White Readers Meet Black Authors

Giveaway Week!

2012-01-30T06:59:00.003-07:00

The discussions about how books are marketed according to race, gender, genre, etc. continue, but frankly dear reader, I'm tired of talking about it. I believe I've said what I have to say on the matter. I was gratified to see a commenter on a blog post about NPR reviewing more books by men than women mention this blog. To her, I say a big fat thank you! To all of you who keep coming here scouting for new books to read, I say a big fat thank you!

I'll keep doing my best to point you toward good books. This week I'm happy to say I can go one better than just mentioning books. I'm going to give some away! Four to be exact. All the deets are below.

Titles

On Tuesday, January 31st, you could win an autographed copy of Gathering of Waters by Bernice McFadden, which, ironically, was recently glowingly reviewed on NPR.

On Wednesday, February 1st, you could win Creatures Here Below, by O.H. Bennett (supplied by Agate Bolden). Publishers Weekly said, "In his third novel, Bennett (The Lie) brings an African-American community to vivid life with strong and compelling characters and narrative themes to match—growing up, the struggles of parenthood and young adulthood, the responsibilities we all have to each other as people....Bennett handles the multiple plot lines with grace and skill, and readers will appreciate the subtle growth of the characters, as well as the diverse array of experience."

On Thursday, February 2nd, you could win an autographed copy of Keeping Secrets, Telling Lies by Trice Hickman. Originally self-published, it's now being reissued by Kensington. APOOO Book Club said,"Keeping Secrets & Telling Lies, is filled with interesting, three-dimensional characters and a juicy, thought-provoking storyline that explores issues of race, racial identity, class, and fidelity. This book will have you discussing it long after the story ends!"

On Friday, February 3rd, you could win a copy of Panther Baby, a memoir by Jamal Joseph (supplied by Algonquin Books). It'll be released on February 7th. Publishers Weekly called it "spirited," "well-honed" and called Joseph a "fine storyteller." You can read an excerpt here.

Rules

Leave a comment on the post of the day of the book you wish to win. Comments left before 10 p.m. Mountain/9 p.m. Pacific/11 p.m. Central/Midnight Eastern will be considered. Winners will be chosen at random and announced the following day. Only one entry per day, please. A person can only win one book. If you don't win the first day you enter, you are welcome to try on another day for a different book. Questions? Leave them in the comments here.

African American Read In

2012-01-26T09:21:00.001-07:00

The 23rd National African American Read In starts in February. It's an effort designed to encourage people to read and discuss books by black authors.

Three book bloggers (Vasilly, Doret, who shared this info with me, and Edi) are hosting an online version on February 22nd. There's a poll up now to vote on what book they will read and chat about. You can vote at Vasilly's site. The winning book will be announced Monday, January 30th.

News and notes

2012-01-13T06:49:00.018-07:00

Happy Friday the 13th everyone! Over the course of the week I've picked up a few interesting bits of news from the internets and decided to share them.

A group of YA and kids' books bloggers I respect and admire have started a movement to get people to buy diverse books as birthday gifts for the young folks in our lives. The mission is to encourage a new generation of readers. Have you taken the Birthday Party Pledge yet?

TODAY ONLY, download a FREE ebook of Creatures Here Below by O.H. Bennett from publisher Agate Bolden. It's a really good novel, well worth the money, so to get it for free is really special. Hopefully, this kind of marketing will help it get some well-deserved attention. Download it today and help spread the word. (Watch this blog for a Q&A with Bennett soon.)

ReShonda Tate Billingsley and Victoria Christopher Murray have joined forces with a book just released this week featuring the heroines of their respective series. Sinners and Saints promises to be a fun read, especially if you enjoy Christian fiction. Or if you, like me, enjoy the shenanigans on "The Real Housewives" (Can a "Real Pastors Wives" be far off?). The two are on tour and may be coming to a book store near you!

Hat tip to Connie Briscoe for pointing me to this article on HuffPo about how books are segmented by genre, race, gender and class.

I had not heard of The Book Look online show, until Dolen Perkins-Valdez posted this on Facebook.

Meet: Jacqueline Luckett, author of Passing Love

2012-01-05T06:48:00.002-07:00

Our first "White Readers Meet" Q&A of 2012 is with Jacqueline Luckett, author of Searching for Tina Turner. She's here to tell us about her new book Passing Love, which getting lots of other good buzz! The glowing Publisher's Weekly review called it "a dreamy and lyrical paean to all things French..."

Contest!

Passing Love hits stores (and e-readers) January 25th. But Jackie is offering WRMBA readers an incentive to pre-order. She's going to send a lovely journal to the first 10 people who pre-order and email proof of receipt to info AT jacquelineluckett DOT com!

Passing Love is a story about a woman who has had a lifelong dream to go to Paris. She goes and discovers more than she imagine. Win one of the free journals and use it to reflect on your own life and dreams.

On to the Q&A with Jackie:

White Readers Meet Black Authors: Tell us about your new book. What's the plot? Who are the characters?

Jacqueline Luckett: The new novel is titled PASSING LOVE. It’s quite different from Searching for Tina Turner, and I hope that readers will enjoy. The story alternates between two very different women. Publisher’s Weekly wrote a lovely review. The novel will be a Good Housekeeping February Book Pick.

Moving back and forth in time between the sparkling Paris of today and the jazz-fueled city filled with expatriates in the 1950s, PASSING LOVE is the story of two women dealing with lost love, secrets, and betrayal and how the City of Light may hold all of the answers.

In the present day, Nichole-Marie Handy has loved all things French since she was a child. After the death of her best friend, determined to get out of her rut, she goes to Paris, leaving behind a marriage proposal. Ruby Mae Garrett lives in rural Mississippi in the late 1940s. Ruby believes that she is destined for a big life, and she’s determined to make sure that happens.

"Without fail, each woman had (or was forced) to decide what came next. The only way to figure that out is to take a journey to self. We have to re-discover ourselves, make choices about what comes next, re-invent who we are, and move forward. A hero’s journey is the crux of a good story. I like to show that an emotional journey is just as interesting as a physical one."

WRMBA: Why France? You wrote about it some in Searching for Tina Turner, and now more in Passing Love. Were you French in a past life?

JL: Good question. I’m not sure where the fascination comes from. It’s been a part of me my whole life. My father was in the Army and spent some time in France. The only thing I recall him telling me about his time in France was that the French treated the black American soldiers better than their own countrymen. Both my sister and I have French names, so I figure that something rubbed off on him.

It wasn’t my intention to write about France in Searching for Tina Turner, but once I discovered that she makes her home in the South of France, my character had to go there.

My original idea for PASSING LOVE was to write about an American woman who wanted to make a change in her life and live abroad. Since I was so familiar with France and had spent time in Paris—I decided to write about what I knew. That’s what all the books tell us to do. So, Paris was my logical choice for an ex-pat.

The story changed, as your readers will find out, but it all takes place in Paris.

I once asked a psychic why she thought I was so fascinated with France. She told me that in a past life I was French royalty. Hmmm. I didn't take much stock in her reading, though it does make sense if you believe that we have past lives. Her theory was that I had unfinished business. You could say that I’m taking care of that business in this life.

I studied French in high school, a couple of years in college and now I take weekly lessons. I can understand and make myself understand when I’m in France. I’ve traveled to France several times, and I feel comfortable there. It’s weird, but I learned long ago to roll with it. And look what it’s done for me!

WRMBA: You seem to write a lot about women finding themselves. Why do you think that is?

JL: I want my characters to mirror real life, and “finding” is what all of us will have to do at some point in our lives.

When I first started writing Searching for Tina Turner, I was lost. I mean that in the emotional sense, of course. I still had a home, friends, and my mother lives in a nearby city. I’d just gotten divorced. After all the “dust” settled, I was determined to make a new life for myself.

It took a while to figure out my direction and it occurred to me that other women were probably on the same emotional roller coaster. I spoke to quite a few women who were divorced or in the middle of one. Most were baby boomers with “empty nests.” They all described this feeling of being lost. Disconnected might be a better word. Some of those feelings came from no longer being grounded by children; some from having to start all over again in midlife. I’ve only known of one woman who supposedly planned out her departure from her marriage, but I’m sure she still had to take this same journey to self.

In most cases, divorce, and the lifestyle change, was unexpected. Without fail, each woman had (or was forced) to decide what came next. The only way to figure that out is to take a journey to self. We have to re-discover ourselves, make choices about what comes next, re-invent who we are, and move forward. A hero’s journey is the crux of a good story. I like to show that an emotional journey is just as interesting as a physical one.

WRMBA: You know a bit about wines, I believe. What type of wine(s) would you recommend to readers to enjoy as they read Passing Love?

JL: This is my all time favorite question!

I enjoy wine and recently took a Wine Tasting class to refresh my skills and expand my interest in European wines. Besides champagne (only the French can use this appellation) and sparkling wines (describes the bubbly from any other country), California wines remain my favorite. Frankly, I’m torn. For white wines, I love robust, creamy Chardonnays with a lot of oak. Full-bodied, fruity cabernets, merlots, and zinfandels are my favorite reds, in that order.

At the beginning of PASSING LOVE, Nicole pulls out a bottle of 100-year-old tequila to celebrate her trip. In Paris, she’s introduced to red wine. Ruby doesn’t drink; she’s in love with strong French coffee with lots of milk.

I suggest a combo. A nice shot of your favorite tequila—and a good one is smooth and worth sipping. Since the first two chapters introduce Ruby and Nicole, tequila works well. Then I’d switch to a nice Chardonnay for the rest of the book. Switch to a cabernet when Nicole does.

Finish with a glass of your favorite bubbly—that’s what I intend to do!

WRMBA: What's next for you?

JL: I’ve got several ideas brewing that I want to turn into reality. Novel number three, for sure. (This book will not even have the word Paris in it, but my fingers are crossed behind my back.) I sketched a lot of scenes in a frenzied month-long NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) writing spree.

A few readers have asked about a sequel to Searching for Tina Turner, but unless there’s a lot of demand, I don’t expect to write one (never say never, right?). I’d like to see the novel turned into a movie or a Broadway musical. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for either one of those dreams to come true.

This past summer, I took a class at Berkeley Repertory Theater and wrote a one-act play. At the end of the class, we staged public readings in front of a small group of my friends. It was exciting to hear my words read out loud. I’m going to look for theaters and try to get the play produced.

I have an idea for a screenplay that I’ll probably outline in 2012.

So, I have a lot of ideas. What’s next? Implementation. And maybe, Paris.

WRMBA: What's the best book (or who’s the best writer) that not enough people know about?

JL: Best is hard to say, because I’ve read so many beautiful books by authors well- and little-known. Dianne McKinney-Whetstone is a writer I love. Though she’s received a lot of awards, few people I speak to seem to know her work. I’ve read four of her five novels and loved them all. She lives in Philadelphia and her novels take place there.

McKinney-Whetstone inspired me. Before I started writing, I read an article of how she worked full-time and managed her family, then wrote in the wee hours at her kitchen table. I’m not sure if the story is true, but as a working mother, it gave me hope.

She may be better known than I think, but I haven't seen anything new from her in a while. I checked her website and I see she teaches at the University of Pennsylvania. I don’t see a new novel listed. I wonder if she’s writing.

If I could mention another author, it would be Emily Raboteau (The Professor’s Daughter).

Thanks, Carleen for this opportunity.

WRMBA: You're very welcome! Thank you for telling my readers a little about you and your work!

A review of Living Violet (and more new content coming!)

2011-12-29T11:30:00.000-07:00

Watch for giveaways, reviews and interviews in the new year! 2011 was a great year for books by black authors and 2012 also looks promising. I can't wait to read and learn more about them myself.

For example, Jaime Reed is entering the wildly popular YA paranormal field with a series. The first book is Living Violet and (while technically a January release) it debuted this week. If you like YA or have a daughter with a bookstore or e-reader gift certificate burning a hole in her pocket, check out Living Violet.

The synopsis

Samara Marshall is determined to make the summer before her senior year the best ever. Her plan: enjoy downtime with friends and work to save up cash for her dream car. Summer romance is not on her to-do list, but uncovering the truth about her flirtatious co-worker, Caleb Baker, is. From the peculiar glow to his eyes to the unfortunate events that befall the girls who pine after him, Samara is the only one to sense danger behind his smile.

But Caleb’s secrets are drawing Samara into a world where the laws of attraction are a means of survival. And as a sinister power closes in on those she loves, Samara must take a risk that will change her life forever … or consume it.

Living Violet is a fresh, funny voice in the paranormal genre, with a strong heroine of color and also explores the world of cambions: the offspring of incubi and humans.

The review

I received an advanced copy and sent it to a middle schooler I know who gobbles up YA paranormal, and this is what Jacque Howard (an aspiring writer herself) had to say:

Living Violet by Jamie Reed is an amazing read that any teenage girl would enjoy. It has romance, fantasy, and a little bit of comedy. When I read this book I couldn’t put it down! The lead female character, Sam, is smart, strong, and sarcastic. She wasn’t really interested in falling in love but she was interested in the boy with the strange violet eyes (Caleb). A little bit of action and an awesome story altogether. I defiantly would recommend this book to anyone who loves these genres. Can’t wait for the next book to be released.

You can read an interview with Jaime about her new series here.

Happy New Year everyone! Here's to more good books in 2012!

Books for a young black man?

2011-11-29T08:54:00.002-07:00

I got the following request from a blog reader to recommend books that "a young black man should read." Off the top of my head, I would suggest the YA novels of Walter Dean Myers, Coe Booth, Rita Williams-Garcia, Sharon Draper and Booker T. Mattison. More suggestions can be found at Reading in Color, the blog for black teen readers, on this great list compiled by author Zetta Elliott of middle grade and young adult novels by black authors released in 2011 and on this list of YA books by other minority writers put together by the Happy Nappy Bookseller.

But my additional advice would be to find out what the young man enjoys. Sports? Find sports books. Horror? Get him some scary books (Try Brandon Massey, L.A. Banks, Tananarive Due, Terrence Taylor). Maybe he would enjoy graphic novels and comics: let him read about some black superheroes. Fire up his imagination by introducing him to science fiction.

Too often I think people assume that if a book is about a kid about the same age in about the same situation as the young reader then the young reader will automatically like the book. Maybe, but maybe not. The writer I loved the most when I was in high school was Stephen King, and even today I'm a big Harry Potter fan. I don't think it's a good idea to only focus on the outside circumstances of a person's life when thinking about books he might actually enjoy. Part of the pleasure of reading for me is escaping from the circumstances of my situation, if only for a short time.

Enjoyment. Pleasure. Fun. Keep those words in mind when shopping for a book for anyone. Instead of thinking what he "should" read, think of what might blow his mind or tickle him.

Teachers, librarians, booksellers, parents, young readers, read below and then if you have recommendations for this person, let us know in the comments. Thanks!

Hello,

I would like to kindly ask if you had the time to suggest the top ten or twenty books, you feel, a young black man should read. I am looking to develop a list to find books for a young man, for the holidays and birthdays, who reads, slowly, with resistance and complaint, is struggling with his racial identity, his poverty, life with his mother and his sister, and without his absent father and extended family. Thank you very much for any thing you can suggest! I have posted this question, in greater detail, as the beginning of a new blog I have started on wordpress.

Good books for holiday gifts

2011-11-28T06:58:00.034-07:00

It's that time of year again. In 2008 I launched a campaign to promote the idea of giving books by black authors to non-blacks for the holiday s. In 2009 I offered a list of gifts for the 12 Days of Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa--12 days, 12 books.

Three years later, it still seems like a good idea. But I fear I lack the energy to do it justice this year. Last year, I was able to pull off a big giveaway of books and guest posts by bloggers, but this year I'm feeling pretty wiped out. So I offer this round up of links for folks who like the idea and want to tell others. Please tweet your little hearts out. Book bloggers please link away.

My top 10 reasons you should read a book by a black author. And a few more for good measure.

Fall 2011 book releases and some cool books from this spring, which would make great gifts.

Over the last few years, I've run Q&As with 20 authors. You can learn about them and their books here.

I've run a bunch of reviews from guest authors of fiction and nonfiction.

<p>&amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Book&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;gt;</p> I made a video welcoming everybody into the African American section of the bookstore (if your bookstore has one).

Here are Ernessa T. Carter's summer book suggestions and her list from last Christmas.

And some good books for kids, recommended by Denene Millner and by Heidi Durrow. The Happy Nappy Bookseller also offers a great list of great gift book ideas for children and young adults on her blog.

But wait, there's more! Fiction and poetry suggestions from Tara Betts.

What books are you buying this holiday season? If you have other suggestions for books that would make great gifts, let us know in the comments. Thanks!

National Book Award

2011-11-17T07:16:00.002-07:00

From left, National Book Award winners Stephen Greenblatt, nonfiction; Thanhha Lai, young people's literature; Nikky Finney, poetry; and Jesmyn Ward, fiction. (Tina Fineberg, Associated Press / November 16, 2011)

Hearty congratulations to Jesymn Ward, who just won the National Book Award for Fiction for her latest Salvage the Bones (reviewed in the Washington Post)!

Delighted for Nikky Finney won for her Poetry with Head Off & Split!! And apparently she gave a hell of a speech, which I'm watching here.

Dear TNT, more TV mysteries please

2011-11-08T11:20:00.000-07:00

I saw a commercial for the new TNT Mystery Movie Night, a great idea: original movies based on mystery novels. I hope the ratings are good and I hope they do it again next year. If you do, TNT, here are some books you need to read:

Casanegra. The Tennyson Hardwick series has three books now, but this is the first in a contemporary series about an actor-gigolo turned detective. Already has a TV star attached! Or do what NBC is doing with Walter Mosley's Easy Rawlins books and make it a series!

Black Orchid Blues. You say you "know drama"? This book is filled with it. And a great female protagonist (which you seem to like to) in society columnist Lanie Price.

Want something set out west? Try Robert Greer's CJ Floyd mysteries. The Devil's Hatband is the first in the series.

Or how about a teen detective? Check out Kimberly Reid's Chanti Evans, private school chick, daughter of a female cop in My Own Worst Frenemy.

Or, if you really want to make me happy (and why wouldn't a cable TV channel want to make this little blogger happy?), do a movie based on one of my favorite sleuth's: Barbara Neely's cleaning lady Blanche White would make an excellent movie heroine!

And those are only a few suggestions. This list of black mystery writers and the Myst Noir blog offers many more good ones. And bonus! one of them is also a TV writer! Just sayin'.

Readers, what mysteries would you like to see on TNT?

