May 29, 2025 • 53 mins
Join us for an illuminating evening as we celebrate the launch of Tia Williams' latest young adult romance novel, "Audre & Bash Are Just Friends." This engaging discussion features both Tia Williams and Nikki Payne, who share their insights into the intricacies of character development and the nuances of writing within the realm of young adult literature. Within the narrative, we explore the protagonist Audre's journey—originally introduced in "Seven Days in June"—as she navigates the complexities of adolescence, friendship, and self-discovery during a transformative summer. The dialogue poignantly addresses the expectations placed upon young women and the importance of authenticity in their experiences. As we delve deeper into the themes of love, ambition, and personal growth, we invite listeners to reflect on the significance of these narratives in shaping their own understanding of youth and identity.
Takeaways:
- In this podcast episode, Tia Williams discusses her new YA romance novel, 'Audre & Bash Are Just Friends', exploring themes of friendship and self-discovery.
- The event highlights the importance of representation in literature, particularly for young Black girls navigating societal expectations and personal identity.
- Audience engagement is emphasized, showcasing the impact of literature on both personal and collective experiences within the Black community.
- Tia reflects on her creative process, revealing how her daughter's input helped shape the authenticity of teenage dialogue in her writing.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
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(00:45):
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Hello.
Hello.
How are you all feeling?
No, no, ma' am.
No, try again.
How are you guys feeling?
Yes, yes, yes.
It's Thursday, we're almost to Friday.
We got a lot to be excited about.
(01:47):
But my name is Ramonda Young.
I am co owner of MahoganyBooks along with my amazing husband,
Derek Young.
And thank you, thank you,thank you.
Appreciate it.
We actually have another eventgoing on right now.
We usually try not to do twoevents, but it's a kids event, so
he's at that event with anaward winning authority, an illustrator
(02:10):
rather.
And so I'm here with theamazing Tia Williams and I'm here
with all of you.
So thank you.
Give yourselves a round ofapplause for being here.
Yep.
So just a little bit about.
Actually, before I talk aboutMahogany Books, let's give it up
for the Prince George'sMemorial Library System, where we
are.
Yes, absolutely.
And the Austin Hill branch.
(02:30):
Just to let you know, thelibrary is officially closed, but
they stayed open for you all,for us.
So it's just, it's very, justmind blowing that they do this for
us.
So let's give them anotherround of applause because they can
be at home.
But just really quickly,Mahogany Books, we've been in business
now for about 18 years.
Thank you.
The first year, actually, thefirst few years, we started our business
(02:54):
in our one bedroom apartmentin Alexandria, Virginia.
And the whole impetus was howdo we make black books accessible
no matter where you live?
It was important to us thenand 18 years later is important to
us now.
I'm from Tulsa, Oklahoma, andwhen I grew up, I never knew black
Wall street was a mile from myhome because it was never taught
in my classes.
And so when my husband and Italked about why do we want to start
(03:15):
a business?
That was one of the reasons noone else should have their history
dictated to them.
Whether they get to know it or not.
Right?
So bookstores.
Thank you.
Bookstores allow that tohappen to where you don't have to
wait for somebody else to makeyour book successful.
You can go down the street andsupport a local bookstore.
So that's why we're here.
That's why we did it, andthat's why we will continue to do
(03:35):
it.
So thank you all for beinghere and supporting that dream.
So, again, give yourselvesanother round of applause.
I got my church fan out.
I'm in a.
Well, I'm not going to say I'min a pause, but I'm probably right
there at it.
But let's get into it, becauseI don't want.
You guys didn't come here tohear Mahogany Books.
You guys came here to hear TiaWilliams and Nikki Payne.
(03:55):
And I'm excited.
Yes.
And I'm going to read becausethey have a lot of good stuff on
here.
So I'm excited to welcome Dr.
Nikki Payne.
Let me see if I show up hands.
Did anybody know she was a doctor?
Okay, okay.
Y' all true followers.
Yes.
I'm emphasizing doctor Eventhough she won, but I'm so excited
to celebrate that as a Black woman.
So Dr.
Nikki Payne.
She's one of our favoritelocal author friends here in the
(04:17):
dmv, but she has nationalprominence, too.
Just because she's local.
She got national recognitionas well.
By day, she's a curious techanthropologist asking the right questions
to deliver better digital services.
By night, she dreams of waysto subvert canon literature.
She's a member of SmutUniversity, her premium feminist
(04:41):
writing collective, and a catlady with no cats.
She is the author of Pride andProtest and now Sex and Sensibility.
Please help me welcome NikkiPayne to the stage.
What?
Come on, come on.
Cat lady with no cats.
(05:01):
Hey, y' all.
Cat lady with no cats.
That's what we're doing.
It is.
Let me tell you something.
I'm so allergic, but I feellike their vibe is who I am.
Okay, okay.
And so next, our author of theevening, Tia Williams is the New
York Times bestselling author.
Yes.
Yes.
Period.
And tonight, we arecelebrating the launch of her latest
(05:21):
and her first YA romance.
Audrey and Bash are just friends.
It's perfect for fans of SevenDays in June.
Let me see how many have readSeven Days in June.
Okay, that's like all y' all.
The five of you guys who havenot read it.
We have a few because therewas only, like, five hands.
She's actually had a 15 yearcareer as a beauty Editor for magazines
(05:42):
including Elle, Glamour, TeenPeople, and essence.
And in 2004, she pioneered thebeauty block industry with her site,
Shake youe Beauty.
She's the author of theAccidental Diva.
Let me see if we read that.
Yes, we actually hosted herhere on this same stage for the Accidental
Diva years ago.
I'm sorry.
I think it was for Perfect Fine.
She's the author of AccidentalDiva, the It Chick series, and the
(06:06):
Perfect Fine Now, a NETFLIXfilm starring Gabrielle Union.
Anybody seen that movie?
It was fire, wasn't it?
I loved it.
So please put your handstogether for the amazing Tia Williams.
(06:34):
Can everyone hear me?
Okay, just a little bit of housekeeping.
So if anyone has ever been toan event with me, one of the things
that I love to do is keepthese fantastic authors in the hot
seat.
But I also like to get intothe crowd a little bit and ask a
couple of questions of you all.
And I'm gonna talk to you alltoday a little bit about some challenges
(07:00):
that you've had or some boldsteps you've taken.
And I will be looking at hands.
And if hands don't raise, I'mjust gonna find the person with the
biggest booty, and they'regonna have to go first.
Okay?
I make the rules.
This is my house.
Okay?
So, first of all, thank you somuch for just being such a creative
force.
(07:21):
I read Seven Days in June, andI remember calling everyone that
I know.
Do you know that meme?
Ain't nobody tell me nothing.
I was livid.
I was like, where was this myentire life?
Why didn't you publish this 30years ago?
It was gorgeous.
(07:41):
It revolutionized, altered mybrain chemistry.
And I think about them prettyconsistently, like, as people living
in the world.
I really do.
I really do.
Thank you.
And.
But you have this YA book,which still had me kicking my feet.
(08:04):
Okay.
Had me squealing those texts.
I love a text.
I love a text.
And I guess my first questionis, answer for your crimes.
I mean, people wanted Audrey,so I had to do it.
Yeah.
So I wrote Seven Days in June.
(08:25):
I have to shout out, daddy,where is he?
This is my father, Dr.
Williams.
He named seven days in June.
He says I don't credit himenough, so I'm calling attention
to him right now.
Yeah, so when I wrote it, younever really know what people are
(08:48):
gonna think about thecharacters you write.
And it became very clear to mevery fast that Audrey was a fan favorite.
I was getting all sorts of DMsand texts like, I wanna be Audrey
when I grow up.
You Know, mind you, she was 12.
Exactly.
And, you know, she was justfunny and the wisest person in the
(09:10):
room and so confident, andpeople wanted to see more of her
story.
And so I thought it would befun to catch up with her in real
time four years later as a 16year old and give her her own rom
com.
It worked.
It worked.
Can you talk a little bitabout that transition from writing
(09:33):
for adults to writing for teenagers?
Oh, it is so different.
It's so different.
Do you think it's different?
Every time I try to write forteens, it always sounds like, hello,
fellow youths.
Right, right.
I know.
And that's why it was so scary.
(09:54):
Because what I didn't want tosound like was a Gen X person trying
to, you know, speak teenager language.
And my daughter, who is 16,who inspired Audrey, made it very
clear to me that I was not toembarrass her and bring shame upon
our family.
(10:14):
And so it was really importantfor me to, you know, because it takes
you out of it when you hear,like, sayings that are off or, like,
references that are weird.
And so I would just bounceeverything by her and her girlfriends.
If there was a summer party, Iwould sit them all down and I'd be
like, what's the tea go?
(10:35):
Too explicit.
Your turn.
And, like, I'd go down theline and I would take things and
take inspiration and.
How many people have read it yet?
I know, it just came out.
Okay, so this will be aspoiler free.
Yes, yes, spoiler free.
Let me look through myquestions because, baby, I had all
kinds of.
Wait a minute.
Okay.
No, this is great.
(10:56):
Little to no spoilers.
I love that.
I love that you especially,like, went through your daughter
and like, that this was amoment to kind of connect.
I'm saying this because me andmy daughter read this together and
it's just like, such a momentto think through some of the things
that Audrey was working with,understanding her chaotic life, feeling
(11:19):
displaced, but also stillfeeling like a part of this family.
And my daughter loved thisbook so much.
And one of the things that I'malso going to do because I also have
a teenager manager, is bringher up today to ask you a couple
of teen questions.
Yes, Zonie.
(11:43):
Hey, Zoni.
I love that Blue Ivy hascreated a whole profession that didn't
exist before.
Yeah, yeah, it's real.
It's real.
I can tell you.
She's a Virgo, so she just.
She runs the whole family.
Ma' am, the floor.
(12:04):
Hey, girl.
Okay.
Hi, guys.
So my primary question was howConnected you were with the locations
that you mentioned.
