“In the world through which I travel, I am endlessly creating myself.”
– Frantz Fanon
Everyone needs a reason to get up in the morning. A few months ago, I didn’t have one.
During the first few days of January, I was thrilled about the prospects for Escape from Beckyville and was looking forward to another cross-country tour. By the second week, I was despondent. I moped around my apartment in my robe for two and three days at a time, sometimes not bothering to shower or brush my teeth. I felt that my life lacked purpose and meaning. It’s been nearly nine months since I walked away from my job at a top-rated talk show to pursue my dreams, and I’m still surviving. I had to sell my car and make a few other life adjustments, but I’m still here. Cubicle free and all that. Sure, if it came down to it, I could get another job if things got too scary. But the reason I lay in bed for hours with the blinds closed was because I had to face a scary thought: maybe it was finally time to leave L.A. Continue reading →
My travels may have slowed down (for now), but I’m still spreading the word about Escape from Beckyville locally until I can get back on the road.
Recently, I was invited to be a speaker at SistahSpeak: Africana Women’s Cultural Entrepreneurship in Creative and Aesthetic Industries for Women’s History Month. I’ll be discussing my self-publishing journey and how I balance my passion with the business side of things. The event takes place next Thursday, March 15 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at Cal State University, Dominguez Hills. The evening culminates with a natural hair show from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.
Come check me out and tell a friend!
If you haven’t had a chance to read Escape from Beckyville: Tales of Race, Hair and Rage, what are you waiting for? During Read an E-Book Week, I’m offering a 75 percent discount off the digital version of the book. Instead of $4.99, you’ll pay only $1.25. That’s much less than a slice of pizza or a cup of java, without the unwanted calories or caffeine.
To take advantage of this 75 percent discount, click here and enter REW75 at check out! The special discount expires on March 10, 2012 at midnight.
Thanks for helping me spread the word!
Women
by Alice Walker
They were women then
My mama’s generation
Husky of voice—Stout of
Step
With fists as well as
Hands
How they battered down
Doors
And ironed
Starched white
Shirts
How they led
Armies
Headragged Generals
Across mined
Fields
Booby-trapped
Ditches
To discover books
Desks
A place for us
How they knew what we
Must know
Without knowing a page
Of it
Themselves.
All good things must come to an end, and that includes the seven-week blog tour exploring the state of black science fiction in 2012. I have to thank the brilliant Alicia McCalla for coordinating the blog carnival and inviting me to participate in such a spectacular online event. It was a pleasure reading the work of my fellow scribes as we grappled with questions of race and injustice in sci-fi and speculative fiction and paid tribute to our literary [super] heroes.
To celebrate our final post, each member was asked to write a short piece using the prompt of a bracelet. My short story is below, and I encourage readers to check out the offerings of other members. I’d like to thank everyone who participated in the weekly discussions – whether on Twitter, Facebook or on the blog. The winner of a signed copy of Escape from Beckyville and an Escape from Beckyville T-shirt is L.M. Davis. Continue reading →
