Interviews

Meet Literary Wonder, Yolanda M. Johnson-Bryant : Author and Freelance Writer

"Becoming an Author is by No Means an Easy Task, but it is Well Worth it in the End."

Yolanda M. Johnson-Bryant is an author, freelance writer and the owner of Literary Wonders! and Bryant Consulting. Mrs. Johnson-Bryant is the self-published author of Circumstances and the publisher and co-author of Crimes of Passion: The Anthology. She is currently working five different titles, three of which she hopes to release in 2010.

Introduce yourself our readers.
Hello everyone. My name is Yolanda M. Johnson-Bryant. I am a self-published author. I am the owner of Literary Wonders! www.literarywonders.com and Bryant Consulting www.bryantconsultingonline.com. In addition to being a self- published author, I am an editor, ghostwriter and literary advocate. Literary Wonders! attempts to help writers, mainly new and self-published writers by providing them with valuable resources and basic FREE promotion. We also conduct anthology and scholarship projects.

Tell us about your books.
I originally started with a self-published title, My Daughter's Keeper, in 2005. It was my first published work and I have to tell you, I knew nothing about the industry. I bought an ISBN from a friend and basically let him do all the work that when it was over, that friend basically had all the rights to my work. Let's just say that after a while, the friend and I lost contact. 

As I learned more about the industry, I decided to re-write, re-name and re-publish the book and named it Circumstances. It was published in 2006. The book's main character, Renee Matthews, is finding it difficult to find herself and her way in life. Although she has the dream job, social status and the to-die-for man friend, she struggles with her relationship with her mother. Since she could remember, her mother had always had it in for her. She loathed and despised her own daughter and did whatever she could to disrupt Renee's life. All of this negative affection from her mother cause Renee to turn down the marriage proposal of a lifetime. Renee later falls in love with another and is headed down the aisle, until her mother finds out. The story weaves through constant dysfunction between a mother and child and shows the affects that generational curses can have on our sons and our daughters.

Later in 2006, through my company Literary Wonders!, I published Crimes of Passion: The Anthology which includes a host of great authors such as Vincent Alexandria, Rhonda Lawson, John Wooden, Linda Wilson, John Wooden, TL Gardner and Sydney Molare. The various stories deal with the crazy and crazier things we will do for love.

Currently I am working on the sequel to Circumstances, it is titled Revelations. I'm working on an action novel with two other authors, our next anthology as well as two other titles. I hope to have at least three out by end of the year.

Why did you become a writer?
I don't think I can really give a valid answer for why I became a writer, because I've always loved to write since I was young. When I was little I wrote poetry, then from there I went on to songs for a girl group I belonged to in high school, then onto short stories. What made me write my first novel was my divorce from my first husband. I kept a journal and after leaving him, went back over them and decided I was going to turn it into a novel. However, after I started writing, I ended up with eight incomplete manuscripts, with My Daughter's Keeper being the first completion. Although I am a very expressive person, I've never been one for vocal expression and my feelings and things I wanted to say came out better when I wrote them. It was the resemblance of a songwriter expressing his/her emotion with a song. Writing makes me happy, it makes me sad, it makes me angry. You name the emotion and that is what writing is for me. I for the life of me can't figure out why I don't have a job with Hallmark. Hmmm. Note to self. Look into that. LOL.

Tell us about your publishing journey.

Wow! I will say that it has and continues to be a long one. Now that I know a little something about the industry, I mentor and help others who are where I used to be and many of them come to me and the first thing out of their mouths is, "You did it, so it must be fairly easy." If I had a dollar for every time someone said that, I'd holla! because I'd be rich. All it took for me to self-publish was a negative response on two letters I sent out to agents. I received one rejection letter and the other never responded. Although it's been a while since I have really sat down and spoken to her, a good friend at the time, Parry "Ebony Satin" Brown gave me words of encouragement and a few pointers here and there and she really inspired me to pursue my dream of being a published author. At the time Parry had self-published Sexy Doesn't Have a Dress Size. I, too, was like I can do that. It looks easy. But it wasn't, and it still isn't easy. Even with self-publishing, you have your drama and headaches and it makes it worse if you don't do your research. One of the top things that irritate me to this day is when those who want to be authors come to me and tell me they want to write a book and ask me what they should do. Hello! Do your research. Yes, it is always good to surround yourself with like minded individuals, but you are not going to get all the answers from them, they are not going to do all your leg work for you and after all the hard work and hell we put in, it is actually quite insulting. I will give you little tidbits and advice here and there, but pay attention. I'm finding that lately, even well known authors are finding it hard to get a contract or publishing deals and some are resorting back to self-publishing, and that's a pretty hard pill to swallow if you're someone NEW coming into the game.

