C. Kelly Robinson – Author, THE STRONG, SILENT TYPE; THE PERFECT BLEND; NO MORE MR. NICE GUY; BETWEEN BROTHERS...

Where are you from? The birthplace of aviation – Dayton, Ohio. Also known as The Gem City, home to Paul Laurence Dunbar, and other touchstones of the nation’s culture.

Tell us your latest news? My fourth novel, THE STRONG, SILENT TYPE, was published by Penguin/New American Library in January. My fifth, THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY, was released in January ’06.

When did you first consider yourself a writer? When I completed my first novel manuscript and began to garner praise from total strangers – that’s when I knew I had the innate talent. Some of my teachers in junior high and high school planted the seed of that recognition, but I wasn’t writing fiction material regularly at that point. So it took the praise of strangers, those with no reason to respect my feelings, to confirm I had something to work with.

What inspired you to pen your first novel? I wrote BETWEEN BROTHERS out of a desire to present a well-rounded portrayal of young, ambitious Black men and some of the obstacles we overcome in growing beyond boyhood.

Who or what has influenced your writing, and in what way? I’m inspired by the talent of great writers – examples for me include Richard Wright, BeBe Moore Campbell, Scott Turow, and Walter Mosley – and by everyday events that lead me to ask, what would my characters do in that situation?

How has your environment/upbringing colored your writing? I grew up in a stable, loving, very middle-class home, so I’m sure that has impact on my writing. I think I probably have a built-in desire to show my characters progressing toward healthy, stable relationships that can eventually make for the type of home environment I enjoyed. That said, I know that everyone’s home experience is unique and an enjoyable challenge for me as a writer is getting into the heads of people from all walks of life.

What genre are you most comfortable writing? Writing commercial/relationship fiction comes most easily because that’s been my focus for several years running. However, I’m doing some nonfiction writing now and am enjoying the challenge of conducting interviews and molding real people’s experiences into a coherent form. In addition, I harbor the dream of writing a viable mystery novel some day.

Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp? With each book, I usually focus on a certain type of affliction or social issue and work it into the plot line, but I don’t have one set lesson or theme I want people to “learn.” I’m more interested in challenging people to think even while entertaining them.

How much of the novel is realistic? THE STRONG, SILENT TYPE is a complete work of fiction – I’ve never known people who perfectly fit either Deacon or Maria’s descriptions. However, a lot of the emotions in the story are realistic and came out of my own experience: Deacon’s embarrassment over his stuttering and its impact on his confidence in his role as a father and a husband; Maria’s desire to hide certain parts of her past; and the idiosyncrasies of several of the supporting characters.

What books have most influenced your life? NATIVE SON by Richard Wright was big for me, the first piece of literature I read by a Black man. That combined with praise from my parents and teachers got me thinking about being a writer.

What are you reading now? STATE OF FEAR by Michael Crichton, which I picked up after finishing Zora Neale Hurston’s THEIR EYES WERE WATCHING GOD.

What are your current projects? THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY, my next novel, which features a pivotal character from NO MORE MR. NICE GUY. An ambitious business executive has a near-death experience that motivates him to strike out after his college sweetheart, who is inconveniently married with children.

Do you feel more African Americans are reading? Definitely. To be honest, I am conflicted about the young readers whose only sustenance comes from the gang-bang novels, but at least it gets them into books. In time hopefully they’ll find me and other commercial authors, then eventually graduate to the literary and non-fiction authors.

Name one entity that you feel supported you outside of family members. Black booksellers in general did me a service in getting off the ground. I think one of the saddest things about the growth of the African-American book market is that so much of the revenue now flows through the Wal-Marts of the world instead of our own stores.

Do you see writing as a long- or short-term career? Long-term. I’ll always be writing something, hopefully I’ll be able to get paid for it as well!

Is there anything additional you would like to share with your readers? If you’re a reader, plain and simple, THANK YOU. Please continue to support my work because every sale keeps me viable. If you’re an aspiring writer, just know that rejection doesn’t mean you won’t eventually be in print and hit numerous bestseller lists. There was a time it looked like I would never get published by a major company, and now I’m looking at having my 5th commercially-published novel roll out. Hone your craft, get honest feedback, take some risks if you really want to do this thing, and see what happens.

Self-Publishing Questions:

How do you feel overall about self-publishing? Only do it if you’re determined to take a real shot at making a career of this thing.

What are the strengths and weaknesses of promotion for self-published authors? It costs a whole lot of money to get in front of enough people to have a profitable level of sales. Just make sure you enjoy pressing the flesh and dealing with a lot of up-front rejection. If you do, you can actually have a lot of success.

Would you encourage or mentor someone to become self-publish? It would depend on their goals and frankly, on their personality. It’s not for everybody, but for a person with a lot of free time, a decent source of cash, and a ton of personality, it can pay off in a major way.

Visit: www.ckellyrobinson.com

[Interview edited]

 

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