Erica Kennedy is a native Washingtonian (D.C.) and currently a Maryland resident. Born the youngest of six children to two native South Carolinians, she and her siblings were often encouraged to participate in sports and fine arts of all kinds, be it singing, drawing, sewing or, of course, writing.

Although having studied classical piano since age 7, writing was always Erica’s first love. And so whenever she could, she churned out poems, short stories and essays, be it for contests, local newspapers or church productions. Upon learning she could turn her passion into a career, she entered Howard University and majored in print journalism with a minor in psychology. Even with a plethora of classes, she never tired of writing and, therefore, divided her time on both of the University's newspapers, their yearbook staff and at their student radio station, WHBC, as a news writer and co-anchor. 

After graduation (and a brief stint covering entertainment news for Sister 2 Sister magazine and Black Entertainment Television's YSB magazine), creative writing soon took a back seat to technical writing, which gave way to technical editing in such areas as orthotics & prosthetics, university accreditations, and financial earnings transcripts. But the creative itch needed to be scratched. Therefore, Erica got back into freelancing here and there, doing pieces for local newspapers, national magazines, and in her downtime, continuing to write poetry, read at ciphers and formulate short stories.

It was during this time that Erica enrolled into Seton Hill University to pursue her master’s degree in creative writing with a concentration in popular fiction. Doing so not only allowed her to once again combine her love for academics with her love for writing, but also helped her complete one of her life's goals—publishing a novel.

The Tides That Bind is a by-product of that wonderful experience and is now available for you to enjoy. Hopefully reading it will mean as much to you as writing it did for her.

Please note: Erica is NOT the author of "Bling." That novel was written by a different Erica Kennedy (real name Erica Johnson). Kudos to all debut authors!