Awards and recognition.
At this time, I can't say that I've been privy to any awards or recognitions. I've done several interviews and before I published my first book, I won a short story contest sponsored by Playboy Magazine and Fastweb.com. I didn't initially write to make money. I had a publicist once, who was very horrible by the way. I found in this industry that it can be a cliquish one and if you do something someone doesn't like, there's a good chance they'll try to kill your dream. She told me she would make sure I'd never sell another book. My last words to her were, "If I never sell another book, I've achieved one of my dreams. I'm a self-published author." But I will say that I'm looking to make some money now. If I don't make any, I will continue to write. If I make some, I will continue to write. If I make lots, I will continue to write.

Has your book touched anyone? How?
I've had a few people tell me that my book touched them in some way or the other, but the one that touches me the most is an email I got back in the summer of 2006. A woman in her late forties told me that she had been a victim of molestation and she suffered some of the things, and even worse, that Renee did in Circumstances. She said she thought there was no one out there that understood what she was going through. She said whether the story was a work of fiction or true, I had deeply touched her. She sent me another email several months after that and informed me that she had gotten counseling and even though she was middle aged, she was starting to live her life freely and actually enjoying it. That was all I needed to hear. When you hear something like that form a reader, you can't take that away and it is things such as this that makes a writer humble.

What's on the horizon?

Well currently I'm working on the sequel to Circumstances. It is  called Revelations. If you've read the book, then you know that at the end of Circumstances, there is a big explosion if you will, and Revelations will bring everything to light and connect all the dots and leave readers in awe. I am also working on a couple of joint ventures, a holiday book, and another anthology. Hopefully, you will see two to three of these titles before the year is out; Lord willing.

Encouraging words for aspiring authors?
I cannot say this enough. Do your research. Remember that Google is your friend. Google is not the God of information but it is a start. Research the industry. Research your genre. Pay attention to other authors. There are ways of getting info from other writers and authors without imposing up on them. A lot of authors these days conduct workshops and do things to give back to the literary communities. Take advantage of these opportunities. Show up at book signings. Buy books and read them. If you think you'll be a great writer and not read a book, you are sadly mistaken. Attend conferences and other literary events. If writing and being an author is something that you truly wish to do, do not take no for an answer. If you can't get published through the traditional routes, self-publish. Learn from your mistakes. Network. Network. Network. Becoming an author is by no means an easy task, but it is well worth it in the end. Also, if you are picked up by a major publisher, don't think for one minute that you can just sit back and collect the big fat paychecks. Just like a self-published author, you will have to market your butt off. Oh yeah! If you don't know; now you know. I also want to throw this in; please bring back professionalism. New writers and some old are so unprofessional these days that people simply don't want to work with them. My philosophy is don't do something "half-assed". I'm sorry, can I say that?

Parting words?

Write every day. Make yourself write. If you have to take a small idea and write it and stick on an idea board, just write. Write in a journal. Write an opinion. No matter what you do, write. If writing is in your heart, it will come, and if you're just trying to fake the funk, it will show. To thine ownself be true, but please never get too big for your britches!

Thank you Elissa!

Contact info: Literary Wonders! www.literarywonders.com - info@literarywonders.com

Yolanda M. Johnson www.yolandamjohnson.com - info@yolandamjohnson.com
Bryant Consulting www.bryantconsultingonline.com - info@bryantconsultingonline.com
Social Media: Facebook: Author Yolanda M. Johnson-Bryant; Literary Wonders!
Twitter: ymjauthor;literarywonders

Tee C. Roya and RAW SISTAZ Literary Group

RAW: Yolanda, you have been around for quite some time and are constantly sharing literary information via the various social networking platforms.  Tell us more about you, Literary Wonders and what it is you hope to provide to the literary community.

