GROVE STREET MOVING FORWARD! Issue #9 EXCLUSIVE NEWS & INTERVIEWS FROM BOOK EXPO AMERICA 2013 AUTHOR BRENDA JACKSON th
APPROACHES 100 NOVEL
AUTHOR CAROL M. MACKEY
KIM ANDERSON BLACK EXPRESSIONS BOOK CLUB TheReadingRoom.com
Exciting news about Albert “Prodigy” Johnson’s new street lit imprint Publish and share online with Widbook Celebrity Buzz
Other literary news
NFL STARS RAISE MONEY TO HELP WOUNDED WARRIORS Interview with NY Giants, Marvin Austin
A Literary, Lifestyle, Business, & Entertainment Publication
MOVING FORWARD!
Issue #9
Book Expo America 2013 Carol M. Mackey Book Reviews In Progress Justin Whitfield and Taylor Cole News from Akashic Books with Ibrahim Ahmad Kim Anderson, CEO and Founder of The Reading Room (www.TheReadingRoom.com) Widbook (www.widbook.com) Brenda Jackson Ralph Baker Special Feature: NFL Stars Aspire To Raise $50,000 To Help Wounded Warriors
Editor-In-Chief Have you ever caught yourself dwelling on something that had long passed? My dad used to say that everyone should fail something in life early. As a teenager, I didn’t want to hear that sort of undesirable advice. The first time that I failed something major as an adult, I struggled to navigate through it. I now comprehend the importance of moving forward, regardless of how bleak things may look. Rehashing yesterday’s misfortunes is often unproductive, and even frustrating. In this issue, I would like each of us to take a breather to remember the importance of moving forward, while making the best of whatever circumstances we find ourselves dealing with. On May 30th, I attended and covered Book Expo America (BEA) as media. During my attendance, the aura seemed upbeat and hopeful that the publishing industry would continue to bounce back from the economic downturn, the fascination with reading devices, and the general need to merge an old way of doing things with a new one. A general overview of the tradeshow may be found in the blog (thereadersandauthorsnook.blogspot.com). In this issue, I am honored to bring you more exclusive news and interviews from Book Expo America. Each literary professional/and or author featured in this edition attended BEA. Carol M. Mackey, Editor-InChief of Black Expressions Book Club, Kim Anderson-CEO and founder of The Reading Room,
Ibrahim Ahmad-senior editor at Akashic Books, and others, serve as encouraging examples of industry leadership. Additionally, I had a wonderful opportunity to cover a story about NFL players who were on a mission to help raise $50,000 for Wounded Warrior Amputee Organizations. Our celebrity feature this month shows another side of professional athletes. The Wounded Warrior Amputee Softball Team (WWAST) wowed the crowd, showing us all their strength and courage, while playing against the NFL players who are listed later in this issue. I will bring you details and share exclusive photos of the occasion. This is also Father’s Day month. I say month, because just like Mother’s Day, one day isn’t enough to celebrate the many sacrifices that good fathers make for their families. As the product of a single father, I can honestly say that the physical and mental presence of a father is priceless. However, not all of us had the benefit of that. If we didn’t, it’s time to still move forward while remembering that living out our purpose is greater than any obstacle. The theme of this issue will be in honor of fathers far and near, living and deceased. If there’s something that you’re dealing with, please join me to try and move forward while celebrating a journey full of potential. I hope that you enjoy this issue.
Andrea
HOW TO PLAN YOUR NEXT POWER MOVE
Carol M. Mackey Author and Editor-In-Chief Black Expressions Book Club (www.blackexpressions.com)
BEA BOOK FINDS
A MODERN CAREER ADVICE CLASSIC
In these times of an unstable economy, Carol M. Mackey’s Sistergirls @ work: A Devotional, is a resource tool that should be in the hands of any female who is a recent college graduate, Christians seeking to maintain high-quality work relationships, females feeling frustrated by current employment situations, stay-at-home-moms who may be contemplating reentering the workforce, or females of faith who want to feel empowered to balance work, home, and spirituality while excelling in their careers. Although Sistergirls@ work was written with African-American women, women of color, and Christians in mind, Ms. Mackey’s heartfelt advice may also resonate with any woman who seeks to keep a strong relationship with Christ, and herself. However, the targeted demographic will certainly be able to relate to the issues that the author presents in her vignettes. If you need help with thinking before you speak in the workplace—to navigate through dicey situations—this book can help you improve your ability to avoid or manage conflicts. Sistergirls @ work is a gem that I highly regard as a life-long resource tool—and it’s most certainly appropriate for single mothers, too. As Ms. Mackey states in her book, getting time with a CEO for mentorship and advice is incredibly valuable, since his or her schedule is likely full of obligations. Ms. Mackey’s solid advice is just as priceless. The Editor-In-Chief of the award winning Black Expressions Book Club provides examples of how she resolved challenges at work, shared praise reports admitting personal faux paus, and demonstrated how a finely tuned career plan can pay off. The author lets us know that she is a real person, capable of mistakes,
yet still manages to rise to her well-respected position. Each devotion that she utilizes is short enough to read on the go, or the entire book can be absorbed in one sitting. Biblical references set the tone for each succinct chapter. “Power Move” is a nicely capsuled summary at the end that gives the reader an actionable moment to note and apply in life. “My Confession” pulls the remaining points together with a biblical thread, without a preachy feel. I felt like Ms. Mackey pulled up a chair to have a chat over coffee or tea. As I flipped through each page, I quickly began to realize why she is extremely successful in the publishing industry. If you’re wondering how to map out a plan to achieve your career goals, or if you feel like you’re lost, floundering, or need to rejuvenate your spirit, Sistergirls@ work: A Devotional easily delivers all of this and more. It’s not the kind of book that most readers who appreciate self-help or advice books would want to lend. I highly recommend buying the paperback version to keep for times when quick reference is desired. This book kept me up all night, but it was well worth my time. By far, it is the most useful and most engaging advice book that I’ve ever read. I’m incredibly grateful that Carol M. Mackey chose to offer insight regarding how to become a successful Sistergirl. Every female author or aspiring author of faith should also consider placing this on her reading list. It is a real chance to learn tips from a pro. My only complaint about the book was that I didn’t find it sooner. Reviewed by Andrea Blackstone Five Stars
BEA BOOK REVIEWS IN PROGRESS
1. The Stiletto Network was released in May 2013. Kama Timbrell, publicity manager for Amacom Books, informed, “A book that’s out right now is The Stiletto Network: Inside The Women’s Power Circles That Are Changing The Face of Business by Pamela Ryckman. She is a journalist looking at this phenomenon of women’s groups coming together, whether they’re formal business groups, or just clubs, and dinner groups helping one another to succeed in business and in life. It is garnering a lot of attention. She’s been on The Today Show. It’s tapping into the trend we’re seeing with women helping one another professionally.”