Round Up

2011-10-14T09:04:00.000-06:00

Howdy folks. Checking in to let you know that I have two blog posts up on how writers cope with self-doubt, one on the Girlfriends Book Club and one on Writer Unboxed. Both posts offer great advice and inspiration for writers or anyone hoping to achieve a goal. As you may note, I quoted black authors extensively. It's part of my not-so-secret mission to make sure we get included when the topic is something other than race and diversity. I think you'll get a sense of the authors from their answers. If someone intrigues you, I hope you'll click the link to their site and check them out...even purchase one of their books.

In other news:

Jesymn Ward's Salvage the Bones was recently named a finalist for a National Book Award! Congratulations!

Last month Pym author Mat Johnson received the Dos Passos Prize, which "honors American authors whose mid-career works focus on American themes and the human experience, while embracing an experimental approach to literary form"!

On October 30th, #blacklitchat celebrates one year of talking with authors on Twitter! The anniversary celebration will be hosted by Tayari Jones. Congratulations Bernadette and Dee!

Jacqueline Luckett's forthcoming Passing Love got a rave review in Publishers Weekly!

Bernice McFadden has a couple of new releases coming in January. Dennis Lehane, author of Mystic River, says about Gathering of the Waters: "As strange as this may sound, Bernice L. McFadden has created a magical, fantastic novel centered around the notorious tragedy of Emmett Till's murder. This is a startling, beautifully written piece of work."

Martha Southgate, author of The Taste of Salt, recommended three books for finicky folks on NPR.

Tina McElroy Ansa is one of the storytellers for The Moth's 5th radio season. Go here to stream or to check to see if one of your local radio stations is broadcasting stories from The Moth. Or, if you've got a story to tell, hit 'em up!

Meet: Patricia Raybon

2011-10-03T07:17:00.000-06:00

Today, I'd like to introduce you to my friend Patricia Raybon, another Colorado-based writer and author of one of my all-time favorite memoirs, My First White Friend: Confessions on Race, Love and Forgiveness. This Q&A discusses her two new books. (I was honored to receive copies of them and especially enjoy the lovely coffee table book Bound for Glory.) I think you'll get a real feel for her as a person and a writer here, and once you do, I know you'll want to check out her work.

White Readers Meet Black Authors: Tell us about your latest work(s).

Patricia Raybon: I write memoirs. My two new books, however, shake me out of that box. God’s Great Blessings is a One Year® devotional—or a daily study guide—published by the Christian publisher Tyndale House for its One Year® brand. It explores 52 virtues that God promises to bless. A life-changing project. I loved wrestling over this subject and writing it!

My second book, Bound for Glory, also from Tyndale, is a beautiful tribute to African American spirituals. A full-color gift book, Bound for Glory features the art of renown calligrapher Timothy Botts, with me acting as contributor. But Tim desired a Black voice on the pages, that is, so he invited me to collaborate. The book showcases 52 illustrations by Tim of 52 spiritual songs, plus his reflections on 26 of his pieces along with a Bible verse. For the other 26 illustrations, I wrote short reflections in free verse—a new format for me. More than anything, the book honors the African slaves in America who wrote this amazing music, and Tim did an astounding job telling this story through art. So it’s a stunning book. Great for showing off on coffee tables and book shelves. But the message inside is one of deliverance and hope. It’s truly a gorgeous book.

WRMBA: What are your goal(s) as a writer? Do you set out to educate? Entertain? Illuminate?

PR: I write to learn. Then I share what God is willing to teach me. With my first memoir, My First White Friend, I set out to learn how to forgive. The surprise? First I needed to forgive myself. Then with my second book, I Told the Mountain to Move, I vowed to learn how to pray. I grew up in church, but didn’t have a clue what prayer was. Writing a book to figure out a spiritual mystery—like prayer or forgiveness—changes my life. Readers tell me the books change their lives, too. My First White Friend came out in 1995. But people still read it to learn how to forgive. The same is true for Mountain regarding prayer. I give talks all over the country now on both prayer and forgiveness. Writing to learn has made all of that possible.

"I try to honor the dignity of that human spirit in my writing. So I try to give readers my best. To respect readers’ intelligence. To never talk down to an audience—whether they’re teen felons in a county jail or senior citizens in a church."

WRMBA: How does your faith inform your writing?

RP: It inspires me, first, to keep going. To stay with it. To finish the writing. To stay in the race—and if I fall out of my lane, to get back in it. This going the distance is central to the theology of Christianity. We follow a Savior who didn’t turn back, not from his calling—or even his crucifixion. In my own life, as a writer, the example of Christ inspires me to stay in the game. I love that about my faith.

Secondly, of course, my faith inspires what I write. My focus is spirituality, regardless of the topic. I did a piece on cleaning my windows for The New York Times Sunday Magazine, but the focus was spirituality. My faith is my life. As a writer, I aim to show that connection.

WRMBA: You went from journalism to writing books. Does your experience as a journalist affect your writing?

RP: It keeps me grounded. As a journalist, I wrote feature articles—called human-interest stories—most of my career. But even the feature pages of a newspaper focus on real life. And life is complicated. Life is hard. Life can be heart-breaking. But life is good! So people display amazing resilience, imagination, and downright sheer guts to make the journey the best way they can.

I try to honor the dignity of that human spirit in my writing. So I try to give readers my best. To respect readers’ intelligence. To never talk down to an audience—whether they’re teen felons in a county jail or senior citizens in a church. Both these groups deserve my best, from the story and message to the spelling and grammar. Journalism is a big part of why that matters to me.

WRMBA: I know you’re taught writing at the university level and you do workshops now. What advice would you give to a new writer?

RP: Figure out who you are. Your writing voice lives in that identity. In fact, your different identities—and everybody has several, depending on your life and where you are in it—is where your writer’s voice resides. I’m a journalist, yes, and I have written in that voice many times. But I’m also a wife and mom, and I’ve written and sold scores of personal essays about the complications and challenges of those relationships. In fact, my second memoir, I Told the Mountain to Move, is on prayer, but I wrote it as a wife—because the story takes place when my marriage is at a low point and, at the same time, my husband was critically ill. I had to learn to pray for my husband—but also learn again to love him—and write about it. Married Christian women really relate to that book!

A lot of aspiring writers run from who they are—and what they’re dealing with in life. But our stories reside in those places and spaces. Own up to your life! Walk in it. Write it!

WRMBA: What’s next for you?

RP: With God’s good help, I hope to develop a detective series with a faith angle. I finished a draft and got good suggestions back from my publishing house. So I’m excited to rework it—to start fresh and give it another go.

I’m also starting to blog again about life as a black writer of faith who works at home. I love every part of that description. So stay tuned.

Meantime, I’m having fun releasing my new books.

WRMBA: What’s the best book (or who’s the best writer) that not enough people know about?

RP: Great question! Surprising answer? The Holy Bible. I finally read it all. After a lifetime in church, I finally read the whole thing. And what did I learn? That everything I wanted to know about writing, and about life, is right there. Highly recommended!

Blessings and thanks to you, Carleen. Much peace and love.

WRMBA: Thank you for Patricia for your time! Can't wait to read that detective series!

Banned Books Week

2011-09-27T10:00:00.000-06:00

It's easy to be righteous about banning books until you run across a book that is offensive to you personally. Last year, I was running around wearing my I Read Banned Books bracelet when the brouhaha erupted about the handbook for pedophiles being sold on Amazon. (Google it if you're curious. I'm not going to link to it.) There was no way to possibly to defend the sale of that book...except that there was no way to possibly argue for banning it without that same argument applying to other books.

It made me really think about how far I'm willing to go to defend freedom of speech. Ultimately, I didn't get caught up in the online hysteria because I just didn't believe the book was being read by anybody (I think Amazon had reported 1 or 2 sales), and pretty quickly the ~~author~~ idiot who wrote the book was arrested. I didn't follow if he was successfully prosecuted or not.

I attended a panel discussion this summer in which there was lots of discussion about how to "save" black books. The conversation turned to the types of authors and books that the attendees and panelists felt were hurting the industry. But here's the thing: I'd bet a lot of money that in another room somewhere this year was a similar panel and a similar discussion, only that conversation centered on the kinds of books that were written by the panelists I was listening to. I'd also bet someone, somewhere has railed against the kinds of books I write. Though, dang it, nobody has tried to ban or challenge them that I know of.

I know most of the readers of this blog don't like the street lit. And that's cool. I'm glad to have connected with people who like the kind of books I like. But as I've said before if we're really going to be all gooey-hearted about supporting banned and challenged books, it's going to include standing behind some books we don't necessarily like.

Enough lecture. The fun part about Banned Books Week is being able to read a book that you like or think you might like knowing that it's pissing somebody off. In fact, think of this week as Books That Will Piss Somebody Off If You Read Them Week.

To get you started, here's a list of the 100 most frequently banned or challenged books 2000-2009, including Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers (#11-yay Mr. Myers!), a whole lot of Morrison and Walker, and Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred Taylor.

Let freedom ring. What are you reading for Banned Books Week?

The winner of No Ordinary Noel is....

2011-09-27T08:03:00.000-06:00

'Cilla, who was chosen using Random.org.

Congratulations 'Cilla! Email me (carleen at carleenbrice dot com) your snail mail info for me to give to Pat so she can send you an autographed copy.

Everyone else: thanks for commenting! No Ordinary Noel is on sale today so if you're interested, please purchase it.

Win a copy of No Ordinary Noel!

2011-09-26T07:00:00.004-06:00

It's not too early to start thinking about Christmas and that other holiday that happens in December. Author Pat G'Orge Walker's new one is No Ordinary Noel, a book about a small-town congregation learning the real meaning of the season. It's Christian humor folks. Yes, you heard me right: Christian humor.

To gear up for December, Pat offered to give away a copy of her book to my blog readers. If you'd like to win, all you have to do is leave a comment here before midnight Eastern Daylight Time. Using a random generator, I'll pick the winner and announce it here tomorrow when No Ordinary Noel goes on sale.

The Taste of Salt

2011-09-12T12:39:00.005-06:00

Martha Southgate's new novel The Taste of Salt just got a rave review in the San Francisco Chronicle. The reviewer Meredith Maran even shouted out that Martha's website links to this blog. Please read the review and definitely check out Martha's novel. And if you're in Brooklyn, D.C., Cleveland, Miami and a few other places east of the Mississippi, check out her tour schedule. She might be coming to your neck of the woods!

Lori Tharps reviews the book here.

Fall book releases

2011-08-17T07:32:00.010-06:00

On shelves now

NOTE: * Are for titles I added after this post was first published.

Fall in love with books!

Here's a list of new and upcoming releases WRMBA readers might like (I discovered some titles on the APOOO Book Club website).

*Assumption by Percival Everett (H/T to Doret, the Happy Nappy Bookseller!), a literary mystery partially set in Denver? I'm all over that!

The Book of Ephesus by Tarshia Stanley, a novel about a holy woman and a man with a past, the second title from DownSouth Press.

Boundaries by Elizabeth Nunez, which comes with a blurb from Edward P. Jones: "Ms. Nunez has always had the power to get to the essence of what makes human beings take right and wrong turns. With Boundaries, a reader will find that she, again, does not disappoint."

Children of the Street by Kwei Quartey, the 2nd Inspector Darko Dawson mystery is out now! It comes fueled by a starred review in Publishers Weekly and a blurb from Michael Connelly.

*Creatures Here Below by O.H. Bennett. Out in November. The publisher's press release states: "This book is certain to bring [Bennett] a bigger, more diverse, and more appreciative readership. It is exactly the sort of book I am most proud to publish here at Agate’s Bolden imprint—fiction by remarkable African-American writers that reveals deep truths about life in this country through moving, accessible, and absorbing stories. His is the sort of voice that’s not heard from enough: that of a black male novelist writing from the mainstream of African-American experience. In particular, Mr. Bennett’s work merits comparison to Edward P. Jones’s Lost in the City and All Aunt Hagar’s Children."

The Goat Woman of Largo Bay by Gillian Royes, a new mystery series set in Jamaica.

The Loom by Shella Gillus, historical & Christian fiction.

Pub date: August 30th

My Soul To Take by Tananarive Due, the 4th in the African Immortals series. My one-sentence review: An insightful take on global politics and policies hidden in a fast-paced urban fantasy. Dolen Perkins-Valdez said, “The world of My Soul to Take is so enchantingly drawn I could not help but be caught in its spell. From California to Ethiopia to Mexico, Tananarive Due takes you on a nonstop ride that will leave you breathless.”

My Own Worse Frenemy by Kimberly Reid -- first in a new YA detective series featuring Chanti Evans. Kirkus calls it a "clever mystery" and "breath of fresh air." Looking for a strong young woman protagonist? This is the book for you (or your teen reader).

Makeda by Randall Robinson, called "part coming of age story, part spiritual journey and part love story."

*Nairobi Heat by Mukoma Wa Ngugi (also thanks to Doret!), an international crime novel, which seems like it was out in the U.K. and other countries since 2009, but is hitting American shores in September.

*Nappily About Us by Trisha R. Thomas. Seventh book in the series is out in October! In this one, Venus & her family star in a reality show. Sounds good!

Night Hawk by Beverly Jenkins, a little cowboy romance from this Romantic Times Award-winning author might be in order come October!

Paris Noire by Francine Thomas Howard, a take on post-war Paris featuring a family of immigrants from Martinique.

On shelves in September

Passing Love by Jacqueline Luckett, another story partially set in the City of Lights. Paris is hot! This one alternates between modern Paris and 1950s Paris. Hits shelves in January; available for pre-order now!

Remember Me by Cheryl Robinson (I'm reading When I Get Where I'm Going now & really enjoying her writing)

Salvage the Bones by Jesymn Ward, a novel about the days leading up to Hurricane Katrina (star review in Publishers Weekly)

The Taste of Salt by Martha Southgate. I read this one too. It's a haunting story about a family struggling to cope with the father's alcoholism. The father is sober, but the adult son is still drinking and using drugs. Told from the point of view of the daughter, Josie, a marine biologist, her brother Tick (short for his knick name Tick Tock), and her father, Mr. Henderson, the reader gets an insight into how families work and don't work. Set in Cleveland, it's also an elegy for a dying city.

Twelve Gates to the City by Daniel Black, author of the wildly popular Perfect Peace.

*When the Only Light Is Fire, the first chapbook by Saeed Jones. His publisher's synopsis: "In his debut chapbook of poetry, Saeed Jones walks on the periphery of the South, those places on the outskirts of town, in bars after midnight, and on dangerous backroads where most people keep their heads down or look the other way. Through Texas and Tennessee, Alabama and the riverbeds of the Mississippi, these poems wrap themselves in cloaks of masks and comfort; garments we learn are flammable if we stand too close to flames." Available for pre-order 10/10.

Zone One by Colson Whitehead, sure to be one of the oddest zombie stories ever (and I mean that in a good way)!

Coming in December

What are you looking forward to reading this fall?

A couple of online events this week

I'm on #blacklitchat, a Twitter book chat, this Sunday 8/21 at 9 pm eastern time. Hope you can join us! We'll be discussing It Might As Well Be Spring the sequel to Orange Mint and Honey I'm releasing a chapter at a time on www.achapteramonth.com. Why a sequel? Why serialize a novel? How is writing the third book different from the first? I'll also be happy to answer your questions about writing, books, the biz or whatever you like!

Terry McMillan will be interviewing Heidi Durrow about The Girl Who Fell From the Sky in a live webcast tomorrow 8/18 at 7 pm eastern.

Honor the memory of L.A. Banks

2011-08-03T08:03:00.000-06:00

Yesterday, L.A. Banks, author of fantasy, romance and YA novels, passed away. Her writer friends and fans on Facebook and Twitter were devastated. Two of them Lutishia Lovely and Victoria Christopher Murray came up with an idea for people to honor her: on Friday, August 5th, buy her latest book Surrender the Dark on Amazon.

Of course, please purchase all her books and please feel free to get them where you like to buy books. The idea with Amazon is that if everybody goes to one place at the same time, it will drive the ratings and put her book on top. As Lutishia said yesterday, she was #1 to us, let's make her #1 one more time.

If you're in Philly, The Liars Club of writers is hosting an event Saturday, August 6th to raise money to help cover her medical costs.

Rest in peace Leslie Esdaile Banks.

Summer books! Suggestions from Ernessa T. Carter

2011-06-28T06:50:00.013-06:00

Black is Beautiful -- Especially on Vacation

So before I get into my summer reading list, let's get this out of the way: My own novel, 32 CANDLES, is now out in paperback. If you haven't read it yet, please pick up a copy from Amazon, Target, or your local bookstore. If you've already read it in hardcover, pick up the paperback for a friend. And fellow library lovers, if you checked it out, do consider picking up a copy for your bookshelf. After all, it has a yellow cover and it's a known fact that yellow looks fantastic on any kind of bookshelf. Just click on the book cover to buy the book at Amazon.

And one more plug, I'm running all sorts of neat contests over at 32CANDLES.com, so definitely pay me a visit -- but not until after you read this my list of books I want to read on my summer vacay. Because let's face it, books are best enjoyed on vacation.

IF SONS, THEN HEIRS by Lorene Carey. Maybe I'm in the minority here, but there's just something about reading a really deep book by the pool or ocean. I just adore it. The last time I went to Hawaii, I read FREEDOM by Jonathan Franzen, and for my upcoming Hawaii jaunt, I'm getting a copy of IF SONS, THEN HEIRS. I don't know much about this book, because I'm a terrible avoider of spoilers (read: ridiculous nerd), but a lot of intelligent people whose opinions I respect have recommended it highly, so it's coming along to the beach with me.

2. KINKY GAZPACHO by Lori Tharps. Now being in an IR myself, I'm a big fan of hearing about other people's IR relationships -- especially my fellow black women's. So this memoir of Lori Tharps's travels in Spain, which include falling in love with her Spanish husband and, I'm sure, many lessons learned, is right up my alley. Weirdly enough, GAZPACHO has been on my TBR list for three or four years now. But having read (and loved) SUBSTITUTE ME last year, I'm determined that Tharps's memoir will come off my TBR list this summer.

3. SILVER SPARROW by Tayari Jones. This is another deep read, but I do know what it's about -- a man with two families and two daughters, one of which knows about the other, but not vice versa. I've been following this book's progress on Tayari's blog, and I'm seriously foaming at the mouth to read it. I'm pretty shocked that I was able to hold out until my vacation to read it.

4. JUST WANNA TESTIFY by Pearl Cleage. You know what I just really love? When authors continue to step up their game and keep it fresh and creative. From what I can tell, Cleage's latest novel involves our old friend Blue Hamilton from previous novels and .... wait for it ... sexy black female vampires. Yes, vampires! I always enjoy a Pearl Cleage book and I really can't wait to read this one. Way to mix it up!

5. THE BROKEN KINGDOMS by N.K. Jemison. There is so little black sci-fi or fantasy out these days. It seriously makes this sci-fi nerd so sad. Luckily, we have Jemison to keep the fantasy flame alive. THE HUNDRED THOUSAND KINGDOMS, The first installment of this trilogy, was wildly sexy and inventive. I'm looking forward to diving even further into the enthralling world Jemison has set up in the second installment.