YMJB: I founded Literary Wonders!  in 1996. I am a self-published author (www.yolandamjohnson.com) and a literacy advocate. My work consists of titles such as My Daughter’s Keeper (which is no longer in print), Circumstances and co-author of Crimes of Passion: The Anthology, which was also presented and published by Literary Wonders!.

Literary Wonders! (www.literarywonders.com) was originally named Prosperity Enterprises but the name was changed in 2003. Although my experience was in finance and my expertise was in technology my decision to start the business was due to her son’s lack of desire to read. I found it very difficult to get him to want to read and want to write. I was determined that I was not going to raise an illiterate son.

Literary Wonders! is a literacy advocate that gives limited, free support to authors, especially new authors. We also focus on an annual scholarship program called “The Scholarship Project” that focuses on minority children from 8-21 years of age. Each year qualified participants are given an essay question and are judged on various aspects of the essay. The winners receive a monetary award in the form of a scholarship that comes directly out of my pocket.

Literary Wonders! is currently seeking to become a 503c non-profit company so that we can gain sponsorship from donors, corporations and the such, so bigger and better scholarship awards and prizes can be given and so that Literary Wonders! can be more active and make a bigger impact in the community. Literary Wonders! aims to help authors from all genres, as long as the material is not deemed offensive. However, it really does focus on work from the African-American community as, blacks are on the low end of the totem pole when it comes to reading and writing.

Literary Wonders! also conducts an annual “Anthology Project”, where our goal is to bring together a mix of seasoned writers with a handful of new and upcoming writers. The anthology is then published and presented by Literary Wonders! with all proceeds going to the authors. Once the project is complete, Literary Wonders! does the initial marketing for the book, but then each individual author is responsible for their own marketing and selling of books.

In addition to providing as much information as possible to potential authors and readers, Literary Wonders! sponsors and participates in various book signings, literary festivals, literary conferences and other literary events. We are very active in social networking media (Facebook, Twitter, Ning, LinkedIn, etc) providing a wealth of information to readers and writers.  In addition Literary Wonders! conducts various workshops for writers.

I also own a literary consulting business called Bryant Consulting (www.bryantconsultingonline.com) where I act as a freelance writer, ghostwriter and editor, offering an array of fee based literary services.

My 2010 business goals are to take Literary Wonders! to another level, again, by gaining more sponsorship and possibly converting to a 503c in order to qualify for grants and funding to allow the entity to be more involved with the community, more involved with at risk youth.

In 2010 I am looking to increase my clientele am set to release three of titles.

RAW: What one thing about the literary world concerns you the most?

YMJB: It would be crazy to say that people are only in this business for the “money”, but I’m going to say it anyway. But I think it becomes a problem when others in the industry misuse, abuse and deceive others to make a fast buck. As recent as last week I had a read AND an author call me on two separate occasion to “warn” and “inform” me about someone in the business who was pretending to be someone that they were not, and taking hard earned money from its “victims”. I have seen this first hand and have been a victim myself.

It concerns me that there is bad blood amongst writers and literary service providers because they fail to see that there is room in this industry for everyone. The beauty in literacy is the same that you find in the African-American community in that we come in all shapes, sizes and hues. Everyone is not going to like everything, but they are going to find something they like.  

It concerns me that some authors are so hell bound upon getting ahead that they won’t reach down and try to help someone who is trying to get where they are. They forget that at one point they were there at some point in their writing career.

There are several things that concern me, but I’ll leave you with the last. Writers who don’t read really frustrate me. Just because you put pen to paper does not make you an author. Many writers that are trying to authors simply do not read and they don’t research for that matter. Unless you can afford a staff to do all those things for you, it is simply not possible to become an efficient writer and bestselling author if you do not read or if you do not do your research on the industry. On the other hand there are those who think they can get everything for free. If you are a writer and think you are going to break into this industry and not spend a penny, you are sadly mistaken and are most likely in the wrong field.

RAW: You’re also a writer.  Tell us about your books and any future projects you have in the works. (make sure your reply includes Bryant Consulting).

YMJB: Circumstances is my latest title. It was originally titled My Daughter’s Keeper, but as I stated above, I for a ride by someone who said they were something they were not. I re-released My Daughter’s Keeper as Circumstances. The last time I checked, the snake in sheep’s clothing (isn’t that how the saying goes?) is still trying to sell my books on his website, I’m sure with no luck at all.

