The name Kenni York doesn't merely emphasis a person; it denotes a living, walking, thriving BRAND. As an author, serial entrepreneur, and philanthropist, Kenni operates under her personal mantra of 'making a difference and not just a dollar'.

 Describe in three words your current work in progress. 

Biographic, poignant, authentic

 Where do you see yourself in five years?

Career-wise, I see myself taking my film experience to new heights by creating and writing a series for NBC. With regards to my philanthropy, I see myself opening a brick-and-mortar location for my nonprofit organization, The Let Your Voice Be Heard Foundation, and beginning to offer counseling services to our clients having earned my Masters in Clinical Mental Health Counseling with an emphasis in trauma. 

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If you weren't an author what career would you have chosen?

My second career choice was law, but I didn't want to stay in school after getting my BA. I laugh at myself now because here I am back in school getting my masters when I said I didn't want to go back to school.

Tell us the story behind your current work? What inspired you to write it?

My latest book, Whatever Lola Wants, is a collaboration with my oldest son, Kelvon. The idea spawned from a couple of conversations we had. One in particular about how adults don't listen to young people making it difficult for young people to speak out, share their feelings, or even feel loved and accepted. The second conversation was us being silly singing the song Whatever Lola Wants and then brainstorming a background story for the song...that is how we developed the main character and decided to write a book to give life to our idea. I was motivated to put the book out because after we wrote it my family experienced a tragedy with my son which spoke to the message he was trying to convey in the first place: that young people these days are battling with mental health issues like never before and are yearning for the adults to take notice.

Who is your favorite character?

Whatever Lola Wants my favorite character is Micah because we see his transition from an insecure, bullied young man to a confident, assertive adult. He is personal growth personified. A lot of adults need that...to deal with the issues from their youth that they carried into their adult life in order to grow, heal, and truly live.

What character and/or scene was hard to write and why? 

My son says the hardest part to do was put true feelings on the page. Writing from the aspect of a male with emotional issues, Kelvon recognized that people expect males to have a hardened disposition and not be so emotional. It was important to him to show that guys have feelings too despite society's negative view of men being emotional.

What's your favorite part of the writing process?

My favorite part is getting lost in the world I've created. When I begin to hear the characters and feel the emotions of the characters within me, I know then that I'm on the right path and the story is shaping up well. Being able to connect with the characters is important to me; I want my readers to be able to relate to and connect with my characters on some level that makes them invested in the storyline.

Who is your favorite author?

My favorite author is Jackie Collins. I love her story-telling ability, her imagination, and her loaded story-lines. I have an entire bookshelf dedicated to her titles and an autographed photo of her sits on my desk watching me as I write my books. Jackie was fearless... she wrote what she wanted and told stories that were laced with some truth and kept you on your toes page by page.