Because it genuinely, everytime I read about whatever location
you were talking about, I feltlike I was there.
Like, it was like, do you knowthese people?
(12:26):
Like, it was really authentic.
And I, I don't know why I keepforgetting that you're like somebody's
mom.
Because like the, the lingo,the Sol de Janeiro, like that, that,
that line got me.
Okay.
I was like, are you, are youmy mom's age?
Are you my friend?
Like, I know.
I was really like shocked.
(12:48):
I was like, you really paid attention.
I love you.
Do you know how proud I was of that?
Sol de Janeiro.
Yes.
Like literally I reference today.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Sol de Janeiro is a beautybrand that all the teenagers and
20 somethings myself use.
Yeah.
So I live where the book takes place.
So I'm familiar with all theplaces that the teenagers are going.
(13:13):
You know, like I said, I spiedon conversations and outright asked
for, you know, anecdotes abouttheir weekends, what they do after
school.
And I might have gone to someof these places that I hadn't been
before to sort of scope themout to see what they were like, not
while my daughter and theirfriends are hanging out, but like
(13:36):
you know, Tuesday at 6.
It felt really real.
Like it genuinely felt likethe author was a teenager and knew
what we did.
And I, When I actually foundout that you had a daughter my age,
I don't know why I was soshocked because it was just like,
it was giving.
(13:57):
We're here.
Like we're, you know, well,you know.
I'm a youthful spirit.
I'm a young 40 something.
And also I come from amagazine background.
And so I was a beauty editorfor a long time, which is also why
the Sol de Janeiro.
So beauty editors write aboutmakeup and hair and skin care and
(14:20):
you have to.
It's all so embedded in pop culture.
Like what we're all doing, youknow, at the time, in terms of entertainment,
politics, you know, youthculture, what we're saying, the lingo.
So you sound out of date andout of step if you don't know those
things.
Never as a journalist got the ick.
(14:42):
Like, seriously, because Iread so many books and so many books
are like.
And yeah, they hit up theparty and I'm like, please just stop.
Yeah.
And like you, you perfectly,like encapsulated Gen Z in a way
that didn't make it.
Sorry.
In a way that didn't make itfeel like we were like dumb and like
(15:03):
weird, you know?
Yeah.
Because like, we can be butit's like with the side of eccentricness
that you perfectlyencapsulated for me.
So, you know, I love that about.
Oh, thank you.
Oh my God, I am so honored.
Oh, Zonie.
My little Audrey.
Zoning.
(15:24):
She is everything.
She's so poised.
She didn't get it from me.
Yes, she did.
Oh my God.
Oh, no.
But this is, that is exactlywhat this type of book can engender.
Like you can read this as anadult and get so many lessons from
this because Audra is a high achieving.
She is doing everything rightand yet she still finds these places
(15:48):
where maybe Stanford won'tlook at her.
If she's not doing X, Y and Z,she's trying to top the thing that's
already fantastic.
And I think mostly like a lotof black women can relate to that.
Like some of the most degreedpeople in the country are black women
because they're just like,what else, what else can I do?
And so like really relating toAudra and really like relating to
(16:12):
her trying to become herself.
But another thing that like Iloved about that aspect of becoming
was that she didn't allow itto be just this one dimensional.
And that's where, that's whereBaby Bash comes in.
That's where our nonchalantnon dreadhead comes in.
Right?
He was such a safe place forher to grow and try new things and
(16:38):
have some challenges and dosomething different.
And I'm just, I'm curiousabout writing this high achieving
young black girl, especiallykind of in this current climate of
kind of taking all of thosethings like slowly away and, and
then also bringing in thisrelaxed black boy.
(17:01):
Right?
Like those are all that'sdoing work.
Do you understand what I mean?
Yeah, it's doing work.
Sorry, that was a very long question.
No, no, I'm.
Yeah, well, I.
It was.
Oh my gosh, it was important.
(17:21):
So if you don't know, this isa quick elevator pitch for the book.
So Audrey, high achievingpresident of her junior class, captain
of the debate team.
She realizes it's the last dayof junior year.
She's going into her summer.
Her summer plans have fallen through.
She's stuck at home with hermom, her stepdad and her new baby
sister.
(17:44):
Her big plan for the summerwas to write a self published self
help book for teens becauseshe also has a therapy side hustle
where she charges 45 in cash.
Not cash app or Venmo becausethat's traceable to give therapy
lessons to her friends at school.
(18:06):
So she's writing a self help book.
Because she thinks that'sgoing to really put her at the top
of the pile to get into Stanford.
But she realizes that shedoesn't have all of her, like, therapy
knowledge is from readingpsych books, but she doesn't have,
like, real life experience.
So she hires Bash, who is anew kid, and he's like the local
bad boy.
(18:27):
She hires him to teach her howto have fun for the summer.
But Bash is not really what he seems.
He looks like an F boy, buthe's actually just the sweetest,
softest cinnamon roll ever.
And he likes to surf.
He wants to be a tattoo artist.
(18:49):
And he has this sort of darkpast that happened down in California
that no one really knows aboutbecause he just moved to Brooklyn.
And without giving too muchaway, he grew up in an environment
that was very kind of toxic.
Black masculinity, you know,only white boy surf.
(19:10):
What are you doing?
You know, tattoo.
No.
You know, his father forcedhim to anywhere.
I don't want to give it away,but, yeah, it was intentional that
I wanted to create a youngblack boy that didn't buy into all
of the toxic nonsense.
You know, I started writingthis right when Megan and Tore.
(19:35):
Like, that whole thing wentdown when people, you know, and I
spent too much time onTwitter, like, seeing the reaction
to her coming out aboutgetting shot.
And, you know, how many of us,how many black men, you know, didn't
believe her?
And black women would standbehind them.
Girl, if you are, it'll be you next.
(19:56):
Yes.
If you are, you shouldn't be.
But if you're paying attentionright now to black, the what's happening
trial is the same thing, samething over themselves to, like, protect
toxic.
Right.
Like, behavior.
Yeah.
So I was really, reallyinspired to create this boy that
did not play into any of thatand was only exactly himself and
(20:20):
loved that.
I love that.
And not only did he do thatfor me, like, not only was that beautiful
to read, he was just such abeautiful contrast to Audra.
Like, he was.
I want to go into thisdiscussion of, like, experience challenges,
you know, because that, like,those really stuck with me because
(20:45):
I think all the time about howhard it is to be intentional about
moving slightly out of yourcomfort zone.
And I.
I just have.
Oh, sorry, look at me.
I was doing the same thing.
So I have one question for theaudience about.
It's an experience challenge,if you will, about an instance where
(21:08):
you have moved a little bitoutside of your comfort zone.
What happened?
Did the world fall apart?
I would love to know any bravesouls yes, ma' am.
Oh, you need the mic, right?
I'm just like, this is my mic.
Hi, everyone.
(21:28):
My name is Geneva.
I just graduated from HowardUniversity with.
My BFA in acting.
And, you know, oh, yeah, so menot peace.
My back towards the audience.
But when in 2020, you know, itaffected the world really bad.
(21:51):
And I love communicating andtalking to friends and stuff, and
everyone had the opposite effect.
They wanted to be to themselves.
So I was really lonely, and Iprayed to God.
I was like, God, please sendme some friends.
And this guy I knew in highschool randomly was like, oh, like,
oh, call me.
And then we became, like,really good friends.
(22:12):
Ended up getting a car, and hewanted to see my car, and he did
something he was supposed toin my car, and I had hyper vigilance.
I went to therapy and stuff toget over the sexual assault, and
it pushed me to move out of Florida.
I was in Florida for my whole life.
I never moved anywhere else.
(22:32):
And I was nervous about goingto Howard.
I was like, maybe I should,like, choose a different school.
Maybe I should stay in thestate so I can stay close to my family.
But that incident pushed me togo to Howard.
It was the best decision Iever made.
So, yeah.
Thank you so much.
Thank you so much.
No, thank you so much for that.
That was.
(22:53):
That was incredibly fantastic.
Really vulnerable.
But, like, this is what.
Like, to me, this is whatreading those experience challenges
did for me.
It made me think about where Iwas playing safe, where I was still,
like, being small and thinkingthat if you just, like, got into
this cookie cutter mode, thenyou could be more lovable.
(23:14):
And that's like, I'm gettingemotional because I love Audra so
much.
She just wanted to be lovable.
You know, she had thisheartbreak without, you know, telling
too much.
But, you know, she reallywanted this time to be the singular
focus, you know, with.
With her dad.
And when that fell off, like, she.
She was reaching for ways tobe lovable.
(23:35):
And I just.
I just think we all do that.
I love this book so much.
If you can't tell.
Another question that I haveis about the perspectives on, like,
being a person on the otherside of someone that has chronic
illness.
And I felt like Audra waslike, you.
(23:58):
You talk so deeply about,like, chronic illness in Seven Days
in June, but also, like, thosecaretakers, those people sometimes
on the other side of that,they have a story.
And I would just love to hearfrom you about.
About writing that portion.
Oh, yeah.
(24:21):
So Seven days.
So Eva in Seven Days in Junewas it's me, more or less.
She has chronic migraine, andso she is in pain all the time.
So am I.
And that puts your loved onesand your friends in a very, you know,
(24:44):
precarious situation.
And if you're a single motherwith, you know, a tween daughter,
she's going to know everythingabout you, your roommates, basically,
and she sees all the signs andshe knows when it's coming, and she
wants to take care of you andshe worries about you.
(25:04):
And my daughter grew up, youknow, with a mom that had to go to
the hospital for weeks on endor, you know, she had to go stay
with her dad longer than shewas supposed to because I couldn't
take care of her.
It was, you know, it's really tough.
And the parentification of,you know, your child happens whether
(25:29):
you like it or not.
And so I touched on that inseven days in June.
But now that she's a teenager,she's able to articulate the ways
in which that stress eats awayat her sometimes.
