Xclusive Memphis recently caught up with New York Times Best Seller, Eric Jerome Dickey. Eric has been titled as “one of the few kings of popular African American fiction for women” by the New York Times. Dickey was recently in Memphis to promote his latest novel ‘Decadence’.
Did you know Eric is a Memphis Native? He has roots all over this city. From his early days at Riverview Elem, to my Alma matter Carver High School and University Memphis; he is definitely a man of the south.
We wanted to know more about the man behind all the relationship, love and sex novels.
What advice would you give to aspiring writers?
Read, study in a class setting, read books on the craft, buy Writers Digest series on the craft… write, rewrite, repeat. It’s a job, and only comes this way if you love writing.
What inspires you to write?
I have a burning desire to be creative. And a huge debt to the IRS. (Jokin’ on the latter.) Me gusta leer y escribir.
Tell me something people may be shocked to know about you?
I used to be a software developer for aerospace and developed firmware and software to test telemetry functions on ICBMs.
What is the highlight of your career?
This interview. Finally, I have you to myself! Watch out 901, Kansas Street is coming up! Cobra in the house. I’m a Tiger too.
When you think of Memphis what are the first two things that come to mind?
Mrs. Lila Gause and Mrs. Virginia Jerry. ‘Nuff said.
What do you miss about living in Memphis?
My friends. Working at Fed-Ex. The U of M. The roar of the train as it passed my apartment on Southern.
What motivates you?
Food, clothing, and shelter. I kid you not.
Guilty Pleasures?
Just spent sixty bucks at a dollar store. Ballin’! Might hit T.J. Maxx tomorrow. I’m out of control!
Name one thing you don’t leave home without?
Something to read.
What can we expect in the future?
Man makes plans and God laughs.
Describe ‘Decadence’ in one word.
Decadent.
Decadence is his latest novel ……………
Four years have passed since the events of Pleasure, and Nia’s success as a writer has grown, bringing her from Atlanta to Los Angeles. But she remains on a quest to quiet her inner storm, to draw on her well of emotions and explore them fully before leaving this season of her life and moving on to what could be the next stage: marriage and motherhood.Drawn to an exclusive pleasure palace, where patrons try on roles as they actively shun their respective realities, Nia’s ability to balance truth and fantasy becomes increasingly blurred. What has happened to the compartments she has so carefully created for the different aspects of her life? Will her relationship with the mysterious, often unavailable Prada survive the countless temptations? Will her successful literary career be given over to impulse indulgence? Does decadence know any bounds?When Nia’s past comes back to mingle with her present, and when her staid public persona clashes with her fantasy life of decadence, readers will be stunned by the outcome. Eric Jerome Dickey’s newest tale of excess—and its sky-high costs—is a thrilling portrait of a glittering world.
Xclusive Memphis salutes Eric Jerome Dickey for all your achievements and success. Be sure to grab a copy of ‘Decadence’ at your local book store or here.
Photo Credit: Joseph Jones Photography