2. The One Thing: The Surprising Truth Behind Extraordinary Results by Gary Keller with Jay Papasan. Jay Papasan (pictured above) is former editor at Harper Collins Publishers, and is vice president of publishing at Keller Williams. Gary Keller is cofounder of Keller Williams Realty.
3. The Manager The Politician And The Thief by Judivan J. Vieira 2013 International Latino Book Award Finalist (Best Fiction)
INTERVIEWS
Justin Whitfield and Taylor Cole
Take it Off! The Naked Truth About Most Strippers was released on May 31, 2013. The erotic fiction publisher, Ellora’s Cave, featured the authors in their buzzing booth. I tried to keep my questions brief, since Justin and Taylor had many eager fans wanting to know more about their project. Grove Street: Would you consider this fiction or is this faction? Justin/Taylor: Oh no, it’s part autobiographical. None of it’s fake. The names may have been changed to protect the guilty. Grove Street: So what’s the point of the book? Is it entertainment, or just to show the inside view of the male, exotic entertainment field? Justin/Taylor: It’s entertainment. It’s stories that we’ve done over the years and places we’ve been. Just a little about the scenes of male dancing, how we got into it, how any guy gets into it, and what happens when you get into it. All the questions are covered, and a lot of things in the book people don’t realize is the humor and stuff like that. They’re taken by surprise. They actually enjoy the book. Grove Street: What is your website? Justin/Taylor: www.elorascave.com, or Facebook us at Justin Whitfield and Taylor Cole.
AKASHIC BOOKS
I was pleased to speak to Ibrahim Ahmad, senior editor of New York based Akashic Books. He spoke to me about the publishing company, and the current stand out project of note. Albert “Prodigy” Johnson, of the seminal hip-hop duo, Mobb Deep, recently formed a partnership with Akashic. Grove Street: When was the company founded and where? Ibrahim: The company was founded in 1997 by Johnny Temple, who at the time was an active musician with the band Girls Against Boys. He still occasionally tours and performs with his band, but Akashic is now a full-time operation with a staff of five people, plus part-timers and interns. Our first book was The Fuck-Up by Arthur Nersesian, which was an underground cult hit and went on to sell more than 100,000 copies after being licensed by Simon & Schuster. In recent years, we've been publishing between 25-30 new books each year—and you can find our full catalog here. Grove Street: Will the new street lit imprint primarily focus on novellas? Ibrahim: As you suggest, the Infamous Books imprint will focus on novellas and upcoming titles include works by K'wan, Miasha, and JaQuavis Coleman. Grove Street: Does Akashic Books have any other imprint launches? Ibrahim: Akashic houses a number of different imprints, some of which are curated internally, like our popular Noir Series and our new YA imprint Black Sheep, and others that have outside editors (e.g., Prodigy for Infamous Books; Kaylie Jones for Kaylie Jones Books, Open Lens, etc.). Grove Street: What are a few of the most widely known projects? Ibrahim: Our biggest hit is the 2011 phenomenon Go the F*** to Sleep, which was an international best seller that has sold more than a million copies worldwide and has been translated into more than 30 languages (including an audio version from Samuel L. Jackson). We're mostly known for our literary fiction, crime fiction, and pop culture titles, but we publish in a variety of genres across the spectrum. Some of our bigger-name fiction authors include Bernice L. McFadden, Joe Meno, Randall Robinson, and Nina Revoyr; and Joyce Carol Oates, Dennis Lehane, Edwidge Danticat, and George Pelecanos have all edited Noir Series titles for us. We're also known for our strong focus on publishing writers from the Caribbean, which is an important area of focus and commitment for us. In addition to Prodigy, we've published other musicians like the singer-songwriter Ryan Adams, Krist Novoselic (Nirvana), and many others. Grove Street: Please tell us about Infamous Books and Prodigy’s involvement.
