Mel Hopkins

@Troy I believe the same day NYT busted facebook, the National Defense Strategy Commission submitted a report on the military. The report revealed the U.S. military is unable to win a war against the Russia or China - if we had to go to war against them. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/u-s-military-might-struggle-to-win-or-perhaps-lose-war-with-china-or-russia-report-says/

Yeah, I can’t think of black men organizing to specifically come to the aid of black women... but I can name a bunch of men who have supported me as an individual... I can also name men who have come to aid of indiviual women... If black men would ever organize to conspicuously support black women - that is the day “race” relations will change - and the current system will crumble.

This quote sums up the article : Natalie Hopkinson, a professor at Howard University, summed it up. “A lot of black men are just not hearing what black women are saying because they are too busy complaining about their own situation,” she said. “When it comes to really supporting black women, nobody has our back but us.” But individually I believe black men protect black women who they believe deserve protecting. In fact, I don’t even think ethinicity really plays a role. It’s the battle of the sexes in play. At least, that’s been my perception. I think black women move to protect black men because we actually give birth to them so our knee jerk reaction is to protect the “baby boy”. I don’t have that nurturing reaction or response because I gave birth to girls - I expect men to protect me whether they want to or not. 😏

@DelanoAccording to MSNBC’s Ari Melber the answer is yes https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/01/us/politics/donald-trump-tax-returns.html

@Troy this is beautiful! And look my book is right there! yaaay! ❤️

I will no longer say (in my tone-deaf way) "why didn't those folks vote"... Thanks to social media and all the attention on Stacey Abrams - I now know why black people can't get their numbers up at the polls. These m-fers engage in much f-ckery here especially if it means keeping black people from voting. Seriously. I see it up close now. I live in a mixed neighborhood - and my county is heavily blue laced with old money; So we got what we need here... I voted early and with no problem BUT go to low income socioeconomic neighborhoods where black people live - and there's a lot of bs going on at the polls. In one precinct there was 3 voting machines for district that most likely has tens of thousands residents. I'm disgusted but my eyes are open. Also, I get the sense that a lot of people don't read the referendums but usually they benefit the rich. There's one referendum on the ballot asking for tax breaks for land owners who allow their buildings to be used for nonprofit organizations who house the mentally ill. Stacey Abrams endorsed this referendum , So, what could possibly go wrong? I'll tell you what can go wrong - There's a new york city judge that just ruled that a building owner doesn't have to give leases to tenants that were formally homeless and lived in the building on a program that was run buy a nonprofit organizations that shut down in 2015... Except the tenants did what the nonprofit program set out to do - empower the program's recipients. They actually started to pay the rent on their own. Yep - they were able to get on their feet because they actually had a roof over their head. Now this dude - is no longer getting the tax break that NYC put in place - so he's kicking them to the curb. It's heartbreaking. . By the way, I voted "no" on that referendum. If you're blessed to own the building - pay the property taxes period.

@Troy this looks so organized! How does it work? When someone arrives on the site - where does this appear?

@Troy I read in one of the publications (daily news, NYPost, NYT) that Harvey Weinstein contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars (through his lawyer) to various campaigns of the NY DA, Cuomo and some others that could assist him with his sex assault charges to disappear. If Bill did that he probably has a lot more folks to pay (not just the woman he paid off) and with a lot more money - and still end up in jail but Camille would be left penniless. It's all speculation but that's why I think he fell on his sword - to take care of Camille.

@ErnestLiving You're welcome! One thing @Troy chat about in the #readingblack.com forum is how authors should make it super EASY for prospects to purchase your book. Consider directing interested readers to your own platform before sending them to Amazon. That is unless Amazon has your book exclusively. If amazon has your book exclusively I hope you got a nice advance on your royalties. If your own all the rights to your book then tell readers how they can purchase your book -and then list the price, s/h and what forms of payment you accept such as PayPal, checks, money order, et al. Also please join us over readingblack.com for more selling tips! Much success!

I just finished Victor LaValle's novella "Lucretia and the Kroons" which is like a prequel to "The Devil in Silver." It is the story of a 12-year-old girl who lives with her mother in an apartment building in Queens, NY. No mention of a father but there's an older brother that lives on his own. Anyway, we meet Lucretia as she prepares to celebrate her 12th birthday with a party. Long story short, things don't go as planned since she invited "mean girls" from her class and then has to tell the "whores" to get out after they make fun of her. She ends up celebrating with her mother - with a look towards the future to celebrate when her best friend "Sunny" is stronger. Sunny is suffering from cancer and about to succumb to the effects of chemotherapy Sadly, things don't get much better. We, the readers, do learn how Lucretia wound up in the psychiatric unit of New Hyde Hospital with the protagonist "Pepper" a 40-something day-laborer. One thing I'm loving about LaValle's writing is he makes me fear to turn the pages of the books he has written.

according to a twitter poster @billybragg this is allegedly how the suspect's van looks So if liberals are setting up 45 - they've been very thorough lol

