Michelle Lark

Michelle Larks
WHO'S YOUR DADDY

Interviewed by: Lauretta Pierce
March 25, 2007


Q.    Michelle how did come about the idea to write the novel WHO’S YOUR DADDY?

A.    I realized a couple of books ago, that my writing was going to focus on women issues and the difficult predicaments ladies find themselves in. Also, I knew I had to write a story about the proverbial love triangle, and Who's Your Daddy was it.



Q.    How did you come about Mallory’s character?

A.   I decided to make Mallory young, and sort of aimless. Readers view her as shallow. She wasn't sure what she wanted out of life, and didn't really have any goals. There are women like that, ones who other women tend to look down on. I tried to show that part of her problem was that she was young when the story began and circumstances helped her mature along the way.



Q.   How did you come about Wesley's character?

A.   Wesley was old school being of Creole lineage. He suffered from a huge dosage of arrogance. Wesley wanted his cake and to eat it too. Wesley loved Mallory in his own way, but he viewed her as a trophy wife, which she was when the story opened, as it unfolded, she changed and he didn't.



Q.   Why was Wesley so trusting of Tyler around Mallory?

A.   It's funny you should ask that question, my husband asked me the same thing. Wesley was arrogant, and he disliked Tyler so much, that the idea never entered his mind that his wife would have an affair with the one person he considered his nemesis Tyler. Wesley though he was all that an a bag of chips but every dog has his day.



Q.    How did you come about the idea for Anitra to be a lawyer?

A.    I like to portray minorities in a positive light, especially in view of how we're portrayed in the media. Anitra was the opposite of Mallory in personality and looks. She had goals, and ambitions even though the sisters were raised by the same parents in a two family home.



Q.    How many books have you written?

A.   Who's Your Daddy was my fourth book, and second full length novel. I contributed to two anthologies in 2006.



Q.    Which were your favorite to write: MYRIAD OF EMOTIONS, CRISIS MODE or WHO’S YOUR DADDY?

A.   Who's Your Daddy was my favorite. I loved the twists and turns in the novel.



Q.    Are you currently working on another novel?

A.    I just finished editing my first novel with Urban Christian Books, which will be released in November of this year. It's titled Keeping Misery Company. I'm very excited about the project and the book.



Q.    What type of atmosphere do you require to write?

A.   Usually I write sitting in the middle of my bed on my laptop computer with the television droning in the background.



Q.    What message would you like readers to receive from Wesley, Tyler and Mallory’s relationships and from the situation surrounding Jules and Lorraine?

A.   I'd like readers to realize that secrets are harmful in the long run, and what's done in the darkness eventually comes to light, even years later. Wesley was like his father Jules, monogamy wasn't in their make-up.

In Wesley's case, the apple didn't fall far from the tree, whereas with Tyler he was different from Jules, but haunted because he never knew or had a relationship with his father. The news devastated him when he learned the truth and threw everyone privy to the secret, life in turmoil.