‘Playing around’: Insight into the Career of Local Author Denny S. Bryce
Written by Trinity Ray. Photos by Ally Miller-Henson.
The Savannah Book Festival welcomes authors from all over, but they also love to recognize local talent. Author Denny S. Bryce has lived in many places including Washington, DC., Chicago, New York City, and most recently Savannah, Georgia. Bryce transitioned from being a performer to working in PR to being a writer—and it started with fanfiction. Now, with five published books and more on the way, Bryce writes primarily historical fiction. She focuses on telling the African American and/or Black experience, most recently with her book “The Trial of Mrs. Rhinelander.”
On February 8, before attending the book festival, Bryce sat down with me to discuss her career and writing process. Bryce writes a lot and she does it quickly, but—especially with historical fiction—there’s a method to keeping on schedule. Her first book, “Wild Women and the Blues,” took almost ten years to write before having a contract. After signing that contract, those ten years shrunk to eight months, because Bryce was better focused. To keep on track with her goals while avoiding falling down rabbit holes, she narrows her research process. “It’s a learning curve. You’re still doing a lot of research, but you’re spending less time on research that won’t be used,” she says.
Bryce believes that the best moment to learn how to balance your professional career with your craft is in school. “You have time to take a look at what you love…and take that time,” she says. School is where you have time to dive deep into the industry you want to be in and research it. Bryce advises that knowing the history of the field will give you guidance on how to get there. Look at the people who have careers you would like to have and see their path. She also recommends searching for the information and opportunities you want outside of professors and mentors. This allows you to hone in on your professional desires. Bryce says, “Checking out the past is just a good way to get a solid hold on your future.”
Experimenting with time and character, Bryce enjoys writing with a dual timeline and dual point of view when she can. She plans to stay looking at time and history, but when using that dual timeline she enjoys including the present day. “Playing around,” she calls it. Bryce focuses on character when she writes because that is where the reader connects. “I am learning, after five books, to focus more intently on the characters of the story and the complexity of those characters. Quite often, the complexity and obstacles have to do with society, culture, and identity. And those are what is mostly shaped by history.”
Bryce is currently writing in Savannah and finalizing her upcoming book, “Where the False Gods Dwell.” For a little sneak peek: it is about three women from all different backgrounds, who—through dancer and choreographer, Katherine Dunham—end up in Jamaica. There they deal with a combination of the good and the bad and form a bond that helps them in many ways, but still maybe not as much as they would like.
To spread the joy of books, Bryce wants to recommend a few historical fiction novels including Victoria Christopher Murray’s “Harlem Rhapsody”, Allison Epstein’s “Fagin the Thief”, and the newly released “People of Means” by Nancy Johnson. As a fellow Savannahian, her recommendations beyond books include Tybee Island and the Bird Girl statue from “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil” by John Berendt.
Denny S. Bryce reminds us, “Be patient with yourself and with your talent.” If you would like to hear her story, thoughts, and encouragement in more depth this interview was recorded and can be watched here: You can find all her work and more information on her website at https://dennysbryce.com/
