the room. At only five feet, three inches, physician researcher with flawless butter cream skin, red hair and eyes the same shade as polished emeralds captivated my attention for over an hour. During our time together, I learned a lot about this freckled-face heroine that I believe readers would be interest to know.

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A few weeks ago, one of my readers e-mailed me. Her query was simple: how do you create the characters in your stories? That’s a simple question, right? Well for me, it’s a little more complex than simply creating a character. My goal as an author is to create characters readers will love!

Here’s the analogy I go through each and every time I sit down to develop the characters in my stories:

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My response has been and will continue to be the same. Why not?

I love romance! Plain and simple. Based on the 2006 report from Simba Information, revenue from romance fiction was estimated at 1.37 billion dollars. With the exception of religion/inspirational books, romance fiction outsold every market category with a whopping twenty-six percent. So, there are a lot of authors and readers who love my addiction to the genre, too.

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Have you ever wondered how a novel ends up on the big screen? Well, I asked myself this very question over the winter break when I took my daughter to see New Moon, the second book from the Twilight Series by Stephenie Meyer.

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If a Gallup Poll was conducted today and people were asked to define the term romance, an overwhelming percentage would say it’s the collection of love stories, the genre. Although the term has several meanings, there’s one other definition I’d like to put on the table—the spirit of adventure.

Aaah…the spirit of adventure! Are you ignoring the still, soft voice of your inner spirits? You know the one, the voice that begs and challenges you to escape the comfort zone you’re in and strive for higher ground. None of else, and especially authors should ever permit the walls of complacency to close in around them.

Perhaps you’re at a crossroad in life, contemplating a new path. Even though circumstances are aligning in perfect sync in order to go in that new direction, you fail to seize the opportunity. Why?

I don’t believe any industry is as daunting as the world of publishing. Every day, authors are faced with decisions ranging from penning in a different genre to changing agents or publishing houses. Instead of embracing modification, they hide behind the shield of same-old, same-old. Why?

Maybe, just maybe the ability to embrace our romance, the spirit of adventure is because we fear change.

Let’s face it people, change is the most difficult concept for human beings to accept. It’s even more difficult for writers. Whether the reluctance to engage in our romance is due to procrastination, lack of effort, or fear of the unknown, those once-in-a-lifetime opportunities just might pass us by. Then we’re left to ponder the proverbial, ‘what if’.

I’m not a ‘what if’ individual—never have been. Don’t get me wrong. I’ve delved into some romances in my lifetime that have straight up bombed! Rather than dwell on my lack of success, I focused on the lessons learned, the experience gained. There are some things in life only our romance can teach us.

What romance lies dormant inside of you?

Here’s another example of the power of social networking.

Last summer, I connected with a reader on Shelfari by the name of LaTessa Montgomery. Not only did I discover another romance-a-holic who shares the same passion I have for the romance genre, I also learned she was one of my Sorors (Delta Sigma Theta, Sorority, Inc.) as well as a senior reviewer for Romance in Color. We continued to stay in touch and in May of 2008, met each other in person at the Romance Slam Jam conference in Chicago.

Since that time, we’ve stayed in touched via blogging and several social networks. Last week, I had the wonderful pleasure of being one of the featured authors at Romance in Color. This would not have been possible without us connecting on a social network. Thanks, LaTessa for a wonderful interview!

The power of social networking can’t be emphasized enough. Every author should be engaged in some form of social networking, whether they have an upcoming title release or not. If an author is serious about their career, then they understand the importance of viewing it as a business, and every successful business engages in some form of networking. A recent post by Marion Freijsen and Adrie Reinders underscores the importance of social networking for authors, perfectly.

Network, network, network!! You never know how that chance meeting with a literary colleague will benefit you down the road.

Until next time – stay well and be blessed.

Happy TGIF!!

Well, it’s the last day of the A Love For All Times Virtual Book Tour and to help us close out my wonderful month-long celebration of When a Man Loves a Woman is new author, Terra Little, who will feature my book and book trailer to all the readers and writers at Writers of Color Blog Tour!

Writers of Color Blog Tour is a place to review, discuss, and promote books, art, culture, and music by minority creatives. Terra Little, contributing author and moderator for the Writers of Color Blog Tour, is the author of Running from Mercy (JAN 2008: Q-Boro Books) & Where There’s Smoke (JAN 2009: Urban Books).

Visit Terra Little and her blog online today!!

Until next time – stay well and be blessed.

The celebration of When A Man Loves A Woman continues and we invite all of our virtual book travelers to listen to the Nia Promotions’ Podcast as founder and president, Dana Pittman, talks with me about my new book and new career as a romance writer!

Nia Promotions is a marketing company that provides a variety of marketing services. We assist authors and publishers with Internet book marketing using strategy, branding, and education. We connect with our readers through Nia Virtual Book Tours and by hosting live webcasts with authors and publishing professionals, teleseminars, online workshops, chats, and virtual books tours. Expect it all from email marketing to creating and distributing online content using blogs, articles and more. Let us assist you in virtually promoting your product. For information about Nia Promotions visit www.niapromotions.com.

Dana Pittman, JD is the founder and president of Nia Promotions. She started Nia Promotions after running a family-owned website development company since 2001. Now, she and her team assist authors, publishing companies, small businesses and independent entrepreneurs with marketing strategy, implementation and maintenance.

Until next time – stay well and be blessed!!

Tune in today to hear a candid discussion about my writing life with Writers Interlude host, Ann Brown!

The discussion will center on my latest release, When a Man Loves a Woman, and how handsome Dr. Alcee Jules (AJ) Baptiste is determined to find answers to two questions: What do you do when you are in love with a woman who won’t give you the time of day? How do you convince her that she really is meant to spend the rest of her life with you when she avoids you at all costs? A. J. knows that he wants to spend the rest of his life with Victoria (Vic) Bennett. But Vic wants nothing to do with love, and even less to do with him. So what is A. J. to do? He will do what a man has to do – resort to a bit of scheming to win her over! And when he does, Victoria Bennett will confess that when a man loves a woman, it really is . . . a love for all times!

Feel free to leave your thoughts via the Comment Line at (214) 615-6505 ext 9377. Thank you for listening to Writers Interlude!

The link to hear the podcast is: – The Grits.com Radio

Until next time – stay well and be blessed!