So that's what I plan to read on my upcoming summer vacation. How about you? Living in California as I do, I'm always looking for a good beach read, so do sound off in the comments.

Ernessa T. Carter
Author, Blogger, Totally Fierce Nerd

-------
http://32candles.com/
http://fierceandnerdy.com/
http://twitter.com/#!/ErnessaTCarter
http://www.facebook.com/ernessa

Auction to support L.A. Banks

2011-06-20T09:07:00.000-06:00

Noted author L.A. Banks is in the hospital very sick. Her medical bills are quite high so beginning tomorrow Tuesday, June 21st authors and people in the book biz are auctioning items and services to raise money to help cover her expenses. If you're a writer, this is a great opportunity to have a published author or an industry professional help you with your work! There's also lots of cool stuff for readers--books, books and more books! Banks wrote a variety of genres, so there is quite a diversity of books available.

There is also a fund that you can donate directly to.

Leslie Esdaile Fund
Account #81538801
Police and Fire Federal Credit Union
Operations Center
901 Arch Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107-2404
(215) 931-0300

If you live in or near Philadelphia, donations may be taken directly to any Police and Fire Federal Credit Union branch. Please be sure to note the account number.

Thanks to Donna Hill for sharing this information in her newsletter. (Donna also donated many items in the auction)

For more on Banks' condition, you can go here.

Review of THE NEW JIM CROW

2011-06-09T16:23:00.000-06:00

If you're a regular visitor to this blog, you know I don't often cover nonfiction. Nothing against nonfiction (I've written some myself). Just trying to maintain some focus. However, occasionally a book grabs my attention. The New Press sent me a copy of The New Jim Crow, which is definitely worthy of any attention I can help bring to it. Before I could read this NAACP image award winner, I noticed novelist Cheri Paris Edwards mention on Facebook that she was planning to read it. Kismet. I offered her the copy the publisher sent me if she'd do a review. She kindly agreed. Below is her review.

Summary /Review of Michelle Alexander’s

The New Jim Crow-Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
by Cheri Paris Edwards

Racial control revisited

In “The New Jim Crow – Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness” civil rights attorney and advocate Michelle Alexander presents a well-supported argument that America’s prison system has been used to control brown and black people in this country. She likens this control to the age of Jim Crow where laws enforcing this sort of race-based system of control were legal. Alexander’s argument begins with an absorbing introduction that includes these disturbing facts:

“In less than 30 years the US prison population exploded from around 300,000 to more than 2 million, with drug convictions accounting for the majority of the increase.”
“The United States imprisons a larger percentage of its black population than South Africa did at the heart of apartheid.”
“In Washington D.C., our nation’s capitol, it is estimated that three out of four young black men (and nearly all from the poorest neighborhoods) can expect to spend time in prison."

Alexander notes that though most arrests are drug-related, the disparity in incarceration can’t be explained by rates of drug use. Studies show all races use drugs and reveal that young white men are most likely to be using and selling drugs though African-American men are locked up in prison systems at a rate 20-50 times greater than that of white men. The result of this mass incarceration is that more than 2/3 of young black men now have a criminal record that legally makes them part of a growing "under caste."

"They can’t vote, their employment choices are limited, they can’t live in public housing for a designated period, they can’t get food stamps or other subsidies and in some cases they are unable to vote, serve on a jury or get financial aid for college."

Results

Alexander effectively discusses how caging black and brown folks has become a vital industry in America providing jobs to more than 700,000, a number that doesn’t include the many extraneous industries that are also dependent on the penal system for their livelihood. America’s incarceration rate has outpaced every other Western nation’s though our crime rates remain stable and this is at least partially because most countries choose to deal rehabilitate drug offenders rather than jail them for long period of time. Most heartbreaking are the examples that Alexander includes that demonstrate that the innocent are often jailed too; simply for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, being poor, or affiliating with someone who is considered guilty. When and if these offenders are released from the penal system, Alexander asserts it is to a caste system that allows them few rights and little chance to succeed. They can’t vote, their employment choices are limited, they can’t live in public housing for a designated period, they can’t get food stamps or other subsidies and in some cases they are unable to vote, serve on a jury or get financial aid for college.

Final Thoughts

In “The New Jim Crow – Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness” Michelle Alexander uses carefully researched documentation to effectively prove her argument that the penal system is being used today as a method of racial control. Alexander offers credible reasons why this situation has been overlooked by the civil rights community including that affirmative action’s ability to help some blacks achieve success resulted in a façade of colorblindness that allowed this system to take root and intertwine into America’s economic and social arena. It is important to note that although this mass incarceration was based on exploiting racial stereotypes and fears, Alexander believes any credible solutions lie in the formation of multicultural groups who are united in their focus to dismantle this unfair system. This is an important read for all citizens because what happens to one affects each one of us and a must-read for those committed to or interested in social justice and advocacy.

You can read an excerpt of The New Jim Crow here. You can follow Cheri on Twitter and Facebook.

Congratulations!

2011-05-25T13:24:00.001-06:00

Please join me in congratulating....

Victor LaValle, author of Big Machine who recently announced the birth of son Geronimo!

Tayari Jones, who's Silver Sparrow, out NOW, is getting great reviews and is a June Indie Next Pick!

Bernice McFadden because Alfre Woodard won an award for Solo Narration-Female at last night's Audies for reading Glorious!

Who else has happy news to share? Let us know in the comments.

Winner, winner chicken dinner!

2011-05-23T18:46:00.000-06:00

Congratulations to Beth Anne Mandia and JaPulp! You each won a copy of Snitch by Booker T. Mattison! Email me your snail mail info so Booker's publisher can send you a book.

Happy 20th Anniversary to the Go On Girl Book Club!

2011-05-18T13:50:00.000-06:00

This Saturday the Go On Girl Book Club celebrates their 20th anniversary! That's 20 years of supporting black authors. From the bottom of my heart (and my cat's, who meows at the end of the video), I thank you!

Another give-away!

2011-05-17T08:51:00.000-06:00


Coming in August. Available now for pre-order.

Kimberly Reid, author of the upcoming "Chanti on the Case" series of YA detective novels, is giving away an iPod Shuffle if you can correctly give the answer to her literary trivia question. Go to her blog The Hot Sheet to enter the contest.

Win Snitch!

2011-05-16T06:54:00.019-06:00

What would you do? That's the big question that comes to mind about Booker T. Mattison's Snitch. The synopsis:

White audiences meet black movie actors

2011-05-12T10:15:00.000-06:00

AlterNet has a story up today about a study suggesting that the more black people there are in a movie, the less white people think the movie is for them.

Sound familiar?

The good news is the researcher says, "The perception that 'this movie is not for me' could be changed 'if more mainstream movies cast minorities,' he writes. If multiracial casts became the norm and movies were marketed to all demographics, the stigma could fade away."

Again, sound familiar? The issue has a chicken-egg feel. Did audiences start feeling this way because that's how Hollywood marketed to them? Or does Hollywood market that way because that's how audiences feel?

I'd like to state that, as with books, there are stories that are definitely intended more for one audience over another. But it feels like there's a huge lack of empathetic imagination on the part of some white people who don't seem to see that stories that feature nonwhite characters are still about humans, and are, therefore, still relevant to them.

Read the whole article here.

Guest blog post by Lorene Cary

2011-05-06T09:57:00.002-06:00

“Time to Write: The making of If Sons, Then Heirs”

At the end of my first book, Black Ice, a memoir, I wrote that I’d “been given my stories…” Since then, I’ve felt as if I were driven internally to grow into them, from the Underground Railroad stories that I understood better once I myself had children, and now the lynching stories that sound rumbling depth charges underneath the present action of my new novel, If Sons, Then Heirs. Understand, actually, is the wrong word. Rather, it feels as if the stories force their way into books. They wait, like tiny shelled creatures, until marriage and children, business, grief, failure, and love soften me into a suitable environment for their expression. Then it’s time to write.

I remember hearing about lynching first when I was a very little girl. It had no name, and no certainty, so that for years, I doubted that I’d heard it at all, or that I’d heard correctly, or that what I’d heard was true. My grandmother and mother and aunts were talking about my great-grandmother’s first husband. His family lived near Chadds Ford, PA; Grandmom, who was from Buffalo, married him at 16. Three years later he went to a state or county fair, ran into “some trouble” with young white men, and never came home. Grandmom was left a 19-year-old pregnant widow.

In high school and again in college I read Southern Horrors: Lynch Law in All Its Phases, and A Red Record. I was conscious of using the anti-lynching activist, journalist, and newspaper owner Ida B. Wells-Barnett as a model and adopted ancestor. I thought it brilliant of her to use only those cases that were already documented in the mainstream press, so that no one in power could deny or refute the God-awful facts and narratives she presented.

Would make a great Mother's Day gift!

But the story that stayed in me, as if it had been given to me to grow into, was of a young man lynched—and another young man who came up before the lynch mob to try to stop it. This was a story, to paraphrase historian Vincent Harding, to use as a text to teach and learn activism.

I saw it in a terrible loop video that demanded expression. Finally, now that my stepson’s children are their own wonderful young characters, our older daughter has grown up and moved out, now that I’ve run a business for twelve years, cared for elderly relatives, watched dear young men go to jail and die, inherited property, as well as emotional debt, and written my own will, I can finally write a fictional version of this story that wouldn’t leave me. My characters hear it, tell it, and argue about telling it to their grandchildren:

Over the years the story had cooked inside Rayne’s head, helped by the comments of the few people he’d ever told. You don’t bring it out too often.

But, wait. Here come the miracle. My Lord!

Jones held in his voice the exact hopeful reverence of sharecroppers who’d shared the news with him. They’d get to this part of the story and shake their heads—and this is what I want you to know, too, Jones says, referring to Selma’s silence, because if Rayne didn’t know the first part, then he couldn’t know the miracle: that when the mob had done as much as you can do to a human being and him still be alive, a man pushed his way through the crowd, crazy as they were by now, crazy-mad with liquor and the terrible intoxication of blood—a colored man elbowed his way to the front and begged for the boy’s life.

That was the part everyone repeated: And then, do Jesus, a black man come up in front of them.

And it didn’t matter whether the listeners had heard the story before. They told it again, just as Jones told Rayne, and Rayne told his construction partner and later Lillie, because it remained a mystery. And because everyone wanted to know this and to learn, as Jones learned, what was possible.

Jones’s words, present tense, because heroism exists outside of time: “He stands beside the boy’s body, tied by now so that it won’t fall flat. This black man says—listen what he say standing in front of all these crazy, drunk-up white people—he says: ‘For God’s sake, don’t finish this, please. Whatever you meant to teach him this boy has surely learnt. And he’ll never be good for nothin now anyway. Please, for pity’s sake, just lemme take’im down. Lemme take’im home.’”

Where had he come from, this man who appeared like the black face of God speaking mercy?

The outrageousness of it would not be suppressed. It leached from between the rocks, seeped into the streams, soaked into the swamps. Finally, it ran in the papers, so they couldn’t say it didn’t happen. Jones was sure that Rayne could find it in the records, and one day, sure enough, he looked it up on the Internet.

From Ida B. Wells’s turn-of-the last century writings to the mind of a 21st century fictional character: these stories are as tough as those fairy shrimp whose eggs wait until heavy rains flood their pond. Then they come out, reproduce—and lay new eggs for the next generation.

Learn more on Lorene Cary's website. Follow her on Twitter.

Merry Month of May Round Up

2011-05-01T17:37:00.002-06:00

I've been busy writing up a storm, so I haven't had a chance to really put a blog post together. Plus, I'm waiting to hear back from an author for an upcoming Q&A. In the meantime, here is a round up of some bookish stuff going on.

Children's Book Week
My handy dandy calendar tells me this is Children's Book Week. If you're looking for children's books with black characters, check out The Brown Bookshelf and The Happy Nappy Bookseller.

More new and upcoming releases

Since I posted a list of books I was looking forward to this spring, I've heard of more! Including Danzy Senna's new one You Are Free.

And somehow I left Hurricane, Jewell Parker Rhodes' latest off my original list, when I knew about it because I read an advance copy, which she autographed for me! It's about Dr. Marie Lavant descendant of the great Voodoo priestess Marie Laveau and, as the title suggests, is set in Louisiana immediately before and during Katrina.

Bernice McFadden is releasing a new edition of her novel The Warmest December. The new version has a forward written by James Frey. You can pre-order it now! Bernice is also raising money to attend a once-in-a-lifetime writing residency in Egypt. If you'd like to donate, go here.

Connie Briscoe's Money Can't Buy Love is one I can't wait to read. Most of us have fantasized about what we'd do if we won the lottery. Sounds like this story will make readers think again.

Booker T. Mattison's newest (out May 3) is called Snitch. Read it now before it's a movie!

"Snitch" Book Trailer from Booker T Mattison on Vimeo.

Terra Little's Jump is about a young woman from what you could call a really dysfunctional family (she shoots her grandmother!). You can read an excerpt here.

Kwei Quartey, author of Wife of the Gods, has a new thriller coming this summer called Children of the Street. This one sounds worth pre-ordering too. Michael Connelly says, "Kwei Quartey does what all the best storytellers do. He takes you to a world you have never seen and makes it as real to you as your own backyard. In Children of the Street he brings a story that is searing and original and done just right. Inspector Darko Dawson is relentless and I look forward to riding with him again."

Clarence Young sent me a funny email. I haven't read his book Neon Lights (a satire of urban lit), but if it's as funny as his email, then it's worth way more than the $2.99 download price.

Debut authors

Toni Meyer has a new novel called One Thing She Knew, which I've heard good things about.

Darlyne Baugh has one of the best titles I've heard recently: Black Girl @ the Gay Channel. Yep, she used to work for Logo. This one sounds fun!

Mother's Day
If you're on Twitter, use the #books4mothersday hash tag to Tweet your suggestions for Mother's Day presents. A few past suggestions from this blog are here.

If you're on Facebook, I'm holding a contest. You could win a $50 gift card for books!

Want to win a copy of Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention?

2011-04-16T07:49:00.004-06:00

Win this by....

CONTEST IS CLOSED. @chaitea won the free copy

Open to U.S. Twitter users only. Here are the easy-peasy rules:

1. Leave me a comment that you want to win with your Twitter name @luckyreader.
2. Participate in Sunday evening's 4/17 7 pm EST #Blacklitchat with Victor LaValle, author of Big Machine.

I'll go through the archive of Tweets and see if your name is there, and enter you in the drawing. Odds are really good for this one folks, so please participate! Big Machine is an EXCELLENT read, and I bet you'll be intrigued by what LaValle has to say during the chat!

What do Big Machine, a novel, and Malcolm X, a biography, have in common? Both are about men who started out on the wrong road and then took a turn.

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. LaValle has garnered critical acclaim for his previous works (a collection, Slapboxing with Jesus, and novel, The Ecstatic), and his second novel is sure to up his critical standing while furthering comparisons to Haruki Murakami, John Kennedy Toole and Edgar Allan Poe. Gritty, mostly honest-hearted ex-heroin addict protagonist Ricky Rice takes a chance on an anonymous note delivered to him at the cruddy upstate New York bus depot where he works as a porter. Quickly, Ricky finds himself among the Unlikely Scholars, a secret society of ex-addicts and petty criminals, all black like him, living in remote Vermont and sifting through stacks of articles in a library devoted to investigating the supernatural; the existence of a god; and the legacy of Judah Washburn, an escaped slave who claimed to have had contact with a higher being that the Unlikely Scholars now call the Voice. Ricky's intoxicating voice—robust, organic, wily—is perfect for narrating LaValle's high-stakes mashup of thrilling paranormal and Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man, as the fateful porter—something of a modern Odysseus rallied by a team of spiritual X-men—wanders through America's messianic hoo-hah.

National Library Week

2011-04-13T09:47:00.000-06:00

I was about to head over to my local library to pick up a book on hold and to get my backpack of books I read to Head Start kids as part of the Denver Public Library's Read Aloud Program. When I went online to check my account to see what I had on hold, I discovered it's National Library Week. And today is National Book Mobile Day. OMG, book mobiles! I loved the book mobile when I was a kid! And I still love libraries and believe they are vital to a healthy community.

I also discovered this contest, which runs through Monday, for teens to make videos about why they need libraries to try to win money for their local library.

As you probably know, with budget cuts, libraries are hurting, but in a ~~depression~~ recession, library use soars. If you can help your library out, now is a good time.

I posted the following before, but it's so good, it's worth posting again.

Diverse Book Events

2011-04-08T09:25:00.001-06:00

Now this is what I'm talking about! Here's another example of authors taking matters into their own hands. Diversity in YA has brought together a variety of authors to read and sign together. Upcoming tour stops include San Francisco, Austin, Chicago, Cambridge, Mass., New York and San Diego.

Go here for dates and locations and go here for bios of the participants (which includes Varian Johnson, Dia Reeves, Nnedi Okorafor, Jacqueline Woodson, Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich and Rita Williams-Garcia). And if the Diversity in YA Tour comes to your city, please go out and support!

Kudos Cindy Pon and Malinda Lo for putting this together!

Interview with Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

2011-04-06T09:43:00.002-06:00

Hat tip to SheWrites.com for this link in support of their philanthropic partner Girls Write Now. Great interview for aspiring writers, young and not so young.

A Chapter a Month

2011-04-04T06:21:00.010-06:00

Note: The site goes live at 12 Noon EDT.

Victoria Christopher Murray is a bestselling author, but that may not be the achievement she goes down in history for. After today she may become best known as the creator of one of the most innovative potentially game-changing ideas I've ever heard of:

A Chapter a Month.com. The site goes live today with new works from over a dozen authors. You can buy their work via download for .99 a chapter at a time. From the site:

As a reader, you will enjoy fresh, exciting chapters every month as we reveal our stories to you one chapter at a time. You will travel with us on our writing journeys and watch our novels come to life on paper...and beyond. Each month the authors will offer you something behind the pages - whether it's a live interview with your favorite character or an ask-the-author-anything session, on this website it's more than just the story. And there's even more if you're a preferred reader. Imagine having access to the author - through live streams - while their novels are unfolding. You will be able to let the author know what you're enjoying about the story, what you'd like to see happen...and who knows...your suggestion just may appear in the next chapter the next month. Whether it's live videos, a scene that appears as a short movie, or just the old-fashion written word, you'll relish your favorite authors and try a few new ones as well. So welcome to our world - where readers and writers are joined together in A Chapter a Month!

It's easy to try a new author. Spend .99 and if you don't like it, move on. Keep checking the site too. New authors are joining. Including me! I'll be selling a novel on the site starting this summer. Stay tuned for news and details about that here and on AChapteraMonth.com.

