Breaking New Ground: Writer Bernadette Connor

As a lifelong Philadelphian who only recently moved away from the area, I am embarrassed to admit that I knew absolutely nothing about one of the city’s finest authors and the first African-American author to have a psychological thriller published in the U.S. 

Having said that, now that I know all about Connor and have read one of her books, I am hooked for life as will most readers become once they pick up one of her books. 

In an exclusive interview, the 53-year-old author and screenwriter, who doubles as a mother of two, took the time out of her busy schedule to share her feelings on a variety of subjects.


EW: How long have you been writing Bernadette and did you always know that you wanted to be a writer? 

BC: I started writing poetry in earnest at Gillespie Junior High after being introduced to Edgar Allen Poe by phonograph. The written word had more meaning to me when delivered through an auditory device.


EW: What made you want to become a writer? 

BC: I think was born a writer. I got into trouble for constantly doodling on anything, anywhere. Nothing escaped my pen . . . tables, walls, book covers, mail.


EW: Your feelings on the decline of reading nationwide, especially in the black community? 

BC: There is not much variety in black literature today. Not because it's not being written, but rather because the industry feels we become confused by choices. Hence, they only give us one dish. The real readers among us have been titillated by the latest fare and would like to indulge our other literary taste buds but that won't happen unless independents or self-published authors, like myself, continue to go into debt trying to stay in the game. Because we don't have access to those advertising and distribution dollars necessary to reach the real readers, we all miss out on literary fulfillment.


EW: What prior professions did you have before becoming a writer? 

BC: I was a supervisor of Word Processing Departments for a law firm and an insurance company early on. Then, I went back to school for computer technology and became a communication's technician for AT&T until I was laid off in l990.