Donna Grant is the co-author of three bestselling novels such as Tryin' to Sleep in the Bed You Made, Far From the Tree, Better Than I Know Myself and the re-released Exposures, (written as Marie Joyce) originally published in 1990 by Warner Books. In January 2008, Gotta Keep on Tryin’, the sequel to Tryin’ to Sleep in the Bed You Made was published by Touchstone/Simon & Schuster.

Biography

Grant attended Barnard College

Barnard College

Barnard College is a private women's liberal arts college and a member of the Seven Sisters. Founded in 1889, Barnard has been affiliated with Columbia University since 1900. The campus stretches along Broadway between 116th and 120th Streets in the Morningside Heights neighborhood in the borough...

 and is a graduate of New York University

New York University

New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...

. She is a Brooklyn, New York native and currently lives in the borough with her husband. Before becoming a novelist, she spent more than a decade as a plus size model, represented by the 12+ division of Ford Models

Ford Models

The Ford Modeling Agency, or as it is known today Ford Models, is a modeling agency in New York City. It was established in 1946 by Eileen and the late Gerard W. Ford.-Company:...

. Grant was featured in catalogs and national ads, on the pages of such magazines as Essence, McCalls, Family Circle and Woman's Day, and has made appearances on Today, Good Morning America

Good Morning America

Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...

, and Live with Regis and Kathie Lee.

During this time Grant met co-author, Virginia DeBerry

Virginia DeBerry

Virginia DeBerry is the co-author of bestselling novels: Tryin' to Sleep in the Bed You Made, Far From the Tree, Better Than I Know Myself and the re-released Exposures, originally published in 1990 by Warner Books...

, who was also a plus-size model vying for the same assignments. Their modeling careers led to the opportunity to launch Maxima, a fashion and lifestyle magazine for plus-size women, where Virginia was editor-in-chief and Donna the managing editor. When publication of Maxima ceased, Virginia and Donna decided to try writing a book together. Best friends for more than 25 years, have turned a friendship into the most successful collaboration to date in African-American fiction.

Their first effort, Exposures was published under the pseudonym Marie Joyce (for Donna Marie and Virginia Joyce). It was also published in Spain as Instantaneas. Their next book, written as DeBerry and Grant, was Tryin' to Sleep in the Bed You Made, which was a critical success, an Essence Magazine Bestseller, as are all three of their books, and won the Merit Award for Fiction from the Black Caucus of the American Library Association

American Library Association

The American Library Association is a non-profit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with more than 62,000 members....

, as well as the 1998 Book of the Year Award from the Blackboard Bestseller List/African American Booksellers Conference-Book Expo America. More than that, it hit an emotional nerve with tens of thousands of readers from all over the world who continue to write to Virginia and Donna ten years after the book's publication. Far From the Tree became a New York Times Bestseller, and Better Than I Know Myself received two Open Book Awards, and was included on the Best African-American fiction of 2004 lists of both Borders and WaldenBooks.

In addition to speaking at book fairs and literary festivals around the country for the past eight years, Virginia and Donna have been keynote, motivational/inspirational speakers and served on panels for a wide variety of meetings, organizations, companies, churches, cultural and educational institutions, including: DELL

Dell

Dell, Inc. is an American multinational information technology corporation based in 1 Dell Way, Round Rock, Texas, United States, that develops, sells and supports computers and related products and services. Bearing the name of its founder, Michael Dell, the company is one of the largest...

 North America, Women Work!, Alpha Kappa Alpha

Alpha Kappa Alpha

Alpha Kappa Alpha is the first Greek-lettered sorority established and incorporated by African American college women. The sorority was founded on January 15, 1908, at Howard University in Washington, D.C., by a group of nine students, led by Ethel Hedgeman Lyle...

 sorority, Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, Speaking of Women's Health (Procter & Gamble

Procter & Gamble

Procter & Gamble is a Fortune 500 American multinational corporation headquartered in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio and manufactures a wide range of consumer goods....

) & the Texas Conference for Women

Texas Conference for Women

The Texas Conference for Women is a nonprofit, nonpartisan leadership conference for women of all ages and backgrounds. The first annual conference was held in 2000 in Austin, Texas. Governor Rick Perry and First Lady Anita Perry are the official hosts of the event, which has featured keynote...

. Their honest and powerful messages have received praise from literary, business and academic audiences. They have also appeared on CNN

CNN

Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...

, Good Day New York and been featured on the pages of Essence Magazine, Glamour (magazine)

Glamour (magazine)

Glamour is a women's magazine published by Condé Nast Publications. Founded in 1939 in the United States, it was originally called Glamour of Hollywood....

, American Woman, and Black Issues Book Review

Black Issues Book Review

Black Issues Book Review was a bimonthly magazine published in the U.S. in which books of interest to African-American readers were reviewed. It was published from 1999 through 2007....

.

Last year, Donna and Virginia joined with partners Tyrha Lindsey and Tracey Kemble to form 4 Colored Girls Productions. The movie Tryin’ to Sleep in the Bed You Made, based on their 1997 novel, is their first independent feature. Their next novel, What Doesn’t Kill You, will be published in January 2009.

Awards

Black Caucus of the American Library Association, showing Virginia Deberry & Donna Grant as 1998 recipients of a BCALA Honor Award in fiction for Tryin'.
http://www.bcala.org/awards/past_litwinners2.htm

BlackBoard 1998 Book of the Year Winners—Award presented at BookExpo, the Book and Author Breakfast, Sunday May 31, 1998, McCormack Place Convention Center, Chicago, IL(Tryin' was the largest selling hardcover work of African American fiction for 1997)

Girl Book Club, 1997 New Author of the Year Award, (click on Award Winners Hall of Fame)

http://www.goongirl.org/events/author_awards/

African American Literary Awards Show—Open Book Award, September 29, 2004,

http://www.literaryawardshow.com/