March Interview with Author Dyanne Davis

GB: Hi, Dyanne! Thanks so much for visiting my blog and doing an interview. I always start with the time management question, especially when I’m interviewing an author like your, one who has been so incredibly prolific! How do you find the time to write all these wonderful novels and do everything else you do?

DD: Hi Gwen, you do know you’re making me laugh and possibly even blush with such an introduction. Incredibly prolific, wonderful novels. You’re so good for the ego. Thank you. LOL. Okay, I’ll stop and answer your question. When Bill and I made an agreement ten years ago that I would quit my job with a steady paycheck to pursue a dream I decided to do two things: Give up the UPS man ( I was addicted to QVC) and to treat writing like a job. Since I take my writing seriously I don’t make time for writing, I write. My internal clock has been out of whack since I started writing and thinking of it as a job and not a hobby. I wake anywhere from 1-3 a.m. If it’s 1 a.m. I try to go back to sleep giving it ten minutes or so. If that doesn’t work I get up and start working. I check emails to see if there’s anything urgent while scolding myself. When I’m in the middle of edits or doing proofs then reading emails comes after several hours of work. It’s my reward. I’m usually on the computer on and off until about 5 p.m. I say on and off because I have a husband whom I love VERY much and I have no plans to have him feel neglected. We’re partners. We do everything together, as he calls it, we do our retired thing, going to the stores, library, post office and wherever, several times each week. LOL. Now maybe you can see why I haven’t tried to retrain my body to sleep longer. The bulk of my writing is done in the wee hours of the morning. And wouldn’t it have been nice if I’d just said that and not took so long to answer the question?

GB: It wouldn’t have been nearly as fascinating if you hadn’t taken the long way around my dear. And your hubby sounds like a keeper for sure! (smile) Okay, what drew you to the romance genre? Were you a reader of romance novels before you started to write them?

DD: I wanted to be with other writers. A patient of mine told me of a writers’ group. We initially decided to become writing partners and went to a local Romance Writers of America meeting. After a couple of months I knew I wasn’t part of a writing team. The voices in my head could only be heard by me—and now I believe by Sidney. No, I was not a romance reader. I was an avid reader but romance wasn’t my cup of tea. Susan Elizabeth Philips was and still is a member of my chapter but at the time I had no idea who she was or any of the other published authors in the chapter.

GB: What has your journey to publication been like? How did you get in print and remain in print? Are there any secrets to your success that you are willing to share?

DD: My journey has been like most others; years of rejections, writing more, sending out, more rejections, wanting to give up. Bill and I had a deal. I was to take two years off from work to write. If nothing was happening, I was going back to work. Well the two years came to an end and no book contract. I was willing to stand by our agreement. I told Bill I would go back to work. He kissed me and told me no to continue. I think it took about another year. Now you now one of the small reasons why I make sure that man is not neglected. He is so totally my ROCK . As for how I got into print it was when I was on the verge of calling it quits. I had received a contract from Genesis Press for another book, titled Forever and A Day (no not the book that came out with Parker but I used the title) Anyway, from editor notes, I thought they wanted me to write porn. I refused. We both agreed to tear up the contract. I vowed to never send them anything again, ever. Out of the blue, Niani emailed me and after a few emails asked if I was working on anything else. I told her about my vow, yada yada, she told me that she was now in charge and things were being run differently. She again asked what I had and I told her. She asked me to send it.

When the envelope came back that I knew contained my mss I knew it also contained a rejection. Why? Everyone in the chapter said that if they sent back the mss it was rejected and that you got a business size envelope when they wanted the work. Not true in my case. So I didn’t open it for a few days and was shocked when I opened it and they wanted the full.

A couple of weeks after I sent the full I got a call from GP asking if I had anything else. I took that to mean that they had not liked The Color of Trouble but wanted something else. Several calls came from them within a matter of an hour. Niani called and explained that everyone in the office loved The Color of Trouble and she wanted to know if I had anything else because she wanted to give me a two book contract.



