I Was Once A Person
by Raven E. Black
Released: Jan 11, 2025
Genre: Literary / General Fiction
Why this book and why now?
I wanted the challenge of writing a full length novel before AI writes all of them for us. I’m primarily known as a memoirist/essayist and fiction was such a fun, no pressure experiment. The title “I Was Once A Person” dropped into my head years ago like a stone in water and I sat back and said, “Who? Who are you? Who was once a person?” It took some time for Xandra to appear but once she did, away we went. I’m enthralled by the afterlife/NDEs/underworld myths — plus the idea of two ex-wives Xandra and Beatrix (similar to Dante and Beatrice in “The Divine Comedy”) meeting by THE RIVER OF RESENTMENT was just too funny to pass up. So much processing…
Would you and your main character(s) get along?
We would as friends/sisters — but probably not as lovers. I absolutely adore Xandra but she’d drive me a little crazy. I’d bring her cookies in prison, though.
What TV show would your main character(s) most likely binge watch and why?
She wouldn’t. Xandra is into complex movies that have an underlying theme of atonement such as Moonlight, The Color Purple, and Atonement (hmm . . . wonder why?)
What’s your main character(s)’s favorite book and why?
Any one of her NYT bestsellers because they’re better than everyone else, of course.
Publishing a book is a huge accomplishment and it’s time to party! Choose a celebratory beverage for one of your main characters to toast the release of your new book.
Organic black tea such as Wuyi, Yunnan or Russian Caravan — sipped out of a rare and delicate china. Xandra believes the general decline in manners originates with #5 sippy tops.
