Lynn Emery is the author of twelve African-American romance novels which include Good Woman Blues (2005); Kiss Lonely Goodbye (2003) and All I Want Is Forever (2002). One of her stories, “Tumbling Down”, has also been featured in The Lipstick Chronicles, a collection of four novellas from different authors.

Another of her novels, After All (1996) was produced as a made-for-television movie by Black Entertainment Television in 1999.

She has also won several awards for her writing. In 1995, she received the Excellence in Romance Fiction Award for her first novel, Night Music Magic (1995) and in 2000, she was nominated for the Lifetime Achievement Award in Multicultural Romance Fiction from the Romantic Times Magazine.

In 2004, she went on to win three Emma Awards, including Author of the Year.

Her latest books include: Endless Passion (2006) — a collector’s edition of three earlier novels, Night Magic (1995); Tender Touch (1997) and Sweet Mystery (1998) — and Soulful Strut (2006), her latest romance novel.

Her first non-fiction book, Be Encouraged: Words of Sunlight For The Soul (BookSurge, 2007), is a collection of inspirational essays and poems.

In a recent interview, she spoke about her writing.

What is your latest book about?

Soulful Strut is about a woman who is finally released from prison after being wrongfully convicted and she has to learn a new way of living - that is, she must resist going back to the lifestyle that made her so easy to frame and she has to forgive herself for past mistakes.

The novel took about eight months to write. It was released in the U.S. in Dec. 2006.

Which aspects of the work that you put into the book did you find most difficult?

I always find the revision process the most painful (after I get notes from my editor). That’s because writing is such hard work that the thought of changing it literally makes my head and stomach hurt. I have to read the letter, recover, and then get over myself and tackle making the book better based on objective feedback.

Which did you enjoy most?

Coming up with the idea and writing snappy dialogue between characters.

What sets the book apart from the other things you have written? In what way is it similar?

I stayed in the main character’s viewpoint throughout the entire novel. In all of my previous novels I did multiple third person P.O.V. [point of view].

Soulful Strut was about finding yourself after making a lot of mistakes, similar to several books I’ve written (Good Woman Blues, Sweet Mystery).

What will your next book be about?

One is about people facing the truth and learning to go on despite knowing the worst. Another book is about a woman deciding who she really is and fighting a malevolent influence from her own family.

How much time do you spend on your writing?

I write everyday. I write on my novels five days a week, about 2 ½ hours a day.

In the writing that you are doing, who would you say has influenced you the most?