Name: Pam Ward

Website: www.pamwardwriter.com

Clutch: Who or what inspired you to become a writer?
Pam Ward: When I was a kid, I read like a dope fiend every damn day. I read my dad’s political books, my brothers porn stash and when I got through my mom’s pile of worn dog-eared novels, I marched to the library and checked out some more. Back then, a library card felt like an American Express. I read “Cornbread, Earl and Me” for free and didn’t have to lay out one cent. Books were like crack and I was hooked at a real young age. Books were snap shots of life in all its beauty or hideous glory. I am a notorious eavesdropper and love speech in all its creative forms. I remember reading “PIMP,” by IceBerg Slim and being completely blown away and then marveling over “To Kill A Mockingbird’s,” cool southern drawl or the sweet prose of Lorraine Hansberry’s “A Raison in the Sun.”

Clutch: If you weren’t a writer, what do you think you would be doing?
Pam Ward: I’m very proud to be a female writer today. In fact, if I was a male, I’d have to be a cross-dresser because being a girl is so much damn fun! I mean look, it wasn’t that long ago that woman had to publish under male pseudonyms to make it. Louisa May Alcott used to be A.M. Barnard and Charlotte Bronte used to be Currer Bell. Hell, even J.K. Rowling of the “Harry Potter” series used initials because she said she didn’t think boys would want to read a book by someone named Joanne. But if all bets were off and I couldn’t be a writer, I’d be screaming my stories from the Transamerica Building downtown while a slideshow clicked across the wall. Film, documentaries, some form of multimedia expression.

Clutch: In your opinion, what’s the one thing one must possess if they want to become a professional writer?
Pam Ward: You better have a full tank of gas and a scraper that can make it! Writing is not for the faint of heart for two reasons. One, you can not afford to sugar coat the truth and real truth can be cold and pitch-fork hard. Sometimes feelings get hurt or the subject matter is intense but a writer can not afford to look away. Two, a writer’s life sounds way more glamourous than it really is. You have to be diligent. Writing takes work and penning a novel can be grueling. Sitting for hours, editing, watching the sun rise and fall and knowing you have never seen the light of day can get to you sometimes, but when you get a character’s voice right and the novel’s truth is humming under your thumbs, it is downright nirvana.

Clutch: How has the Internet and Social Media helped you as a writer?
Pam Ward: By using the internet, you can create an immediate social presence without leaving your front door. It’s super easy to create blogs, websites, and radio shows on your own, right on your laptop. But, and I say this with a capitol “B” it takes an incredible amount of time and energy. You can get sucked in the web and all your time can vanish before you know it. Don’t sacrifice your artistic craft by building notoriety. A big ego trip and a bad book don’t mix.

Clutch: Tell us about your current book?
Pam Ward: BAD GIRLS BURN SLOW is deliciously wicked, cat and mouse story about crime, identity and the funeral business. It takes place during this real life child-sex scandal that happened in L.A ‘85. I became fascinated with the unleashed power children had during that period and how innocent people were literary tossed to the flame,” The story centers on a child villain and her fiendish mother Margie who ‘work the funeral circuit’ as a means for luring lusty older men. Everything you can sell off the human body is thrown in, filled with serial killers, cremations, wheelchair sex and a body rolled up in a rug. My neighbor did the makeup at Forest Lawn for eighteen years so maybe some of that rubbed off. Living right next to Rosedale, the second oldest cemetery in Los Angeles and home of the oldest crematory in town, was a great back drop. Finding wonderful facts, like LA Unified being built over City cemetery, LA’s oldest and now defunct burial ground, served as fuel and folly.

Clutch: What advice would you give to up and coming writers?
Pam Ward: My mantra is to write for five minutes every day. That’s how I wrote my first novel, WANT SOME GET SOME. I just chipped at that bitch each day. People will tell you you have to write a certain number of pages a day to make it. But that’s the wrong way to approach art. Don’t think page count, think heart. Concentrate on the feelings you’re trying to convey instead of word count or amount of sheets and you may end up with something worth saying. Stretch. Read work out of your normal comfort zone. Right now I’m reading Moby Dick and Lil Wayne’s song lyrics! Be bold. Don’t take no for answer. Don’t end your dream because some fool slammed the door. Run your ass down the street and knock on the house next door! Victory, like other good things, may sting at first, baby, but you get over it and your success is well worth it.

