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ABOUT F.R.E.S.H.
AND ITS FOUNDER

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From "Conversations with Donna Gray-Banks" in VoyageMIA

Published August 22, 2024

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Today, we’d like to introduce you to Donna Gray-Banks.

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Donna, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I began writing when I was seven years old. I have always been a true romantic at heart.

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I was born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA., which at the time was a large industrial steel town. It has since transformed into a research and development hub and a financial metropolis for small businesses.

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My parents were truly opposites, as my father was born and raised in Pittsburgh, and my mother’s family was from Charleston, South Carolina, from an agricultural background. Her family migrated to Pittsburgh from South Carolina for better employment opportunities. Of course, being a writer was never a career that my parents felt would keep food on the table, and they were possibly right, but I always wondered if I had been encouraged more where my career might be today.

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But they were afraid of the unknown and wanted me to get a good government job and retire with lots of money. Needless to say, that did not happen. But let me digress. All through the years, I have written short stories and stored them away. I loved to write stories about my father’s mother, whom I had never met but with whom I had a great spiritual connection. Consequently, my novels are named after her “Ila.” Because spiritually, you must travel the path destined for you, I was unable to complete my first novel until 2008. But since that time, I have now completed four novels.

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It was supposed to be a trilogy, but book four continued the stories in the other books. Once I published my first book, I was so enthusiastic about going to a book festival that I spent an enormous amount of money on travel, purchasing giveaways, hotels, etc. I spent a lot, but I learned a lot. I learned that I wanted to hold a very different book festival. I decided to start the F.R.E.S.H. Book Festival in 2011 (Fiction, Romance, Erotica, Spirituality, and Health).

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The “H” can stand for History, Human Development, etc. I was given the logo and name by God; I truly cannot take the credit. In 2011, F.R.E.S.H. began, and we are now in our 14th year F.R.E.S.H. is sponsored by the beautiful city of Daytona Beach, FL. It is a wonderful progression from having no sponsors to being sponsored by an entire city.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story. Has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what challenges have you had to overcome?
My novels are erotic, with espionage and murder wrapped into one. Being an erotic African American female writer, it has never been easy. I don’t believe we have celebrated an erotic African American female since Zane, who was my friend in my head throughout my entire career.

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And, having people judge a woman, especially a woman of my age, now 70, who writes erotica, is an abomination to some people. I say to those people, "If you have children or have ever been in a serious relationship, then everything I write about you have probably done."  I constantly must tell people that there is a real difference between erotica and pornography.

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Erotic pleasure is what you do. Pornography is what you watch. So yes, I had to struggle, but Ila’s Diamonds IV received an Amazon gold star this year as my reward.​

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Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe you can tell us more about your work next?
I am currently the founder and director of the F.R.E.S.H. Book Festival, which is held in Daytona Beach, FL, every year on the last weekend in February. I specialize in putting together a festival where an author can be introduced to experts in the industry to assist them on the path to excellence as a writer.

 

My creation of Zoom In On A F.R.E.S.H. Conversation has been a creative way to meet new authors to interview and introduce to the literary community. It also has allowed me to meet seasoned veterans in the industry and interview them one-on-one. I am most proud of being a collaborator, a mother, a friend, and a trailblazer. This year, I received the Hometown Hero award from the Juneteenth Committee in the City of Daytona Beach. It has been an amazing year.

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I am not afraid to walk through open doors or jump into the deep end of the pool to find where my strength lies.

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Alright, before we go, can you talk to us a bit about how people can work, collaborate, or support you?
F.R.E.S.H. is a collaborative effort in itself. The company was built on assisting others. Of course, anytime you are putting together an event as large as F.R.E.S.H., sponsors, volunteers, media followers, and literary partners are crucial.

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