Thanks for stopping by to
talk a little about your writing! Let's jump right in.
When
did you begin writing and why? I’ve been writing all my life really. I
completed my first short story when I was twelve inspired by a dream I had.
Do you have a favorite
genre? Is it the same genre you prefer to write?
I really like reading historicals and magical
fantasy type books. I don’t write them because I don’t want to ever confuse one
of my ideas with something I read and enjoyed.
Do certain themes and
ideas tend to capture your writer’s imagination and fascinate you?
Not really. My mind tends to be all over the
place. I like a variety of things.
Do you have a favorite
author who introduced you to the genre?
I love Piers Anthony’s Xanth series. It ignited
my love for fantasy and magical books. I continue to read that series. The
first historical I read was by Bertice Small about her amazing character Skye
O’Malley. It was the third in the series I think. It was good I searched for
the first two, read the third again and then tracked down the rest. I’ve been a
fan ever since.
What advantages or
challenges does a writer in your genre face in today’s fiction market?
I think a major challenge is there are so many
authors out there doing what I do. It’s hard coming up with different ways to
make myself stand out. An advantage I think is you get to stretch your
imagination and test boundaries to be able to stand out.
Tell me a little about the
characters in Tri-Romance.
Opal and Pearl Jefferson are twin sisters. With
their friend, Debra Flores, they own a beauty shop called Double Your Beauty. They
have been single but openly on the dating scene for a while. Together they came
up with their ‘no strings attached’ rule and made a pact to live by that
standard and remain single. Unbeknownst to Opal and Debbie, Pearl had been
dating the same man for many months. That relationship thrusts them into one of
their own even. Even as they fight against it, all three women conquer personal
demons, old habits and experience new things to find love and keep love in
their lives.
Where’s the story set? How
much influence did the setting have on the atmosphere/characters/development of
the story?
This story takes place in Indianapolis Indiana
and partially in New York City. Both of the city settings have a big influence
on what’s happening around the characters, but growing up in Indiana give the
characters a different mindset and makes their time in New York relevant to the
story.
If you had to write your
memoir in five words, what would you write?
This was a hard question. If I had to use just
five words they would be eclectic, motivated, crafty, ‘crazy’ and open minded.
Those seem to sum up how I approach life’s ups and downs, problems and day to
day things.
How often does your muse
distract you from day to day minutiae?
Man! All the time! I carry a pad with me at all
times because conversations between characters jump up in my head so I write
them down just so I can move with what I was supposed to be doing. Or situation
would spark a story idea for me so I’d jot it down real quick before something
else distracts me and I forget it. I even write down distinctive facial
features or personality quirks that catch my eye to make my characters more
real.
What do readers have to
look forward to in the future from you?
I’ve got a few things coming later this year and next. Ivy’s
Hot Shot (African American, suspenseful, contemporary, lightly erotic romance,
10/2016), The Fun Hose (African American, erotic romance, 1/2017) and The Seven
Year Switch (BDSM, Female Dom, interracial romance, 8/2016) will be out in
ebook and print later this year. I’m working on a vampire romance series called
The Dioni Clan (erotic, interracial romance). I’m hoping to have it ready for
release at the start of 2017.
Tri-Romance
Tri-Romance is a contemporary,
interracial, multi-cultural, sensual, lightly erotic, woman’s lit romance
novel.
Twin sisters, Opal and Pearl
Jefferson, and their best friend Debra Flores were living blissfully by their
‘no strings attached’ rule, enjoying the many comforts of a good life. All was
well in their world until Frank, Jake, Doug and Rakim
entered into it. When one of the girls abandons their well-practiced rule and
falls in love, does her decision throw a monkey wrench into the lives of
everyone else around her? Or does it open up the possibility for love to
capture them all?
Excerpt: PG13
“What
if he just wants to be with me to see if, you know, the grass is greener?”
Her
sister laughed. “It doesn’t take eleven months to check out the grass, honey.
If that was his intention, he’d have checked out your grass and left a long
time ago.”
