Read an AALBC.com Interview with Trice Hickman

Trice Hickman grew up on the eastern coast of North Carolina; the middle child of two of the best parents on earth!  I was a precocious kid, the one who always asked, “Why?” As a teenager I loved reading books because they were the perfect escape from my small hometown. I’d meet interesting people and travel to exciting places, all without leaving the Michael Jackson (he was “it” back in the day) covered walls of my bedroom. During my undergraduate years at Winston-Salem State University, (I had a ball at WSSU!) I continued my love affair with books. I even fantasized about writing a novel, envisioning myself at the top of the New York Times Bestseller List. But upon graduation, and with the next month’s rent looming overhead, I put that dream on hold and chose a more practical route…getting a nine-to-five to pay the bills! I spent the next several years in a rewarding career in higher education, but continued to dream about writing a book. Occasionally, I’d dabble—creating characters and plots in my head that somehow never made it past a few frustrating pages.

Fast forward through earning a Masters Degree from Wake Forest University, and working in a variety of management positions for corporate and non-profit organizations, I still held on to my love of books and the dream of one day writing my own. Then something happened to me that I’d only heard about but had never experienced…I was laid-off. But not to fear, that lay-off was ultimately one of the best blessings of my life. When my nine-to-five door closed, God opened my literary window! One morning, instead of beginning my day of job searching, I sat at my computer and let all those years of ideas come rushing out.

Instead of the writer’s block I’d experienced in the past, I put my fingers to the keyboard and watched the words flow like sweet water.  By one o’clock the next morning I’d written the first chapter of Unexpected Interruptions! Five months later my first novel was complete. Ironically, a few months after that a job came knocking. Over the next two years I worked my nine-to-five while researching the next step—getting published. I submitted my manuscript to dozens of agents and publishers, but they all turned me down. Let me tell you, rejection is a hard thing. But I was determined not to let anything stop me from my dream! I had faith, and I believed in the characters I had created and the story I’d crafted. So, after careful thought and planning, I resigned from my job (Honestly, I think I actually skipped into work that morning…I may have even clicked my heels too!) and formed my own publishing company, Platinum Books, and published Unexpected Interruptions myself!

The rest as they say is history! I love what I do and there’s no greater feeling than being able to live your dream. My goal is to write interesting, thought-provoking stories that entertain and allow readers to escape into the pages of the book. I’m blessed in so many ways, and with God’s steady hand to guide me this is only the beginning of what’s ahead!

Keeping Secrets & Telling Lies
Click to order via Amazon

Paperback: 275 pages
Publisher: Platinum Books (June 23, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0979561817
ISBN-13: 978-0979561818

What would you do if the secret you were keeping could set you free, yet ultimately devastate the ones you love?.........After six years of marriage, Victoria and Ted are the ultimate power couple. She's a beautiful, business savvy sister who owns one of Atlanta's most sought after event planning companies. He's a powerful, blue-eyed CEO who knows how to take care of business in and out of the boardroom. But their seemingly happy life begins to unravel in the blink of an eye when long held desires and decades old secrets come back to haunt them. Victoria's road to deceit begins when Parker Brightwood re-enters her life. She thought she'd gotten over the brazenly handsome surgeon who once stole her heart, but an unusual set of circumstances ushers the ebony prince back on the scene, and this time he's determined to win her back at any cost. Ted's undoing begins with his mother's sudden death, and a mysterious secret that leads to unexpected places. When the truth is finally revealed, it's a realization so shocking, it threatens the life and marriage he holds so dear. As Victoria and Ted journey down a road filled with uncertainty, they're forced to take a hard, honest look at themselves and confront their hidden fears. Can they repair the damage before it's too late, or will they follow a path headed toward destruction?

Unexpected Interruptions
Click to order via Amazon

Paperback: 280 pages
Publisher: Platinum Books (November 1, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0979561809
ISBN-13: 978-0979561801

What happens when a young woman falls for two men--one black, one white, both determined in their pursuit for her affections?....Unexpected Interruptions follows the journey of Victoria Small, a smart, savvy sister who's fresh off a year-long, self-imposed hiatus--from men! Now that she's ready to start dating again, she gets more than she bargained for when Ted Thornton and Parker Brightwood enter her life. Ted, a powerful blue-eyed CEO, is drawn to Victoria, igniting a friendship that both delights and shocks her out of her comfort zone. Then she meets Parker, a talented surgeon who showers her with tenderness, helping to mend her once-broken heart. In her struggle to rationalize her growing feelings for the white man who loves her, and forge ahead in her relationship with the ebony prince who fulfills her, she resurrects a painful secret she thought she'd buried long ago, and finds herself doing things she never thought she'd do. Along the way she's joined by a colorful cast of friends and foes as she tests the boundaries of love, race, class and where she fits in.

Related Links

Official Website
http://www.tricehickman.com

Publishers Indemnity Insurance: What is it, and how do you get it - Article by Trice Hickman
http://writers.aalbc.com/publishers_indemnity_insurance.htm