A MEETING WITH ANITA DOREEN DIGGS

by

Kari Jones

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As a former Senior Editor at Random House, Anita Doreen Diggs is known for editing such books as Bill Clinton & Black America by DeWayne Wickham and Growing Up X by Ilyasah Shabazz.  As a novelist, Ms. Diggs is known as the author of the bestselling novel, A Mighty Love, the story of Mel & Adrienne Jordan, a passionate and loving couple whose marriage begins to unravel after they suffer a terrible tragedy.

Her new novel, A Meeting in the Ladies Room takes the reader into the sordid side of the publishing industry.  Not only must main character Jacqueline Blue deal with being one of the few Black women in an industry dominated by whites, there is also her attraction to a seemingly uninterested (but gorgeous) man and. . . murder.

Below, Ms. Diggs answers questions about being an editor and an author.

kdj:  What prompted you to make the leap from editor to author?

ADD:  I’ve always been interested in writing fiction.  There just comes a time in life when you’ve got to take a chance.

kdj:  What lessons learned as an editor did you take with you into the “author’s world”?

ADD:  I took dozens of lessons with me but I guess the most important is that I know just what kind of power an editor has within the house and what an editor has absolutely no control over.

kdj:  Were you at all nervous about writing a novel that deals with the less attractive side of publishing?

ADD:  Not at all.  First of all, I’m not the first novelist to do that.  Olivia Goldsmith did it years ago in a book called The Bestseller.  However, A Meeting in the Ladies Room is the first book in the history of American book publishing to feature the black side of the book business.

kdj:  What has been the response from your former colleagues both about novel A Meeting in the Ladies Room and your new career as a writer?

ADD:  I don’t think my former colleagues have read Meeting yet because I haven’t heard a word about it.  However, everyone is generally excited about my new writing career.

kdj:  What attracted you to the romance genre?

ADD:  I don’t write traditional romance but my books all have a romantic element because life is just missing something without the longing for love between a man and a woman.

kdj:  Both A Mighty Love and A Meeting in the Ladies Room deal with some pretty dark themes.  Were you at all hesitant to delve into the darker side of human nature, or do you think that it is necessary to show the goodness in people?

ADD:  Yes, now that you mention it, my work is pretty dark and I can’t see where that can possibly change.  It is part of my nature because I had a dark and difficult childhood.

kdj:  Are you working on your third novel?  If so, what can readers look forward to in it?

ADD:  No, I haven’t started on a third novel yet.

kdj:  What three words best describe your experiences as an author?

ADD:  Thrilling.  Surprising.  Hard.

For more information about Anita Doreen Diggs, please go to her website:  www.anitadoreendiggs.com.

ROMANCE IN COLOR wishes Ms. Diggs continued success!