Novelist and former rapper Sherri Sher knows how to tell a good story. “I’ve been keeping a diary since I was a teenager and I’ve always had stories in my head,” Sherri says. As the author of the recently published novel Mercedes Ladies, she mixes fact and fiction while delievering one of the most compelling books ever about the old school/boogie down hip-hop era.

“I was one of those girls who loved going to Cedar Park, going to see Herc and Flash, but back then it was rare to see female MCs or DJs, but we were pioneers,” Sherri explains. “And our main goal was to be better than the fellows.” Befriending the men on the scene and opening shows for the L Brothers, Busy Bee and Grandmaster Flash, Sheri insists that the sisters in the crew always demanded respect. “Most of us came from single family homes, so we were raised to be strong women. Growing-up in the hood, a woman has to learn to hold her own.”

Still, what does Sherri think of the looser fem-rappers who came on the scene twenty years after her? “I’m not blaming Foxy Brown or Lil Kim, because both are very talented rappers, but sometimes women think their only shot at fame is taking off their clothes. They don’t realize that’s not fame, that’s defame. Young black women have to realize their worth and power.”

Currently working as a court officer (“I sent Remy Ma a copy of my book, and I heard that she cried”) and writing her second book, Sherri was recently saluted by the Bronx rapper who is hip-hop. “KRS-1, told me, ‘Most of the time people come to the hood, and take our stories. But, you actually told your own story.’ It took me five years to get Mercedes Ladies written, but it was worth it.”

This post originally appeared on Michael Gonzales’s blog, Riffs&Revolutions.