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Never in my wildest dreams (and yes I have wild ones) would I think a short observation would spur such a nourishing conversation! Thank you @richardmurray, @Troy and @Kalexander2 for you evocative perspectives!

I never heard this before, but it is a brilliant observation.

Thanks Richard. Of course spam on your blog has increased since i blocked guest posts on the forum… i honestly believe someone just wants to make my life miserable. @Pioneer1 would say it is an overt act of racism.

I would like to live in this painting (the house by the river) with someone.

Thank you, Mel. You have made my day. Yes, the text next to each picture gives ingredients, process, and an anecdote that includes a quote from my mother or a story that illustrates not only her philosophy about food, but, of course, about life. From the beginning, I make it clear that it is not a cookbook or a how to book, but a book that will inspire some to create their own culinary art, others to enjoy the art when they frame the perforated large format prints on their wall, and everyone to be touched by my mother's story. It is a companion book to the first book, An Extraordinary Life: Josephine E. Jones. The talented illustrator has created an elegant cover that is a work of art, just like the contents of the book. Now if I can get the emergency loan-grant to pay the publicist, I won't have to attempt to do it myself. Thanks again.

Okay, WOW! I am going to make a notebook to keep up with this information. Thank you @Mel Hopkins I am going to break this down and digest this. OMGOSH! I can understand this.

@Chevdove Thank you for asking!!! (I'm so excited)...ACCESS = LOCATION and refers to where people are most likely to get information about something that interest them. Example - If you are interested in creole cooking - you're are likely to show up to a location that either serves creole food or teaches creole cooking. You will most likely search for creole recipes and even find a creole history club to join locally or the internet. You may even show up here AALBC to look for books on the origins of creole culture or if experts post here. You might even start your own thread about creole culture. NOTE: business owners provide what customers need so the customer can get what they want. Your interest in creole cooking means either you or loved one wants to eat it. So business owners fills the need - by selling a cookbook, opening a restaurant or inviting you to take a trip to the source. So, someone who is promoting, lets say Louisiana travel tours, will make sure they share their information at all those access points where you are likely to show up. They will be at the places where you might look for information creole cooking. It may be advertisement or even information about authentic creole cooking spot on the tour - or even the best dish and include a recipe... Now they have your attention you may even jot down their information for future reference - and remember them when you plan your trip so you can get some good food. This is how the best marketers are getting noticed in today's marketplace. EDUCATION = A MOVEMENT A lot of independent authors think they don't know their audience. My suggestion is to start of movement of one. Ask yourself, "what do I believe needs changing?" I did something similar when starting this blog. I believe Marketing = Change. Marketing is a force that shakes up the status quo. I believe independent authors are unaware they use marketing in the course of their daily living. Therefore, my mission is to help authors realize they can create change through intentional use of the marketing techniques they unwittingly use daily. I was the first person in my "marketing is a four-letter word" movement. I was the first one in the audience. I'm so passionate about this topic, I just want to spread the word to anyone who will listen. I believe, "If you don't believe in your movement or are passionate about it - no one will be." Creating a movement of one is the first step. It will help you clarify what you intend to change. Then, you will be able to identify the people who are interested in your subject matter. You'll notice there are "followers" who will agree with your mission. (note: it might not happen immediately - that's why you have to be patient and passionate.) These people are your core audience. Don't waste your time trying convert anyone who is not interested. Focus on those who are interested. -These "followers" will become your ambassadors who will bring other like-minded people to the movement. How to start a movement: Now, the best thing about being a writer is ideas and words are our movement. We just have to educate others and lead them to the goal we he hope to accomplish. If we didn't believe in changing something we wouldn't write in the first place. And the best way to help others make a change is by sharing information (Education). So when you start your movement answer "Who, what,where, when, why and how." from there you will understand what information you need to share to build your audience.

@Troy The action is here! Some of Independent authors here seem to echo the same thing "I didn't know how to market my book." Except, they do. -It appears they're not strategic in their marketing practices. I was the same way with my first novel - I knew what to do but I didn't work my plan. I like how you call it a (book marketing )"clinic" because it is! We, independent authors, already know what's wrong - we just aren't consistent with our "outpatient" care. I'm writing this out for me too. I believe this is one the best places for original content on the subject. By the way, I like that I don't even have to repost it to my profile - the software keeps track of all my postings as long as I'm signed in. Oh! I'll check out @dtpollard. @Troy OMG @hen81 is my writing "hero"! He didn't come here to play with us one-book every 20 year folks !!! 65 titles according to his last post!

You are giving a clinic now @Mel Hopkins. DT PollarUsed to posr here quiet regularly. He really was cranking the ebook several a year (or so it seemed).

@richardmurray Thank you! Happy New Year! @Troy LOL! You don't miss a chance to give facebook the boot LOL GOOD JOB!!! Facebook and anything it touches is anti-life...

Making money trumps (pardon the pun) serving the community everyday of the week. Johnson made it clear the "E" stood for "entertainment," not enlightenment or education. The reality is that it stood for enrichment, Johnson's personal enrichment, and that is the legacy of BET.

true @Troy Just today @Mel Hopkins the mayor to new york city, blamed trumps election or racial biases publicity in the usa on rupert murdoch or fox news. He blames someone whose role is to make money through the media for placating how white people raise themselves in their community. It is not murdoch's fault that he saw a mob and played to it, to make money, in the usa, where making money is the way to anything. Again, merit does not matter. De blasio today suggest a certain philosophical merit must come before fiscal profiteering when the fiscal profiteering is the philosophical merit. One note, when chernobyl happened the soviet russian government had soldiers pick up the waste, all those soldiers died of radiation sickness. Over 10,000 have died from the world trade center wreckage, but if we all recall, mayor guiliani let those people ,fiscally poor people or municipal workers,pick up waste just like the soviet government did the military at chernobyl... ah welll

The irony of this article dated May 7, 2018 appearing here as a post is that I believe it was inspired by awesomelyluvvie article - dated April 17, 2018 - Still, It drives home the point that unless a black woman's feelings are echoed by a woman of non-color - then those words are just another "fart in the blizzard." Further, tears of woman of non-color are assigned as the attributes of all women especially black women. And if we don't cry at the drop of a hat then we are labeled Angry black women. Or we're not women at all, or rather we're acting like "men"...because we don't act weak. When in reality women are not weak at all - but women of non-color just play men that way. Now, they've joined the me-too movement to kick men out of their offices all the while playing victim but getting the corner offices in the process. All I got to say is "well-played women of non-color; well-played.

@richardmurray: Doubt sister Hopkins meant where that's going, but i'll leave it up her to check it up!

@Mel Hopkins true:) but, what separate a baby from a program is a baby while it is created at least physically through parents, its design is special. the parents can not determine what it will be, like all the rest created from humans. @Kalexander2 yes , the one key thing that black people must state or remember is that our vote would not had changed it. The presidential election in the u.s.a. is fifty elections. whomever get the majority vote in a state gain all their electoral votes, except for two states, where the votes are divided upon the percentage. Black people do not have a majority vote in any state in the usa, and the white vote this past election voted as a block for donald trump. The black vote voted against trump, all non white votes , voted against trump side carson, but none of them separately or together did and do have the quantity to win it alone, as the white vote proved.