Circumstances is the story of Renee Matthews who trying desperately to break generational curses and break loose from her mother’s hellish strong hold. An excerpt for the book can be found at www.yolandamjohnson.com.

Currently I am working on the sequel to Circumstances, titled Revelations. I got lots of good feedback on Circumstances and think readers will find Revelations to be the kuda grah. I’m also trying to get Literary Wonders! initial anthology project published. It’s been a long time coming but I owe it to the authors to get that book out there. The title is Second Time Around: The Anthology and the authors featyred are Kim Robinson, Vanessa Johnson, Rhonda Lawson, Toschia Moffett, LaTanya Tatum and myself. Once it is published I will make a call for the next anthology project.  In addition I am working on two other novels as well as a collaboration project with John Wooden and Gregory Townes. My intent was to have Revelations released in April, but due to ghostwriting projects, I may have to move that release date to some time in May.

On the Bryant Consulting side, I am working on editing and ghostwriting projects as well as other projects. I am accepting new clients.

On July 23, I will be giving a writing workshop to The Writer’s Group of the Triad. I am in the process of updating my events calendar for the 2010 calendar year. 2010 will take me to The Ladies of the Dove Literary Festival, The RAW Affair and a host of other literary events and signings.

RAW:  What type of services do you provide?

See above.

RAW:  What one piece of advice would you give to new writers?  What about old writers (those who have been in the game for a while.)

YMJB: Just one piece? That is very hard. I would advise new authors to read and do your research. Don’t expect a handout and if you get one, consider a blessing and pay it forward. Also place yourself around like-minded positive people that want to see you succeed. Accept criticism as constructive and not a direct insult of your work. Not everyone is going to like your work. That is just plain common sense, so because one does not like it, don’t go off the deep end, because you will find yourself asking that same person that you slandered for help. Network; get the word out there. You are your own best marketer. If you won’t tell the world about your work, why should anyone else? In this industry, taking and not giving will not get you very far.

For the old heads. Cut the newbies some slack. We were once where they are now. Don’t get so holier than though that you cannot mingle with the common folk. I’ve been in the midst of so many authors that once they got published and/or got that book deal, the rest of us were the dark sticky stuff on the bottom of a shoe. But I have also met some authors that have lucrative publishing contracts and a host of titles who are so down to earth. And I appreciate those people, more than they know.

- Paperback, hardcover or electronic book?

All actually. Paperbacks are easy to take whenever I’m away from home. Hardcovers look great on my bookshelf and electronic books are easy to read on that Kindle, Sony Reader, or Nook that my husband is going to buy me but doesn’t know yet. And audio books are convenient when you are doing other tasks and cannot be tied down to a book.

- Favorite book read this year?

Oh man. There were so many. And senility has caused my memory to fade, but I loved RM Johnson’s The Million Dollar Demise, Rhonda McKnight’s Secrets and Lies, both I have recently read. This year I vow to keep better records of the books I read.

- Best book cover of those you’ve seen this year.

There are a few I cannot recall. But I will say I’m not a fan of books with people on the cover.

- Read the book or see the movie?

I’ll read the book, but if they movie comes out before I read the book, I more than likely won’t read the book.

- Literary event (actual attending) or online chat or social networking?

Right now I’m scheduled to give a writing workshop on January 23^rd at The Writing Group of The Triad and in April I will be participating in the Ladies of the Dove Literary Festival in Hinesville, Georgia. Besides that, nothing else is set in stone; yet.

- Fiction or non-fiction?

Both. Each of them provide their purpose.

- Early to rise or night owl?

I am definitely a night owl. Being married to Gregory has worsened that.

- Chocolate or Vanilla?

Deep, dark chocolate!

- Party/Club or Hang out on FB/Twitter?

I’m not a party girl, I never have been. But you can find me on a regular basis on Facebook (Author Yolanda M. Johnson and Literary Wonders!), Twitter (ymjauthor and literarywonders), LinkdIn (Yolanda M. Johnson-Bryant) and Ning at Wellwomen.ning.com/ymjauthor. Or just Google me!

In closing I would like to say thank you to RAW, specifically you Tee, for all that you’ve done for myself and for the literary community. You are a true gem and your just rewards are just around the corner. Can we get a date and location for the 2010 Raw Affair already??