Ibrahim: HNIC is a novella by Prodigy Jones. Prodigy is one-half of the hip-hop duo Mobb Deep, which is a hugely successful and influential hip-hop group. Prodigy is curating a new imprint for us called Infamous Books. We’re launching Infamous Books with his own novella, which he co-wrote, and we’re publishing it in mid-July. We will be publishing other books under the Infamous Books Imprint by Miasha, JQuavis, and K’wan. Those are forthcoming street lit titles. Prodigy is acquiring all of those books for us. Grove Street: Are you accepting submissions? Ibrahim: It’s all being done through Prodigy. He is looking for authors. Grove Street: Does he have a website? Ibrahim: We’re just launching this one, so it’s still in the early stages. This one is out July 16, 2013. Grove Street: What is the book about? Ibrahim: It’s a very fast-paced crime fiction novella. That’s another thing about the imprint. All of the books on Infamous Books are novellas—short works—either crime fiction or street lit. It’s a story about a group of friends who grew up in the projects and they’ve been committing various crimes as part of a gang. One of them wants to get out of the game and doesn’t want to live a life that involves criminality. He’s trying to get out, but a member of his crew is saying, ‘One more job. One more job.’ The stakes get raised when, in the final job, things go wrong. The entire group needs to come to grips with what that means to their friendship. It’s incredibly well written and very fast-paced. It was really a revelation for me. I admired Mobb Deep for years and years. They’re one of my favorite hip-hop groups. I always knew Prodigy as a lyricist—the way that he reports on street life, it’s very honest. That really comes across in his writing as well. This is a book that I’m super, super excited about. Grove Street: Did he have a hand in writing the whole thing, or was there a ghostwriter involved? Ibrahim: He co-wrote it with this guy Steven Seville, but Prodigy wrote the main draft, the first draft, the second draft, then he sent it to Steven to get some feedback. They worked together on the finished book. It really reads well. Grove Street: What do you have to you say about how street lit is trending in 2013, and what about people who say, ‘Oh, that’s not real literature?’ Ibrahim: For me, I’ve always found that genres like street lit, crime fiction and mysteries are able to get to the essential truths about the world and about reality in a more direct way than say, literary fiction. You’re dealing with the world around you in an immediate, visceral way. That’s really what I find so appealing about the genre. In terms of overall trends, I don’t know if I can speak to that so much. I feel like a few years ago, everyone was saying, ‘Oh street lit, the next thing.’ People are always saying that about one genre or another.
Grove Street: Do you think it’s here to stay? Ibrahim: Exactly. Absolutely. We’re really thrilled to be launching it with this book. Grove Street: What is the best way for readers to keep up with future developments and announcements? Ibrahim: Our recently revamped website is updated with new content every weekday, and it's the best way to keep on top of the latest developments and news with the company. We also have an e-mail list that readers can sign-up for on our website. Additionally, we maintain an active presence on Facebook and Twitter Grove Street: Thank you for your time. Ibrahim: Absolutely. It was a pleasure meeting you.
Book events featuring Albert “Prodigy” Johnson: —Sat., July 20, Time TBA—NEW YORK, NY—Harlem Book Fair *Full program details TBA —Thurs., July 25, 7–9 p.m.—BROOKLYN, NY—powerHouse Arena, 37 Main St. *Book launch event; special guests TBA Many more events TBA!
There are so many new options for aspiring authors, self-published authors, traditionally published authors, publishers, and of course readers!
KIM ANDERSON Kim Anderson, Founder and CEO of TheReadingRoom.com. Grove Street: Thank you so much for taking some time out for speaking with us about The Reading Room. What is The Reading Room, and who is it exactly for? Kim: The Reading Room is really for passionate readers. Our goal is to provide them with a place to find, buy, and discuss books. We like to say that we create for them a place where they can create a life log of their reading. The world of books has changed so much. When you go to someone’s house, the first thing you do is look at their bookshelf to see who they are. That’s no longer possible, so we create a place where they cannot only keep a record of all of the books they own, but also the books that they’ve read, and chronologically, the books that they’re read and reviewed. If they go, ‘What did I think about this book in 2010, when I read it,’ they can find that pretty quickly and pretty instantly. It also enables other people to look at their reading life and say, ‘Yeah, you know what, this is a like-minded reader. If I look at their bookshelf I might find some really good ideas about what to read next.’ The goal for us was to become what we call the independent bookseller of the future. When you walk into an independent bookstore, you know the person behind the counter. You know you can trust what they’re going to recommend. You can browse by genre, and you can get good ideas about what to read next. You usually walk out with a book, with having made a purchase. We want to be that in the future. We’re a curated community. We want to provide our readers with as much information as possible that’s credible about what they read next. So having 500 million reviews is great, but it’s not the only way to find a good book to read. What you actually need to know is that the person who reviewed that book is credible, so we have a partnership with The New York Times and The Guardian. We carry all of their reviews. We siphon off our reviews on our site between comments, posts, and real reviews. When a member writes a review, they really need to write more than 250 words for it to be considered a review. If they write, ‘I loved this book,’ or ‘You should read this book,’ that’s great. We want those. It tells you this is someone that maybe you haven’t read that you may like to read, but really for a review, you need to say something that’s at least a little more
