Chewing the Fat with Guest Rosalyn McMillan


Today author Rosalyn McMillan stops by Chewing the Fat. Rosalyn's new novel is about to be published, after a hiatus of 10 years! Her last novel, This Side of Eternity, came out way back in 2001.




Rosalyn's new novel is called We Ain't The Brontes (love that title!), is available for preorder at online booksellers now and will be in stores everywhere on January 25th. So let's get started!


Bettye Griffin: Welcome, Rosalyn! I'm going to start by asking the obvious. Ten years is a looooong time between books. What've you been up to all that time?


Rosalyn McMillan: Working, selling cars, furniture, bridal dresses, and Jenny Craig. Throughout all that time I still wrote novels. I have nine books completed.


Bettye Griffin: It just goes to show, no one can stop a writer from writing. Tell me, was it difficult to get back into publishing after being gone so long?


Rosalyn McMillan: Yes. I was told that I was blacklisted. They said I was a diva, an alcoholic. I couldn't get a book contract to save my life. Urban Books took a chance on me.


Bettye Griffin: Wow, that's cold. I'm glad you eventually got a contract, and keeping with the success-is-the-best-revenge mode of thinking, I hope you have Urban Books' biggest seller to date!

About We Ain't The Brontes...It sounds to me like you took a basic idea of two sisters in the same profession (which likely came from real life, since your real-life sister is megasuccessful author Terry McMillan) and ran with it with the writer's 'What if?' scenario into purely fictional territory with baby-daddy drama and other plot twists. Because of your storyline's basic premise of two novelist sisters with varying levels of success and because of Terry's portrayals of sisters to her main characters, including one who tries to do everything her sister does (not necessarily based on you, of course), I have to ask...how's your relationship with your sister?


Rosalyn McMillan: My relationship with Terry is good. She just bought me a new laptop last month. She's always surprising me with gifts and money. She knows what I've been through a tough period, and she wants to help.


Bettye Griffin: It just goes to show that the real thing is usually pales in comparison to the fictional. Now, tell us a little about the new book and your motivation for writing it (as a writer I know that's a silly question, for we all write what we think would make a good story, but readers are still going to want to know).


Rosalyn McMillan: I wanted to write about two African-American literary sisters who deal with sibling rivalry. I believe that sibling rivalry is a very raw subject in families these days. I feel strongly about this subject matter because I know of several sisters who have spoken to each other in years; famous and infamous.


Bettye Griffin: I've always been fascinated by plotlines about the complex relationships between sisters, and I for one am greatly looking forward to reading the book!

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Okay, everybody, Rosalyn will be dropping by throughout the day, so if you'd like to ask her anything, please do. And remember...We Ain't The Brontes is available now for online preorder, or check your favorite bookseller on or before January 25th to pick up your copy!