Mind you, I need proof and remember I had a notebook filled with rejection letters. I asked her to email me so I could print it out. I wanted all the wonderful things she said in her phone call. She emailed and the message wasn’t as glowing as the phone call so I called her up and said, Sorry, but I want all the glowing praise I want to print it up. She emailed me again and I printed it out and framed it. So right here, right now, I want to thank Niani for putting up with me and understanding. I want to thank Genesis Press for giving me a chance when no one else would. That’s how I got into print. How I stayed in print was because of God’s grace and the acquisition editor, Angelique Justin, and my editor liking my voice. Sidney Rickman has always relayed to others that she thought I was talented. She doesn’t know that I know this but I was told and anytime that I’ve had doubts I’ve used it as my mantra: Sidney thinks I’m talented. The mantra worked because Sidney has told me that IN WRITING many times. I’ve kept everyone of her notes.

As for secrets, God, I wish there were some. I think it’s all a matter of timing and finding that one person with the power to buy your book that loves your voice. If I did have any I would definitely share them. I’m of a mind that this business is large enough to encompass all writers and that we all lift ourselves up when helping others to achieve their goals.

GB: The first romance novel of yours I read was The Wedding Gown . And I remember thinking that you seemed to be a bold and risk-taking romance writer that I would have to read more of for sure. Would you classify yourself as a bold, risk-taking author? What do you think is your boldest book?



DD: Hmm. A friend of mine always tells me that I liked pushing the envelope. And I know some have said that I was breaking all of the romance rules. That wasn’t necessarily intentional. Remember my upbringing and the fact that I was not a romance reader. I have always hated anyone telling me what to do so being put into this little box that you’re put in as a romance writer, well, it was just in my nature to fight against it. I’ll tell you, Gwen, if I had been allowed to keep some of my books the way that I wanted them they would have been bold. The Wedding Gown would have been an entirely different book if I had been allowed to keep it in it’s original form. The secondary characters took over the book and it became a brother sister relationship book. It was where the characters took me. But Sidney brought me back on course and said, “Dyanne, this is not a book about a brother and sister this is a romance. If Mia wants a book then you will have to write Mia a book. Give all of Mia’s scenes to Ashleigh.

LOL. Okay, maybe those weren’t the exact words but almost. For real. Two things happened: I have never liked Ashleigh because she stole a book that was supposed to be hers in the first place and my editor Sidney Rickman went to Niani and told her that she thought I should do a third book with Mia. Misty Blue . Thanks Sidney.



As to what books I think are my boldest: If I had been allowed to go with my instincts and my first fifteen pages and make Forever and A Day an interracial that would have been it. Can you imagine what that would have stirred up with what was happening in New Orleans at the time? Okay, maybe I do like stirring things up. I think Another Man’s Baby would be the boldest book. A marine saying that America is not ALL right in the war in Iraq, that the Iraqi people are suffering also, bringing to light the horrors that are done there, the things that are covered up. And then him coming home and being ordered to bring fresh bodies for this war he no longer believes in. Oh yeah, I’d have to say Another Man’s Baby is it. I also had to make sure that it was not the troops that Eric was protesting against but the war itself.



GB: Like I said, bold and risk-taking! You are the writing renaissance woman. Since the publication of your first novel, The Color of Trouble , an interracial romance, you have written African-American romances, more interracial romances, mainstream fiction and even a hot new vampire series. Can you tell us a little about some of your books? Are any common themes running through the novels? I already know which of your books is my favorite… Do you have a favorite?

DD: Gwen, I’m trying to figure out your blog space and know that I’ve taken up wayyy too much space answering the other question but there was really no way to give short answers. I promise to give short answers to this one (well shorter) Anyway since I have long admired you and thought of you as a renaissance woman your words are a real compliment to me. Thank you.

The Color of Trouble —Tons of personal reasons for writing it but I’ll boil it down to this. I wanted to show that prejudice exists in people of color.
The Wedding Gown —A romance ( I’m still traumatized over the change.) LOL.

