NSU 2010 graduate from the Master of Arts in writing program, Shewanda Pugh has delivered a compelling story of love and adventure, struggle and conflict, and hope despite impossible circumstances in her debut novel, “Crimson Footprints.”
Deena Hammond, a mixed-race girl, was raised by her grandparents in Liberty City. She was programmed to believe that her creation by a black father and a white mother was the result of the ultimate sin. Despite the harsh disparagement, Deena drug herself out of the ghetto and put herself through college at M.I.T., earning a degree in architecture. When she meets Takumi Tenaka, a rich spoiled Japanese heir, Deena’s brother is holding a gun to his head. After she saves him from doom, Takumi can’t get the girl out of his head. The love that grows between them is constantly threatened by the certainty of family disapproval, Deena’s refusal to acknowledge him, and the riveting twist that Takumi is actually the son of Deena’s boss, the formidable and highly revered Daichi Tenaka.
Pugh shows an impressive knowledge of architecture that not only takes readers through Deena’s journey but also teaches them the intricacies of the profession. Her descriptions of Deena and Takumi’s very different family lives are wrought with the appropriate slang, culture and family dynamic necessary to understand where each one comes from and the odds they must fight against to be together. And the best part of the novel is the month long road trip Deena and Takumi take through the country that lands them in places like Atlanta, New Orleans, Memphis, St. Louis, Chicago and New York City. Pugh paints a picture of each place so vivid that I want to follow in the couple’s footsteps and see the places where their relationship developed.
It is easy to find a book about a love story or a travel narrative but to combine the two and add a heavy dose of architecture, ethnic studies and a struggle like no other takes hard work, great skill and sheer dedication to the creation of a unique work of art.
“Crimson Footprints” is one of those books that you just can’t put down until you find out what happens next. It’s only available electronically but that just means you can download it on your Kindle, computer or other device (I downloaded it on my Kindle for just $2.99) and start reading right away. You will be happy you did.
Interview with the Author, Shewanda Pugh
Q. What was your inspiration for “Crimson Footprints?”
A. There was no one thing that inspired “Crimson Footprints.” Instead, a fascination with differing cultures, a reluctantly-carried-out assignment from Dr. [Christine] Jackson’s [professor in the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences] Fiction Writing class, and a compulsive “what if” attitude led to the first seeds of the novel.
Q. How did your time at NSU help you become a novelist?
A. There isn’t enough time to answer that. For starters, I’ve compared writing samples from my time before NSU with now, and frankly, I don’t know what the program saw in me (but I am grateful they saw something!) Second, the very idea of the novel came from an NSU course, Dr. Jackson’s constant question of “what if” and her unwavering enthusiasm. An abbreviated version of the novel served as my thesis, and it was during that time that I was able to hone my work enough to secure agent representation. Other classes helped me strengthen myself not just as a writer, but as a marketing representative for my work. Quite frankly, there would be no “Crimson Footprints,” Crimson Footprints sequel, or Shewanda the author were there no NSU Writing program.
Q. How did you learn so much about architecture?
A. Research. As a writer, you’re often advised to write what you know. I like to take this a step further and infuse what I know with what I’d like to know. The result is a far less restrictive and more stimulating writing experience that inevitably translates to the page.
Q. The cultural differences of the main characters are significant and provide for some fascinating drama. How did you decide on the background for each character? Have you studied the Japanese language and/or culture?
A. The cultural background of Deena, the heroine, is similar to mine in some respects, and goes back to the “write what you know” belief system. The hero, Tak, sprung from a rough character sketch created in Dr. Jackson’s Fiction Writing class. In it, we were required to scout out a public place and people watch until something inspired us. My source of inspiration was a young, pants-sagging, iPod bearing, tattooed African American male who went straight for the literature section at Borders. In my surprise, I was forced to question my assumptions and their source. Though not obvious, the jump from inspiration to actual was made easily, as I happened to be an avid fan of J-horror at the time, and completely consumed with the culture. distracting the audience.
Q. The chapters where the couple travels are full of wonderful detail about the developing relationship and the places where they travel. Have you been to all of those places?
A. I have, though I didn’t rely on memory alone to recreate those places. Even Miami, a place where I’ve lived for years, was researched in painstaking detail.
Q. How does it feel to have your first novel out there for anyone to read?
A. It feels a lot of ways. Exciting. Overwhelming. It even feels like vindication. I get emails every week from one person or another, expressing an appreciation of my work. Writers have doubts, and I’m no exception. Hearing that you suddenly have fans does something to quell that.
