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Happy Birthday to Marcus Garvey Considering Marcus Garvey saw the caribbean or north america during his life as places that Black people needed to get away from, when you think of the struggles/challenges/unhappiness in Black Americans <Blacks or Negras from Canada/USA/MExico/JAmaica/HAiti/Dominican Republic/Puerto Rico/Trinidad/Colombia/Venezuela/Brazil/Chile/Argentina or any other land in the American continent> in the American Continent, was MArcus Garvey proven right about the inefficacy of Black people living side Whites? Side the best efficacy of Blacks when they live mostly around Blacks? And today happens to be MArtin Luther King Jr Day I quote MArtin Luther King Jr the third concernng voting rights legislation ""he would be greatly disappointed in the leadership in the Senate...that it's chosen so far not to get this done"" MLK the Third either is using very well constructed language or doesn't know his father. Disappointment today refers to an unfulfilled desire or want. Not, to remove from office. if MLK the third is suggesting MLK jr. will desire senators be disappointed. I 100% concur to that. MLK jr. always said in words how dysfunctional the class of elected officials are to the improvement of the populace in the U.S.A. If MLK the third is suggesting MLK jr. desired or thought the congress of the usa will act in the betterment of voting rights, Ihe doesn't know his father. MLK jr. wasn't an elected official for a simple reason. That path doesn't lead to the freedom leaded to tell the truth, to lead the people when what has to be said can't be a lie. Tomorrow is the anniversary of the battle of Hayes-Pond. https://www.lumbeetribe.com/ Happy birthday Sade Nothing can come between us- For the distant lovers The Sweetest Taboo- For the secret lovers Love is stronger than Pride - For the long time lovers <NEar my favorite Sade song, though I don't have a clear favorite> Smooth operator- For the players Is it a crime- for the mistresses or ladies of the evening out there And just so you know, Sade's early videos had an interwoven story about her and a guy if you notice:)

DC Milestone (dcuniverse.com) NEW VOICES. NEW VISIONARIES IT’S TIME TO WRITE A NEW CHAPTER IN THE SUPERHERO STORY. If stories are what shape the world we live in, then the storytellers should reflect that world. The Milestone Initiative is looking for the next generation of Black and diverse comic book creators. DC Superhero In 1993, four Black creators created Milestone Comics: a new universe of Black Super Heroes, brought to life by Black creators and other artists of color. Milestone didn’t just change the way our heroes looked. It built a pipeline for talent who had been excluded and marginalized for too long, and an ecosystem in which Black creativity could thrive. Now, with the relaunch of Milestone Comics and the creation of The Milestone Initiative, we want to honor the creators of Milestone by continuing their mission. But we can’t do it without you. DC Superhero MAKE YOUR MARK Do you have a story to tell? Do your experiences, imagination, and perspective go beyond the limits of what you see on TV, in movies, and in other media? If you live and breathe comics, and you’re an emerging Black artist or writer —or a creator from an underrepresented group —we’re looking for you to join The Milestone Initiative. The path to a sustainable creative career in this competitive industry will never be an easy one. You already know that —you’ve spent years honing your craft on your own. But with The Milestone Initiative, we hope to give you the support you need to make that hard work pay off. The next step starts here. DC Summit THE SUMMIT Participants in The Milestone Initiative will be invited to a one-week summit, hosted by WarnerMedia, DC, and Ally, where they’ll make connections, create community, and begin an immersive course to help hone creative skills and better understand the comic book industry. WHEN 02.14.22 – 02.18.22 WHERE BURBANK, CA 1. ARRIVE If you’re selected to participate in The Milestone Initiative, your journey will begin with the Milestone Summit. You’ll travel at our expense to DC’s headquarters in Burbank, to meet legendary creators, editors, and executives in the comics and entertainment industries. 2. LEARN Under the mentorship of some of the most prominent names in comics, as well as Ally’s team of financial experts, you’ll receive in-depth, substantive instruction about building a creative life and earning a living in this field. You’ll hone your creative skills, but you’ll also learn the business of the comics industry and receive advice on sustaining a long-term career. Following the Milestone Summit, you’ll go home and participate in an 8-week virtual course, where you’ll receive technical training through best-in-class cartooning and graphic art school The Kubert School. 3. CREATE It won’t be easy —throughout this multi-week course, you’ll be working as well as learning, crafting stories with your fellow participants. At the end of this journey you’ll come away with polished work that will showcase your unique talents, new knowledge, and skills and you'll have a pathway into the DC talent community if you want to pursue it. 4. IGNITE The Milestone Initiative doesn’t end with the the completion of the coursework. The team from DC will remain in contact with all participants in the months following and will work with them to find appropriate comics assignments and other work that will help them continue to grow as creators and further their careers with DC and in the comics world. HOW TO APPLY The Milestone Initiative is open to Black and other underrepresented creators who are ready to enter the comic book industry at a professional level. You’ve got the talent, you’ve put in the hours of practice, and this is the opening you’ve been waiting for. Think you have what it takes? Get ready to dive into the application. You have a story to tell. We want to hear it. PROCESS DC Milestone Now a quick reality check: we know you’re serious, and we’re serious too. So this application is going to take some time. We think it’s worth it. STEP 1: 10-20 MINUTES First, we’ll ask you for a bit of biographical information. We’ll also ask you to provide us with links to a few existing pieces of completed original work, to give us a sense of your creative voice and vision. STEP 2: 5-7 DAYS The next sections are where you should plan wisely. We’ll be asking you to put your talent and skills into action by completing a short assignment. If you’re an artist, that will mean drawing three comic pages based on a script we provide; if you’re a writer, you’ll be creating a script for an 8 page story based on a loose prompt we’ve created. STEP 3: 2-3 DAYS Finally, we want writers and artists to answer a few, short essay questions and tell us who you are as a creator. Describe your voice and your vision —what do you believe you have to offer the world? The answers won’t take long to write, but they will take some time to think about. (And artists, don’t be intimidated if writing isn’t your thing. We’re looking for substance here, not style.) Got it? Get started. You don’t have to complete everything now —our system can save your work, just make sure to click “Save Draft” at the bottom of the page so you can begin now and tackle it a piece at a time. DC Superpowered WHAT IS THE MILESTONE INITIATIVE? Superman wasn’t just the first superhero: he was an immigrant, an American, and an enduring symbol of our shared ideals. But as an explosion of comic book heroes took place over the second half of the 20th century, there was something missing. Despite an enduring Black readership, it took decades before the first Black heroes appeared, and once they did, they remained uncommon. Even the most prominent Black heroes usually appeared in stories written and illustrated by white creators. Enter Dwayne McDuffie, Denys Cowan, Michael Davis, and Derek T. Dingle. With talent, vision, and tenacity, these four Black creators carved a place for themselves in an industry that didn’t always welcome or understand them. Despite their success, they were frustrated by the dearth of other Black creators in their field, and the resistance they met in trying to tell stories that reflected their own experiences and perspectives. DC story-1-480 So they founded Milestone Media —a company that placed Black superheroes at the center of the action with their Milestone comics line, and which would make an inclusive space for Black and underrepresented comic book creators to flourish and succeed. Milestone hit like a space pod crashing to Earth —and its impact has continued to this day. Now, Milestone Media, is helmed by Reginald Hudlin and Denys Cowan, and DC is relaunching Milestone Comics and reintroducing its characters to new audiences, but we understand that there’s still much more work to be done to continue the mission of Milestone’s founders. That’s why, with Ally as our partner, we’ve created The Milestone Initiative. While Milestone Media is about telling the stories of Black heroes, The Milestone Initiative is about empowering the creators who can tell those stories in ways that are resonant, real, and revolutionary. The program is part of DC’s talent development program, Next Generation DC (NGDC), and is designed to identify, educate, spotlight, and empower the next generation of Black and diverse creators in our field so that the stories of the next century are truly reflective of the world around us. Throughout American history —in the comic book industry as well as in other creative fields —Black and other underrepresented creators have been consistent innovators and visionaries despite systems that work to exclude them. Now, as comic books take center stage in popular culture, DC, WarnerMedia, and Ally want to change that with The Milestone Initiative. The Milestone Media founders started the mission. It’s time for you to pick up their mantle. DC story-2-480 READY TO MAKE YOUR MARK? SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS DC Milestone (dcuniverse.com)

