LaDarrion Williams
Hailing from the small town of Helena, Alabama, LaDarrion Williams is a self-taught playwright, filmmaker, author, and screenwriter whose goal is to cultivate a new era of Black fantasy, providing space and agency for Black characters and stories in a new, fresh, and fantastical way. As a playwright, his first play Katrina won first place at the Alabama State Thespian Conference. Black Creek Risin’ was a part of the Great Plains Theatre Conference in Omaha, Nebraska. His play, Coco Queens, was invited to participate in the 2019 Sundance Institute’s Playwriting Intensive and will be receiving its World Premiere at Playhouse on the Square in July 2024. His plays also received semi-finalist recognition from the Eugene O’Neill National Playwrit
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Tommy Krappweis
Thomas "Tommy" Krappweis is a German author, comedian, director, producer, and musician.
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Natasha Bowen
Natasha Bowen is a writer, a teacher, and a mother of three children. She is of Nigerian and Welsh descent and lives in Cambridge, England, where she grew up. Natasha studied English and creative writing at Bath Spa University before moving to East London, where she taught for nearly ten years. Her debut book was inspired by her passion for mermaids and African history. She is obsessed with Japanese and German stationery and spends stupid amounts on notebooks, which she then features on her secret Instagram. When she’s not writing, she’s reading, watched over carefully by Milk and Honey, her cat and dog.
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Asha Ashanti Bromfield
ASHA ASHANTI BROMFIELD is an actress, singer, producer and writer of Afro-Jamaican descent. She is known for starring in CW’s Riverdale, and Netflix’s Locke and Key. Her name means Life, and she is a lover of it. She currently lives between LA and Toronto, where she enjoys nature, family, and walking her dog Luka.
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Bethany C. Morrow
Bethany C Morrow is a national bestselling author.
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Her young adult novels include A Song Below Water, A Chorus Rises, and the Little Women remix, So Many Beginnings, and she is editor/contributor to the young adult anthology Take The Mic, which won the 2020 ILA Social Justice in Literature award.
Her adult novels include Mem, and the social horror, Cherish Farrah. Her upcoming release, The Body, is a churchianity horror.
Honored as SLJ Gold Selections, a Locus, Fiyah, and Audie finalist for Best YA Novel, and an Indies Introduce and Indie next pick, her work has been featured in The LA Times, Forbes, Bustle, Buzzfeed, and more. She is included on USA TODAY's list of 100 Black novelists and fiction writers you should read. -
Jasminne Mendez
JASMINNE MÉNDEZ is a Macondo and Canto Mundo Fellow, as well as a Voices of Our Nations Arts (VONA) alumna. She is the author of a multi-genre memoir, Island of Dreams (2013), winner of an International Latino Book Award. She lives and works in Houston, Texas.
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Malcolm D. Lee
Malcolm D. Lee is an award-winning writer, director, and producer celebrated for a string of box office successes, including The Best Man, Girls Trip, Night School, and Space Jam: A New Legacy. With Girls Trip, Lee made history as the first filmmaker to helm a feature with an all–African American creative team—both in front of and behind the camera—that grossed over $100 million at the domestic box office.
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In 2022, he returned to his beloved franchise with The Best Man: The Final Chapters, the critically acclaimed Peacock limited series that became the first original on the platform to break into Nielsen’s Top 10. Most recently, Lee completed filming his 12th feature film an Untitled collaboration with Blumhouse Productions and Universal Pic -
Pearl Cleage
Pearl Cleage is an African-American playwright, essayist, novelist, poet and political activist. She is currently the Playwright in Residence at the Alliance Theatre and at the Just Us Theater Company. Cleage is a political activist. She tackles issues at the crux of racism and sexism, and is known for her feminist views, particularly regarding her identity as an African-American woman. Her works are highly anthologized and have been the subject of many scholarly analyses. Many of her works across several genres have earned both popular and critical acclaim. Her novel What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day (1997) was a 1998 Oprah's Book Club selection.
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Tiffany D. Jackson
Tiffany D. Jackson is the New York Times Bestselling author of YA novels including the Coretta Scott King — John Steptoe New Talent Award-winning Monday’s Not Coming, the NAACP Image Award-nominated Allegedly, Let Me Hear A Rhyme, and her 2020 title GROWN. She received her bachelor of arts in film from Howard University, her master of arts in media studies from the New School, and has over a decade in TV/Film experience. The Brooklyn native is a lover of naps, cookie dough, and beaches, currently residing in the borough she loves, most likely multitasking.
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Nia Davenport
Nia "N.E." Davenport is the Science Fiction/Fantasy author of The Blood Trials and its sequel (Harper Voyager). She attended the University of Southern California and studied Biological Sciences and Theatre Arts. She also has an M.A. in Secondary Education. She teaches English and Biology to amazing students. When she isn’t writing, she enjoys vacationing with her family, skiing, and being a huge foodie. She’s an advocate for diverse perspectives and protagonists in literature.
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Antonio Michael Downing
Writer and musician Antonio Michael Downing was raised in Trinidad, Toronto and Kitchener. He is the author of the acclaimed memoir Saga Boy, the novella Molasses, children’s book Stars In My Crown, and the novel Black Cherokee. He graduated from the University of Waterloo with a degree in English Literature and has been a recording artist for two decades including three albums as his alter ego John Orpheus. He is also the host of CBC Radio's book program and podcast The Next Chapter.
