Michaels, Cherlyn

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Michaels, Cherlyn

PERSONAL:

Female.

ADDRESSES:

Home—St. Louis, MO. Agent—Levine Greenberg Literary Agency, 307 7th Ave., Ste. 2407, New York, NY 10001; and 1601 N. Sepulveda Blvd., #389, Manhattan Beach, CA 90266. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Author. Archland Books (publishing house), Mason, OH, owner.

MEMBER:

Delta Sigma Theta, Number One Stunnas Motorsports Club.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Best New Multicultural Author of the Year, Shades of Romance magazine, 2003.

WRITINGS:

Counting Raindrops through a Stained Glass Window (novel), Archland Books (Mason, OH), 2003, Hyperion (New York, NY), 2007.

First Fridays (novel), Hyperion (New York, NY), 2007.

SIDELIGHTS:

Cherlyn Michaels originally self-published her first novel, Counting Raindrops through a Stained Glass Window, through her own publishing company, Archland Books. The book was later picked up and reissued by mainstream publisher Hyperion as part of a two-book publishing deal. The story features Vanella Morris, a woman whose views on marriage have been tarnished by the unsuccessful relationships of her parents and several friends. Her observations result in Vanella's development of what she calls the O-Theory: "The surest way to ruin a good relationship is to marry the man you love." Very happy in a long- term relationship with her boyfriend, Alton Goode, she is distressed when he asks her to marry him. Vanella attempts to convince Alton to accept a live-in arrangement, but her unwillingness to commit to marriage rocks their relationship. In the aftermath, she heads off to visit her family in St. Louis to reconsider. While there, a long-time family secret comes out in the open and causes her even greater stress. When she turns to an old boyfriend for support and advice, she once again clashes against the terms of her O-Theory. Despite her desire for a committed relationship, her aversion to matrimony seems destined to keep her unattached and unhappy. A reviewer on the G.R.I.T.S. Online Reading Club called the book a "noteworthy and compelling first time novel," while Black Issues Book Review contributor Nancy Flowers declared it a "warm and heartfelt story about choices accompanied by drama and humor."

Naja Rogers, the main character of First Fridays, is a budding St. Louis entrepreneur only a few weeks away from opening up her own Internet café. When she is unexpectedly laid off from the office job she hates, however, she finds herself with the time and motivation to earnestly pursue her new business. Naja struggles with the pressures of starting her career again from the beginning, but is encouraged by her best friend to attend a meeting of First Fridays, a local African American business networking organization. Naja goes to a meeting, where local professionals mingle socially over drinks and dancing. Many of the other attendees seem to be looking for a free ride or a date, but Naja is intrigued when she meets Russ, a serious young business owner from Atlanta. Russ agrees to help her find investors for her business, but he also makes it clear that he would be interested in taking their relationship to a more intimate level. Eventually, they enter a romantic arrangement. Soon after, however, the charming and pleasant Russ becomes difficult and controlling, isolating Naja from her friends and attempting to take over her business. Naja tolerates this behavior for a while, but when he tells her she needs to lose weight and offers to pay for liposuction, she has enough and breaks off the relationship. Unfortunately, the two are still involved in a business arrangement, and Russ is just spiteful enough to try ruining her professionally. Reeling from this new blow, Naja must struggle to keep her business together while dealing with the remnants of her shattered personal life. The story is a "cautionary tale of one woman's struggle to control her own destiny," related a Kirkus Reviews critic. Booklist reviewer Maria Hatton called Naja's story "a truly compelling read with a satisfying ending."