And it's a lot of pressure ontop of school pressure and boy pressure
(25:52):
and everything.
You managed to, like, createthat world.
But also, the book is really funny.
Okay.
Like, you have balanced somuch depth with a lot of comedy.
There is a.
There's.
I'll just say there's arapping scene.
I was just like, sis, But.
But wrap it up.
(26:13):
Like, a what scene?
Rap recently.
Oh, I was like, no more.
No more lines for you.
I know, but I just.
I'm a rapper.
Ma' am.
No, no, ma' am.
No, no, no, no.
Listen, ma' am, no one everbelieves me, but I have.
I don't believe you right now.
Listen, what you got?
(26:34):
Every single.
I can't freestyle.
Okay, okay, but if you give me an.
No, seriously, in every bookI've ever written, somebody has to
rap.
Somebody's gotta rap.
And it's me.
It's me.
Tia, I love this about you.
(26:56):
No, I'm so hip hop.
Okay.
I love this about you.
Like, give you an hour and you just.
We got it.
Yeah, Okay.
I love that.
But this is.
What I mean is that this is.
It almost makes the funnyparts funnier.
Like, when you do that, canyou talk a little bit about balancing
comedy and really heartfelt,really in depth things that you do?
(27:20):
People always ask me that.
Like, you know, how your bookstackle so many dark themes, but it's
like, you know, but why am ILOL ing?
Yeah.
Like, it's still like, I'mlaughing so hard.
I'm.
You Know, annotating.
I'm remembering these quotes.
Like, and I have no.
Like, that's how I wrote insecond grade.
(27:40):
Like, that's just.
I have.
I grew up in a funny house.
I have funny parents.
My sisters are so much funnierthan I.
They're funny.
In person I'm funny, like onthe page, but in person I'm like,
Like, I can't.
Same way I can't, like,freestyle for you right now, but
(28:02):
I could prepare it.
I can't wait for this.
No, but, but I think, youknow, you can't.
It's my favorite people arefunny people and you can't.
I mean, life is dark if youcan't joke about it.
I'm always.
People that are really drymake me so nervous.
(28:22):
And then I act out trying toget a reaction.
And that has made for somestrange situations at parties where
it's like, it's just time forme to go home because I.
It's like the.
The like people that are tooquiet or too.
Don't absolutely aren't selfdeprecating, don't know how to laugh
(28:44):
at themselves.
It's the, like the.
What I call the dull stare ofa dairy cow.
Like, instead of the eye ofthe tiger.
It's the opposite.
Yeah.
Yes.
Terrifying.
Yeah, it absolutely is.
So I like for my characters to.
To be funny.
Yeah.
So you're just saying, like,you're born this way.
I woke up like this.
Yeah.
I love it.
I love it.
I've always.
Yeah.
I have all these notebooksfrom high school where I would, you
(29:06):
know, write short stories and stuff.
I have always had the same voice.
Always.
Wow.
Yeah.
Wow.
I have one more questionbefore we get to audience questions
because I know that we arenear time.
Two more questions because Ihave a whole essay here.
What do you hope people getfrom this?
Like, they read this book andthey close it.
(29:28):
They're at the last thing andthey're going, ha.
Like, what do you.
What do you want that exhaleto be about?
I think for people like me andAudrey and my daughter, who can be,
well, less so my daughter.
But like, I'm pretty rigid andcorrect like Audrey.
(29:48):
I make lists.
I, you know, I kind of livebullet point to bullet point.
Not super spontaneous at all.
I need a plan.
I need a strategy, like all of that.
And I wish that someone hadgiven me a list of experiences to
(30:11):
go and do the summer before mysenior year and a boy to do them
with.
You know, I was just so by thebook, which is good.
But then you don't you know this?
I feel like this generation isalso very correct.
They have beautiful languagearound inclusivity and you know,
(30:37):
slut shaming and consent andall these wonderful things that we
did not have growing up in the80s and 90s, 70s.
It can make them afraid to, but.
It can make them afraid to do stuff.
Do stuff.
And like you have all thecorrect like talking points, but
it's because tick tock toldyou and not because you experienced
(31:00):
something and now you have a takeaway.
And that worries me.
No, that's real.
Because, you know, sometimes Ican over.
I overheard at a diner thisgroup of obviously teenage girls
and they were like speaking inthese wild hypotheticals about a
(31:22):
date that one of their friendswas on with a guy.
Hypothetical, because none ofthem were on the date.
And it was clear to me thatnone of them had been on a date.
And they were talking aboutlike what is correct and what you
don't do.
And you know, and I was justlike, that's all well and good until
you're stuck in a doorway witha boy that's six, three, you know,
(31:42):
and he smells good and youhave liked him for two and a half
months and the air between youguys goes magnetic and then you forget
all of the things on the listthat you're supposed to adhere to.
And so it's important to havethose experiences so that you know
how to act in the world, notjust hypothetically speaking.
(32:03):
Yeah, I love that.
I absolutely love that.
And my last question is, arewe gonna get some more ya?
I don't know.
You know, I really enjoyed it.
So I wanted to tell a teenageAudrey book.
And in order to do that youhave to write a YA book.
And so that's how I came to ya.
(32:23):
Like people ask me about RickyWilde and the magical realism that
was in there.
I wanted to write a book thathad voodoo in it.
And in order to have a curse,one must have magical realism.
So the device comes after the story.
So if a story leads me to ya,I will follow.
I love that.
(32:43):
But it is hard, like, becauseI like, you know, a little bit of
steam.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
And I felt so creepy because Iam an adult writing about like first
love and like lust betweenteenagers which should not.
(33:06):
A grown up should have.
No.
Has no business in there.
Yeah, but I'm telling the story.
Yeah.
So you remember.
And I remember.
But also I have things in mysearch history like, oh, they come
in for you, hot, hot tall teen boy.
They coming for you, sis.
(33:27):
Don't Prison.
Prison.
Like so.
But I need something for myPinterest board to round out these
characters.
It was just weird, you know?
Yeah.
I don't know.
So maybe.
Maybe.
Thank you for this book.
Thank you for putting it inthe world.
Thank you.
It was a joy.
And you guys are gonna.
You're gonna love it.
(33:48):
Thank you so much.
Thank you.
Your questions are great.
I just want to open up forquestions now.
Yes.
And actually, you got to do alittle legwork for me.
If you'd like to ask aquestion, I'd love to have you come
over here to the mic.
We'll do five, and we'll seewhere we are at that time.
Right here.
(34:08):
Come.
We'll come in line.
Five of you, please.
Pardon me, neighbor.
Pardon me, neighbor.
Got a slide through.
All right, first question.
Thank you.
Hi, I'm Giselle.
I'm here with my mom.
And can you hear me?
Can you hear me?
Yeah, better.
(34:30):
Okay.
Can you hear me now?
Yeah, lovely.
Okay, so my name is Giselle.
I'm here with my mom, andSeven Days in June was the first
slightly smutty book Irecommended to my mother, but it
was because I knew she had toread it.
And, you know, just thelineage of the generational.
(34:56):
Just relationships and traumafrom mother to daughter, it was.
It was just very important to read.
And coming to Audrey andBastard as friends, I actually.
I'm only in chapter nine now,but I had to put it down for a second,
because when we get to thepart of Shane and Eva, you know,
(35:18):
I'm realizing without puttingany, like, spoilers out there, there
is, you know, criticism ofthese characters that I could see.
And my question is, what wasit like to go back to these characters
that now I see you seeyourself in and that all of us love
(35:41):
so much?
What was it like to see someof their flaws more after you wrapped
it up in such a beautiful bowin the end?
Oh, thank you.
Thank you for your question.
Okay, so you know how you're,like, at Wendy's and there's just
a couple at the next boothover making out and being ridiculous
(36:06):
or, like, in line at.
What's that?
At Busch Garden?
You know, how couples getwhere high school couples get weird
or, like, people just, like,hanging all over each other in line?
They're not, like.
To them, they're, like, lostin each other, and it's.
It's.
You know, that's their wholeworld, but we're looking at them
like they're ridiculous.
(36:28):
Like, get a room, you know?
And I always feel So I wasstuck in lockdown with my 12, 13
year old daughter and my new boyfriend.
We were stuck together and so.
And they get along very well.
He's now my husband and wehave a baby.
(36:50):
But the whole time I was like.
Cause we're still likehoneymoon phasing and like giggling
and frolicking and being ridiculous.
And I'm like, how does thislook to the seventh grader?
You know, she's like, you gotlike, grow up.
You're ridiculous.
Like, you know, one time my.
We were kind of frolickingaround my niece, who was nine at
(37:12):
the time, and she was like,some of us are single.
And so I was just thinkingabout that a lot, like, what is.
What it's like being on theoutside looking in on a relationship.
And yeah, it's so beautiful tothe people in it, but like, love
(37:34):
is the most extraordinarything, but it's also the most banal
thing.
It's the most regular,everyday thing.
And it was almost explodingthe myth of Eva and Shane a little
bit because they're reallyjust regular people that are living
regular lives stuck in anapartment that's too small, doing
renovations and trying to plana wedding and have a teenager.
(37:54):
And it was fun for me to takethe focus, you know, like, it's not
no longer Eva's point of view,it's what does she look like from
the outside, from thetherapist that lives in her house.
So yeah, that's.
That's where that came from.
It's a great question.
Yeah.
Hi.
(38:15):
Thank you so much both forcoming and for putting words on the
page and sharing yourbrilliance with us.
I have two questions.
One's fake, one, which iswhich voodoo history book would you
recommend that we check out toQuasi Go back to Belflore, because
that was such a cool dive.
(38:36):
And then the second one is,what are you most proud of about
your relationship with yourdaughter that you put into the book?
Because the journey that theytook in this book was so hard.
It was tough.
And I think the motherdaughter relationship is quite.
It's quite a hike sometimes.
(38:58):
So that was really well done.
Congrats.
Thank you.
Thank you.
I cannot remember the titles.
