BACK

HOMEPAGE

ReGeJe Press

Terris McMahan Grimes, author of double Anthony Award winner, SOMEBODY ELSE'S CHILD, and BLOOD WILL TELL interviews her agent and friend, Divas editor, Jacqueline Turner Banks.

Q: Your company, Banks Communications, is entering the publishing field this year with ReGeJe Press. With all your years as a writer and literary agent, you know how much work is involved in publishing, why take on that kind of hassle?

A: Your absolutely right when you call it a hassle. We had no idea what we were taking on when we decided to do this. We knew we had to do everything ourselves, but we didn't realize how much was involved in everything.

But I'm enjoying it. When the uncorrected proofs for MAID IN THE SHADE came back I got a sense of satisfaction that was even greater than the joy I felt when I held my first novel that was published by Houghton Mifflin. We're doing this because of some of the trends we've seen in publishing. Big houses are gobbling up each other, becoming even bigger, and consolidating their lists. As a result, the two or three slots assigned to books by and about African Americans from two or three houses. have become 2 or 3 slots from one huge publisher. What I'm saying is roughly 9 slots (from 2-3 publishers) have become 3 from one publisher.  I doubt if anybody in the business will admit this is happening, but I've seen it. And, surprisingly enough, this is coming at a time when statistics prove that our readership and buying power has never been greater. We believe the time to moan and groan about what's not being done for us is over (if it ever existed). If we want to see our books in the marketplace it's our responsibility to put them there.

Q: Who's "we?"

A: My husband, Reginald, is the Publisher.  My title is still writer/literary agent.

Q: How many books do you expect to publish?

A: Six this year, three on the spring list and three on our fall list.

Q: All mysteries?

A: No. As you know, I love mysteries, and ReGeJe Press will probably be top heavy in that genre, but our taste and lists will be eclectic. We have a mystery, a contemporary romance, and a thriller on the Spring list. We have a juvenile mystery, a horror and one I can't quite classify yet on the Fall list.

Q: All fiction?

A: This year, yes, but next year could be all nonfiction. Like I said, we have varied taste.

Q: Will all your writers and characters be African Americans?

A: No, but our books will always be of interest to African Americans. I'm not sure what that means because our taste is as broad as the general public's. I'm sure more than two-thirds of the books in my house are by and about white people.

The horror novel that's coming out on the Fall list is by a white brother and sister writing team. It's called VALLEY OF THE SHADOW and it's wonderful. One of their main characters is black, but I'm sure I would have wanted to publish this novel even if he wasn't. We will publish the kind of things we like to read.