Our Interview with Bestselling author Daaimah S. Poole

How far will you go to get what you want in life? For many there are no boundaries to what they will do to have success---but what is the real price in the end? This is just one of the things we have to consider with the latest novel by Bestselling author Daimah S. Poole. She is quickly becoming not only a veteran in the literary game, but someone who is known for quality as well as quantity when it comes to giving her readers exactly what they have come to expect: A good read.
This is our conversation.

Daaimah, thank you for taking a few moments of your time to talk with Conversations. With ALL I WANT IS EVERYTHING, you have written a feel-good book that I'm sure will discussed quite a bit in the New Year. Before we talk about the book, though, let's get our readers acquainted with you. Tell them in your own words who Daaimah S. Poole is.
I am the author of six books ranging in topics from following your dreams to gold digging. I’m also a mother of two sons ages four and twelve. I love reading blogs, magazine, and vacations.

You wrote your first novel before you were even 20 years old. Does that mean that you always wanted to write? What got you started?
I’ve always wrote since was like in the third or fourth grade. When other students were doodling, I was writing. However, I never completed an entire book with a beginning, middle, and end until my first book “Yo Yo Love”. I had hand wrote the story, but once I saw it typed, I was like wow this is like a
real book. I just kept at it. In the beginning I didn’t even have the dialogue separated I just wrote and wrote.

The story of Kendra Thomas is something that I feel a lot of young women--and maybe even young men--in the entertainment business can relate to. How did the idea for the main character develop and what led to the storyline?
My inspiration came from parts of my own life. I can remember when I was rejected for three years or when people said “Oh you going to write a book. Yeah right.” I also wanted the expose the ills of the music industry. So many times you will see the most talented person and listen to their CD and think why
the hell is this person not double platinum. Why don’t people know about this person? Also, I wanted to show that nothing in life comes easy. People see that Alicia Keys is a successful artist, but they don’t know she had like two deals fall through before she made it big. Or that Kanye West had a hard time getting signed. Even 50 Cent was dropped and passed all around before he found success.

You told the story in 1st person, actually getting us in Kendra's thoughts. Along the way did you find parallels with yourself and the struggles she was facing?
Yes, there were parallels in the fact that she didn’t give up on her dream. Like Kendra I wanted to give up so many times. People around me were like okay, so this writing is nice, but you graduated college now get a real job. I didn’t listen and just stuck with it. It was hard in the beginning because it didn’t pay the bills.

I tell people that the literary industry can be as complex and political as the entertainment industry. Would you agree?
Complex yes. Political no, that hasn’t been my experience. It is definitely who you know in a lot of businesses, the literary industry is no different. However, if you have a good story it can’t be ignored. It may not be instant success, but word of mouth really works. I think the literary world is always looking for new voices.

At the end of the day, Daaimah, what do you want your readers to take from the decisions that Kendra made and the outcome that followed?
Your destiny is up to you. With faith and determination you can do anything. Don’t give up on your dreams,and keep naysayers, haters, dream killers out of your life.

There are some that believe, like Kendra, that you are supposed to give up yourself to pursue what you want in life. What would you say to them?
No, I don’t believe giving of your self the way Kendra did, as far as sexual favors. You want success knowing okay, I didn’t hurt anybody, I didn’t sell my soul, I worked my ass off and I’m successful because of that. If you cheat your way to the top it is not authentic.

You are also a mother, Daaimah. If you were talking to your own children about success and the trappings that can come from it, what advice would you give?
This is an interesting question because I think parents tell their children things they know they should be doing themselves. I would tell my children that they should remain humble even if they are very successful and for them never to get comfortable because they have more to achieve.

What is coming next for you. Is there a tour in the works?
I would like to go places, I haven’t been able to get to before. I haven’t been in the south like to Mississippi, Texas, Tennessee etc and other cities like Detroit and Los Angles.

Thank you again for your time. We are expecting many more entertaining and educational novels from you in the future. How can I readers get more information about your upcoming projects?
My websites and Myspace: www.DSPBOOKS.com and www.myspace.com/dspbooks. Next up is a “A Rich Man’s Baby” It’s about two women that wake up one morning and say the hell with working. They decide they want to get pregnant by someone rich and get child support checks.