New York Times bestselling author Teri Woods was revved up the other day while discussing her new release, 'Alibi.' No, not like some rookie excited about a new book project, but like a veteran in love with her work and excited about the trajectory of her career from author of urban literature to writer of crime thrillers.

'Alibi,' you see, has been described by some critics, including this blogger, as a crime thriller instead of urban literature. The genre, for about a decade, has been the hallmark of Wood's work that began with 'True to the Game,' which put her on he map.

"They [some literary critics] just compared 'Alibi' to George Pelecanos's 'The 'Turnaround,' '' a giddy Woods says. "I'm like, 'Who? What are they doing to me now?' I go on his Web site and he's so cool. He wrote for 'The Wire.' I'm really happy for 'Alibi.' I was joking with my friends and how they [critics] said I transcended [from urban lit to author of crime thrillers].

"I really don't feel like I've transcended,'' she says, thoughtfully. "I probably transcended more when I wrote 'True to The Game.' I'm not really from that world. I grew up on a farm. But I like 'Alibi.' It's great. I love it. It does take a different turn from the urban category that I somehow got pulled into.''

Woods, a native of Philadelphia, was the first urban fiction writer to appear on the New York Times bestseller list. In 'Alibi,' she weaves an engaging thriller with an intricate plot. But she stays true to the game as she transitions from urban to writer of crime thrillers. 'Alibi' keeps it street with its characters and vernacular.

The protagonist, for example, Daisy Fothergill could have been featured in any of Woods's urban lit books. You see, she is not making ends meet working as a stripper and a barmaid. So she jumps at the opportunity to earn some fast cash when her shady, baller boyfriend presents her with what appears to be the opportunity of a lifetime--provide his boy with an alibi when the cops come a calling.

Easy money or so she thought. But here is where urban literature transitions to crime thriller as Daisy--Ms. Alibi--unwittingly becomes enmeshed in a high-profile botched robbery at a drug stash that leaves a trail of bodies and two eyewitnesses, including a young boy.

"I like Daisy,'' Woods says. "The reason I like Daisy so much is because a lot of women can relate to her. She's not as bright as you think she would be. She definitely doesn't make the right choices, however, she's a survivor. And she goes through so much. I think people can sort of feel her pain. In a sense she's sort of like a hero. She doesn't succumb to it all. She's able to get herself to a better place. She's able to make the right choices in the end.''

Woods, who worked as a legal secretary/paralegal for eight years at a law firm, worked for years to sell her first novel, 'True to The Game.' After rejection after rejection from major publishing houses, friends encouraged her in 1999 to sell her self-published work on her own. And she did on street corners from the trunk of her car. The effort paid off. She became a self-made millionaire in three years and is credited with reinvigorating the urban fiction genre. Today, she lives in New Jersey with her two children.