As many of us know, the world has been mourning the loss of the late great Kobe Bryant. Award-winning novelist, writer, and former world-ranked squash player Ivy Claire Pochoda who collaborated with Bryant on their number one New York Times bestselling series Epoca shares her perspective on his passing while working on Book 2, The River of Sand (Granity Studios, December 15, 2020). “It’s been really hard, I mean, … Read the rest
Interview With Writer, Author & Creator Marcus E.T.!
How does one know when a draft is written to its full potential? Writer, creator, and author of the science fiction and fantasy anthology Chimera Revolution: The Nue-Gaea Chronicles (June 19, 2020) Marcus E.T. shares his thoughts on the topic. “I think, for me, since I’m writing a lot of short stories, it easily just comes down to what seems to be the most satisfying conclusion that kind of leads … Read the rest
Interview With Author Sajidah “S. K.” Ali! (PART 1)
How does an author determine whether she wants to write a novel in first or third person? For award-winning and New York Times bestselling author, Sajidah “S. K.” Ali, who mostly writes about Muslim protagonists, it’s about humanization, especially if the books are about identity. “What I find is that when I’m writing a character that’s not been seen often in publishing and on shelves… I choose first-person a … Read the rest
Interview With Brown Kids Read Founder & Executive Director Ssanyu Lukoma!
A lesson that 15-year-old entrepreneur, storyteller, performer, and podcaster, Ssanyu Lukoma, has embraced amid the journey of her nonprofit organization, Brown Kids Read Inc., is that the worst thing someone can say is ‘no.’ “Whenever I want to ask people to help support Brown Kids Read or I want to ask people to get people involved in this contest or do something, I always think that it’s best to … Read the rest
Interview With Author & Composer Jay Coles!
Many of us at some point have looked back on some of our early work and cringed (or simply uttered something along the lines of, “I’ve come a long way!”) Author of several novels including the starred-reviewed Tyler Johnson Was Here and critically acclaimed anthologies (Black Enough and Hungry Hearts), Jay Coles, explained why he thinks his first few books are bad. Instead of being authentic in … Read the rest
Interview With “The Hidden Opponent” Founder & Resource in “Geese Are Never Swans” by Kobe Bryant & Eva Clark!
When former Division 1 player and PAC-12 champion, Victoria Garrick, met with Kobe Bryant to discuss her organization, The Hidden Opponent, an advocacy group for student-athlete mental health, she learned he was developing a project that aligned with her passion. That project was the new book, Geese Are Never Swans (Granity Studios, July 21, 2020), a multi-category #1 New Release on Amazon. “After that, I received an alert from … Read the rest
Interview With “Something to Say” Author Lisa Moore Ramée!
Voice is a common thread in So Booking Cool’s conversation with bestselling, critically acclaimed children’s book author, Lisa Moore Ramée. There’s the beloved ‘Shay’, Ramée’s debut protagonist from A Good Kind of Trouble (which has garnered renewed interest and now an Indie bestseller in paperback), whose voice has been praised and prompted whether it is important for Ramée to create resonant voices within her characters; there’s Ramée sharing the time … Read the rest
Interview With “A Butterfly Universe” Author Vanessa Chen!
14-year-old Vanessa Chen, author of A Butterfly Universe (Star Moonstone Books/Story Monsters LLC, 2020), doesn’t know if she has written enough to have established her own writing style, however, she does know the techniques she appreciates in other writers. “I really admire whenever an author sort of goes on [the] entire scene,” Chen tells So Booking Cool. “They’re very descriptive about it, but not extremely ‘blah, blah, blah’ … Read the rest
Interview With “The Summer of Juniper Jones” Author Daven McQueen!
Emerging novelist, Daven McQueen’s The Summer of Juniper Jones (Wattpad Books, June 16, 2020) is about a pair of best friends who aim to fulfill their summer bucket list under difficult circumstances. When Ethan Harper, a mixed-race youth, visits his aunt and uncle in small-town Alabama, he is confronted with some of the harsh realities of being a black male. The historical coming-of-age novel has already been a hit … Read the rest
Interview With “Your Anxiety Beast and You” Author Dr. Eric Goodman!
When asked if there were any memorable moments while writing his second book, Your Anxiety Beast and You: A Compassionate Guide to Living in an Increasingly Anxious World illustrated by Louise Gardner (May 26, 2020, Exisle Publishing), clinical psychologist and anxiety disorders and OCD specialist, Dr. Eric Goodman, Ph.D, reveals he suffered an illness. “I signed the contract to write the book and was very excited to write it … Read the rest