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BIO
Michele Andrea Bowen graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She is the niece of an Apostolic Bishop and the granddaughter of an evangelist. She lives with her two daughters in Durham, North Carolina.
INTERVIEW
September 7, 2001
CHURCH FOLK is the debut novel from Michele Andrea Bowen, but the subject is near and
dear to her heart. She is the niece of an Apostolic Bishop and the granddaughter of an
evangelist. Read on as Bookreporter.com's Senior Writer Jana Siciliano talks with Bowen
about faith, family and writing from your life.
TBR: CHURCH FOLK is your first novel. You thank several workshop leaders and teachers
in your dedication --- what exactly was the process of getting your book written, from
start to finish?
MAB: The process of writing CHURCH FOLK was pretty
simple. One day, I decided that I was going to write my novel --- something I had
wanted to do practically all of my life. And for many years, I had wanted to write a
novel about life in the black church. What motivated me to turn on the computer and
write, was the passing of my father. He never got to live out his dream when he
retired from the post office, and I thought I would seek to live out mine to honor him and
his memory.
The second part of the process involved faith and a lot of it. Prayer and a lot of
it. I was blessed to have family and friends who believed in this project and cheered
me on when I would get discouraged. Then I was blessed with an agent early in the
life of the book. I got good feedback from those I thanked in the book. And I
got a lot of support from so many people I was not able to list in the
acknowledgements. The process of getting published was more difficult, but I would
say that process worked itself out as well.
TBR: A love story between a minister and his wife, CHURCH FOLK is really funny and
moving. Did you feel like you were pigeonholing your book by having it published by Walk
Worthy Press, known for its religious content?
MAB: No. It never crossed my mind that I would be
pigeonholed or stifled in any way writing for a black Christian publisher like Walk Worthy
Press. I was so happy for the invitation to join Walk Worthy Press and it has been a
joy and a blessing. I really like being housed with the company --- perfect
fit. And Walk Worthy understands all of the nuances and dynamics of life in the black
church. So it actually frees me to write my books as I believe they should be
written.
TBR: What inspired your story? Did you grow up around such a church and such
“folk” as the people who populate your story?
MAB: My novel was inspired by two things. I grew
up in the black church --- African Methodist Episcopal Zion (AME Zion). It was a
wonderful experience --- the fellowship, spirituality, laughter, drama, crazy stuff that
can only happen at church and with church family. And my uncle, is a pastor and
bishop in the Apostolic church. I love going to their church. It is always the
best experience. My children love going to their great uncle's church, too. And,
I guess, yeah, I have met some people who remind me of characters like D.S. and Coral
Thomas, Mrs. Neese, and Uncle Booker. Have heard stories of crazy and out of control
preachers like the Browns (Marcel and Ernest), Bishop Caruthers, and Sonny
Washington. But CHURCH FOLK and what happens in the story, what the characters do,
that is all made up. I am just so happy that the story resonates with so many people
and feels so real. I think that the feeling that I have felt when reading CHURCH
FOLK, I definitely have felt that growing up in church, at my home church now, and at my
uncle's church.
TBR: The character of Glodean causes so much trouble for Essie—what aspect of
“woman” do you think they each represent? Or do you see them as whole,
complicated characters unto themselves?
MAB: Glodean Benson and Essie Lane Simmons are
complicated characters unto themselves. The only thing I would say about Glodean, is
that she is the woman who always gives folks a whole lot to talk about when service is
over --- conversations that usually occur at Sunday dinner when church is being
"analyzed" in that good old fashioned folksy way.
TBR: Essie and the reverend have a very carnal relationship as well as an emotional and
romantic attachment. Is this something that you wanted to make clear --- that a man of God
can also be a man of the earth as well?
MAB: An important part of CHURCH FOLK is the love
story that occurs between Theophilus and Essie Simmons. They are crazy about each
other. Theophilus is a sexy, firey, mannish, and intense brother. Anything he
does, carries fire and passion. Essie likewise, as sweet as she is, is what my
grandmother would describe as "something else" --- which means that she is just
as passionate and firey as her man. It's just that hers is expressed differently than
her husband's because it comes out all sweet-like --- kind of like gray coals on a grill,
looks cooler than it really is.
And I would not describe their relationship as "carnal". I think of it as
passionate, loving, and wonderful. It's not about God being of the earth. It's
about us learning to understand, through prayer, learning from our churches, bible study
and so forth, the incredible facets of God's love and how it is expressed while here on
earth. The Song of Songs in the Old Testament gives us a peak at the expression of
romantic love in a Godly way. I hope this makes sense.
TBR: Why is the book taking place in the 60’s? What is it about that time period
that you wanted to utilize for the story?
MAB: I wanted to write a story about a time I
experienced as a child. There are many people who remember that time as one of great
change and simultaneously as one of great fellowship and togetherness. My memories of
that time are good. And I just wanted to bring some of the beauty of that time back
to life. Plus, I thought that even in the midst of the Civil Rights Movement, Dr.
King's incredible ministry, there were parts of life being lived that were not seen but we
lived it.
TBR: What authors do you find yourself reading at this stage in your career?
MAB: I read so many people. But right now, my
reading list includes, Walter Mosley, Kimberly Lawson Roby, Victoria Christopher Murray,
Jaquelin Thomas, J. California Cooper, and a few others.
TBR: What part does being a mom play in terms of your life as a writer? Does the rest of
your life enhance your work, detract from it, or do these things barely factor in
career-wise?
MAB: Being a mom forces me to balance my life and put
everything, work, career, in the proper perspective. My children are proud of their
mother. But as my oldest daughter says to her friends..."My mommy writes novels, but
she is always our mommy and she never forgets that. She makes sure we are okay and
remembers what is important to us." My life's work does not detract from
writing. Life for me is pretty down-home. It fuels my writing.
TBR: When did you first discover that you were a writer?
MAB: I knew I was a writer when I was eight years
old. But I didn't trust what I knew in my heart. So took many years for me to
admit that and act on it. One of my childhood friends came to a booksigning I did at
my home church in St. Louis, Missouri. She had everyone laughing about us sitting on
the steps of my grandmother's house and me making her read my hand written stories when we
were little.
TBR: What other media could you imagine CHURCH FOLK being adapted into? Movies,
television?
MAB: I could see CHURCH FOLK as a movie. And I
always thought that the actor, Morris Chestnut (Best Man, Brothers, Boyz in the Hood)
would make a good Theophilus Simmons. I think the music for the soundtrack should be
done by artists like Luther Barnes and the Sunset Jubilaires out of Rocky Mount, NC,
Evelyn Turrentine-Agee and The Warriors, Dottie Peoples, and the Williams Brothers out of
Mississippi.
TBR: How does spirituality affect your writing life?
MAB: My spirituality affects my writing in all of
the right ways. I always pray when I start working on my books and that includes when
I start to edit work already written.
TBR: What are you working on now? Do you intend to continue writing novels?
MAB: I am working on a novel about a Baptist church in
St. Louis, Missouri set in 1975, and another book set in North Carolina in this present
time.
TBR: Thank you so much for taking the time to talk with us.
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