Urban-Reviews.com - Inside Out with Nathanial Portis

Nathanial Portis

Nathanial Portis lives in New England, where he works in community development as a volunteer mentor for various youth mentoring programs. In addition to his passion for writing, Nathanial Portis is a software engineer. He splits his time between work and his passion of writing.

Nathanial's first novel, Things In Between, was released in February of 2005 and re-released in June of 2007. It was well received by readers. The much-anticipated second novel, Married To a Married Man, was released April 2007 and is receiving rave reviews all across the country.

Nathanial Portis is quickly becoming the talk of the literary industry. He has been featured in Essence magazine and interviewed on some of the hottest online reading groups, including Black Men in America, www.blackmeninamerica.com/jt.htm featured by Jessica Tilles; various online radio shows; and Romance Readers, just to name a few.

Read A Full Excerpt of Things In Between: Click Here (.pdf file)

Author's Official Site: http://www.nathanialportis.com
Author's Myspace Page: http://www.myspace.com/nathanialportis
Contact The Author: Click Here
Order Your Copy of Things In Between: Click Here

Urban Reviews: Can you tell us about your novel Things In Between?
Nathanial Portis: Things in Between is an urban fiction that was originally released in 2005. It has been re-released with an alternate ending that ties into my romance novel. Things In Between received excellent reviews during its short release. It's the story of a young man from the inner city who struggles against all odds to make it through college while dealing with some pretty serious things at home while being forced to grab his independence at an early age

Urban Reviews: Where did you come up with the concept for this novel?
Nathanial Portis: I wanted to write a book that dealt with young black men in college; too often we read books about drug dealers, pimps and hustlers who grow up in the hood, stay in the hood and die or get killed in the hood. I wanted to write about the many from the hood who get out because they do have some stories to tell. Unlike the movies, the story for the character in Things In Between (Cameron) starts when he leaves the hood and goes off to college.

Urban Reviews: Did you find it difficult to write this story?
Nathanial Portis: Things In Between was my first novel and it only took me a few months to write. I did enjoy writing this book because the characters were lined with me.

Urban Reviews: What research did you do before writing this story?
Nathanial Portis: For most of the book, I went off my own experience while in college, but I also used my creative writing skills a lot to create some of the characters and situations that took place.

Urban Reviews: You also have a romance novel book out called Married to a Married Man. What is this book all about?
Nathanial Portis: Married to a Married Man is yet another book about a young man from the hood; Dean Reaves is an ex convict who gets an education while in prison (with the encouragement of his wife) then moves out of the hood with his wife and daughter. He invested in a business that later grows into a multi-billion dollar industry making Dean the most powerful executive in the USA. He meets a young lady, (Harvard graduate) Kala Brown who is just as ambitious and aggressive as he is and the two start a ten year affair that takes a roller coaster ride of emotions that will have readers glued to their books. Also to add some excitement into the book, Married to a Married Man and Things In Between both end with the same chapter...which most readers enjoy.

Urban Reviews: Your two novels span two different genres. Are there other genres that you might try out in the future?
Nathanial Portis: Its funny you ask that, I do plan on writing in other genres, my goal is to write at least one book in six different genres: Fiction, Romance, Non-Fiction, Mystery, Sci-Fi and one Horror. Then I think I will retire writing novels unless something remarkable happens.

Urban Reviews: Both of your novels were released under Quick Quest Publications. What was the reason behind this move and would you consider jumping to a major in the future?
Nathanial Portis: I've never shopped around for a major publisher. Quick Quest Publications is a small publishing company that I invested in with a group of professionals and so far they seem to be treating me pretty well. We've went through some growing pains, but the path of the light is pretty clear and those guys have some great things planned for the future that I want to be a part of.

Urban Reviews: Who are some of your inspirations when it comes to the writing world?
Nathanial Portis: I like James Patterson's writing skills, I also enjoy Donald Goines writing details and I'm pretty cool with Hickson, Richard Jeanty, Zane, and Michael Dyson, Allison Hobbs, and a gang of other authors that I respect.

Urban Reviews: What do you believe is your biggest challenge as a relatively new author?
Nathanial Portis: My biggest challenge is giving too much. Sometimes at book signings I try to spend a little too much time with every reader who is buying my book, and sometimes I get so caught up that I have to push the conversations on for the person waiting behind them.

Urban Reviews: What projects do you have planned for the future?
Nathanial Portis: In the future, I will be releasing Diversity and Why Corporate America Must Achieve It, which will be my first non-fiction release. After that, I'm releasing a book titled Treat Her Like A Lady. I'm also working on some screenplay writing with some other writers at Quick Quest Publications.

Urban Reviews: Any final words you want to leave with readers about yourself or your books?
Nathanial Portis: I would just like to thank the reading community and the people who support all of us authors and writers; also I would like to give my condolences to the family of Mr. Lloyd E. Hart JR. of the Black Library in Boston MA. Mr. Hart provided a great service for the people of Boston and also was whom I did my first book signing with. Lloyd has always supported all authors and will be greatly missed.