Spotlight: To Love A No Good – Phoenix Williams

To the outside world, the Bird sisters have it all: money, power, a successful interior design firm, and beauty. However, on the inside, these three black socialites are a mess. They have allowed the dysfunctional and at times, emotionally abusive marriage of their parents to color their views on life and love.
Robin is determined to have a family at any cost and is willing to destroy anyone standing in her way. Raven has been married for ten long years and sees no way out of her drug dealing husband’s tight grasp, until she begins to fall for his best friend. Sparrow is afraid of becoming consumed by men and love like her mother, so she leaves a trail of broken hearts in her wake and some don’t take the rejection as well as others.
When all three sisters put their trust in the wrong men, they find themselves faced with deadly stalkers, scorned ex-husbands, and jealous wives that throw them headfirst into Chicago’s underbelly. Help arrives from the most unlikely of sources, their baby brother, Blue-who has secrets of his own. With Blue and his associates by their side, Robin, Raven, and Sparrow are forced to reevaluate their life choices, commit unthinkable acts, and are pushed closer to the line of no return.

SPARROW

“I fucking hate you!”

Onyx eyes leered at me. If looks could kill my behind would have been dead for sure. As heads turned toward us in the dark restaurant, I fought to remain cool. I refused to pull out my clown suit in public.

“You knew what this was from the beginning. I don’t understand why you are so upset,” I said. Honestly, I didn’t know. It wasn’t as if I had lied to him or misled him. He knew what I wanted from the start.

His jaw ticked as he leaned across the table, a frown marring his beautiful chocolate face. His balled up fists made the muscles in his arms more pronounced. “You don’t understand?” his voice took on a deadly quality that I had never heard from him before. “I gave you my love, Sparrow. I offered you what I never offered any other woman. I gave you my heart and what did you do with it? You pierced it with your stilettos, fucking she-devil!”

The distressed look on his face softened my heart a little, but not enough to stop me from gathering my things. The only sounds audible in the restaurant were his labored breathing and the hushed tones of the other patrons, who were more than likely discussing his outburst.

Slipping on my cashmere coat, I looked at him one last time as I stood and took a deep breath. It took everything in me to calmly respond, “Sean, I’m sorry if you got the wrong impression. I am not a ‘forever’ type of girl. I’m a ‘for right now’ kind of girl. I did not ask you for your love, heart, or future and I certainly don’t want it.”

With my held high, I walked out of the restaurant and into the cool February night. I could feel the eyes of everyone on my back as I walked away.

Phoenix Williams is an author based out of Illinois. Her love of writing was born during her early childhood. Creating what she dubs “Realistic romance and family dramas with an urban twist,” Phoenix spins tales that allows the readers to see glimpses of themselves in the characters.

Her works consist of several short story collections—Running, Whipped, Screwed & Stripped, and Phoenix After Dark—and her debut novel with Mahogany Red Books—To Love A No Good Nigga.

Get to know Phoenix:

Where are you from?

I was raised in Illinois, right outside of Chicago.

When it’s time for you to start writing, how do you prepare?

I turn off all the lights, turn off my phone, and throw on some music. The music is the most important part of the process. I like my books to flow like a movie and movies have scores and soundtracks.

Did you always want to be an author or did you have different career goals?

I have always been a writer but I didn’t take it seriously until a few years ago. I was in college, studying to be a lawyer. I was in my second year when I realized that I hated what I was going to school for. So, I quit and started self-publishing.

Do you pull from personal experience for storylines?

There is always a little bit of truth in fiction. Everyone has experienced family and relationship drama. That’s what I write about. However, I haven’t written a story that is 100% fact. I usually get my storylines from people watching. If I am ever stuck then I just ride through the west side of Chicago. I’m guaranteed to see at least twenty possible stories.

What do you want readers to get from your books?

I really want the reader to be able to see glimpses of themselves in each book. If you read one of my books and can relate to any of the characters then I feel like I’ve done my job.

If you could collaborate with anyone, who would it be?

I’d love to collaborate with Tamika Newhouse—and I’m not just saying that because I signed with her. She’s one of the few authors who can get a physical reaction out of me. I start yelling at the characters like they can actually hear me! I would also love to work with Adrianne Byrd and Zuri Day. Those ladies are so talented. Their genre is different from mine and I’d love the challenge of trying to mesh our styles.

What is the best piece of writing advice you have ever received?

When I was writing To Love A No Good Nigga I was having a hard time starting it. I knew what I wanted to say but I wasn’t sure how to say it. My best friend, Envy, sat me down and told me to pretend I was telling her about these three crazy sisters. Two months later, the book was finished.