I'm perimenopausal, so I can'thold a thought in my brain.
I can't remember the names ofmy books.
I have a whole shelf.
I'll put them in the Instagramcaption about this event.
(39:19):
So, yeah, once I get back hometo Brooklyn.
And the thing I'm most proudof about my daughter and my relationship
is that we really can talkabout anything.
And that's because that's themom I grew up with.
I mean, there's a scene whenmommy was very frank about everything.
(39:46):
And there's a scene in thebook when Eva is talked.
I don't remember why they'retalking about sex.
And she says, well, you know,can I say this in front of your daughter?
She read it already?
Yeah.
She was like.
Eva said, you know, it'sbetter if you get on top, because,
you know, mercy women havetilted uteruses.
(40:06):
So.
And this is something that mymom told me when I told her I had
lost my virginity.
She was like, did you get on top?
Cause, you know, it feels better.
I was like, who gets on topthe first time they do it?
But this, you know, that was areal conversation, and that's the
only way I know how to be amother and daughter.
(40:26):
And so, you know, my mom wasthe one that my friends could say
anything in front of, and I'mkind of that mom for my daughter.
And Eva is like that, youknow, with Audrey, too.
So I'm putting your mom on bl.
Mom, can you stand up?
Where are you?
Mom?
Come on, mom, stand up.
Hey.
Mommy.
(40:49):
Put you on blast.
Now we know all of your business.
Yes, it is true.
It is true.
Hi, Tia.
Thank you.
And Nikki, thank you for being here.
Tia, what is your process likeafter you finish that last page?
So, for me, I finished readingthe book last week, and I'm still
(41:11):
thinking about Audrey and Bashand, like, what does this year look
like for her senior year?
You know what I mean?
Yeah.
So I guess my question was for you.
Are you able to easily let goof the characters, or do you.
Are there stories in your headthat we're not privy to about them?
And then the other questionwas, you've done magical realism.
You've done ya.
You've done all this.
Is there a sneak peek onwhat's next?
(41:31):
And I know authors hate that,but I just love your book, so it's
okay if you don't.
Thank you.
Okay, first question.
What was the first one?
Oh, afterwards.
Yeah, I don't.
I have stories going in myhead from when I used to walk to
(41:54):
school.
Like, I have stories in myhead from that.
That I would make up when Iwas laying on hospital beds, you
know, in pain, that are just.
That I just pick up sometimesand just.
You do that?
My daughter does that.
(42:15):
She used to.
My daughter does that.
She thinks she has a mental problem.
She's like, I just think ofstories and Whole things in my head,
I'm like, that's creativity.
That's creativity.
Just write it down.
You're a star.
Yeah.
Yes, that's right.
So, yeah, they never go anywhere.
You know, it's just that thatstory was over.
(42:35):
And in fact, all of my.
I feel like I put, like, extra.
I love side characters and Ilove villains.
And a creative writingprofessor once told me that villains
and side characters don't knowthat they're not the star.
(42:56):
So you have to give them thesame amount of respect and time and
attention and research as youdo your main protagonist.
So all of the friends, like, every.
Everyone, you know, thesecondary characters, I write them.
So they're like.
You can imagine them wanderingover from the book where they're
(43:16):
the star into this one andthen going back.
Yeah.
So, yeah, I think about Tuesday.
You know, I think about Miss Stella.
I think about Cece, like, youknow, Billy, they're.
They're all in there somewhere.
And the second question.
Oh, I have a book due in November.
(43:38):
I have not started writing itat all.
At all.
But I have a beautiful outline.
An outline is something I'msupposed to have.
Oh, now I'm sweating.
I'm supposed to have 100 pagesin by the beginning of July.
(44:01):
Would you like to write it?
I'm gonna quickly tell youwhat it's about.
Yes.
I know that we're strict ontime here.
Cause we have to.
To get out.
But.
So, okay, so it's about thiswoman who just started working at
this Global corporation, okay?
She's new, and her first sortof thing is to go to this international
(44:23):
summit with people that workfor this corporation all over the
world.
So she gets on the plane.
I haven't decided if it'slike, Italy or something, I don't
know, somewhere in Europe.
And she gets on the plane, shesits next to this gentleman.
They get drunk.
She's like, I'm in love.
Like, this is it.
They're too drunk to rememberto exchange their information.
(44:46):
And the plane is kind offilled with people that work for
the corporation.
But she's new, so she doesn'tknow who anyone is.
So tipsy, she emails HR andshe says, I found my husband.
He looks like this.
I was sitting next to him onthe plane.
Does he work for the corporation?
(45:07):
And because she's drunk, whatshe doesn't realize is that she sent
that email to Global.
Oh, my God.
So everyone around the worldthat works for this corporation got
that email.
And so they're all looking forthe man for her.
And it's called Ms.
Connection.
Oh, my God.
(45:31):
Good.
It's good, right?
That's good.
It's good.
Oh, my gosh.
I can't wait to write it.
Oh, my God, I can't wait toread it.
Yeah.
Yeah.
That's iconic.
We're not going to pressureyou to come back to D.C.
for a book tour, but we are.
That's a nice.
That's a good one.
Yes.
I'm coming.
I'm coming.
Peer pressure works.
Okay, so this kind of goes into.
(45:52):
What you were just saying.
You mentioned the Pinterestboard and building out the characters.
How does that work into yourwriting process?
Is that towards the end or at.
The beginning or where doesthat fit?
Are you a writer?
No.
You're just curious.
Just curious.
The beginning.
Because I have to envisionwhat they look like and what they
dress like.
(46:12):
I was a beauty editor, so,like, the visuals are very important.
I get frustrated when I read abook and it's like, she was wearing
a red dress.
Okay.
Zara, vintage.
Is it Dior?
Like, what it tells you somuch about who someone is and, like,
(46:32):
the interiors, like, where arethey sitting?
Like, I need to know.
Even if things, you know, howit is, like, even if it doesn't make
it on the page, it helps youbecause, you know, in the back.
Yeah.
In order to write it.
In order to write it.
Yeah.
So that's at the beginning is what.
Is there a Pinterest board fora misconnection?
Yes.
(46:53):
So I have done that.
Yeah, I've done that.
That's writing.
That's writing.
Okay.
Hello.
Hi, Tia, Nikki.
Love you both so very quickly.
Audrey is an exceptional young woman.
An exceptional young black woman.
I feel like a lot of womenfall into the trap of needing to
(47:13):
be exceptional and incrediblein order to feel value or, you know,
to be worth anything.
What is your message to youngwomen and young girls who feel like
they need to be that in orderto be valued and seen?
I think the Met.
Because I'm one of those girls.
I was one of those girls.
(47:34):
Like, it was the kind ofthing, like, my parents used to tell
me to chill, like, that I wasbeing too intense, you know, about
school and things like that.
Yeah, it's.
Yeah.
You know, it's bad if your ownparents are like.
I think the message is thatthe living part is just as important
(47:56):
as the quote unquote,excelling part.
And, you know, you never knowwhat you.
What you learn while you'replaying can be just as or even more
important than what you learn.
In somebody's class.
You hear that, Joni?
I think that's it.
You hear that, Joni?
That's the message.
(48:19):
Okay?
Zoning.
I have to know, are you anEarth sign?
I'm a Leo.
I'm a Leo.
I think we have time for twomore questions.
I'm an August Leo.
My son is a July Leo, and meand my father have the same birthday.
Yeah, so he's a Leo, too.
(48:40):
We have time for two more questions.
Is that okay?
Anybody?
Well, anybody else?
Two more.
We're going to pass the micdown to you.
A question, not a comment.
Summary.
No, I'm messing.
Oh, say that again.
No, no, no, no, no, no.
(49:00):
Okay, so this question.
Hi, I'm Angie.
Hey, Angie.
Hi.
And my question actually isabout seven days in June.
I want to know, which sevendays was it?
Was it when they were kids orwas it the seven days when they were
grown?
(49:21):
From the title.
Do you know that?
No one has ever asked me that.
Which seven days was Ireferring to?
Unclear.
Wait, let me think.
Let me.
Let me think.
You know what?
No, the teen.
(49:42):
The teenage years.
Because it built them.
It was like the grant.
It was the ground floor.
Yeah, right.
I agree.
And it's the first thing I wrote.
Yeah.
I feel like.
Yeah, that's what it is.
Yeah, I agree.
Last question.
Anybody else?
Last question.
Right here.
(50:03):
Let's talk really loud.
Hi, I'm Danita.
Question.
Did you have Audrey already inyour mind when you were writing Seven
Days in June?
Because that was one of thethings when I was reading it, I said,
she gives this child a lot ofattention in this book.
I want to know what's going onwith Eva and this dude, you know,
so.
But you did.
You kept circling back to hera lot.
(50:23):
So did you already have thatbook in your mind?
Because now that I know, I think.
Now I know.
So did you?
No.
No.
I had no idea.
I just liked her.
And I was tickling myself as I.
You know, I was like, oh,she's so cute.
(50:44):
Like I said, I love a side character.
And also, she was sort of theaudience proxy, you know, like this
thing, you know, like inhorror movies.
Like, you need a characterthat's like, you know, we need to
get out of this house.
Yeah, exactly.
And she's kind of the personwho sees even Shane, like, that scene
(51:05):
when she's like, which one ofyou is the turtle?
You know, you're writers.
You figure it out.
So I just.
I wanted someone who was,like, witnessing them and sort of
thinking what we were all thinking.
But Really?
I had no idea.
I don't.
I've never written a spin off.
(51:27):
I'm surprised that I'vewritten one because when I'm done,
I'm like, ready to dosomething else.
So, yeah.
Let's give it up.
Oh, let's give it up for TiaWilliams and Nikki Pay.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you, both of you forjust for sharing space, creating
(51:49):
space for us tonight.
We just appreciate you.
Thank you for putting thesebooks out into the world.
We need a little bit of joy,we need a little bit of escapism.
We need a lot of differentthings right now and your books provide
that for us.