Well... it is another Friday, another day to love, to Oxum, Oshun, Freya, or Venus, another day to Kizomba! SOmetimes, you just dance to have fun and we see that in Irina dancing side José N'dongala, I love how the camera moved when he tried a trick. enjoy a free read https://www.kobo.com/ebook/the-nyotenda

Hi everyone, just want to wish everyone a safe weekend coming up and a sound piece of mind in these trouble times of ours. Have a safe weekend while not letting the sour times get in your mind, by destroying you mood, instead throw on some funky toons to get you in the up and coming weekend groove.... Jaws R.

Happy Hardcore Easter

Hey did you know that I'm A Proud Alumni of Medgar Evers College Class of 1996

Storytellers play the long game - "We must remember, we’re a civilization rooted in story-telling. We share information filled with iconic imagery, symbolism, and sounds. Celebrities are no different. They use the media to tell stories that voice their platform position or opposition." ~Melhopkinsdotcom

End of Poverty ?, the documentary by Philippe Diaz should be called how thugs ravage the land and have taken over the world. Imagine coming up with a concept for a book, writing a draft and then shipping the raw document to someone else - only to have to pay $14.95 to read the finish product. Except that is exactly what is happening in so called third world countries such as Kenya - "predatory capitalism" where the impoverished Kenyans work the land ship their raw materials for tea and coffee to other countries and never profit from it. I became interested in watching the documentary after seeing an interview clips from Confession of an Economic Hitman, author John Perkins. He talks about how he and others like him work on the behalf of multinational corporations to jack the land and resources from people in African countries... We're not free in this country - it's impossible to be - because no one will be free until everyone is free... Watch the documentary. Read the book, and then really begin to wake the Eff up!

I want to thank Mel Hopkins for her exhaustive review of Severed, A Novel. I am so grateful for her insights. It's fascinating to see how people interact with my characters. It's even more intriguing when they see things I did not see myself. Watch her space. She's up and coming. We need more writers like her who are willing to put the time in, to be thoughtful, critical, yet supportive. Thank you, Mel. You do me the greatest honor, to critique a novel written for Black women.

Kiese Laymon: A Writer's Writer Writing takes far more than talent to be great. One most also possess courage to be at the top of her craft. At least that's the takeaway from the essay "You Are the Second Person" by Kiese Laymon. Laymon is identified as an essayist and novelist but a few paragraphs into "You Are the Second Person" you begin to realize those aren’t just his job titles, he’s the embodiment of those skills. Prior to reading his essay, the definition of hack eluded me. Now I know it identifies someone who eschews writing for expression and instead kowtows to a publisher for a check. Check out Guernica Magazine and "You're Are the Second Person"

Why White Folks Love Hidden Figures by BAR editor and columnist Dr. Marsha Adebayo “It’s a feel good movie that demonstrates that even during one of the vilest and most racist periods of American history white saviors rose to the occasion.”

