FEATURED AUTHOR - Deatri King-Bey

Shades Of Romance Magazine: Please give the readers a brief bio on you the person and the writer.

Deatri King-Bey: I have three daughters and have been married for eighteen years to the greatest man in the world. I live outside of Chicago, but was raised further down state in Decatur, IL. I love to be outdoors, so much so that my family teases me for “watching the grass grow.”

I’m a fiction content editor by trade and love working with authors. Being an author on the other end of the editing spectrum was quite interesting for me. I do my own writing at least two hours a day and read one novel a week for pleasure. Science Fiction, Fantasy and romance are my favorite genres. I’m even writing a fantasy romance and have written a science fiction romance.

SORMAG: Tell us about your current book?

KING-BEY: How would you feel if your beloved father turned out not to be your father? Then you find out he used to launder money for the number one drug syndicate in the world. Don’t stop there… What if your biological father turned out to be the head of the drug syndicate the man you thought was your father worked for?

Needless to say, Rosa Bolívar, the heroine in my novel Caught Up, brings in her thirtieth year with a bang. Then the DEA comes to her and says Ernesto Bolívar, the man she thought was her biological father, is presently the number two man in the largest drug syndicate in the world. Though Rosa’s faith in Ernesto has been shaken, she knows the DEA is wrong and sets out to prove he’s a changed man. Unfortunately, she may be wrong, thus DEA agent Samson Quartermaine has appointed himself her protector.

SORMAG: What would you like your readers to take away from your book?

KING-BEY: If you do not face and deal with the demons from your past, they will catch up with you and eventually run you over. Each main character in Caught Up is running from some issue (demon) in his/her past. Some choose to stop running and confront, other’s choose to keep running.

SORMAG: Do you ever have a hard time letting go of a character after the novel is finished?

KING-BEY: Not really. I think that’s because I work on two or three books at a time.

SORMAG: Tell us about your publishing experience?

KING-BEY: I’m used to seeing the publishing experience through the eyes of an editor, but seeing it from the eyes of an author was nerve racking at first. Just because you can edit, doesn’t mean you have that natural creative umph you need to be a good writer. Overall my experience was very good. I plan to do it again, and again, and again… LOL.

SORMAG: What resources do you use on the net?

KING-BEY: Wow, there are so many great sites out there. Here are a few any writer could use.

http://www.howstuffworks.com/ I don’t know how anything works. If you are anything like me, this is a great spot to start your research.

http://www.infoplease.com A great spot to start your research, this site contains almanacs, an encyclopedia, atlas, dictionary, thesaurus, white pages… My favorite sections are the almanacs and atlas.

http://www.wunderground.com/ If you want the climate in your novel to be accurate, this is the place to go. It even has sunrise and sunset times, moon illumination… You can pick a particular date…

http://realsista0.tripod.com/id1.html The Yahoo group associated with this website is excellent. I’m talking writing articles and exercises, industry news, great community…

SORMAG: What’s it like to hold your first book?

KING-BEY: Unbelievable!!!! I remember when I received a copy of the first book I edited. I still have a copy of the cover in my scrapbook. I was soooo excited I about fainted! Okay, so I still feel this huge surge of pride and excitement when one of the books I’ve edited hits the shelves. Well quadruple that feeling, then multiply it by a zillion, and you just about have the feeling of holding your first book.

SORMAG: What aspect of writing do you love the best, and which do you hate the most?

KING-BEY: The aspect I love the best is developing the plot. I can’t STAND writing the synopsis (ssshhhh don’t tell anyone).

SORMAG: What’s something you wish you’d known earlier that might have saved you some time/frustration in the publishing business?

KING-BEY: I didn’t start submitting until I had been in the business for a few years, so I was fortunate enough to learn from others’ mistakes. The main issue I saw when I worked in acquisitions was people would submit work that definitely would not fit our publishing house. Aspiring writers… make that writers period… do yourself a favor and read books from the publishing houses you wish to submit to. See if your work would fit in that house and where. This will help reduce on the rejection letters you receive.

SORMAG: How can readers get in contact with you? (mail, email, website)

KING-BEY: I can be reached at deatri@deewrites.com or

Deatri King-Bey
2405 Essington RD. Unit B
PMB 212
Joliet, IL 60435
Or catch me on the web at http://www.deewrites.com

I’d just like to take a second to thank LaShaunda for everything she has done for the writing community. I joined her online forum years ago when I first decided to get serious about writing. She has helped so many of us, and I am truly grateful for her.
As always, Much Joy Peace and Love
Deatri King-Bey