Ryiesha Simms, better known as Necole Ryse, is an upcoming young adult fiction writer from the small town of Clinton, MD, with big hopes.. dreams.. and ambitions. Ryse graduated from Towson University with a Bachelor’s degree in Mass Communications in 2009. As most post college kids endure, Necole jumped from job to job in attempts to set financial stability for her future. Unfortunately, while working and saving so much… she forgot one thing: to enjoy life. In May 2013, she quit her job and decided to follow her dreams to write fiction with the goal of making that a career in one year.
”Now, my job is to write. I wake up every single day and run to my laptop because I love what I do. Sure, I’m living in my mother’s basement. I drive her spare car. My savings account is dwindling. I can’t go on vacations with my friends. I can’t go to fancy birthday dinners or afford to get my nails and toes done every week like I could before.
But I wouldn’t trade my dream for any twelve-dollar manicure. Or that 80-mile commute. Or that rush hour traffic. Or my bitch boss. All my funds are invested in my books. And one day soon, when I see my book on the New York Times Best Seller’s List, it will all make sense." {Via WERLOUD interview)
But I wouldn’t trade my dream for any twelve-dollar manicure. Or that 80-mile commute. Or that rush hour traffic. Or my bitch boss. All my funds are invested in my books. And one day soon, when I see my book on the New York Times Best Seller’s List, it will all make sense." {Via WERLOUD interview)
Initially, SHORTIES, started as just a writing excerise where Necole asked her social network friends to send her a sentence, just one, and she would write a short story using their sentence. Receiving an overwhelming response, she compiled them into a book. From there, she completed her first novel, The Legacy, in October 2013. Rejection after rejection from submitted inquiries to publishers and literary agents would leave some to discouragement, but Necole continued to push. One day she randomly decided to tweet the concept of her novel during a contest on Twitter. That tweet would change her life. She received two offers for ‘The Legacy’; it will be published by Winslet Press in Summer of 2014.
“When I was in middle school AA fiction was “Flyy Girl” by Omar Tyree or “The Coldest Winter Ever” by Sistah Soulja. Both good books, but these books were not appropriate for a 12-year-old to read. And my mother will probably kill me if she knew. I want to offer AA kids of today something just as exciting to read, but quality. I don’t want kids to feel like they can’t take a book home to read. I want even their parents to be sucked into my books.
Every main stream YA fiction novel of the NY Times Best Seller’s List is authored by someone who does not look like me and neither do their main characters. We are underrepresented and misrepresented! Either we are drug dealers, criminals, killers or gold diggers, groupies, or orphans; we are promiscuous or scandalous and it’s so frustrating for someone like me who cannot relate to these characters at all. All African Americans are not like this. We are queens and kings, well educated and ambitious. Those are the kinds of quality characters that you will find in my books. I want to change the face of African American YA Literature.
All African American literature doesn’t have to be urban or street. African Americans are artistic and bold and beautiful! I want the whole world to see that through my characters. I want people to feel inspired. I want people to relate to my novels, no matter their race. I want people to put my book down and cry or run to the nearest book store for part two or three or four. I want people to FEEL a piece of my characters. I want them to feel like the main character is their sister, or their cousin. I want them to cry, to laugh, to gasp. I want them to feel my soul." (Via The B. Envelope interview)
Every main stream YA fiction novel of the NY Times Best Seller’s List is authored by someone who does not look like me and neither do their main characters. We are underrepresented and misrepresented! Either we are drug dealers, criminals, killers or gold diggers, groupies, or orphans; we are promiscuous or scandalous and it’s so frustrating for someone like me who cannot relate to these characters at all. All African Americans are not like this. We are queens and kings, well educated and ambitious. Those are the kinds of quality characters that you will find in my books. I want to change the face of African American YA Literature.
All African American literature doesn’t have to be urban or street. African Americans are artistic and bold and beautiful! I want the whole world to see that through my characters. I want people to feel inspired. I want people to relate to my novels, no matter their race. I want people to put my book down and cry or run to the nearest book store for part two or three or four. I want people to FEEL a piece of my characters. I want them to feel like the main character is their sister, or their cousin. I want them to cry, to laugh, to gasp. I want them to feel my soul." (Via The B. Envelope interview)
SHORTIES is available for purchase in paperback and e-book on Amazon.com and www.NecoleRyse.com . All books on the site are available in PDF format for downloading. Also, visit her site to a get a synopsis of what's forth to come...The Legacy.
Show courage to fight for your dreams (no matter the situation) and obtain the confidence to believe in yourself and your talents. Sprinkle faith in there and you'll be surprised at what you can accomplish. I want this story to empower women to do just that. We often shun our goals because it doesn't seem realistic given current situations or simply we are just afraid of giving our all only to fail. Stay determined and keep the faith. Sometimes, it's what makes you happy that's most important. Don't give up on your dreams.
Show courage to fight for your dreams (no matter the situation) and obtain the confidence to believe in yourself and your talents. Sprinkle faith in there and you'll be surprised at what you can accomplish. I want this story to empower women to do just that. We often shun our goals because it doesn't seem realistic given current situations or simply we are just afraid of giving our all only to fail. Stay determined and keep the faith. Sometimes, it's what makes you happy that's most important. Don't give up on your dreams.
sn: I am SO proud of her. Words can't fully express that.
Thanks so much Tiff! Love it!
ReplyDelete