A Conversation with Anna J.

What is a story without an in depth understanding of the person responsible for the fantasy you've thrown yourself into? To be given the chance to learn about the author who choose writing as a form of self expression, all so you could piece together the characteristics of a writer whose face you've imagined as their book cover. Imagine no more, long time author Anna J came from behind the pages of her novels and instead of describing characters and entertaining events talks about a character she knows best, herself. 

My Urban Books: Tell us about the first time you ever thought about becoming a writer.

Anna J:  I’ve never thought about becoming a writer. For some reason, and I can only give God the glory, whatever I put my mind to it just gets done, and he’s always put people in my path to make things happen. I’ve always been a teller of stories. I remember even as a child writing little short stories, then in my teen years writing TONS of poetry. I’ve always been an avid reader, and some of the books that I was reading at the time wasn’t giving me what I was looking for in a great book. I’m the type of person that if I can’t find what I want, I create it. I knew what I wanted in a book, and sat down and wrote my first book that was published in 2002. A lot of people think My Woman His Wife was my first published work, but I actually did a project with another author by the name of Ken Divine called Stories to Excite You through Kensington Press. However, it wasn’t until 2004, and MWHW that people began to know who I was. Shout out to Mark Anthony for giving me a shot when Q-Boro books was on the scene.

My Urban Books: Describe yourself as a child.

Anna J: I was quiet. Shy. Sneaky. Kept to myself. Childhood was rough. Real rough. We grew up in the projects. Then was shuffled around to family members when my middle sister passed away at the age of three. As a child I can’t ever remember feeling loved by anyone. I was more so tolerated. I had to fend for myself early on, and I just made me a stronger person. I knew for certain that the life I had been living I didn’t want as an adult, so I did everything I had to do to walk in the opposite direction. I knew I was capable of giving and receiving love. I knew that being angry all the time was not normal. I knew that if I wanted better I had to do better. I knew and know depression all too well, so my stories deal with the things that I remember feeling growing up. Snow White was damn near a memoir, and was very painful to write. The adult me can look at the younger me and appreciate my resilience.  

My Urban Books: Did you have a mentor growing up? If so, whom?

Anna J: Unfortunately, I didn’t. I didn’t learn until later in life that I was the one everyone was looking up to. I literally started at the very bottom early in life. Shit was rough, and I can’t say that enough. However, I made the best out of it, and it made me a different person as I got older.

My Urban Books: How are you as a reader? Are you picky? Are you a fast reader?

Anna J: A book has to catch me from the beginning. I can read a book in a day if it’s a page turner. I’m picky, but open to any genre. I doesn’t have to be street, or by a black author. I’ll read just about anything, but self-help books are my go to.

My Urban Books: If any, what is the biggest mistake you’ve made as a writer and how did you fix/overcome it?

Anna J: If I had to claim a “mistake” it would be not believing in myself more. I let a lot of opportunities fly by because I was intimidated, or I allowed people that didn’t have my best interest at heart, talk me out of it. I was my own worst enemy, but constantly placed the blame on everyone else. I had an issue with ownership, and owning shit. As I got older, I came to realized that I can do whatever I want. So now I just do it.

My Urban Books: Are there one or two questions you hoped a reader would ask you but never did? If so, what are these questions?

Anna J: People ask me anything that comes to mind. The crazy part is trying to get people to believe that I’m not writing about myself. (LOL) For a good while, people thought I was Monica when MWHW came out. Then I released My Little Secret in 2008 and wrote about an author that was in love with Monica, and they were right back on it. Plenty of times, when I do book clubs and book signings, people wanted to know how it felt to write my life story. I promise, it’s all made up… kind of. (LMAO) They say the best writing comes from experience.  

My Urban Books: What is your biggest fear as a writer? 

Anna J: I don’t claim fear. It invites negativity into your head, heart, and space. You can’t believe in God and have fear. What is promised to me, it will be mine. Now, my biggest frustration as a writer is just writing the story. I have a habit of re-reading chapters a million times instead of just moving forward. I have a thing about a polished script. I hate typo’s, I hate inconsistencies, and before I can move forward it has to make sense to me. If I don’t understand what I’m saying, how can I expect the reader to get it?

My Urban Books: How do you handle bad reviews?

Anna J: I’m mature enough to handle them now. We want everyone to love everything we write. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always work out that way. What I do now is try to find the real issue someone has with my work so that I can do better on the next one. I’m talking about a REAL review that states what they found flawed. A review that contains substance. I remember years ago when MWHW came out, someone wrote a review on Amazon saying they wasted paper printing my book. I was crushed! I printed the review and stuck it in my notebook, and I kept it as a reminder that there will always be someone that won’t like what you wrote. I went on to make the Essence Best Sellers list plenty of times after that, and I penned eight more novels. In my mind, I give my best every time. Some will love it, some won’t, and I’m okay with that.

My Urban Books: How do you balance writing and your personal life?

Anna J: I have no clue! Everything just all kind of mesh together. I write, bake, work, working on my second degree, craft… I literally do way too much. I have to block out time to spend with my spouse and family because they keep me sane. I need everything to be exactly what it is, because when anything starts to feel like it’s more work than I’m willing to do I become uninterested immediately. So I’m not sure how I balance anything. I just always get it done. Even if it means not sleeping for a week.

My Urban Books: What’s the secret to surviving in the literary world for all these years?

Anna J: Drink your water and mind your business. (LOL) And that’s the entire truth! Don’t get caught up in industry beef. Don’t share your ideas with anyone outside of your immediate circle. Don’t put all of your opportunities in one basket. Don’t tell anyone anything you don’t want anybody else to know. Don’t go into business with your friends, because when things go wrong you definitely won’t be friends anymore. Stay consistent. Don’t take on more projects than you can handle. Walk away when you get tired of it all, and then come back when you’re ready again.  It’s okay to say no to a project if you know you’re not ready. More opportunities will come. These are industry lessons AND life lessons. Some lessons were harder than others. All needed, now that I look back on it.

My Urban Books: If you could write with anyone who is currently deceased who would it be?

Anna J: E. Lynn Harris. I fell in love with his writing early on. I love his vision and the way he told stories. He gave us complete characters with real life situations that were relatable. He took every word he could come up with and made magic. Still to this day, I will pull out his books and read from the beginning. I still see people that would make a dope Basil Henderson in an adapted to film or TV of any of his books. His impact in the literary world was major, and when he passed we all felt it. I’ve never read anyone else’s work like his before or after his passing. He’s like the Luther Vandross of the book world. (LOL) There will never be another him.  

If I could pick another person, it would be L.A. Banks. Leslie was everything every girl book writer wanted to be. Her versatility was unmatched, and her imagination… if I could have just been a fly on the wall in her head. I loved all of Leslie’s work, but when she hit the scene with a black Vampire Huntress series, that real Black Girl Magic showed up and showed all the way out! Who thinks of a black vampire huntress? Leslie, and she killed it. She invited us into a realm that we probably would have skipped right over had she not given us characters that looked us.   

My Urban Books: What advise do you have for new and aspiring authors?

Anna J: Finish the book. That’s the hardest thing to do. If you get an idea for a different project write it down, but get back to that current project. A  notebook is your friend. I still have the same journal I purchased back in 2002 that I write my ideas in. Character developments, possible story lines, book titles, all of that goes into that book. Also, claim it! I’ve never aspired to be an author. I’m an author. I write. I tell stories. I create works of fiction. It’s not an aspiration, it’s a fact! You may never reach your goal aspiring to get there. Just own it, and the rest will fall into place.