ML Dumars shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
ML, so good to connect and we’re excited to share your story and insights with our audience. There’s a ton to learn from your story, but let’s start with a warm up before we get into the heart of the interview. What is a normal day like for you right now?
A normal day for me begins at 6 AM with prayer and praise music. I listen to praise music while preparing myself for the day. After I am dressed, I go to the kitchen and feed my Yorkie, Faith. I eat breakfast, then play with her for a few minutes. Then we both go into the office where I check my emails, then start writing. I am working on sequels to both my romance novel, Any Given Tuesday, and my Sci-Fi novel, A Different Way of Being. I write until lunchtime at noon, when I take a break and play some more. I run errands if necessary, or I return to the office and write some more.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am ML Dumars, author and storyteller. I write novels, short stories, and poetry. Also, I am a storyteller, and I weave oral stories about characters is small town Louisiana. I wrote and published two novels and a book of poetry. The first novel is set in my hometown of Shreveport. It is about a homeless woman with amnesia who gets help from a waitress of a nearby restaurant, while police are investigating her for a crime. The second novel is a sci-fi in which a Security Agent meets an Empath at a time when being differently abled is illegal. The Agent must decide if she will help the Empath escape discrimination and danger or if she will turn her in.
When I am not writing, I am reading. I consume news, information, and stories in multiple genres to improve my craft. I love learning new things and getting inspired by science, and world news. A single concept can spark a whole new story. I am creating new stories for my characters and for my readers. I hope they enjoy them.
Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. Who saw you clearly before you could see yourself?
When I was in third grade, I met Gwendolyn Brooks, Poet Laureate of the United States. She asked each of us students what we wanted to be when we grew up. When she came to stand in front of me, I lowered my head in shyness. She lifted my chin and asked me the question. I practically whispered my answer, ” A writer”. She asked me if I wrote then and I said yes. She looked me in the eyes and said “Keep writing”. I have never forgotten the power I felt in that moment.
If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
I would tell my younger self, “You are enough!” I always felt that I needed to do more, be more, know more. I would stay up late into the night reading books or doing homework, because I always felt there wasn’t enough time. I woke up early to go to school, or work, or both sometimes. I stole time to write, to jot down imaginary scenarios. I even kept a journal for an imaginary girl who was adopted into a rich family who owned horses. I wrote mundane daily activities from this imagined life. If I had realized I was enough, then I could have been writing down activities from my own life. Now, I keep a journal with me and I write stories, poems, webinar information, seminar notes, sketches, and other ideas in it. One for each year. I now know that I am enough, and whatever I do each day is sufficient for the time I have.
I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
I believe every person has a story to tell. My goal is to convince every person I meet to write or record his or her story. As a child I did not know to ask questions about my mother’s and grandmother’s lives. I wish they had realized how important their stories would be, and had documented them somehow. Now I encourage relatives and friends to do this so their children and descendants will know them better and know where they come from as a family.
In 2023, I received an NEA grant that allowed me to film people in my ancestral home, the Village of Natchez, Louisiana, I taught a short lesson on the elements of a story, then I recorded each person telling their own story about life in this rural African American village created by their own hands. I transcribed their stories into a book as well. When we showed the film at the annual Heritage Festival they hosted, the sounds of pleasure and pride were proof that this mission is a worthy one.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. Could you give everything your best, even if no one ever praised you for it?
I have always believed that one should do a thing and do it well. I give my best to everything I do and I don’t like to start things I cannot finish. Even if no ever praised me for what I do, I feel that I must give it my all, because I do what I truly believe is worth doing. I hope people will look back and know that if I did something for them, it was to the best of my ability. That is the legacy I hope to leave.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://culturalyst.com/ml_dumars
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mldumars/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ml.dumars/