informative about the book that you’re going to read. We feel that you can get that from algorithms, but actually algorithms really just say you read this, or you might read that. I give you an example between a reader who might have read Dan Brown and Hillary Mantel. You may have a lot in common with that reader, or you may have nothing in common with that reader. They may have read Dan Brown and gone, ‘I loved that book. It was a nice plane read, but actually, here’s my literary list.’ So it’s important for people to see your whole reading life, and not just pick up one book. You go to some of the retail sites, you can see all of the people who reviewed the book, but you don’t know anything about them. You’re not in a position to go and browse their bookshelf and see what they reviewed, see what they loved, and what they didn’t. We want to provide our readers with that capability. That was a long answer, I’m sorry. Grove Street: Actually, I like it. That goes into my next question. What makes it different from some sites say like Goodreads? You’re touching on those points. Kim: We have several distinctions. I think Goodreads is a fantastic site, and what a great job they’ve done, but we are very different. We’re not a social network. We don’t allow authors to upload their own content. Some people don’t like that, but it’s important for us to provide very credible information. So you know, I would find it very unusual if an author posted their own content on their site and said, ‘This wasn’t the best book that I’ve ever written.’ Ultimately there’s a book that an author says, ‘This isn’t my best book,’ or a reviewer says, ‘This was a great author, but their previous work was better.’ So we don’t allow authors to put up content. We also sell books—both print and eBooks, and we also curate the site. So, we have published reviews. We also take down posts that are unhelpful. We don’t allow anyone to attack anyone else. We publish critical reviews. We don’t publish personal reviews. If somebody says, ‘I really hate that author, she’s got black hair, and she’s got funny ears,’ we don’t want that on the site. We don’t edit it. We remove it. We also have strong profanity filters. We don’t like people bitching. There’s plenty of places they can go and do that. What we want is for people to come to provide really helpful and useful commentary for other members. Grove Street: How long has this been in existence? Kim: We ran a very basic site with 15 members, which tested amongst friends in 2009. Then we launched a beta version in 2010. We began marketing it at the end of 2010/2011, so we’ve been going for a couple of years. We have half a million members and we’re growing rapidly. With the recent announcement with Amazon acquiring Goodreads, we’ve had a lot of members come over to our site and say they love the fact that the book clubs are really well run, and we have more than 2,000 book clubs on the site. We’re starting to grow exponentially now. It’s really important for us to provide our members with editorial guidance as well. We segment the site into genres, which is another distinction—it’s not just random lists and things. Also, we editorially select features, featured bookshelves, and we put together lists for our members. Members can also do that. If you’re coming to our site and you’ve never read Chinese writers, where do you start?
Grove Street: Right. Kim: We help you with that. Canadian classics. What are the American classics? We just help people go through those. We do pages with all of the awards and all of that sort of stuff. So yeah, two and a half years later, we’re all tired, but it’s good. It’s really exciting! Grove Street: Moving forward, do you feel like more American people know about it? Kim: 70% of our user base, in fact 75% is North American. Well over 65% is U.S. based. We’re very passionate about what we do, and we want to do a really good job. We have been finessing the site. Now we will start heavy marketing of the site. More and more Americans are finding out about us. We have a big, significant number of UK, Canadian, Australian, New Zealand, Hong Kong, and Philippines members. We don’t differentiate. We do a target, so you can see different content on the same site, with different language markets. Grove Street: Is there any particular type of content or genre of book that you do not allow on the site, or is it pretty open season genre wise? Kim: It’s pretty open season. We don’t particularly want to attract pornography, but there are the kind of Fifty Shades of Gray readers, and they’re as valid as anyone else. We don’t want to start telling people what their reading tastes should be. We want to make sure they’re catered for. You know, I think the book clubs are really important. You can start a private book club. If you want to run your own book club, and want to read smut from the 1950’s, you can! We’ll let you. You can do that privately and not impact on anyone else. I think that’s the other thing about the site. If you’re a romance reader, or you’re a literary reader, the chances of the two of you bumping into each other are not high. That’s what we do. We make sure there’s an area for you—your particular tastes, where you can find the books you want. If you’re a sci-fi reader, you don’t want to troll through all of the romance titles or vice versa. We’re pretty agnostic in terms of what we provide. Grove Street: Does it cost anything to join or participate? Kim: It’s completely free to join. It is important to become a member, because if you create your bookshelf today, every time you add a bookshelf, or you change what you’re currently reading, we record that for you so you can see what you read in 2013. If you didn’t come back to the site for a year, we would still have that information for you. We had a member say, ‘I went to Oxford to study. and I thought it was an American site. I didn’t do anything until I came back, and now I have to catch up,’ so we see it as a life log for people. Grove Street: Sounds great. What would you like to see happen at this point with the growth that you’re having? What do you think is next? Kim: We’re in the middle of redoing our search. I think that’s really exciting for us, because the search engine that we have acquired is very, very powerful. I think that’s an exciting road for us. We would like to grow. I don’t want to be known as the biggest, I just want to be known as the best.
