Rude Boy USA was not my first book.
My first book was named Looking for Mr. Potential and it was released in 2000. I had released it under my original name La’Ketta T. Bolton. I wrote it about two friends who had very different views on what the right man was supposed to be. One wanted love and the other wanted a particular man for his “Potential” to be great.
I was in my early twenties and not far out of the Air Force when it was released. I was eighteen years old when I finished it but had to put it aside because of life. I dug it up when the time became available and found this small company called I-universe (at the time) Publish your book the website said. I was thrilled and was excited as hell to publish it. I thought that it was a great story. It is your basic hood novel, which was quite popular back then.
However, my inexperience showed.
First, the editing was TERRIBLE. Yep, back in 1999 I only used the spell checker in Microsoft Word. I was broke and did not know much about an editor. It reads like an eighteen year old wrote it and it was true. Thank goodness I now know the power of copyeditors. I write it and then have it fixed later. I got a well-deserved dragging from my mother about it too. To this day she keeps reminding me about this. I will lay on this sword and count it to inexperience.
Second, I thought it would be great to put money in my cleavage because it described the sentiment of the story. Okay, I am only giving you a half truth here. I was too poor have someone make a cover for me so I did it on my own. The publisher tried to help but that was even worse. The money in my boobs was my rent money and I went to the Sears photography studio to shoot that photo. I could not afford a professional cover so that is the idea that I came up with.
Now that I have had many years pass since that book came out, I feel a little embarrassed. Not because of my breasts (because they were great then) but because I could have executed that better. The graphics technology back then was commercially unavailable for novices like me.
I am not a fan of real faces and bodies on books anymore. I now gravitate towards art concepts.
I may do a re-release of this book and give it the respect it deserves. *wink*
Keep an eye on this blog about LFMP. It may look and feel VERY different the next time you see it.
Victoria Bolton 