Hi, Dionna! So nice to catch up with you again! How was it revising MAMA’S CHICKEN & DUMPLINGS?
My manuscript is finally in the hands of a copyeditor! But it took months and months for me to get it there. That’s because my manuscript didn’t just need a revision, it needed a total rewrite. When I say total imagine gutting your kitchen for an upgrade. That’s what this rewrite felt like! My main character and the basic plot elements of MAMA’S CHICKEN & DUMPLINGS remained the same, but everything else had to go, and be rebuilt. I was really unsure I’d be able to pull it off in a timely manner. But those 4 a.m. mornings got the rewrite done. Of course, once I had it rewritten, I had to then do several revisions to make the story as well written as possible.
That sounds like an incredible challenge! Can you give an example of one of the major changes you had to make to your story?
Sure! One major change was the historical setting. At first the story took place on the South Side of Chicago, which is where my parents grew up and where I was born. I wanted to show the glitz and sparkle of the South Side in the 1930s and 40s. It was a bustling, thriving African-American community, despite the city’s segregation laws, or, as some might argue, because of them. I LOVED the setting, but felt the story needed a change to a smaller neighborhood to make my main character’s quest more believable. Enter 1935 Vinegar Hill, a thriving, yet small African-American neighborhood of Charlottesville, VA. To my surprise, I came to love this new setting as much as the South Side, maybe even more so!
Did the change require a lot of new research?
It did--a deep dive! While I had done research about other historical African-American communities of Charlottesville, I had only briefly heard about Vinegar Hill. So I had to splash into the deep end of the past--again.
What was it like working with your Holiday House editor on your revisions?
My editor, Margaret Ferguson of Margaret Ferguson Books, an imprint of Holiday House, was extremely patient with me. She gave me lots of space to reshape the story, all while asking insightful, editorial questions that made me think about my characters' back stories, the passage of time, and the story's theme. I loved being able to chat with her on the phone about the story's direction, among other things. I feel privileged and grateful to have worked with Margaret. She's a seasoned editor with a super-fine red pen! I still can't believe she acquired my manuscript despite the plot and story needing so much work. It's like she saw in my manuscript a little bird lying on the ground after bonking it's head on a window, but seeing life, gave it a shake, and then cheered as it flew away!
Interesting description! While we know MAMA'S CHICKEN & DUMPLINGS doesn't come out until the Summer of 2024, are you already preparing for your in-person book launch, or is it too early to plan yet?
It may be too early, but I've already punched two things off my book-launch to-do list!
Do tell!
One: I've drawn a large color-coded map of 1935 Charlottesville that includes the streets of Vinegar Hill demolished in the name of urban renewal in the 1960s. (I used the Sanborn Fire Insurance maps found on the Library of Congress’s website and a map made by the Charlottesville Housing Authority.) Two: I've sewn a 1930s puff-sleeve dress with a Peter Pan collar for myself, because I thought it might be fun to encourage those attending the launch to wear vintage clothing. (But alas, the dress is too small for me, and I'm not a skilled enough seamstress to figure out how to make it fit. Thankfully, I've got a year to get into it!)
Any other ideas percolating?
Yes! I might create a small display of archival photos of African-American folks from Vinegar Hill dressed in their finest. I may hire a chef to make jars of chicken and dumplings to give away as gifts. I might purchase and fill an old-store penny-candy jar with Mary Janes, Allie's favorite candy. I may ask fifth-grade flautists to play the same duet Allie and her NOT-friend Gwen played on their flutes. And I may make bookmarks and other promotional materials by hand. So many ideas besides these! (I think I have Preparation Overload Syndrome!)
HA! HA! Better to be prepared than to faint out of sheer fear on the day of, right?
True this!
Well, Dionna, thanks so much for allowing us to catch up with you. Be sure to share your book's cover once it's reveled. And Happy Preparing as 2024 ticks ever closer! The 24/7s can't wait to see MAMA'S CHICKEN & DUMPLINGS flying up, up and away!
Thanks! It's a privilege to be part of such a supportive group!