Grove Street: There’s nothing wrong with that. Does it have any component for youth or young readers? Kim: Yes, we’re very strong in young readers/young adults. We have specific areas for middle grades. A lot of people come to the site looking for recommended lists for children, for children’s picture books, and for middle grade reading. We’re doing a lot more around that. One thing that we’re doing which is fantastic is most students study Shakespeare. Every Shakespeare play has a villain, so we’ve been partnering with the university to create a Shakespeare Villain’s Book Club, which actually you can join as a student, and you can get student notes about the villains. You can meet other students and lecturers. Some of that sort of stuff is really exciting. Grove Street: So, it can be used as a teaching tool? Kim: It can be used as a teaching tool, yes. That’s why it’s very important to have credible content. Grove Street: As far as small publishing houses, what would be the benefit, of even an author’s small press participating? Kim: I think the most important thing for small publishers is finding their audience. People haven’t really stopped reading; the channels have changed. One of the great things about a site like ours is it’s equally and physical and easy for a small publisher to get access, and to promote their works as a big publisher. I think we all know that EL James is a classic example where you can take a title that’s self-published, and build it into something big and find a big publisher. I think small publishers can take some ideas from that and go, ‘How do I build my publishing house with marketing to my very specific audience online?’ I think that’s a real opportunity for them. Grove Street: Are there any packages that do cost a fee for publishers? Kim: Yes. We do accept advertising packages on the site. We do have a discounted rate for selfpublished authors. They can upload their own content in their own ad, and put an ad on the site for a minimal amount of up front capital. Whereas, big publishers have a marketing budget and they would do an integrated sponsorship throughout the site. The important thing is that we’re so data driven that for publishers it’s great. We can target members about what they want to read, based on their own reading habits. We can say to publishers, ‘You know, 20,000 people have this on their wish list, or you know, 10,000 have read Hillary Mantel’s Wolf Hall, maybe we should have Bring Out The Bodies as a feature next month.’ Publishers want that data. We would never give away personal data. It’s all just you know, if you want to reach this audience, we suggest you do this, this and this. We do highly tailored packages for publishers. Grove Street: Is the site tablet or mobile friendly? Kim: It is tablet friendly. We’re in the middle of building for mobile devices. It is usable on mobile. I’m sorry to say it’s not an optimal experience. That’s only a few months away, if that. Probably about four weeks away. Grove Street: What would you say is the most popular genre on the site as far as users?
Kim: That’s such a good question. There’s not just one. I think the most popular are crime and mystery, literary fiction, popular fiction, young adult, romance, and children’s picture books. Grove Street: Do you feel it’s a mixture of most people reading eBooks? Kim: Definitely a mixture. We have a very big call for sample chapters. People really want to read a sample chapter now, because they can’t walk into a bookshop and flip through the pages, so we had 400,000 sample chapters of all of the new releases. I think that people still want a print book as well. I think it’s just a format issue. As you said, publishers need to be flexible and provide both. I think print on demand will play a big role in the future. I could be wrong. I’m not a futurologist. The thing is we are all, these days, used to having formats to different purposes. Grove Street: As far as book clubs, say someone wants to have some camaraderie with some other people, but maybe where they live they don’t feel comfortable. Can you tell us a little more about the ability to socialize and meet people from different places, if someone is looking for a book club and doesn’t have one? Kim: In fact our book clubs are very popular for that reason. You can join a book club regardless of whether you live next door to each other, or on the other side of the world. Interestingly, there are two features. You can follow an author, and you can follow another member. People do like to read each other’s comments and posts and things. But we’re not a dating site. That’s really important because I think readers are very cautious about finding other readers who are likeminded. Book clubs are a great way to do that. We find that people come to book clubs a lot of the time just wanting to suggest what they should read next, and then their friendships start to go across the side, rather than just within the book club. Grove Street: That’s excellent. This is great information. How can people reach out to you, if they’re not familiar? How long does it take to sign up? Kim: It’s a two-minute sign up process. They can join using Facebook Connect, so they can use their Facebook sign in. They can upload books. The great thing about this is we do feature bookshelves. That’s part of our curatorial expertise. If you want to start your bookshelf, and you’ve read all of the American classics, you can just add them all in one hit. You can add all books by an author in one hit. Some people have kept everything they have read on an Excel spreadsheet. You can upload it straight to your bookshelf. You can import your bookshelf from another site like Goodreads. There are many, many ways to start populating your bookshelf. If I say, ‘You know what, I like the books on your bookshelf,’ then I can look at your bookshelf and take the ones that I want or add them all. So it’s very fast, very easy. Whenever you update what you’re currently reading, it’s added to your reading list for that year, and whenever you write a review, it’s added to your reading diary. You can go in and see all the things that you reviewed in the past four months, or the past 10 years. Grove Street: What made you start this wonderful idea of yours? Kim: Madness! No, I was a publisher for many years, I was a writer for many years, and an editor. Then I worked in New York for Harper Collins, and I was a new media specialist. I went home—I’m Australian by birth—to create Australia’s number one portal, and my lifelong dream
had been to build a site where readers could come together. I had no idea it would be like this. I had no idea about social media. If I did I would be on a private jet somewhere, but I just love books. That’s just the way that I put my expertise together. Grove Street: Is this currently your main venture? Kim: This is my main venture, yes. The only other things I do are not for profit. I’m a nonexecutive director of two public ASA assisted boards in Australia, but that’s it. Grove Street: We look forward to trying out the site and enjoying it! Once again, would you please—for the record—give us the website address again? Kim: Yes. It’s TheReadingRoom.com. Grove Street: Thank you so much. Kim: Thank you.
