Alexandria actor/producer Kelvin Terrell hopes to use profits from his first novel “Karma: The War of Love” to start a scholarship foundation for the city’s youth.
“What’s more important to me about this book is what it represents. It’s an opportunity to do something for my community and to teach kids something that I wish I had known before when I was their age,” he said.
Through his merit-based program, students can earn scholarship funds by maintaining academic excellence in their classes. In addition, they can also earn a chance to begin to fulfill their dreams, whether it be studio time or being mentored by a professional athlete, by completing various volunteer projects within the community.
“I want to give them everything they need to pursue their hopes and dreams of becoming an actor, entertainer, or sports star,” he said.
Terrell also wants his program to reflect the diverse demographics and social economic background of his hometown. Growing up in public housing in Alexandria with his family, he never thought that he would be an actor/producer and definitely not a writer. However, he credits the creativity and imagination that his early environment fostered in him as the driving force behind his success within the entertainment industry.
“We had to be creative. We didn’t have playgrounds. We had to use milk crates for a basketball hoop if we wanted to play basketball,” he said.
Although he considers himself more of an actor than a writer, he does write poetry when he feels the inspired. One day as he was re-reading through his old collection of poetry, he realized that if he ordered the poems a certain way that they told a story.
“I was actually doing plays at the time and I thought maybe I’ll turn these into a play,” he said.
Upon more thought, he decided that a novel might appeal to a wider audience. While the poems did provide him with a basic outline for his story, he was completely unsure as to how to structure his narrative.
“I didn’t know where to start or finish. I just knew I had a story to tell at the end of the day. So I had to do a little research,” he said.
He begin researching various literary genres and websites such as Createspace.com and Writer’s Digest.com to learn about plot structure and how to captivate readers.
“Google was truly my best friend,” he said.
Within two or three months, he finished writing the novel, which was released in June.
In “Karma: The War of Love”, the main character Terry possess all of the qualities of a great significant other, except commitment. He is a womanizer who never wants to settle down until he meets his perfect match: Shannon. Ultimately, both Terry and Shannon must determine whether they will commit to each other and their blossoming relationship.
“The way I wrote the book is a narrative as if we are sitting down discussing my dysfunctional relationship over a cup of coffee,” he said.
The main character is a composition of various individuals and experiences he has come across in his life. Unlike many modern novels that tend to be very detail-oriented, Terrell wanted to offer readers a thought-provoking novel.
“I wanted people to be engaged to the point where they are thinking about their situations in life and about people that are similar to the characters in this book. It’s a short quick read but I really want people to think about their lives and how they conduct themselves,” he said.
Terrell said that he wants readers to become aware of the type of energy they are putting out into the world such as putting out positive or negative energy. The novel also describes the complexity of being in a relationships and the give-and-take dynamic within them.
“Karma: The War of Love” is available at various online book retailers and through the author’s website: www.k-terrell.com.
Terrell, a native of Alexandria, said he has many fond memories of growing up in Alexandria. In particularly, he remembers visiting Alexandria’s waterfront with his family and playing youth football and on the football team at T.C. Williams High School.
After graduating with a Bachelor’s Degree in accounting from Hampton University, he was recruited by M &T Bank’s management program. He worked with various branches in Columbia, Md. and Northern Virginia. From there, he began working with Wachovia/ Wells Fargo.
In 2012, he decided focus on acting and producing while bartending on the side. He has worked various local web series such as “Anacostia” which was nominated for three Emmys and “DC Yuppies” on YouTube.
Currently, Terrell is focusing on producing and acting in his own productions. He is presently producing two feature films and a web series.