As I begin work on a new novella, I’m thinking about my “brand.” You hear that a lot as an author (or anyone really) offering a product or service.

As an author, I’m a small business owner. I’m in the business of words. My products are my stories and novellas. Your reviews are my testimonials. And my business location is in your mind.

So, when I think of my “brand” and what I want people to think of when they hear or read my name, 5 things come to mind:

5. Bold or Flawed Characters

I’m not writing about boring or picture perfect people, period. You see boring people and people who pretend to be perfect everyday. So, what’s the use of them taking up a page that could be used for a bold or flawed character’s voice? My characters are in your face. They’re honest, a little offensive, flawed as hell but real, too. What I promise they will never be is forgettable.

4. Relatable Scenarios

Fantasy is cool, but I like real life a little more sprinkled with some drama. The scenarios or plots I use in my stories are to support my characters. My fiction is character driven and created for your entertainment. My characters are real because I made them that way for a reason so you can relate to them. Relatable is a goal of mine every time I write a scene… I just add a lot of fuckery to the mix. Which brings me to my next point…

3. Profanity

Yes, there will be explicit language in a Brookelyn Mosley story or novella. My characters drop p-bombs, f-bombs, b-bombs… they don’t watch their French at all. My vernacular is diverse, I’d like to believe. I’m very capable of writing a full story or novella with not a single drop of profanity. But the thing is when I write I don’t hold back. If it’s in my character’s personality to say a certain thing in a certain way, I let them. Sounds crazy, but trust me it makes sense. It just so happens, they all like to cuss lol. No worries. For those of you who are sensitive to that language, I have a character in my new novella who is practically a saint… for now.

2. Brooklyn

The unofficial character in all my stories. My love for this borough is truly unconditional. It shaped me as a person and as a writer so this is just my homage to the city that bred me. Most of the places mentioned in my stories are not real, but they are bits and pieces of real places. If I use a real Brooklyn location in my fiction, know it means something to me off the page.

1. Sexxxy Scenes

Ah, yes. I didn’t realize when I first wrote an intimate scene in one of my stories in college that I would want to do it every time I wrote a story. I thought it was just that one time but dammit, it’s too much fun to only do it once. Why do I do it? Please see what I said two sentences ago. I love writing about intimacy. I think it’s just as important as writing a scene of your characters eating. It’s an extension of their personalities. And it’s fun to write. Some people dread writing sex scenes. I look forward to them. They’re exciting. They’re entertaining. And they will always be in a Brookelyn Mosley short story or novella. I refuse to exclude them… refuse. So, if you are a shy reader, you’ve been warned.

Have you ever read a Brookelyn Mosley story?