A Conversation with Cheryl Head – Author of the Charlie Mack Motown Series

I had so much fun talking with Cheryl Head about her latest book in the Charlie Mack Motown series, Warn Me When It's Time. We dig deep in discussing her sleuth Charlene “Charlie” Mack. Cheryl shares insight into her research methods for the latest book that deals with hate groups in Detroit. These are just some of the great things we talked about.

https://www.ifoundthisgreatbook.com/138

We discussed:

00:43 -----We talk Bouchercon and Cheryl's involvement as a board member
02:34 -----Cheryl gives us insight into the cast of characters who surround and support her sleuth Charlie Mack
11:33 ----- We get insight into what motivates Charlie Mack
16:11 ----- We talk about the challenges and conflicts Charlie Mack faces being "othered" while working in law enforcement
18:26 ----- We discuss how Charlie's girlfriend being a police officer changes the dynamics of the story and breaks standard troupes
20:51 ----- Cheryl shares how her sleuth, Charlie Mack, has an expansive mind and how her sleuth is breaking down boundaries by living her life
26:17 ----- We talk about the relationships between the local police, federal agents, and Charlie Mack's investigative team
35:02 ----- We discuss the research that went into the latest book, "Warn Me When It's Time", and its focus on hate groups
45:14 ----- Cheryl Head shares information on her writing process
47:03 ----- We talk about Cheryl's new project to write a literary mystery
50:47 ----- We geek out on a discussion of the works from the Harlem Renaissance and the lives of Black people then compared to now
54:15 ----- We geek out some more as we talk about the Julie Moody-Freeman's Black Romance Podcast
55:59 ----- Cheryl Head discusses the forward she wrote for the reissue of Nikki Baker's "Long Goodbyes" and the impact Nikki Baker's works had on her life and writing
59:00 ----- We talk about the impact of Charlie Mack being a queer black woman who is the central sleuth in a great mystery series