@richardmurray ... OMG!!! this is true of everything we create. Understanding the creator reveals the creator.. I knew this to be true of my writing ... to read me is to know my heart - (good bad or indifferent). BUT now looking from your perspective I'd say this is true of what we consume. @Kalexander2., "It's not that I have something to hide. It's that I have nothing I want you to see." ~ANON (Netflix) @Kalexander2 If I understand this premise correctly, if the state is receiving the money - then why aren't officials distributing the HUD funds based on needs - rather than using the cash to integrate communities. One challenge, however, is to make sure millionaires such as Fox News Sean Hannity don't get the HUD money and then fix up buildings in areas - and charge exorbitant amount of rent for each apartment. https://www.11alive.com/article/news/sean-hannity-under-fire-for-allegedly-using-hud-money-to-help-buy-housing-property-in-georgia/85-548596246

Remember @Kalexander2 every machine purpose stem from its creator, not itself

The esteem commentary here is encouraging and I'm especially happy to hear Black folk speak this way. All too often people tend to hide from themselves, who they are and how they feel. While I'm no great admirer of anyone putting all their cards on any table unnecessarily, I do believe anyone with something to hide exposes everything about her/his self. Machine learning, AI, data mining, analysis, etc., does indeed seek to learn in efforts to control and manipulate to gain some advantage over others; to little avail, because there is no 'human' touch (or intimacy). There may be an advantage, however, when people, government advance programs based on such intelligence; what they think they see or know, because a person's true feeling, beliefs, and principles get ignored in all the excitement of so-call innovative technics of 'social engineering,' (use of centralized planning in an attempt to manage social change and regulate the future development and behavior of a society). Thanks guys, for giving me an additional way of seeing things.

@richardmurray , interesting perspective and one that makes a lot of sense - especially with the history of humans seeking to control each other.

I see @Mel Hopkins yes, one member in the masses at a time:) Nice line Data analysts can collect all the information in the world; sift through it and concoct part of our stories but it will never be accurate. It will always lack intimacy. For me, artificial intelligence will never be truly intelligent. Merely an illusion alluding to intelligence that serve the vanity in humans to be masters to something.

@richardmurray & @Troy I hadn't thought about involuntary ways we share our stories. I was thinking more about how we share moments, and events with each other. For example, I can tell a part of your story, Troy, that took place at Brooklyn Tech because it was my journey too. Or Richard, I can share a little of your writing journey as I know it from AALBC because both of us look for ways to get our words to the masses. But your responses allow my little observation to become so much more than I'd realized. Data analysts can collect all the information in the world; sift through it and concoct part of our stories but it will never be accurate. It will always lack intimacy. Humans are too fluid. We possess innate ability to connect with another human in a way that allows us to feel what the other person is feeling in that moment. This is one reason, Artificial Intelligence will never become the standard. It can never be intimate - because it doesn't understand vulnerability. Such as the intimacy of community. In a community, we allow ourselves to see others and " be seen" by them. Looking through our data and trying to figure out the human experience is as hard as looking through our excrement and understanding WHY we eat the things we do. To know WHY we eat, takes sharing a meal and feeling the nuances of the story we tell. Speaking of meal and stories, -Amistad author Michael W. Twitty, won the James Beard Foundation Award for his book - The Cooking Gene. But I digress. I happened to stumble on this early tedtalk yesterday and while the speaker rambles on, he expands on this concept when he said "emotional empathy, feeling with the other person" His talk reminded me of why it is a lot easier to turn humans into robots than it will be for Artificial Intelligence to reach the level of humanity. Humans will always have shared stories; AI, not so much.

That would pretty much be anyone with a smart phone. Even tbe senior citizen with all those plastic rewards card attached to their keyring. It is hard not to freely share your information.

I amend:) especially today:) I do not have the numbers but how many people had their informatios shared from others, given freely from others in the internet age.

@TSegal, those are some views you got there, brother! However, this mess goes a lot deeper than most people realize. For the sake of this discussion let’s say that instead of 400+ years for European White folks to get it together; they had over 1000+ years of planning. I must use caution here as all I say must be accurate, though ever so unpopular. Allegations of ‘anti-semitism’ holds must greater penalties than violations of civil rights. Here we go! Since before the Roman empire was established, Jews who separated from other European Whites were prosecuted by virtually every society on earth, they got tired and got smart. Really evil smart. More than 1000+ years developing the theory of ‘double entry (modern-day accounting); 1000+ years studying (sizing-up their enemies) habits, likes and dislikes; 1000+ years stealing (plagiarizing) ideas, philosophies, science, ways of ruling a nation, and medicine from Black Africa (there were more than 2000 Black/Muslim universities in Africa) while infiltrating the very government they were subject to. Gaining trust, even marrying into families of their taskmasters. How astute would that group be after 1000+ years trial and error, and what would they do to the people who looked down upon them? Yes, it has always been White on White crime before the phrase was invented. Never forget for one moment, or underestimate the resolve of greed and power, and how even innocent children are fair game in the name of maintaining that power and feeding that greed. NO! No sir, White folks are not hypocrites, they not fools; they have always practiced what they preach. What they preach are all lies, contrary to the theologian riddled metaphor “mixing lies with the truth.” They always lie and cause us to think it’s the truth. I’ll prove it to you, right here and now! How often do we hear Blacks (you and me) asset that we are entitled to the same rights as White folks? What are those rights, I might ask? Freedom of life liberty and pursuit of happiness. Freedom for White folks is ethnocentric related (right to marginalize anyone different from them), kill whoever they want whenever they want and; freedom to follow the hegemony, their own. SORRY, but I am not entitled to, nor want that kind of freedom. Happiness for White is living perversely. I don’t to be a pervert. Just look at the most basic insignificant ways of living in modern society today, from the substance to subsistence, from what is acceptable to what is looked down upon. What rules and social values would you ordain right and wrong? All on the one hand. On the other hand, it does cause one to think (again), and reconsider principles of theology, all of them, excluding none. You’re on the right track, brother, keep up the question asking!!

Yes Troy, afromerica is my site and we still around. We were on hiatus for awhile but came back last year. Google has filtered some sites but we started back in 2000 so the Internet has not spit us out yet.

Fear is tool that provokes are real-life response. Fight or Flight... Prolonged fear leads to mental breakdown. It's not easy to just resist because most people are approaching psychotic breaks. Most people of EVERY color. We are not just humans; we are human animals and animals all react differently when they're afraid. Some animals play dead, faint and poop when they're afraid and there are animals that make themselves bigger when they're afraid and if pushed to their limit, they will attack. This is where we are today - you can't use a weapon without expecting a weapon to be used against you. Use of fear has pushed everyone to mental instability. Danger is real and it also provokes the same response as those experiencing fear... Fight or Flight. There is another way to combat danger and its through the use of CHAOS... Clear Head Assess Observe Situation then respond. Response requires training. Those who are in imminent danger are usually not of the mindset to survive the danger... especially those who have experienced duress due to prolonged fear. So first we must learn how to respond to a situation. However I suggest first locating the fire (the danger) because fighting smoke (fear) is a waste of resources.