Historical Black Colleges or Universities academic press I emailed each of the Historical Black College or University listed from the following wiki page [ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_historically_black_colleges_and_universities ] My agenda is to see if any have an academy press, a publishing arm. I recall a listing a while back for various colleges across the usa, but I am interested in HBCU's specifically Most of them used a framework to make their websites, which I would had opposed. A college or university is unique, no two are the same, and all of these colleges have students capable of creating a unique online portal. Only a few seemed to have made their own webpages that don't have a style closely to another. Huston–Tillotson University + Interdenominational Theological Center+ Mehery Medical college+morris college+ north carolina agricultural and technical university+Paul Quinn+payne seminary+selma university+virginia union Other things Did you know Langston state is the westernmost historical black college or university? Payne Seminary school had the first african american college president. Tougaloo college is aided by Will Smith UPDATE: The first college to reply was Dillard and they said they do not. UPDATE: Many no's, many no's, many no's Fayetville said no but directed me to the university of north carolina press, which covers the entire university of north carolina set of colleges, which includes the fayetville hbcu. Spelman gave the first yes. https://spelmanblueprint.com/ The person who responded literally said, it is the voice of black woman hood, which is the tag line and as i am not a black woman, well...:) But I am happy to know this and will share to black female writers The first response that is positive and I can utilize is from xavier university of louisiana https://www.xula.edu/mainacademics/collegeprogram/departmentprogram/department/department-of-english/xavier-review-xavier-review-press.html Xavier Review press is a not for profit , and they only do one or two a year. Because of their location in louisiana they may fit my concept. UPDATE Meharry has a peer reviewed journal - The Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved https://www.meharryresearch.org/research/office-for-research-and-innovation/about-jhcpu/

Sailor Medusa Birthday Treat For Princess Tranquility characters from Kuroshi-tenshi Kuroshi's Sailor Medusa loves milkshakes so I figured, a great birthday treat for Princess Tranqulity, whom the sailor protects will be a milkshake: a cup and cream like Sailor MEdusa while a cookie in its embrace is like Princess Tranquility. 3D model https://skfb.ly/oKJyp Sailor Medusa Birthday Gift by richardmurray3d on Sketchfab Colored page version https://www.deviantart.com/hddeviant/art/Adopt-August-2023-Submission-979394363 Coloring page version https://www.deviantart.com/hddeviant/art/Adopt-August-2023-Bw-979394208 Sailor Medusa side Princess Tranquility https://www.deviantart.com/kuroshi-tenshi/art/Kalfu-s-Moon-Her-first-friend-976229718 Contest from @arcencieldigitalart https://www.deviantart.com/arcencieldigitalart/journal/OPEN-Contest-3D-Art-in-all-it-s-Forms-974532840 I used Figuro to design https://figuro.io/Designer

Artistic Truth I have said constantly that instead of complaining about what others create, just create yourself. But this goes into the realm of the battle between commerciality side creativity in the artistic environment in the fiscal capitalistic world in modernity. While I have always adhered to what my fellow artists said below. I also comprehend the challenge. that he dismisses unfairly. The problem with many people in fiscal capitalism is not that they don't have anything to say, but they want to say something that will generate money ,and that is where the creative is subdued by the statistics of commerce. All know, even if they don't say, to create art from your soul will not provide the highest probability to make money and all artists need money in a fiscal capitalistic world to eat. Nothing is impossible but making money in art is not about the artists but the viewers/listeners/readers. The creative side is controlled by the artists. The commercial side is controlled by the entire scale of financiers : from kings with a commission to the peasant who sees something for free. Create folks but accept that what you create may not be financially profitable, no matter how many people like it.

The photo above refers to the idea of Hip Hop turning 50 in the Bronx. A museum will be erected and celebrations across the city will be made. well in my view, what people call hip hop is merely a continuation of the Black poetic culture in the 1950s and 1960s which spoke more to black empowerment/africa that itself was born from earlier decades like langston hughes which you see in harlem's last poets. Mixed with the experimentation that black disk jockey's had started significantly earlier. And even the global exposure is merely continuation. If you look at Gospel then the Blues, then Jazz and then the Motown Sound<itself a version of rhythm and blues> you can see how each became more and more profitable in foreign shores. Hip Hop merely continued the long tradition in the music industry of the USA of exporting a style of Black music. .... For me, one of the tragedies of musical history is how it is presented by those in power more segmented than it is. Again, Rock & Roll is merely a variation of Rhythm and Blues which itself is a variation of the Blues. In the same way that Baroque/Classical/Oriental music in European Music is merely just versions of European Orchestral music. What I find changes more than music is the culture of people. And that is where the Bronx comes in. All the parts of hip hop were in harlem in the 1960s, but Harlem has a long musical tradition whereas the bronx was mostly white. So when the Black people from the south combined with the black folk from the carribean , immigration act in the 1960s who also combined with the white/mulatto/negra latinos, you created a multiphenotypical while also multicultural group of people who represented the future of NYC and regions of the USA. A plurality majority culturally is what Hip Hop allowed the USA to present to the humanity outside and it stunned the humanity outside who was used to Black music, but it was never attached to a culturally fluid identity like the hip hopers. Country music, which is merely white versions of the Blues mixed with european peasant music. or JAzz music which is secular southern Black music with metal instruments , ala the new orleans connection, are both very popular outside the USA but are culturally more rigid. While the Hip hoppers have an everybody's welcome attitude for the most part, that connects to the USA's reality after the immigration act of the 1960s. When Jennifer Lopez a child of the Bronx in the era of hip hoppers wanted to headline a motown show. Black people booed her and the show . why? back to my point. The key to Hip Hopers isn't their music. Everything Hip Hopers did musically you can find in Black music or music by Black people in the USA before the 1970s. Phyllis Wheatley through the last poets is the poetry. The Ragtimers through to the experimental jazz is the extreme improvisation. The Blues or its derivatives: rhythm and blues and rock and roll make up the rest. But culturally, the Hip Hoppers at their core were welcoming to all. All they wanted in return was respect. Whereas the last poets were against inviting blancos <white latinos> or white asians or white jews the Hip Hoppers welcomed all. And even that ties to the History of those whose appearance is given the text label black. Frederick Douglass to MLK jr's philosophies is embedded in Hip Hoppers aracial view. If you give the hip hopper respect, they give it to you. Content of character not color of skin. And to that end, I wonder... but anyway, congratulations to the black folk involved.