So thank you both.
Thank you.
Give it up again for NikkiHayne and also Tia Williams.
Discover a world where wordsignite change.
(52:09):
Tune in to Black Books Matter,the podcast where we celebrate the
profound impact of AfricanAmerican literature.
Join us as we delve intoiconic works and hidden gems, discussing
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Get ready for thoughtprovoking discussions, author interviews,
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Don't miss out.
(52:30):
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Immerse yourself in podcastslike Black Books Matter, the podcast
where we learn about the booksand major life moments that influence
(01:05):
today's top writers.
Or tune in to real ballersRead, where brothers Jan and Miles
invite amazing people to talkabout the meaningful books in their
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So whether you're a literatureenthusiast, enthusiast, an advocate
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Network on your favoriteplatform and let African American
(01:27):
literature ignite your passion.
Hello.
Hello.
How are you all feeling?
No, no, ma' am.
No, try again.
How are you guys feeling?
Yes, yes, yes.
It's Thursday, we're almost to Friday.
We got a lot to be excited about.
(01:47):
But my name is Ramonda Young.
I am co owner of MahoganyBooks along with my amazing husband,
Derek Young.
And thank you, thank you,thank you.
Appreciate it.
We actually have another eventgoing on right now.
We usually try not to do twoevents, but it's a kids event, so
he's at that event with anaward winning authority, an illustrator
(02:10):
rather.
And so I'm here with theamazing Tia Williams and I'm here
with all of you.
So thank you.
Give yourselves a round ofapplause for being here.
Yep.
So just a little bit about.
Actually, before I talk aboutMahogany Books, let's give it up
for the Prince George'sMemorial Library System, where we
are.
Yes, absolutely.
And the Austin Hill branch.
(02:30):
Just to let you know, thelibrary is officially closed, but
they stayed open for you all,for us.
So it's just, it's very, justmind blowing that they do this for
us.
So let's give them anotherround of applause because they can
be at home.
But just really quickly,Mahogany Books, we've been in business
now for about 18 years.
Thank you.
The first year, actually, thefirst few years, we started our business
(02:54):
in our one bedroom apartmentin Alexandria, Virginia.
And the whole impetus was howdo we make black books accessible
no matter where you live?
It was important to us thenand 18 years later is important to
us now.
I'm from Tulsa, Oklahoma, andwhen I grew up, I never knew black
Wall street was a mile from myhome because it was never taught
in my classes.
And so when my husband and Italked about why do we want to start
(03:15):
a business?
That was one of the reasons noone else should have their history
dictated to them.
Whether they get to know it or not.
Right?
So bookstores.
Thank you.
Bookstores allow that tohappen to where you don't have to
wait for somebody else to makeyour book successful.
You can go down the street andsupport a local bookstore.
So that's why we're here.
That's why we did it, andthat's why we will continue to do
(03:35):
it.
So thank you all for beinghere and supporting that dream.
So, again, give yourselvesanother round of applause.
I got my church fan out.
I'm in a.
Well, I'm not going to say I'min a pause, but I'm probably right
there at it.
But let's get into it, becauseI don't want.
You guys didn't come here tohear Mahogany Books.
You guys came here to hear TiaWilliams and Nikki Payne.
(03:55):
And I'm excited.
Yes.
And I'm going to read becausethey have a lot of good stuff on
here.
So I'm excited to welcome Dr.
Nikki Payne.
Let me see if I show up hands.
Did anybody know she was a doctor?
Okay, okay.
Y' all true followers.
Yes.
I'm emphasizing doctor Eventhough she won, but I'm so excited
to celebrate that as a Black woman.
So Dr.
Nikki Payne.
She's one of our favoritelocal author friends here in the
(04:17):
dmv, but she has nationalprominence, too.
Just because she's local.
She got national recognitionas well.
By day, she's a curious techanthropologist asking the right questions
to deliver better digital services.
By night, she dreams of waysto subvert canon literature.
She's a member of SmutUniversity, her premium feminist
(04:41):
writing collective, and a catlady with no cats.
She is the author of Pride andProtest and now Sex and Sensibility.
Please help me welcome NikkiPayne to the stage.
What?
Come on, come on.
Cat lady with no cats.
(05:01):
Hey, y' all.
Cat lady with no cats.
That's what we're doing.
It is.
Let me tell you something.
I'm so allergic, but I feellike their vibe is who I am.
Okay, okay.
And so next, our author of theevening, Tia Williams is the New
York Times bestselling author.
Yes.
Yes.
Period.
And tonight, we arecelebrating the launch of her latest
(05:21):
and her first YA romance.
Audrey and Bash are just friends.
It's perfect for fans of SevenDays in June.
Let me see how many have readSeven Days in June.
Okay, that's like all y' all.
The five of you guys who havenot read it.
We have a few because therewas only, like, five hands.
She's actually had a 15 yearcareer as a beauty Editor for magazines
(05:42):
including Elle, Glamour, TeenPeople, and essence.
And in 2004, she pioneered thebeauty block industry with her site,
Shake youe Beauty.
She's the author of theAccidental Diva.
Let me see if we read that.
Yes, we actually hosted herhere on this same stage for the Accidental
Diva years ago.
I'm sorry.
I think it was for Perfect Fine.
She's the author of AccidentalDiva, the It Chick series, and the
(06:06):
Perfect Fine Now, a NETFLIXfilm starring Gabrielle Union.
Anybody seen that movie?
It was fire, wasn't it?
I loved it.
So please put your handstogether for the amazing Tia Williams.
(06:34):
Can everyone hear me?
Okay, just a little bit of housekeeping.
So if anyone has ever been toan event with me, one of the things
that I love to do is keepthese fantastic authors in the hot
seat.
But I also like to get intothe crowd a little bit and ask a
couple of questions of you all.
And I'm gonna talk to you alltoday a little bit about some challenges
(07:00):
that you've had or some boldsteps you've taken.
And I will be looking at hands.
And if hands don't raise, I'mjust gonna find the person with the
biggest booty, and they'regonna have to go first.
Okay?
I make the rules.
This is my house.
Okay?
So, first of all, thank you somuch for just being such a creative
force.
(07:21):
I read Seven Days in June, andI remember calling everyone that
I know.
Do you know that meme?
Ain't nobody tell me nothing.
I was livid.
I was like, where was this myentire life?
Why didn't you publish this 30years ago?
It was gorgeous.
(07:41):
It revolutionized, altered mybrain chemistry.
And I think about them prettyconsistently, like, as people living
in the world.
I really do.
I really do.
Thank you.
And.
But you have this YA book,which still had me kicking my feet.
(08:04):
Okay.
Had me squealing those texts.
I love a text.
I love a text.
And I guess my first questionis, answer for your crimes.
I mean, people wanted Audrey,so I had to do it.
Yeah.
So I wrote Seven Days in June.
(08:25):
I have to shout out, daddy,where is he?
This is my father, Dr.
Williams.
He named seven days in June.
He says I don't credit himenough, so I'm calling attention
to him right now.
Yeah, so when I wrote it, younever really know what people are
(08:48):
gonna think about thecharacters you write.
And it became very clear to mevery fast that Audrey was a fan favorite.
I was getting all sorts of DMsand texts like, I wanna be Audrey
when I grow up.
You Know, mind you, she was 12.
Exactly.
And, you know, she was justfunny and the wisest person in the
(09:10):
room and so confident, andpeople wanted to see more of her
story.
And so I thought it would befun to catch up with her in real
time four years later as a 16year old and give her her own rom
com.
It worked.
It worked.
Can you talk a little bitabout that transition from writing
(09:33):
for adults to writing for teenagers?
Oh, it is so different.
It's so different.
Do you think it's different?
Every time I try to write forteens, it always sounds like, hello,
fellow youths.
Right, right.
I know.
And that's why it was so scary.
(09:54):
Because what I didn't want tosound like was a Gen X person trying
to, you know, speak teenager language.
And my daughter, who is 16,who inspired Audrey, made it very
clear to me that I was not toembarrass her and bring shame upon
our family.
(10:14):
And so it was really importantfor me to, you know, because it takes
you out of it when you hear,like, sayings that are off or, like,
references that are weird.
And so I would just bounceeverything by her and her girlfriends.
If there was a summer party, Iwould sit them all down and I'd be
like, what's the tea go?
(10:35):
Too explicit.
Your turn.
And, like, I'd go down theline and I would take things and
take inspiration and.
How many people have read it yet?
I know, it just came out.
Okay, so this will be aspoiler free.
Yes, yes, spoiler free.
Let me look through myquestions because, baby, I had all
kinds of.
Wait a minute.
Okay.
No, this is great.
(10:56):
Little to no spoilers.
I love that.
I love that you especially,like, went through your daughter
and like, that this was amoment to kind of connect.
I'm saying this because me andmy daughter read this together and
it's just like, such a momentto think through some of the things
that Audrey was working with,understanding her chaotic life, feeling
(11:19):
displaced, but also stillfeeling like a part of this family.
And my daughter loved thisbook so much.
And one of the things that I'malso going to do because I also have
a teenager manager, is bringher up today to ask you a couple
of teen questions.
Yes, Zonie.
(11:43):
Hey, Zoni.
I love that Blue Ivy hascreated a whole profession that didn't
exist before.
Yeah, yeah, it's real.
It's real.
I can tell you.
She's a Virgo, so she just.
She runs the whole family.
Ma' am, the floor.
(12:04):
Hey, girl.
Okay.
Hi, guys.
So my primary question was howConnected you were with the locations
that you mentioned.
Because it genuinely, everytime I read about whatever location
you were talking about, I feltlike I was there.
Like, it was like, do you knowthese people?
(12:26):
Like, it was really authentic.
And I, I don't know why I keepforgetting that you're like somebody's
mom.
Because like the, the lingo,the Sol de Janeiro, like that, that,
that line got me.
Okay.
I was like, are you, are youmy mom's age?
Are you my friend?
Like, I know.
