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EDWARDO JACKSON INTERVIEW
Interview with Edwardo Jackson
(Selected questions from blagazine.com - 2/4/06)
Why did you write your current book? Tell us about this book. How long did it take to write?
I DO? is the third book in the Nick-Jasmine EVER AFTER series. At the end of the second book, NEVA HAFTA, there's a cliffhanger where Nick, at his wedding, is forced to choose between his past (almost fiancee Jasmine) and his present (current fiancee Tabitha).
I DO? took a little over three months to write. I am a fast writer but this book is also a little shorter than my other work.
Where did the title come from?
Good question. I'm terrible with titles but, for some reason, I've always had this one in my head. Obviously, it's a play on those two little words that mean forever, but the question mark is also appropriate for the questioning of one's commitment. Even though Jasmine's entire intent is to throw doubt into the potential union of Nick and Tabitha, she also begins to question her own faith in her mission, this love she thinks he still has for her, and how far she should go to get it back.
Are you working on a follow up or something completely different?
I've got a couple of books in the can - a prequel to the EVER AFTER series called IN TALL COTTON. It follows Nick and Malloy separately as freshmen at Morehouse College - two wildly divergent boys from opposite parts of the country - and how they met and became best friends.
The other one is KIN. It's about two men, a 36 year old lawyer who claims he has "transcended blackness" and a 24 year old, pro-black, struggling basketball player who find out they are brothers when their birth mother dies. They're forced to live together for a month in order to track down their birth father and inherit a million dollars each, deconstructing their own ideas and preconceived notions on race, class, family, and life.
What challenges or obstacles do you encounter while writing? How did you overcome these challenges?
My biggest challenge in writing is myself. I'm impatient and sometimes wish I could write the entire story in one fell swoop. And time. I never have enough time for ANYTHING. Otherwise, I find the process of writing to be pretty natural for me.
Who were your literary inspirations when you were growing up? What did you read? What do you read now?
Tom Clancy for detail, John Grisham for plotting, Terry McMillan for emotion, when I was growing up. In college, I did a term paper on James Baldwin, and he totally hijacked my style. I don't imitate Baldwin's style, but his layered, complex sentences definitely have affected, improved my writing.
How difficult was it for you to get your first book published?
Harder than some, easier than others. I was originally self-published through an Internet print-on-demand company. Not naming any names, but they were a nightmare to work with at the time. But within ten months of publication, I signed a two book deal with traditional publisher Random House.
What was the last book you read?
I am SO glad you asked! I just finished Lolita Files' SEX.LIES.MURDER.FAME. It is fan-bleepin'-tastic!
Can you offer any advice to hopeful writers out there who are currently working on their first novel?
First of all finish. Most people have a book in them, but many don't have the wherewithal to finish. Secondly, once you finish, if you're interested in having a writing career, do whatever you can to PROMOTE it, whether you self-publish or solicit agents and/or editors. Can't sell a secret. And lastly, but most important, respect the craft. I could go all soapboxy and decry the state of literature, particularly black literature, but it'd be cacophonous by this point. While I say most people have a book in them, not everyone is a true writer. Doesn't mean they can't be, it just means they need to practice, practice, practice (yeah, I'm talkin' 'bout PRACTICE, A.I.), read other writers, and have brutally honest, constructively critical friends or peers who will help them advance their writing. Just because you've kept a journal all your life, or you dated a writer, or you were in jail with a lot of time on your hands doesn't make you a writer. True writers are artists, and true artists, hell, true human beings, are always trying to improve themselves. Same should go for your craft.
How can readers get in contact with you?
[email protected]. Also check out my website: www.edwardojackson.com - SOON to undergo a redesign, so keep your snickers to a minimum. Plus, my main character Jasmine in I DO? has a limited time only blog: www.jasmineselene.blogspot.com. Check her out - she's got mad opinions!
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