Erika is the creator and author of the picture book, CHOCOLATES. In Des Moines, Iowa on a cold winter day while she was back home visiting family and friends, a rich and chocolatey idea came to mind. With an assortment of edits and so many pieces of chocolate devoured, her debut picture book was smoothed out. --- She received her B.A. in Journalism and Mass Communications from The University of Iowa where she joined the National Association of Black Journalist (NABJ) and worked as an assistant for a best-selling author. She is also a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.

Damon Renthrope. He is an award-winning artist and Erika's super-talented and creative husband. Check out Damon's Instagram page for children's illustrations at Little Jo Jo Super Star.

Wouldn’t that be something if each of the dozen chocolates was a book?

Can you think of anything sweeter? I can't.

The book is available in the shop section of the website.

Me. Myself. And, I.

No, I don't have an agent. I also work under my own publishing house. For my first book project, I wanted complete control. As a couple of creatives it meant something to dare and take a chance to do it ourselves, our way. The possibility of working with an assortment of partnerships excites me a CHOCO-lot! I am open to the idea of representation if it's a sweet fit.

On an island with a crown in Southern California.

I love really good dark chocolate. But sometimes milk chocolate is my treat. I love fruits and nuts and caramel filled confections as well. Have you ever tried Dark Milk Chocolate? Oh my sweetness! I’m a huge fan of one particular fair trade brand that is on a mission for chocolate to become 100% slave-free with no child labor.

It’s the newest chocolate to date. The natural cocoa bean makes the chocolate a ruby pink color. Pretty cool! Ruby chocolate is dope and new to the scene. I’d like to think I kind of am too!

One of the best things I’ve ever bitten into! Blend the milk solids and sugar of milk chocolate with the higher percentage of dark chocolate and you get Dark Milk chocolate. Don’t think you’re a dark chocolate fan? Give it a try and you might be surprised! Also, if me and Damon were a combined chocolate, it’d be this one because it’s the perfect chocolate combo!

Take white chocolate and let it cook until it caramelizes into all its toasty deliciousness. Why did you spell blond without the letter E? I used blond as it can be used for either boy or girl. Our blond chocolate character is meant to be left to the imagination for interpretation. A sweet little hidden chocolate twist! Fact #1: The word originally came into English from Old French, where it has masculine and feminine forms. As an English noun, it kept those two forms; thus, a blond is a fair-haired male, and a blonde is a fair-haired female. However, using the word as an adjective, "blond" is the more common spelling and can be used for men or women, especially in the USA. Fact #2: Most of the time, inanimate objects are treated as male and so we have blond chocolate. (However, I could make a very strong argument chocolate is indeed feminine!)

Is chocolate the food of Gods? Is it the most popular sweet treat consumed in the world? Aren't WE a world full of assorted chocolates? Are both the author and illustrator Black? Are you just as sweet OUTSIDE as you are within? Now you tell me, do we matter to you?