Sin of a Woman is your fourteenth Curtis Black novel. When you were writing the first one, Casting the First Stone, were you already thinking of turning it into a series?

No, and this is likely the most unknown truth about the series overall. When I wrote Casting the First Stone, which was my third novel, it was never my plan to write a sequel or a series. This was the reason I went on to write standalones for my fourth and fifth books. But at the same time, I continued hearing from many readers, either by email or at book signing events, asking when “the next Reverend Curtis Black book” would be released. Finally, my literary agent encouraged me to give my readers what they were asking for, and I’m so glad I did.

Once you were set on continuing with Curtis Black, did you come up with a road map for a few books? Or did you figure things out book by book?

Originally, I’d thought that I would only write a trilogy, but once Too Much of a Good Thing and The Best-Kept Secret were released, I received more requests from readers than I had before, asking when the next book in the series would be available. So from there, I decided I would continue, but with every book I’ve written in the series, I’ve not known what the next story would entail until it was time for me to sit down and write a short synopsis.

The first three books were written from Curtis Black’s point of view. But the next one, Love & Lies, was written from two women’s points of view. Tell us how that came about.

After writing the third book in the series, The Best-Kept Secret, readers were excited about the fact that Curtis had finally met his match with his third wife, Charlotte. So I decided that it might be interesting to write Love & Lies from Charlotte’s point of view as well as from the point of view of her best friend, Janine. I wanted to focus this particular book on the women in the series and their thoughts about their various relationship struggles.

The books teem with real-life issues—infidelity, greed, sibling rivalry, mental illness, and so much more—and you don’t gloss over them. Why have you chosen to tackle such difficult topics?

When I self-published my first novel, Behind Closed Doors (not in the series), what I heard from readers more often than not was that the reason they’d enjoyed reading it was because they could relate their own lives to those of the two main characters. Then, for those readers who couldn’t relate personally, they stated that they knew friends or family members who had experienced similar trials and obstacles. So from that point on, I decided that I would always try my best to write about real-life issues and particularly those that are somewhat taboo or controversial. Or if the real-life issues I write about don’t fall into either of those two categories, they are usually issues that I feel passionate about and don’t believe we as human beings talk about enough. I try to focus on issues that tend to be discussed privately, even though so many people would be helped if they were discussed more often and openly.

You have a flair for creating characters readers love to hate. Do you find them easier or more interesting to write than characters who are good?

That’s a very good question, and strangely, it’s one I haven’t thought a lot about. On the one hand, I do think it’s easier and more interesting to write about highly flawed characters who commit one sin after another, because you have lots of latitude when it comes to plotting the terrible actions of those characters. But on the other, it’s also easy to write about characters who try to do the right thing, because even though no one is perfect, good characters represent positive and pleasant scenarios. It’s really enjoyable for me when I get to write about characters who consciously treat others the way they want to be treated.

In the case of some of Curtis Black’s children, the apple didn’t fall far from the tree. How do you decide if what’s in store for them is come-uppance or redemption?

Whenever a child grows up with a parent who makes many bad choices and hurts a number of people, there’s a chance that some or all of those children will follow the same path. But for some reason, Matthew has always had a big heart and noticeable compassion for others. So for him, instead of receiving come-uppance, he tends to end up hurt by the people he loves. For Alicia and Dillon, the two of them have made many bad choices, but to some degree, they’ve each experienced both come-uppance and redemption. Then there’s the youngest daughter, Curtina, who will soon enter her teen years and will, no doubt, become a handful for her parents.

Name your top three favorite characters and why.

Tanya (Curtis’s first wife), as she is the ideal wife and mother from the very beginning.

Matthew (Curtis’s second son), because he genuinely cares about everyone and tries to live a decent, respectable life.

Curtis, because as bad of a person as he was, he has now completely turned his life around for the better and he’s remained that way for years. I love the fact that he is proof that anyone can change if he or she wants to.

Curtis Black has evolved a lot over the course of the series. When you think about all he’s gone through and where he’s at right now in his life, is there anything that you hadn’t anticipated in the beginning?

When it comes to Curtis, I’ve known for a very long time that he would become a true man of God, a faithful husband and an upstanding father. It is true that he always loved his children deeply, no matter what, but I also wanted him to become a great example for them. In the end, my ultimate goal was to have him do all the good things he spoke about on Sundays from the pulpit.

You interact a lot with your fans on your tours and on social media. Have you noticed if your readers’ attitudes toward Curtis Black and his family have changed over the years?

Yes, they definitely have. Early on, most readers could barely stand Curtis Black, and some openly stated how they hated him. But as time continued on, they began to tolerate him, and ultimately many readers began to like the new man he’s become. In contrast, however, many readers can still barely stand Charlotte, and they want her to get what they believe she has coming to her.

Can you look into your crystal ball and give us a hint of what’s coming up for the Black family?

There will likely be new problems that evolve with one of the children in the Black family, and of course, Curtis and Charlotte will be very much affected by them.