Clutch: Who or what inspired you to become a writer?
NBW: I’ve always written. From the time I was a little girl and I used to sneak a flashlight under my covers so that I could continue to read after “lights out,” I’ve always recognized the power of the pen. I guess what inspires me is that when I write, I get to create. Sometimes, I create a perfect world or sometimes I create perfection amid chaos. Nonetheless, it’s my chance to make sense of the world with a pen. I find inspiration from life’s flaws and raw deals, so I seek to straighten those things out in print.

Clutch: If you weren’t a writer, what do you think you would be doing?
NBW: Since I’ve been writing, I’ve been juggling a full-time teaching position at a New Jersey high school and a 9-year stint as a radio show host in addition to my familial duties. The question is, what will my life be like when I can solely focus on my writing. That will be bliss…but I’m sure that I’ll throw another ball into the act again. I’m thinking of opening a restaurant.

Clutch: In your opinion, what’s the one thing one must possess if they want to become a professional writer?
NBW: A writer must possess the gift of reflection coupled with observation. That will help writers give voice to characters’ motivation and it also helps to make the story flow without force-feeding the storyline to readers.

Clutch: How has the Internet and Social Media helped you as a writer?
NBW: I’m such a techno-boob, but I definitely recognize the power of the Internet. I paid college application fees for one of my students to get my Myspace page up and running, and thank goodness I have a cousin who designed my webpage. I have been able to do some research on the Internet, and I am able to read some reviews if the feeling hits me, so I definitely recognize their importance.

Clutch: Tell us about your current book?
NBW: It’s about a vixen who’s out for vengeance. Media Queen Peach Harrison has been cheated out of her inheritance, and she feels like she has an ax to grind. Through her adventures and scandals, we learn that sometimes we need to count the blessings at hand instead of being bent on revenge. We also learn the power of forgiveness.

Clutch: What advice would you give to up and coming writers?
NBW: I’ll tell you what I’m unable to do because I have a three-month-old and a four-year-old. I do recognize that it’s important, though. Simply, write everyday. It’s your craft, and just like singers sing and athletes practice, writers need to write.

Very rarely do we find a book that is so dead on, so true that it echoes’s in the essence of our being. Love and Water is that book. Written, illustrated, and self-published by Nik Richard, a 22-year-old New Orleans native, Love and Water is a collection of poems that describes the relationship between the author and the city of New Orleans post Hurricane Katrina. Richard chats with Clutch about his future plans for New Orleans and the essential necessity we all need - Love and Water.

Clutch: How did you get started writing poetry?
NR: I started writing in class, doing assignments. Just like everybody else. I always wanted to be better than others. It always motivated me when the teacher would say, “Good job Nik! That was really good.” I started writing a lot in high school.

Clutch: How did the theme of Love and Water come about?
NR: I had the book before I had the title. It’s a symbol. Water represents Katrina and love is compared to death. It was a quote from the poem and I thought that it was a perfect title for the whole book.

Clutch: In Love and Water, there are no poem titles, allowing the book to read like one poem. Why is that?
NR: Most performing poets put out a cd. I wanted to do something different. When you read the back of a cd, you see the song titles and the tracks. When a cd plays, there are no titles or anything differentiating one song from the next and that’s how I wanted my book to be. On a cd, you know it’s a different song when the beat changes and in my book, you’ll know it’s a different poem when my handwriting or font changes.

Clutch: What are your personal goals for Love and Water and in what way do you want it to affect readers?
NR: My goal is to get people to recognize my art for what it is. I want to get people who didn’t experience Katrina or only saw it on CNN to gain some insight on what it was like. That’s why I’m really glad the book is reaching those outside the New Orleans area.

Clutch: You’re officially an international poet, congratulations! How did that come about?
NR: I got a myspace message saying they wanted to buy the book and their address was in England. It just shows what Myspace networking can do.

Clutch: Do you prefer performing your poetry or writing it? Why or why not?
NR: My junior year in high school I was introduced to performance poetry. I like that you get to see an immediate reaction to the poem. You can see if people like the poem or not. The only thing when performing, the poems can’t exceed three minutes. After that, people stop listening. I like writing because allows me to make the poems more intimate and freer.

Clutch: You’re pursuing a degree in Urban Planning. Why this major as opposed to writing and what do you plan to do with that degree in the future?
NR: I started my first year of college out as fine arts major, painting and sculpting then Katrina happened. After Katrina, I sat out a year of school and started researching Urban Planning. The University of New Orleans is the only school in Louisiana to offer Urban Planning and ironically, New Orleans has a major need for city & economic development. After I graduate, I plan to help rebuild the city and the surrounding areas.

Clutch: Are there any other books in the works?
NR: Love and Water is one of three. You can pretty much expect another book. I plan on publishing a book every 2 years. The second book will be out in 2010 and the third book will be out in 2012.

Clutch: What advice would you give to aspiring poets?
NR: Read. Know what good poetry is. Read a lot and write a lot because your first poem isn’t going to be your best poem. I just want people to know that what you thought is what you’re capable of. If you take one step toward our dream, it will be easier to follow it.

Clutch: Who or what inspired you to become a writer?
V: My inspiration for writing came from my love for the arts. I have always loved drawing, playing the clarinet when I was younger and poetry. I began writing my own poetry and short stories in elementary school, and then took creative writing courses from junior high all the way to college. My inspiration for this particular project was the detachment I was feeling from someone, and the loss I felt. After my first few entries, it became an organic thing.

Clutch: If you weren’t a writer, what do you think you would be doing?
V: I don’t really consider myself a “writer”, per se, at least not to the point where it is something that’s my main focus. I have ever-present goals of finding success in the fashion and luxury goods marketing and pr industry. I also have dreams of one day opening my own patisserie. At this time I see writing as being an adjunct to my life…a creative outlet.

Clutch: In your opinion, what’s the one thing one must possess if they want to become a professional writer?
V: You must possess the confidence that you have something to say, and that there is an audience out there that wishes to hear it. There may be plenty who do not like your work, but there is always going to be someone who will…even if it is just your Mother.

Clutch: How has the Internet and Social Media helped you as a writer?
V: Wow! I can honestly say that without the Internet there would probably be no book! The only journals I have ever been able to keep are the few I’ve had online. As much as I love to write by hand, I have always struggled to keep a physical (tangible) journal past two weeks. My online journals have been the only ones to stand the test of time and hold my attention for these past few years. I believe the interaction with my readers, many of whom I enjoy immensely, have played a major role in my journey to publishing my book.

Clutch: Tell us about your current book?
V: My current book is a compilation of journal entries that express my views on the interaction of men and women pertaining to sex, love and relationships. Each entry is a true happening or thought that I experienced over this past year. Entries consist of short notes and reminders to me, love letters to ex beau’s, and thoughts on social interactions that my friends or I have encountered. Everything is written just as one would write in their own journal. Though I went through a hefty editing process, I made sure not to change the language, context or even some of the misspellings in order to maintain authenticity.

Clutch: What advice would you give to up and coming writers?
V: My advice would be to write what you know! I know this is an old adage, and may sound trite, but it’s true. Even in fiction there should be a part of your true self in it, whether you base a character on yourself, or a town you’ve visited, or a conversation you’ve had. There should be an element of your own thought process, your reactions, the reactions of others you know etc. If you put that in your work, and make it the basis, then it will read true and your reader will connect with your work more readily.

Name: Omar Rashad Tyree
Website: www.omartyree.com
Clutch: Who or what inspired you to become a writer?
OT: I was inspired to write because I found that I was good at it. At the college level at the University of Pittsburgh in my freshman year in 1987, I really began to shine in the top level of English with my writing and comprehension skills. So once I began to help friends with their English papers, and I received an A grade in the strongest writing courses, it was either put up or shut up time with my new talent. And as anyone who has ever been around me on an author panel will tell you, I rarely back down when it comes to discussing my work. So here I am as an author 21 years later, and I’m still inspired by people who love what I do with my work.

Clutch: If you weren’t a writer, what do you think you would be doing?
OT: I would still be an entrepreneur of some sort, owning my own company. I need my own space and my own ideas. And I’ve always been a hustler who can find his own way. So no matter what it would have been, I would have ended up in control of my own career and economic destiny.

Clutch: Sixteen novels in as many years of writing and publishing is an impressive track record. And all of your books have been different. As an author how do you continue to come up with new ideas to write about?
OT: There are a million ideas around us everyday that we all could write about, but the key is to find those particular topics that get us excited. Then you craft a story that would bring something new to your readers. Or at least that’s what I’ve tried to do. So I’ve always written about new subjects that keep my career moving forward. And this time the subject is business. Business has been the most important topic on my mind lately.

Clutch: In your opinion, what’s the one thing one must possess if they want to become a professional writer?
OT: You must always take in information like a human sponge. If you have nothing on your mind, then you have nothing to write. So writers must always have something to say or something to observe or to speak up about. Otherwise, you can’t fill up 300 + pages worth of material to produce an ongoing writing career.

Clutch: In June of this year, you wrote a blog article for BET Jazz that set off a bomb of discussion about your planned retirement from urban adult fiction Is Pecking Order your final adult novel?
OT: Yes it is, so please do enjoy it (smile). Basically, I’ve been writing urban adult fiction on every possible subject for sixteen straight years now. And when the well runs dry, the well runs dry. But many readers have only read three or four of my sixteen novels. So they’ll have plenty of catching up to do. And maybe, by the time that most readers are caught back up with me, I’ll finally have a few feature film deals in the can to inspire me to write some new urban stories.

Clutch: Tell us about your current book?
OT: Pecking Order is the new Wall Street. It’s all about experiencing the making of a multi-million dollar man and the story of Ivan David. This cat starts a party promotion company and marketing web site in California, and goes from a 5-figure income to 9 figures. And this story is NOT FICTIONAL. Americans get rich like that every single day of the year. In fact, most of the billionaires that many us would name were actually not even born with millions. They earned in it all in 1-generation. Just like Ivan David does. And that’s what the Pecking Order is all about, moving up the ladder of power. But how many of us are serious enough about our grind to read about it?

Clutch: What advice would you give to up and coming writers?
OT: Writers write. That’s what we do. So don’t talk about it, get busy writing. Talking means nothing. Everybody can talk. But let me see you write! That’s when we know that you’re serious.

To learn more about Omar Tyree and see his full catalog of work please visit www.omartyree.com.

Clutch: Who or what inspired you to become a writer?
JRJ: I’ve leaned towards creativity, constructing narratives; from the time I was a child playing with toy soldiers. So becoming a writer – or at least writing creatively – was always in the cards in one form or another. However, when I read Walter Mosley’s “Devil In A Blue Dress” it inspired me to treat the craft as more than just a hobby.

Clutch: If you weren’t a writer, what do you think you would be doing?
JRJ: {Laughing} wondering what to do with the research notes, character bios, story pitches and loose plots I habitually amass.

Clutch: In your opinion, what’s the one thing one must possess if they want to become a professional writer?
JRJ: Determination. If you think you’re a great writer you have to be “determined” to get better. If you think you’re an okay writer you have to be “determined” to make yourself great. If you’re going to achieve whatever you came into the industry for you have to be “determined” to keep working and growing until you achieve it because there will be distractions, there will be set backs, there will be days when you may say to yourself the heart ache doesn’t seem to justify the potential reward. But it does, and those who prosper learned to roll with the punches, kept writing (little breaks are okay but never stop) and rode the waves until they got the positive things they rightfully deserved.

Clutch: How has the Internet and Social Media helped you as a writer?
JRJ: Besides allowing a way to connect with people and institutions I may not have come across otherwise, it has also been a valuable research aide as, literally, the number and types of groups you’ll find can literally put any bit of information you may want to utilize a mere mouse click or e-mail away.

Clutch: Tell us about your current book?
JRJ: 5 Shots is a five story graphic novel collection centered on the cases of a Black, Female, and Private eye named Jay Nova. Her motto is: your past and indiscretions are your business … keeping them buried is hers. The stories essentially take the reader on a thrill ride of back alley deals, double crosses, gunplay, and what can happen if the “nice way” doesn’t work and the law can’t help. It’s currently available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble or through special anywhere books are sold.

Clutch: What advice would you give to up and coming writers?
JRJ: I say this so much it should be my mantra but understand dreams do not come true … they happen. So set a goal, work hard, stay focused and make yours happen. Well wishes to all and continued blessings.

Clutch: You just released your fourth novel, Seduction. Can you tell us a little bit about it?
GH: Seduction is a salacious and humorous tale that combines two my favorite types of stories: Makeover and Revenge!

Clutch: Are you currently on tour promoting Seduction?
GH: I just returned from touring a few of the Midwest states.

Clutch: Every since your first book, Groove was published you’ve managed to publish a new book every year. What motivates you to write and publish your books so frequently?
GH: I really enjoy the characters and the story lines. I have such a great time writing these books. I catch myself laughing out loud as the story unfolds. Who wouldn’t want to experience that type of joy and fulfillment as often as possible?

Clutch: Can we expect a new book from you next year?
GH: Yes! Summer 2009, Lover Man will be coming to a bookstore near you. Lover Man picks up where Seduction leaves off.

Clutch: What made you decide to be an author?
GH: I learned to read at a very early age and fell in love with books. I started writing short stories when I was about eight years old and had already decided by the age of twelve that I wanted to be an author.

Clutch: Give us three reasons why people should read your books.
GH: The reader will recognize these characters in themselves and the people around them. They’ll bust a gut with laughter and gain a few new moves they can use in the bedroom.

Clutch: If you could choose one of your books to be made into a movie which one would it be and why?
GH: Why Seduction of course! I believe it would be the best “girlfriend movie” since Waiting to Exhale!

Clutch: Who are some of your favorite authors?
GH: Donna Hill, Gloria Mallette, Margaret Johnson Hodge and Marilyn Griffith…to name a select few.

Clutch: If you were stuck on an island and you could only have one book with you what would it be?
GH: Sugar, by Bernice L. McFadden

Clutch: Besides writing do you have any other passions?
GH: Ethnographic art, fine foods and exotic travel – not necessarily in that order.

Clutch: Is there any advice that you can give to aspiring and upcoming authors and writers?
GH: Stay true to calling. Don’t allow the rejection letters to get you down – use them to fuel your passion for writing. Study the market, be aware of the trends, know your niche, but of all know yourself.

Clutch: Who or what inspired you to become a writer?
CR: I took a fiction writing class as an elective during my third year in college and I discovered that writing was my passion. My professor told me that I had a gift for creating characters and he also said that I wrote very realistic dialogue. Even back then I usually wrote about characters who struggled with issues but in the end grew from their experience or overcame somehow. Maya Angelou’s poetry and her autobiography, I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings taught me that words can cure a broken soul. Her words got me through a very trying period during my high school years. In some ways she saved me. I was hurting back then and her books were so comforting to me. I wanted to do the same for others. Even though I don’t write poetry I wanted to create stories and situations that people could relate to, identify with, and embrace.

Clutch: If you weren’t a writer, what do you think you would be doing?
CR: Aside from writing, I would also be teaching. My mother is a retired school teacher. I would most likely teach third or fourth grade students and hopefully make an impact with our youth. And then I would write in my spare time on weekends and holidays and during summer vacation.

Clutch: In your opinion, what’s the one thing one must possess if they want to become a professional writer?
CR: A good manuscript. It sounds simple but there are many people who say they want to write who haven’t even started to put words on a page. Some writers will say the marketing know how or the drive to succeed is that one thing and those are necessary too, but without the product they are useless. I truly believe if you have a good book then the word-of-mouth will travel and assist you in your marketing efforts. The sky will be the limit so work on your manuscript a little each day if you can. Study the craft of writing. One good way is through reading books by published authors in the genre you want to write not for the purpose of imitation, but to learn through these authors how they conveyed their story and then develop your own style and original voice in the process.

Clutch: How has the Internet and Social Media helped you as a writer?
CR: The Internet is a crucial part of my research for any book that I write. In addition, it is a wonderful marketing tool from my personal web site www.cherylrobinson.com and my myspace page www.myspace.com/cherylrobinson as well as other sites, which are available for marketing and selling books.

Clutch: Tell us about your current book?
CR: In Love With A Younger Man will be released on January 6, 2009 wherever books are sold. The story begins in 1984. Olena Day is being taken off to Howard University by her parents to attend her first year in college. Through this time period, the reader will learn Olena’s backstory and then the story jumps to twenty-five years later. Now, she is a successful, single, forty-three year old corporate professional with a year long sabbatical on the horizon after a career of hard work and little play. All she wants to do is explore that part of her life her job has left too little time for–her personal life. She is also an aspiring writer who would love to finish the book that has been left inside of her mind for so many years. During her time off, she explores a new city and sets off to spend some of the money she’s been investing for years. She meets a man who is eighteen years her junior. But he isn’t the only man vying for her attention. It is the mystery of love that leaves Olena wondering whether true love can conquer all and questioning if it is possible for her to love two men or whether she must make a choice.

Clutch: What advice would you give to up and coming writers?
CR: Make sure you pick a good agent. And pick one who believes in you and who will push for you. Many will say it’s harder to find a literary agent than it is to get your first book deal, but whatever you do take the time to do your research before you make a decision. The best scenario is to sign with a great agent who loves your work and who sells it to a publishing company who believes in you as well and that way the marriage can last forever and so will the book deals. Above all, believe in your work and don’t rush your story because again, a great story will open many doors.

Clutch: Who or what inspired you to become a writer?
FP: There were a lot of inspirations from the lyricists of hip-hop to my mother to my college English professor who told me to pursue writing as a career. But it’s funny because even with all of those inspirations, it took me a long time to embrace the title “writer.” Fear is a mofo.

Clutch: If you weren’t a writer, what do you think you would be doing?
FP: Well I went to school for business and worked in marketing for some time. I also worked in book publishing. I think I would probably still be working in book publishing, maybe as an editor. Although I do have these closet fantasies of being a professional dancer (think backup for Missy Elliot versus Alvin Ailey) or an interior designer.

Clutch: In your opinion, what’s the one thing one must possess if they want to become a professional writer?
FP: The ability to overcome the emotional agony of the act and business of writing. Okay that sounds a little cynical, but it’s pretty true. It’s real in the field and you have to be able to put rejection, critics, writer’s block and self-doubt to the side and still embrace your inner creativity.

Clutch: How has the internet and Social Media helped you as a writer?
FP: Both have been tremendous in my career in more ways than I can name. One, they have been instrumental in the promotion of my work. Second, they’ve been great for research and networking. They’ve also allowed a space to “practice” writing through blogs, updates, online rants, etc.. They’ve also been great distractions when I’m procrastinating.

Clutch: Tell us about your current book.
FP: My current book is THE MESSAGE: 100 Life Lessons From Hip-Hop’s Greatest Songs is a collection of essays that explores what we can learn from the multitude of stories that drip from good hip-hop songs–from ideas on politics, love, relationships, careers, ambition, and more. Think of it as a literary mixtape.

Clutch: What advice would you give to up and coming writers?
FP: Yeah it is supposed to feel like “that” when you’re creating. If you feel “that” (which many times is a mixture of fear, uncertainty, agony, anxiety, happiness, freedom, euphoria) then you’re on the right track. Write like your life depends on it. Silence naysayers with your pen or keystroke.