[close] Raised in the gritty Central Ward of Newark, New Jersey, Meesha Mink beat the odds of being raised in a single family home. Thankfully, with a strong and resilient mother who worked hard and struggled not to raise her two children in the projects, Meesha Mink knew there was more to life than just drugs and violence. From a young age, her mother introduced her to reading and used it as a tool to teach Meesha and her brother to know more so that they wanted more.

While unsatisfied with her career after graduating college with a double major and a minor, she began writing short stories for African-American romance magazines. She soon gained the confidence to write a full-length novel–an African-American romance–which eventually led to the completion of a dream as the first book she ever finished was offered a two book deal by two publishers. She has since written nearly ten books under a different name in the romance and womens fiction/mainstream genres.

Interested in telling the stories of the urban environment which help shaped her into being both street savvy and educated, she felt the urban fiction genre was calling to her.

Her urban fiction debut, written with her good friend De’Nesha Diamond, led to an amazing deal with Simon & Schusters’ Touchstone line.

Meesha Mink wants people to know that the stories about inner cities needs to be as diverse as the people who live in these environments. “Growing up on 16th Ave in Newark all my life, I know in a one block radius you could either have a single mother or a married couple raising their family, a dope dealer or people working forty hours a week, a homeowner or someone renting a low income apartment. For me, urban fiction isn’t about glorifying the negatives in the ‘hood, but simply telling the real stories that do exist. As a writer and a reader I can always respect the gift of storytelling of ALL stories.”

Currently, the author spends her time split between South Carolina and New Jersey. She’s busy at work on a third full-length book with De’Nesha Diamond.
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