Have you always wanted to be a writer?

Yes. The practicality of earning a living or raising a family means, for most of us, that writing is something you have to scratch out time to do. I’m fortunate that lately I’ve been at a place in my life where I can devote more time and energy to it, but it took quite a while to get here.

What is your creative process?

First comes the idea of the story, and then I like to flesh it out before I jump in and really get writing. I’ve done it the other way around before, where you get a story idea or find a character and just start writing, seeing where the story leads you, but I’ve found that my story thread gets a bit tangled that way. I like to know where I’m going and then have creative freedom in how to get there.

What are you working on now?

My next book, which is also historical fiction. It spans from the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the US entry into World War II until the postwar years and the prosperity promises of the GI Bill. The story follows the lives of a brother and sister who experience this period from opposite sides of the color line when the brother passes as a white man upon enlisting, which is something that actually happened in my family.

Do you have any advice for fellow writers and what helps you to focus?

One thing I do is give myself permission to be less productive every now and again. Some days I’ll be ticking along just fine, and other days I need more breaks. Tea breaks, dog walking breaks, reading breaks, even yoga breaks. Taking time off when I need to helps me to be more focused when I go back to my desk. I think the main thing is to be kind to yourself, but always get back to the desk.

Who are your biggest writing influences?

That’s a really difficult question to answer. I think everything I read feeds me in some way. Maya Angelou was the first Black female writer I read, and her work made a big impression on me. I remember reading Orwell and really realizing for the first time that telling a story is only the beginning of what a novel can do. Toni Morrison was the first writer for whom I went total fangirl, traveling to the city to hear her speak and then standing outside the venue to watch on a video monitor because the hall was too small to accommodate everyone who had turned up.

More recently I have been expanding my reading with Colson Whitehead, Tayari Jones, and Sebastian Barry. But I’ve also been influenced by poets like Walt Whitman and Emily Dickenson and playwrights like August Wilson.

Even the books I read as a young child, books like the Chronicles of Narnia and A Wrinkle in Time, had a huge impact, making the unknown feel like an exciting adventure.