“Stop
making up reasons to sabotage the relationship,” Debbie told her. “You already
have you guys married, divorced and you contemplating celibacy. You’re on an
emotional roller coaster and nothing has even happened yet. You’ve made it
these past eleven months. He’s obviously happy and so are you.”
“Yeah,
but we haven’t been out. Mostly we’ve only kept to ourselves.”
“Oooh.
So you think that he stayed in house the whole time you guys have been
together?” her sister surmised. “Only walking out his door to go to work, huh?”
Opal
looked at Debbie and they both laughed.
Pearl
wrapped her arms around her chest. “I’m not stupid, Opal. I know better than
that.”
“Pearl,
if that man wanted another woman I’m sure he’s had plenty of opportunities to
have one. Especially with all the good qualities you just named off. Women
probably throw themselves at him all the time because of that, but he chooses
to come back to you,” Debbie reminded her.
“At
least give the man a chance to fuck
up before you condemn him,” Opal suggested.
Pearl
relaxed letting her arms fall to the table. “Yeah, I guess you guys are right.”
“Now,
tell us why you left last night? Did his pretty face say something stupid?”
Opal said giving her a nudge.
“No,
his stupid roommate not only walked in on us, but he stood there watching us
for who knows how long. I was so embarrassed I just ran up out of there. I
didn’t want his roommate to find out about me like that.”
Debbie
mouth dropped open. “He watched…without
being invited? Mmm, hmm, he was definitely in violation for that one.”
Opal
scoffed. “That’s messed up. Before you left you should have introduced the back
of his head to one of the pots in the kitchen.”
Pearl
chuckled. “Yeah, well, I was focused on getting out of there.”
“And
what did your white boy say?”
“He
was pretty pissed at Joe, that’s his roommate’s name, and he followed me to the
door trying to get me to stay. He wants me to come over tonight, so he can make
it up to me,” she said, fiddling with her fingers.
“And
you’re going, right?”
Pearl
shrugged.
“I
don’t know, Pearl, if what you say is true, he doesn’t sound half bad to me.”
Debbie looked at Opal.
“Don’t
look at me. I’m reserving judgment until after I meet him face to face.”
Pearl
sighed. “I don’t know. I’m still afraid.”
“You’re
just gonna have to suck it up. That’s the risk you take when you fall in love.
If it doesn’t work you chalk it up as another lesson learned in the never
ending game of life.”
“That’s
easy for you to say when you’re on the outside looking in.”
“All
right, if you feel that way make him stay. Daddy used to tell us we were Jeffersons and if we wanted something we
had to work to make it a reality, Pearl.”
Pearl
tapped her chin as she thought then grinned. “Hmm, so I should let him make it
up to me?”
Debbie
nodded. “Absolutely. Show that slimy roommate of his you can still hold your
head up high.”
Opal
slapped the table. “So it’s settled. First go show that roommate what you’re
made of and then get your Jake ready to meet us. It’s way overdue. No more
stalling.”
Pearl
nodded. “I know. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you guys sooner.” She leaned across
the table and grabbed their hands.
“No
more secrets, all right?” Debbie said.
“Okay.”
Pearl looked at her sister.
“No
more lies…ever.”
“No
more secrets, no more lies,” Pearl promised. She sent a look to the clock then
stood. “I have to go. I’ll talk to Jake tonight, okay? Love you guys, see you
later.”
“Bye.
Come on, Chica. We should get going, too.”
Buy link
Meet the Author and their Links
Dana
Littlejohn was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY, but has called Indianapolis, IN her home for over 20 years. She
fell in love with writing early in life and even had an ongoing story in weekly
installments in junior high school. Dana put her love for writing on hold to enter
the adult world of working and to start a family, but in 2003, with
encouragement from her husband, she picked up her pen again.
To date she
has written 3 full length novels, 13 novellas, 42 short stories and has had her
stories in 3 anthologies all under her own name and a pseudo for another genre.
Her do-do list grows daily and new ideas flow freely. Keep an eye out for what
she has coming next.
Links:
