Author: Sherisa de Groot

Ten Questions for LaToya Jordan

RAISING MOTHERS:     What inspired you to tell this story? LATOYA JORDAN:    The idea began formulating in my head in 2016, after I read a news article about the first uterine transplant being performed in the US. Because my mind always goes to the worst-case scenario, I thought about the urban myth surrounding black market organs and waking up in a hotel bathtub filled with ice and a kidney missing. I thought about the lengths some people will go to to have biological children and wondered about what a future black market for uteruses might look like. Later that year, I had uterine surgery to remove a fibroid. I’d had many talks with my doctors about my uterus, surgery, and preserving my fertility. Then, the first Woman’s March happened in January 2017. What began as a kernel of an idea morphed based on what was happening in my life and what was happening in the country around medical advances, reproductive rights, and racial justice. RAISING MOTHERS:     What did you edit out …

Dr. Anna Malaika Tubbs | Mama’s Writing

Mama’s Writing is Raising Mothers’ monthly interview series, curated by Starr Davis. What recent writing accomplishment(s) are you most proud of? Was this accomplishment shared and supported by your children? I recently signed a major two-book deal for my next two non-fiction works with Flatiron Books and I feel so proud because it really feels like I’m officially a writer now, I don’t only have one book out there but this is now my career. It means I make enough to just focus on my writing and to have the flexible schedule I have always wanted. My children are very young so it’s hard to say that they “support” my accomplishment but they are certainly very adaptable and understand that when I head out to my studio, I’m doing my work and that my work contributes to the life they get to live. Tell about a time mom-guilt emerged (or emerges) in the midst of your writing process. While I love my flexible schedule I also have a hard time prioritizing my writing as a result. …

Ten Questions for Grace Talusan

RAISING MOTHERS:     What inspired you to tell this story? GRACE TALUSAN:     I wrote this book out of an urgent desire to not be alone with my story. Over many years, I wrote short essays and pieces that eventually became my first book, THE BODY PAPERS, and it has been wonderful to connect with readers of my writing, but even before I had readers, I felt less alone from the act of writing itself. I also felt an ethical responsibility to tell the truth.  RAISING MOTHERS:     What did you edit out of this book? GRACE TALUSAN:     Because I was writing memoir, I wanted to be careful when I was writing about other people, especially the children in my life. I would ask myself what was really necessary in order to tell my story. If I was going to reveal a detail about someone else, how did that work in service to the story I was telling? I also asked myself why I was telling a certain story. There …

Behind the Book with Cherise Fisher

Behind the Book is an exploration into the other side of publishing; we speak with agents, editors, publicists, and other members of the publishing industry whose hard work contributes to the wonderful material we are able to read and recommend daily. It’s an open conversation on their individual careers, the state of the industry and its future potential. Our first installment is with Cherise Fisher, literary agent at Wendy Sherman. Her career spans over 25 years, including her time as Editor-in-Chief of Plume (an imprint of Penguin Random House). She has ushered into print such recent notable books as Rachel Rickett’s international bestseller Do Better (2021), Tia Williams’ novel Seven Days In June (2021), Maya-Camille Broussard’s Justice of the Pies (2022), Diane Marie Brown’s novel Black Candle Woman (2023) and a host of other spectacular authors. What was your first job in publishing? My first job in publishing was as the Assistant to the Editor of Chief of Delacorte/Dell. I started about two weeks after my graduation from college. Can you walk us through your publishing …

Gone Like Yesterday | Ten Questions for Janelle Williams

RAISING MOTHERS:     What inspired you to tell this story?  JANELLE WILLIAMS:     I was largely inspired by my obsession with music, specifically Black music. I also feel like there’s this tightrope that Black Americans walk. On one side, there’s fighting for the cause and uplifting the Black community at large. On the other side, there’s living a soft life and building generational wealth for your nuclear family. What happens if you’re pulled too far in one direction? Either way, you lose yourself. At least, that’s sort of what happened to Zahra and Derrick. Also, of course, my experience working with high school seniors on their college essays had a profound impact on the novel and the two central teenage characters, Sammie and Sophia. RAISING MOTHERS:     What did you edit out of this book? JANELLE WILLIAMS:     I added more to the book than I took out during the editing process. I added sections in the beginning of the novel to deepen the bond between Sammie and Zahra and to …