About the Author
Sylvia V. Hillman was born in Phoenix, Arizona to a large and tumultuous family of stepparents and siblings. Her mother’s marriage to the local mortician quickly moved the family from the abject poverty of the local housing project into a nice middle class home whose façade was more promising than the dynamics within. The oldest of 5 children, she took on the responsibilities of parenting her younger siblings and sacrificed much of her own childhood caring for them and helping out in the family’s mortuary business.
The only thing more formidable than Sylvia’s orthodox upbringing was her wild imagination. She used it as a way to escape the harsh realities of daily life and would delight or frighten her sisters with tales of favored toys coming to life, or of prince charmings rescuing fair maidens. The hard, cold lessons of youth, unusual anecdotes about the family business, and her musings on ordinary adolescent rites of passage found their way into the poems and fiction she began seriously crafting in her twenties.
A truly gifted writer, Ms. Hillman’s stories takes an unflinching yet humane look at the places and people who have populated her life. She is less interested in a textbook retelling of events than she is in communicating to her readers the complexities of a life on the edge of tragedy, triumph and truth. In 2006, the Twin Cities Film Festival honored her for her short film, “Near Mrs.” which was also aired on Black Entertainment Television the following year. 55 Navy is Ms. Hillman’s first published novel. She is the mother of two beautiful daughters and now resides in Los Angeles, CA.
BOTG: What do you think of the feminist movement?
SVH: Hmmm good question. I don’t really think of it. And that’s the honest answer. Like every civil rights movement, they start out with the purest intentions and I thank God and the people that started the movements for that – yet what happens is somewhere along the way “extreme” versions of those movements come along and mess up the balance. To me everything must be balanced.
People are imperfect and so they start up sects of movements under the same umbrella of said movement therefore making it hard to put a finger on what some might think of that movement. But over all it was the start and continuance of equality or balance between and among the sexes. Some things I don’t agree with though… i.e. I don’t like the thought of women fighting in the military. I think that God made men naturally protective of women and if a woman is taken as a P.O.W. the mere thought of that could mess with a male soldiers mind as far as giving up or giving in.
The good part about any movement like the feminist or the civil rights movement is that it takes on different forms in the future for instance Prop 8 is against equal rights for gays in marriage and benefits and such. Movements and revolutions have their place as long as they stay balanced.
BOTG: What do you think of the interaction between men and women today?
SVH: Again that varies. I mean in general its okay. Like for instance; I have a friend Janks Morton Jr. Look him up at whatblackmenthink and his perspective on this topic could pretty much sum up what I think… which is; Women have been forced to wear the pants in the family at times which means Women are raising boys to be men and although a boy needs his mother; only a Man can raise a boy to be a man.
We live in a generation of Men that were raised by single mothers and so they have a certain view of women that is distorted. They don’t mean to do it but they are either looking for women to be that “everything” or they can’t stand us because they grew up with a mom that was bashing their father for not being there and so they in turn hate themselves and hate the woman that gave them nothing to love about themselves.
This question is loaded for me – I could go on for hours on this topic. Yet I will say that I have met men that were raised by women like me – who have several brothers and good relationships with men and knew to let their differences with the absent father fall by the wayside to let that man into his son’s life and show him the way. Those men grow up to have a more balanced view of women and therefore foster healthy friendships and relationships with women. Now the single woman raising daughters; whoa!
My opinion again varies because you have these women that are trying to be all things to all men whoring themselves out – being gold-diggers and groupies in front of their baby girls so these girls grow up to put heavy demands on men that they can’t live up to but are willing to fake it to get coochie. Then there are (thank goodness) women that are balanced and support our men our brothers because they were raised to respect themselves and others.
BOTG: Tell us about your book ’55 Navy’.
AMAZON
SVH: 55 Navy is a story loosely based on me and my daughter’s father journey as teen lovers then teen parents and then adults. It’s a love and life story that follows two teenagers who find pure love and don’t know what to do with it. Imagine having 1 million dollars at 14 years old. Now imagine having 1 million dollars now… as an adult. NOW you know what to do with it right? 55 Navy is about family, friendship, abuse, triumph and redemption; I’ve got so many letters from people across the U.S. and the story means different things to different people.
Believe it or not I thought the story would resonate with women but I’ve got more letters from men about how moved emotionally they were because they either had a Sydney in their life or lost a father or a pet.
BOTG: What does 55 Navy mean? Why did you call the book that?
SVH: 55 Navy is the address of the apartment I lived at in Venice, California. I titled the book that way because it’s where the characters story begins and eventually has to end.
BOTG: What qualities do you think it takes a man to be a man and a woman to be a woman?
SVH: Both men and women should be selfless, loving, kind and caretakers. Men are natural hunters; God made them that way. Women are natural nurturers; God made us that way. Our natural born qualities are made to compliment each other. These qualities aren’t so much men or women qualities as they are Human qualities. If we collectively listen to our inner ear and follow The Universal Life Instruction Book – Women and Men would get along just fine. Continue reading →
Brotherhood Of The Game 