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Faith Knight
Faith writes Adult, MG and YA contemporary and historical fiction. Once in awhile she’ll put out a self-help book if she feels the need. She enjoys bible reading, watching 1940s movies, and cooking. She lives in North Carolina with her husband Lafonsa
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Jamia Wilson
Jamia is a feminist activist, writer, and speaker. She joined Random House as vice president and executive editor in 2021. As the former director of the Feminist Press at the City University of New York and the former VP of programs at the Women’s Media Center, Jamia has been a leading voice on women’s rights issues for over a decade. Her work has appeared in numerous outlets, including the New York Times, the Today Show, CNN, Elle, BBC, Rookie, Refinery 29, Glamour, Teen Vogue, and The Washington Post. She is the author of Young, Gifted, and Black, the introduction and oral history in Together We Rise: Behind the Scenes at the Protest Heard Around the World, Step Into Your Power: 23 Lessons on How to Live Your Best Life, Big Ideas for Youn
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Britney S. Lewis
Britney S. Lewis is the #1 New York Times, Indie, and USA Today Bestselling Author of Blood Moon. She is also the award-winning author of The Dark Place and The Undead Truth of Us. She has a B.A. in corporate communications with an emphasis in business and art.
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When Britney isn’t daydreaming about new stories, she is an urban hiker, exploring the city on foot, looking for iced coffee. She can also be found watching TV shows with her husband and her pup or practicing West Coast Swing. She lives in Kansas City. -
Channelle Desamours
Channelle Desamours is an author and a high school science teacher. When she’s not napping to recover from her five a.m. writing sessions, Channelle can be found building tiny homes on The Sims 4 or cheering for Atlanta United at soccer matches. NEEDY LITTLE THINGS is her debut novel.
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Valerie Plame Wilson
Valerie Elise Plame Wilson, known as Valerie Plame, Valerie E. Wilson, and Valerie Plame Wilson, is a former United States CIA Operations Officer and the wife of former Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson IV.
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Malcolm D. Lee
Malcolm D. Lee is an award-winning writer, director, and producer celebrated for a string of box office successes, including The Best Man, Girls Trip, Night School, and Space Jam: A New Legacy. With Girls Trip, Lee made history as the first filmmaker to helm a feature with an all–African American creative team—both in front of and behind the camera—that grossed over $100 million at the domestic box office.
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In 2022, he returned to his beloved franchise with The Best Man: The Final Chapters, the critically acclaimed Peacock limited series that became the first original on the platform to break into Nielsen’s Top 10. Most recently, Lee completed filming his 12th feature film an Untitled collaboration with Blumhouse Productions and Universal Pic -
Clarence A. Haynes
"...an accomplished urban fantasy that’s sure to win Haynes plenty of fans."—Publishers Weekly, on The Ghosts of Gwendolyn Montgomery
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A native New Yorker and Columbia University grad, Clarence A. Haynes is the author of the urban fantasy/glam horror novel The Ghosts of Gwendolyn Montgomery. He's also the cowriter of Omar Epps’s lauded YA sci-fi/fantasy title Nubia: The Awakening and its sequel The Reckoning. And he's the author of the nonfiction work The Legacy of Jim Crow, which breaks down the history of discriminatory laws in America for young readers.
Having a love affair with speculative fiction, Clarence has also worked as a developmental editor with different publishing houses. He lives in Brooklyn. -
Valerie Burns
Valerie also writes as V.M. Burns
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Valerie (V.M.) Burns was born in Northwestern Indiana and spent many years in
Southwestern Michigan on the Lake Michigan shoreline. She is a lover of dogs,
British historic cozies, and scones with clotted cream. After many years in the
Midwest she went in search of milder winters and currently lives in Northern Georgia with her poodles. Her debut novel, The Plot is Murder was nominated for a 2017 Agatha Award for Best First Novel. Her short story, "The Vermeer Conspiracy" was an Anthony and Edgar Award finalist in 2022. Valerie is a member of Mystery Writers of America, International Thriller Writers, Crime Writers Association, Crime Writers of Color, and Sisters in Crime. Readers can learn more by visiting he -
Ebony LaDelle
Ebony is the author of Love Radio—which was People magazine’s best book of the summer, a 2023 Audie Award Finalist, a 2023 Michigan Notable Book, Apple Books’ best book of 2022, an Amazon's Editor Pick and was featured on the Today Show. A Baldwin Fellow, she’s also the author of the forthcoming YA romance This Could Be Forever and editor for the anthology You’ve Got a Place Here, Too. Prior to being an author, Ebony was a brand marketing director in book publishing and worked at Penguin Random House and HarperCollins, among others. You can visit her online at www.ebonyladelle.com and follow her on social at @ebonyladelle.
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Regina Black
Regina Black is a former civil litigator, current law school administrator, and lifelong romance reader who has always been passionate about the depiction of Black women in popular culture. She currently resides in the southeastern United States with her husband and daughter.
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Britney S. Lewis
Britney S. Lewis is the #1 New York Times, Indie, and USA Today Bestselling Author of Blood Moon. She is also the award-winning author of The Dark Place and The Undead Truth of Us. She has a B.A. in corporate communications with an emphasis in business and art.
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When Britney isn’t daydreaming about new stories, she is an urban hiker, exploring the city on foot, looking for iced coffee. She can also be found watching TV shows with her husband and her pup or practicing West Coast Swing. She lives in Kansas City. -
Robbi Renee
Hey Loves! I grew up in St. Louis, Missouri (in the words of Nelly, “I’m from the Lou and I’m proud!) with incredible parents and two amazing older sisters. Born Stacey Renee, I was the baby of the bunch and always had a vivid imagination – was wise beyond my years (to grown for my own good) if you ask my mother!