Misty Blue —I loved my original title, Banishing The Ghosts. Sidney said it was the perfect title but not a romance title. This story was about Mia and Damien who stole The Wedding Gown and my heart. It’s the story of a young woman emotionally abused by her narcissist mother and her trying to cope with it. It’s also shows how one woman’s DOG can be another woman’s Prince charming.

GB: It sure did because Damien was sho-nuff a dog in The Wedding Gown . Ooops… I had to cut in and say that… continue…

DD: Let’s Get it on —Totally loved this story. I started to make Hamid be from Iran. I decided since I didn’t have another country to move to I’d tone it down. Moslems here were being persecuted in some places after 911. I wanted people to look at that and know it was wrong.

Forever and A Day —Story about a couple finding love in the midst of Hurricane Katrina. It showed the classism that people of color have instituted amongst themselves, the whole good hair bad hair, yellow is better complex that black people indulge in.

Two Sides to Every Story —There was and still is so much police brutality going on around the country that I decided to have a story about this. It was also the first story where I didn’t have the couple married or involved in a long-term relationship. Some one actually said I had them get together too quickly. I had to laugh. It had taken months of them irritating each other. Besides I’m usually told that I take too long to get to the love scenes and that I wasn’t writing true romance because the couples were either married, engaged or in a long term relationship. It just goes to show no matter what you do, not everyone will like it.

In The Beginning —Okay, what can I say but thank you to Mr. Adam Omega for allowing F.D. Davis to chronicle his life. He’s a vampire with bite. LOL.



GB: He sure is… Mmm mmm mmm…. Love him though… continue…

DD: Many Shades of Gray —This book tells you from the first page that the woman considers herself a “B.” Hey silly me, I thought that would be enough to let the readers know it wasn’t going to be a typical romance. There are several underlying themes in that book that may have been missed by some. There is the very real issue of trying to save the independently owned African American bookstores from extinction. That’s a very real problem. Then there is the matter of rights. Does a man have the right of a father over an unborn fetus? Is the woman the only one who can make that decision because it’s her body? Generally I don’t say too much too contradict or defend my work but this book was well written and showed a lot of growth in my writing. And yes, I touched on abortion. I guess you’re right. I do keep pushing the envelope don’t I?



GB: Mmm hmm, you do. But keep on pushing!

DD: I just don’t do boy meets girl, boy falls in love with girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl back. I like writing stories about real people who are flawed and make dumb mistakes. I don’t even like using the words hero and heroine. I guess I’m not really into the HEA. I do try for that but what I really want is for someone to read one of my books and say something like, Ohhh so and so act just like that, she should read this and know how stupid she’s behaving. Did I just call my books stupid? No. I write about people who do stupid things and won’t let me fix their problems. When someone says, that character was whatever, I wonder if they think I don’t know that. That was the point. But then again I guess I’m supposed to be writing romance. So I suppose readers have a right to expect traditional romance. But still I wonder if they’ve read my books aren’t they aware that I don’t write traditional romance. I thought about one of your earlier questions. Risk taking, I guess the answers I’m giving you instead of being politically correct is a definite risk but I’m being honest.

Another Man’s Baby —I think I talked about this one earlier.



The Critic —Okay, this book was just plain fun and probably has more of me than any other book I’ve ever written. It’s about a romance writer and a romance critic. It definitely has all of my ideas on the tight little confining box of the world of romance. I have a book trailer on my site that is so cute. Brenda Willis a member of my yahoo group made if for me. If your readers get a chance please go and take a look. And the cover is fantastic. http://www.dyannedavis.com/ click on books give it a few seconds then click on coming soon give it a few second now watch the video and enjoy. You need to have your sound on so you can hear the typewriter clicking away in the background.

GB: That book sounds like loads of fun! I can’t wait to read it!

