My Story

My name is Bernice L. McFadden and I was born, raised and still live in Brooklyn, New York. 

As a little girl, I dreamed of becoming a published author. In 2000, at the age of 34, that dream became a reality when my novel, SUGAR was published.

Sugar was praised by New York Times Bestselling Novelist, Terry McMillan as "One of the most compelling and thought-provoking novels I've read in years." 

Nobel Laureate, Toni Morrison hailed my sophomore novel, The Warmest December as "Searing and Expertly Imagined."

The Warmest December was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize in Fiction.

My latest work; is a historical fiction novel entitled: Glorious. Glorious is the recipient of the 2011 Fiction Award from the BCALA and was nominated for an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work.

Since 2000, I have published twelve critically acclaimed, award winning novels in two genres and under two names.

Another dream of mine was to go to Egypt and so I was over-joyed when I learned that I had been accepted into a one-month long writer's residency located in the beautiful, oceanside town of El Gouna, Egypt. 

To be given thirty days to do nothing else but explore and create in such an awe-inspiring setting is a once in a lifetime opportunity.

The Project

The I story will be developing during my time in El Gouna is entitled, Winter People. 

Winter People is a fictionalized account of the real-life African-American pilot Lieutenant Darwin Nichols, who was shot down, captured and imprisoned in the Gestapo prison in Butzbach.  My research thus far has revealed a some-what clouded history of Nichols final days. Some accounts declare that he was shot and killed right before the end of the war; others claim that his body was never found. My fictional version of his life will return him safely to America, where Nichols' will recount his story of his time in Butzbach.

This story is important because it will give voice to those "forgotten" victims of the Holocaust..

According to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington, D.C., The fate of black people from 1933 to 1945 in Nazi Germany and in German-occupied territories ranged from isolation to persecution, sterilization, medical experimentation, incarceration, brutality, and murder.

 I believe that Winter People will serve to introduce readers to a larger historical text, which will be appreciated by the widest possible audience.

WHAT I NEED FROM YOU

Sadly, I am unable to fund this trip on my own. Your donations will go toward my travel and activity expenses as well as the purchase of a laptop.