It was tough pretending not to be smart, but it was difficult pretending they were smart. Years as a journalist had taught her how to find out background information on just about anyone. The truth was that the women were common and stupid, but still they had the power to destroy lives. She would have to watch herself around them.
An African American woman moved home to take care of her dying mother giving up the opportunity to experience a world beyond segregation. Zoraida Hughes Williams finds that some things have changed about her hometown of Fort Worth, Texas while some have stayed the same, like Hell’s Half Acre, an area where saloons, prostitution and gambling runs wild. Like most of the residents, she wants to keep her head down and stay away from trouble, but it comes in the unlikely form of an Anglo Baptist preacher. He messes up everything and almost gets them killed.
Movies and books are some of the things I love. When I was a kid, I used to catch the bus and go to Seminary South to the General Cinema theater to watch movies. It was the coolest thing to me and these movies had an impact on how I saw the world. Most of the movies I saw had men leads, and most of which were Anglo.
When the first Star Wars movie debuted in 1977, I was too young to ride the bus by myself. But I fell in love with the Empire Strikes Back in 1980 and was excited that Billy Dee Williams was one of the cast. As an actor is was good to see someone who looked like me in a popular film that was good to boot. It gave hope that African American actors would not be typecast as the bad guys, the stupid guys or “you don’t have a purpose” guys.
I don’t have adequate words to explain my feelings as I watched the recent installment of the Star Wars franchise. I was like, “Wow!”
As I sat in the movie theater 38 years after the first movie, I can see a difference in who we are as story tellers. As a country we have grown some and it is nice to see it reflected in a major franchise movie. It is nice to see actors who look like me get roles that might have been cast other ways.
I love that one of the main characters was African American and another was female. The story-line had nothing to do with their race or gender, it allowed two actors to do what they do best. ACT. Yet their presence spoke volumes. It takes Star Wars to whole new level with me. It was a great movie experience. We have truly come a long way.
The world was changing. Colored people were organizing and were standing up for their rights. The women’s rights movement was taking off like a runaway train. All of these exciting things were happening across the United States and she was stuck in a city that could set race and women’s right back a hundred years.
An African American woman moved home to take care of her dying mother giving up the opportunity to experience a world beyond segregation. Zoraida Hughes Williams finds that some things have changed about her hometown of Fort Worth, Texas while some have stayed the same, like Hell’s Half Acre, an area where saloons, prostitution and gambling runs wild. Like most of the residents, she wants to keep her head down and stay away from trouble, but it comes in the unlikely form of an Anglo Baptist preacher. He messes up everything and almost gets them killed.
Destiny’s Dilemma is available in print. You can purchase it on Createspace.
Her life was not turning out the way she has planned it. Instead of exploring a big city that promised lots of adventure, she was stuck in a small city relegated to a life of servitude. How could this be fair?
An African American woman moved home to take care of her dying mother giving up the opportunity to experience a world beyond segregation. Zoraida Hughes Williams finds that some things have changed about her hometown of Fort Worth, Texas while some have stayed the same, like Hell’s Half Acre, an area where saloons, prostitution and gambling runs wild. Like most of the residents, she wants to keep her head down and stay away from trouble, but it comes in the unlikely form of an Anglo Baptist preacher. He messes up everything and almost gets them killed.
Destiny’s Dilemma is available in print. You can purchase it on Createspace.
A single young woman is tricked by modern day pirates losing everything she owned. As she tries to figure out what happened to her belongings, her world crashes around her as government and private agencies treat her as a suspect. Determined to find the man who did this to her, she stumbles onto a government top secret. Finding this modern day pirate turns into a race against lethal forces.
Even though two men pursued her, she was on a mission to save one who didn’t want to be saved. In 1912, colored people were doing better than they had ever been. She was excited about the progress, and wanted to be a part of the change. She knew it would start in her own backyard. Find out how she did in Destiny’s Dilemma Destiny’s Dilemma
Even though two men pursued her, she was on a mission to save one who didn’t want to be saved. In 1912, colored people were doing better than they had ever been. She was excited about the progress, and wanted to be a part of the change. She knew it would start in her own backyard.
She met Hector Rios at Del Finos, an Italian restaurant on a better side of town. She always chose restaurants she had not been to, in case her client acted a fool. She wouldn’t feel bad about not returning if they got kicked out.
There was a usual spiel she went through with her clients when she was about to give them bad news, but not this time. Hector was the owner of a very successful carpet cleaning company, but even at 56 years old his mother was very active in his life. She had suspected Hector’s wife of 16 years of being unfaithful. She had hired Sandy to find the truth. Half way through the process, they told Hector about the investigation. They had decided that Hector would be the point person from that point on.
“Hector, she is not the angel you think she is. Don’t open this package until I’m gone. And I don’t plan on sharing it with your mom, even though she was the one who hired me. If anything happens to this woman, copies of these photos will end up with the sheriff.”
“She can’t be that bad. She’s the mother of my child.”
Sandy handed her the envelope.
“Don’t open it until I’m gone,” she said and picked up the check.
She was in the parking lot getting into her car when her phone rang. It was Hector. She hit ignore. People with money might not marry for money, but those without it do. Hector’s mother may have been a busy body, but she was right.
Connections is a novel about a private investigator who’s life and business started falling apart before it even got together. Working with her foster sister, they ran into a case and lawyer that blew everything up. Running for her life, Sandy Herrick discovered that God was the only one with her who wasn’t talking smack, trying to kill her or get into her pants. As she and her friends try to figure out who framed them, they all discover that there was more to each other than they thought they knew.
As evil forces closed in on them, they have to determine who they trust and what they believe about each other. Would this be enough to save them?
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