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My love for talking too much (ha!), journaling, daydreaming, reading & watching various genres of movies, books I went to journalism school, determined to become Oprah! After finishing my degree, I did everything but becoming a journalist. I dishonored my childhood dreams of being in some form of entertainment but found a way to use this big mouth for good in the diversity, equity, and inclusion space.
I rekindled my love for reading -
Tracy Deonn
Tracy Deonn is a writer and 2nd gen fangirl. She grew up in North Carolina, where she devoured fantasy books and Southern food in equal measure. After earning two degrees from UNC-CH, Tracy worked in live theater, video games, and K-12 education. When she’s not writing, Tracy panels at SFF conventions, reads fanfic, arranges doggy playdates, and keeps an eye out for ginger-flavored everything.
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Liselle Sambury
Liselle Sambury is the Trinidadian-Canadian author of the Governor General’s Literary Awards Finalist, Blood Like Magic. Her work spans multiple genres, from fantasy to sci-fi, horror, and more. In her free time, she shares helpful tips for upcoming writers and details of her publishing journey through a YouTube channel dedicated to demystifying the sometimes complicated business of being an author.
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Bolu Babalola
BOLU BABALOLA
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is a British-Nigerian woman with a misleading bachelor's degree in law and a masters degree in American Politics & History from UCL. She feels it is important to state that her thesis was on Beyoncé's "Lemonade" and she was awarded a distinction for it. So essentially she has a masters degree in Beyoncé. A writer of books, scripts, culture pieces and retorts, a lover of love and self-coined "romcomoisseur", Bolu Babalola writes stories of dynamic women with distinct voices who love and are loved audaciously. She is a big believer in women being both "Beauty and the beast". She is not a fan of writing her own bios. -
Elise Bryant
Elise Bryant is the NAACP Image Award-nominated author of Happily Ever Afters, One True Loves, Reggie and Delilah’s Year of Falling, and the forthcoming It’s Elementary. For many years, Elise had the joy of working as a special education teacher, and now she spends her days reading, writing, and eating dessert. She lives with her husband and two daughters in Long Beach, California. You can visit her online at www.elisebryant.com.
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Tay Mo'Nae
Tay Mo'Nae is a 27-year-old Urban Romance author who pens about Black Love. She create stories to help her readers escape reality and create a movie in their head. She loves writing about characters that at least one reader can relate too.
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With 50 books under her belt, Tay Mo'Nae hopes to gain at least one new reader with every release and have them connect to her characters and story in some way. If she would have to explain her writing she would say she loves "penning complicated characters that find a path to love". -
Tiffany D. Jackson
Tiffany D. Jackson is the New York Times Bestselling author of YA novels including the Coretta Scott King — John Steptoe New Talent Award-winning Monday’s Not Coming, the NAACP Image Award-nominated Allegedly, Let Me Hear A Rhyme, and her 2020 title GROWN. She received her bachelor of arts in film from Howard University, her master of arts in media studies from the New School, and has over a decade in TV/Film experience. The Brooklyn native is a lover of naps, cookie dough, and beaches, currently residing in the borough she loves, most likely multitasking.
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Karmen Lee
Karmen Lee is an avid reader of anything and everything. She’s a lifelong Southerner living it up in Atlanta, Georgia with her kid, her cats, and humidity. When she’s not packing lunches or working her normal nine-to-five, you can usually find her drinking coffee too late at night, watching House Hunters International and dreaming up ways to show her readers a good time. You can keep up with her on Twitter (@Author_KLee) or Instagram (@authorkarmenlee).
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Jacinta Howard
Jacinta Howard is an Atlanta-based culture journalist, editor and author with more than a decade of experience across genres of media. Her bylined articles have appeared at Eater, Atlanta magazine, Shondaland, Denver Westword, BET, and Rock The Bells, LL Cool J’s media company, where she served as managing editor. Jacinta’s 2022 article about the chicken wings served at Magic City, Atlanta’s world-famous strip club, was nominated for an American Society of Magazine Editors Award, and her novels have been featured in USA Today, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Book Riot and OkayAfrica. She digs summertime, flip flops, old fashioneds, deep bass lines, good lyrics, goofy jokes, and kind people. She also believes there’s an Andre 3000 lyric to
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Kennedy Ryan
NEWSLETTER:
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I write contemporary romance and women's fiction. I always give my characters their happily ever after, but I love to make them work for it! It's a long road to love, so sit back and enjoy the ride.
I am wife to the love of my life, mom to a special, beautiful son, and a friend to those living with autism through my charitable foundation. -
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Shanora Williams
Shanora Williams is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of over thirty romance and diverse suspense novels.
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She currently lives near Charlotte, North Carolina and is the mother of three amazing boys, has a fiercely devoted and supportive husband, and is a sister to eleven.
When she isn’t writing, she’s spending time with her family, binge reading, or running marathons on TV streaming services. Visit her at shanorawilliams.com or interact with her on Instagram @reallyshanora.
