Tia Williams

Tia Williams is an American novelist and editor. She has published six books and is best known for The Accidental Diva (2004), The Perfect Find (2016), and Seven Days in June (2021). She is also a long-time fashion editor and the current editorial director for the Estée Lauder Companies.

Early life and education

Williams was raised in a suburban area of Virginia.[1] She began writing during childhood and wrote her first book at age seven.[2] She named The Westing Game as one book that shaped her into an aspiring writer.[2] Williams received her bachelor's degree from University of Virginia in 1997.[3][1] She moved to Brooklyn shortly after graduation and has lived there since.[1]

Career

Williams' professional writing career began in 2004, when she founded the fashion blog Shake Your Beauty.[4] She also worked as an editor at publications including Essence, Glamour, Teen People, and Elle.[5] Williams worked as the head copywriter at Bumble and bumble for five years. Since 2020, she has been the editorial director of the Estée Lauder Companies.[6]

Williams published her first novel The Accidental Diva in 2004 during a resurgence of chick lit published by and about Black women.[7] It received a positive review from Publishers Weekly, where her writing was praised: "Williams's gift for sexy if sometimes purple prose...save this energetic romance from being just another uptown girl meets downtown boy tale and signals the arrival of a sharp new talent."[8]

In 2006, she co-authored the book The Beauty of Color with Iman.[1] She also wrote two young adult novels, It Chicks and It Chicks: Sixteen Candles.[4]

Williams released The Perfect Find in 2016 under Hachette, about a woman who takes a job as a fashion editor and falls in love with her frenemy manager's son. The book was adapted into a film produced by Netflix and Gabrielle Union, who also stars. A release date has not yet been announced.[6]

In 2021, she released Seven Days in June, a novel about two writers who reunite after 15 years for a week-long affair.[9] The protagonist lives with chronic migraines, a condition that Williams also has.[2] After its publication it was named to the New York Times Best Seller list and was also selected for Reese Witherspoon's book club.[10][11] Tembe Denton Hurst of New York reviewed the book positively: "It's been a while since I read a book I was delighted by — a book that made me smile wide for no reason because of how touching or cute it is.[12] BookPage writer Jessica Wakeman gave it a starred review.[13]

Seven Days in June is in development to be adapted into a television series produced by Will Packer Media with Williams as executive producer.[5]

Personal life

Williams married her husband in 2021.[14] She has one child.[6]

Works
  • Williams, Tia (2004). The Accidental Diva. Peanut Press/Palm Reader. ISBN 978-0-451-21507-9.
  • Iman & Williams, Tia (2006). The Beauty of Color: The Ultimate Beauty Guide for Skin of Color. Grand Central Publishing. September 2006. ISBN 9780399532849. {{cite book}}: |first= missing |last= (help)
  • Williams, Tia (2007). The It Chicks. Hyperion/Jump At the Sun. ISBN 978-1-4231-0406-3.
  • Williams, Tia (2008). Sixteen Candles (an It Chicks novel). Hyperion/Jump At the Sun. ISBN 9780534372149.
  • Williams, Tia (2016). The Perfect Find. Brown Girl Books. ISBN 9781944359119.
  • Williams, Tia (2021). Seven Days in June. Grand Central Publishing. ISBN 978-1-5387-1910-7.

Accolades
  • 2016 – Independent Publisher Award for Multicultural Fiction, Bronze (for The Perfect Find)[15]
  • 2016 – African American Literary Award for Best Fiction (for The Perfect Find)[16]

References
  1. "Author Tia Williams on the fashionable world of romantic escapism". NBC News. 13 October 2017. Retrieved 2021-09-14.
  2. Rankin, Seija. "What's in a Page: Tia Williams spills on Seven Days in June". EW. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  3. "New & Noteworthy: Fall 2017". Virginia Magazine. Retrieved 2021-09-14.
  4. Perez, Lexy (2021-07-14). "Tia Williams on the Meta Experience of Writing About Black Authors in a White Publishing Industry". Literary Hub. Retrieved 2021-09-14.
  5. Perez, Lexy (2021-06-10). "Will Packer Media, Kinetic Content to Adapt Tia Williams' 'Seven Days in June' for TV". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2021-09-14.
  6. Taylor, Savannah (9 June 2021). "Author Tia Williams' "Seven Days In June" Redefines #BlackLoveGoals Just In Time For Summer". Ebony. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  7. Ogunnaike, Lola (2004-05-31). "Black Writers Seize Glamorous Ground Around 'Chick Lit'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-09-14.
  8. "Fiction Book Review: THE ACCIDENTAL DIVA by Tia Williams, Author . Putnam $23.95 (245p) ISBN 978-0-399-15201-6". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved 2021-09-14.
  9. Kai, Maiysha (2021-08-05). "'I Love Writing Sex Scenes': The Root Presents: It's Lit! Rekindles the Romance With Tia Williams". The Root. Retrieved 2021-09-14.
  10. "Get To Know: Tia Williams". Hachette Book Group. 2021-08-18. Retrieved 2021-09-14.
  11. "Hardcover Fiction Books - Best Sellers - Books - June 20, 2021 - The New York Times". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-09-14.
  12. Denton-Hurst, Tembe (13 September 2021). "The Books Tia Williams Read While Writing Seven Days in June". NYmag.com. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  13. "Book Review - Seven Days in June by Tia Williams". BookPage.com. 29 April 2021. Retrieved 2021-09-14.
  14. "Author Tia Williams On Writing, Black Women Living With Chronic Pain & Whether Teenage Love Can Last". MadameNoire. 2021-06-03. Retrieved 2021-09-14.
  15. Awards, 21st Annual. "2017 Independent Publisher Book Awards National Medalists". Independent Publisher - feature. Retrieved 2021-09-14.
  16. "{Awards} 12th Annual African American Literary Awards". Black Page Turners. 2016-10-06. Retrieved 2021-09-14.
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