From Self-Published to Traditionally Published

2011-03-29T05:25:00.001-06:00

Amanda Hocking isn't the first or only self-publishing success story out there.

Trice Hickman may not have a seven-figure book deal (YET), but she self-published the right way, with great writing and professional editing and book design. Then she promoted her behind off. Eventually, a publisher was smart enough to snap her up and is rereleasing Unexpected Interruptions today. Romance and women's fiction readers, check it out. Congrats Trice!!! Another important thing to know about Trice: she's a sweetheart!

J.D. Mason's recent Somebody Pick Up My Pieces is the final story in a series that began with the originally self-published One Day I Saw a Black King, and it's getting rave reviews. My wonderful friend J.D. also lives in Denver. Go Denver writers!!! (Learn more about J.D. in my interview with her.)

A few new books I'm excited about

2011-03-22T09:51:00.003-06:00

Pym by Mat Johnson. It's out now and getting loads of great reviews. For example, Salon called "a blisteringly funny satire of contemporary American racial attitudes," which I believe because I follow Johnson on Twitter and his tweets crack me up.

If Sons, Then Heirs by Lorene Cary. I was lucky enough to read an advance copy of this. I wanted to send a blurb that said "Love, love, love, love, love, it. You should totally, totally, totally buy it." Yeah, not really articulate. What I ended up sending in was:

"Every single character pops off the page in this amazing story. This masterwork of a novel made me laugh and cry out loud. Important, enjoyable, and wonderfully moving. An absolute delight." It's out in April, and you should totally pre-order it.

Coming in May is Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones, and it's already generating great buzz.

I'm really interested More Than Words because it brings writers of different races together. What a novel concept! It sounds really good too: "Each and every one of us has the ability to effect change—to make our world a better place. The dedicated women selected as this year's recipients of Harlequin's More Than Words award have changed lives, one good deed at a time. To celebrate their accomplishments, some of our bestselling authors have honored the winners by writing stories inspired by these real-life heroines."

More Than Words is on sale today!

Adding Open City by Teju Cole, which came out last month and skipped my radar screen, because Martha Southgate just told me via Twitter that "it rocks!" A quick Google search shows rave reviews, but Martha's endorsement is all I need.

Not to beat a dead horse or anything, but y'all know how important pre-orders and first months' sales are. So if you can, go ahead and place an order or pre-order at IndieBound or Amazon or pick up one of these at your local bookstore.

In other news: Zetta Elliott posts an important essay on Women Doing Literary Things. An excerpt:

When I learned that the goal of this blog was to “celebrate and reaffirm the depth and breadth of women’s involvement in literature,” I knew I wanted to participate. Yet when I reflect upon my involvement in the literary world, I find that little of my time and energy has gone toward addressing “the fundamental wrongness of gender disparities.” When everyone in your world is female, gender tends not to be the focus. For me, the main problem isn’t that men are impeding my progress as a writer. The truth is, behind every door that has been closed in my face…there’s another woman.
Sometimes that woman looks like me, but more often than not, she doesn’t. She belongs to a different race, a different class, and a different culture.

What ever happened to...?

2011-03-18T11:01:00.000-06:00

You ever have one of those moments when you suddenly recall an author you used to love? It happened to me the other day. I'm reading Bone Worship by Elizabeth Eslami and on the back cover is a blurb from David Haynes, including that he is the author of The Full Matilda, which I hadn't heard about.

I read his novels Live at Five and Somebody Else's Mama years ago, but I didn't know Haynes had another book out. Turns out it was released in 04 and I missed it. The bad news is how easy it is to miss hearing about a book even if it's by an author you enjoy. The good news is that now I have another book to add to my TBR list!

Live at Five made me laugh out loud with its story of a black newscaster and the little old ladies who would write him letters telling him to cut his hair, and Somebody Else's Mama is a very touching story of a woman and her elderly mother-in-law. Both novels tell universal tales and were beautifully written. I'm looking forward to The Full Matilda and hoping that Haynes has another new one soon! Seriously, don't sleep on David Haynes.

Oh, and I'm really enjoying Bone Worship too. The main character Jasmine reminds me a bit of Shay from my novel Orange Mint and Honey (which was a March selection of the Best Damn Creative Writing Blog's new book club). Both are nerdy college students a little too smart for their own good in some areas and hopelessly lost in others. Readers looking for more biracial characters (as in The Girl Who Fell From the Sky--climbing the New York Times best-seller list!) will want to check out this story of a half-Iranian and half-white young woman trying to figure out her father and herself.

Meet: Karen Simpson, author of ACT OF GRACE

2011-03-12T09:45:00.001-07:00

It is my great pleasure to present published author Karen Simpson! Karen was the first person to comment on my personal blog years ago, and will always hold a special place in my heart for marching into her local Borders and asking where the heck my novel was when she didn't see it in their inventory. Turns out it was right on the shelf and no one in the store would have known that without Karen's intervention. So I am thrilled that I can return the favor and march onto the internet and tell folks go get Act of Grace! Congratulations Karen on the publication of your first novel!

Q&A with Karen:

White Readers Meet Black Authors: Tell us about Act of Grace (read an excerpt here). How did you come to write this story? What subjects/themes do you explore? What's your writing style like?

Karen Simpson: First, I would like to thank you for this opportunity. I always dreamed of appearing as an author on your blog so I’m truly excited to do this interview.

Act of Grace is the story of Grace Johnson a bright, perceptive African American high school senior who saves the life of a Klansman named Jonathan Gilmore. Everyone in her hometown of Vigilant, Michigan wants to know why. Few people, black or white, understand her act of sacrifice especially since rumor holds that years ago a member of the Gilmore family murdered several African -Americans including Grace’s father. Grace wants to remain silent on the matter but Ancestors spirits emerge in visions and insist she fulfill her shamanic duties by bearing witness to her town’s violent racial history so that all involved might transcend it.

Grace begins a journal, but she warns readers upfront that if they are looking for a simple or rational explanation for her actions then they need to look elsewhere. She knows that her accounts of her ability to speak to the dead, along with her connections to a trickster spirit name Oba, will be hard for most people to believe. With insight shaped by the wisdom found in African American mythology and the book, The Velveteen Rabbit, Grace recounts a story of eye-for-an-eye vengeance that has blinded entire generations in her hometown.

Act of Grace is loosely based on an incident that happened several years ago in my hometown during a Klan rally. When what was supposed to be a nonviolent protest became violent, a young black woman saved a white man, (whose was simply wearing a confederate flag T-shirt), from being beaten by throwing her body over him. She got involved because she believed he had the right to his beliefs even if she and others felt he was wrong. For weeks after the event people argued about whether she was a guardian angel or just crazy. My opinion was that she was a compassionate and brave person, worthy of admiration and respect for living up to her values. Five years after this rally I had a very vivid dream about a young woman named Grace and during the dream she yelled out what is more or less the first line of the novel.

My novel fits in with my lifelong interest in how some people are able to forgive what seem to be unforgivable acts and deeds and the subjects of altruism and justice. Especially justice, because while I believe it is my duty as an artist and writer to illuminating injustice, I also believe it is my duty to acknowledge how complicated and sometime messy getting justice is.

WRMBA: What's your goal(s) as a writer? Do you set out to educate? entertain? illuminate?

KS: I set out to illuminate but in an entertaining way in my work. Act of Grace deals with serious and violent issues, but I tried to make sure there was as much sweet as bitter in the work. Grace is a strong, willful young woman being sent out to do strong women’s work, but she has an incredible sense of humor and knows or learns how to experience joy even in the mist of sorrow.

WRMBA: What's your biggest surprise-good or bad- (so far) about the publishing biz?

KS: How much of a business writing really is. I was warned up front that it was but I was still surprised how much marketing an author is required to do herself. I’m finding that I’m better at it than I thought though.

WRMBA: What's next for you?

KS: A new, so far untitled, work that one writer friend described as a historical novel with paranormal sprinkles.

WRMBA: What's the best book (or whose the best writer) that not enough people know about?

KS: I love Dr. Authur Flowers work and his blog: rootwork the rootsblog: a cyberhoodoo webspace: Timely Observations on Politics, Literature, Culture, Struggle and the Hoodoo Way

Dr. Flowers has a new graphic novel from Tara Books called I See the Promised Land on the life of Martin Luther King. He does the telling as a griot, while Patua artist Manu Chitrakar adapts King’s life to his art. Patua artists from Bengal in eastern India are traditional scroll-painters who create vivid art out of all kinds of narratives - from fables and classical tales to contemporary news items. It a wonderful book that gives a new and powerful take on Martin Luther King’s life.

WRMBA: Any advice for aspiring novelists?

KS: If you are serious about getting published, work at writing as you would a career or job. Learn the craft by become a part of critiques groups, go to as many conferences as you can afford. Read all kinds of novels and writing book, but, in addition, read books and blogs about how to conduct the business side of writing. A good book to start with is The Essential Guide to Getting Your Book Published by Arielle Eckstut and David Henry Sterry.

Nikki Finney reads from HEAD OFF & SPLIT

2011-02-28T10:37:00.003-07:00

Thanks to Honorée Fanonne Jeffers for letting me know about the lovely videos of Nikki Finney reading from her soon-to-be-published collection of poetry Head Off & Split. Book trailers are getting so sophisticated these days with hired actors, special effects, soundtracks, etc. But sometimes simply hearing the author read a bit of her work and tell readers a little of the history behind it is the most powerful way, IMHO, to interest someone in the work.

Jewell Parker Rhodes reads from NINTH WARD

2011-02-26T20:32:00.001-07:00

Jewell Parker Rhodes was in Denver today talking about her books and reading from her first children's book NINTH WARD.

Get your free ebook of Wading Home!

2011-02-18T08:13:00.003-07:00

The good news: Agate Bolden is allowing free downloads of Rosalyn Story's Wading Home. You can go here until the end of February to get yours.

The bad news: It's because the publisher is so discouraged with the lack of attention the book has received. Publisher Doug Seibold writes on Agate's blog:

Please note that I’m stressing the “attention” Wading Home attracted, as opposed to “praise”; while I certainly believe it praiseworthy, my first-order concern is the dismaying lack of exposure the book got upon release--even from places that had singled out Rosalyn’s earlier work for very high praise indeed. In fact, to its publisher’s embarrassment, Wading Home has gotten hardly any attention at all--despite the hundreds of advance reader’s copies we distributed months before it was published, despite the efforts of PGW’s excellent sales force, despite the author’s appearance at BEA, despite how the book’s publication coincided with the fifth anniversary of Katrina. And despite the fact that I’ve had a hard time finding any other such novels from trade presses--novels by black writers addressing this event, which had such a huge impact on how both black people and others think about the lives of black people in this country today. Next to the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Katrina and its aftermath may have been the most consequential event of the last decade. You wouldn’t know it by the response of the book publishing industry***....

I was put in mind of this issue earlier this month when I noted all the attention devoted to the statistics assembled by VIDA about women’s representation in major magazines. Ha, I thought to myself. Wait til they look at African-American people’s representation in those places. Then I thought some more: Don’t hold your breath. Black writers and editors talk about this problem all the time, but that doesn’t appear to be having much impact on the gatekeepers at the major review media, or at the major book publishers and retailers. This is an even older story, unfortunately, than the fall-off in reviewing. What’s the effect? Less good work is published, and fewer people find out about the good work that does get out there. Even for a writer like Rosalyn ... whose first book seemed like such a solid start career-wise, in terms of both reviews and sales--this diminished attention can make it impossible to build on that initial success and reach new readers, or even the readers who loved her first book.

I said of Wading Home in my mini-review about books about Katrina:

I just finished reading Wading Home by Rosalyn Story. It's a novel about a young jazz musician who has left New Orleans seeking fame and fortune and goes back in search of his father after the hurricane. An accessible, uplifting story about family set against the backdrop of New Orleans immediately after the storm. It comes out September 1st. It's published by Agate Bolden and reminds me a bit of their novel Before I Forget.

But whether or not I liked the book or not is beside the point. The real issue is how much more "worthy" of media coverage (reviews, articles) does a book's subject have to be before the so-called mainstream media pick up on it? A book that takes place during Katrina released on the 5th anniversary of Katrina seems like a no-brainer. Why wasn't it? Read Seibold's entire blog post and draw your own conclusions. Then download the ebook and then go over to Amazon and leave a review. Post a review on your own blog. Tell your book club members. Maybe the buzz will help sales starting next month.

Hat tip to Agate Bolden for attempting a re-launch of one of their books. Most publishers would have sadly moved on and cut the author loose. Let's hope like that saying "it's never too late to have a happy childhood" that it's never to late to launch a book!

***Jewell Parker Rhodes' novel Hurricane is coming out in April and is available for pre-order now.

What will we do without Borders?

2011-02-17T08:48:00.002-07:00

By now you've heard the news about Borders closing many of its stores. I'm always sad to hear a bookstore is closing and to hear a chain of bookstores is closing 200 of its stores is really sad. (Even my local indie Tattered Cover tweeted yesterday that they were concerned by the news, saying "The closing of any bricks and mortar store is a loss.")

For some black writers, this could deliver a devastating blow to their sales. A colleague says 33% of her sales came from Borders!

I'm happy to report that my friends at the Atlanta Buckhead Borders are still open for business. If you're in Atlanta, go over and buy some books from them! Several of the booksellers there are hand-selling titles by African American authors and we need them!

My colleague read in an industry article that half of the sales that would have happened at those stores are probably lost! Dear God, Borders shoppers, is that true?! Without a Borders to go, will you simply stop purchasing books?

I hope that's not true. If you live in a city that no longer has an indie or a Borders, I will you will support Barnes and Noble. And remember you can always support indie stores by purchasing books online at IndieBound. You can even buy e-books through indies now!

And, in addition to Amazon, you can buy books online through these bookstores and others. Also, there's a new online bookstore for African American books called NorthParan.com. For every book purchased through their site, they will give one away to a child in need around the world.

Many people are convinced that the African American fiction section of the bookstore is problematic for selling books by black authors. And yet Borders' AfAm section was popular enough that several black writer friends are afraid that the developments with Borders could mean a loss of as much as a third of their sales. And yet Borders is bankrupt. This raises some interesting questions about that book-selling model and about America. Is there such a thing as a novel that's meant only for a black audience? How would you begin to define such a novel? Does seg-book-ga-tion harm some authors and help others?

The Rejectionist recently raised these questions and more getting right to the heart of the matter: race and racism.

"Racism is fucking messy, and painful, and hard to deal with. It hurts. There aren't right answers. There is no one in charge, to solve the problem. But nothing's ever going to change until we go to that hard and honest place of really and truly engaging with one another (memo to white folks: "engaging" involves "listening" which involves "not talking"). Creating genuine community in an era of terminal-stage capitalism is no easy task, but we're gonna go out on a limb and say it is the most important task of all. You think it's just books? It's not just books, it's the whole world. This stuff matters."

As always, if you take a situation like trying to make money off of art, which is already complicated, and add in race, things get "fucking messy."

I'm interested in hearing your thoughts. Anybody got any brilliant ideas? What does the bankruptcy of Borders mean to you?

African American Read In-YA

2011-02-08T09:22:00.002-07:00

Update: Zetta Elliott, author of A Wish After Midnight, posted a link to this essay by Neesha Meminger, author of Shine Coconut Moon and Jazz in Love, and it fits so well with this blog post that I have to add it. Please read it.

On Sunday, February 20th, The Happy Nappy Bookseller, Reading in Color and Crazy Quilts will be hosting an online read-in of Dia Reeves' novel Bleeding Violet.

It sounds great! Here's what Booklist had to say about the book:
"After her father’s death, 16-year-old Hanna hitchhikes to Portero, Texas, the home of her mother, Rosalee, who abandoned her. Hanna is desperate for Rosalee to love and accept her, and Rosalee reluctantly makes a bargain: Hanna has two weeks to make friends and fit in at her school or she won't be allowed to stay. Hanna has never fit in anywhere, though. Struggling with manic depression, she hears voices and hallucinates, wears only purple dresses, and has a history of violence. Portero is no ordinary town, though, and Hanna learns that it is haunted by doors to other dimensions and plagued by dangerous creatures from those realms. Wyatt, a powerful young initiate in the Mortmaine, a demon-hunting organization, recruits Hanna, and together they struggle to deal with an ancient evil that threatens the town and Hanna’s future. With plenty of sex and violence, this is a book for mature teens, who will find Portero to be an intriguing world and biracial Hanna a startlingly unusual heroine with a poignant, memorable voice. Grades 10-12"

And while you're at it, check out this essay about diversity in YA fiction, or the lack thereof, or the perceived lack thereof, on Kirkus Reviews' YA blog.

Nnedi Okorafor, author of The Shadow Speaker (of which Ursula K. Le Guin said, "There's more vivid imagination in a page of The Shadow Speaker than in whole volumes of ordinary fantasy epics.")
and the forthcoming Akata Witch, responded on Twitter saying, amongst other things: "i bristle when i hear that question of "Where are the people of color in popular YA literature?"... i don't write only for people of color... i am a Nigerian American writer who writes stories from her perspective and imagination for all readers...otherwise, great article. this stuff needs to be highlighted and discussed."

For those looking for African American YA books, here's a list published by the Winter Park Public Library. Here's Publisher's Weekly's list of African American children's and YA books published last fall and to be published this spring. And here's Color Online's list of "great YA by and about women of color."

Pick out a few and join the 2011 POC (people of color) Reading Challenge.

I'm baaack and on LitChat!

2011-02-02T09:57:00.000-07:00

Today and Friday at 4 pm ET if you're on Twitter join the LitChat discussion about African American books. I'm guest-moderating and on Friday my guest author will be Rosalyn McMillan, who's new novel is WE AIN'T THE BRONTES--about two sisters who are writers. Sounds interesting, doesn't it?

Go here for instructions on how to follow the #LitChat hashtag on Twitter and Tweet Chat.

In other book news, while I was on blog hiatus the Black Caucus of the American Library Association announced 2011 literary award winners and the NAACP announced nominees for literary categories for the 2011 Image Awards. Congratulations to all!

The movie version of my novel Orange Mint and Honey--Sins of the Mother--received two NAACP Image Award nominations. One for outstanding TV movie and one for outstanding actress in a TV movie for Jill Scott.

If you're a member of the NAACP, you can vote for winners. Supposedly, there will be a place online for members to cast their votes soon.

Goodbye 2010, See Y'all in February!

2010-12-31T10:57:00.004-07:00

Dear Friends,

Thanks so much for all your support this month and all through 2010! May 2011 bring you health, happiness and many good books to read.

I'm starting the new year with a little blog hiatus. I'll be back in February for Black History Month during which I'll host a virtual Read-In for the National African American Read In (thanks Bernice McFadden for the info! If you're in Columbus, OH, go see Bernice on Jan. 8th.). Please join me here for the Read-In and consider hosting a live one in your community.