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Facebook: Facebook.com/ShanoraWilliamsAuthor
Facebook Fan Group: Facebook.com/groups/ShanorasSweethearts
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Jessica Cage
Born and raised in Chicago, IL, writing has always been a passion for Jessica Cage. She dabbles in artistic creations of all sorts but at the end of the day, it's the pen that her hand itches to hold. Jessica had never considered following her dream to be a writer because she was told far too often "There is no money in writing." So she chose the path most often traveled. During pregnancy she asked herself an important question. How would she be able to inspire her unborn son to follow his dreams and reach for the stars, if she never had the guts to do it herself? Jessica decided to take a risk and unleash the plethora of characters and their crazy adventurous worlds that had previously existed only in her mind, into the realm of readers. S
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Tia Williams
Tia Williams began her career as a beauty editor for magazines including Elle, Glamour, Lucky, Teen People, and Essence. In 2004, she pioneered the beauty blog industry with her award-winning site, Shake Your Beauty - and published her debut novel, The Accidental Diva. She went on to pen two young adult novels: It Chicks, and Sixteen Candles. Her 2016 bestseller, The Perfect Find, is being adapted for a Netflix film starring Gabrielle Union – and her latest novel, Seven Days in June, debuts in June 2021. Tia is currently an Editorial Director at Estee Lauder Companies, and lives with her daughter and husband in Brooklyn.
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Brandon Massey
Here’s a little about me, Brandon Massey. (“Massey” is not pronounced “macy,” by the way. Think of “mass” instead.)
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I was born June 9, 1973, in Waukegan, Illinois. I grew up in Zion, a suburb north of Chicago.
I originally self-published Thunderland, my first novel, in 1999. After managing to sell a few thousand copies on my own, Kensington Publishing Corp. in New York offered me a two-book contract, and published a new, revised edition of Thunderland in December 2002.
Since then, I’ve published up to three books a year, ranging from thriller novels such as The Other Brother, to short story collections such as Twisted Tales, and anthologies such as Dark Dreams.
My newest suspense thriller, Covenant, was published in November 2010.
I’ve got plent -
Sandra Jackson-Opoku
Sandra Jackson-Opoku is the author of the award-winning novel, The River Where Blood is Born and Hot Johnny and the Women Who Loved Him, an Essence Magazine Bestseller in Hardcover Fiction. She also coedited the anthology Revise the Psalm: Work Celebrating the Writing of Gwendolyn Brooks. Her fiction, nonfiction, and dramatic works are widely published and produced in Adi Magazine, Midnight & Indigo, Aunt Chloe, Africa Risen: A New Era of Speculative Fiction, New Daughters of Africa, Obsidian, Another Chicago Magazine, storySouth, Lifeline Theatre, the Chicago Humanities Festival, and others. Professional recognition includes a Plentitudes Journal Prize, the Hearst Foundation James Baldwin Fellowship at MacDowell Arts, a National Endowment
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Liselle Sambury
Liselle Sambury is the Trinidadian-Canadian author of the Governor General’s Literary Awards Finalist, Blood Like Magic. Her work spans multiple genres, from fantasy to sci-fi, horror, and more. In her free time, she shares helpful tips for upcoming writers and details of her publishing journey through a YouTube channel dedicated to demystifying the sometimes complicated business of being an author.
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Destiny Soria
Destiny Soria is a Young Adult fantasy author and freelance writer. Her novels feature magic, mystery, and an excess of witty banter. She lives in Birmingham, AL, where she spends her time trying to come up with bios that make her sound kind of cool. She has yet to succeed.
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Liara Tamani
Liara Tamani lives in Houston, Texas. She is the author of the acclaimed young adult novels Calling My Name, All the Things We Never Knew, and What She Missed. Her words have appeared in Time Magazine, NPR, and The New York Times. And her work has been featured by Good Morning America, Buzzfeed, Essence Magazine, Teen Vogue, and more. Before becoming a writer, she attended Harvard Law School and worked as a marketing coordinator for the Houston Rockets & Comets, production assistant for Girlfriends (TV show), home accessories designer, floral designer, and yoga and dance teacher. She holds an MFA in writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts and a BA from Duke University.
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Bolu Babalola
BOLU BABALOLA
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is a British-Nigerian woman with a misleading bachelor's degree in law and a masters degree in American Politics & History from UCL. She feels it is important to state that her thesis was on Beyoncé's "Lemonade" and she was awarded a distinction for it. So essentially she has a masters degree in Beyoncé. A writer of books, scripts, culture pieces and retorts, a lover of love and self-coined "romcomoisseur", Bolu Babalola writes stories of dynamic women with distinct voices who love and are loved audaciously. She is a big believer in women being both "Beauty and the beast". She is not a fan of writing her own bios. -
Abiola Abrams
Abiola Abrams is an award-winning author, intuitive coach, transformational speaker, and international retreat leader.
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Her newest book is THE DIVINE FREQUENCY: HARNESS THE MAGIC OF UNIVERSAL LAWS FOR TRANSFORMATION, MANIFESTATION, AND FREEDOM (Hay House/Penguin Random House), and her latest oracle card deck is FACES OF OSHUN ORACLE. You can also find her meditation albums on the Hay House Unlimited Audio app.
Abiola’s previous works include FROM IMAGINATION TO REALITY: SECRET MANIFESTATION LESSONS AND THE LAW OF ASSUMPTION FROM ABDULLAH, MASTER ALCHEMIST, the bestselling AFRICAN GODDESS INITIATION: SACRED RITUALS FOR SELF-LOVE, PROSPERITY, AND JOY, and the acclaimed AFRICAN GODDESS RISING ORACLE and SECRETS OF THE ANCESTORS ORACLE.
