WHITE SUGAR, BROWN SUGAR
Winner of the 2026 IndieReader Discovery Awards in Inspirational, Fiction
What’s the book’s first line?
“Roosevelt Harris sat in the back seat of the old Buick between his mama and his aunt as his grandfather, Papa, came to a stop.”
What’s the book about? Give us the “pitch”.
Two boys, one Black and one White, grow up during segregation in Florida, with family members who have drug and alcohol issues. They think they’ll never fall into the same bad habits, but they do. Together they struggle valiantly with the help of one family member. N.S. and A.A. to overcome addiction and lead normal lives.
What inspired you to write the book? A particular person? An event?
I began writing White Sugar, Brown Sugar at age 18 as the result of my mother’s alcoholism and being introduced to drugs by her friends. Where I grew up, we white kids lived on the beachside and smoked pot, took LSD and amphetamines, but if we got into opiates, we had to go across the river to the black neighborhoods. I ended up in exactly that situation for years. Blacks weren’t allowed on the beach or on the east side of the river unless they were working. I worked at a southern cafeteria chain which I considered racist, and so I used that aspect also to address racial segregation. I created the black character and named him after a boy I met in a drug rehab center, and also used some guys I worked with at the cafeteria in the story.
What’s the main reason someone should really read this book?
It is deep nitty gritty for a long time, but then becomes very inspirational. Although it has never been popular outside of the city where I live, almost everybody who has ever read it has given me great accolades. It was required reading for counselors in a local drug rehab center so they’d understand what cravings are really like. I have received thanks from teenagers and their families as the teens struggled to escape the same drugs that we abused.
What’s the most distinctive thing about the main character? Who-real or fictional-would you say the character reminds you of?
The White kids is really me and his mother is really my mother. The Black kid is really somebody I knew and his mother is really based on a woman I knew. But it is not a memoir. Some things really happened but all was altered, embellished, and turned into a story. The two main characters were good people who fell into something that caused them great pain and suffering and fought to get free from it.
When did you first decide to become an author?
At age 17 after reading Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea, I decided. Then, I also thought I had learned enough about drugs since I started at age 13, but I wasn’t really ready. Before I continued with fiction, I wrote and had published three English for Foreign Student’s books. I used an old Underwood typewriter as a teen. I’ve been writing all my life since then.
Is this the first book that you’ve written?
It was the first novel I wrote. I first published it in 2012, but in 2025, I reprinted it. It is definitely my best work.
What do you do for work when you’re not writing?
I was a lawyer for 40 years, but have retired (mostly) from that work.
How much time do you generally spend on your writing?
Many hours all the time. I’m working on three books now.
What’s the best and the hardest part of being an indie?
The best is accomplishing what I want. The worst is marketing, getting my books known.
Would you go traditional if a publisher came calling? If so, why?
I think so, primarily for the marketing aspect. I am learning that Indie publishing is becoming much more popular though. If I can ever get a book well-known and accomplish marketing on my own, I’d love to stay. I have sought agents for all three novels, but have never been able to succeed with that. I follow a lot of reviewers and realize that many work with Indie publishers, which I didn’t realize until recently.
Is there something in particular that motivates you (fame? fortune?)
Neither fame nor fortune is my goal. I love to write and hope to have an audience that appreciates what I write.