Transcript or Video https://www.c-span.org/video/?522349-3/author-discussion-race-relations-black-literature

Happy 22nd birthday Deviantart

May your spirit fly high Nichelle Nichols Uhura LINK Uhura tuning Vulcan lute LINK Uhura singing beyond Antares LINK Bill Russell's spirit flew as well, the most honest Black basketball in media ever on coaching LINK on Black Youth LINK I PAraphrase Bill russell, use the link above to verify or read the whole"You have guys who have been pampered for 10-15 years. So you can't say this is an example. Or this is an average guy. Most athletes, my self included, are self centered. Maybe psychologically that is why we plays sports, but it is not normal. ... If i am going to go into Harlem, and go to a play ground and say to kids, if you work hard you can do the same thing I did, that would be a lie. That would be unfair to myself and unfair to the kids. I can say to the kids, do your best and fight it everyday. But to say I am an example of the greatness of the country, that is not true. If I am going to be honest to myself, I am an exception and have treated as an exception for years and years. The problem is I am only treated as an exception in certain areas. "

HAppy Valentines Day!! Enjoy the calligraphy or poetry Title: The Last FLail Author/Artist: Richard Murray Colored version https://www.deviantart.com/hddeviant/art/Valentine-s-Day-2022-Color-gif-906988319 Black and White- if you color it , do tell https://www.deviantart.com/hddeviant/art/Valentine-s-Day-2022-BW-906988146 Audio version- if you like to listen, not just read https://www.kobo.com/audiobook/the-last-flail

Brooklyn’s Lost Black City Of Weeksville: A Hidden Gem Of Pre-Civil War Black Excellence Tucked away deep inside the history of one of New York City’s most famous boroughs is the extraordinary story of a little town called ‘Weeksville’. Bilal G. Morris Written By Bilal G. Morris Posted January 17, 2022 Many of our stories of Black Excellence are buried beneath the sands of time, never to truly be uncovered. But history leaves breadcrumbs, and if you follow them, you’re bound to find an amazing story. Tucked away deep inside the history of one of New York City’s most famous boroughs is the extraordinary story of a little town called ‘Weeksville’. When we think of slavery we don’t usually think of New York, but the state didn’t end the practice until 1827. In 1801, Kings County, which today is known as the borough of Brooklyn, was still primarily under Dutch rule. More than one-quarter of the inhabitants were Black slaves. Nearly 60% of households in Kings County were slave owners. Slavery in Brooklyn was vastly different than the plantation-style slavery adopted by southern whites. It was more ingrained into the northern culture and economy. Families usually owned a smaller number of slaves and the slaves usually lived in the same house as their owners. Families who did not own slaves would regularly rent them from their neighbors. Although slavery was on its way out in New York, it was a way of life for thousands of Blacks who called Brooklyn their home. By 1820 there were just 518 slaves in New York City and a thriving free Black population of over 10,000. But in Kings County, there were 879 slaves, almost the same amount as free Blacks in the county. During The Panic of 1837 wealthy white landowners began liquidating their holdings in fear of losing money on their assets and properties. Smart and savvy free Black men saw this as an opportunity and began to buy plots of land from wealthy whites who would sell. In 1837 The Abolitionist and Black community leader Henry C. Thompson purchased 32 lots from wealthy Brooklynite John Lefferts. The Lefferts family estate was comprised of most of what is now known as Bedford Stuyvesant and Crown Heights section of Brooklyn. A year later, Thompson would begin to sell the lots to free Blacks in Brooklyn, selling two of the lots to James Weeks a longshoreman with a vision of a self-sufficient Black community hidden within the slopes and valleys of Bedford Hills, secluded from the rest of Brooklyn. The seclusion would not only keep the town’s residents safe from the white and dangerous world around them but would also grant them the freedoms to build a self-sufficient community with education at the forefront. By The 1850s Weeksville was home to more than 550 free Black People. It was the second-largest free Black community in Antebellum America. The town had one of the highest property and business ownership rates for any Black community in the country. Weeksville was steeped in Black American history. The town’s school, Colored School No. 2, would eventually become PS 68, which after the Civil War would become the first integrated school in America. Weeksville was also home to the nation’s first Black newspaper the ‘Freedman’s Torchlight. Susan Smith McKinney Steward, the first Black female doctor in the state of New York was a resident of Weeksville. Her sister, Sarah Smith Tompkins Garnet was Brooklyn’s first female school principal. Sarah Smith would also found the Equal Suffrage League of Brooklyn, the first suffrage organization for Black women in the nation’s history. Along with economic prosperity, Weeksville also brought political opportunities for Blacks who had been strategically kept out of the process. In 1821 there was a $250 property requirement for Black men to vote. Establishing land in Weeksville gave Black men the opportunity to vote in elections they hadn’t been privy to in the past. The community thrived and continued to grow throughout the 19th century, but Brooklyn was growing and would soon swallow Weeksville whole. By the 1880s, Weeksville was secluded no more and the Eastern Parkway was built leaving residents not much choice but to leave. By the 20th century, the town was nothing more than a memory. But history has its breadcrumbs and if you take the time to follow them you can create a way to keep that history alive forever. In 1968, Pratt researchers found remnants of the lost city while flying over Brooklyn in an airplane. They located four homes on Hunterfly Road, which were the only homes left from the original town of Weeksville. In 1970, the Hunterfly Road Houses were designated New York City Landmarks and in 1971, all four houses were added to the National Register of Historic Places. In 2005 The Weeksville Heritage Center was created, which offers tours of the homes, as well as public programs and exhibits to learn more about the history of Weeksville. Thankfully, what was left of this pioneering small town will be preserved so that future generations can see that Black Excellence is sprinkled all over American history. MY THOUGHTS Black people whose forebears were enslaved in the American continent <canada to argentina> have a challenge in finding positive little towns where black people were happy but the reason why is against the theme of the article. the reason why shows how many black people were enslaved. The question is simple, do those black people whose forebears were enslaved focus on the majority of black people who were miserable/in pain , or do they focus on the one percent of the population of blacks who lived happy with a level of freedom whill ninety nine percent of black people were in living hell? Another interesting thing in media, when black people compose articles, why can't we say whites. The article writer used the word families, as if families could had been black/white/ or other. WHite families loaned Enslaved blacks. The aphenotypical linguistic or literary choices from black people in usa based media explains a lot. Black American, Black being a phenotypical range, American being of the American continent <canada to argentina> , history is part indegenous/part enslaved/part european invader/part modern global economy immigrant But for the most part the history of Black people in the white europan imperial age of the american continent is negative. That negativity shouldn't yield happiness in the hearts or minds of black people. The only solution to lessening that negativity isn't a battle of philosophy or opinions, it is collective results, successful group actions, and the absence of successful collective results or group actions is the source of the continuance of anger/hatred/bitterness in the black american village. So , what have you created with other black people most recently? ARTICLE https://newsone.com/4277359/weeksville-black-town-brooklyn/