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Falencia Jean-Francois
Falencia Jean-Francois is an author and educator living in the Pittsburgh area with her wife, two cats, and dog. She has wanted to be a published author since she started writing NSYNC fan fiction in her notebook when she was twelve years old! She is looking forward to the release of her debut novel, Devil of the Deep, on August 1, 2023.
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Linden A. Lewis
Linden A. Lewis is the Publishers Weekly bestselling author of The First Sister and author of the upcoming standalone fantasy novel Halfheart. They became a writer after learning that tattooed lady at the circus was not a sustainable career path. They currently live in Madrid where they enjoy larping, cosplaying, and being a servant to their cats. They are represented by Hannah Bowman at Liza Dawson Associates. They have a hatred of gatekeeping and regularly post what they’ve learned in the industry on their Substack. Find them on Instagram, Substack, and TikTok as @lindenalewis.
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PLEASE NOTE: Linden cannot accept friend requests on Goodreads, as this somehow keeps Amazon from posting certain reviews. Sorry! -
Bethany Baptiste
BETHANY BAPTISTE is a national bestselling, award-nominated author and a slightly responsible grown-up living in Jacksonville, Florida, in a little brick house with two chaotic evil dogs, too many books, and not enough scented candles. You can find her and her antics at bethanybaptiste.com.
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Temi Oh
Temi Oh was born in 1993 in London, to Nigerian parents. She studied at Bishop Thomas Grant and then Emanuel School, Battersea. In 2015 she graduated from King’s College London with a BSci in Neuroscience. Her degree provided great opportunities to write and learn about topics ranging from ‘Philosophy of the Mind’ to ‘Space Physiology’.
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After her final year she decided to pack up and pursue her dreams. She married her high-school boyfriend, and moved to Edinburgh to study for an MA in Creative Writing and finish her book. -
Clarence A. Haynes
"...an accomplished urban fantasy that’s sure to win Haynes plenty of fans."—Publishers Weekly, on The Ghosts of Gwendolyn Montgomery
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A native New Yorker and Columbia University grad, Clarence A. Haynes is the author of the urban fantasy/glam horror novel The Ghosts of Gwendolyn Montgomery. He's also the cowriter of Omar Epps’s lauded YA sci-fi/fantasy title Nubia: The Awakening and its sequel The Reckoning. And he's the author of the nonfiction work The Legacy of Jim Crow, which breaks down the history of discriminatory laws in America for young readers.
Having a love affair with speculative fiction, Clarence has also worked as a developmental editor with different publishing houses. He lives in Brooklyn. -
Echo Brown
Echo Unique Ladadrian Brown's early life was marked by the challenges of growing up in poverty. During her senior year of high school, she lived temporarily with an English teacher who recognized her academic potential. Despite this, a guidance counselor discouraged her aspirations for Dartmouth College, citing her background. Undeterred, Brown attended Dartmouth, wrote for the student newspaper, and earned a bachelor's degree in government in 2006.
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Under the guidance of David Ford at the Marsh theater in San Francisco, Brown developed her one-woman show, "Black Virgins Are Not for Hipsters," which debuted in 2015. The performance addressed various societal and personal challenges, including an incident of racial aggression she faced at Dart -
Elise Bryant
Elise Bryant is the NAACP Image Award-nominated author of Happily Ever Afters, One True Loves, Reggie and Delilah’s Year of Falling, and the forthcoming It’s Elementary. For many years, Elise had the joy of working as a special education teacher, and now she spends her days reading, writing, and eating dessert. She lives with her husband and two daughters in Long Beach, California. You can visit her online at www.elisebryant.com.
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Hannah V. Sawyerr
Hannah V. Sawyerr was recognized as the Youth Poet Laureate of Baltimore in 2016. Her debut novel in verse All the Fighting Parts was a finalist for the William C. Morris Debut Award, a Walter Dean Myers Award Honoree, a Rise Feminist Book Project Top Ten Title, a Kirkus Best Book of the Year, and an ABA Indies Introduce/Indie Next Pick. Her spoken word has been featured on the BBC’s World Have Your Say program as well as the National Education Association’s “Do You Hear Us?” campaign. Her written word has been included in Essence, xoNecole, and gal-dem.
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Sawyerr holds a BA in English from Morgan State University and an MFA in Creative Writing from The New School. Her sophomore novel in verse Truth Is (Abrams/Amulet) is slated for release on -
Krystal Marquis
Krystal Marquis happily spends most of her time in libraries and used bookstores. She studied biology at Boston College and University of Connecticut and now works as an environmental, health, and safety manager for an online retailer. A lifelong reader, Krystal began researching and writing on a dare to complete the NaNoWriMo Challenge, resulting in the first partial draft of The Davenports. When not writing or planning trips to the Book Barn to discover her next favorite romance, Krystal enjoys hiking, expanding her shoe collection, and plotting ways to create her own Jurassic Park.
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Ilyasah Shabazz
Ilyasah Shabazz, third daughter of Malcolm X, is an activist, producer, motivational speaker, and the author of the critically acclaimed Growing Up X and the picture book Malcolm Little: The Boy Who Grew Up to Become Malcolm X. She lives in Westchester County, New York.
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Myunique C. Green
Myunique C. Green is a versatile and celebrated author whose work spans across genres, including mystery, thriller, young adult fiction, dystopian science fiction, and personal memoir. She began her literary journey with the independently published Bloodlines: Everything That Glitter in 2012, which climbed to the Top 10 on Amazon Kindle’s Bestseller list. Since then, she has continued to captivate readers with her unique voice and compelling storytelling. Her titles, such as 713, a chart-topping mystery short story, and Grand Rising, a dystopian epic, showcase her ability to explore complex themes and engage audiences with fresh perspectives.