DD: In Blood We Trust —this is the second installment of the Vampire Series. This is also the first time I’ve ever sent a book to a reader/writer to ask for a preread. This came about after I had done the edits from Sidney. Remember your asking me about that headspace? Well I don’t remember what I was writing before or after I wrote, In Blood We Trust. It must have been romance because it was beginning to read like one. I had taken Adam Omega to the dentist to have his fangs filed. So Gwyneth, Viola and Brenda I would like to thank the three of you for telling me to give Adam back his fangs. Your comments and suggestions were worth more than gold and enabled me to allow Adam to return to his true nature. Poor Sidney is going to pull her hair out when she gets back my revised version. I’ll have to do another edit when it comes back from her in about a month but I’m now in the right head thanks to my friends and colleagues.

GB: You’re so welcome! I’m just geeked I got to read it before everyone else. I feel so special… So about those common themes…

DD: The common theme that runs through my books is pointing out prejudices that exist and shining a soft light on them saying we all have it but we can conquer it. Some people totally miss what I’m trying to say. I’ve even had someone say I’m prejudiced. God!! ( Breathe Dyanne ). The other thing that is common in my books is faith in God. After about the third book I began to notice that. No one pointed it out to me and still haven’t. At first I had thought to eliminate it then I realized that my belief in God is a part of me. It’s who I am so naturally it’s going to come out in my writing. Even when writing about vampires.

GB: Has your writing changed over the years? What kinds of changes have you seen in your work?

DD: Well, I’m tackling more prominent social issues. Sidney has made a suggestion on a topic she thinks I would do a good job of. I’m not ready for it yet. It would be emotionally taxing. I just thought about this. Sidney would more than likely tell you that I take risks because she’s always telling me that she’s amazed at the things I choose to write about. I’m extremely and happy and proud to have Sidney in my corner I’ve learned a lot from her through the years. When she praises my work that’s the yardstick I measure by. Believe me when she thinks as she puts it, that I got on my horse and rode off in all directions she tells me, or if something is just plain not good she’ll say you can do better than that redo it. That’s why I love, trust and respect her and her editing and why I am always defending the Genesis press editors. One I know for a fact is top notch and professional and that’s Sidney Rickman. And yes this is a plug for Sidney. Read her interview on my site.

GB: I only worked with Sidney once. She was my editor for Sweet Sensation . She rocked! So, how has your life changed since becoming published? Would you change anything if you had it to do all over again? What changes, if any, do you anticipate in the future?

DD: Since becoming published I have found myself in the company of so many authors that it literally takes my breathe away to be considered a part of them. I think I’m much busier now than before. If I had it to do over again I would have probably armed myself with the right tools and learned the craft years before while it didn’t hurt my behind to sit for such extended periods of time. The change I anticipate for the future will be buying a laptop so some of my wok can be done from the comfort of my bed. LOL

GB: You have published mainstream women’s fiction, paranormal fiction and romance novels. Do you find that you have to be in a different mental space or frame of mind to move from genre to genre? And I know this question is one you probably can’t answer, but… Which is your favorite? If you could write only one, what would it be?

DD: Good question Gwen. You so have to be in a different headspace. I have no problems telling you which genre is my favorite. Hands down it would be paranormal. Your imagination can soar there like no other place. You create your world and you control it. If I could only write in one genre that would be it. Vampires, ghosts, witches, psychics. There are all whispering their stories to me. I’m trying to ask them to please be patient and Lord willing I will get to them.

GB: Well, I love reading paranormals and I wish we had more with multicultural casts. So, hurry up and get to writing them. What’s next on the horizon for you? Tell us a little bit about your upcoming projects and give us a sneak peek at some of the things you have in the works.

DD: The only project I haven’t mentioned is an anthology Lotus Blossom . Since I tend to write rather long this will be a good thing for me. I told Sidney a couple of books ago that I was going to start writing shorter books. She said I don’t have a short book in me. (LOL) So when I was asked to be in the Lotus Blossom anthology I jumped at the chance.

GB: What are you reading right now?

DD: Right now I’m doing required reading, Books for, RWA, The Rita. Now you have to know how hard this is at this particular time. I am the person receiving the books for Romance Slam Jam. All of these wonderful titles by so many talented writers and I don’t have time to read them before sending them out. (Dang!!) But I do read the dedications. For some weird reasons I enjoy the book more when I read the dedications. Yes, I know I’m strange.