Schools, churches, libraries, bookstores, community and professional organizations, and interested citizens are urged to make literacy a significant part of Black History Month by hosting and coordinating Read-Ins in their communities. Hosting a Read-In can be as simple as bringing together friends to share a book, or as elaborate as arranging public readings and media presentations that feature professional African American writers.

To be counted as participants, simply:

Select books authored by African Americans;
Hold your event during the month of February; and
Report your results by submitting the 2011 African American Read-In Report Card.

In the meantime, a few things to keep you busy until then:

Save on this year's taxes (if you move quick)! Give to the Literary Freedom Project and support black literature and education.

Go a little overboard with the spending at Christmas time? Read The Frugalista Files: How One Woman Got Out of Debt Without Giving Up the Fabulous Life. It's by Natalie McNeal who runs the popular blog The Frugalista Files.

"But Carleen, how will we know what else to read while you're gone?" Don't worry! Check out APOOO Book Club's list of 2011 new book releases. You can count on these ladies to keep you in the loop! Or read along with the Go On Girl! Book Club's reading list for the beginning of 2011. Or join the Reading and Writing Sistazs of the RAWSISTAZ Book Club for their black book chats. Or join the Black Lit Chat on Twitter in January.

The NAACP Image Award nominees will be announced January 12. The LMN movie Sins of the Mother based on my novel Orange Mint and Honey may be in the running! (By the way, it airs again January 22nd.) To vote for the finalists you have to be a member of the NAACP. You can join online for as little as $30. If I'm nominated, I will let y'all know!

If you're a writer and your on Facebook, join us for the 32-day writing challenge.

Happy New Year!

Ginormous Book Give Away Winners!

2010-12-29T10:32:00.000-07:00

Thank you to all the authors who contributed books for this give away! This is my first blog post with over 100 comments, so I can tell readers really appreciated it.

Everyone please, please, please check out these books! I promise there's something here for every reader.

If you were the only person to request a book, you won it. If more than one person requested the same book, I used the random generator at Random.org. I went through the titles as listed and if you were the first person to request the book, you got the number 1. The second person was number 2, etc.

For people who selected more than one book, if you had already won a book, I didn't include you in other drawings. UNLESS all the people who had requested that book had also already won (which happened a few times).

It's probably not the most scientific method, but I didn't cheat, so please nobody sue me.

Here's the winner's list:

Be Careful What You Pray For and What Doesn't Kill You: Andromeda Jazmon
Big Machine: Denise
Black Water Rising: Kate
Deadly Charm and In Search of Tennessee Sunshine: Shalema
The Devil Don't Lie: Shan
Don't Blame the Devil and When I Get Where I'm Going: Fshirer
First of State: Giovanna
Glorious: Kayla
Huddle With Me Tonight and Perfect Shot: Pinkstuff28
The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms and Broken Kingdoms: MissAttitude
Like Trees Walking: Mrstdj
Not Quite What It Seems: AS
Playing the Hand You're Dealt and Trouble Down the Road: PatriciaW
Sins of the Mother and Uptown: according2dmarie
Take Your Pleasure Where You Find It: Carmen1
The View From Here: Melissa
Wading Home: Malca_J
War Anthem: Amy (NOT the blogger My Friend Amy-we had 2 Amy's)
Who Fears Death: Shauna
Wounded: ChocolateMom
Zora and Me: Angelia

Please email me your snail mail address at carleenbrice AT gmail DOT com and I will forward to the author.

Ginormous Book Give-Away!

2010-12-21T06:24:00.050-07:00

To conclude National Buy a Book By a Black Author and Give It to Somebody Not Black Month, the following 26 authors have offered to give away an autographed copy of the following books. If you want one, leave a comment on this post by December 28th 5 p.m. MST. If you want more than one, please leave each book request in a separate comment. If more than one person requests the same book, the winner will be chosen at random. I'll announce winners on December 29th.

There's something here for everybody! Literary, fantasy, thriller, Christian, romance, you name it! Check out this list of award-winners, best-sellers and sleeper-gems:

Be Careful What You Pray For by Kimberla Lawson Roby (Christian fiction)

Big Machine by Victor LaValle (literary/speculative)

Black Water Rising by Attica Locke (Literary/thriller)

Deadly Charm and Wounded by Claudia Mair Burney (Christian fiction)

The Devil Don’t Lie by ReShonda Tate Billingsley (Christian fiction)

Don’t Blame the Devil by Pat G’orge Walker (Christian fiction)

First of State by Robert Greer (mystery)

Glorious by Bernice McFadden (Literary)

Huddle With Me Tonight by Farrah Rochon (Romance)

The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms and The Broken Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin (Fantasy)

In Search of Tennessee Sunshine by Margaret Johnson-Hodge (domestic)

Like Trees Walking by Ravi Howard (Literary)

Not Quite What It Seems by Mari Walker (domestic fiction)

Perfect Shot by Debbie Rigaud (YA) (see book trailer below)

Playing the Hand You’re Dealt by Trice Hickman (domestic fiction)

Sins of the Mother by Victoria Christopher Murray (Christian fiction)

Take Your Pleasure Where You Find It by J.D. Mason (domestic fiction)

Trouble Down the Road by Bettye Griffin (domestic fiction)

Uptown and What Doesn’t Kill You by Virginia DeBerry and Donna Grant (domestic fiction)

The View From Here by Rachel Howzell Hall (domestic fiction)

Wading Home by Rosalyn Story (domestic fiction)

War Anthem by Keith Andrew Perry (Thriller)

When I Get Where I’m Going by Cheryl Robinson (domestic fiction)

Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor (fantasy)

Zora and Me by Victoria Bond and T.R. Simon (children’s)

Our first winners are....

2010-12-20T18:22:00.000-07:00

First, a big fat thank you to all the guest bloggers for this holiday series: Andrea King Collier, Martha Southgate, Ernessa T. Carter, Donna Hill, Tina McElroy Ansa, Heidi Durrow, Tara Betts, Cheri Paris Edwards and Denene Millner. Please check out their books and the books they recommended as gifts.

Second, thanks to everyone who left a comment, shared of Facebook or tweeted about this contest! I'm so grateful for your support.

And, finally, the winners are generated by Random.org:

Still With Me by Andrea King Collier: Tracey
Third Girl From the Left by Martha Southgate: Pamala Knight
32 Candles by Ernessa T. Carter: Lifelearner
What Mother Never Told Me by Donna Hill: Amy
Taking After Mudear by Tina McElroy Ansa: Shirin Dubbin
The Girl Who Fell From the Sky by Heidi Durrow: Anita
Arc & Hue by Tara Betts: Dusky Literati
The Other Sister by Cheri Paris Edwards: Tea
Miss You, Mina; My Brother Charlie and March On by Denene Millner: Campbele

Congratulations! Email me at carleenbrice AT gmail DOT com your snail mail and I will send it to the author to put your signed copy in the mail.

Holiday musings from Andrea King Collier

2010-12-19T16:20:00.000-07:00

Andrea King Collier is a Michigan based journalist and author. Her books are Still With Me… A Daughter’s Journey of Love and Loss, and The Black Woman’s Guide to Black Men’s Health. Leave a comment below if you'd like to win a signed copy of her memoir.

Below are her tips for readers on what books to buy and where to buy them and for authors on how to get more readers:

When I think of the holidays I think of joy. (Really, I think about being overwhelmed with the trappings of joy-shopping, parties, getting the Christmas cards out the door.) I also get joyful thinking about how many Black writers are doing their thing, and the hopes that we will all find new readers.

As White readers venture into more stories about Black characters, they embrace few stories by Black authors. And as you find new Black authors that you like, tell your friends. The Black experience is deeper, wider and more compelling than just reading The Help, or the Secret Life of Bees. Read Wench by Dolen Perkins Valdez. Read Carleen’s two fabulous books. Try Sugar or Glorious by Bernice McFadden. Check out 32 Candles by Ernessa T. Carter. Into the supernatural? Then read Tananarive Due’s books. Buy a cookbook by Marcus Samuelsson or the Neelys. Want to understand our President? Read his books. Ask your Black co-worker what he or she is reading and why they like that author. If they tell you Beverly Jenkins, don’t hesitate to swoop it up.

Black authors, expand your lane. We complain a lot about where our books are placed, and who does and doesn’t review our books. This wild, wild West of publishing means that a lot of the gatekeepers are gone. Between Facebook, Twitter, the ability to set up your own interviews and reach out to new audiences with your blogs, you get to create a groundswell of people coming into stores and going on line to buy your book. The “If you build it, they will come” mentality is gone baby gone. Do the hustle.

All readers, as you shop for books for yourself and for others, honor the independents, including Black bookstores with your business. This is not only a critical time for writers, it is a make or break time for independents. If we don’t support them now, we will bemoan their closing and what they did for us in the future. This holiday buy a few books, or all your books from an indie. The big box stores are convenient. Every dollar you spend via a visit to, or an online order to stores like Hue-Man in Harlem, or the Shrine of the Black Madonna helps authors who often get few venues to read and sell. It means that you support community hubs where people come together to talk about health, spirituality, love, economic power and hope. It means that you are investing in the future of books.

Most of all readers, please keep reading. Writers keep working on craft. Make it as good as it can be, then take a good deep breath and go back in and make it better. Here’s wishing you a bright shiny reading/writing holiday and a delicious New Year.

Martha Southgate's advice for writers & recommendations for readers

2010-12-17T09:24:00.003-07:00

Martha Southgate is the author of four novels, most recently Third Girl From the Left (one of my all-time favorites, a love letter to the movies, and these glowing reviews tell why). Her new novel will be published by Algonquin Books in 2011.

If you haven't read Third Girl From the Left I envy you because you are in for a treat! Leave Martha a comment below and maybe you'll win a signed copy. If you don't, run, don't walk, to your nearest book store or device and buy it. Actually, go get it now anyway. If you end up winning another copy, you can give away the one you bought. Martha is also one of the co-founders of ringShout, a place for black literature. Check out that blog and also her guest post below on writing and reading:

The past year, I’ve been working the first full-time day job that I’ve had in many years (I know, I know, I’ve been lucky that I haven’t had to do that sooner). The hours are not oppressive and there is no Blackberry involved but still, I’ve had trouble getting my new novel started. My wish for the new year for myself--and for any writers out there who are facing the same dilemma—is time, discipline and kindness to ourselves. Do what you can and do make a schedule for writing that you stick to as much as possible (I gotta get on that myself). But don’t hate yourself when you fall off course. Just get going again.

On a related note, I believe it’s as important to keep reading as it is to write. Whenever I meet a “writer” who says they don’t have time to read, frankly, I dismiss them out of hand. If you don’t read, you can’t write. Period. And for those of you who are readers alone: thank you. We couldn’t make it without you. So for all the readers and writers out there, here are three of my favorite books by black authors that were published this year:

God Says No by James Hannaham. This first novel is the story, both touching and hilarious, of Gary Gray, a staunch fundamentalist Christian with one big problem. He's gay. The story of how he fights it (unsuccessfully) is one of the most original of the year.

Before You Suffocate Your Own Fool Self by Danielle Evans This young writer has received plenty of attention for this first collection of stories--and she deserves it. These stories rock! Read 'em yourself and see.

[Carleen here: Ron Charles, the Washington Post books editor, reviews Evans' collection and has an interesting discussion (with himself) about who should review black authors.]

Substitute Me by Lori Tharps. Read this one with your book club and watch the sparks fly. This is pop fiction with some heavy themes about race, class, and what happens when rearing your own child becomes something you outsource.

Whatever holiday(s) you celebrate--celebrate them with a book! And, as Tiny Tim once said," God bless us, every one."

Ernessa T. Carter recommends books for everybody on your list

2010-12-13T21:04:00.001-07:00

Or at least a good chuck of the people on your list. Ernessa is the author of the novel 32 CANDLES, which I would recommend for sisters, bffs, and anyone who hearts funny romantic reads. Read below and leave Ernessa a note and maybe you'll win a signed copy of one of my favorite books of 2010!

Here are her suggestions:

Oh, I just heart books to death, and I’ve felt especially lucky this year, because so many awesome books have come out. Here’s my gift suggestion list -- and make sure to click on the links to read my book reviews for all but one of these suggestions from earlier in the year:

For the young woman, feminist or literate sci-fi nerd on your list: WHO FEARS DEATH by Nnedi Okorafor was not only my favorite book of the year, but also my favorite main character of the year. This book has it all: an intriguing future landscape, a powerful and fierce lead, and an epic love story. If it were up to me, this book would be added to the high school canon. But sadly, more girls will be encouraged to read LORD OF THE FLIES than this book which actually portrays young black women in a complex and powerful way. So if you know any teenagers whose parents won’t freak out about them reading a book with sex in it, please do them the favor of gifting them with this stunning novel.

For the academic on your list: I’ve been telling everybody that WENCH by Dolen Perkins-Valdez needs to be on college syllabi across the nation. It’s a amazing feat of historical fiction: well-written, suspenseful, and a page-turner. Seriously, when was the last time you just couldn’t put down a piece of historical fiction?

For the person who’s always complaining that books about Africa are too heavy:Actually that person would be me, so how pleased was I to find AYA by Marguerite Abouet and Clement Oubrerie, a graphic novel, about three young girls living, learning, and loving in a 1970s-era Ivory Coast town? Along with BAYOU by Jeremy Love and INCONEGRO by Mat Johnson, I think this forms a triumvirate of black graphic novel must-haves.

For the mom or dad on your list: I found that the non-fiction COME TO WIN by Venus Williams and Kelly E. Carter, inspired me to be both a better person and a better parent. This book is basically a collection of essays in which successful people (Jack Welch, Bill Clinton, Condoleeza Rice, Vera Wang, Phil Knight, and Denzel Washington are just a few of the “names” in this book) talk about how playing sports shaped their future career wins. It’s a fascinating collection and best read slowly in my opinion.

For your BFF mom friend: I’ve been suggesting that no working mom read SUBSTITUTE ME by Lori Tharps alone as it will only frustrate you if you don't have someone to talk with about it immediately after finish it. This is a compelling read for working moms and a real conversation-starter. So do yourself a favor. Get a copy for you and your BFF mom friend, read it at the same time, then book a lunch date to discuss it.

So those are my book recs for the holiday season. Let me know which books you’re giving away as gifts this year

Happy Holidays and Happy Reading!

etc

Donna Hill reflects on the blessings of 2010

2010-12-09T13:10:00.000-07:00

Donna Hill is author of dozens of romance novels and women's fiction. She offers this list of what she's grateful for this holiday, and to thank her loyal readers, she's offering a signed copy of What Mother Never Told Me. Leave Donna a comment and I'll choose a winner using a random generator. You have until Dec. 19 to get in on this and books from Tina McElroy Ansa, Keith Andrew Perry, Tara Betts, Heidi Durrow, Cheri Paris Edwards, Denene Millner...and more to come!

Below is from Donna:

As the year draws to a close, it is certainly a time for reflection. So much has transpired this year. My son went off to college and he will never know how truly proud of him I am. I embarked upon a new educational journey (very late in life) and the rewards are “priceless.” Being among so many creative minds is no less than awesome and it infused me with purpose. It reinforced the blessing that was bestowed on me—the ability to write and to transport not only myself but others into a world that I created. But it also reminded me of my responsibility as a griot—the teller of tales—to not only entertain but to inform. So even as I write my romances my goal is not always to titillate but to remind us about the power of love no matter what color it is. When I write my more serious novels, I want to bring to the forefront the issues that are of importance and that will leave the reader thinking and evaluating and perhaps looking at life differently.

There is power in the written word and as writers we must be mindful of that power. We have a responsibility to give our best, not for the money but for the art—as our work will stand as a testament long after we are gone.

I am grateful for the two decades that I have been allowed to do what I love. And in this season of giving, I give thanks to all of the readers who have been there and supported this girl from Brooklyn!

I am also grateful for the wonderful books I have read this year and thank the authors who shared their gift with me and the world. If I start naming folks I know I will leave someone out!

I am also grateful for the friendship and support from my sister and brother writers who share their trials and triumphs and remind me why we do what we do when it gets really hard.

I am thankful for my family that keeps me grounded, and remain my biggest cheering squad. And most of all I am thankful to God for giving me this wonderful gift of words!

Tina McElroy Ansa expresses gratitude & shares a little about her writing process

2010-12-06T09:10:00.001-07:00

This is the fifth guest blog in my 2010 holiday series. It's from Tina McElroy Ansa, author of one of my favorite books of all time UGLY WAYS (a very quirky mother-daughter story), and the sequel TAKING AFTER MUDEAR. Leave Tina a comment and you'll be entered to win a signed copy of TAKING AFTER MUDEAR. And...she says she'll add "a little holiday gift from my garden, my heart and my hands."

What book-related/writing-related things I'm grateful for

Thanksgiving has come and gone. However, I try to remember to be thankful every day the Good Lord gives me.

In my writing life, I have one big thank you. And in my publishing life, I have another..

So, I am thankful this year that I discovered how easy it was to install the Voice Recognition program on my computer.

I followed the instructions, I had a mic and I had a story, so I was ready to go.

I not only am able to get ideas -- that come in the middle of whatever -- down on the computer for use later. I’m also able to dictate the notes, quotes, descriptions, conversations, edits, etc. that are so easily lost to us writers because we say, “Oh, that’s so wonderful, I’ll surely remember that!”…Never happens.

I also find that if I dictate first drafts, I can:

1. Hear how the prose and dialogue sound in the air as well as on the page. Writing, especially dialogue, that is not just right lands like a horse shoe in the middle of a funeral when spoken. The same is true for descriptions, even beautifully written descriptions that go on too long for the context. (I know that’s one of my challenges.)

2. When reading it on the screen again for typos and such, I have another chance to edit each word and the work as a whole. A real opportunity I gratefully take.

In my role as publisher at DownSouth Press, I am thankful for Carolina Knight, who has entrusted me with her first novel THE BOOK OF EPHESUS, which we will publish in 2011.

Keith Andrew Perry's WAR ANTHEM

2010-12-04T05:35:00.008-07:00

Keith was to participate in the holiday action over here, but he has suffered the loss of his 20-year-old son, and I don't expect he'll be writing any blog posts anytime soon. I wanted to put his book up to let y'all know about it (here's an interview and his Facebook fan page) and to say if you can, order a copy. This gesture isn't meant to dispel any of his sorrow, but we do what we can. Do keep him and his family in your prayers. RIP Keith Andrew Perry, Jr.

Heidi Durrow recommends books about mixed-race and black children

2010-12-02T07:05:00.011-07:00

Heidi Durrow, author of The Girl Who Fell From the Sky, names three must-have titles for people looking for books about mixed-race and African American children for holiday gifts. Leave a comment and you could win a signed copy of Heidi's book, which explores the life of a young half-black, half-Danish girl.

