The Rocky Mountain Collegian

Henderson, who is known to her fans as T.T. Henderson, was in the Lory Student Center last week as part of Black History Month to speak to students about her shared success as a published romance novelist and banking executive.

"I think the only thing you really need to know to be successful in life is how to handle a conflict within yourself," Henderson said. "What defines a person is how they handle the conflicts in their lives."

Henderson lives in San Antonio where she is the assistant vice president of the World Savings and Loan Bank. During her time away from the bank, she raises two children and writes romance novels, four of which have been published.

"I always have liked doing a lot because it keeps me from getting into a rut in life," Henderson said. "If you have a passion in life, like writing is in mine, you find time for it."

While at CSU, Henderson served as president of the Congress of African-American Students, now known as Black Student Alliance, and was a founding member of CSU's Zeta chapter of the national African-American sorority. After graduating with a degree in broadcast communication in 1983, she moved with her husband to Colorado Springs where she got her start in banking and writing.

Henderson moved up the ladder at the World Savings and Loan Bank after initially being hired as a branch managerial assistant. During the national Savings and Loan crisis in the 1980s, the World Savings and Loan Bank maintained credibility and profited from other Savings and Loans Bank's bankruptcies, opening the door for Henderson's success.

"At first the job was just to help pay for babysitting costs," Henderson said. "The next thing I knew they were asking me to go to Pueblo and take over the bank we had bought down there. It was the scariest thing I had ever done, being in charge of that many peoples' jobs."

With her growing responsibility at the bank, Henderson found writing an escape from the stress of her job. She began writing romance because she believed there was a market for ethnic centered romance novels.

"In the U.S., over 51 percent of all books sold are romance novels," she said. "Most African-American writers write about politics, slavery and all those serious issues that African-Americans face in our lives, but there is an entire other side to the African-American experience, a lighter side that not many people write about." While straying from traditional African-American issues in her writing, Henderson has centered her romance writing around plots containing real-life issues. Her book, "Path of Fire," which she signed at CSU Friday, takes place in Zaire and revolves around the ancient conflict between the warring Tootsie and Zutu tribes.

"One thing you can't count on in life is when romance will happen, but you need to make room for it no matter the conditions," Henderson said. "That is why my novels are not very typical concerning romance, they are a lot more plot-driven."

Henderson's next book, "Tears and Tattoos," is set to be released in May.

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