Happily ever after is the problem, in literary terms. I will reply to your personal query but after I speak on the problem with the entire modern relationship genre. The first problem is where happily ever after came from. It came from a change in european fairy tales. Originally fairy tales were meant to refer to tales concerning the magical. A fairy traditionally is not positive or negative, in literary terms fairies is a magical label, how the magic apply to humans or the human world depend on the fairies, the humans, the various natural aspects. Most of these fairy tales were variations on pre christian stories from various places in europe that were becoming or would become heavily christian, at the zealot level. The christian clergy to their part, maintained the original christian method, making non christian things negative. This is why the word villans means criminal or peasant is low class compared to urban, where the christian church started, in modernity.Originally fairy tales had many unhappy endings. Some meant to scare, some meant to educate, others cause the story was good. But, over time, as books were being created, some writers decided to omit the unhappily ending fairy tales and only include the happy ones, or convert the unhappy ending ones into happy ending ones. This was the way in the european literary world; that coincided to the european global colonial age. The funny thing is that many of the conquered peoples native to <using commonly used geographic nameplace, not appropriate ones>: Africa/Asia/America had their own fairy tales which reflected the same style that the original european fairy tales did; but, these non european or non white fairy tales were barely transcribed or remembered or recalled through enslaved or genocidal histories. This lead up to modernity, in the united states. The U.S.A. media traditionally likes an inhuman position. From davey croket <is that the correct spelling> to the founding fathers , whether referring to real or unreal history the u.s.a. puts a happily ever after spin on all tales. When, the world wars are ended, the USA through its relatively advanced media machine, spread the happily ever after style and embedded it in films or entertainment. Artists who tried to reject this had to be independent or their work was undermined in advertising. The original scarface black and white film/comedy shows on early television/tales from the crypt comic books are all examples of media in the u.s.a. where someone was telling a story that did not end happy ever after and in each genre rules were set up to enforce a happily ever after product. From the movie ratings to comic code to prewritten shows on television. The artistic goal was blocking unhappily ever after from being experienced. Now, in modernity, the film industries technological capability has allowed an audience to see some of the most fantastic written elements absent reading or use of their imagination. The non science fiction or high fantasy fiction genre's like relationships or biographies are where books are making the most money. And, with centuries of happily ever after saturating the media in anglo led ,u.k. then u.s.a. , humanity you get to the current scenario. Now to answer your query, I believe in being happy in the now and not expecting anything tomorrow. Time is a teacher, treasure each moment you live, hope for the better tomorrow, praise the best from yesterday. Expectation is the enemy to a happy life, cause humanity live in nature, not dominate it, nature will give sad days, unhappy days, and nature is no sinner for it.

thanks @TroyImagine if we can get aalbc to grow more:) wouldn't that be great @Mel Hopkins as the online black community, this should be our goal, to make a black owned website more popular:) Ok Mel:) private message me on here, we will work something out. I will say this, the promote or social share is not present on blogs and i think is not needed. let us be honest. more and more online people, spend their time with photo viewing or tweeting but very few of them spend alot of time with in depth looking at any level. So, social promotion is good but in the end of the day, we have to come up with ways to engender them to us. many people today have filters to their social experience that grooms it.

http://centerforblackliterature.org/call-for-submissions-springsummer-2016-killens-review-of-arts-letters-deadline-feb-1-2016/ Call for Submissions: Spring/Summer 2016 Killens Review of Arts & Letters. Deadline: Feb. 1, 2016 Call for Submissions Killens Review of Arts & Letters Spring 2016 Embracing Difference Please send your submissions no later than February 1, 2016, to “Spring 2016 Killens Review” (in the subject line) to writers@mec.cuny.edu. The theme of the Thirteenth National Black Writers Conference, “Writing Race, Embracing Difference,” is indeed an engaging and inviting one. Writers of the African diaspora have worked in earnest for decades to compose text that represents African-American experiences in its complex and various conditions. As stated with regard to the National Black Writers Conference: “If one is to write what one knows, then that writing will represent their perspectives and points of views of racial, cultural, and geographical space in the world.” More recently within genres such as sci-fi, mystery, historical fiction, and biography, writers of the African diaspora have connected the experiences of Black America with a broader appeal. Pulitzer Prize-winning writer James Alan McPherson, author of Elbow Room and Hue and Cry, once commented in an interview: “I’m going to be called a Black writer until I die. But the point is that when I write at my best I try to look for the human situation….” The programming for the 2016 Conference came about as the result of wanting to examine how and whether Black writers “write texts” knowing they are creating works out of spaces that are constructed by race i.e. is race at the core of the works of Black writers, no matter how candid or subtle. For the Spring 2016 issue of the Killens Review of Arts & Letters, we want to continue that exploration of “writing race, embracing difference” in the works of Black writers. Under the theme “Embracing Difference,” we seek submissions of fiction, essays, poetry, memoir, and artwork in which writers and artists create works that embrace race and differences with regard to the aesthetics, belief systems, politics, sexual identity, and cultural heritage that are reflected in the narratives and texts they compose. The Killens Review of Arts & Letters is a peer-reviewed journal that welcomes Black poets, novelists, short story writers, playwrights, journalists, essayists, scholars, yet-to-be discovered writers, and artists whose literature and artwork speak to the general public and to an intergenerational range of readers represented throughout the African Diaspora. Submission of Material The Killens Review of Arts & Letters is published once or twice a year by the Center for Black Literature at Medgar Evers College, CUNY. The Killens Review seeks book reviews, essays, short stories, creative nonfiction, art, poetry, and interviews related to the various cultural, sociopolitical, and historical experiences of writers and artists from the African diaspora. The aim is to provide well-known and lesser-known authors as well as educators and students opportunities to create and expand the canon of literature produced by people of color. While the Killens Review of Arts & Letters welcomes unsolicited material, we prefer to publish original material, i.e. first-ever publication. Unless otherwise selected by the editors, we cannot run a piece that has previously appeared elsewhere in print or on the Web. Please submit to only one category at a time: essay, fiction, interview, poetry, prose, and art. We aim to respond to your submission within two months. Essay, Fiction, and Prose Please send one piece at a time. We have no set maximum length or minimum length for prose submissions. (The average word count is about 1,500–2,000 words.) Most submissions, however, are between 2,000 – 4,000 words. Please set up your submission in letter-sized format, with ample margins, double-spaced, using a standard typeface (e.g., Times New Roman, Helvetica, Arial) and font size (12 point is best). Include your name, title of the work, and page numbers on your submission. Also include a one- to two-sentence bio about the author. If the submission is an academic essay with references, please include your bibliography at the end. Please do not submit book manuscripts. Poetry: Please send up to three poems. Art and Photography: We welcome all types of image submissions. Please include a short note about the context of the images and title and/or caption information. Please include no more than six hi-res jpegs (at 300 dpi). Electronic and Postal Submissions Kindly e-mail material to writers@mec.cuny.edu with “Fall 2015 Killens Review” in the subject heading. Please include a brief introduction of yourself and of the work being submitted. On the first page of your submission be sure to include: 1. Your name 2. Telephone number 3. E-mail address Please make sure the pages are numbered. Or mail material to: Center for Black Literature Medgar Evers College, CUNY 1650 Bedford Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11225 RE: Killens Review Material will only be returned if the sender includes a self-addressed, stamped envelope (SASE). ----------------------------------- Submission of Materials: The Killens Review of Arts & Letters is published once or twice a year by the Center for Black Literature at Medgar Evers College, CUNY. The Killens Review seeks book reviews, essays, short stories, creative nonfiction, art, poetry, and interviews related to the various cultural, sociopolitical, and historical experiences of writers and artists from the African diaspora. The aim is to provide well-known and lesser-known authors as well as educators and students opportunities to create and expand the canon of literature produced by people of color. Please submit to only one category at a time: essay, fiction, interview, poetry, prose, and art. We aim to respond to your submission within two months. Electronic and Postal Submissions Kindly e-mail material to writers@mec.cuny.edu and CReynolds@mec.cuny.edu with "Killens Review" in the subject heading. Please include a brief introduction of yourself and of the work being submitted. On the first page of your submission be sure to include: 1. Your name 2. Telephone number 3. E-mail address Please make sure the pages are numbered. Please visit our website detailed submission guidelines at: www.centerforblackliterature.org/KillensReview

