Interview with actress and author Celisha J

Today’s special guest is Celisha J and we’re chatting about her memoir, I Survived.

During her virtual book tour, Celisha will be giving away a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble (winner’s choice) gift card to a lucky randomly drawn participant. To be entered for your chance to win, use the form below. To increase your chances of winning, feel free to visit her other tour stops and enter there, too!

Bio:
Born in Michigan now living in Atlanta Celisha J. is an actress and author all in one, landing a role in a movie and a lead role on a TV Series.

She currently has a book entitled, I Survived. It is a chilling story about her life from losing her mom at an early age and all the things that she has endured in her life, that should have broken her but she uses her pain as motivation to continue on her journey to following her dreams of being an actress, author and motivational speaker. She is currently pursuing more roles in acting.

Excerpt from I Survived:
We always thought my grandma was crazy because of how she treated us. For example, I remember a time my grandma whipped me. She had the switch in one hand and a gun in the other (no lie). It was a revolver. I know this because I had seen it before in her small travel case. She told me if I moved, she was going to shoot me. Judging from our history, I wasn’t going to test her. She was whipping my butt, and I was screaming for my little brother and sister to help me, call the police, and do something, but they wouldn’t move. They were crying on the front porch like they were the one it was happening to, but little did I know that my grandmother told them they would be next if they move off the porch. We all were scared. I think what hurt me more was not the whipping itself (yeah, the hits hurt) but her calling people bragging about what she did, and telling people that if I had moved, she was really going to shoot me—the nerve of her.

What is your favourite ice cream flavor?
My favourite ice cream flavor – that is a tough one. Although I would go with chocolate, however, I do not have a specific flavour that is my favourite.

Which mythological creature are you most like?
There are several, however, the one that stands out the most prominently for me is the mermaid. She is cute, charming, quiet, loving, and helpful. When provoked, she is dangerous and life-threatening. However, she is full of compassion and love. She will do anything for the one she loves and who loves her in return.

What is the first book you remember making an indelible impression on you?
Although I have read a few books, however, I felt that my own book has made quite an impression on me as a reader. This allows me to look at my own life from a different perspective. This prompts me to look at my life as a different person. This encourages me to think about alternative ways of handling various situations that came my way, which I can use for similar situations going forward.

How do you develop your plot and characters?
I develop my plot and characters as per the given scenarios as is. Since I write about my real-life story, I describe the scenarios, characters, behaviours, etc., “as is”. This also applies to emotions, reactions, responses of me and the other characters involved.

Please tell us about your writing space.
My writing space is simple – no makeup or rosy pictures or conjured images. I prefer to simply be myself and put myself out there in my words. Hence, my words are a reflection of my expressions and vice versa.

Links:
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Amazon | Kindle | YouTube

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