Upcoming Works
Get an exclusive sneak peek at my upcoming and planned books
Children of the Ocean God
This is my most ambitious and exciting book project to date. My goal is to write a historical fiction novel about my ancestors, the Black Caribs, an Afro-Amerindian tribe with a compelling, yet tragic story which has been largely untold. Among their many extraordinary achievements was their armed resistance against European colonization of the Caribbean island of St Vincent for nearly two centuries.
Equally remarkable, the Black Caribs were also one of the first non-white/indigenous people to sign an accord with a European colonial power (Great Britain). Adding further intrigue to their story is the as yet unresolved mystery surrounding the origin of the Black Caribs, which remains the subject of historical and anthropological debate to this day.
Avoiding such controversies this book will take readers on a journey from the events leading up to the start of the Second Carib War in 1795 to the mass deportation of Black Caribs to the island of Roatan, in present-day Honduras, at the war’s conclusion in 1797. To ensure authenticity and honor the legacy of the Black Caribs I am painstakingly researching historical records, visiting relevant historical sites and interviewing modern-day descendants of the Black Caribs in the diaspora.
For me, this is much more than just a writing project it is my calling.
Children of the Ocean God is a book derived from the very marrow of my soul.
What I Think About When I Run
The idea to write this book came to me, unsurprisingly, one day while running. In fact, it was just after reading Haruki Murakami’s renowned novella What I Talk About When I Talk About Running. An American friend had suggested his book to me, after hearing that I am an avid runner.
Murakami’s book gave me the inspiration to keep up with my training regimen during a difficult rebuilding period following my second ever half marathon in Berlin in April 2019.
Although I had achieved a new personal best, I was still a disappointing seven minutes off of my goal time. Interestingly, I read What I Talk About When I Talk About Running at a time when I was editing my first full-length book, my memoir, Walking in Footsteps of Promise. So I was writing and running a lot. Almost, every day, in fact, I was writing for a least an hour. Strangely enough, I felt as if my running routine was somehow helping me to maintain the discipline necessary to write each day. I decided to focus on what I think about when I am running since I noticed that when I run I often have quite interesting conversations going on in my head.
Each day is, of course, different, however, I am always left with a strangely satisfying feeling after a run. A comfort that I have not only physically exerted myself, but have also achieved a level of mental satiation. Perhaps what I think about when I am running is hardly different from other runners. Perhaps not. I will let you be the judge of that!