"Who does this chun-li fight in the street against? pooh bear?:) " No, but for real too funny

I watched the local news yesterday and when I look at the photo all I can see is a forest fire consuming me and all of my belongings or that river over flowing it's banks an washing everything I own away... More seriously; I guess were are in the midst of autumnal equinox. Here in Florida that is usually heralded by a drop in the humidly, the end of the afternoon thunderstorm, and the arrival love bugs. Since the tree leaves don't change color and die here it is like the springtime. @rosa "...with someone" is the important part. That experience would be goo alone, but great with someone.

@Wendy Jones "The Culinary Art Portfolio of Josephine E. Jones with Ready-to-Frame prints, where food and art intersect." You nailed it right here. I want to read, see and have this book on display in my home! So as you can see, just from this title and introduction; I already know I'm in this audience. I know there are others in the audience too. And here's why - #arthistory #africanamerican #womenshistory #chef #foodporn #gastronomy #oralhistory #pictorialhistory are some of the tags that popped into my head. I also believe "all art is political" ; so in the content I would expect to read about a change agent too. - Art is a movement. - Food is America's pastime and "Food Porn" as the young people call it today - is all over Instagram, pinterest and maybe even facebook as a club. In 2019 , We finally got our very first black woman Michelin star chef. In. 2019. So, imagine to learn there was black woman who was doing this way before social media was a thing! You are tying the past to the present and that would make this book hard to ignore. You've nailed this! Answering the rest of those questions just help you and your publicist to promote your brand in a way that secure you as an authority on Black/African American women history. While your mother may be the protagonist in the narrative you are still highlighting the journey of a group of black women and documenting the period for the annals of American history. Your brand is shining.

@Chevdove YAAAY!!! More to come!

I was asked a question If you're willing to do so, would you mind expanding upon this concept? I'm a white writer carefully reading this thread, but I'm a little confused by the phrases "still alive obstinate" and "change their minds against them." Trying to better understand! No pressure obviously https://twitter.com/Brianna_daSilva/status/1239685850926960640 My Reply is Well, in the beginning there was darkness:)... I do not mind communicating to any writer, even if you are a writer of white supremacist fiction. All artists must remember, our purpose is to provide messages, not to choose the messages people want. That is what separate the artists from the proselytizer...Anyway, the best method is to use examples. I will use a tweet sequence, I tried to make it as few as possible. But I placed a link at the end to read it whole. ... I will use three character. The little black brother in V<the television sci fi series>, a native american female character in a short story in a sci fi magazine i read years ago, Eric Kilmonger in the black panther film. Yes, the native american woman is not black african but native americans come in all phenotypes, and are definitely people of color, people of color defined as those non white europeans or of non white european descent. The black panther film had black writers but the base characters were written by a white man, the great stan lee. All three characters start off obstinate to the system. System defined as the culture of white european characters in the particular story. The little black brother in V, admits he is gaining opportunity with the green lizard aliens, he never did in the white human order. But, once his big brother is murdered by the lizards, he replaces his big brother to get the world back to the way it was, absent a mention of how his past activities may play out for him or anything else. He is alive but no longer obstinate. The native american woman is serving the aliens. In the short story which is a blend of "They live" meet "To serve Man" the aliens have got the whole planet forgive me, but they don't need to hide. The white protagonist is trying to do like in V, get earth back. He see an old acquaintance, the native american woman. They fornicate. She hands him to the alien lawmen. She says, this is revenge for the plight of the native american brought upon by the white order. She is alive obstinate. Finally, eric kilmonger chooses to die rather than live in prison. He dies obstinate. And, yes, wakanda is the most advanced community on earth while also Black, but their policies of non involvement relinquished the world control to less technologically advanced whites, which is kilmonger's base problem. To quote agent smith, we are free but not free. A long multilog to the writers choices concerning that is for another time. But, of the three obstinate characters, the native american woman, still alive obstinate is rarest by white writers. Obstinate characters themselves are less common than colored friends by white writers. The older black brother in V the common colored friend. But, that is why I said, I will like more Black characters from white writers like the native american woman in that short story I read years ago, still alive obstinate. Now if I am honest, I comprehend why it is rare, and I don't disagree to it. White writers nor Black ones nor any , have to cater to anybody, or any idea. All writers are free to write the worlds they want. Why would white writers commonly produce worlds where non whites are dominant? Fiction is just that, not reality, and caters to ourselves. what makes us comfortable. That is why I also replied what I want from Black writers. Black writers don't need to reflect peaceful integration desires in the real world.

Yes, thanks! Great article! You wrote: S = solution - show us how your product helps us solve our problem. A = access - consider how your readers decide to make purchases... V = value - ask how does this product (book) benefit your reader. Every book is not for everyone. So first find out who reads your type of books - and then share with them how your book fits their desires. E = education knowing who your readers are allows you to share information on topics they enjoy. If your book is a romance - then romance readers would be thrilled to learn the latest - like a romance industry gossip website will bring them to you - and you can engage and build a community around mutual interests. I love this! I am very shaky on the 'A' for access aspect. I have no understandable clue as to how to market a book and find interested readers! And the 'E' I do not understand how an author can really know who their audience might be.

@Mel Hopkins I like the name, bittersweet soul I concur that soul is a secular version of gospel. All black music is from gospel from slave days/blues from the earliest days free/jazz from new orleans.

I don't have a Valentine's album per se, but I do have a collection on apple music called "bittersweet soul." I like soul music which I've recently learned is secular version of gospel music. I kind of knew that though. "This must be heaven" performed by Brainstorm and written by Lamont Johnson is less romance and more like a love song to THE ALL.