Against Mythologizing the Practice of Writing from Amber Sparks I suppose I started writing because it was the easiest way to dump out my imagination and play with it. There were few costs and no barriers to entry, no special tools or equipment or collaborators needed. When I was little and bored, all I needed was a pencil and paper to sketch out an escape plan, another world in all its intricacies and details that I could fly to when I needed it. I could create the friends I lacked in real life on the page. I could pour all my negative feelings into some truly gnarly villains. It was easy, free, and completely satisfying, whether I was writing for five minutes or five hours. I had this easy, casual relationship with writing up through college, largely because I didn’t think of myself as a writer. I was an actor and a musician with a bunch of retail jobs; writing was something I just did for fun, not something I was. So nothing was attached to it, no identity, no expectations, no fanciness. I wrote in the car on vacations, in the breakroom at work, in my notebooks during classes. I wrote and wrote and wrote. But at some point after I started submitting and publishing stories in my late twenties, and met writers, read blogs, did workshops - I started to notice those expectations creeping in, a slow set of mythologies that started to grow in and around my writing practice. For the first time, I started thinking about writing as a deliberate practice, and not just as an almost automatic action. I think this happens to just about every writer at some point between writing for fun and writing for serious. I don’t mean the practice of editing your writing and looking at it with a critical eye - that most likely started when you were young, and obviously if you studied writing or edited a magazine or became a teacher, the practice of critically examining your own work deepened, which is a good thing. No, I’m talking about that other thing - the mythologies around what it means to be A WRITER, to practice and perform the act of writing itself. For example! Every few months, another of those “what my writing day is like” interviews with some famous writer starts circulating on social media, and it usually goes like this: “10 am, emerge lazily from my beautiful French country bedroom wearing a flowing robe that smells slightly of the sea; 11am, sharpen fourteen Blackwing pencils by hand while watching the foxes outside my window feed their young; noon, harvest the day’s honey from my hive of bees while thinking slightly about the characters in my next novel; 2pm, write my ass off; 5pm, drink a glass of port on the veranda while listening to the gentle saw sound of the cicadas and thinking about the impossibilities of life” etc etc. People unusually share these interviews with a screenshot and a comment reflecting wistfulness or jealousy or aspiration or all three. “ME SOMEDAY” or “THE DREAM,” they proclaim, harmlessly enough, while not realizing that these interviews are being woven into their own internal writing mythologies. A real writer lives in the country! Sharpens fresh pencils! Wakes at 10! Keeps bees! And these notions about what a writer is or should be, and what kind of idealized conditions create truly great writing, start subtly to grow around the writer, like stupid vines, and complicate entry into the once simple act of writing itself. Suddenly the writer who has written on their phone on the subway commute, the writer who scribbles on scraps of paper between diaper changes or shift changes - the writer who doesn’t have a practice of their own, or a room of their own, or even a desk of their own, and has never needed one, starts to feel a sense of inadequacy. They must not be a real writer, because they do not take to an isolated cabin for weeks at a time to write, or have a sacred office space with special writing music and office hours to boot. There’s nothing inherently wrong with interviews with very famous and established - usually financially secure - writers, about how they write. That stuff is interesting to know! We love to hear about what kind of pens or pencils or software or notebooks others use to get the job done. It’s fun to read. The real problem happens when early or mid-career writers start to internalize these practices and become aware of what they then perceive to be lacking. Because here’s the thing: most of those interviews are with writers who are older, who have already achieved outsized success, both professional and financial, whose children are grown and who are no longer caring for elderly parents. These same writers almost certainly did much of their own best and most urgent writing while working a day job or three, while raising kids, while riding the Metro and running errands, while living in tiny studio apartments in a crowded city. The way that most writers throughout time have written - through necessity, through poverty, through children crawling on their laps and demanding their attention, through whatever it takes to access that imaginative fire. I would gently suggest (and I tell myself this, everyday!) that these mythologies aren’t really about the practice of writing at all. These “how I write” pieces, for example, have almost nothing to do with being a writer, and the reasons they’re shared have very little to do with being a writer. They’re actually about the dream of being freed from economic anxiety and the wheel of capitalism, and from the various demands on us from our families and loved ones. They’re a dream of “being just a writer,” which is less a dream about writing than a dream about leisure. I see it everyday - despite almost no fiction writer making a living being “just a writer,” emerging writers and mid-career writers alike have made this unlikely reality their goal. It’s no different from planning on winning the lottery as a retirement goal. And I think it not only leads to disappointment and heartache - I think it also leads to less writing. And there comes a point, or at least, there certainly has for me, where you have to start hacking away at the thorny forest of your mythologies (sorry to torture this metaphor) and find the pencil and notebook and the five minutes inside that were all you once needed. That’s your enchanted shit, not the country house and the pencils and the kudzu. It’s not a lesson to be learned just once, either. It’s a lifelong struggle, I’ve found. As a writer, I constantly fight the feeling of “if only,” feeling I could be a brilliant writer if only I had more time, more space, a real desk, a retreat in the woods. I realized, when talking about my last book in interviews, that I wrote most of it on my phone on commutes and very late at night, when my baby was asleep and I was wide awake. I had that fire in me then, and it blazed its way onto the metaphorical page despite my lack of time, or sleep, or solitude. It was the closest I had been in a long time to that deep mystery, that almost primal urge to tell stories that writers seem to be born with. The ur of writing, to be an asshole about it. This last year and a half, we’ve all had plenty of opportunity to experience the frustrations of not-writing, as family obligations increased or loneliness encroached, as escapes (even just to coffee shops) became impossible, as illness and sadness and anxiety stood guard at the door, and our writing practice narrowed to very small windows in time and space. For most of us, the dream went from “spend all my time writing” to “ spend any of my time writing,” and a lot of us lost a year plus of our practice entirely. I’m not going to spin the pandemic as positive in any way - fuck that - but I do think after emerging from the worst of it here in the US, my expectations for what it means to be a writer have changed. I had a disappointing experience last weekend, with a weekend writing retreat I had planned for myself cancelled unexpectedly. I found myself instead where I have been all pandemic, in my apartment bedroom, my child running in and out, writing on a lap desk on my bed. But somehow, I got on with the writing, and somehow, that old feeling, that love of story, that sense of following my characters into the rabbit hole and getting lost with them - it all came back to me and I was no different than me at six or me at sixteen, not being a writer or a Writer, but just spending the time I could with an imaginary world I made. Which is pretty much all I’ve ever wanted to do. https://ambersparks.substack.com/p/against-mythologizing-the-practice?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Lit%20Hub%20Daily:%20June%2011%2C%202021&utm_term=lithub_master_list

