A. Hmmm. I'm not sure what you want here. I'm Nina. A person. Loves fun and adventurous.

A. Being teased by my brother and a friend. They were so merciless I yelled, "Can A Sista get some love!" And there it was. Every one in the room says, "That's a book." We sat down, thought about it, and I went off to write.

A. I wanted her to be that young woman with choices to make in life, without an "adult" to make those choices for her. Good home training but adventurous too.. Of course the "test" is metaphorical.

A. I wanted a character with a parallel struggle. Someone who alaos had to choose between what's right and what feels right. I made him a fine, black Puerto Rican in honor of a friend from high school. We were both the youngest in our graduating class.

A. That is connected to my first book, Dippin My Spoon. So Many peoepl asked me why Che was so bad, and how did she get that way. How do most of us get the way we are? Our parents make us that way....Deborah was born.

A. About 4 months, but I was writing full time.

A. I have always been drawn to Louisiana and the mystery of it. That and my own family roots in the south in Alabama and Louisiana. And I think that the story would have been different if it weren't southern based.

A. Quiet. And stacks of papers all around me. A deadline is always good.

Q. Yes. As you know, Going Buck Wild will be in stores in June. You can already pre-order it online. I am completing Marrying Up for publication in June of 2005. I am also Polishing Mama: Gone so I can find it a home this year too (hopefully). I am planning on using a different name for that one.

A. I think many peoeple will have to look twice to see the message. It isn't really about this girl trying to have sex. That is a different book by a different writer. Instead this book is about choices and the main character figuiring out that the best love is self love.