You could have started and stopped right there @richardmurray

Cryptocurrency is now a new object interest for me, thank you @Mel Hopkins. I've been researching, investigating digital assets that use cryptocurrencies using an encryption technique, for security; how it is used to buy and sell goods and services. People are able to use cryptocurrency under near-anonymity, peer-to-peer purchasing eliminating of financial intermediaries, and some other “smart,” programmable capabilities that Bitcoin currently does not possess. There two major categories utilized for the purchase of goods and services and those that allow for the creation of a sort of “smart contracts;” agreements that enforce themselves per a code rather than the courts. With over 1,000 cryptocurrencies in existence as of January 2018 (called “altcoins”); over 600 have market capitalizations of over $100,000. I've noticed at least five-countries using this form of digital financial assets as well as identified several major companies all of which are U.S. affiliated, and thirteen major retail outlets. Brother Troy is on to something very interesting, in his post response. Like the NRA whom I believe is unofficially trading in cryptocurrency. Though FEC has officially prohibited trading in this form of financial asset, some traders are seemingly getting away with it. I'm still sometime away from getting all the information to satisfy my curiosity; though the ease of getting involved and the direction global economics is heading, I'm quite skeptical. Cryptocurrency appear to be soaked in blood!

Good Morning good afternoon or Good evening, wherever you are listening. I am richard murray and this is the richard murray fanatacism audible Round 1 May seventh two thousand and eighteen I am in twitter as thetenner10 t-h-e-t-e-n-n-e-r-1-0 congratulations Tigres Feminil to being the Liga MX Feminil champions. Tigres mens team is also in a good era, and with the largest crowd to a women's match, at least in north america, that was a great showing. Tigres Feminil is in Twitter at TigresFemenil spelled t-i-g-r-e-s-f-e-m-e-n-i-l, Three financial points to womens crowds. One, ticket prices, as a pundit once said about germany, if the tickets are set to an affordable price people will come. Many leagues , maybe most fiscally potent sport leagues have ticket prices to high on average between their teams. For womens soccer, ticket prices are not as large. Second,womens soccer like mens soccer will grow slowly. Mens soccer did not grow immediately. Mens sport did not become fiscally prudent originally. The New York Knicks, originally played in madison square garden which was set for hockey, fitted for basketball after.The new york football giants were fiscally unprofitable for many seasons but Tim Mara , the original owner, patriarch to the 50% owners of the current team, stayed the course, even though he lost money. The yankees originally played in the polo grounds,yes originally for polo in an earlier community in harlem after native americans but mostly white , which was the stadium for the new york giants. The yankees were paying the giants rent for stadium use. All big futebol clubs around earth started absent paid athletes or utilizing barely paid athletes and at best had one small stand by the standards to modern machester united, real madrid, juventus di torino, bayern munich, boca juniors, palmeiras, club america. Womens soccer must slowly grow. the shame is that so few people who have the money to invest in womens sports for a long haul are interested or willing in doing it. Third, like in mens sport, some matches will have large crowds, others will not. not every match in ligamx feminil was attended like the final.not every match in the nwsl is attended like the clash in cascadia, thanks to Lura McCoy for the derby name she is in twitter as luramccoy81 spelled l-u-r-a-m-c-c-o-y-8-1 . Speaking to the clash in cascadia, Portland Thorns versus Seattle REign in the NWSL this past saturday was a battle. In the first half fresh legs, derby passion, kept things cagey. In the second half, fatigue, derby passion, made mistakes which led to goals. As Jess Fishlock said on the lifetime telecast, both teams are trying to find themselves and have linking issues. Many players on both teams have not been in the team for a month. Gelling takes time. Both teams want to play through the midfield but the best linkups, the telekinesis gained over time playing side each other does not exist. Jenn hildreth , side aly wagner on lifetime stated that a majority of the five goals came from a set piece, and that displayed how the midfield battle was neutralizing but the set pieces, which either team has not worked on as much, is where both are more open at this stage in their respective projects. Great battle, i have watched nwsl every year in its existence, the north west teams tend to have the most lively crowds, and especially in geographic rivalries. Jess Fishlock is in twitter as Jessfishlock spelled j-e-s-s-f-i-s-h-l-o-c-k, Jenn hildreth is in twitter as jennhildreth spelled j-e-n-n-h-i-l-d-r-e-t-h, aly wagner is in twitter as alywagner spelled a-l-y-w-a-g-n-e-r , The rivalry between mls side ligamx in Concacaf continue to be dominated from ligamx , Chivas Guadelahara defeated Toronto FC for the title of best team in concacaf and continue the ligamx dominance in the confederation. The reason to the dominance from ligamx is many things; one, a clausura/apteura system utilizing relegation and promotion which pushes teams to be strong in two halves of the calendar year. basically while in the average Western UEFA league, it is one long marathon, near a calendar in distance. in mexico it is two long marathon, one for each half in a calendar. Thus, while leagues in Western UEFA based on second half of season results show huge changes in table positions, Liga MX show the truth, while also utilizing relegation side promotion which pushes anyone out who is below a quality line, giving another club an unbegged for , totally earned opportunity, to come in and prove themselves; two, teams in ligamx get very good talent from conmebol,though they also get uefa talent, that may cost less than talent from uefa but i think comes hungrier. third is history, teams in mexico are used to big battles, have alot of experience competing in the game. Major LEague Soccer like any league will gain experience through time, and cause it is based in the usa will fiscally be able to afford top quality players from outside the usa, making mistakes or wise choices along the way. But MLS lack of a highly competitive,I repeat a Highly Competitive, calendar is always going to make ligamx sides stronger. People think competition is based on presence. If an athlete is present they will compete. Yes, college players in the usa compete, yes, paid players in many leagues compete, but the collegiate environment is lacking relegation or promotion for teams or money for players. How can you expect them to compete like they are being paid or have a risk of being relegated as a team? yes, paid athletes are paid in the usa, but absent fear to relegation how can you expect them to compete like the team has said risk , even while paid. I do like the NASL,currently unavailable, that uses a double calendar like in mexico, and I hope the NWSL, national womens soccer league, consider making a calendar similar to NASL or LigaMX , even absent relegation side promotion. One financial point, in UEFA, La Liga from spain, dominates the confederation club competitions, even though the english premier league or the bundesliga make more money or are from a fiscally wealthier country. Like Mexico , Spain dominate its confederation while not being the fiscally wealthiest country or having the fiscally wealthiest or most positively growing league. But, in UEFA many people in england/germany/italy/france will accept LA Liga is the strongest league in UEFA. But in concacaf, i rarely hear ligamx stated in english media as the best league in the confederation and I think it has negatively stymied the media popularity mexican teams have in the usa or canada , especially outside latino communities in said country. I think it is time for the english speaking media in the usa or canada to honour ligamx as the best league in concacaf and honor ligamx teams as the dominant teams in concacaf. I extend this to the caribbean football confederation. Players from jamaica/trinidad/haiti/puerto rico seem willing to go to the the u.s.aa./france/the u.k. before mexico and that is fiscally foolish. if you are a player, from concacaf, why do you want to travel to uefa or conmebol before you travel to the best league in your confederation? Every player from the usa/caribbean/canada/central america need to try to make it in mexico first, it is the best regional league in the area. if you can't make it in mexico why do you think you will make it in brasil/argentina/france/england/spain, especially if you come from caribbean countries or canada. Go to the dominant league in your area. Concacaf players/fans/coaches let us start to honor ligamx as the top league in the cofederation. Olympique Lyonnais,the most dominant team in UEFA , have won Division Une for another season,their twelfth straight, sixteen in total, after progressing to the UEFA womens champions league final,their third in a row, this time against Wolfsburg. OL in division une or ligue un under Aulas ownership tend to do thise long eras. The seven straight from OL in ligue1 is a record in the mens game in western