GB: I hear you about judging! It’s that time of the year. Speaking of Romance Slam Jam… You are also keeping busy as one of the dynamic host authors for this year's Romance Slam Jam. How has it been working with the other authors and the host book club to plan the event? And can you give us a little sneak peak about what we can expect when we meet up this year in the Chi?

DD: I'm glad to have the opportunity to talk a little bit about Romance Slam Jam. The RSJ has now become an organization and will very soon be a non-profit organization. There is one person who has spearheaded this entire operation and I do not know where she has found the time to do all of it. Maybe youth plays a part in it. All I know is that Deatri King-Bey is a dynamo.

Initially when our 08 committee got started we had a couple of little brush fires. (okay, a couple of cat fights ) Nothing major then we all said, "Okay, lets get about the business and move on. That was way over a year ago. Since then we've all been in this to make this the best RSJ that we can possibly make it. Everyone has their job and there's cross over when ever any one needs help. That includes the book club not just the authors. WE are all contributing and we all want this to be a success. It also helps that we have a central person to call on and that central person is Deatri.



As for as sneak peek: Barbara Keaton is in charge of entertainment and all I can said is Lord, Lord, Lord. Bill probably won't let me enjoy it all but if I can put him to sleep I'll be there. Do you remember our D.J. from Miami? I'm actually going to miss him. We're going to have dancing and partying galore.

GB: Girl, that DJ from Miami was something else wasn’t he? LOL. I know my girl Barb is going to hook up the entertainment. What else do you all have planned?

DD: Then there are the workshops. Every possible thing you would want will be there. There’s more than enough to satisfy both the readers, writers and everyone else in between. We're going to have a spotlight on Red Sage where Theresa Stevens will tell exactly what they're looking for. It's a wide open market and we're lucky to have her. Michelle from Three Seas Literary Agency will also be doing a spotlight. Spotlight are terrific especially for the shy you get to hear what's going on without being afraid of losing the power of speech.

We also will be having both editor and agents taking pitches so I hope everyone comes with their "A " games.

Last but not least we have a de-stressing workshop for everyone. Then there's the books and goodies that will be in each goodie bag. Trust me you'll be happy. I'm going to have a hard time relinquishing them but since the guilt would eat me alive I guess I'll have to.

I almost forgot. There will be reader sessions everyday will authors that way reader can get to talk to all of the authors. And then we have the special session where some of the authors will talk with ten special readers. These authors were chosen on the basis of who signed on first.

Add that to all of us being there and just gabbing come on, why do you think it's themed Come on Home . That's what it will be, a big old homecoming. I can't wait.

GB: Me either! I love Slam Jam and I know you all are going to set it out for us romance loving sistahs! Okay, so do you have any advice for aspiring writers about the publishing business?

DD: I know this is what aspiring writers hear all the time. I heard it but it still remains true. Persevere, if you give up you will never know what was waiting for you around the corner. Don’t stop writing after you complete your first mss. Send it off and start on the second, then the third and so on. Join with other writers even if it’s just on-line. Having others who know what you’re going through cheer you on is so important. And last but not least, PLEASE develop a thick skin. If you think rejections hurt wait until you get bad reviews. It happens to everyone. I’ll bet the Bible has a ton of bad reviews. Here is one thing to remember through the bad reviews: An editor liked your work enough to pay you money for it. Make that your mantra when the time calls for it. Just don’t ever give up.

GB: How can readers best contact you?

DD: Readers can contact me via email davisdyanne@aol.com Gwen, once again I would like to thank you for interviewing me and for the time you took with Mr. Omega. He’s very impressed by your talent. I’m sure he must have asked you to give me equal time. He can be nice when he chooses but there’s always a price to pay. Who knows what he will ask of me.

GB: Dyanne this was too much fun! Thanks for stopping by and I’ll see you in the Chi!