"Finally! Five Secrets to Pitch Perfect (LY)" Podcast - uploaded Tuesday, October 23, 2018 Listening to Barbara Corcoran's (of Shark Tank) Business Unu$ual podcast, I noticed independent authors could modify her "5 secrets to a perfect pitch" to successfully present their books. Corcoran's 5 secrets are as follow: Good Hook To the Point Short & Clear Good Backstory Look the part Cite the Next Steps An Independent author can take these secrets and craft a pitch that will lay the foundation for selling a book or manuscript to anyone; anywhere. (Good Hook) When I hear "hook," I think music, specifically Rap. So, a book should have a catchy title. My first book didn't. #TitleFAIL So, I made my title into a meme. "You pray that love is heaven sent, but sometimes you end up Sleeping with a D-Man." BUT look at the bestsellers here on AALBC! Check out how many words in the title? Most have three words; 5 is the max. Choose wisely. (To the Point Short & Clear) Tell your audience what your book is about in 2 sentences or less. Who is this book about? What do they want? How will they get it? Or what's preventing them from getting it. Nicole, heart-broken and college-bound, will go to hell and battle demons for the man she loves. Literally. (Good Backstory) Every author knows why they're compelled to tell their story. My daughter was going off to college - I wanted to share with her how to avoid the perils of dorm and college life. Here's where an author can share the benefits of reading their book. Let readers know how the author hopes this book can help. (Look the part) Hire a successful book cover designer. We do judge a book by its cover. (Cite the Next Steps) An entrepreneur Next Steps is all "about the Benjamins" and funding. The same is true for independent authors, but our approach is a bit different. Our goal is to develop a relationship with our readers and also have them buy our books every time we publish. So, independent authors, we have to let our readers know how they can buy our book. [<-link to buy my book] Do it the Amazon way and make it as easy and conspicuous as possible. Remind them again of the benefit from buying directly from you the author. I read once that the most successful panhandlers tell those who put money in their cup how they will use their generous donations. For Example: "Thank you for buying my book. With your purchase you make it possible for me to continue to write books to positively influence and empower young women." By the way, Corcoran says, "the same five steps were shared by every great entrepreneur that ever left shark tank with a fist full of cash. So, "Write On!" #bookmarketing #bookseller #author #publishing Originally Posted in Hey Indie Author! How can I get your Book

"Finally! Five Secrets to Pitch Perfect (LY)" Podcast - uploaded Tuesday, October 23, 2018 Listening to Barbara Corcoran's (of Shark Tank) Business Unu$ual podcast, I noticed independent authors could modify her "5 secrets to a perfect pitch" to successfully present their books. Corcoran's 5 secrets are as follow: Good Hook To the Point Short & Clear Good Backstory Look the part Cite the Next Steps An Independent author can take these secrets and craft a pitch that will lay the foundation for selling a book or manuscript to anyone; anywhere. (Good Hook) When I hear "hook," I think music, specifically Rap. So, a book should have a catchy title. My first book didn't. #TitleFAIL So, I made my title into a meme. "You pray that love is heaven sent, but sometimes you end up Sleeping with a D-Man." BUT look at the bestsellers here on AALBC! Check out how many words in the title? Most have three words; 5 is the max. Choose wisely. (To the Point Short & Clear) Tell your audience what your book is about in 2 sentences or less. Who is this book about? What do they want? How will they get it? Or what's preventing them from getting it. Nicole, heart-broken and college-bound, will go to hell and battle demons for the man she loves. Literally. (Good Backstory) Every author knows why they're compelled to tell their story. My daughter was going off to college - I wanted to share with her how to avoid the perils of dorm and college life. Here's where an author can share the benefits of reading their book. Let readers know how the author hopes this book can help. (Look the part) Hire a successful book cover designer. We do judge a book by its cover. (Cite the Next Steps) An entrepreneur Next Steps is all "about the Benjamins" and funding. The same is true for independent authors, but our approach is a bit different. Our goal is to develop a relationship with our readers and also have them buy our books every time we publish. So, independent authors, we have to let our readers know how they can buy our book. [<-link to buy my book] Do it the Amazon way and make it as easy and conspicuous as possible. Remind them again of the benefit from buying directly from you, the author. I read once, that most successful panhandlers tell those who put money in their cup how they will use their generous donations. For Example: "Thank you for buying my book. With your purchase you make it possible for me to continue to write books to positively influence and empower young women." By the way, Corcoran says, "the same five steps were shared by every great entrepreneur that ever left shark tank with a fist full of cash. So, "Write On!"

@Troy Not this time. I supplied all the information to Lulu.com in 2006 and paid them a fee to prepare my title for global distribution. Recently, I provided this information for my memoir while using Pressbooks.com . That was my first direct experience with BISAC but I didn’t understand the significance until now. So, you are providing us independent authors a real service by sharing the importance.

Thank you for this @Troy ! It looks sharp and clean! And a sci-fi /horror /fantasy fan like me would definitely use this feature! Also I found more information on the BISAC. Although it appears to be very involved, I've bookmarked it for further reading https://bisg.org/page/BISACFaQ