UEFA. The Womens teams is in that same zone. I recall when PSG new qatar based ownership came in and tried to mirror the strategy in ligue un in division une and it failed. SO much so that now, Montpellier former second team to OL now battles PSG for another season for the second spot at the end of the season. The truth is, in mens sport you can build a team from money and push above domestic competition but the investment levels, the global player pool does not exist yet in the womens game for the psg model that works in ligue1 to work in Division une. Sadly, this will be the last season for Camile Abily. Like Bompastor/Necib side others before her, she is retiring an OL player. I wonder will Elodie Thomis retire as an OL player as well. OL's opponents in the UEFA womens champions league final is wolfsburg, a team like OL that successfully challenged the dominant mens team female representative from mirroring the success in the mens game in the womens. I will never forget when Alexandre Popp,the german international did like didier drogba for chelsea against bayern, and played as a defensive winger in phases to stop the attack from OL and won the uefa womens champions league, I call her the big wolf, this uefa womens champions league final will be a batle ... wolfsburg defeated chelsea ladies. Camile Abily is in twitter as cam10abily23 spelled c-a-m-1-0-a-b-i-l-y-2-3 Alexandra Popp is in twitter as alexpopp11 a-l-e-x-p-o-p-p-1-1 Chelsea defeated Arsenal in the FA womens cup. The two goals were from Ramona Bachmann side Fran Kirby, kirby is also the player of the year. Kirby said she want more trophies as part to the team than individual. Chelsea are rising as a team slowly but surely, thanks president John Terry, coach emma hayes. This season we , yes i support chelsea, have the fa cup and are leading in the fa wsl table. I hope we can win the double. But the consistency from the administration in staying in support to emma hayes, even when MAnchester city came in and forced the team to improve , even through injuries to players like Kirby that destabilized the team. Chelsea administration has stuck to the plan, and that is what I have been very happy about. Teams in all sports must comprehend when the system need to change, when the roster need radical change OR wen the roster need to remain, gardless the results. Ramona Bachmann is in twitter as bachmannr10 spelled b-a-c-h-m-a-n-n-r-1-0, Fran Kirby, is in twitter as frankirby spelled f-r-a-n-k-i-r-b-y, coach emma hayes, is in twitter as emmahayes1 spelled e-m-m-a-h-a-y-e-s-1 . Iniesta, one of the last symbols from that la masia era that produced an entire squad for fc barcelona to use in winning uefa champions leagues/la ligas/copa del rey's is leaving Barcelona, repeat leaving, not retiring from the game. Some , like thomas rongen , at Trongen in twitter spelled t-r-o-n-g-e-n, suggest that Iniesta loved Barca more than Neymar. He is correct But the labor problem he did not suggest is the role barcelona have to neymar side the fiscal problem I have in that assertion is the absence to barcelona's money. I am a santos fan. Santos is Neymar's first club, not barcelona. If you compare iniesta to neymar in terms of club loyalty then it is neymar's time in santos not barcelona that must be compared to iniesta staying in barcelona. if santos had money, robinho/neymar/arouca side so many players from Santos over the years never! would had left santos. To be blunt, Pele stayed at santos not merely cause it was his boyhood club but money was given to him. Iniesta was given a top salary at barcelona, not peanuts. Thus, barcelona had the money to keep him, in a way that many clubs like OL who had benzema, MArseille who had drogba, Inter who had coutinho/kovasic/balotelli could not fiscally keep. neymar wanted his own team while making money. he had his own team in santos, who won the copa libertadores having him as the center, santos didn't have the money to keep him. ... Now, to the future, The problem in Iniesta leaving Barcelona, in my view,is team balance to where he goes. Iniesta is not an athletic juggernaut. He is a player that is strong in tactical comprehension or technical skill. but when teams are not cohesive, when players do not comprehend each other, it forces athleticism to have a higher value and that is my worry in iniesta's next locale. Like Pirlo, who went to NYC FC in Major league soccer, Iniesta need Athletic midfielders who have the tactical comprehension or technical skill to support him. Like Pirlo had in juventus with Pogba/Vidal but did not have in NYCFC and I hope Iniesta has wherever he continues his career. I repeat a simple point. The team that brings the CHinese super league an AFC champions league victory and a FIFA Club World Cup, that team will be given a huge reward. Iniesta can be part from a team that does this. Iniesta like Wenger is not retiring, simply continuing their current labor in another organization. Congratulations to Alex Scott, who is retiring from playing the game, after joining the 100 club to Arsenal, but I hope she has great ambition in coaching or administration. Thinking to Iniesta, Alex Scott, i wonder about the great Sonia Bermudez Tribano former rayo former barca forward, has led Atletico Madrid to a title last season and a lead atop of the table this season for a possible back to back reign. She scored the sole goal against LEvante and if the colcheneras defeat Zaragoza, the next to bottom side in the table, Atleti will wear the spanish tiara again. But, looking forward she is thirty three and while ludmila has provided the second most goals in the team with nine. Ludmila need to be a goal scorer in the teens consistently to take Tribano's place as the , Oroguja, golden needle. I hope Tribano can stay and be prolific for at least three more season. Luckily the Colcheneras are on average in the twenties, but Tribano's ability must be replaced at some point. Vital administrative test for Atleti moving forward. But, for now, may thirteenth is the date, the last final of the year for Atleti. SOnia bermudez Tribano is in twitter as sbtribano spelled s-b-t-r-i-b-a-n-o , Ludmila Silva is in twitter as ALudmilaSilva spelled a-l-u-d-m-i-l-a-s-i-l-v-a; Two players also seeing a phase change possibly in Madrid is Gareth Bale side KArim benzema. In the recent edition to El Classico , the match ended in a draw. But, while many fans or bandwagoners from either side suggested foul play, i suggest it was a great match. In the end, both side had chances to win, both failed to do it, and the passion, outside the pitch fueled through the media came through in the players. The one thing I think was not said enough, was the true turning this match showed. Puyol/Xavi/Iniesta had a calm they brought into Barcelona, a sense of communicate passion through playing that this classico exposed may be visibally lacking in future barcelona teams. Many players in Barcelona looked frustrated, including MEssi, but they were never losing the match. Paulinho side Semedo brought a sense of respond through playing in Barcelona but as Iniesta walk off, I realized even though he was captain on the day, he was unable to lead by example to the other players and that is a bad sign once he leave. Congratulations to the Selecao Feminil in BRasil in winning the copa libertadores feminino. The season is early for the Sirens, Santos in the brasileiro feminino as well as for the piexe, the greatest pisces in the sea, santos in the brasileiro who have progressed past the group stage in the copa libertadores masculino is early signs. Another race that is still up for grabs but is nearing its end is the italian serie a feminile race. Juventus is tied in points to brescia with an eight goal differential and one match left to play. The Leonessa have to face seventh place Verona. Juventus have to face third place tavaganacco The scudetto go to the team that make the most points next round, and if both are equal then Juventus on goal differential. Juventus will be a nail biter, they play on the twelfth in may, if they lose are draw, Brescia will be a nail chewer, brescia play on the sixteenth. One race that is finished is the italian masculine scudetto race, serie a tim , Napoli ever since the victory against juventus have let in goals and made terrible defensive mistakes. Sarri in the end, is a great coach, but his inability to accept rotating his squad more, cause his strategy will have to change undid Napoli. No team can play a starting eleven a whole season through all competitions , rarely making a change and not expect fatigue weeks, physically, mentally , spiritually. Sarri was unwilling to change his strategy to fit the players on the bench. The sad thing, sarri did this every season. His first season in Napoli after EMpoli, one can argue was a learning year, his second was sharpening his way, but in this third season he has not accepted , to keep his main squad fresh, a strategy change and he explains why I have doubts to Pep Guardiola in coaching a fiscally smaller team than Barcelona/Bayern/Manchester City. Pep Guardiola does what SArri does; he cuts players out from a team if he does not see them as the player type he needs. Gustavo/Dante after winning the uefa champions league were let go cause pep did not feel they had the right caliber for his system. Sarri does not have in napoli the fiscal ability to sell players and buy news ones every transfer season. I hope Sarri stay in napoli and try to implement another strategy for a bench team that may require it.

