The Loveley Shamontiel Vaughn

Shamontiel Vaughn Brings us a viewpoint that should be considered by all. It's always good to try to see where the other person comes from-Shamontiel Vaughn:

DP: Please tell us a little about yourself; who you are, where you're from, etc.,

My full name is Shamontiel Latrice Vaughn. I am a 26-year-old graduate of Lincoln University, born and raised in Chicago, and currently, I'm a full-time Assistant Copyeditor, a freelance journalist, and the author of two novels: "Round Trip" and "Change for a Twenty."

You can find out more information on the novels by visiting http://www.shamontiel.com.

DP: What type of personality type would you say you are?

If you read one of those astrology books, my zodiac sign (Scorpio) fits my personality to a "T", minus the jealousy part. I don't have time to be jealous of anybody. I'd rather spend time trying to improve myself.

DP: Please share with us a story about your favorite pet.

I am a hardcore dog lover, as in the comforter on my bed has Labrador Retrievers on it, as well as my apartment being decorated with dog ceramics, several dog throw pillows, and a portrait of my real Labrador Retriever for 14 years whose name was Shep.

In "Change for a Twenty," one of the characters had a dog named Shep as well. I remember Shep being terrified of water due to a huge tornado we had when I was little. My parents were at work, my brother was at a friend's house, and I was in summer day camp. The day camp wouldn't let me leave, and I had a bona fide fit and kept screaming, "But my dog is outside!"

Finally, they let us leave after a couple hours, and I tore down the street, splashing through water, and opened the back door to let Shep in. I'm afraid that he was indeed in the house, but it flooded so badly that the whole basement was a pool. He was on the third to top step whimpering. Ever since that day, he was scared of thunderstorms. That's a sad story, but I remember it because I could've cared less about that tornado. I was more concerned about my dog being safe.

DP: What do you like to read?

My reading taste varies. I grew up reading R.L. Stine, Fear Street, and Stephen King when I wasn't reading every single Babysitter's Club book and Ramona books the day they came out. As I grew up, I became more interested in reading books written by African American authors and poets like Langston Hughes, Maya Angelou, and Gwendolyn Brooks.

In college, I was only into fiction by male authors like Omar Tyree, Travis Hunter, RM Johnson, Ernest Hill, and I still loved Langston Hughes. When I left college, I branched out again and started reading books by my favorite female authors, Karen Siplin and Lynn Messina.

For the past year or so, I've dropped fiction and started reading more about African American history, such as Black Wall Street. I'm trying to learn more about my culture that I didn't get the opportunity to while in school considering it wasn't required reading and basically ignored.

DP: What was/is your favorite subject in school?

English Creative Writing hands down!

DP: What's the worst day of your life thus far?

I got a message on my answering machine from my best female friend that my best male friend was shot in the back of a car. I usually handle death with ease and understand that sometimes people have to go, but I cried for days over him dying because he was my next door neighbor, one of my favorite guys to talk to, and I'd known him since I was 6 years old. We went to the same elementary school together; hung out on my porch through high school; and I'd always chill with him when I came back and forth from college. I didn't even go home for Thanksgiving break because I couldn't stand looking at my next door neighbor's house without him yelling something obnoxious at me from the top window. He and I were pretty much like the characters in the movie "Love & Basketball" without the sexual relationship.

DP: What was the best day of your life thus far?

I think the most heartwarming day of my life so far has been having 15 people, including my 91-year-old great great aunt (she's 96 now), come to my college graduation. After the graduation, we went to Red Lobster, and they tried to make me give a speech thanking everyone for coming. I didn't get past the first person before I broke out into happy tears. I made all 15 people, including the guys (grandfather, father, cousin, brother-although they claimed it was dust), cry too. I knew I was having a moment when the waitresses started crying because they didn't even know what was going on. They just knew I was happy to see all that support on 5/10/2003.

DP: What would you call the 'dream vacation?'