Widbook WRITE AND PUBLISH YOUR BOOK ONLINE
As the stigma of self-publishing continues to fade, digital publishing options are booming. Widbook (www.widbook.com ) may be used by aspiring writers who are considering penning an eBook, and readers who are interested in finding new digital content. Social networking communities which foster interaction with individuals who are in the process of writing manuscripts may be used as helpful tools. Widbook offers many noteworthy features to assist with goal achievement. Feedback can be critical during the story development phase, so I found Widbook a rather interesting option. According to Widbook, “Widbook allows authors to publish their work by starting a book from scratch or uploading current content. Users can invite friends to co-write with them and readers can discover new reading material with the help of a customized “bookshelf” based on their favorite genres and authors.” My initial questions for the Widbook team, after learning about them at BEA, are below. Grove Street: How are works in progress (intellectually) protected in the community? Widbook: Our terms: http://www.widbook.com/termsofservice ensure the intellectual rights to the author or authors, if there is more than one. Grove Street: Of the 600 books published, did any author get picked up for a traditional book deal, or was a choice made to self-publish in all cases? Widbook: Widbook is a self-publishing network. The idea is to reveal new authors, so the publishers/publishing companies/editors can find books and authors that call their attention. Grove Street: Why is this method "better" than a writer's group? Widbook: We are a collaborative writing platform that allows you to publish your book online as an e-book. Our platform is focused on revealing new authors, and while you are writing your book the content is restricted only to you. After publishing it, any user can leave you feedback on your work. Being that Widbook is well known, we can help new and consolidated authors to get their work published and read. We also offer professional tips for writing improvement on our blog (http://blog.widbook.com/). Grove Street: Are books published online free in a digital format? How does that process work in terms of editing, cover design, formatting, etc.
Widbook: It is all free, and the author can edit the book on the platform by adding stylized design for covers, pictures, and graphics. The editor also allows different types of formatting. Widbook will allow the download of books (if the author allows) and we will be integrated with distribution channels and websites like Amazon.
Brenda Jackson
CELEBRATING EIGHTEEN YEARS OF LITERARY EXCELLENCE Brenda Jackson’s 100th novel is almost on the way! Grove Street caught up with her at BEA to discuss her latest novel and her wonderful career. Brenda: Hi, Brenda Jackson here. I’m so excited about my new book. I’ve introduced the Madaris, the Westmorelands, The Steeles, The Masters—all of those wonderful characters and wonderful families. And guess what? Now you have the Grangers. The Grangers are three brothers- Jace, Caden, and Dalton and are to die for. This is a different Brenda Jackson book filled with drama, steamy sex, and everything that you want to expect in a Brenda Jackson novel. So please pick up a copy of A Brother’s Honor. It’s on sale now. Grove Street: Do you feel this is romance? I know that you mentioned drama, or is it a combination? Brenda: It’s a combination, because you can have romance with drama. Grove Street: True. Brenda: So that’s what I bring you, romance with drama. But in the end, you’re going to have that ending that all my readers can expect.
Grove Street: So, you heard it, guys. We’re going to go out and look for A Brother’s Honor. What number book is this for you? Brenda: Oh, gosh. A Brother’s Honor is book number 96. I have three more. Zane is coming out in July. I have Canyon—and these are Westmoreland’s—coming out in August. And then I have Stern that’s coming out in September. Then get ready for book 100, which is Madaris Bride For Christmas.
Grove Street: Oh my goodness. How many years have you been writing? Brenda: I’ve been writing 18 years. Grove Street: Have you always written in this genre? Brenda: I’ve always written in the romance genre. I’ve expanded to women’s fiction. Grove Street: Have you ever experimented with self-publishing, or have you always been traditionally published. Brenda: I’ve experimented. I own my own publishing company—Madaris Publishing. I present books that the typical, traditional publisher wouldn’t want—stories of romance for people over 50, or romances for full-figured women. Those books you typically won’t find with traditional publishers. Those are the stories that I present in my own publishing company. Grove Street: Before we go, I know you’ve done a lot of community work. Can you tell us about it? Brenda: Oh yes. I support Florida Memorial University in Miami. My company has donated over $150,000 to that college for scholarships, for the Josephine Threat Foundation. The foundation that I created is named after my grandmother. She was instrumental in making pies and cakes, and sending the funds to that college that was founded by the Baptist Church. She was a staunch Baptist woman, so I’m just following her legacy. Grove Street: That’s absolutely wonderful. Could you tell us the best place to purchase the book? Brenda: At a bookstore near you. It’s also on Amazon and anywhere that books are sold.
Grove Street: If we want to connect with you, what’s the best place to do so? Brenda: My website is www.brendajackson.net. I’m on Facebook: AuthorBrendaJackson. Twitter: Author BJackson. If you sign up for my newsletter on my website, I personally send out a newsletter every month to my readers. Grove Street: Thank you so much for your time. Brenda: Thank you.
Author Ralph Baker of the www.newyorkshockexchange.com. In 2008, his youth program was profiled in the July issue of Black Enterprise.