Being yourself is key I concur to this post , what I have learned is patience is massive, if you keep at it the community will grow who are truly interested and reply to inquest. but you have to be patient, and don't beg, simply state what you are doing. https://kobowritinglife.com/2018/01/29/be-authentic-how-to-build-relationships-with-readers grammar thoughts https://kobowritinglife.com/2017/12/21/grammar-girls-top-10-language-myths/ I only wrote romance in a story collection. I have yet to produce a book intentionally displaying positive sultry intimacy between characters from cover to cover but I know many who read romance novels in various sub genres: tech/adult/noir et cetera. Considering what you said about critics, or judges, the issue may be they are afraid to have positive relationships dominate in stories more. Negative friction is easier to utilize than positive friction. more tweets are about negative interactions than positive ones. Romance novels by default are displaying positive relationship, through various environments. https://kobowritinglife.com/2018/02/05/romance-writers-dont-need-your-love-theyre-too-busy-making-bank/ Kobo authors do check this out , I suggest all go for it. so many of us are online all the time. @sabine ziya https://kobowritinglife.com/2018/02/06/kobo-affiliate-links/ join the affiliate program https://www.kobo.com/us/en/p/affiliate I had and have total opposition to the message in the following article. I saw many beautiful book cover in my time. I think book coveres have value, especially to attract. The problem is in molding readers. Readers when best, are unconcerned to a book cover. The literature between the cover is the content. not the book cover, the movie poster, the music video. I wonder what film sales will be absent, film posters/previews imagine if the only way to see a film would be in a movie house, what will sales be? I wonder who will be the top charting artist absent the music video, the album cover, the concert. what if you can only hear the music? Viewers/audience are groomed to expect the main content to come in a package and i think that augments the value or the intake to the main content. https://kobowritinglife.com/2018/02/07/the-importance-of-a-professional-book-cover-design/ Authors on a Train sound fun, If anyone want to collaborate, on short stories I am game If Authors on a Train sounds like something you’d want to attend, we are currently accepting applications for our 2018 retreat. It will take place November 11-16, and again head to New Orleans by way of Amtrak from Chicago. For more information, go to http://www.authorsonatrain.com Part 1 https://kobowritinglife.com/2018/02/01/authors-on-a-train-part-i-the-beginning/ Part 2 https://kobowritinglife.com/2018/02/08/authors-on-a-train-part-ii/ If you want to be part of Kobo's beta promotions program and are a kobo writing life member send an email to support@kobowritinglife.zendesk.com A kobo author shares her experience https://kobowritinglife.com/2018/02/12/how-to-reach-readers-on-kobo/ Great tools in the blog entry to be honest, i am one of those people who changes my environment when in writing mode. When I feel an urge to write I cut off and write only. I think that old tool is still the best. Sometimes not the most functional but, works for me, when I am in a writing groove. no net, phone, anyone else. Luckily, I don't have a fiscal scenario that disallows that as well. https://kobowritinglife.com/2018/02/09/eight-tools-that-will-help-you-start-your-novel/ The following is a great idea. Communicate as a character in your story. I like this idea lot. I will give it a go. Any suggestions on a character from a story I did not compose that interest you ? https://kobowritinglife.com/2018/03/02/becoming-sophie-a-unique-way-to-engage-your-readers-on-social-media/ Rachel Grant who opens up her email to query from kobo writers who have thoughts about the industry, as what makes your story unique. But I go one further and ask what have you read that is unique? https://kobowritinglife.com/2018/03/05/13860/ Self publishing in the netherlands, a good read https://kobowritinglife.com/2018/03/06/not-taboo-anymore-the-rise-of-self-publishing-in-the-netherlands/

@TSegal, I'm not sure how I missed this post. I just created an account and have uploaded a video: http://www.afroblock.com/social/user/aalbc I have also added this to the list of Black owned websites that I track: https://aalbc.com/top_black_websites/top_black_sites_list.php#Afro+Block

@sabine ziya As always, the best thing to do is submit your work to any publisher when the time comes. You have to be pure to your story and then , resubmit it accordingly if need be. I checked fifty shades of grey, it is listed as contemporary or romance so... at least in kobo you can categorize your work as such. but you should check the publisher you will use for your book

Well that is great news! Please share something you think will appeal to readers of Black literature, that is on your site, and I'll see if I can work it into my newsletter. Welcome back and keep us posted on what new.

@richardmurray Thank you for an alternative perspective. There are as many in our history as there are people. Still the key to balance is being aware that our differing angles exist.. Thank you!