I was really like shocked.
(12:48):
I was like, you really paid attention.
I love you.
Do you know how proud I was of that?
Sol de Janeiro.
Yes.
Like literally I reference today.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Sol de Janeiro is a beautybrand that all the teenagers and
20 somethings myself use.
Yeah.
So I live where the book takes place.
So I'm familiar with all theplaces that the teenagers are going.
(13:13):
You know, like I said, I spiedon conversations and outright asked
for, you know, anecdotes abouttheir weekends, what they do after
school.
And I might have gone to someof these places that I hadn't been
before to sort of scope themout to see what they were like, not
while my daughter and theirfriends are hanging out, but like
(13:36):
you know, Tuesday at 6.
It felt really real.
Like it genuinely felt likethe author was a teenager and knew
what we did.
And I, When I actually foundout that you had a daughter my age,
I don't know why I was soshocked because it was just like,
it was giving.
(13:57):
We're here.
Like we're, you know, well,you know.
I'm a youthful spirit.
I'm a young 40 something.
And also I come from amagazine background.
And so I was a beauty editorfor a long time, which is also why
the Sol de Janeiro.
So beauty editors write aboutmakeup and hair and skin care and
(14:20):
you have to.
It's all so embedded in pop culture.
Like what we're all doing, youknow, at the time, in terms of entertainment,
politics, you know, youthculture, what we're saying, the lingo.
So you sound out of date andout of step if you don't know those
things.
Never as a journalist got the ick.
(14:42):
Like, seriously, because Iread so many books and so many books
are like.
And yeah, they hit up theparty and I'm like, please just stop.
Yeah.
And like you, you perfectly,like encapsulated Gen Z in a way
that didn't make it.
Sorry.
In a way that didn't make itfeel like we were like dumb and like
(15:03):
weird, you know?
Yeah.
Because like, we can be butit's like with the side of eccentricness
that you perfectlyencapsulated for me.
So, you know, I love that about.
Oh, thank you.
Oh my God, I am so honored.
Oh, Zonie.
My little Audrey.
Zoning.
(15:24):
She is everything.
She's so poised.
She didn't get it from me.
Yes, she did.
Oh my God.
Oh, no.
But this is, that is exactlywhat this type of book can engender.
Like you can read this as anadult and get so many lessons from
this because Audra is a high achieving.
She is doing everything rightand yet she still finds these places
(15:48):
where maybe Stanford won'tlook at her.
If she's not doing X, Y and Z,she's trying to top the thing that's
already fantastic.
And I think mostly like a lotof black women can relate to that.
Like some of the most degreedpeople in the country are black women
because they're just like,what else, what else can I do?
And so like really relating toAudra and really like relating to
(16:12):
her trying to become herself.
But another thing that like Iloved about that aspect of becoming
was that she didn't allow itto be just this one dimensional.
And that's where, that's whereBaby Bash comes in.
That's where our nonchalantnon dreadhead comes in.
Right?
He was such a safe place forher to grow and try new things and
(16:38):
have some challenges and dosomething different.
And I'm just, I'm curiousabout writing this high achieving
young black girl, especiallykind of in this current climate of
kind of taking all of thosethings like slowly away and, and
then also bringing in thisrelaxed black boy.
(17:01):
Right?
Like those are all that'sdoing work.
Do you understand what I mean?
Yeah, it's doing work.
Sorry, that was a very long question.
No, no, I'm.
Yeah, well, I.
It was.
Oh my gosh, it was important.
(17:21):
So if you don't know, this isa quick elevator pitch for the book.
So Audrey, high achievingpresident of her junior class, captain
of the debate team.
She realizes it's the last dayof junior year.
She's going into her summer.
Her summer plans have fallen through.
She's stuck at home with hermom, her stepdad and her new baby
sister.
(17:44):
Her big plan for the summerwas to write a self published self
help book for teens becauseshe also has a therapy side hustle
where she charges 45 in cash.
Not cash app or Venmo becausethat's traceable to give therapy
lessons to her friends at school.
(18:06):
So she's writing a self help book.
Because she thinks that'sgoing to really put her at the top
of the pile to get into Stanford.
But she realizes that shedoesn't have all of her, like, therapy
knowledge is from readingpsych books, but she doesn't have,
like, real life experience.
So she hires Bash, who is anew kid, and he's like the local
bad boy.
(18:27):
She hires him to teach her howto have fun for the summer.
But Bash is not really what he seems.
He looks like an F boy, buthe's actually just the sweetest,
softest cinnamon roll ever.
And he likes to surf.
He wants to be a tattoo artist.
(18:49):
And he has this sort of darkpast that happened down in California
that no one really knows aboutbecause he just moved to Brooklyn.
And without giving too muchaway, he grew up in an environment
that was very kind of toxic.
Black masculinity, you know,only white boy surf.
(19:10):
What are you doing?
You know, tattoo.
No.
You know, his father forcedhim to anywhere.
I don't want to give it away,but, yeah, it was intentional that
I wanted to create a youngblack boy that didn't buy into all
of the toxic nonsense.
You know, I started writingthis right when Megan and Tore.
(19:35):
Like, that whole thing wentdown when people, you know, and I
spent too much time onTwitter, like, seeing the reaction
to her coming out aboutgetting shot.
And, you know, how many of us,how many black men, you know, didn't
believe her?
And black women would standbehind them.
Girl, if you are, it'll be you next.
(19:56):
Yes.
If you are, you shouldn't be.
But if you're paying attentionright now to black, the what's happening
trial is the same thing, samething over themselves to, like, protect
toxic.
Right.
Like, behavior.
Yeah.
So I was really, reallyinspired to create this boy that
did not play into any of thatand was only exactly himself and
(20:20):
loved that.
I love that.
And not only did he do thatfor me, like, not only was that beautiful
to read, he was just such abeautiful contrast to Audra.
Like, he was.
I want to go into thisdiscussion of, like, experience challenges,
you know, because that, like,those really stuck with me because
(20:45):
I think all the time about howhard it is to be intentional about
moving slightly out of yourcomfort zone.
And I.
I just have.
Oh, sorry, look at me.
I was doing the same thing.
So I have one question for theaudience about.
It's an experience challenge,if you will, about an instance where
(21:08):
you have moved a little bitoutside of your comfort zone.
What happened?
Did the world fall apart?
I would love to know any bravesouls yes, ma' am.
Oh, you need the mic, right?
I'm just like, this is my mic.
Hi, everyone.
(21:28):
My name is Geneva.
I just graduated from HowardUniversity with.
My BFA in acting.
And, you know, oh, yeah, so menot peace.
My back towards the audience.
But when in 2020, you know, itaffected the world really bad.
(21:51):
And I love communicating andtalking to friends and stuff, and
everyone had the opposite effect.
They wanted to be to themselves.
So I was really lonely, and Iprayed to God.
I was like, God, please sendme some friends.
And this guy I knew in highschool randomly was like, oh, like,
oh, call me.
And then we became, like,really good friends.
(22:12):
Ended up getting a car, and hewanted to see my car, and he did
something he was supposed toin my car, and I had hyper vigilance.
I went to therapy and stuff toget over the sexual assault, and
it pushed me to move out of Florida.
I was in Florida for my whole life.
I never moved anywhere else.
(22:32):
And I was nervous about goingto Howard.
I was like, maybe I should,like, choose a different school.
Maybe I should stay in thestate so I can stay close to my family.
But that incident pushed me togo to Howard.
It was the best decision Iever made.
So, yeah.
Thank you so much.
Thank you so much.
No, thank you so much for that.
That was.
(22:53):
That was incredibly fantastic.
Really vulnerable.
But, like, this is what.
Like, to me, this is whatreading those experience challenges
did for me.
It made me think about where Iwas playing safe, where I was still,
like, being small and thinkingthat if you just, like, got into
this cookie cutter mode, thenyou could be more lovable.
(23:14):
And that's like, I'm gettingemotional because I love Audra so
much.
She just wanted to be lovable.
You know, she had thisheartbreak without, you know, telling
too much.
But, you know, she reallywanted this time to be the singular
focus, you know, with.
With her dad.
And when that fell off, like, she.
She was reaching for ways tobe lovable.
(23:35):
And I just.
I just think we all do that.
I love this book so much.
If you can't tell.
Another question that I haveis about the perspectives on, like,
being a person on the otherside of someone that has chronic
illness.
And I felt like Audra waslike, you.
(23:58):
You talk so deeply about,like, chronic illness in Seven Days
in June, but also, like, thosecaretakers, those people sometimes
on the other side of that,they have a story.
And I would just love to hearfrom you about.
About writing that portion.
Oh, yeah.
(24:21):
So Seven days.
So Eva in Seven Days in Junewas it's me, more or less.
She has chronic migraine, andso she is in pain all the time.
So am I.
And that puts your loved onesand your friends in a very, you know,
(24:44):
precarious situation.
And if you're a single motherwith, you know, a tween daughter,
she's going to know everythingabout you, your roommates, basically,
and she sees all the signs andshe knows when it's coming, and she
wants to take care of you andshe worries about you.
(25:04):
And my daughter grew up, youknow, with a mom that had to go to
the hospital for weeks on endor, you know, she had to go stay
with her dad longer than shewas supposed to because I couldn't
take care of her.
It was, you know, it's really tough.
And the parentification of,you know, your child happens whether
(25:29):
you like it or not.
And so I touched on that inseven days in June.
But now that she's a teenager,she's able to articulate the ways
in which that stress eats awayat her sometimes.
And it's a lot of pressure ontop of school pressure and boy pressure
(25:52):
and everything.
You managed to, like, createthat world.
But also, the book is really funny.
Okay.
Like, you have balanced somuch depth with a lot of comedy.
There is a.
There's.
I'll just say there's arapping scene.
I was just like, sis, But.
But wrap it up.
(26:13):
Like, a what scene?
Rap recently.
Oh, I was like, no more.
No more lines for you.
I know, but I just.