Enjoy Let's Groove together this holiday season and all year long. Brought to you by VisitDetroit.com Follow-us on Facebook to stay up to date on all things Detroit! https://www.facebook.com/VisitDetroit *** ONE NATION UNDER A GROOVE (Detroit’s Tribute to The Funk) Original song by Funkadelic was released in1978 by Warner Bros. Songwriters: George Clinton Jr., Walter Morrison and Garry Shider. Published by Bridgeport Music, Inc. BMI Performed by The Detroit Academy of Arts & Sciences Choir ft. King Bethel and Anaiya Hall DAAS choir includes: Sincere Austin, Ireland Bradley, Kyndall Bouldin, Drie Boyd, Alonzo Dock, Aniya Elkins, Taylor Glover, Morgann Hicks, Ari'Onah Jackson, Precious Jackson, Jeremiah Johnson, Tania Kato, Lucinda Liggions, Brionna Mahone, DeShawn Marks, Akeylah Mason, Charles McLean, Lillyan Orr-Mercer, Jessie Miller, Joslyn Mosley, Marcus Parker, Brandon Payton, Aja Ross, Aianya Smith, Ashanti Wade, Alanah Wingfield, Rian Woods Choir Direction by Angela Kee Dr. Ras Mikey C, Director of Choreography Also featuring: Chi Amen-Ra, Percussion Efe Bes, Percussion Duminie Deporres, Guitar Amp Fiddler, Synthesizer Larry Fratangelo, Percussion LaShawn D. Gary, Keys & Key Bass Eric “Rain Man” Gaston, Drums Video presented by VisitDetroit.Com and the Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau Executive producer, director and editor, Bill Bowen, Octane Design Co-produced by Mike Ellison, AddisDetroit Song produced and arranged by Mike Ellison and LaShawn D. Gary Spoken word written by Mike Ellison Recorded at the Tempermill in Ferndale, MI Sound engineers Tony Hamera and Jake Shives Mixed by Carlos Gunn, Masterpiece Sound Studios Mastered by Danny Leake, Urban Guerrilla Engineers Directors of photography: Andrew Stefanik, Iron Coast and Myron Watkins II Cameras: Ed Knight and Scott West It takes a village. Thanks to these people for their help. All the parents of these beautiful children for allowing their kids to be at the various locations for filming. Talent coordination by Ann Delisi, AddisDetroit Interpretive performer, Dr. Ras Mikey C Appearance by B-Boy, Haleem “Stringz” Rasul Armen Boladian, Bridgeport Music, Inc. Scott L. Guy, The Riviera Group Management Crystal McMahon, DMCVB PM, Christine Ribusovski, Octane Design And anyone we may have missed : ) Special thanks to these locations/organizations: Capoeira Mandinga Detroit Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History Detroit Institute of Art Downtown Detroit Partnership (Capitol Park and Cadillac Square) Eastern Market Guardian Building Great Lakes Crossing Outlets The Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation (Rosa Parks bus) The Majestic Theatre MOCAD Motown Museum Narrow Way Cafe QLINE The Riverfront Conservancy Royal Transportation Co. Yum Village Image of George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic performing in Waterfront Park, Louisville, Kentucky on July 4th, 2008 by JMSchneid. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. See why you can't stop Detroit at VisitDetroit.com #ItsGoTimeDetroit

Survivor - Session 2 - May 21, 2021 - OEB Slow-Read

Not so fast: Prolific Black Authors left out of a soon-to-be-published book of writers covering the past 2500 years. The Guardian reports with too Black voices missing from the nearly 750 page book, a major US publisher cancels publication. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/may/16/whos-missing-top-author-stirs-anger-with-too-white-history

Are you thinking about writing romantic comedy novels? You are in for a treat! Writing romcoms is a wonderful experience… but it’s not necessarily easy. That’s why I’m sharing 3 tips for you when it comes to writing humour into your stories. When I first started writing my Polyamorous Passions romance series in 2018, I didn’t really know what the subgenre was. I referred to these novels as “contemporary romances” and “new adult romance.” Sometimes it takes a while to hone in on our niche. I didn’t even know that “romantic comedy” was a genre of novels! A year into writing those novels, I happened to be reading a book by an indie author who calls her stories “romantic comedies,” and I realized that my style could totally be considered romantic comedy. READ THE COMPLETE ARTICLE https://kobowritinglife.com/2021/05/13/the-trouble-with-writing-romcoms-plus-3-tips-for-writing-humour/

