Lori Bryant-Woolridge

Lori Bryant-Woolridge (born May 25, 1958) is an Emmy Award-winning African-American/Chinese-American author and speaker, known for contributions to the chick-lit genre.

Writing career

Bryant-Woolridge made her debut as a novelist in 1999 when she published the novel Read Between the Lies. The book went on to become a best-seller, and in 2000 was nominated for a Golden Pen Award for Best Contemporary Fiction. Her second novel, Hitts & Mrs., was published in 2004, and made the Essence Magazine bestseller list. Bryant-Woolridge's latest novel Weapons of Mass Seduction was published in April 2007.

The Power of WOW, subtitled A Guide to Unleashing the Confident, Sexy You (a non-fiction, self-help book) was published July 2011. "Woolridge comes on like Judith Krantz with a social conscience." : Publishers Weekly.

Bryant-Woolridge has also contributed to several anthologies, such as Gumbo: A Celebration of African-American Writing (Harlem Moon, 2002), and Brown Sugar 3: Opposites Attract (Washington Square, 2004).

In the Spring of 2005, Bryant-Woolridge co-founded the Femme Fantastik Literary Tour, a book tour dedicated to showcasing the work of female authors of color.

Broadcasting career and Emmy win

Bryant-Woolridge spent her early career in various television production and management roles at the ABC Television Network, Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), and Black Entertainment Television (BET). In 1983, Bryant-Woolridge was honored with the Emmy Award for Individual Achievement in Writing.

Biography

Lori Anne Bryant-Woolridge was born in the San Francisco Bay Area to a bi-racial father, Brig. Gen Albert Bryant Sr., and bi-racial Asian mother, RN Mable Lun. She was raised in both California and a suburb of Washington, DC. She attended Kennedy High School and graduated from the University of Maryland, CP. She is sister to US Army Brigadier General Albert Bryant Jr. Bryant-Woolridge currently has a nephew on active duty in the Army, who recently completed a third tour in Iraq and is serving a fourth. (The Femme Fantastik Tour was founded as a tour of US military bases.)

She currently resides in New Jersey with her husband and two children, a son who attended Wesleyan University and a daughter that is attending the University of Maryland, College Park.

She is the co-founder of Mothers Off Duty, a non-profit women's organization committed to aiding in the prevention of teen pregnancy and the promotion of continued education and parental responsibility.

References and external links

• Best-Selling Books: Essence Book Club Pick, Essence Magazine, Essence.com, 2007.
• FEMME FANTASTIK: Your Favorite Female Authors Team Up, America On-Line Black Voices Blog, 2007.
• Books that Changed After 9/11, @uthors on the Web.com, 2002.
• Official Lori Bryant-Woolridge Web Page
• Audio Interview with Lori Bryant Woolridge on Urban Reviews