Heidi says:

I'm always on the lookout for diverse books for kids. This year I have some must-buy titles for the young folks I know:

1. Amy Hodgepodge (series) by Kim Wayans & Kevin Knotts. This wonderful series about a young girl who is African-American, Japanese, Korean and white will delight young readers with the lively stories and fun illustrations by Soo Jeong.

2. Mixed: Portraits of Multiracial Kids by Kip Fulbeck. This wonderful photo book tells a tale in pictures that is worth a thousand words. Kip Fulbeck's vibrant portraits of mixed kids of every stripe and polka dot are an affirmation to kids who may not see themselves reflected anywhere but their own mirror. Best of all are the responses the kids give to describe who they are. One writes: "I like being a kid because you have a bigger mind to be different things. I don't want to be anyone else but me." The book is also an exhibit touring the country. Don't miss it if it's in a town near you!

3. Good Fortune by Noni Carter. Penned by the precocious and dynamic Noni Carter who published the book as a freshman at Harvard, Good Fortune is a great read for high schoolers. The story of a slave who yearns for and then enjoys freedom, Good Fortune is an enchanting tale. All the more so because it was written by such a talented young woman! Can't wait for more from her!

Check out a video with Ms. Carter in which she explains the inspiration for her novel.

Poet Tara Betts recommends books for the holidays

2010-11-29T06:54:00.019-07:00

Tara Betts is author of Arc & Hue. Leave her a comment in this post if you'd like to win a free, autographed copy of her debut poetry collection (read a review here).

Everything below is from Tara:

The holidays always mark a lull for me that lets me read uninterrupted. Here are a few of the titles on my shelf that I thought might be good holiday gifts in fiction, poetry and books for kids. I’ll be curling up with them to avoid the cold this season.

The Fiction Section

Some Sing, Some Cry by ntozake shange & Ifa Bayeza is the first collaborative novel between these sisters. Bayeza is an accomplished playwright, and shange is the author of for colored girls who have considered suicide when the rainbow is enuf.

Daughters of the Stone by Dahlma Llanos-Figueroa tells the story of several generations of an Afro-Puerto Rican family facing their struggles and relying on traditions that affirm them. I heard Llanos-Figueroa speak and read from this novel. Her words on page and in person are lush and intense.

How to Escape from a Leper Colony by Tiphanie Yanique is a debut collection of short stories. This is on my winter reading list, but if her prize-winning chapbook “The Saving Work” is any indication of how amazing this collection is, then it’s worth reading!

The Poetry Section

I devour poetry, so, here are some collections I’d like to share.

Kaffir Lily by Bianca Spriggs is a debut collection filled with visceral lines and rich images.

Running the Dusk by Christian Campbell is another first poetry collection that recently won the U.K.’s coveted Aldeburgh Prize.

Ruth Forman’s Prayers Like Shoes is her third collection. Prayers Like Shoes is published by Whit Press, a small press for work by women involved with the Hedgebrook writers retreat.

Thomas Sayers Ellis’ Skin, Inc. is his second collection that features varied images by the author. Ellis topples the well-worn notions of identity politics and performance poetry.

Conversion by Remica Bingham won the Naomi Long Madgett Prize a couple of years ago, but I think this is a book that speaks as a close observer of the world who notices family, history, land and the literature that shaped her.

Books for Young Readers

I recommend Virginia Hamilton’s The People Who Could Fly, She Stories, and Sweet Whispers, Brother Rush since Christmas is for the kids! Keep Climbing, Girls by the late Beah Richards is a book that I’ve given to little girls that I know. It may be good for the women and girls in your life too. If you don’t know Beah Richards, she gave the moving monologue in movie “Beloved” about loving and kissing your own hands.

I’m looking forward to checking out Zora and Me by Victoria Bond and T.R. Simon. This fictional account of young Zora Neale Hurston as a detective has me excited about her adventures. I haven’t seen a young black detective since Billy Jo Jive and Suzy Sunset were on “Sesame Street.”

Cyber Monday links

2010-11-28T10:11:00.001-07:00

Participating in Cyber Monday? Check out these links for some great places to shop for books online:

Agate Publishing/Bolden
Akashic Books
Audible.com
Beacon Press
Black Expressions Book Club
CushCity.com
The Dock Bookshop
Eso Won Book Store
Hue-Man Experience Bookstore & Cafe
IndieBound
Inkwell Bookstore
Lee & Low Books
Mahogany Books
MosaicBooks.com
Powell's Books
Plenary Publishing
Tattered Cover Book Store
West Side Books

Buy books for the holidays!

A Christmas memory from Cheri Paris Edwards

2010-11-26T06:45:00.010-07:00

Happy Black Friday, y'all! Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! If you're shopping till you're dropping today, make sure to pick up a few books to celebrate NBABBABAAGITSNBM.

Following is a guest post from Cheri Paris Edwards, who will be giving away a copy of her brand new novel THE OTHER SISTER. (You can read an excerpt here.) Leave her a comment and share a holiday memory of your own or suggest a book we should all read. A winner will be chosen at random and announced on December 20th.

It was clear Christmas was Mama’s favorite time of the year as soon as you stepped inside her home. Sparkling white lights draped over fragrant sprigs of eucalyptus and glowing candlelight brightened the rooms. Fat gold ribbon curled in oversized champagne glasses sitting on tabletops and Mama perched on her white couch like the queen of her own kingdom, instructing us kids to do whatever was needed. Mama didn’t fool us though. We sibs knew that she was really a princess—a girl of a woman, who believed in fairy tales AND the Lord.

When Mama became ill two years ago, we all took turns helping her. In the hospital, she refused to let nurses bathe her, telling them, “My daughters will do it.” And, we did. Once she was home, we stayed with her in shifts. We never could figure out if she couldn’t do things for herself or wouldn’t. To some extent we had waited on Mama a long time and we wondered if maybe she just got used to depending on others, but we cared for her anyway. Mama lived a year and 6 months past the Mother’s Day Sunday when she lost consciousness in my sister’s garage. My sister told me as we prepared for her funeral that Mama said Jesus sent her back that day, that’s when she heard the two of us praying, and we saw her body snap back to life.

Today as I drove passed my mailbox I wished it held one of Mama’s handwritten cards—the ones I didn’t even open sometimes. I miss you, Mama.

My newest book, “The Other Sister” is dedicated to my Mother.

Denene Millner recommends books for kids

2010-11-24T05:53:00.003-07:00

The following is from Denene, who will give away signed copies of three children's books she's authored or served as editorial consultant on:

Miss You, Mina, by Denene Millner

My Brother, Charlie, by Holly Robinson Peete and Ryan Peete
March On, by Christine King Farris

Read below and leave Denene a comment for a chance to win! Feel free to chime in and tell us what children's books you are giving this year. You have until December 20th to leave your comment. Denene will send the books in January. Thanks much Denene!

Why I Buy Children's Books by Black Authors and Why You Should Too

I hated bugs, so playing in the backyard wasn’t an option. And my parents, who worked and slept and worked around the clock, didn’t have time to entertain me, so being taken to the park or bowling or the museum hardly ever happened—if at all. And I didn’t have many friends, so there was that. Books were my refuge. My babysitters. My BFFs. Judy Blume. Beverly Cleary. Frances Hodges Burnett. Their worlds, their spirits, their thoughts, their shenanigans—all of it made me… happy.

I never really noticed that none of the characters looked like me. There were no black girls, no cornrows, no thick lips and chocolate kisses and double-dutch rhymes on the library shelves or at the bookstore at the mall or in the cleverly-wrapped boxes under our Christmas tree. It just was what it was.

So long ago, it was what it was.

But when I got pregnant with my first baby, I promised that this didn’t have to be her reality—that my child didn’t have to spend the most impressionable part of her life missing and longing for herself in the pages of the best gifts I could ever give her: literature. And before she made her big debut on this sweet Earth, she had a shelf full of books, many of them books that featured characters that looked like her: Ezra Jack Keats’ “The Snowy Day,” “Goggles,” “and Whistle For Willie”; Vera B. Williams’ “More, More, More Said the Baby”; Faith Ringold’s “Tar Beach,” Nikki Giovanni’s “The Sun Is So Quiet,” Donald Crews’ “Big Mama,” Andrea Davis Pinkney’s “Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra.” Admittedly, the pickings were slim. But I found them.

Some eleven years later, the pickings are still slim. I mean, presumably there are more books for, about and by children of color being published today than there were back in 1999, for sure. But finding them is about as elusive as a towheaded elf beneath a four-leaf clover. I swear, at least once a week I find myself standing in Borders or Barnes & Noble, watching some unsuspecting clerk search in vain for children’s books featuring black characters, knowing full well they’re not there. Their exasperation with the search always leads to a heart-felt discussion about why the store doesn’t bother to carry black children’s books (they insist no one buys them; I suggest that it’s impossible to buy something that isn’t available for purchase), which inevitably leads to me lecturing about how important it is for stores, librarians, teachers and parents to recognize that books featuring children of color not only can help make black kids fall in love with the written word, but, in the most basic of ways, give white children an up close and personal view into the worlds of little people who don’t look like them, but, in many ways, are just like them. I wrote about that last point in a piece for the MyBrownBaby page on Parenting.com, in which I fessed up to integrating the bookshelves of my children’s white friends by giving them black books for birthdays, Christmas and, well, just because:

My hope is when I pass along a black children's book or a black doll baby to my daughters' friends, that they get the same subliminal lessons -- that brown children matter. Books like "Ruby and the Booker Boys" speak to our experiences and show both our differences and our commonalities with white culture. Introducing books like these to white children is the most simple, basic way to introduce a child to another race in a positive, thoughtful way. A white child introduced to Ruby may not necessarily say, "Oh look! A black girl is the star of this book!" when she reads it. She might not notice the character's color at all. But she just might decide to make friends with a little black girl out on the playground because she looks like the character in the book she liked. And since she really liked that book, she'll probably really like that little girl, too. Children really are that simple. That uncomplicated…

And really, it is that uncomplicated. Debbie Allen’s “Dancing in the Wings” is every bit as poignant a tale about self-esteem as, say, Jamie Lee Curtis’s “I’m Gonna Like Me,” just as Derrick Barnes’ “Ruby and the Booker Boys” series is as sassy and humorous and identifiable as Beverly Cleary’s “Ramona” books. But black children hardly know this because the black stories are hardly ever made available to them and white children are clueless about it because no one ever fixes their mouths to suggest them as good books they might enjoy.

And that is the shame of it all.

And so this Christmas, I’ll be stashing black children’s books in as many gift bags as I can, donating them to as many charitable causes as I can find, and requesting them as additions to my own incredible and burgeoning black children’s book collection. Here’s what I’ll be purchasing for my sweet little friends:

The Ruby and the Booker Boys series, by Derrick Barnes

Tar Beach, by Faith Ringold

Homemade Love, by bell hooks

We Had a Picnic This Sunday Past, by Jacqueline Woodson

The Gospel Cinderella, by Joyce Carol Thomas

Olu's Dream, by Shane Evans

Precious and the Boo Hag, by Patricia McKissack

Whistle for Willie, by Ezra Jack Keats 

A Chair For My Mother, by Vera B. Williams 

The Willimena Rules! series, by Valerie Wilson Wesley

Zora and Me, by Victoria Bond and T.R. Simon

We Could Be Brothers, by Derrick Barnes

Miss You, Mina, by Denene Millner

My Brother, Charlie, by Holly Robinson Peete and Ryan Peete

Publisher survey: What books do you want to read?

2010-11-22T18:11:00.001-07:00

Hat tip to Raddiah Hubbert for this!

Grand Central Publishing is conducting a survey about African American books and authors. For all of you who have commented and emailed, here's your chance to be heard, by at least one publisher. Let 'em know what you like and what you don't like. What do you wish you could read, but can't find? Who are your favorite authors? Make your voices heard!

Black Authors ♥ Readers

2010-11-22T12:12:00.002-07:00

Next month marks the third annual celebration of National Buy a Book By a Black Author and Give it to Somebody Not Black Month. The purpose of NBABBABAAGITSNBM is to spread the word about all the great books by black authors that your friends, coworkers and neighbors may not know about. For the last 2 years, I've listed books that I planned to give for holiday presents. This year, I wanted to do something bigger and better.

I want to say thank you. Thank you to all the readers here who have given this blog experiment a chance. Thanks to all of you who've left comments and sent emails. Most important: thanks to all of you who've bought a book that you learned about here.

Other writers want to say thank you for your support, as well. So between now and December 20, we'll have guest bloggers talking about their favorite holiday gift books or some other related topic AND giving away an autographed copy of their book. Writers who've agreed to participate so far include:

Tara Betts
Martha Southgate
Bernice McFadden
Heidi Durrow
Lori Tharps
Keith Andrew Perry
Trisha R. Thomas
Ernessa T. Carter
Denene Millner

To kick us off, I'm giving away a copy of Children of the Waters to a commenter on this post. The person will be chosen at random. Deadline to comment is Tuesday, Nov. 23 at 5 pm MST.

Please spread the word to buy black books this holiday season! And, if you like quirky reads like I do, join the Quirky Brown Reading Challenge 2011.

Diversity in YA Fiction

2010-11-15T08:57:00.000-07:00

Writer Unboxed has a great post up today about writing about cultures other than your own from Cindy Pon and Shveta Thakrar, who host the Diversity in YA Fiction website and book tour. Love the idea for taking their show on the road! Maybe we should do a White Readers Meet Black Authors road show.... Hmmmm.

For writers

2010-11-08T10:00:00.001-07:00

I have a guest post on the blog Novel Spaces today (part 1 was posted last week). I like Novel Spaces because it's one of the few multicultural, multi-genre writing blogs that I know of. Since I bet a lot of the readers here are also writers, thought I'd ask you to please check it out.

Also, on SheWrites (another diverse writing site):

Martha Southgate will be hosting a webinar on Nov. 10.
Andrea Collier is blogging weekly about NaNoWriMo.
Every Tuesday, Tayari Jones writes about craft.

And, check out The Best Damn Creative Writing Blog, founded by a young black woman and featuring contributors of all stripes. They're doing a give-away this week! (I'll be doing some writing over there myself.

Finally (for now anyway), Tananarive Due and Steven Barnes host The Writers Circle, with blog posts and forums and all kinds of helpful info.

Election Day Links

2010-11-02T11:22:00.000-06:00

I voted and I hope you have/will too. Because I haven't done a round up in a while, here are a bunch of interesting links. Maybe you can check some of them out when you need a break from politics.

Actor Michael Boatman is also an author. Didn't know that. He writes speculative fiction and has some bones to pick with those that say he should write more "black."

Doubt his critic knows about The Carl Brandon Society. Check out their contest to support the Butler (as in Octavia) Scholarship, which helps writers of colors who write, wait for it, speculative fiction.

Dawn Davis is one of the more influential women in publishing. She recently gave an interview on SheWrites about the current state of publishing. "Most of the books with multi-racial characters that have been hugely successful have been written by white women or men, The Secret Life of Bees, Little Bee, The Help. We've yet to really make those same inroads with readers with books penned by black women."

One of her authors was just featured in an article about 5 young authors you should be reading. Nick Burd author of The Vast Fields of Ordinary was a new name to me.

Miss this? A podcast of Martha Southgate, Eisa Eulen and Bridgette Davis talking writers and books.

Congrats to Heidi Durrow! Booklist named The Girl Who Fell From the Sky one of the top 10 debuts of 2010.

Who's going to see For Colored Girls....? I saw the play in college and was very moved, but so far am not real excited about the movie. I hope it's great and I hope at least half of those who go to the theater also hit up a bookstore and pick up a copy of the book.

Speaking of movies, filmmakers are raising funds to make Leaving Atlanta, based on Tayari Jones' first novel.

Alfre Woodard talks about reading Glorious

2010-10-20T13:36:00.000-06:00

Glorious is on sale in audio now!

Meet: Robert Greer

2010-10-19T08:29:00.000-06:00

Robert Greer is a Denver-based novelist and renaissance man (as you'll see). His latest is a prequel to his CJ Floyd mystery series, FIRST OF STATE, which is out today! On Thursday evening, he'll be speaking and signing at the Tattered Cover Colfax Avenue store. I've had the pleasure of meeting him several times and he's a fascinating and lovely person. If you're in Denver, go!

White Readers Meet Black Authors: You also are a practicing physician and a rancher, correct? What made you start writing? When/how do you find time to write?! Do doctoring, ranching & writing have anything in common?

Robert Greer: There are many things that being a doctor, rancher and writer have in common but the two most significant things might well be the fact that each requires a demanding sense of dedication and precision. I’m actually a pathologist and as such, when trying to establish a diagnosis, I have very little margin for error. The same thing goes for ranching. Sending too big a head of water down an irrigation ditch to irrigate hay meadows can result in disaster. A little bit of math and physics expertise and a great deal of common sense are required to irrigate 700-800 acres of hay meadow without taking out half a mountain side. Writing, of course, requires a precision of language and often an ear for dialect. These I suspect are but a few things that the three things you have mentioned have in common.

WRMBA: Tell us about your latest novel.

RG: My latest novel, a prequel to my CJ Floyd mystery series, represents the tenth novel in the series. I wrote FIRST OF STATE after finishing a literary novel SPOON, my brief respite from the mystery and thriller world. I decided on a prequel because I wanted to bring readers up to speed on the central character’s early life. I first introduced CJ in 1996 in THE DEVIL’S HATBAND. At the time of that novel, CJ was forty-four. The reader never really finds out in that book what happened in CJ’s life between the ages of twenty and forty-four except that he’d served two tours of duty as a navy patrol boat machine gunner in Vietnam and that he eventually joined his uncle Ike’s bail bonding business in Denver. FIRST OF STATE fills in much of that twenty-four year void as CJ takes on the task of finding out who killed an antiques collector friend of his. A man he befriended just weeks after coming home from Vietnam. The novel also lets readers see CJ forging long-term friendships and watch him get bitten by the western memorabilia collecting bug. Interestingly as the novel unfolds, CJ ends up solving three cases, not simply one.

WRMBA: Describe your work for someone unfamiliar with it. What's your writing style like? What subjects/themes do you explore?

RG: I think my writing can best be described as character-driven writing that has an associated strong sense of place. I use the backdrop of Denver and Denver’s historically black Five Points community to set most of the novels in motion and have explored everything from the perils of molecular biology and gene splicing gone array in novels like LIMITED TIME and HEAT SHOCK to who might’ve really killed JFK in THE MONGOOSE DECEPTION. In a sense, all of my novels are travelogues that take the reader across the vastness of the American West, allowing them to rub shoulders with, and to find out about, people they might not otherwise encounter in real life.