I'm a rapper.
Ma' am.
No, no, ma' am.
No, no, no, no.
Listen, ma' am, no one everbelieves me, but I have.
I don't believe you right now.
Listen, what you got?
(26:34):
Every single.
I can't freestyle.
Okay, okay, but if you give me an.
No, seriously, in every bookI've ever written, somebody has to
rap.
Somebody's gotta rap.
And it's me.
It's me.
Tia, I love this about you.
(26:56):
No, I'm so hip hop.
Okay.
I love this about you.
Like, give you an hour and you just.
We got it.
Yeah, Okay.
I love that.
But this is.
What I mean is that this is.
It almost makes the funnyparts funnier.
Like, when you do that, canyou talk a little bit about balancing
comedy and really heartfelt,really in depth things that you do?
(27:20):
People always ask me that.
Like, you know, how your bookstackle so many dark themes, but it's
like, you know, but why am ILOL ing?
Yeah.
Like, it's still like, I'mlaughing so hard.
I'm.
You Know, annotating.
I'm remembering these quotes.
Like, and I have no.
Like, that's how I wrote insecond grade.
(27:40):
Like, that's just.
I have.
I grew up in a funny house.
I have funny parents.
My sisters are so much funnierthan I.
They're funny.
In person I'm funny, like onthe page, but in person I'm like,
Like, I can't.
Same way I can't, like,freestyle for you right now, but
(28:02):
I could prepare it.
I can't wait for this.
No, but, but I think, youknow, you can't.
It's my favorite people arefunny people and you can't.
I mean, life is dark if youcan't joke about it.
I'm always.
People that are really drymake me so nervous.
(28:22):
And then I act out trying toget a reaction.
And that has made for somestrange situations at parties where
it's like, it's just time forme to go home because I.
It's like the.
The like people that are tooquiet or too.
Don't absolutely aren't selfdeprecating, don't know how to laugh
(28:44):
at themselves.
It's the, like the.
What I call the dull stare ofa dairy cow.
Like, instead of the eye ofthe tiger.
It's the opposite.
Yeah.
Yes.
Terrifying.
Yeah, it absolutely is.
So I like for my characters to.
To be funny.
Yeah.
So you're just saying, like,you're born this way.
I woke up like this.
Yeah.
I love it.
I love it.
I've always.
Yeah.
I have all these notebooksfrom high school where I would, you
(29:06):
know, write short stories and stuff.
I have always had the same voice.
Always.
Wow.
Yeah.
Wow.
I have one more questionbefore we get to audience questions
because I know that we arenear time.
Two more questions because Ihave a whole essay here.
What do you hope people getfrom this?
Like, they read this book andthey close it.
(29:28):
They're at the last thing andthey're going, ha.
Like, what do you.
What do you want that exhaleto be about?
I think for people like me andAudrey and my daughter, who can be,
well, less so my daughter.
But like, I'm pretty rigid andcorrect like Audrey.
(29:48):
I make lists.
I, you know, I kind of livebullet point to bullet point.
Not super spontaneous at all.
I need a plan.
I need a strategy, like all of that.
And I wish that someone hadgiven me a list of experiences to
(30:11):
go and do the summer before mysenior year and a boy to do them
with.
You know, I was just so by thebook, which is good.
But then you don't you know this?
I feel like this generation isalso very correct.
They have beautiful languagearound inclusivity and you know,
(30:37):
slut shaming and consent andall these wonderful things that we
did not have growing up in the80s and 90s, 70s.
It can make them afraid to, but.
It can make them afraid to do stuff.
Do stuff.
And like you have all thecorrect like talking points, but
it's because tick tock toldyou and not because you experienced
(31:00):
something and now you have a takeaway.
And that worries me.
No, that's real.
Because, you know, sometimes Ican over.
I overheard at a diner thisgroup of obviously teenage girls
and they were like speaking inthese wild hypotheticals about a
(31:22):
date that one of their friendswas on with a guy.
Hypothetical, because none ofthem were on the date.
And it was clear to me thatnone of them had been on a date.
And they were talking aboutlike what is correct and what you
don't do.
And you know, and I was justlike, that's all well and good until
you're stuck in a doorway witha boy that's six, three, you know,
(31:42):
and he smells good and youhave liked him for two and a half
months and the air between youguys goes magnetic and then you forget
all of the things on the listthat you're supposed to adhere to.
And so it's important to havethose experiences so that you know
how to act in the world, notjust hypothetically speaking.
(32:03):
Yeah, I love that.
I absolutely love that.
And my last question is, arewe gonna get some more ya?
I don't know.
You know, I really enjoyed it.
So I wanted to tell a teenageAudrey book.
And in order to do that youhave to write a YA book.
And so that's how I came to ya.
(32:23):
Like people ask me about RickyWilde and the magical realism that
was in there.
I wanted to write a book thathad voodoo in it.
And in order to have a curse,one must have magical realism.
So the device comes after the story.
So if a story leads me to ya,I will follow.
I love that.
(32:43):
But it is hard, like, becauseI like, you know, a little bit of
steam.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
And I felt so creepy because Iam an adult writing about like first
love and like lust betweenteenagers which should not.
(33:06):
A grown up should have.
No.
Has no business in there.
Yeah, but I'm telling the story.
Yeah.
So you remember.
And I remember.
But also I have things in mysearch history like, oh, they come
in for you, hot, hot tall teen boy.
They coming for you, sis.
(33:27):
Don't Prison.
Prison.
Like so.
But I need something for myPinterest board to round out these
characters.
It was just weird, you know?
Yeah.
I don't know.
So maybe.
Maybe.
Thank you for this book.
Thank you for putting it inthe world.
Thank you.
It was a joy.
And you guys are gonna.
You're gonna love it.
(33:48):
Thank you so much.
Thank you.
Your questions are great.
I just want to open up forquestions now.
Yes.
And actually, you got to do alittle legwork for me.
If you'd like to ask aquestion, I'd love to have you come
over here to the mic.
We'll do five, and we'll seewhere we are at that time.
Right here.
(34:08):
Come.
We'll come in line.
Five of you, please.
Pardon me, neighbor.
Pardon me, neighbor.
Got a slide through.
All right, first question.
Thank you.
Hi, I'm Giselle.
I'm here with my mom.
And can you hear me?
Can you hear me?
Yeah, better.
(34:30):
Okay.
Can you hear me now?
Yeah, lovely.
Okay, so my name is Giselle.
I'm here with my mom, andSeven Days in June was the first
slightly smutty book Irecommended to my mother, but it
was because I knew she had toread it.
And, you know, just thelineage of the generational.
(34:56):
Just relationships and traumafrom mother to daughter, it was.
It was just very important to read.
And coming to Audrey andBastard as friends, I actually.
I'm only in chapter nine now,but I had to put it down for a second,
because when we get to thepart of Shane and Eva, you know,
(35:18):
I'm realizing without puttingany, like, spoilers out there, there
is, you know, criticism ofthese characters that I could see.
And my question is, what wasit like to go back to these characters
that now I see you seeyourself in and that all of us love
(35:41):
so much?
What was it like to see someof their flaws more after you wrapped
it up in such a beautiful bowin the end?
Oh, thank you.
Thank you for your question.
Okay, so you know how you're,like, at Wendy's and there's just
a couple at the next boothover making out and being ridiculous
(36:06):
or, like, in line at.
What's that?
At Busch Garden?
You know, how couples getwhere high school couples get weird
or, like, people just, like,hanging all over each other in line?
They're not, like.
To them, they're, like, lostin each other, and it's.
It's.
You know, that's their wholeworld, but we're looking at them
like they're ridiculous.
(36:28):
Like, get a room, you know?
And I always feel So I wasstuck in lockdown with my 12, 13
year old daughter and my new boyfriend.
We were stuck together and so.
And they get along very well.
He's now my husband and wehave a baby.
(36:50):
But the whole time I was like.
Cause we're still likehoneymoon phasing and like giggling
and frolicking and being ridiculous.
And I'm like, how does thislook to the seventh grader?
You know, she's like, you gotlike, grow up.
You're ridiculous.
Like, you know, one time my.
We were kind of frolickingaround my niece, who was nine at
(37:12):
the time, and she was like,some of us are single.
And so I was just thinkingabout that a lot, like, what is.
What it's like being on theoutside looking in on a relationship.
And yeah, it's so beautiful tothe people in it, but like, love
(37:34):
is the most extraordinarything, but it's also the most banal
thing.
It's the most regular,everyday thing.
And it was almost explodingthe myth of Eva and Shane a little
bit because they're reallyjust regular people that are living
regular lives stuck in anapartment that's too small, doing
renovations and trying to plana wedding and have a teenager.
(37:54):
And it was fun for me to takethe focus, you know, like, it's not
no longer Eva's point of view,it's what does she look like from
the outside, from thetherapist that lives in her house.
So yeah, that's.
That's where that came from.
It's a great question.
Yeah.
Hi.
(38:15):
Thank you so much both forcoming and for putting words on the
page and sharing yourbrilliance with us.
I have two questions.
One's fake, one, which iswhich voodoo history book would you
recommend that we check out toQuasi Go back to Belflore, because
that was such a cool dive.
(38:36):
And then the second one is,what are you most proud of about
your relationship with yourdaughter that you put into the book?
Because the journey that theytook in this book was so hard.
It was tough.
And I think the motherdaughter relationship is quite.
It's quite a hike sometimes.
(38:58):
So that was really well done.
Congrats.
Thank you.
Thank you.
I cannot remember the titles.
I'm perimenopausal, so I can'thold a thought in my brain.
I can't remember the names ofmy books.
I have a whole shelf.
I'll put them in the Instagramcaption about this event.
(39:19):
So, yeah, once I get back hometo Brooklyn.
And the thing I'm most proudof about my daughter and my relationship
is that we really can talkabout anything.
And that's because that's themom I grew up with.
I mean, there's a scene whenmommy was very frank about everything.
