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➽ QUESTION 1. ❝What is your name (or nickname/pen-name if preferred)?❞
— My name is Desaree. I prefer to be called Rée. I also answer to San Rée, and "that lil short rapper girl."
➽ QUESTION 2. ❝What started you on the path to writing?❞
— I started writing one day when I was in the fourth grade, and I just never stopped. I've always been an avid reader, so writing came naturally to me.
➽ QUESTION 3. ❝When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer, and specifically in the genre of urban fiction?❞
— I've been writing since I was nine, but I didn't know that it was something I really wanted to do until I was thirteen. Up until then, it was a hobby. For the past six years, though, writing has been my life. About the genre... At as early as eleven years old, I was getting in trouble for writing urban fiction. I can't recall being interested in the genre before that. I was still trying to write children's books.
➽ QUESTION 4. ❝When did you write your first book and how old were you?❞
— That depends on how you define writing a book. Like I said, I started at nine. I couldn't complete a book until I was seventeen, though. There were a bunch of failed projects before, around, and after that time.
➽ QUESTION 5. ❝Who are some of your favorite authors on and off Wattpad?❞
— Definitely tovarx and UrbanQueen on Wattpad but off the app, it'll have to be Wahida Clark, K'Wan, Ashley Antoinette, and Barbara Park.
➽ QUESTION 6. ❝How long have you been writing?❞
— Ten whole years.
➽ QUESTION 7. ❝How do you think you've evolved creatively?❞
— My ideas have gotten much bigger. I write urban fiction, but that's hardly enough to describe my work. There's a lot going on in each book. And if you look back at my past works, you'll see that I was writing the standard drug dealer stories that aren't really about anything. Now, I can take any idea and turn it into something that urban fiction fans haven't seen before, whether it's by introducing a new type of character or a new scenario.
➽ QUESTION 8. ❝Why did you choose to write in your particular field or genre? If you write more than one, how do you balance them?❞
— Urban fiction is where my heart is, but as my ideas get bigger, I'm not sure if that's the best term for it. After reading the works of authors like Wahida Clark and K'Wan, I knew that that was what I was supposed to be writing. I dabble in teen fiction a little, too. A little romance. Since I keep the urban element in every story, I don't have to work too hard to balance them. They're all urban in different forms.
➽ QUESTION 9. ❝What are the upsides and downsides to being an author?❞
— I'm an outspoken person, and fields like writing and music don't really care for outspoken people. When you're trying to do anything in the public eye, you have to be careful about what you say and how you present yourself. That's something I struggle with. I've burned bridges with industry connects (fortunately, those aren't the people I need to reach my goals) by speaking my mind, and I'm always saying something that offends people. That's the main downside. I can't be someone I'm not, and people expect that from any kind of entertainer. However, I love to write. I don't want to do anything else. I can express myself freely through my writing, and that's priceless. I consider that an upside. These books are a medium for me to say things people otherwise wouldn't care to hear. I have girls really appreciating their blackness because of a character who loves hers so much, and I don't know how else to send messages like that other than in these books.
➽ QUESTION 10. ❝What do you love most about the writing process?❞
— My favorite part of the writing process is when I get to relinquish control and let my characters do their things. After I've planned and plotted, they come alive, and my part becomes easier. If I finish a chapter or two and my characters aren't speaking to me, I know I have to go back to the drawing board, which often means deleting twenty thousand words just to turn around and write those same twenty thousand words better. Having my characters take the story or message I give them and effectively get my point across while saying what they have to say is the best part to me.
➽ QUESTION 11. ❝Why do you write? What keeps you motivated during creative slumps?❞
— I write because I have to. Throughout my whole life, writing has been my sole form of expression, whether I'm writing books or music. As for what keeps me motivated, I don't care for desk jobs. I can't work for someone else, and writing is my way of avoiding that. I have to make it as an author or some form of creative writer, because I won't be happy otherwise. That means grinding around the clock.
➽ QUESTION 12. ❝Do you outline books ahead of time or are you more of a by-the-seat-of-your-pants writer?❞
— For years, I was opposed to outlining because I was convinced that I'd lose all room for creativity. After outlining a book back in 2016, though, I can't go back to not outlining. Having a clear direction to go in is a huge relief, and I found a way to do it without giving up creative control. I outline each book extensively now.
➽ QUESTION 13. ❝How many books have you written?❞
— I've completed a perfect one book. There was another one that I came within four to six chapters of completing before deciding that I hadn't really done my best, which led me to restart it, but I've officially written one whole book.
➽ QUESTION 14. ❝Out of all the books you've written, do you have a favorite?❞
— I do. Wattpad has seen it before, but I'm rewriting it, and that version won't make it onto the site. I can say this, though: the relationships between characters are more authentic than any I've written before. It's a story of love, life, loyalty, and friendship, and it tackles real life personal and interpersonal issues in and out of the streets in a way that I wasn't mature enough to show in the past, all while maintaining that street element and thorough character development that people expect from me.
➽ QUESTION 15. ❝If someone is brand new to your work, what book do you think they should start with?❞
— As far as books on Wattpad go, I'd suggest starting with Soul-Selling. Because black people are portrayed in a very stereotypical way (drug dealers, betrayers, etc.) in GABOS, and you have to understand my love for my people before you can appreciate my decision to show them in a variety of different lights. Before someone has a chance to say, "Of course— she's another one of those writers," I want them to see that I think the world of black people, but I'm not crazy enough to pretend that these issues and plots aren't real. So I don't want anyone to think that I'm glorifying that lifestyle, and people tend to think that when that's how they're introduced to a new writer's work.
➽ QUESTION 16. ❝What do your fans mean to you?❞
— Honestly, they mean the world to me. I've had people tell me that my writing has made them cry and that reading about certain characters was therapeutic and helped them cope with their own battles. When my laptop broke in 2015, I had people asking if they could send me money to get it repaired. People have literally told me that I'm their favorite author, and that means more to me than anything. To know that my imagination can have that big of an impact on people is pretty dope. All I really want is for people to feel me through these books, and the responses that I've gotten have been far greater than that. If I wasn't writing for me, I'd be writing for them.
➽ QUESTION 17. ❝What advice would you give to aspiring authors?❞
— I'm going to avoid the clichés like read every day and have someone edit your work, because we've heard that a million times. These are the things I've learned throughout the past decade: every word that you write, write it with the intention of growing. Know how to accept criticism. Despite what people will tell you, don't be humble (look that word up). Know that you're better, and then justify your confidence. Bring something new to the game. If you know it's not your best work, don't put it out there. Find some other writers that you can vibe with who you know will keep it real with you, and understand that you will never please everyone. Write for you, but write to make people feel you, and never get complacent.
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Thank you so much for accepting to do this interview ReeWritesBooks your answers were very enlightening. Please take the time to check out her works; you will not be disappointed.