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Known for her innovative approach and emotional depth, Myunique’s writing reflects her passion for t -
Karen M. Rose
Trained in Eastern and Western Herbal Medicine, Master Herbalist, Karen M. Rose created an outlet for her teachings and healing modalities with the opening of Brooklyn-based Sacred Vibes Healing and Sacred Vibes Apothecary in 2002. Her inspiration for this work began as a child in her native home of Guyana, where she was exposed to how African, Caribbean and Latin American traditions profoundly influenced plant medicine and community healing. The legacy of these lands is the foundation of Karen’s spiritual and healing practice.
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Karen is dedicated to empowering individuals to make informed decisions not only about their health, but their total lifestyle. She has developed authentic and enlightening materials as well as an extensive line of he -
Namina Forna
Namina Forna is a young adult novelist and the author of the New York Times bestselling fantasy YA series The Gilded Ones. Originally from Sierra Leone, West Africa, she moved to the US when she was nine and has been traveling back and forth ever since.
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Namina's books have been translated into 25+ languages, nominated for several awards, and optioned for film and TV. Namina herself is an accomplished public speaker, especially on the topics of feminism, storytelling and challenging dominant narratives. -
Dhonielle Clayton
Dhonielle Clayton is a New York Times bestselling author of The Marvellers series, The Belles series, Shattered Midnight, co-author of Blackout, Whiteout, The Rumor Game, and of the Tiny Pretty Things duology, a Netflix original series. She hails from the Washington, D.C. suburbs on the Maryland side. She taught secondary school for several years, and is a former elementary and middle school librarian. She is COO of the non-profit We Need Diverse Books. She is the President and founder of Cake Creative and Electric Postcard Entertainment, IP story companies creating diverse books for all ages. She’s an avid traveller, and always on the hunt for magic and mischief. Find her on Instagram: @brownbookworm.
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Katrina Hazzard-Donald
Known as one of the nation’s leading dance researchers, Katrina Hazzard-Donald, Ph.D., author, lecturer and professor is the author of two scholarly books and numerous articles on African-American dance and culture and one book of poetry. She is in wide demand as a guest speaker at Universities and Colleges around the world. She recently delivered the 2020 Keynote address at Duke University’s CADD (Collegium for African Diaspora Dance) Symposium in which she encouraged young researchers to do more than write about dance. She challenged them to reexamine the scholarly paradigms that they use when researching dance and to submerge themselves in the “dance life and culture” of their subjects and allow that material and experience to positively
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Brenda Marie Davies
Brenda Marie Davies is a podcaster and YouTuber. Her channel God Is Grey advocates for sex-positive, LGBTQ+ affirming, socially responsible faith with over 100,000 subscribers. She uses her social platform to encourage differing opinions to be voiced & shared.
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Melissa V. Harris-Perry
Melissa V. Harris-Perry is professor of political science at Tulane University, where she is founding director of the Anna Julia Cooper Project on Gender, Race, and Politics in the South. She previously served on the faculties of the University of Chicago and Princeton University.
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Harris-Perry is author of the eagerly anticipated new book, Sister Citizen: Shame, Stereotypes, and Black Women in America (Yale 2011) which argues that persistent harmful stereotypes—invisible to many but painfully familiar to black women—profoundly shape black women’s politics, contribute to policies that treat them unfairly, and make it difficult for black women to assert their rights in the political arena. Her first book, Barbershops, Bibles, and BET: Everyda -
Shirley Chisholm
Shirley Anita St. Hill was born in Brooklyn, New York, of immigrant parents. Her father, Charles Christopher St. Hill, was born in British Guiana and arrived in the United States via Antilla, Cuba, on April 10, 1923, aboard the S.S. Munamar in New York City. Her mother, Ruby Seale, was born in Christ Church, Barbados, and arrived in New York City aboard the S.S. Pocone on March 8, 1921. At age three, Chisholm was sent to Barbados to live with her maternal grandmother, Emaline Seale, in Christ Church; where she attended the Vauxhall Primary School. She did not return until roughly seven years later when she arrived in New York City on May 19, 1934, aboard the S.S. Narissa. In her 1970 autobiography Unbought and Unbossed, she wrote: "Years la
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Ciannon Smart
Ciannon Smart grew up in a small town in the south-east of England. As the only daughter in a house full of boisterous sons, she developed a voracious appetite for reading from an early age, preferring anarchy in stories rather than real life. In YA she loves her heroines exactly as she loves her villains: wilful, wily, and unpredictable. When not writing, Ciannon can be found reading, painting, or taking the long way home to listen to a good song more than once.
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Cebo Campbell
CEBO CAMPBELL is an award-winning, multi-hyphenate creative based in New York and London. He is a winner of the Stories Award for Poetry, and his writings are featured in numerous publications. As co-founder and CCO of the renowned NYC creative agency Spherical, Cebo leads teams of creatives in shaping the best hotel brands in the world. His range of talents as a creative director have sent him all over the globe infusing creativity, from working with the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust in the UK, to concepting the Million Miracles humanitarian campaign throughout Africa and India, to writing and directing the VR short film Refuge: Triumph in Tulsa, based on the famed Black Wall Street in Oklahoma. Cebo’s expansive work as a writer, designer,
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Tọlá Okogwu
Tọlá Okogwu was born in Lagos, Nigeria before moving to England at the age of six. After graduating with a degree in journalism, Tọlá spent far too much time trying to figure out what she wanted to do before realising her true passion was hair care and writing. When she isn’t engrossed either of these things, she can be found in Kent with her family and also writes under the pen name Lola Morayo.