Mel you may actually know the software as well as I do. Much of what I know is HMTL, which is not specific to the feature of the blogging feature of the software. I'm sure @richardmurray, knows the software better than I, as he uses it more. It would take me some time to create the tutorial video, one because they take time, and two I'd actually have to get up to speed on the software and I don't know when I'll be able to do that. What I really need to do is check the vendor's website to see what documentation they have and direct people there. Here is a link to a description of the blogging software: https://invisioncommunity.com/features/apps#blogs

The TV ONE SCREENPLAY COMPETITION 2017 is meant to encourage and promote the production of creative, contemporary, engaging and relatable screenplays that can be turned into original movies for television. The competition is meant to: Encourage filmmakers to offer a fresh perspective and submit contemporary stories with a focus on the American black cultural experience with wide audience appeal. Encourage filmmakers to creatively center around entertaining, heart-felt and relatable topics that resonate and appeal to African American audiences. Expand upon the genres/formats that tell these entertaining stories. Genres include, but are not limited to comedies, romantic comedies, dramas, and family adventures (submissions should be non-period stories). One (1) Grand Prize Winner will be selected from three (3) Finalists and announced at the closing night event of ABFF. Click here for Overview, Eligibility & Instructions Click here for the Official Rules ( http://www.abff.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/TV-ONE-SCREENPLAY-COMPETITION-2017-Official-Rules.pdf ) SUBMIT NOW ( https://tvone.tv/43771/enter-the-tv-one-screenplay-competition-2017-here/ ) Contest Opens: December 16, 2016 Contest Deadline: February 16, 2017 *Contact them* _Email_ ( info@abffventures.com ) _Twitter_ ( https://twitter.com/ABFF ) _Instagram_ ( https://www.instagram.com/americanblackfilmfestival/ ) _Facebook_ ( https://www.facebook.com/americanblackfilmfestival/ ) _Official URL_ http://www.abff.com/tv-one-screenplay-competition/

Call for Submissions Killens Review of Arts & Letters Fall/ Winter 2016 Embracing Difference Please send your submissions no later than June 17, 2016, to “Fall 2016 Killens Review” (in the subject line) to writers@mec.cuny.edu. The theme of the Thirteenth National Black Writers Conference, “Writing Race, Embracing Difference,” is indeed an engaging and inviting one. Writers of the African diaspora have worked in earnest for decades to compose text that represents African-American experiences in its complex and various conditions. As stated with regard to the National Black Writers Conference: “If one is to write what one knows, then that writing will represent their perspectives and points of views of racial, cultural, and geographical space in the world.” More recently within genres such as sci-fi, mystery, historical fiction, and biography, writers of the African diaspora have connected the experiences of Black America with a broader appeal. Pulitzer Prize-winning writer James Alan McPherson, author of Elbow Room and Hue and Cry, once commented in an interview: “I’m going to be called a Black writer until I die. But the point is that when I write at my best I try to look for the human situation….” The programming for the 2016 Conference came about as the result of wanting to examine how and whether Black writers “write texts” knowing they are creating works out of spaces that are constructed by race i.e. is race at the core of the works of Black writers, no matter how candid or subtle. For the Spring 2016 issue of the Killens Review of Arts & Letters, we want to continue that exploration of “writing race, embracing difference” in the works of Black writers. Under the theme “Embracing Difference,” we seek submissions of fiction, essays, poetry, memoir, and artwork in which writers and artists create works that embrace race and differences with regard to the aesthetics, belief systems, politics, sexual identity, and cultural heritage that are reflected in the narratives and texts they compose. The Killens Review of Arts & Letters is a peer-reviewed journal that welcomes Black poets, novelists, short story writers, playwrights, journalists, essayists, scholars, yet-to-be discovered writers, and artists whose literature and artwork speak to the general public and to an intergenerational range of readers represented throughout the African Diaspora. http://centerforblackliterature.org/2016-killens-review/ The Killens Review of Arts & Letters Is Currently Accepting Submissions for the Fall/ Winter 2016 Issue THEME: "Embracing Difference" The theme of the Thirteenth National Black Writers Conference (NBWC) is "Writing Race, Embracing Difference." Writers of the African diaspora have worked in earnest for decades to compose text that represents African-American experiences in its complex and various conditions. As stated with regard to the National Black Writers Conference: "If one is to write what one knows, then that writing will represent their perspectives and points of views of racial, cultural, and geographical space in the world. Pulitzer Prize-winning writer James Alan McPherson, author of Elbow Room and Hue and Cry, once commented in an interview: "I'm going to be called a Black writer until I die. But the point is that when I write at my best I try to look for the human situation...." For the Fall/ Winter 2016 issue of the Killens Review of Arts & Letters, we want to continue that exploration of "writing race, embracing difference" in the works of Black writers. Under the theme "Embracing Difference," we seek submissions of fiction, essays, poetry, memoir, and artwork in which writers and artists create works that embrace race and differences with regard to the aesthetics, belief systems, politics, sexual identity, and cultural heritage that are reflected in the narratives and texts they compose. #JOKReview2016 The Center for Black Literature at Medgar Evers College, CUNY Phone: 718-804-8883 E-mail: writers@mec.cuny.edu Like us: Like us on Facebook Center for Black Literature Follow us: Follow us on Twitter @Center4BlackLit www.CENTERFORBLACKLITERATURE.org Submission of Materials: The Killens Review of Arts & Letters is published once or twice a year by the Center for Black Literature at Medgar Evers College, CUNY. The Killens Review seeks book reviews, essays, short stories, creative nonfiction, art, poetry, and interviews related to the various cultural, sociopolitical, and historical experiences of writers and artists from the African diaspora. The aim is to provide well-known and lesser-known authors as well as educators and students opportunities to create and expand the canon of literature produced by people of color. Please submit to only one category at a time: essay, fiction, interview, poetry, prose, and art. We aim to respond to your submission within two months. Electronic and Postal Submissions Kindly e-mail material to writers@mec.cuny.edu and CReynolds@mec.cuny.edu with "Killens Review" in the subject heading. Please include a brief introduction of yourself and of the work being submitted. On the first page of your submission be sure to include: 1. Your name 2. Telephone number 3. E-mail address Please make sure the pages are numbered. 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My pleasure Troy. I did not even search to see if he had a profile in AALBC. I hope you post your thoughts to what was said concerning Brother Stephenson or the celebration to his life.

Troy Thank you to providing the link. I concur wholeheartedly that the Kobo program will not be welcomed in the Black reading community wholesale. As I said to Myspace (in esocial environment), Kobo will be around forever in the same way. The global fiscal capitalistic model combine to modern media demand any firm that reach a certain level can retain a place as long as they are breaking even. Kobo will be around so, even if people trickle in, I am content in Kobo being around; that lead to the only issue Kobo has as a publishing house, the writers in house. As a writer, I feel writers have to do better. In the end, a publishing house is only as fiscally profitable or as well known balanced to the various author in it. Kobo was started late; it serve a particular market, a non english speaking market; it grew a little, remaining a minnow, and was bought into the Rakuten media empire, which is based in the non english speaking market. Inline, I comprehend the two main problem to Kobo: their general market is against the functional (whether accepted or not) global language, or their market is small. As a Black writer in their house, I have to cognize that in my books; my current project will be more considerate to this. Though, I am lucky to accept what all writer must accept: Poe only made profit from one work, his poem the Raven. No matter the literary quality in any work, the fiscal return need not reflect it. All a writer can do, in any house, is keep writing. And, so we push on Troy:) us minnows.