Author Allison Hobbs discusses 'Stealing Candy'
Riveting! Graphic! Edgy! Just a few words that describe the responses to Allison Hobbs´ writing style. Known for writing provocative and controversial novels, Allison burst on the literary scene with her highly successful debut novel, Pandora´s Box in 2003. In her latest release, Stealing Candy, Allison departs from erotic fiction, and has taken on the serious and disturbing topic of teenage sex trafficking in the United States. A prolific writer, she is the national bestselling author of fourteen novels and novellas of multiple genres, including paranormal and fantasy.
Urban Reviews: Can you tell us a little about Stealing Candy?
Allison Hobbs: Three teen-age girls from very different backgrounds have been kidnapped by a pimp and forced into the sex trade. Saleema Sparks, a woman who runs a sanctuary for troubled teens risks her life to save the girls.
Urban Reviews: What made you choose teen sex trafficking for this story?
Allison Hobbs: I departed from my normal genre and wrote Stealing Candy to raise awareness and bring attention to this tragedy that is happening within the African American communities. Though the media has given some attention to a few cases and have shed some light on this disturbing practice within the African American community, the cases we hear about are still considered isolated events.
African American child slavery is on the rise. There has been little focus on the uncounted numbers of African American girls who are lost in the network of sex trafficked children. Sex trafficked black girls are invisible, and unfortunately, they are fast becoming the forgotten slaves of our time.
Unless we open our eyes to the fact that modern day slavery exists within the African American community, our black children who are enslaved have very little hope of being freed.
Urban Reviews: Was Stealing Candy the hardest book for you to write? If so, why?
Allison Hobbs: Stealing Candy was difficult to write, but it was also cathartic and forced me to finally acknowledge the invisible scars from my youth.
Urban Reviews: What type of research did you do for this story?
Allison Hobbs: I read the statistics, but mainly relied upon my imagination and my own brief but horrifying experience as an abducted teen.
Urban Reviews: Did any of the scenes come from real life experiences?
Allison Hobbs: Absolutely. As I’ve already said, I experienced being abducted. I know exactly how it feels to cry for help only to have your screams ignored. I know how it feels to escape from an abductor only to be caught and dragged back to the place of confinement while seemingly normal adult citizens turn a blind eye…unwilling to get involved.
It is a miracle that I escaped before I was forced into prostitution or introduced to drugs. It is by the grace of God that I was not physically maimed or killed. Still, I did not emerge unscathed. There were no visible scars, but the pain was always present...waiting to be acknowledged, waiting for me to take an action.
Looking back, I consider myself to be one of the lucky ones. I am alive today and able to tell this cautionary tale because I escaped.
Urban Reviews: What can we do to protect young women from sex trafficking?
Allison Hobbs: Begin the conversation. Parents should talk to their children and let them know that the heinous practice of sex trafficking is running rampant. Young girls should be aware that the face of the “pimp” is not the stereotypical Hollywood version. Sex traffickers are often regular-looking, young men who falsely represent themselves for the purpose of luring teenage girls away from their safety zones.
Author Website: http://www.allisonhobbs.com
Author Website: http://www.stealingcandy.net
Author's Publisher: Click Here
Author's Facebook: Click Here
Click here to read an excerpt from 'Stealing Candy'
Click here to read our review for 'Stealing Candy'
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