Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Kalisha Buckhanon’s novels are Solemn, Conception and Upstate. Her short stories are widely published in many online and university print literary journals. Her articles and essays appear on several popular women’s blogs and cultural websites. Her writing awards include an American Library Association ALEX Award, Friends of American Writers Award, Illinois Arts Council Fellowship, and Terry McMillan Young Author Award. Kalisha’s work has received attention in major media outlets such as Essence, The Guardian, BBC-London, TV-One, People, Elle, Entertainment Weekly and Marie Claire. She has an M.F.A. from The New School in New York City, and her B.A. and M.A. in English from University of Chicago. She writes at her blog Negression.com.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
“Solemn” sprouted from a contractual obligation made by a former agent for me to write a novel based on a short story I had written, about a woman living in Chicago who had come from Mississippi. I was blocked for several years when that woman and those characters were not speaking to me in any way, and I wrote little to nothing during those years. But in the meantime, a little girl in Mississippi kept knocking at my door, but I paid little attention because she did not fit the short story about grown women living in Chicago.
It was early 2012 when I realized I had no interest in her adult story. I wanted to know who she was as a child, and how she morphed into an adult searching for friends and belonging in Chicago as the original story portrayed her to be. So my current agent and I worked from there until a final draft in 2015. It was particularly poignant for me to think of because much of my family is from Mississippi, and the elders had gotten older. It was a perfect way to explore that part of my life and past, and honor where I come from.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
The entire habit of being a writer is unusual. I wish it fit a much more 9 to 5, co-workers, boss, regular paycheck, lunch hour, commute, etc… model. It is highly unusual to spend long periods of time, sometimes days or weeks, alone and inside thinking about what it is not really there. It makes everything else unusual: when I eat breakfast and dinner, what my social calendar looks like or if I even have one, and even if I decide to shower and get dressed as most people must every day. I have run the gamut of sleep schedules, sometimes all in one week. I limit it to short spurts and months I can afford it, otherwise I start feeling weepy or extremely tired from it. I can say the writing life and habit has given me great taste in music, of all varieties and generations, because I listen to it constantly while I work to help the time go by.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
African-American female authors and some other women authors have been huge influences on what I think I can do with voices, themes, storylines and details. So many black women’s works reflected back to me my own viewpoints on the world, intellectual stock and psychic archive. These recognitions and compatibilities influenced me to believe my own imagination had merit and could construct worlds. Just some of these women include Sapphire, Edwidge Danticat, Zora Neale Hurston, Toni Morrison, Gwendolyn Brooks, Ann Petry, Maya Angelou, Alice Walker, Bernice McFadden, Terry McMillan, Gayl Jones, Ntosake Shange, Angela Davis and bell hooks.
What are you working on now?
I am finishing up a novel entitled “Speaking of Summer,” about a woman who lives in New York City and is investigating her twin sister’s death ruled a suicide. So as she is working to come to terms with that and disprove other possibilities, she is discovering a lot about herself and her past in the process. I also have a play in progress, as well as a couple of short stories I can’t wait to turn to.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I found Goodreads a little late after it started, but since I discovered it I have always enjoyed it and been impressed by it. I applaud its general spirit and variety of ways it offers for people who love books to interact, connect and share. I think an account on Goodreads should be required for all high school and college students, because I have seen some teachers really capitalize on the discussion and interaction it breeds.
As an author, I must accept many people knowing much about me when I know nothing about them. It’s nice to be able to peek in once in a while to find out about others for a change: what are the readers’ tastes, what books do they love, what drew them to me, what do they have to say about other authors. Goodreads is definitely much more of a community than other author platforms.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
You have to love this. It has to be a life and activity you love to be and do more than anything in the world. It is labor, long hours, hard work, mental drain and a lot of sacrifice of interaction with the outside world, friends, family, events, and simple special moments that are just part of other people’s lives when they clock out of their jobs. Writing can be something you want to do because it looks fun to have a book or seems like it will draw attention to you from others. But if that is the draw behind it, you will not last beyond a few chapters here and there or many abandoned ideas. People will get tired of you talking about the book you want to write, and authors who have published won’t want to hear it either.
Because of the natural isolation and almost homebound nature of the work, a great support system and family is ideal. Most very successful, prolific and well-known authors are married with children. I’ve written nearly everything in my adult life when I lived with roommates or housemates; when I lived alone, I never stuck with it. And before you write a word or plan a project, attend to your business life: construct an online presence at a degree of interaction you are comfortable with (at the very least a good website is required), use a business bank account strictly for writing income and liabilities, and build a literary team to do as much for you as possible so you can stay writing.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I’ve been given so much help and advice on this journey I can not single any one person or truism out of the many wisdoms I’ve received. However, I read an article Steve Harvey wrote about how to build exceptional wealth and he gave advice most people never think to give creative artists. It was something like: “Take care of your body like a temple…eat well, sleep a lot, cut out drinking and smoking, and exercise every day.”
What are you reading now?
I am re-reading the second draft of my novel-in-progress “Speaking of Summer.”
What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m not totally sure, as I have a template of work but I can never know what it will ultimately do, so I am looking forward to finding out.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Holy Bible, Beloved by Toni Morrison, Lord of the Flies by William Golding and The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion. I think those would provide adequate insight and companion camaraderie for such an unprecedented experience.
Author Websites and Profiles
Kalisha Buckhanon Website
Kalisha Buckhanon Amazon Profile
Kalisha Buckhanon Author Profile on Smashwords
Kalisha Buckhanon’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account