About Me

At an early age, I knew I had a knack for telling stories. I loved reading books and reenacting the pages to bring the characters to life. My mother nurtured my love of reading and performing. She enrolled me in the neighborhood acting and dance program at the St. Augustine Center. It was there that my love of the performing arts  grew. 

Under the guidance of Dr. Lorna Hill and the Ujima Theater Company, I developed my love of storytelling and acting. This lead to me becoming a child actoress. I was featured on Reading Rainbow, Sesame Street and The Electric Company. I also appeared in a few Local and National commercials. When I was in the forth grade, I was encouraged to audition to attend The Buffalo Academy for the Visual and Performing Arts.

It was there, at the Buffalo Academy for the Visual and Performing Arts school that I thrived as a Theatre Arts Major. Under the tutorage of Dr. D’Arcangelo, Claudia Marschall, Dr. Martin, Fortunato Pezzimenti and Russell Link, that my love for theater and creating stories flourished. I enjoyed developing characters and creating unique storylines in my theater classes. Needless to say, there was never a dull moment during our improv classes.

Writing became easier as I learned the various steps to character development.  Incorporate that with my over active imagination, I knew that one day I would draft stories not just for myself but for the world to read. Along with writing short stories and Essays, poetry became a way for me to express myself as a teenager.

As, time went on, I graduated college,  moved away from my home town, and slowly allowed  my love of theater and writing to fade away. Life happen. I became a mother and a wife.  I managed to climb the corporate ladder, establishing myself as a who who’s among female leaders in the financial industry. Even as a leader in my industry, sometime managing groups of thirty individuals at a time, everything I learned as a theater major I was able to apply to my leadership style.

It wasn’t until my husband, and I were finally empty nesters that the urge to write again emerged. My husband finally confronted me. He said that I had been talking about being a writer ever since we married. That I had a real gift for storytelling, and he couldn’t understand why I hadn’t pursued my dream yet. I gave him every excuse I could think of. And one by one, my loving husband removed every obstacle I presented him on why I couldn’t write my book. Without any obstacles in my way, I no longer had any reasons why I could start my journey as an author. So, after twenty years of waiting and putting my dreams on hold, I began to write, and what a beautiful journey it has been.

Urban Literature is defined as a literary genre that focuses on the socio- economic realities and culture of the inner city. 

Since I am a product of the inner-city life specifically Buffalo, NY, it is only fitting that my style of writing be classified as Urban. The term Urban by no means suggests that I am restricted in the types of stories, topics, and characters that I am capable of writing. What it simply means is that my environment and experiences as it pertains to me, influence the character and stories I write about. I am drawn to the rich beauty of my culture and environment. Urban Life is just as diverse as the people that live within its community and so is my writing.

Many people assume that Urban Literature is only Street Lit or Hood Stories, but Urban Literature is so much more. I am drawn to the stories that evoke emotions and encourage conversations. My writing style is raw, emotional, influenced by music, and covers topics that effect my community. I’d like to think that there is a level of honesty and transparency when it comes to my writing. I don’t sugar coat the lives of my characters because too often life in the inner city is anything but sweet. The sometime harsh realities are captured in the storylines of my characters which I believe bring a realness to the reader that make the characters relatable.

I create characters that I want readers to remember. This often means developing stories that reflect everyday life. From Urban Contemporary, Urban Thrillers or Street Lit, my characters reflect the realities of the diversity with in my community. My gritty and often raw language if softened by the underlying tones of my stories. My hope as a writer is that I create a story that readers become invested in. Readers should be able to visualize the story, feel the emotions and be moved to act on what they have read. Now whether that’s screaming at me, telling a friend about the book, or making the emotional connection with the characters, my goal is to have the reader walk away engaged in the story.