Michael Baisden - Author Spotlight - Interview

MANY readers have a love-hate relationship with Michael Baisden. Judging from the reader reviews of his books, they either love his work or hate it. Actually, it is the portrayals of relationships that he presents in his works. When it comes to Baisden's in-your-face approach to tough issues of male-female relations, there is no middle ground. For the uninitiated, the titles give a big clue: Never Satisfied: Why Men Cheat; Men Cry in the Dark, The Maintenance Man; and God's Gift to Women. All self-published, these books have helped to make Baisden an attraction on the speaker circuit. His "Love, Lust & Lies" seminar--a lecture-motivational-comedy remix--plays to sold-out audiences across the country. He also has taken his message to the air, on New York FM radio. Currently living in Los Angeles and Houston, Baisden took time out to talk with EBONY, about the kind of issues he confronts head-on in his books.

Q: You seem to be on a mission to get a message out there.

A: I am on a mission. When I started in this business, I never fooled myself into believing that this would be about just writing books. I saw that authors were getting a lot of media exposure back in the '90s. So, obviously, I'm not a singer, I can't dance, I'm not a comedian--at least not professionally anyway--so if I want to have a voice, books are a great way to create that.

Q: How would you define your mission?

A: To change the way people think, the way they make their decisions, and then, finally, change the way they live.

Q: You have specific purposes in mind, but isn't it fun just to write?

A: It really is. But because the books give me a reason to be out here, to be fresh, to stay fresh, to reinvent myself, if you will, that's really the motivating force behind it.

Q: When you begin to write a book, do you have a particular issue in mind?

A: Every book deals with a social issue, not a personal one. To me, personal issues are not big enough unless there's something that can affect a lot of people. So it has to start with something that I feel is an issue that people need to deal with.

Q: What do you want people to walk away with?

A: It all starts with introspection. All I've ever wanted to do with any of my books is cause men and women to look within themselves and see--if these things apply to them--if they can make some kind of correction. But the crafting of the story really is a huge turn-on.

Q: Tell me about the process. How do you approach your writing?

A: First of all, I have to ask myself, Who are the people in this book? What characters are in this book and what purpose do they serve? What do they look like, what are their education levels, where are they from and do I have enough information about people who are like them so that I can write these people in a realistic way? And what motivates these people to do what they do?'

Q: So, how do you do your research? How do you get your material? Does it come from your relationships?

A: I'm exposed, and I'm single, so I'm dealing with a lot of women on an intimate level. I'm dealing with a lot of people on an intimate level; I'm interacting with these people. So I'm listening to people's issues, I'm hearing their frustrations and then I take all that in. Being empathetic is probably the best gift you can have as an author. True empathy, which is what every great communicator has, is the ability to feel other people's pain, to take their experience and make it yours. So when you are able to do that, then you become that person. If you want to be a really good writer, you have to be a good actor. You have to become that person while you're writing them.

Q: Did you have to have to become the "maintenance man" in order to write The Maintenance Man?

A: Oh, that was easy, Dog. That was no problem whatsoever. I'm a single man. I've been single most of my life--even when I was married, I was single.

Q: What do you mean by that?

A: That I was never faithful to my wife. And I tell people that all over the country. And even that experience helped me grow. If you look at every character in my book, the central issue that they're dealing with is honesty. Through my infidelity, through my immaturity, through my insecurities as a young man, that is the thing that I saw was holding me back the most--a lack of honesty and a lack of integrity. So with all my books it is always this issue of honesty.

COPYRIGHT 2003 Johnson Publishing Co.
COPYRIGHT 2003 Gale Group