Welcome Dijorn The Spotlight Is On You
Tell us about yourself
I am someone who is constantly analyzing my relationships. My
relationship with God remains my most important relationship. I always want to
make sure that I am setting the best example for my son Caleb. Am I being
attentive to my wife Trinea’s needs? Finally, am I giving my readers stories
that are both inspiring and exciting to read?
Tell our readers about your journey to writing
In my humble opinion, writing has always been and will always be
the most powerful tool a human being could possess. I started writing because I
felt like I did not have a voice. I started writing became I was moved and
inspired by the stories and the poems of other writers. I started writing
because I can’t dance and I don’t have a jump shot.
Tell us about your journey becoming a successfully published
author
Do you have anyone in your life that was heavily influential in
your deciding to become an author? When I write I think about my mother. My
mother worked rotating shifts at a job that was traditionally held by men. Who
will tell her story of courage and struggles to raise two children? I will and
a teacher name Iris helped me when she introduced me to poetry. From poetry I
expanded to writing plays and from plays I expanded to writing novels.
What was your path towards publication like?
Emotional and hard. My
first love is playwriting. I had a play I wrote entitled Mothers to the Struggle at the time the play was being reviewed by two
perspective theaters. I applied for the ABC Writing Fellowship and I applied
for Graduate School. I also wrote the first four chapters of a novel called My
father’s House in which it was tore up by my professor and classmates. In a span
of two weeks everything one of those opportunities fell through and then I
submitted the first four chapters of my novel to Urban Christian. I thought
that I was only setting myself up for further disappointment when I got a call from
my editor Joy congratulating me and offering me a book deal. Like I said
emotionally and hard, but to God be the Glory!
What books or authors made a difference in your life?
Recently the Alchemist has had a huge impact on my life. The
book has reminded me how important it is to pursue your dreams and how not to
settle. I recommend that book to everyone. As far as authors goes, I am a big
fan of Toni Morrison, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, James Baldwin, Michael Connelly and
Sista Soulja. All of these authors have influenced me in some way and I
continue to tell to them for knowledge, wisdom and inspiration.
What have you realized about yourself since becoming a published author?
That writing is what I was meant to do with my life. These years
I have faced a lot of tragic moments and yet my writing never fell off and I
continued to grow and improve as a writer. If I can face tragedy and still be
able to perform at my best, then I am meant to write.
In writing your novels, how do your develop the plot? Did you have
difficulty keeping the story on point? How much research was required, if any? The
plot comes rather quickly for me so I keep a journal on me at all times. When
an idea for a story comes I think of a way that I can put a different spin on
the story. Every story has already been written so the key is how well can you
make your story new and fresh and better than the previous stories? After that
I think of the characters that will drive the story and how will they make this
story work. Of course the characters end up taking my simple story in a
different direction and I am grateful as a result. As far as research goes, I
save that for the rewrites, I leave the first draft for my instincts and the
subsequent drafts for my mind. It is important to research to give your
characters credibility.
How do you balance your life as an author with your duties as a business
person, employee, parent and/or spouse?
I use to keep hectic before my son was born. On Saturdays I use
to spend 12 hours a day writing or working on a manuscript. Now that Caleb is
born, I save my writing for at night when he’s asleep. I realized that I am a
lot more productive. During the course of the years I will spend writing and
working on various projects, I balance that with taking at least a month or two
off to spend with my family. During that time I do not do any writing, I just
spend quality time with my family. As far as work goes, my job allows me write
while at the same time pay bills.
What is your best advice for getting past writer's block?
Does an outline, a lot of aspiring writer get too caught in what
they see in the movies? They see a writer plugging away on the keys and
producing this great masterpiece. An outline is a blueprint for your story and
there is nothing wrong with having a blueprint before you start building
especially when you get to a pivotal point in your story. Another good
technique I use is when I feel like I’m not getting enough out of a character I
will conduct an interview. I will take a character to every action they have
committed in the story; I will ask the question why? As the character begins to
explain to me why they have done certain things, I start to get a better
understanding of the story.
What was the best writing-related advice you ever received?
I got great advice from my two writing mentors and Stephen King.
My mentor Scott Sublett use to always ask me what my characters want and who
was stopping them from getting what they want? My other mentor Ethel Walker use
to ask the question of Why? Why should I care what happens to these characters?
Finally, Stephen King talks about how in the early years he uses to pin his
rejection letter through a nail right above his typewriter. One day the nail
couldn’t hold any more rejection letters and the letters came crashing down on
King. So King said he drove a spike through his rejection and kept on writing.
That is what I have done, I have drove a spike through my rejections and I have
kept on writing. Or as Psalms 118:22 says: “The stone which the builders reject
has become the chief cornerstone.”
Can you tell us a little bit about your latest book?
The Retreat 2 picks up where the first retreat has left off.
Almost a year has passed and the Four Brothers of God have grown closer as a
result, but new revelations threats everything that they have worked for in the
last year.
How did you come up with the idea for your book?
The Retreat 1 and 2 are inspired by my first Men’s retreat. Men
get bashed on reality TV, movies, books and so forth. I felt like their needed
to be a story of a group of men who uses their faith to guide them into being
better husbands, fathers and men. They are not perfect men, but each day they
strive to do the right thing by God and the people who they care about.
What was the most difficult aspect of writing this book?
Writing a sequel is hard because you have to write a story that
justifies a sequel in the first place. You have to offer a story that takes the
reader deeper into the lives of these characters. Second you have to drown out
the success of the first book because that can cause a writer to second guess
themselves or cheat the reader by delivering a lackluster story.
Did you have to do any special research for your book?
I used the research I got for the first book and extended it to
the follow up. I wanted the Retreat 2 to get more into the psyche of these
characters and who they are and what makes them tick.
What’s ahead for your writing?
I am writing my next book which will come out next year. I am
excited to have a book come out back to back years. I am also returning back to
playwriting.
What opportunities have opened up because of your writing?
I have had a chance to travel and talk to people from all over
the country regarding my writing. I have even had a chance to inspire people
who are incarcerated. It’s been a great ride and I’m just starting to see the
possibilities.
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