(39:46):
And there's a scene in thebook when Eva is talked.
I don't remember why they'retalking about sex.
And she says, well, you know,can I say this in front of your daughter?
She read it already?
Yeah.
She was like.
Eva said, you know, it'sbetter if you get on top, because,
you know, mercy women havetilted uteruses.
(40:06):
So.
And this is something that mymom told me when I told her I had
lost my virginity.
She was like, did you get on top?
Cause, you know, it feels better.
I was like, who gets on topthe first time they do it?
But this, you know, that was areal conversation, and that's the
only way I know how to be amother and daughter.
(40:26):
And so, you know, my mom wasthe one that my friends could say
anything in front of, and I'mkind of that mom for my daughter.
And Eva is like that, youknow, with Audrey, too.
So I'm putting your mom on bl.
Mom, can you stand up?
Where are you?
Mom?
Come on, mom, stand up.
Hey.
Mommy.
(40:49):
Put you on blast.
Now we know all of your business.
Yes, it is true.
It is true.
Hi, Tia.
Thank you.
And Nikki, thank you for being here.
Tia, what is your process likeafter you finish that last page?
So, for me, I finished readingthe book last week, and I'm still
(41:11):
thinking about Audrey and Bashand, like, what does this year look
like for her senior year?
You know what I mean?
Yeah.
So I guess my question was for you.
Are you able to easily let goof the characters, or do you.
Are there stories in your headthat we're not privy to about them?
And then the other questionwas, you've done magical realism.
You've done ya.
You've done all this.
Is there a sneak peek onwhat's next?
(41:31):
And I know authors hate that,but I just love your book, so it's
okay if you don't.
Thank you.
Okay, first question.
What was the first one?
Oh, afterwards.
Yeah, I don't.
I have stories going in myhead from when I used to walk to
(41:54):
school.
Like, I have stories in myhead from that.
That I would make up when Iwas laying on hospital beds, you
know, in pain, that are just.
That I just pick up sometimesand just.
You do that?
My daughter does that.
(42:15):
She used to.
My daughter does that.
She thinks she has a mental problem.
She's like, I just think ofstories and Whole things in my head,
I'm like, that's creativity.
That's creativity.
Just write it down.
You're a star.
Yeah.
Yes, that's right.
So, yeah, they never go anywhere.
You know, it's just that thatstory was over.
(42:35):
And in fact, all of my.
I feel like I put, like, extra.
I love side characters and Ilove villains.
And a creative writingprofessor once told me that villains
and side characters don't knowthat they're not the star.
(42:56):
So you have to give them thesame amount of respect and time and
attention and research as youdo your main protagonist.
So all of the friends, like, every.
Everyone, you know, thesecondary characters, I write them.
So they're like.
You can imagine them wanderingover from the book where they're
(43:16):
the star into this one andthen going back.
Yeah.
So, yeah, I think about Tuesday.
You know, I think about Miss Stella.
I think about Cece, like, youknow, Billy, they're.
They're all in there somewhere.
And the second question.
Oh, I have a book due in November.
(43:38):
I have not started writing itat all.
At all.
But I have a beautiful outline.
An outline is something I'msupposed to have.
Oh, now I'm sweating.
I'm supposed to have 100 pagesin by the beginning of July.
(44:01):
Would you like to write it?
I'm gonna quickly tell youwhat it's about.
Yes.
I know that we're strict ontime here.
Cause we have to.
To get out.
But.
So, okay, so it's about thiswoman who just started working at
this Global corporation, okay?
She's new, and her first sortof thing is to go to this international
(44:23):
summit with people that workfor this corporation all over the
world.
So she gets on the plane.
I haven't decided if it'slike, Italy or something, I don't
know, somewhere in Europe.
And she gets on the plane, shesits next to this gentleman.
They get drunk.
She's like, I'm in love.
Like, this is it.
They're too drunk to rememberto exchange their information.
(44:46):
And the plane is kind offilled with people that work for
the corporation.
But she's new, so she doesn'tknow who anyone is.
So tipsy, she emails HR andshe says, I found my husband.
He looks like this.
I was sitting next to him onthe plane.
Does he work for the corporation?
(45:07):
And because she's drunk, whatshe doesn't realize is that she sent
that email to Global.
Oh, my God.
So everyone around the worldthat works for this corporation got
that email.
And so they're all looking forthe man for her.
And it's called Ms.
Connection.
Oh, my God.
(45:31):
Good.
It's good, right?
That's good.
It's good.
Oh, my gosh.
I can't wait to write it.
Oh, my God, I can't wait toread it.
Yeah.
Yeah.
That's iconic.
We're not going to pressureyou to come back to D.C.
for a book tour, but we are.
That's a nice.
That's a good one.
Yes.
I'm coming.
I'm coming.
Peer pressure works.
Okay, so this kind of goes into.
(45:52):
What you were just saying.
You mentioned the Pinterestboard and building out the characters.
How does that work into yourwriting process?
Is that towards the end or at.
The beginning or where doesthat fit?
Are you a writer?
No.
You're just curious.
Just curious.
The beginning.
Because I have to envisionwhat they look like and what they
dress like.
(46:12):
I was a beauty editor, so,like, the visuals are very important.
I get frustrated when I read abook and it's like, she was wearing
a red dress.
Okay.
Zara, vintage.
Is it Dior?
Like, what it tells you somuch about who someone is and, like,
(46:32):
the interiors, like, where arethey sitting?
Like, I need to know.
Even if things, you know, howit is, like, even if it doesn't make
it on the page, it helps youbecause, you know, in the back.
Yeah.
In order to write it.
In order to write it.
Yeah.
So that's at the beginning is what.
Is there a Pinterest board fora misconnection?
Yes.
(46:53):
So I have done that.
Yeah, I've done that.
That's writing.
That's writing.
Okay.
Hello.
Hi, Tia, Nikki.
Love you both so very quickly.
Audrey is an exceptional young woman.
An exceptional young black woman.
I feel like a lot of womenfall into the trap of needing to
(47:13):
be exceptional and incrediblein order to feel value or, you know,
to be worth anything.
What is your message to youngwomen and young girls who feel like
they need to be that in orderto be valued and seen?
I think the Met.
Because I'm one of those girls.
I was one of those girls.
(47:34):
Like, it was the kind ofthing, like, my parents used to tell
me to chill, like, that I wasbeing too intense, you know, about
school and things like that.
Yeah, it's.
Yeah.
You know, it's bad if your ownparents are like.
I think the message is thatthe living part is just as important
(47:56):
as the quote unquote,excelling part.
And, you know, you never knowwhat you.
What you learn while you'replaying can be just as or even more
important than what you learn.
In somebody's class.
You hear that, Joni?
I think that's it.
You hear that, Joni?
That's the message.
(48:19):
Okay?
Zoning.
I have to know, are you anEarth sign?
I'm a Leo.
I'm a Leo.
I think we have time for twomore questions.
I'm an August Leo.
My son is a July Leo, and meand my father have the same birthday.
Yeah, so he's a Leo, too.
(48:40):
We have time for two more questions.
Is that okay?
Anybody?
Well, anybody else?
Two more.
We're going to pass the micdown to you.
A question, not a comment.
Summary.
No, I'm messing.
Oh, say that again.
No, no, no, no, no, no.
(49:00):
Okay, so this question.
Hi, I'm Angie.
Hey, Angie.
Hi.
And my question actually isabout seven days in June.
I want to know, which sevendays was it?
Was it when they were kids orwas it the seven days when they were
grown?
(49:21):
From the title.
Do you know that?
No one has ever asked me that.
Which seven days was Ireferring to?
Unclear.
Wait, let me think.
Let me.
Let me think.
You know what?
No, the teen.
(49:42):
The teenage years.
Because it built them.
It was like the grant.
It was the ground floor.
Yeah, right.
I agree.
And it's the first thing I wrote.
Yeah.
I feel like.
Yeah, that's what it is.
Yeah, I agree.
Last question.
Anybody else?
Last question.
Right here.
(50:03):
Let's talk really loud.
Hi, I'm Danita.
Question.
Did you have Audrey already inyour mind when you were writing Seven
Days in June?
Because that was one of thethings when I was reading it, I said,
she gives this child a lot ofattention in this book.
I want to know what's going onwith Eva and this dude, you know,
so.
But you did.
You kept circling back to hera lot.
(50:23):
So did you already have thatbook in your mind?
Because now that I know, I think.
Now I know.
So did you?
No.
No.
I had no idea.
I just liked her.
And I was tickling myself as I.
You know, I was like, oh,she's so cute.
(50:44):
Like I said, I love a side character.
And also, she was sort of theaudience proxy, you know, like this
thing, you know, like inhorror movies.
Like, you need a characterthat's like, you know, we need to
get out of this house.
Yeah, exactly.
And she's kind of the personwho sees even Shane, like, that scene
(51:05):
when she's like, which one ofyou is the turtle?
You know, you're writers.
You figure it out.
So I just.
I wanted someone who was,like, witnessing them and sort of
thinking what we were all thinking.
But Really?
I had no idea.
I don't.
I've never written a spin off.
(51:27):
I'm surprised that I'vewritten one because when I'm done,
I'm like, ready to dosomething else.
So, yeah.
Let's give it up.
Oh, let's give it up for TiaWilliams and Nikki Pay.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you, both of you forjust for sharing space, creating
(51:49):
space for us tonight.
We just appreciate you.
Thank you for putting thesebooks out into the world.
We need a little bit of joy,we need a little bit of escapism.
We need a lot of differentthings right now and your books provide
that for us.
So thank you both.
Thank you.
Give it up again for NikkiHayne and also Tia Williams.
Discover a world where wordsignite change.
(52:09):
Tune in to Black Books Matter,the podcast where we celebrate the
profound impact of AfricanAmerican literature.
Join us as we delve intoiconic works and hidden gems, discussing
their power to shape minds andtransform societies.
Get ready for thoughtprovoking discussions, author interviews,
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(52:30):
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