Beverly Jenkins was born in 1951 in Detroit. She is an American author who writes historical and contemporary romance novels. Her books often focus on the lives of African Americans in the 19th century. In 2013, she was nominated for a NAACP Image Award. In 1999, she was named one of the Top 50 Favorite African American writers of the 20th century by the African American Literature Book Club. Jenkins writes historical romances that take place during a time in African American history that she believes is not often talked about. This made it hard for her to get published because some publishers were unsure how to handle stories about African Americans that did not involve slavery. Jenkins studied Journalism and English Literature at Michigan State University. She currently lives in Southeastern Michigan.
Early life
Jenkins was born in Detroit in 1951 to her parents, a high school teacher and an office worker. Jenkins grew up surrounded by books and stories. Her mother read to her while she was in the womb and gave her soft cloth books when she was a baby. Jenkins would chew on the cloth books while her mother encouraged her to "Eat those words, baby. Eat those words." Jenkins read many books at her local library, including Alice in Wonderland, Dune, works by Zane Grey, and romance novels by writers such as Victoria Holt, Mary Stewart, and Phyllis A. Whitney. Her early writing experience began when she became the editor of her elementary school newspaper. Jenkins enrolled at Michigan State University in the spring of 1969.
Career
Jenkins worked full-time in the checkout department of the Michigan State University library. During each lunch hour, she read articles from The Journal of Negro History (now called The Journal of African American History). Later, Jenkins and her husband moved to Ypsilanti, where she worked at the reference desk of Parke Davis Pharmaceuticals and began writing romance novels as a hobby. After a colleague suggested she find an agent and publisher, Jenkins sent her manuscript to Vivian Stephens, who agreed to represent her. Avon published her first novel, Night Song, in 1994.
Although Jenkins has written books in many types of romance stories, most of her books are historical romances. Jenkins calls herself a "kitchen table historian." She compares American history to a quilt with some pieces missing—the pieces that belong to minority history. Jenkins uses her books to put the quilt back together by showing parts of Black history that are rarely taught in school. Slavery and the Civil Rights Movement are important parts of African American history, but they are not the only parts. For example, her first three novels, Night Song, Vivid, and Indigo, include characters like a schoolteacher, a cavalry officer, a female doctor, and Underground Railroad heroes. These characters were inspired by real historical events.
Jenkins found inspiration for Forbidden from two historical facts. First, she read a news article about a high-end African American-run hotel discovered during an excavation in Virginia City. She also heard a story about a man who saw a Black woman walking through the desert with a cook stove balanced on her head. Jenkins includes bibliographies with her historical romances so readers can explore more information if they choose.
Awards
- 1996 – Romantic Times Historical Love and Laughter Nominee
- 1999 – Romantic Times Western Historical Romance Winner
- 2000 – Romantic Times Multicultural Romance Winner
- 2007 – Romantic Times Historical Storyteller of the Year Nominee
- 2010 – A Second Helping – Romantic Times Multicultural Fiction Novel Winner
- 2011 – Something Old, Something New – Romantic Times Multicultural Romance Winner
- 2013 – Destiny's Embrace – Romantic Times American-Set Historical Romance Winner
- 2013 – A Wish and a Prayer – NAACP Image Award for Literature Nominee
- 2016 – Forbidden – Romantic Times Historical Romance Winner
- 2017 – RWA Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award