I’m not sure how to describe my writing style except to say that I was trained formally as a writer and have a Masters Degree in Creative Writing. I suspect academics would argue that there is some of the “academy” in the way I write. I often use language, dialect and certainly dialogue to move a story along and to describe the West, a land that I so much love.

WRMBA: What's your goal(s) as a writer? Do you set out to educate? entertain? illuminate?

RG: I have never really had goals as a writer except to write a book that I am proud of and that I hope people will enjoy. I suspect that I do educate people about certain things although I don’t purposefully start out to do so. I do not use my writing to try and change the world, and I am exceedingly suspicious of people who claim that they not only do but have. There seems to be a certain arrogance to such statements, and although there are clearly documents out there that prove that you can change the world with words (the United States Constitution, for instance) I guess I’m just not arrogant enough to believe that my words equal those of Jefferson.

WRMBA: What's next for you?

RG: I’m always working on a book and typically write one a year. Currently I’m working on a stand-along thriller entitled ASTRIDE A PINK HORSE, a book about revenge which deals with the making and possible triggering of a “dirty nuclear weapon.” That’s probably as much as I should say about the novel right now because I don’t fully have it formulated in my head.

WRMBA: What's the best book (or whose the best writer) that not enough people know about?

RG: I would recommend that readers read “Cemetery Road” a mystery by Gar Anthony Haywood. The book is a great mystery and Gar is a wonderful great writer and friend. For those who have not read him, I think you’re in for a treat.

Warm fuzzies

2010-10-14T08:52:00.000-06:00

Go over to the sweet Shalema's blog Authors In Color and see the nice shout out she gives black authors. And, ahem, take note of her message:

I wanted to let authors know that I appreciate you and will support you by purchasing your books and sharing the good news with all I encounter.

Seriously, this brought tears to my eyes. Thanks Shalema!

Guest review of HOW TO READ THE AIR

2010-10-10T09:51:00.000-06:00

The following review is from The Happy Nappy Bookseller. Please check out her blog for more reviews, especially of diverse children's and YA novels.

How to Read the Air by Dinaw Mengestu

This is Mengestu's second novel. His debut The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears was very well received, with much critical praise. It was also one of my favorite novels of 2007.

Jonas Woldemariam was the first person in his family born in the United States. His parents are from Ethiopia. Jonas didn't have great relationship with them. Now in his 30's Jonas decides to retrace his parents life in America beginning with a road trip.

In his verison Jonas imagines a better outcome for his parents. He dreams for them if only for a moment. Mengestu's writing throughout was gorgeous though it was in these moments that I was completely wowed and found myself rereading passages.

The novel alternates between Jonas' story of his parents, his life and failed marriage. Jonas lives in New York. He meets his wife Angela working at a refugee resettlement center, while punching up (the sadder the better) immigrants' stories in hopes of getting them American citizenship.

Thanks to the book synopsis I knew Jonas got divorced. The author put so much care into Jonas relationship, I still found myself hoping for a different outcome. Though their marriage didn't last, at times Jonas and Angela reminded me of George and Coco from Mama Day by Gloria Naylor. I loved Mama Day and the portrayal of George and Coco, so this is not a comparison I would make lightly.

How to Read the Air is a beautifully layered story. Mengestu is a very talented writer and should not be missed. I can definitely [see] this novel on a few best of lists at the end of the year.

Mengestu talks, in this video, about How to Read the Air. For more, see The New York Times review of How to Read the Air.

Guest review of THIS I ACCOMPLISH

2010-10-04T09:48:00.000-06:00

This I Accomplish: Harriet Powers Bible Quilt and Other Pieces by Kyra Hicks is a testament to how quilts can tell stories as rich and complex as any novel. In a passionate voice fueled by comprehensive research, Hicks introduces readers to a fuller and truer version of the life and work of master quilter, Harriet Powers.

Harriet Powers was born a slave in Georgia on October 29, 1837. It is assumed that she was raised as a house slave and learned to sew as a child. She is best known for two magnificent story quilts she made after the Civil War. For over 125 years the Bible Quilt and the Pictorial Quilt she stitched have been closely studied for what they could tell historians and museum curators about African American folk art and the lives of slaves after the Civil War. Because she was a slave, scholars assumed she was illiterate. This assumption had often been used by scholars to explain the so called primitive look of the appliqué figures she used on her quilts to tell stories from the Bible and her life.

Powers’ life and quilts seemed to be so well known; Hicks originally intended her book to be a simple annotated bibliography. However, as she pored over the sources she began to notice that some researchers, made statements about Mrs. Powers and her quilts without citing verifiable references. Curious, Hicks decided to make a game of challenging what she read, and like the fictional African American woman detectives she admires in her favorite mystery novels, Hicks began to ask new questions about Harriet Powers and her famous quilts. Questions like: Was Powers really illiterate? What was the exact chain of custody or historical background for each quilt? Had Powers created other quilts and where were they if she had?

As if to make sure that everyone understood exactly where she was coming from, Powers triumphantly signed her letter: This I Accomplish, Harriet A. Powers.

It is because Hicks decided to ask what she didn’t know as opposed to accepting as fact what others had written that we readers are now blessed to have the full story of both the Pictorial Quilt and the Bible Quilt. We now know in intricate detail the movements of each quilt from one interesting owner to the next on their journey to their final homes in The National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts. In addition, we also get to experience Hick’s joy and astonishment when her hard work and curiosity pays off in the discovery of an incredible letter written by Powers herself. In the letter, the quilter states not only that she was literate but also how she became so. She also declares that she was the creator of at least three other quilts and represented her own artwork at fairs and shows. As if to make sure that everyone understood exactly where she was coming from, Powers triumphantly signed her letter: This I Accomplish, Harriet A. Powers.

The story of the discovery of the letter and the stories of the people who owned the quilts would have been enough to make This I Accomplish special, but Hicks goes above and beyond this. In the second half of the book she presents a complete annotated bibliography including books, articles, poems, plays, exhibits and other media. She also presents timelines that help place Powers and her quilts in context with what was going on in the rest of the world. And as if to pass on the baton of her meticulous research, Hicks offers in the concluding pages of her book, questions and ideas for future historians, museum curators, and quilters to work on. Examples of future projects range from: locating other quilts by Powers, to the petitioning the Postal Service to issue a commemorative stamp celebrating the 185^th anniversary of her birth in 2012.

I loved this book. The new research it uncovered about Powers and her life made my heart sing and after a long hiatus of just writing fiction, I felt the need to go back to my first love of quilting. I am deeply grateful to both Kyra Hicks and the magnificent quilt artist, Mrs. Harriet Angeline Powers, for reviving my passion of telling stories with fabric.

About the guest reviewer

Karen Simpson in Ann Arbor Michigan. Writing, fabric art and history are her passions. She taught African American quilting for over twenty years before her focus shifted to stitching words together to create fiction. Her debut speculative novel Act of Grace will be published in February 2011 by Plenary Publishing. In the novel Grace Johnson, an African American high school senior saves the life of a Klansman and everyone in her hometown of Vigilant, Michigan wants to know why. With insight shaped by voices of ancestors and spirits Grace bears witness to her towns violent racial history so the all involved might transcend it. More information can be found on Karen’s blog Grace Notes.

Ban my books, please

2010-09-25T09:09:00.000-06:00

Banning books is serious business. For the record, I am against it. Against censorship. Let people read what they want to read. Having said that, I've noticed that banned books get an awful lot of attention in the media.Banners don't seem to get that the quickest way to make someone want to check out a book (especially a kid!) is to say you can't read it.

So I'm thinking...won't one of y'all try to ban my books? There's not any violence in them, but, for some reason, book banners don't seem to care about that. But I use the "n-word" in Children of the Waters and the "f word" in Orange Mint and Honey. Both my novels have, gasp, sex. Ooh, ooh and Children of the Waters has a character who doesn't believe in God!

As a matter of fact, there are lots of worthy books out there some nutcake could do a great favor by trying to ~~encourage the world to run out and read~~ ban.

For example, I'm reading The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin right now. This is a book with multiple gods and gods who get it on with humans. Seriously bannable! (And for the non-crazy seriously readable.) The really cool thing is the second book in the trilogy is coming in November, so trying to ban the first book will probably really help sales of the second book!

And we'd be in such good company. Folks are always trying to ban The Color Purple and To Kill a Mockingbird, as just two examples.

In all seriousness, today is the beginning of Banned Books Week. Celebrate your right to read by buying or borrowing from the library a book that has been challenged or banned. If someone wants to keep you from reading it, it's almost guaranteed to be worth reading.

Oprah's last book club pick

2010-09-16T14:08:00.002-06:00

UPDATE: So I heard wrong. This isn't the last book club pick! Yay, I still have a chance to be selected! Boo, people will keep asking, "When are you going on Oprah?" Oh well, I suppose that's a small price to pay.

Tomorrow Oprah is expected to announce her final selection for Oprah's Book Club. Hooray! Now we authors won't have to cringe at the frequent question, "When are you going on Oprah?" (As if it were just a matter of picking a date!)

The blogosphere is guessing Jonathan Franzen's Freedom is the pick. Too bad O couldn't use her PR machine to give some worthy unknown novelist a shot. But we can't be too surprised really. Her job is to get eyeballs on the screen. Franzen and Winfrey making nice will get people to tune in.

If I had a show that millions of people watched and could only recommend one more book for them all to read, it would be hard. But for many reasons, I'd go with This Side of the Sky by Elyse Singleton. It's a great story and available in paperback and on e-readers, so it's affordable. About everything from the Jim Crow south to WWII to women's friendships, mothers and daughters and interracial relationships, it has lots of stuff for book clubs to discuss.

And, ahem, it's been a little while since O has selected a female author. Just sayin'.

If you were Oprah, what would your last book club selection be?

Getting to Happy

2010-09-07T05:53:00.037-06:00

I remember buying Waiting to Exhale. It was hardcover (first edition, hot off the presses), and I wasn't working so it was a splurge. It was shortly after my mother passed away and I was grieving hard. I needed a distraction. I went to the Aurora Mall and wandered the halls before it hit me that what I wanted was a novel. I hadn't read a novel in years. At the time, I was reading a lot of self-help and nonfiction stuff trying to get my act together. But after my mother died I wanted a big juicy read, something to get lost in. I went into Waldenbooks and plopped down on the floor in the fiction section and started browsing. I hadn't heard of Waiting to Exhale or Terry McMillan before then. The title intrigued me. I opened it and the narrator lived in Denver. I lived in Denver! She worked in PR. I worked in PR! I bought it. I took it home and sank into it like a warm bath. I probably didn't exhale once that whole year after my mother's death, but this was one of the books that made me think that one day in the future I would.

I remember later when the movie came out. I was with my stepmother and my Latina sister-in-law in Killen, TX and we were so excited as we got in the line. All of us, white, black, Latina, in groups of friends and relatives, were eager to see a movie about grown women and grown woman stuff.

I never would have guessed back then that I too would be a novelist. I never would have guessed the book I bought (and then, of course, went back and bought Mama, Disappearing Acts, How Stella Got Her Groove Back, and all the rest) was opening a career door for me and dozens (hundreds?) like me.

Today the sequel is out. And reading it is like visiting with old friends you haven't seen in a long time. And just like real life old friends, these women made me laugh, made me sad, made me frustrated (I'm talking to you Savannah!) and, yes, made me happy. I'm curious to see how Getting to Happy will do in the current book-selling environment. I'm hoping the audience that Terry helped create will show up big for this one. I'm hoping that all those women who stood in line to see the movie version of Waiting to Exhale will show up in bookstores for this visit with some old friends. (You can follow Terry on Facebook and Twitter too.)

Anyone else care to share their experience of the Waiting to Exhale phenomenon? You buying Getting to Happy? You are, right? Right?

And the winner of Substitute Me is...

2010-08-31T09:38:00.000-06:00

Sissy, you won the copy of Substitute Me by Lori Tharps! Congratulations! Send me your snail mail addy and I will ship it off to you.

ringShout kicks off new reading series (wish I was in Brooklyn)

2010-08-30T11:17:00.006-06:00

RingShout: a Place for Black Literature kicks off its new reading series and celebrates the 2010 Brooklyn Book Festival Join us for an evening of readings by four acclaimed African-American writers.

Ta-Nehisi Coates, Tayari Jones, Jeffrey Renard Allen and *Danielle Evans DJ Sounds by Rob Fields Littlefield 622 Degraw Street (3rd and 4th Avenue) Friday, September 10th 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm Suggested donation: $5

*Over at SheWrites, Dolen Perkins-Valdez, author of Wench, has a great Q&A with Danielle Evans (about who (whom?) I've heard two people use the term "literary It girl"), author of the upcoming Before I Suffocate My Own Fool Self.

The collection of stories is mentioned here in a list I can get with: 3, count 'em 3, black women writers recommended by indie book stores!

Let's hear it for libraries!

2010-08-28T10:50:00.002-06:00

Old Spice Guy, I love you!

I forgot! I have a copy of Substitute Me to give away

2010-08-24T08:13:00.001-06:00

The mind is a terrible thing to...something.

Anyway, leave a comment and I'll enter you to win a copy of Lori Tharps' Substitute Me. Read her Q&A in the post below.

Meet: Lori Tharps, author of SUBSTITUTE ME

2010-08-24T06:43:00.010-06:00

This is what I had to say about Substitute Me, Lori Tharps' great new novel out now:

"Book clubs: Substitute Me one will give you so much to talk, laugh and argue about, you might want to schedule two meetings to discuss it. Days after finishing it, I'm still debating who the villain is. Lori Tharps has written a timely, engaging page-turner that every working mom in America should read!"
Carleen Brice, author of Children of the Waters

Below is my Q&A with Lori, which hopefully gives you more of a taste about what her book is like. If you'd like more of an idea listen to blogger Evelyn N. Alfred read a snippet (and then follow her advice and go to your local bookstore and buy it).

White Readers Meet Black Authors: What's Substitute Me about?

Lori Tharps: This is a story about a young, career-driven woman who is about to go back to work so she hires a full-time nanny for her infant son. The woman happens to be white and the nanny happens to be black. The story takes place in modern-day brooklyn and simply documents the lives of both women and the people in their lives. In essence, the story tries to show what can happen when one woman hires another woman to perform her most intimate tasks -- caring for her child, home and ultimately her husband. Throw in some issues of race and class and you've got a really packed domestic drama.

WRMBA: There was an article in the NY Times recently about nanny fiction (a new genre?). How would you compare your book to The Help or The Nanny Diaries (which I know are two completely different types of books)?

LT: I actually have been using both of those titles to contextualize my book. Like The Nanny Diaries, Substitute Me takes place in modern day New York where nanny culture is quite common and it is just expected that most working women -- and many women of leisure-- will employ a nanny. On the other hand, the issue of black women working as domestics for white women also plays a role in my book, as it does in The Help. Just because the year is 1999 and not 1959 doesn't mean that the tinderbox of racial tensions doesn't exist between employer and employee, and I try to show that in my story.

WRMBA: Like me, you started with nonfiction. What do you think is different about writing fiction? does one form come easier to you?

LT: The thing I love about writing fiction is that if a quote doesn't sound right, I can just change it to make it sound better without having to go back out and doing more reporting. But I still think that old cliche, 'truth is stranger than fiction' is true in that I can't make up a better story than what's happening in the world right in front of me. I feel blessed that I can do both.

WRMBA: On your website you talk about changing minds. What's your goal(s) as a writer? Do you set out to educate? Entertain? Illuminate?

LT: Can I say all three? Really. I don't think I'm talented enough yet to write the book that will change the world...and damn it The Secret has already been written...but I hope that with the stories I share, be they true or invented, they will be entertaining enough that people will want to read them, and by the time they finish they'll have changed their thinking in some way or learned something about the human condition. And it doesn't have to be a big change, just one little a-ha moment would be good enough.

WRMBA: Who's the audience for your novel?

LT: Women. All women, regardless of ethnic background. If I had to pick the category for Substitute Me, I'd say women's fiction. I honestly don't think many men would pick this book for themselves, although my husband did enjoy it very much. But then again, he kind of had to.

WRMBA: What's next for you? More fiction or back to nonfiction?

LT: I am actually working on a YA novel right now about a biracial girl whose mother forces her to give up her dream of being a ballerina. And then because I make my living as a journalism professor, my next book will definitely be non-fiction.

WRMBA: What's the best book (or whose the best writer) that not enough people know about?

LT: This is going to sound a little strange because I think anybody with a Twitter account and/or a television knows the writer Toure. He's known as a cultural critic/journalist, but I swear one of the best books I've ever read was his novel, Soul City. It's like totally Gabriel Garcia Marquez magical realism but replace magical black people for the magical Hispanic people and set the action in Soul City instead of an anonymous Latin American city. That book is so fresh and so unique and so freaking funny and insightful I can't believe Toure hasn't written more fiction. I met him recently and told him to get on it! I hope he takes my advice.

Thanks for having me.

WRMBA: Happy Pub Day, Lori! Here's a link to Lori's tour schedule (so far), if you want to see if she'll be in your area.

A black author reviews The Help

2010-08-16T09:24:00.000-06:00

I haven't read The Help, Kathryn Stockett's book about maids in the south. But I'm definitely aware of it as a phenomenon and as a lightning rod for debate. It raises a lot of questions. Would a similar book by a black author have done as well? Should a white writer write about black characters, and how can you write about other ethnicities well? Is it a good portrayal of black people or are the maids stereotypes? Etc.

So I was curious when author Trisha R. Thomas said on her Facebook page that at first she put the book down, but picked it back up and was glad she did. I asked her to blog a review. I confess I put the book down very early on because I couldn't get past a black maid carrying on about how much she loved the white children she was raising. (And, yes, novelist jealousy might have had a little something to do with it too.)

For the record, I believe all writers have the right to tell stories about people different from them. But I believe part of the reason this book did so well was because the author was white. I have a hard time imagining the word of mouth would have been as great if the author were black. If only because if the author were black, most of y'all wouldn't have even been told about the book.

I'd be curious to hear your take. Have you read it? What did you think of it?

The following review is from Trisha R. Thomas, the author of the Nappily Series. Her sixth novel Un-Nappily In Love continues with the spirited character, Venus Johnston who bucks the status quo and starts living for the beauty within, instead of what’s on the outside.

Below her review are some books by black authors that get mentioned in the same breath as The Help and The Secret Life of Bees (a book I liked), but so far haven't taken off the same way those books have. I'd also like those of you who read The Help to tell me what other books would you suggest?

The Help, review by Trisha R. Thomas

I was one of the many who judged a book by it’s color. What would a white woman know about the black experience, and why did she feel the need to write on the subject. The choice most likely wasn’t a choice at all. We are who we are. The old adage of write what you know feels powerfully at work here. The author, Kathryn Stockett spent the first sixteen years of her life, nearly everyday with a black woman who took care of her. That woman was her maid, Demitrie. Initially, she sought to write through Demitrie’s voice. Instead the result became “The Help”, a fictional account of Jackson, Mississippi in the 60’s. Pre-civil rights, during the unfolding of a tumultuous time for the south.

