Meet Keith Kareem Williams

 

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Keith Kareem Williams. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Keith Kareem , so excited to have you with us today, particularly to get your insight on a topic that comes up constantly in the community – overcoming creativity blocks. Any thoughts you can share with us?

There were times when I couldn’t find the words to put on paper for a few reasons. I was too concerned about being perfect and I put too much pressure on myself to have certain projects finished on specific dates. How I overcame that was very simple. I relaxed and reminded myself that I was doing something I loved, for the sake of doing it. I stopped worrying about deadlines, sales and whether or not readers would like what I wrote. I reminded myself that my work comes from my unique experiences, ideas, dreams and my soul. I also started to work on multiple projects at the same time so whenever I became exhausted with one, I would just take a break and tinker with another. I also don’t write the first drafts of my novels in a linear fashion, like beginning, middle, end. I write whatever scene or chapter I’m inspired to write on any particular day and then stitch them all together when I’m ready like a quilt made of words, sentences, paragraphs and chapters.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

I’ve been a full-time writer since I released my 2nd novel, “Open Spaces” back in 2010 and quit my full-time job where I was gainfully employed. At the time, I was also a single father of two young children so it seemed like a huge risk to take but it was something I knew I had to do. I embraced being self-employed because I wanted to be able to spend more time with my children. My previous job was very time-consuming and although family members helped with the kids, I just felt as if I wasn’t there enough. When I received the proof copy of my sophomore novel in my hand, I typed my 2 weeks’ notice in the company blackberry and hit send. It was the scariest and the best decision I’ve ever made. Since 2010, I’ve written over 20 more novels across the whole spectrum of genres. My goal has always been to share my unique voice and writing style with the world. One of the most difficult questions I’ve always been asked is, “What type of books do you write?” I’ve written urban fiction, books of essay, contemporary lit, romance, erotica, paranormal, fantasy, science fiction and thriller. I also tend to mash a few genres together at will and whim. I started to describe my writing in musical terms: “I write Urban, Hip-Hop Fiction with the rhythm of Reggae that crashed into Heavy Metal and then began to bleed Neo Soul.” I’m also very proud that I’ve converted so many people who weren’t booklovers before into avid readers now. I also love introducing readers to genres that they otherwise wouldn’t have any interest in. I’ve recently released a gritty, Urban thriller titled “Foreign.” My next release in a few weeks is an erotic thriller titled, “Wildflowers & Bullets” and towards the end of the year, I’m releasing Book 2 of “Cursed Immortals,” my dark, modern urban fantasy series which will be titled, “Cursed Immortals: The Black Throne.”

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

The three things that have helped me along this journey have been patience, consistency and fearlessness. Early on in your journey, there will be naysayers and doubters who will caution you not to travel down the path you’ve chosen to explore. You have to understand that those people are projecting THEIR fear onto you, sometimes innocently, inadvertently and with good intentions. Move forward fearlessly anyway. Nothing profound ever happened in a comfort zone or without risk. Also, patience is very important. We always see the success stories at the end, but we are rarely privy to the years of struggle that preceded it. Last, but certainly not least, CONSISTENTLY show up. Small steps are still steps and are just as important as big leaps and bounds. If you only wrote a page a day, at the end of a year you’d have a 365-page book.

Before we go, any advice you can share with people who are feeling overwhelmed?

Whenever I feel overwhelmed, I just stop. I put everything on pause so I can catch my breath and regroup. If that means that I don’t write for a week, then that’s what I do. I’ve learned to give myself grace and space to recharge my battery whenever I need to. When I’m locked in, I’m all the way in and work extremely hard. However, I also know how it feels to get burned out and weary, so I give myself breaks. That is a much better strategy than to keep going until my tank is completely empty. It takes longer to recover from being completely run down. As a creative, I actually look forward to those breaks. In order to become inspired, I also need to live life, a lesson I’ve learned over the years. All of these amazing stories I’ve penned were inspired by things I’ve seen, experienced, overheard, observed, tasted or smelled. Work and discipline are important but so is relaxation and rest.

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