ECONOMIC EDUCATION
Grove Street: We’re at Book Expo America with— Ralph: Ralph Baker. Grove Street: He’s a relatively new author. His book was released in— Ralph: November, 2012. Grove Street: The name of the book is Shock Exchange: How Inner City Kids From Brooklyn Predicted The Great Recession and the Pain Ahead. I’m guessing that this is a non-fiction book. Ralph: Right—sort of a memoir. Grove Street: Could you give us a little more background about why you decided to write this book? Ralph: I actually run a youth ministry program in Brooklyn, New York called The New York Shock Exchange. It’s a travelling basketball team that teaches kids how to pick stocks and about the economy. We’ve been doing it since ’06. A lot of what we were blogging about in terms of the economy and the market actually happened in 2008. What I noticed was that all of a sudden, financial literacy became all the rage. We were already doing it. Secondly, what I noticed was it seemed like people were kind of like saying the exact same thing we were saying. It seemed like some people were actually lifting stuff from our website.
Grove Street: So, when you’re saying lifting stuff from your website, give me an example of something you feel came true, that you said early on. Ralph: For instance, we were blogging about the recession was coming, because housing starts were slowing, auto sales were slowing, and also suggested that the next president (this was before ‘08) should do something concrete and invest in infrastructure, deal with the education crisis in terms of the cost of college—to name a few. All of a sudden, nobody was talking about the economy, ever. Now all of a sudden there was a debate between Senator Obama and Senator McCain, and the economy came up, and then after President Obama got elected, his key to revitalizing the economy was investing in infrastructure. Grove Street: Do you feel like people had access to your information, or that any of it is coincidental? Ralph: No, no. I think there were examples where people actually lifted stuff from our website. So, I stopped blogging as much about the economy. And also, even as I was reading in the newspapers—in terms of why certain companies were failing—I could never figure out what happened. They never pinpointed what happened. How could a company be worth 10 billion dollars one day, and it’s going to go bankrupt the next? I couldn’t figure it out, and I have an economics background. The general public couldn’t either. So I decided to write the book and get behind the scenes, as far as exactly what was going on with these companies, and why they were failing, what policies changed since the late 90s that caused them to fail, because some people saw this coming. There were certain laws that overturned Glass-Steagall, which gave investment banks the power to take on more speculation, and invest more of their own money. That’s what led to a lot of these banks failing. But the economy was going to decline anyway. Grove Street: When you say that you have a background in Economics, can you tell me more about that? Ralph: I have a BA in Economics from Hampden Sydney College. I got my MBA from the Dartmouth School of Business/the University of Virginia. Grove Street: Are you still working in that field? Ralph: No, right now I’m basically promoting the book. I’m going to try to go into either television or radio. Grove Street: Okay, great. How can people stay in contact with you? Ralph: My website is www.newyorkshockexchange.com. It also talks about what book fairs I’ll be at, and also I blog about what I’m doing on a regular basis. Grove Street: When people purchase the book, what do they take away from it? Ralph: That’s interesting. I think an author starts a book. I think a reader finishes it. I’m as interested to know what readers think as what I think. Ultimately, I hope they walk away with a better understanding of what drives the economy, and also how to prepare for the double dip recession to come.
Grove Street: Thanks for taking some time to speak with us today. Continued success to you with your project. Ralph: Thank you.
LITERARY EVENT NEWS
The 3rd Annual Baltimore Urban Book Festival will be held July14th from 12-6 in Baltimore, MD. See www.baltimoreurbanbookfestival.org for details. Ella Curry and her team were in attendance at BEA. I just wanted to remind our readers that her 2013 Atlanta Chocolate Social will be held on August 1, 2013. The event is for book clubs and authors. Visit www.edc-creations.com. Vending opportunities for authors are also available. Shelia Lipsey’s Black Writers and Book Clubs Literacy Festival is also gearing up for September’s book celebration, from the 20th-21st. If you haven’t done so yet, please visit www.bwabcliteracyfestival.com. Kendra Norman-Bellamy is the Featured Author. There will also be free writing and publishing workshops, as well as something for children and young adults. The Black Authors & Readers Rock Weekend will be held October 18th and 19th in Maryland. Visit www.readers-rock-2013.eventbrite.com for more information. The Reading Divas requests that the literary community post events www.realdivasread.com. Let others know what’s happening by listing your events.
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NFL STARS RAISE MONEY FOR WOUNDED WARRIORS 2013 SOFTBALL CLASSIC
By Andrea Blackstone
Saturday June 1st, NFL players, members of the military community, families, friends, neighbors and medical professionals gathered at The Bowie Baysox Stadium in Bowie, Maryland for a fundraiser—a competitive game of softball. The first annual event, produced by the Pro Athletes Organization of Washington, DC, also achieved the goal of promoting amputee awareness. The fundraiser was an upbeat celebration of how technology is allowing amputees an opportunity to move forward with life.