"Caring whether or not the author is black or white seems of no substance now."

Kathryn Stockett’s first novel opens with the voice of Abilene in a Southern accent so strong and improper that I know before the first sentence is complete she has something important to say. She is the lead storyteller of this taboo tale of sisterhood between the help and the white women employers in a time when the color lines were clearly marked too dangerous to cross. Soon I will hear another maid, Minny, her voice strong and spirited, raising her children with a husband who is drunk by sundown. Abilene and Minny captured my heart and ear. These were the voices that brought me back to the novel countless times when I’d given up lost in the swirl of names and activities of the Junior League of white women. Who stole who’s boyfriend? Who married who? Sharp tongued characters that blurred into one, two, three, or four at voices at time. After all, once the League ladies got together to play bridge, or plan their next big party, their topic discussion always landed on the “uncleanliness of the nigras” who by the way cooked their food, took care of their children, and waited on them hand and foot. Enough reason at any given time to throw in the towel.

And then there was Skeeter, also in the League of gentle-women. The trouble begins with Skeeter, bored and suffocating under the rigid expectations of her southern upbringing. She returns home from college without a husband and no prospects. Hair too frizzy, reed tall, and short on patience with the town’s pent up old ways, she turns her attention to having a career, unlike the other society climbing women. Luckily the local paper will give her a shot. She’ll become the new Miss Myrna, answering mail in the weekly column giving tips on housecleaning and tackling tricky issues like water stains, and silver polishing techniques. Of course she doesn’t know a thing about house cleaning. Skeeter approaches her best friend’s maid, Abilene, to give her cleaning tips. The beginning of a new relationship. Cleaning tips turn into stories. Nights are spent taking notes of Abilene’s experiences.

Everything that lies in the middle seems to disappear waiting for Abilene to speak again. To hear Abilene mourn the loss of her only son. Filling in the void with each white child she nursed and mothered. Watching the children grow into young adults with the morals she’s instilled in them more so than their own parents.

There were moments gripped with fear and anger. The truth of the times can’t be avoided. One point of the finger and a maid could go to jail, accused of stealing a piece of silver. Their lives were not their own. Held hostage at the whim of their employers.

It’s true that readers are a narcissistic bunch. We find the characters who most resemble us and our thoughts to agree with, cheer for, and feel for in their deepest pain. We celebrate their victories as our own. The Help tells an honest story of women taking a chance and stepping out of old beliefs. You can’t help but love a story when the ones you care about win in the end. Caring whether or not the author is black or white seems of no substance now. Would a black author have experienced living with a maid all her life and know the life of Skeeter, Abilene, or Minny? I don’t know about you, but my only care giver was my mother and the public school system. I’m black, an author, and could not have written The Help. We are who we are. This novel struck the nerves of both black and white readers. It especially hit mine remembering my first novel and being judged as not “black enough” What did I know about nappy? How dare I write on the subject at all? I soldiered on, ignoring the critics. I wrote what I knew to be true from my experiences. We write what we know. If we’re lucky, we do it well. Judging a book by it’s color has to end somewhere. We have to be the change we want to see in others. Open minds mean open pages. The door needs to stay unlocked for all of us. Freedom to write whatever we want. Freedom to read whatever, whomever we want.

Liked The Help? Try these

O Magazine recently called Glorious by Bernice McFadden's this season's breakout like The Help. (The O review is here.)

I still wish more people would read the heartwarming The Air Between Us by Deborah Johnson (reviewed here). I just recently reread it and it was even better the second time around.

While Lori Tharps' Substitute Me is about a black nanny working for a white family, it takes place in modern day New York and the black nanny in the story is middle-class and educated. (Watch for a Q&A with Lori here next week when Substitute Me pubs.)

Books about Hurricane Katrina

2010-08-09T08:40:00.001-06:00

August 29 marks the 5th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina hitting the U.S. This year, there are a few books being released to coincide with the anniversary.

Jewell Parker Rhodes has a new children's book out this month called Ninth Ward that's getting rave reviews. (And isn't that a lovely cover?) Booklist's review: "New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina is the setting for this tense novel that blends the drama of the catastrophic storm with magic realism. Twelve-year-old Lanesha’s teenage mother died while giving birth to her, and, because her mother’s wealthy uptown family won’t have anything to do with her, she is raised in the Ninth Ward by loving Mama Ya-Ya, 82, who feels like her 'mother and grandmother both.' Born with a caul over her eyes, Lanesha is teased at school, but she is strengthened by her fierce caretaker’s devotion and by a teacher who inspires Lanesha to become an engineer and build bridges. Lanesha also has 'second sight,' which includes an ability to see her mother’s ghost. As the storm nears and the call comes for mandatory evacuation, Mama Ya-Ya envisions that she will not survive, but Lanesha escapes the rising water in a small rowboat and even rescues others along the way. The dynamics of the diverse community enrich the survival story, and the contemporary struggle of one brave child humanizes the historic tragedy."

I just finished reading Wading Home by Rosalyn Story. It's a novel about a young jazz musician who has left New Orleans seeking fame and fortune and goes back in search of his father after the hurricane. An accessible, uplifting story about family set against the backdrop of New Orleans immediately after the storm. It comes out September 1st. It's published by Agate Bolden and reminds me a bit of their novel Before I Forget.

The end of August brings LaTonya Jones' debut novel Southern Discomfort. Click the title to read the first chapter and to enter the contest Plenary Publishing is holding. You could win a trip for 2 to New Orleans to celebrate its release!

Plenary says of this novel: "Set against the backdrop of a post-Katrina New Orleans that includes a colorful cast of residents, LaTonya Jones paints a raw and vivid picture of the rebuilding efforts, and what it means to be resilient, to breathe again despite the pain, and to move forward no matter what. SOUTHERN DISCOMFORT will make you laugh and cry over the daily challenges affecting Janae and Neo, and it will stir your soul as you cheer for the city of New Orleans and the people fighting for it to rise again."

Tayari Jones told me of Natasha Trethewey's upcoming Beyond Katrina: A Meditation on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, which reminds us that the devastation stretched beyond NOLA. From Octavia Books website: "Weaving her own memories with the experiences of family, friends, and neighbors, Trethewey traces the erosion of local culture and the rising economic dependence on tourism and casinos. She chronicles decades of wetland development that exacerbated the destruction and portrays a Gulf Coast whose citizens—particularly African Americans—were on the margins of American life well before the storm hit. Most poignantly, Trethewey illustrates the destruction of the hurricane through the story of her brother’s efforts to recover what he lost and his subsequent incarceration."

Hat tip to Tayari for the news about Patricia Smith's poetry collection about Katrina, Blood Dazzler, becoming a play that premiers in Harlem in September. If you're in NYC, check it out. If you can't make the play (and even if you can), read the book (it was a finalist for the National Book Award).

In non-Katrina news:

Denver peeps, on August 10th at 7 p.m. Colorado author Traci Jones will read from and sign her new novel for young readers Finding My Place ($16.99 FS&G) at the Tattered Cover Colfax store. Here's a synopsis: "It is October 1975, and while most teens are worried about their Happy Days Halloween costumes, Tiphanie Jayne Baker has bigger problems. Her parents have just decided to uproot the family to the ritzy suburb of Brent Hills, Colorado, and now she’s the only Black girl at a high school full of Barbies. But the longer Tiphanie stays in her new neighborhood, the more her ties to her old community start to fray. Now that nowhere feels like home, exactly where does she belong?" Jones was awarded the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Award for her first novel, Standing Against the Wind.

African American Literary Awards

2010-08-03T08:18:00.001-06:00

Voting is open for the African American Literary Award Show. Please go and vote for your favorite authors! (As the Breakout Author winner in 2008, I can attest that it's really cool to be nominated and to win at this event.)

July links

2010-07-27T06:54:00.002-06:00

Since I'm busy overpacking for the National Association of Black Journalists' Conference in San Diego this weekend, I just have time for links. Luckily, there's lots of interesting stuff to link to!

If you're a woman writer, you probably know about SheWrites.com. (And if you didn't, now you do.) There's been lots of discussion about race & writing & publishing there, including:

A call for action from one of the SheWrites founders.

A black author asks for help from white people. Some people think it's funny. Some don't.

After Tayari Jones called for readers to "rise up," a white author starts to question what's going on with racial divisions.

Some other links:

Interesting interview with Nnedi Okorafor (whose book Who Fears Death Anika reviews below).

NPR reviews Bernice McFadden's Glorious.

Many congratulations to Olufunke Grace Bankole on winning the Glimmer Train new writer award!

Huffington Post names the most anticipated books of the rest of 2010. I'd be curious to know: what books are you eagerly anticipating?

Guest review of WHO FEARS DEATH

2010-07-20T08:04:00.000-06:00

I am grateful to Anika of WriteBlack for this review:

In Who Fears Death, Nnedi Okorafor invites you on a trip to post-apocalyptic east Africa, a world where computers and e-books are mostly just trash, cactus candy is a treat and oceans are considered myths.

If you elect to take the trip, you won’t regret it.

Your guide will be Onyesonwu, a young girl whose name means “Who fears death?,” born to a woman of the Okeke people who is raped by a man of the Nuru, an enemy tribe. Children like Onyesonwu who are products of the two tribes are known as Ewu and are easily distinguished by their sand-colored hair and skin.

Okorafor is best known as a young-adult novelist (The Shadow Speaker came close but did not end my probably unreasonable prejudice against young-adult books). She used this, her first book for adults, to muse on the nature of bigotry, love, faith, sex and independent women -- all wrapped in a shell of magical realism.

Onyesonwu, who is a young child when we meet her, is trying to understand why most people hate her on sight. She’s something of an outcast even in Jwahir, the town where she grows up. Luckily, she’s much loved by her mother, stepfather and eventually Mwita, the mysterious Ewu boy she meets one day. After a fateful decision, she even has three close girlfriends.

Her world has less technology than ours, but is no less complex, especially because everyone she knows accepts the reality and role of juju, or magic, in their lives. Onyesonwu soon finds she has a facility for shapeshifting and traveling between the physical and spirit worlds, so she seeks training from people who know more about sorcery than she.

It is through this training and her exploration of her abilities that she realizes that her Sauron-like biological father, Daib, himself a powerful and violent sorcerer, wants her dead. She spends the next eight years dealing with the ramifications of her discovery and coming to terms with her terrible -- wonderful -- fate.

This is the origin story of a mystical but fatalistic superheroine, driven to redeem her family and her people. She is Jael, in the tent with Sisera, raising a spike. She is Neo, manipulating the Matrix. She is Eli, a vessel for the world’s most important book. She is the Dark Knight, betrayed, but willing to face her fears and her betrayer for the good of others. She is (a more fully developed) Storm, the wind-rider.

She is still a teen with all the confusion native to that state, though. Onyesonwu and the world she inhabits are not pleasant to get to know. Her blistering temper tests the reader’s patience. Violence and rape are everpresent in this world, both thematically and as explicit text. It’s shocking to western eyes when Onyesonwu justifies female circumcision -- a procedure so hated in the western world that it’s been rebranded as genital mutilation -- and even more shocking to read about characters accepting and even anticipating their own eventual deaths.

But Okorafor balances dark with light where she can. When Onyesonwu takes flight over the desert with a dragon-like creature, it’s almost impossible not to feel her wonder. Mwita’s declaration of his love and his quiet steadiness make him as impressive as any romance-novel hero.

Some elements of Who Fears Death are dubious or incredibly frustrating. A secondary character whom we’re meant to take quite seriously at one point intones a phrase that is the chorus to a Schoolhouse Rock song (I won’t spoil the moment for you, but if it doesn’t distract you, you’re a better person than I). Far too much of the story is set in Jwahir, an unfortunate development that makes the final third of the book and the climactic battle seem terribly rushed.

Those failures are minor irritants.

Ultimately, Who Fears Death is a taste of something really good, but not quite delicious. Promising, tantalizing, but just a sprinkle or two of spice away from being truly transcendent.

Grade: B-

Look at your grades. Now look at mine.

2010-07-17T09:58:00.001-06:00

This has nothing to do with the topic of this blog (except for yay libraries!), but I couldn't resist. Thanks Tara Betts, author of Arc & Hue, for the link. Enjoy!

Reader love

2010-07-13T06:47:00.000-06:00

Look what the nice women of the Go On Girl! Book Club have come up with to show their love for black authors! They were inspired by my gear to make their own using their own logo. Well done ladies! And thanks for all you do to support authors!

If you're looking for some great reads check out the GOG reading list for 2010 and past years to 1991.

If you like book- and writing-related stuff, check out this Black Library Girl tee. When I finish my next project, this will be my reward.

FYI, I'm guest blogging at Nubian Lit tomorrow. I have a piece about how writing and gardening are alike. Check it out.

Readathon

2010-07-06T08:04:00.003-06:00

BrownGirl Speaks is hosting the African Diaspora Readathon this coming Saturday (July 10). 12 hours of reading books by authors of African descent. Participants can check in with each other and hear about good books from one another. Also, Ms. BrownGirl will be giving away a prize (to be announced the day of the readathon).

If that doesn't sound great enough, she recommends making a donation to the charity of their choice as part of the Readathon. So like give $5 or $10 for every hour you read.

Cheers to you, BrownGirl for a great idea!

A suggestion for the readathon: you can definitely finish A Taste of Honey by Jabari Asim in 12 hours and it will be a day spent with wonderfully funny and warm people. (When you're done, go over to Amazon and leave a review.)

Here's a quote:

"As soon as I decided to have a crush on Polly she had to go and change my mind. Shom said it's just as well because fat girls ain't worth a pretty boy's time. Of course he was talking about himself, not me. He said he wouldn't give the time of day to her even if she had been as fine as Diahann Carroll because he could never trust a black girl named Polly. This from a black boy named Schomburg."

My review of Bitch is the New Black

2010-06-29T07:05:00.036-06:00

I'm old, is the first thought I have reading Bitch is the New Black, the memoir by Helena Andrews. Like the spinster English teacher auntie that I almost am, I want Andrews to lighten up on the cussing and use of the word dude. And I cuss and say dude! Just...not so damn much. I feel like I did a few years ago when I turned down a job because I would have been in a department of young women who said Awesome! a thousand times a day. It would've taken about an awesome! minute before I hit one of them upside her awesome! head with my awesome! shoe.

But I kept reading and very soon I remembered what I was like in my late twenties: just as mixed up about life and love as Andrews, but not nearly as quippy or fabulous.

It's no wonder Shonda Rhimes, she of the "Seriously? Seriously." conversations on Grey's Anatomy became enamored with this book and decided to adapt it for film. Not only is the dialogue right up her alley, but the essays (and really this is a collection of creative essays rather than the long narrative one expects with the term memoir) are insightful and funny.

I laughed out loud at the part in which Andrews talks about admiring Lisa Nowak, the "crazy astronaut lady" who put on adult diapers to go have it out with the other woman:

"Anyone who'll drive countless hours with a carload of latex gloves, black wig, trench coat, drilling hammer, rubber tubing, and about $600 to 'talk' to the bitch who stole her man is a goddess among lesser women...

...sweet heavenly Jesus if we didn't know what it was like to be in the more than/less than emotional equation--who doesn't know what that's like? Stuck in that in-between place where nobody's happy, nobody's leaving, and everyone thinks you're settling. But as black women, we felt an even bigger gravitational pull toward the jerks who were at once unworthy and seemingly worthwhile (and I speak for all black women because I can). How many times had we convinced ourselves of someone else's potential while ignoring our own, giving each other great advice that we never follow (girl, he just might not be right for you)?

Crazy astronaut ladies and fabulous twenty-something black chicks are in the same spaceship: they're aliens among men blasting off to who knows where."

Andrews is black and black is in the title of the book, but at the risk of being stupidly obvious, I have to point out that 20-something and 30-something women, no matter what your race, will likely relate to her stories about finding her way in the world. (Very happy to see the book being included with reviews of funny books by white chicks! Go St. Petersburg Times!) And if you had a less-than-traditional upbringing (Andrews' mother is lesbian and likes to move a lot), like I did, you will relate even more.

But young women let me put in terms you might better understand: Dude, read this book. It's awesome! Seriously.

Help Wanted

2010-06-28T17:31:00.001-06:00

After our chat on SheWrites.com today about women writers of color, I thought that maybe like in Lori Tharps' soon-to-be-released book, I should hire a "substitute me." But instead of "being me" in my home, she could be my public face in the biz. Here's my job ad.

Wanted: a white woman to pretend to be me in public

Want to travel to some of America’s greatest book stores? Don’t mind sitting at tables listening to strangers tell you the stories of their lives, all of which they just KNOW would make a great book? Always wondered what it would be like to be author of a novel? Have I got a job for you!

Pretend to be me in public. That’s right: I’ll do the work. You take the credit. No boring hours sitting in front of a blank computer screen! Just show up for the "fun" parts like media interviews and book signings.

Qualifications:

Must be a college-educated, well-spoken, moderately attractive white woman between the ages of 35 and 50. Comfortable in front of audiences. Able to discuss issues like forgiveness, redemption, love, rage, hope and despair.

Available for in-person appearances at book stores and book festivals. In addition, I will need a high-res and low-res head shot to post on my your website and give to media.

Answers to FAQs and scripts describing the book and my writing process will be provided, but must be able to lie improvise on the spot. Also must be willing to occasionally answer rude questions and listen to rude critiques of your my work.

(Don't worry about the double-consciousness. You get used to it eventually.)

Employer:

I'm a college-educated, well-spoken, moderately attractive black woman in her forties. I write novels that would be categorized as women’s fiction if I and my characters had slightly less melanin. Since I am unwilling to bleach my skin, I need you to represent me to publishers, booksellers and readers.

And because the world will think I’m you, I can write about an even wider variety of subjects. Though let’s be real: if I really want to hear cha-ching most of my new characters better be white. So I can sleep at night though, I’ll figure out some ways to add in the occasional person of color on the margins. A sassy best friend coming right up!

Salary:

This is where things might get tricky. I don’t make very much money and even with your help chances are that I won’t ever be able to pay you what you could make at…say Starbucks. However, the more books you sell the higher the advances I get and the more I can pay you. Also, I am amenable to “sharing” you with other writers, depending on how good you are at disguising yourself. Expenses for wigs, prosthetics (no wide noses please!), colored contacts, and make-up will be shared by the writers, but you are responsible for clothing. Just make sure we look good!

No phone calls please.

Just joking people! Mostly.

***

A must read take on a similar topic.

And on a very much more serious note, join The Bottom of Heaven as they host a round table in celebration of The Bluest Eye.