Sheyanne Warren's Blog, page 3

Say You're Sorry

I am currently reading Say you're Sorry by Karen Rose. I have read a few of her books and love her writing style. I am only about 10% of the way through this book, maybe shorter (a few chapters out of a 400 + page book) and it has already gotten good. It has introduced a serial killer and the way he kills and how he chooses victims. I tried to abduct his next victim, the main character, but she fought him off. In the process she accidentally took something from him, a trophy, and it links to the second main character and his past he is trying to bury. Not only are these types of books my favorite genre they also give me insight when I write and choose to write using different perspectives. What are you guys reading?

I got my start with African American Novels

My mother is a quick reader. Growing up my grandparents made reading important but as I got older it was my mother who really inspired me. She read African American Urban novels. Going into middle school I read books like "the babysitter's club" and "Junnie B Jones". As I progressed through middle school I seen peers reading African American Novels, especially books by Zane. I remember going home and asking my mother could I borrow hers to read and she told me no. I then became self conscious and stopped bringing books to school, would only read at home. There was one day when my mother finally let me read what I wanted, her books, when I was going into high school. I became immersed in the culture of the books. I never really understood the different perspective an African American author could bring to a book. I grew up with only black dolls and being immersed in an environment where I seen people succeeding who looked like me. I found myself stuck in the drug dealer and girlfriend, crime filled books. As I went through high school I got sick of having the images of black people that I read, and saw through the media being negative. I then went looking for different genera's of books. I stumbled upon Cynthia Eden in the library one day. I used to take trips to the library and book store and ended up staying and reading either the whole book or a majority of it. I picked up one of her novels and fell in love with the paranormal world. I started going down the list and reading everything she has ever wrote. Shapeshifters and Vampires became the only genera of book I would read. I went from Cynthia Eden to Shelly Laurenston and would only read books in the paranormal drama/suspense genera. In college Twilight descended on popular culture and that further solidified my preference of books. I haven't went back to seeking African American authors until recently. I still don't read "hood books" as i call them. I look for African American authors who wrote suspense, drama and mystery but I screened the books heavily. My first real series that I read by an African American author since I was in high school is the McClain Brothers series by Alexandria House. I love the relatibility to my culture in the book without being 100% negative with stereotypes jumping out at us. I am all aware of living in my truth and owning your true self. however, just like music and movies, I do not think books need to be all about the negative aspects of my culture in order to be a representation of my culture. Drop some of your favorite authors below. What books changed your life?

I love writing but I still struggled

Writing is easy for me. Whether I am writing a poem, story, book, essay or research paper I love to write and I get lost in the world I am creating. I can sit for hours and write, and read. I first started this book at work. I am a teacher's assistant for at risk youth in middle school. There was one day when all of our kids were absent and I decided to past the time by writing. Now, here me out, I have started to write a book 1000 times in the past. I get a few chapters in and then life happens and I move on. I had no real intention of keeping with it this time. A few days later I was still writing, during my breaks or during class time when I was able to sit at my desk. The teacher in the room praised me for writing a book and it wasn't until that moment when I told myself I was going to keep at it. So I kept at it, but only at work. I would leave work and spend a few hours at my part time job, then go home and eat, shower and binge on tv. I had plenty of excuses like 'I have no lap desk' and 'I am so exhausted' but I knew they were nothing but excuses. I went the whole summer without writing one sentence. I read plenty, I had a summer job where I basically sat in one spot for 12 hours able to do just about anything to pass the time. I got to a book a shift or maybe a shift and a half but I didn't even think about writing. Until I got back to school in September and that fire was lit again, but only at school. I don't know why school gave me the drive to write. No matter where I am once I sit down and begin, that's it. I'm out for hours getting lost in what I am writing. It wasn't until I was searching for publishers and they began giving me deadlines to review my manuscript that I forced myself to write when I left work. I went from getting a few paragraphs a day done to chapters at a time when I wrote outside of work.

New Author

I am 28 years old and have just published my first book. I am an avid reader and can go through a pretty big book in a day. Writing has always came easy to me from creative leisure writing to essays and research papers. I began my reading career, when I began to read independently, with reading my mother's books. She loves African American Urban books. In high school I started to venture out and fell in love with Cynthia Eden. I began to venture into suspense, thriller, mystery and paranormal drama from there and have been on that path ever since. I have a master's degree in forensic psychology. I like learning why people do the atypical things they do and then like to put replacement behaviors to help best succeed in today's society. Right now I am working with at risk youth in a middle school setting. I am excited to began this next chapter of my life!