I was honored to have my manuscript, Suga Dumplin, selected from a pool of over 2000 applications for a 3-month children’s book writing mentorship. The program also included workshops with industry experts and a 1-month business intensive about children’s book publishing. The program fine-tuned my writing and opened so many amazing doors.

Suga Dumplin is the story of a multi-generational, matriarch-centered family who use the communal cooking of their layered and cherished chicken soup to express love. This is shown through the eyes of a first-gen, Jamaican-American child navigating between two worlds: her U.S. home and the ancestral home that lies beyond her brownstone. Suga Dumplin makes the reader think about common issues that children and adults both deal with, like: identity, belonging, perfectionism, and fear. It also pays homage to elders and showcases the significance of a “village”. Suga Dumplin is comparable to Soul Food Kitchen (Winsome Bingham), Plátanos Go With Everything (Lisette Norman) and Island Born (Junot Díaz).