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Marti Dumas
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Writer:
Marti Dumas is a native New Orleanian with a passion for storytelling. When she is not teaching or parenting, she is reading or writing. She prefers to do some combination of the above within view of ancient oak trees or the banks of the river. Or both.
Narrator:
For over a decade Marti has narrated and produced audio books for use in educational settings, using her melodic voice to captivate audiences of children and adolescents. More recently, her honeyed tones have been featured in radio plays and television spots, and her first commercially available audio books were released in December of 2012.
Marti is a bel canto trained mezzo soprano and a versatile vocal performer, with a wide dramatic range and more than 20 years of experienc -
Brittany N. Williams
Brittany N. Williams is an actress, writer, and nerd of many fandoms. She holds a BFA in Musical Theatre from Howard University (HU, You Know) and an MA in Classical Acting from the Royal Central School of Speech & Drama (Carrie Fisher’s alma mater for 18 months).
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Brittany has performed across three continents—including a year spent as a principal vocalist at Hong Kong Disneyland—and her writing has been featured on Black Nerd Problems, Tor.com, in The Indypendent, The Gambit, Fireside Magazine, and in the Star Wars anthology From a Certain Point of View: The Empire Strikes Back. Her first novel, That Self-Same Metal , a YA historical fantasy set in William Shakespeare’s London.
You can find her on Twitter and Instagram at @BrittanyAct -
Najah Lightfoot
Najah Lightfoot is the author of "The Spiritual Magic of Dolls," ~ release date November 03, 2025, published by Red Wheel/Weiser Books.
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She is the multi-award-winning author of the bestselling Good Juju: Mojos, Rites & Practices for the Magical Soul, and "Powerful Juju ~ Goddesses, Music, & Magic, for Comfort, Guidance, & Protection," published by Llewellyn Worldwide.
Najah is a regular contributor to the Llewellyn annuals and a contributor to Taschen, The Library of Esoterica -Volume III - Witchcraft. Her magickal staff is on display and part of the permanent collection of the Buckland Museum of Witchcraft, located in Cleveland, Ohio.
Najah is an in-demand speaker and presenter for conferences, events, workshops, film and print media.
She liv -
Jenn M. Jackson
Jenn Jackson is the author of BLACK WOMEN TAUGHT US (Penguin Random House, 2024) and POLICING BLACKNESS (expected 2026). Their work rests at the intersections of Blackness, gender, sexuality, policing, and social movements. They are a contributor at Yes! Magazine focused on politics, queer and trans rights, and building free Black futures. Their writing has appeared at The Washington Post, Al Jazeera, Teen Vogue, Essence, The Root, Ebony, and Bitch magazines, among others.
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Their newsletter, Love Notes, can be found at jennmjacksonphd.substack.com.
Jackson is an assistant professor of political science at Syracuse University and holds a PhD in political science from the University of Chicago. -
William L. Andrews
William Leake Andrews (1948-) is an American Professor Emeritus of English at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a scholar of early African-American literature. Wikipedia
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C.M. Lockhart
C. M. Lockhart (also known as Chelsea) is a Black writer of fantasy because she loves creating worlds, exploring relationships, and writing stories about Black girls who aren't all that nice. She is the founder of Written in Melanin LLC — which encompasses a weekly podcast and YouTube channel of the same name — and the Melanin Library, an online database of books written by Black authors.
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She is also a lover of video games and anime, so whenever she isn't reading and writing — or talking about reading and writing — she's watching anime, playing her Switch, and dreaming about the day her books get animated. -
Leslye Penelope
Leslye Penelope also writes as L. Penelope. She is an award-winning author of fantasy and paranormal romance.
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Jennifer Baker
Jennifer Baker is a publishing professional, creator/host of the Minorities in Publishing podcast, and faculty for Bay Path University's low-res MFA in Nonfiction. Jennifer is the editor of the short story anthology EVERYDAY PEOPLE: THE COLOR OF LIFE (Atria Books, 2018) and the author of the YA novel FORGIVE ME NOT (Nancy Paulsen Books, 2023).
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In 2017, she was awarded a NYSCA/NYFA Fellowship & Queens Council on the Arts New Work Grant (as well as their award for Artistic Excellence) for Nonfiction Literature. Her writing has appeared in Newtown Literary (for which her short story "The Pursuit of Happiness" was nominated for a 2017 Pushcart Prize). She was previously a contributing editor to Electric Literature and has written for print and -
Natalie Baszile
Natalie has a M.A. in Afro-American Studies from UCLA, and is a graduate of Warren Wilson College’s MFA Program for Writers where she was a Holden Minority Scholar. An early version of Queen Sugar won the Hurston Wright College Writer’s Award, was a co-runner up in the Faulkner Pirate’s Alley Novel-in-Progress competition, and excerpts were published in Cairn and ZYZZYVA. She has had residencies at the Ragdale Foundation where she was awarded the Sylvia Clare Brown fellowship, Virginia Center for the Arts, and Hedgebrook. Her non-fiction work has appeared in The Rumpus.net, Mission at Tenth, and in The Best Women’s Travel Writing Volume 9. She is a former fiction editor at The Cortland Review, and is a member of the San Francisco Writers’ G
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Desmond Hall
Desmond Hall – bio
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Desmond Hall is a Jamaican born author whose debut YA novel, YOUR CORNER DARK, a fast-paced thriller is due out in January ’21. American Street meets Long Way Down in this searing and gritty novel that takes an unflinching look at the harsh realities of gang life in Jamaica and how far a teen is willing to go for family. The book confronts police brutality, “Colorism”, gang culture and political deception.
