When
did you know you wanted to write?
I only discovered
I wanted to write because a friend convinced me-by convinced, I
mean harassed me into a deathlike state-I should write because I
have a good sense of story, quite the imagination, and a serious
love affair with words. I laughed (English Comp and I had hated
one another during every phase of school) and she yapped, and
yapped, and yapped until, fed up, I fictionalized a personal
airplane mishap. To my chagrin and her most vocal gloating, I
discovered I loved writing.
How do you get in the mood to write? What does your writing corner look like?
I don't really have a mood; I just have to write first thing
in the morning while my brain is still functioning. By evening,
it has had it for the day and has shut down all operations.
The loft in my townhouse is great for writing. There's a window
next to my computer that looks out on a stand of trees and the
refreshing water of the community pool. With jazz wafting up
from downstairs, I have the perfect environment.
Tell us about your
debut novel? What inspired you to write this story?
The concept came from an article I read in Essence a few years
back. It stated that more black women were dating men outside
our race, and they wanted to read stories about themselves. I
took that idea and instead of writing a straight-up story about
a black woman and a white man, I used a paranormal slant and
created beings with a visual component that make them
different-their blue or purple auras- much like our skin color.
Since I've always loved the supernatural and have always been an
avid reader of those books, it seemed the natural thing to do.
In addition, it gave me the opportunity to create some suspense
since these beings want to keep themselves hidden from humans.
They might not be able to though, because someone is revealing
their very secret. Now, before the readers think I've gone too
far out there, just let me say that these beings, called
Auralites, look and act remarkably like humans; they just have a
few powers that we don't and probably wish we did. I know I do.
You're
in the paranormal romance genre now . . . do you ever expect to
deviate? If so, to where?
I
don't think I'll ever deviate. This genre has always captivated
me, and now, I find I love writing them as much as reading
them. If I ever veer off in a different direction, I'd probably
write mysteries because those books are favorites, too.
Whose work do you love to read? What is your favorite book?
I love L.A.
Banks, Tananarive Due, Steven Barnes, Anne Rice, Terry McMillan,
Paula Woods, Jervey Tervalon, Bernice McFadden, Tom Clancy,
Robin Cook, etc. There are so many authors whose work I love, I
can't possibly list them all, but those are some of my
favorites. And the same goes for books; I have so many
favorites, I can't choose just one.
Where do you
see yourself in five years?
In five years,
I hope to be a fixture in the writing industry with several
well-written and entertaining books behind me. I'd love for
readers to be saying, "I can't wait for the next Kathy J Marsh
book!"
Tell
your fans about your next novel, Suddenly Younger?
Suddenly Younger is about a middle-aged woman who finds that she's suddenly getting
younger. As she tries to figure out what's happening with her,
and why, I explore feminine ageism. Once she gets involved with
a much younger man, who just happens to be her doctor, I explore
secrets, and the dynamic between an older woman and a younger
man. The fact that she's chronologically older, but physically
younger, adds a new twist.
What advise can you give aspiring authors?
Write, write
and write some more. Then, edit, edit and edit again. Once
you're through editing, hire a professional editor. Their input
is invaluable.
Tell us something interesting about yourself that you wouldn't normally tell others (we call this the Sistah Secret at our site meetings)
I act out my
scenes as I write. Yes, yes, yes, I'm about as weird as I can
be.
