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Urban Reviews:
Tell us about The Blues For Annie Mae.
D. J. Parhams:
Well Annie Mae, the main
character, is a lost, tortured soul. And like so many of us,
she has lost her way. But through her heartships, she
becomes a better person. While wading through her murky
waters, she finds redemption and learns how to get on with
this business called life.
Urban Reviews:
Where did you get the idea for this novel?
D. J. Parhams:
It was really kinda wild how Annie Mae
came to me. I was on my way to work one morning,
riding on the bus, more sleepy that I was awake. I
closed my eyes on the edge of dozing off and this little
girl comes into my minds eye. She's jumping rope...wrump...wrump...wrump...with
her braids flapping up & down and she says to me, " My name
is Annie Mae," wrump....wrump...wrump..."and you're gonna
write about me," wrump...wrump...wrump. After that I began
writing her story, layer upon layer.
Urban Reviews: What
inspired you to pen your first book?
D. J. Parhams:
Well, the inspiration I just described
had a great deal to do with it. But I was at a very
frustrating and painful point in my life and I felt that I
had only one place to go and that was to the power of a
keyboard. Pecking and pounding at those keys really
illuminated my way and helped me through a lot of rough
events.
Urban Reviews: Why
did you choose to self-publish your novel?
D. J. Parhams:
I don't accept rejection very well,
and the rejection notices were beginning to mount. It took
Bernice McFadden 12 years before she was finally picked up
by a publishing company, and I knew I didn't have that kind
of stamina.
Urban Reviews: What
have you learned about the book industry as a relatively new
author?
D. J. Parhams:
The book industry is like any other
industry. I believe that it's more interested in profit than
it is art. I self-published initially because I was afraid
of rejection, but I still encounter it as far as bookstores
and such. Because I don't have an established name,
they often refuse to carry my title or grant me a reading.
That's why I'm so grateful for Urban Reviews for granting me
this opportunity.
Urban Reviews: Any
upcoming projects?
D. J. Parhams:
Well, I have another novel rattling
around in my head, but for me writing is very visceral, so I
have to wait until I'm ready to completely submerge myself
and completely surrender myself to my characters.
Urban Reviews: Who
are some of your favorite authors?
D. J. Parhams:
For some obscure reason, I really
enjoy a great deal of the old school writers like Richard
Wright, Zora Neale Hurston and Maya Angelou. As far as
contemporary writers, I get a lot from Lolita Files and
Octavia Butler's Kindred.
Urban Reviews: What
do you want the world to know most about you?
D. J. Parhams:
Sometimes when you're writing a book,
having friends is so important. They say it takes a village
to raise a child...and sometimes it takes a village to write
a book. I don't think I would have finished my book if it
wasn't for the encouragement of my friends/my village. |