On
“Ladies and gentleman, are you ready to see some softball?’ the energetic announcer asked, shortly before the game began. “Please welcome the challengers in tonight’s game—the NFL stars— Robert Bailey, Brett Lockett, Terence Austin, Marvin Austin, Tavon Wilson, Arrelious Benn, E.J. Biggers, Torrey Smith, DeSean Jackson, Josh Morgan! Please welcome the coach of the NFL team, Technical Sergeant, Larry Russell. In the 3rd base dugout, tonight’s champions, the Wounded Warrior Amputee Softball Team!” The Wounded Warrior Softball Team consisted of Navy, Marines, and Army servicemen: Kyle Earl, Nicholas Clark, Michael Gallardo, Saul Bosquez, Ryan McIntosh, Todd Reed, Kris Nativdad, Nicholas Scarborough, Manuel Del Rio, Daniel Lasko, Thomas Carlo, Timothy Horton, David Van Sleet, (General Manager) and (Coach) Taylor Billingsly. The Wounded Warriors honorably served in Desert Storm, Afghanistan, and Iraq. After the Presentation of Colors, and the national anthem were complete, a lively game began. Participating NFL players sought to raise $50,000 for The Yellow Ribbon Fund, the Wounded Warrior Amputee Softball Team, and the Wounded Warriors Project. General admission was $20; $15 for active duty military; $55 for meet and great seats with NFL and the Wounded Warrior Amputee Softball Team. Organizers expressed appreciation for the manner in which NFL stars helped bring awareness to the Wounded Warriors team. Special thanks was extended to DeSean Jackson and Josh Morgan. “Sincere thanks to all service members, active duty, veterans, and especially our wounded warriors and their families for such an inspiration to everyone here and all around the world,” a voice evoking applause said. Josh Morgan stated, “They’re playing great—definitely talking trash, putting us in our place. It’s an honor to be out there with these guys.” In between cheers, the crowd had an opportunity to hear audible snippets about amputees and the Medical Center Orthotics and Prosthetics. The event sponsor exclusively provides lower limb prosthetics at Walter Reed Medical Center, for wounded soldiers returning from the Middle East and Afghanistan. Their stated mission is to help amputees who served to move forward through providing the most advanced prosthetic technology. Doctor Chuck Scoville—a former award-winning Army physical therapist and chief of the Amputee Patient Care service at Walter Reed, and Doctor Paul Pasquina—former chief of prosthetics at Walter Reed, were publicly acknowledged for their care of amputees. Dr. Scoville,
the head of the department of rehabilitation, has also been described as a leading advocate in the field. By the close of the evening, solid proof that prosthetic technology has made great advances came in the form of the Wounded Warriors defeating the NFL stars 21-5.
They couragously gave all they had to give for us. Risking their lives for our freedom from dawn until dusk. So now is not the time to leave them, but it’s time for us to properly thank them. Support our brave warriors however we can help. Be inspired to do something meaningful to brighten their day.
To learn more about The Wounded Warrior Amputee Softball Team (WWAST), visit www.woundedwarriorsmputeessoftballteam.org
Whitney: My name is Whitney Colombo. I’m from Hagerstown, Maryland. I’ll be representing Urbana Agnes Maryland for the title of Miss Maryland. Grove Street: When does that come up? Whitney: Miss Maryland is in two weeks. Grove Street: If we want to check you out and see how you’re prgressing, how can we do that? Whitney: On Facebook, you can look up Miss Urbana. You can LIKE the page and follow how my events are going. Grove Street: Why did you come out tonight? Whitney: We all have personal platforms in the Miss America Organization. Mine is disabled veterans, so I couldn’t think of a better way to spend the evening than with the Wounded Warrior Amputee Softball Team.
Whitney Colombo will be a part of The Miss America Competition, Sunday September 15th, 2013. It will air live on ABC from Atlantic City.
After The Wounded Warriors defeated NFL stars 21-5, participants mingled on the field. I caught up with one NFL player to ask him a few questions about his involvement.
Marvin Austin Grove Street: Thank you. Would you state your name for us please? Austin: My name is Marvin Austin from The New York Giants. Grove Street: How did you feel about participating in this event today? Marvin: I had a great time. It was great to get out here and play. It just makes you appreciate everything that you have. In football, we suffer different kinds of injuries and stuff. It just shows you that the things that we go through and deal with are minute compared to some of the things that these guys have experienced and have gone through. It’s good to get out here and play with guys who have done so much for our country, and to get out here and just enjoy and have fun, and to see those guys with smiles on their faces to be out here and play with us, and at the end of the day—to know that they’re the heroes. Grove Street: That’s wonderful. May I ask how you got involved in this? Marvin: One of my friends from DC—Maximillion—asked me to come out and play. Josh Morgan, Arrelious Ben, Tavon Wilson—all of us played in the DCIAA, so it’s just from guys coming out and actually coming out and enjoying the festivities.
Happy Father’s Day!
I wish to extend thanks to all of our guests from BEA this month, WWSAT, and to Marvin Austin for letting me have a few words with him immediately after he finished the game. Another big thank you goes out to author Shelia Lipsey for her continued participation. Her teen novel, House of Cars, is now available for pre-order. Another thank you goes out to author Judi Emm who joins us from Canada. We now have a Facebook page, so please join Grove Street there: https://www.facebook.com/grove.street.12177 . Would you like to subscribe to our blog? Please do so as The Reader's and Author's Nook. That landing page will offer snippets and tidbits that link to the Grove Street e-zine. It would be much appreciated if you share our information with friends or fellow readers. You may like us through Issuu, too. Search for our issues using the keyword “bloggertime” or keyword “Andrea Blackstone.” All of our issues may not appear. However, we are in the process of moving our content to our own website. I appreciate your patience and support. Stay tuned for more news about what we’ll be doing on our own website. Each issue of Grove Street is brought to you, compliments of Surge Marketing Group, LLC. www.surgemarketinggroup.com is the place where you can find an array of creative publishing and marketing professionals. We also provide manuscript critiques, developmental editing services, press releases, and promotional services at affordable rates. Do you have an opinion about something that you read? Please email feedback to velocitydmv@gmail.com or dreamweaverpress@aol.com. Best wishes,
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Nympho Confessions of an Anonymous Stripper
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