I think Niagara Falls is one of the most beautiful waterfalls I've ever seen in my life, and I love water. I'd love to go back to Niagara Falls and sit by those rocks again, watching the water turn different colors at night. Canada is very diverse, and I like the atmosphere there. However, if I had a second choice, I'd go to Africa to learn more about my ancestors.

DP: If you could really truly get just ONE thing that you wish for; what would it be?

I'd really like to pay off my student loan, car note, and credit cards, so I'd just like a sufficient amount of money to be debt free. I don't want to be rich. I like to earn, but I detest owing anybody money, even if it's a company that I voluntarily worked with.

DP: What is your earliest memory? Please describe.

I remember play driving in the parking lot with my maternal grandmother. She'd always say "Where are we going, dah'ling?" and I'd go "New York!" To this day, I still have not gone to New York, but as a kid, I had this obsession with going to visit there. I don't know why. Maybe it was because of the publishing companies. I knew there were book companies in New York, and I've wanted to be a writer since I learned how to handwrite. She'd sit on the passenger seat, let me fake drive, and make this cricket noise with her tongue while she entertained herself by looking out the window like we were really going somewhere. My mother was always inside some grocery store or shopping center, and my grandmother would come along for the ride. If Grandma Young was in the car, I never wanted to go with my mother. However, when Grandma Young wasn't with us, it was a go! I love shopping!

DP: First word to pop into your mind please; what do you think of when I say: 'power?' Be honest.

I think of the part in "Higher Learning" when the guys start chanting "white power." The reason I think of that is not only because "Higher Learning" is my favorite movie, but because that was a
powerful scene about a confused white male who was rejected on all fronts. I think when people try to research why young people are shooting up schools, they should pay attention to
movies like this--that and Jodi Picoult's book "Nineteen Minutes." Being a kid is hard for some people.

DP: How long have you been writing?

I've been writing since Word Perfect was the new thing, so I guess about 10 or 11 years old. I really started seriously writing when I was 12 on my elementary school newspaper. I wrote a mystery mini-series called "Mr. Slick." My computer teacher, Mr. Quirk, is/was my absolute favorite teacher ever.

DP: If you could improve AC in any one way; what would it be?

I wish that they could improve the Content View selection, so people could see daily activity on who is looking at what. I love the bonus money because then I can REALLY see what works and what doesn't on AC. I'm still amazed that my article on "Sagging Pants: Hip Hop Trend or Prison Trend" has over 16,000 views. I never thought that would get past 100, but that is my most viewed article, although the Jena 6 came in at a close second.

DP: What made you choose AC?

That's a great question, and I have wondered for awhile how I found this site. I don't remember, but I do remember that I signed up the day before my birthday. Initially, I was trying to find a website to make some money writing with. It wasn't until a few months later that I realized the magnitude of writing to AC to educate, entertain, and announce to
people about issues that mainstream media ignores.

DP: Which genre do you prefer to work in?:

Lately, I've been more interested in opinion/editorial pieces than anything else. I do like travel writing though because it gives me ideas of places to go when I take a trip for a book signing.

DP: Tell us some of your best AC titles please:

I am most partial to all six articles on the Jena 6.Those articles are what started to make me stand out on AC, and it was also when I really understood the power of writing
news articles. I am very passionate about the topic of the Jena 6 because I remember dealing with racism at Northern Michigan University. It is very stressful to feel inferior at a place where you're supposed to be learning. I wrote an article on my experience with Northern Michigan University too. A professor from Buffalo, New York contacted me to ask me to speak at his school about diversity in schools. I was pleased that my article touched him into contacting me. Racism is a concentration in quite a bit of my writing; for the life of me, I cannot understand how people can judge from a person's skin color that they are inferior academically and mentally.

DP: What do you want your Legacy to be?:

I'd like to be known as a Black woman who was "unapologetically Black" (like Reverend Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr.) but who encouraged diversity. I hope that people take the social issues that I wrote about in both novels, such as police corruption, infidelity, safe sex, abstinence, education, and relationships to heart and learn from them, especially the safe sex part.

DP: Well, I'm sure that everything you want, will happen.

ACusername: Shamontiel, www.associatedcontent.com/shamontiel