Book Wish List Sympathy for the Devil: An Angela Bivens Thriller by Christoper Chambers - A metaphysical police procedural romance thriller with a Black female lead? How could it not be good? I must read this book! Trumbull Park by Frank London Brown - I found out about this book from my daughter. Her partner's grandfather wrote this novel about hostile integration at Chicago's Trumbull Park public housing in the late 50s. Ain't that some ish? Public Housing was reserved for whites only but, everyone's taxes fund the project. Good News, though, in 2020, the Chicago Literary Hall of Fame selection committee nominated Mr. Brown's novel for inclusion. It appears from this post from Richard Guzman he was inducted. BRAVO!! https://richardrguzman.com/frank-london-brown-inducted-into-the-chicago-literary-hall-of-fame/ TBD

Happy Easter Photostory tumblr https://aalbc.com/tc/blogs/entry/261-good-news-blog-stories-through-a-year/?tab=comments#comment-892 Photostory deviantart https://aalbc.com/tc/blogs/entry/261-good-news-blog-stories-through-a-year/?tab=comments#comment-893

yesterday was the anniversary of the first time a us president lived in washington d.c. and that president was... john adams:) Today is the greatest elongation between mercury and the sun, that means today mercury will appear farthest from the sky than any time after until the next greatest elongation Tomorrow is a lunar penumbral eclipse. MEaning the moon will go across the penumbral which is where the light of the sun is refracted off the side of the earth, not the umbral where the sunlight is blocked by the earth. It is also a strawberry full moon, a better word I think is totluc moon meaning total light moon. The moon is always full. Where as the %paraluc moon can be for the other phases of the moon outside the new moon , which is more appropriately anluc meaning no light. It is called a strawberry moon based on the habit of algonquin's , a native people that used to live where the midatlantic states in the usa reside, who will pick strawberry's around this time of year. It is also the roman catholic st bonafice day who is known as the patron saint of the germans. As well as an Ember day for the Latin Catholics, so be ready to fast you latins.

HOLD ONTO LOVE. Shit happens — no need to immortalize it. If you survive it, internalize what's left. LOVE. Happy Valentine's Day.

Greetings Everyone and Happy 2020' I am feeling energized by what is still yet to come for me and continuing my journey. I recently went out to perform and it felt great being appreciated by the crowd. Here is a little clip of me. Peace! https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0?ui=2&ik=37701fd47c&attid=0.1&permmsgid=msg-a:r172384196585482943&th=16fa897786429dd7&view=att&disp=safe&realattid=16fa896ea276ea0d9b71

The Cooking Gene by Culinary Historian Michael W. Twitty is The 2018 James Beard Award (non-cookbook) winner and as much as I can't stand awards I have to give them a second look now because without hearing that Twitty won the award I would not have heard of this book - which I now absolutely must have on my bookshelf. I love to cook but I especially love to cook the foods that are indigenous to my family. Anyway, I found this interview from Mr. Twitty and African Ancestry's co-founder Dr. Gina Paige and it too is delightful!!!

What is the lesson to all artist after reading this article? never sell what you create, never! http://comicsalliance.com/superman-check-jerry-siegel-joe-shuster-dc-comics/ supermans torn cape Artist: Sandra Chevrier place: Bülowstr. Berlin

"Brian Tart, President and Publisher of Viking says; "DeRay McKesson is the voice of a new generation, leading the charge in the fight against racism and injustice today," And that voice will sound off in the upcoming book with Viking - On the Other Side of Freedom: The Case for Hope by DeRay McKesson. Read more here: The Thriving Writer

From YA Author to Newbery Medalist to having his own imprint! "Kwame Alexander Will Start His Own Imprint. The Name? Versify. Get It? " Link: New York Times Books

Jesus said unto him "Thou shalt love the Lord thy G-d with all thy heart, and with all ... 39 And the second is like unto it, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." #Greatestcommandment #relationshipgoals Nah, I’d rather you love me better. It seems most of Y’all don't love yourself all that well. ~Thanks.

“It is good to be ‘woke’. It is even better to be ‘woke” to your own f*cked up sh*t too…” ~Manatole From Mel Hopkins' Actuate: Thought Into Action

National Action Network Goes Live! Impact TV logo National Action Network founded by Reverend Al Sharpton will go live across the nation on Saturday, June 10, 2017 as the newest addition to the growing scheduled line-up on Impact TV. In a press release distributed through PR Newswire, the civil rights leader, Reverend Al Sharpton, is expected to preach from the scriptures, talk about the state of civil rights in the U.S. and bring a message that is intended to lift spirits toward action. National Action Network will broadcast live at 10 AM EDT from House of Justice in Harlem, New York on the 100 percent African American-owned and operated Christian television network founded by Bishop Wayne T. Jackson and Dr. Beverly Y. Jackson in 2010. You may recall, Bishop Jackson hosted the then Republican Presidential candidate nominee, Donald J. Trump, for a one-on-one interview that aired on Impact TV last September. Impact TV is available on cable & satellite television providers Comcast Xfinity, Dish, DirectTV, Charter Spectrum and Time Warner Spectrum. Check your local listings for availability

Before digital social networks and social media, I used to keep a scrapbook for all the news stories I found interesting - here's one such article : Pioneer Aviator Bessie Coleman in this 1920s photos was the world's first black female aviator. She was licensed in 1921

