Niko Michelle

Interview by King Brooks of Black Page Turners

Niko Michelle: Uncensored

I have known Niko Michelle for 5 years now and I have enjoyed getting to know her and experiencing her sense of humor. She first reached out to me to read her book Pose, and I am glad she did. It has been a joy to watch her start off indie and later sign with a major publisher. Then branch off into films. So, sit back and enjoy this interview. Let us know what you thought on social media.

King Brooks: Hi Niko, how are you?

Niko Michelle: I cannot and will not complain. Life is good.

KB: Tell us about your new novel ‘Jilted?’

NM: Imagine standing at the altar, exchanging vows, and in wobbles a pregnant lady who not only objects but drops a bombshell announcement. She is pregnant with the groom’s baby. If that isn’t bad enough, the same woman goes into labor in the middle of the aisle. Worse, the bride is forced to deliver the baby because she is an OBGYN. Now, what happens after that? You’ll just have to read. Oh, and that’s just the first chapter.

KB: Where did the idea for this story come from?

NM: I know a young lady who was in a relationship, or so she thought. She found out the guy was engaged and had a baby on the way. It took her by total surprise. I used her experience, brainstormed, added a couple of what-ifs, and spun it into Jilted.

KB: How long did it take for you to write ‘Jilted?’

NM: I don’t remember the specific time frame for the entire manuscript, but I do remember this particular story secured me a literary agent. First came the great Tiffany L. Warren, who critiqued a portion of the story and gave me some dynamite pointers. I took her feedback, reworked the story, and started querying. I received two offers. TWO! In a sea of rejection letters, I didn’t see that coming. I prayed hard. What was a girl to do? I signed with Shawanda Williams, which has been the best thing ever. I told the story of Jilted, which was titled something else, in roughly 45,000 words. My agent loved the story but told me the manuscript had to be 75,000 words to get a deal. Say what? I did the math on my fingers, then on a calculator. Basically, I had to add 30,000 words. I wanted it, so I did it in under a month.

KB: What do you want readers to take away from ‘Jilted?’

NM: LOL! A little disclaimer. I don’t necessarily write for anything more than entertainment. Now, if readers take anything away from Jilted, I hope they will see that sometimes it takes for your world to be flipped upside down to start living your purposed life. I think we sometimes become so complacent that we settle and pretend. Or we tend to live our lives according to what other people think is best for us. Don’t be afraid to step out there and try. Guess what? It will be okay.

KB: Who is Niko Michelle as a person/author?

NM: Niko Michelle as a person, is goofy and adventurous. She will walk up to an alligator, introduce herself, and ask if it would like to play but will outrun any track star to get away from a bug. Makes perfect sense, right?

As an author, she is surprisingly timid about her work yet determined to learn as much as possible through writing classes, networking, and reading.

KB: When did the writing bug hit you?

NM: The bug hit me in elementary school. I’d write to escape my unpleasant reality. Then when I got older, that nagging bug was back. Remember, I am very much afraid of bugs, so I ran from it. One day out of boredom, I started a story that I made my friend Monique read. She encouraged me to keep going. I think we traded stories at work. LOL. From there, every time I got bored, I’d write. Endgame came to me in a dream. I wrote the beginning and end, no middle, but I made my friends and family read it. One, in particular, Gina, encouraged and pushed me to publish it. She really harassed me, but I’m being nice. I researched for hours and weeks. Rejection after rejection. Persistence paid off, and here I am.

KB: What advice would you give to an aspiring author?

NM: It’s simple and cliché. Write. Set aside a daily goal to add words to the pages. Even if it’s 50 or 100 words, that will eventually lead to an entire book. Most importantly, invest in writing classes and find writing groups to join and accountability partners to help you reach your goals.

KB: How can readers get in touch with you and find your books?

NM: Okay, because I am more of a telephone book and picking up the phone to call people kind of girl, it may seem like I don’t have social media, but I do. I am going to do better. Facebook: Niko Michelle. Instagram: story_telling_niko, website: www.nikomichelle.com. My work can be purchased from Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Target, and Walmart.

KB: Tell us about the next book ‘Dear Diary’ and ‘Full Figured 17?’

NM: Dear Diary. That was a tough one. I toggled with the outcome and am interested to see how much hate mail I will get on that. Hopefully, it will start a much-needed conversation about mental health in the African American community. It does exist, and it can’t just be prayed away. To sum it up, the book follows a young lady who starts hearing voices from her deceased brother, encouraging her to avenge his death. She marries the man responsible for the car accident that took her brother’s life. When she’s stable on meds, things are good. When she’s inconsistent with her meds, things are rocky. Because she is often judged, it’s hard to remain consistent. Ultimately, she kills her husband, but was the murder premeditated or a result of her often-untreated mental health disorder? With Full Figured 17. YIKES. I challenged myself on that one. To all pastors and church congregations –read this book, but do not judge me or put me in church time out. It’s sexy entertainment. My story is called Red Flags, and I tackle the term; throughout this book. Redarra is overweight and was always told she’d have to settle because of her size. Well, she lands the star football player of her college. Things are great until her boyfriend is caught in an uncompromising position with another guy. Eventually, they talk, and he tells her she should have paid attention to the red flags. Redarra then goes on a mission to leave him some anonymous red flags of her own.

KB: Tell us about your crafting projects?

NM: My who? LOL. That was a coping mechanism. I broke my neck, which caused some severe spinal issues that resulted in about ten procedures. Crafting and coloring kept me sane. Since writing and movie projects have picked up, I honestly haven’t given much time to crafting projects. I’m a fake crafter. I have to be in the mood.

KB: What can we expect from you in the future?

NM: I am currently working on a book called Pretty Brown Eyes. It follows the story of a black female serial killer. I’m excited about this because it’s different, but the twist gives even me goosebumps. Remember that super-agent I told you about? She has me producing movies. Crazy right? Never saw that for me. My future will be filled with books, films, and scriptwriting. Fingers crossed.