|
Within the past year, entertainment reporter Lacy Foxx
has been through the ringer. Not only did she break up with her ex-fiance’ Sebastian, but she suffered a miscarriage
of their twin babies. Now that she’s come up from the depths of heartbreak, this twenty-something, single sister needs
some lovin’... While covering a story she meets the arrogant, but sexy Wynn and he’s just the man to fit the bill.
But when he goes from “bootie call” to “boyfriend,” his dark secrets start spilling out every way
Lacy turns. As she questions his faithfulness, she’s also got to confront her own. And it doesn’t help that her
grandmother makes sure that Sebastian is in her face every chance she gets. Everybody thinks they know what’s best for
her, but it’s high time she found out for herself…
Meet Michelle
Buckley Author of " Bulletproof
Soul" MB: I wanted to tell an entertaining story that celebrated women and
our resiliency. Black women especially go through a lot in life and it’s
amazing to me how so many of us are not destroyed by the things that happen to us. I
wanted to honor that strength of spirit. Also, I wanted to write a story that celebrated
the relationship between grandparents and grandchildren. Additionally, I wanted to write an anti-‘Men are
Dogs’ book. Good, take-your-breath-away men do exist. The men in this book aren’t perfect. They’re flawed
and misunderstood. They’re not out hurting people intentionally. They realize they’re flawed and aren’t particularly proud of the fact. But, like the rest of us, they’re simply human beings attempting to navigate life’s tricky
lessons. At their core, all of my characters are struggling to be good people
who do the right thing. But, they’re only human and prone to making mistakes. Some of the characters are
based on real people and others aren't. I'm keeping to myself, which is which! :-) MB:
A writer friend once said to me that writing is the fingerprint of her soul on paper!
And I couldn’t agree more. In
the past, because of my writing, people have thanked me for saying things they couldn’t express. I want to continue to be able to allow people to pick up something I’ve written and see their own
soul; their own stories written there on the page.
That’s what motivates me. I'm inspired by
real life, not fantasy land. In Bulletproof Soul, I've written about love,
death, career challenges, family interference, friendship drama, infidelity, infertility, betrayal, forgiveness, single motherhood
. . . these are issues that have affected many of us. I’m dedicated to
dealing with real issues because it’s a way of connecting honestly with readers.
And if I provide a little hope, inspiration or perspective along the way . . . that’s great. And God put other wonderful people
in path. Monica Jackson, a writer based out of Topeka, referred me to Donna Hill,
a best-selling author, who at the time was also acting as an agent. Donna liked
my book and agreed to represent me. She then sold the book to Carl Weber,
who owns Urban Books, which is distributed by Kensington, a major publisher/distributor.
Around Christmas 2003, I got a 2-book deal offer from Carl Weber and that was the best Christmas gift I could have
asked for. Additionally,
I like Edith Wharton who creates strong, moral, duty-bound female characters. House
of Mirth and The Age of Innocence are two of my favorites. And of course I’m
influenced by Carl Weber -- the King of Drama. Donna Hill, the Queen of classy stories and Monica Jackson,
one of the funniest writers on the planet. For those that are serious and are writing, it's also easy to get discouraged during the process. Whenever I
thought -- "there is no way I'll finish a 300 page book" or "my writing is off", I would just go to those portions of my manuscript that I thought were well-written and I would re-read those passages!
That really encouraged me to keep at it! Finally, once the book is done, I’ve learned the hard way that you can’t
share your dream of writing with just anybody, instead share your dream with only people who will help you nurture it.
Show your writing only to people that support what you're doing and people who will give honest, CONSTRUCTIVE criticism.
Also finding writing mentors, reading other writers you admire and learning about the craft and the industry are
extremely important and will only help you in the long run!
|