Searching for a birthday card the other day, I noticed in Rite-aid there were no hallmark cards only American greetings and in Publix grocery store, they only stocked Hallmark greeting cards. What was noticeably absent, or not, because I can't really recall hearing about them until today was "African-American Expressions. Founder, Gregory Perkins, indicates on the company profile , AAE has been existence for 26 years. "Today, African American Expressions sells over 2,500,000 cards annually with over 500 original designs. This multimillion dollar operation has expanded to include many other inspirational gifts such as calendars, handcrafted figurines, journals, mugs, magnets, bookmarks, Christmas decorations and more." Visit African American Expressions at http://www.black-cards.com and download their catalog, http://www.black-cards.com/aaexp/pdf/common/WS_catalog.pdf

"Severed", A Novel, is a crime thriller and an entertaining whodunit but I recommend it as a self-help book in my commentary "Severed", A Novel | A Black Woman's Burden Short Synopsis | Severed, a Novel "Someone is a few digits short of a hand in Nakadee, Louisiana. What’s worse, someone may be torturing and holding the finger-less victim captive in this small river town. Head of Nakadee Police Department Criminal Investigations Unit Captain Nate Padgett enlists the help of Forensic Anthropologist Lula Logan, PhD whom he feels he can trust since she’s having an affair with his direct report Junior Detective Devon Lemonde. Padgett needs Logan to find out if the victim is still among the living. Dead or Alive means the difference between a local investigation or handing it over to the Feds. Meanwhile Dr. Logan has her own project underway. She’s in town to work on research project that will tell the story of the enslaved Africans who revolted against their captors in 1830 on a former plantation. Dr. Logan has her finger on the pulse of present missing fingers case and that of the enslaved Africans of the past …the question remains, however, which case will be her undoing."

CCBC Publishing Statistics of Children’s Books by and About People of Color - In 1985, a task to find eligible books for the prestigious Coretta Scott King Book Award for African American authors and illustrators; turned into a mission for for identifying all trade books published each year by and for people of color. Today, the counting continues... "The more books there are, especially books created by authors and Illustrators of color, the more opportunities librarians, teachers, and parents and other adults have of finding outstanding books for young readers and listeners that reflect dimensions of their lives, and give a broader understanding of who we are as a nation."

Currently reading Severed by VL Towler. I started this book some time ago, then I got really busy and put it on the back-burner. Then I thought, make time to read. Make a commitment to a book like you used to do in your youth. Reading like writing, forces you to close out your thoughts and enter the world of someone's making or into a world of your own making. Reading/Writing a book is a selfish undertaking. One that you owe to yourself.

12-year-old Activist Lands Book Publishing Deal Marley Dias, Pictured Photo credit: Andrea Cipriani Mecchi Tired of the school's reading list filled with white boy and dog protagonist, Marley Dias kicked off her own hashtag #1000BlackGirlBooks, last January, which featured Black girls as stars of their stories. She achieved her goal of collecting and donating books with black girls as the protagonist. Today Scholastic announced Dias will pen her own story about social activism. “Marley is using her voice to advocate for social justice, a commitment reflected by her ambitious life goals: she dreams of becoming an editor of her very own magazine and plans to use media to spread positive messages and to perpetuate more socially conscious pop culture” Scholastic, Inc. reports the book will be released in the Spring of 2018 .

SoulJourn: "Celebrating Black Women Filmmakers" "On the occasion of the recent restoration and re-release of Julie Dash’s 1991 masterpiece Daughters of the Dust, BAMcinématek celebrates the black women directors who blazed the trail for that landmark film. The filmmakers represented in this series all worked far outside the mainstream, often with limited resources, overcoming a historically hostile system in order to tell their stories on screen. Taken together, their work represents a rich history of long-undervalued independent filmmaking. “One Way or Another” is co-programmed by BAMcinématek’s Nellie Killian and Michelle Materre; founder, host-producer, Creatively Speaking Film Series; Associate Professor of Media Studies and Film at The New School." Source: 'One Way or Another: Black Women's Cinema, 1970–1991'BAMcinématekFebruary 3–23, 2017

SoulJourn: "Not all Blacks in America were enslaved but laws enacted against their freedom haven't changed since colonial times. Source: The Black North: A Social Study by &nbsp;William Edward Burghardt Du Bois &nbsp;November 17, 1901

Status: Agitated As humans our default mode is happy. It may be hard to tell but we are a community-oriented species... Just watch us when shit hits the fan and you'll see our true nature. We come together with one mission - "to make everyone whole again". Yet, there are forces in this world that prefer we stay agitated. Upgrade: remaining agitated eventually leads to submission. Today's MISSION: Shine bright like the Sun!

As we head into Black history month 2017 I hope to find out more and report on the under-told story of "free negro" - A British legal status referring to black people in early America who were not nor were ever slaves. If anyone has any info know that I welcome all tips!

Have you heard of Jelly? It's a Q & A social media platform. I answered this question " I need new shoes for walking/jogging long distance. My biggest issue is that I have a men's size 16 shoe. Any tips on a brand?" I linked to your FAQ on your site about 15 and up-personal shopping and my answer was helpful. Not sure if you're on Jelly but with your expertise in shoes - I think you'd do well there too!

Inviting the AALBC to the Opening Reception 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm on March 18th, 2016. It will be held at my new facility, SC Wild's Heritage Center of Plantation Quilts located in the historic McCormick Train Depot 201 S. Main Street, McCormick, SC 29835. If you cant make the reception please plan a trip to come visit the gallery. Our grand Opening is March 19th 9:00 am and well keep business hours after that. Monday 3-6:00 pm, Tuesday - Saturday 10 am - 6:00 pm (Open on Sunday by appointment only) It will be a chance for you to get your copy of my books "Keeper of the Fire: An Igbo Metalsmith From Awka" & "Jamel's Deep Sea Adventure" personally signed. I want you to see our museum exhibit also. I am very excited and hope to see you soon.

"Black people don't do this that", "Black people boycott", Black people protest" is so reactionary, so yesterday, My word of today is ACTUATE: From the latin word "Actus" to medieval latin "Actuare", "Actuat" to carry out in practice; to stir into activity; enliven! Let's GO!