He graduated Marquette University with a BA in Journalism and was selected for the “Who’s Who of American College Students.”
He’s written and directed an HBO feature movie, “A Day in Black and White” which was nominated for the Gordon Parks Award. He’s also written and directed a full-length stage play, “Stockholm, Brookl -
Debra Kristi
Magic Infused Adventures at Debra Kristi at www.debrakristi.com
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Debra Kristi writes deep-point-of-view YA (young adult) fiction that will drop you in the middle of the drama and have you experience the adventure as if you are part of the story.
Award winning and USA Today Bestselling Author Debra Kristi writes addicting young adult fantasy, urban fantasy, and paranormal adventures. Born and raised a Southern California girl, she still resides in the sunny state with her husband, two kids, and several schizophrenic cats.
Unlike many of the characters in the stories she writes, Debra is not immortal, and her only superpower is letting the dishes and laundry pile up. When not busy drumming away at the keyboard spinning new tales, Debra is -
Kevin Larimer
Kevin Larimer is the editor in chief of Poets & Writers, where he edits Poets & Writers Magazine; oversees the website, pw.org; and directs the organization’s program of live events, Poets & Writers Live. He is the coauthor of The Poets & Writers Complete Guide to Being a Writer. He received his MFA from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, where he served as the poetry editor of the Iowa Review, and holds a BA in journalism from the University of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. He is a member of the board of directors of the Elizabeth Kostova Foundation. He has lectured and served on panels about publishing at events such as the Library of Congress National Book Festival, the Sozopol Fiction Seminars, the Anguilla Lit Fest, the Kauai Writers Conference, th
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Chi Yu Rodriguez
Chi Yu Rodriguez is a bisexual author with many feelings. Sometimes these feelings find their way into a novella or fan fiction, but sometimes they don't come out at all and end up as unresolved tension or internal angst.
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She prefers to make imaginary people go through these feelings for her pleasure, and they wrestle with her everyday. -
Antoine Bandele
HOW I RATE
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⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Very Profound and/or Entertaining.
⭐⭐⭐⭐ I enjoyed it.
⭐⭐⭐ It was okay.
⭐⭐ I didn't enjoy it.
⭐ I hated it.
ABOUT ME
ANTOINE BANDELE IS AN AMAZON BESTSELLING AUTHOR IN AFRICAN LITERATURE.
He lives in Los Angeles, CA with his girlfriend, where he produces work on YouTube for his own channel and others, such as JustKiddingFilms, Fanalysis, and more. During the summer he is a camp counselor. Whenever he has the time he’s writing his debut series: Tales from Esowon.
SINCE 1990 ...
I've been a creative kid, whether writing stories, drawing comics, or directing home movies. I remember the first time I thought I was a "published" author. My father took my brother and I to an office supply store, where we got our books (which were made out of -
Tatiana Obey
Tatiana Obey writes badass characters slaying dragons. She enjoys combining action with character-driven stories that feature diverse heroes and heroines. She is the author of Bones to the Wind, a 2022 BBA Award Winner, and Sistah Samurai: A Champloo Novella, a 2023 Indie Ink Award Winner. Locus award nominated, she has published short stories in various anthologies and Fiyah Literary Magazine, and is also a contributing editor for Magic in the Melanin: A Black Fantasy Anthology. She taught English in South Korea, studied abroad in Japan, and spent her debut year traveling the world. Learn more about her at www.tatianaobey.com.
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Christine M. Germain
Christine M. Germain is an Award-Winning author of horror fiction. Born March 8, 1981, in Brooklyn, New York, she found her passion for writing in 1993 and wrote her first horror story at twelve. Watching horror movies and reading young adult horror fiction novels influenced her passion for writing a story with a protagonist that looked like her. In the movie world, African American women were never portrayed as a strong leads in horror films or books. Instead of waiting to see if that would happen, she created a story that she would love to read and watch on the big screen that catered to more diverse characters.
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Admiring authors such as Stephen King and R.L. Stein, Christine pursued her writing journey majoring in literature, and graduat -
N.D. Jones
N.D. Jones, Ed.D., is an award-winning author who has achieved USA Today bestselling status for her captivating Black Fantasy and Paranormal Romance novels. She resides in the heart of Maryland with her loving family.
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Driven by a passionate desire to introduce more positive, sexy, and multi-dimensional African-American characters as soul mates, friends, and lovers, N.D. embarked on a remarkable journey of her own. Determined to address this challenge, she took it upon herself to redefine the narrative.
N.D. has an impressive portfolio of series that reflect her dedication to bringing diversity and depth to the romance genre. Her works include the enchanting fantasy romance series "Forever Yours" and the contemporary romance trilogy "The Style -
Arthur Avalos
Arthur Avalos is a Chicago based Author and practicing therapist. He lives in the Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago with his two cats, dog and partner.
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Arthur spends his time working on short stories, poetry and other forms of fiction writing. He is currently working on a short story collection and a book of poetry.
When he is not writing he is at the bookstore buying more books for his ever-growing home library with a TBR that he will most likely never get to.
Something Happened is Arthurs debut novel and The House Behind the Creek is his first published short story.