SCANDAL!

In 2010 when I first started writing the Chausiku Series, a friend asked me if I really thought that I could sell a supernatural book with a lead character who is an African American/African teenage girl.  It was a valid question at that time.  But the reason that I started writing about Chausiku had nothing to do with whether or not she would sell.

I have always been a supernatural junkie.  Growing up, I used to sneak into my older brother's room to read his Marvel and DC comic books.  As I grew older, I began reading supernatural books and watching supernatural movies...the great, the good and the bad.  When I became an adult and had a daughter, I noticed that there didn't seem to be any supernatural books or movies that had an African American girl as the lead character or at least I didn't find them.  There were a few books with a girl of color who was a character in the book but not the lead.  Storm is one of my favorites.  Then it occurred to me that it wasn't just African Americans that lacked visibility in supernatural books.  There didn't seem to be people of different races prominently set forth as main characters in supernatural books either.  I couldn't get the thought out of mind so I started creating characters and writing them down.  Before I knew it, I had written a story about a teenage girl known as Chausiku, The Prophecy and six secret clans with supernatural abilities.

Chausiku is a descendant of the Sakombi clan from Africa on her mother's side and she is African American on her father's side.  The Natosapi clan of North America is from the Blackfoot tribe of Native Americans in the United States and First Nations in Canada.  The Spencer clan from Europe is from London, England in the United Kingdom.  The Qiáo clan of Asia is from Shanghai, China.  The Latin American Amaru clan is from South America.  And the Gale clan is from Australia.

Now what does any of this have to do with the hit series Scandal, you ask?  Well, Scandal is the first network series with an African American actress as the lead since 1974.  I admit that I am a Gladiator and so are almost all of my female friends.  The show is a huge success and not because of the race of the lead character but because it is an interesting series!

So my answer to my friend's question is...ABSOLUTELY!  As long as there is an interesting story being told the race of the lead character doesn't matter...and of course the Chausiku saga is an interesting story!

 http://www.amazon.com/Chausiku-Gathering-Storm-Book-ebook/dp/B00A47AD06
http://www.amazon.com/Chausiku-Secret-Gambit-Book-ebook/dp/B00EJR4HXG
Book Three coming soon!
#Scandal #teenbooks #youngadultbooks #africanamericanbooks #latinabooks #blackfootnation