Category Archives: Writing

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What’s on Your Summer Reading List 2010?

Hello World! 

Although summertime is the best time to hang out and have fun, it’s also the best time to relax with a good book…preferably on a white sand beach…fruity drink in hand…boo reclining next to you…

Since I’m an unabashed, lifelong bibliophile, let me share some of the books that I plan to peruse this summer…

1. “Have You Seen Her?” by Chicki Brown.  

 If she’d stayed any longer, her husband would have killed her.

 Frantic to escape his drug-induced brutality, socialite Marcia Hadley escapes Santa Barbara and flees to Atlantic City. She’s sold everything she owns, rents a seedy inner city apartment and attempts to disappear as Dani Reynolds, cocktail waitress at Frenzy, a neighborhood nightclub.

 Taylor Villanova, the club’s sexy multi-racial bouncer recognizes her naiveté and volunteers to teach her about surviving in the “hood.” Fearful and suspicious of men, Dani is at first repelled by his violent profession yet drawn to the compassionate nature that contradicts Taylor’s macho persona. But when her well-laid plans go awry, and Dani discovers someone is following her, she must put her complete trust in Taylor. Her time is running out.

I must confess Chicki Brown is one of my writer friends, and I am so proud of her! This e-book is available on Amazon, but you don’t have to buy a Kindle to read it. You can download the Kindle app for FREE for your PC or phone!

2. “A Woman’s Revenge” by Tiffany L. Warren, Sherri L. Lewis and Rhonda McKnight. 

Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. “A Woman’s Revenge” contains the tales of revenge served up cold by three of your favorite Christian fiction authors. Will their desires for revenge take them too far?

I heard each of these authors read an excerpt of the book at the Faith & Fiction Retreat held in the A two weeks ago, and this book sounds like a perfect book to escape into on the beach…

3. “Bitch is the New Black: A Memoir” by Helena Andrews.

Political reporter Andrews assembles 16 autobiographical essays exploring her unconventional upbringing, academic and professional accomplishment and the challenges of being a successful, single black woman in Washington, D.C. The scathingly witty author examines a wide variety of topics that, beneath the jokes and sarcasm, address weighty issues (depression, aging, abortion) with wry astuteness. The “bitch” referred to in the title is an allusion to the tough veneer-perhaps subtly survivalist-that Andrews claims is necessary for a black woman who is often the only black woman in school or at work.

I first heard about this book at the “Why Can’t a Successful Black Woman Find a Man?” debate. Andrews was a featured audience member at the debate and was introduced to everyone. Apparently, Shonda Rhimes, executive producer of “Grey’s Anatomy,” has purchased the rights to the book and will produce a film based on it…Obviously I’m impressed. The title alone makes this book a must read…Read a good profile on Andrews here.

4.  “The Substance of Hope: Barack Obama and the Paradox of Progress” by William Jelani Cobb.

For acclaimed historian William Jelani Cobb, the historic election of Barack Obama to the presidency is not the most remarkable development of the 2008 election; even more so is the fact that Obama won some 90 percent of the black vote in the primaries across America despite the fact that the established black leadership since the civil rights era—men like Jesse Jackson, John Lewis, Andrew Young, who paved the way for his candidacy—all openly supported Hillary Clinton. Clearly a sea change has occurred among black voters, ironically pushing the architects of the civil rights movement toward the periphery at the moment when their political dreams were most fully realized.
How this has happened, and the powerful implications it holds for America’s politics and social landscape, is the focus of The Substance of Hope, a deeply insightful, paradigm-shifting examination of a new generation of voters that has not been shaped by the raw memory of Jim Crow and has a different range of imperatives.
Jelani Cobb is one of my Facebook friends, and his status updates are always thought provoking and often hilarious.
5. “Destined” by Patricia Haley.
Brother battles brother for ultimate control of their father’s multimillion-dollar ministry in the captivating second novel from #1 Essence bestselling author Patricia Haley’s provocative new series inspired by the biblical kings David and Solomon.

Don Mitchell thought he’d left DMI headquarters behind forever when he fled to South Africa after his dying father chose his younger, inexperienced half brother, Joel, to run the thriving family business. But after three years of self-imposed exile, he has returned to take over DMI at the gentle urging of beautiful Abigail, who was once his father’s assistant. His brother, Joel, plagued by a slew of illicit affairs and poor judgment, is plunging the business into ruin, and Don’s plans to secretly assume control of the ministry come into question when his estranged sister refuses to help him. Don must decide whether to face down his power-hungry brother to save the ministry his father worked so hard to build—and take a chance on an unrequited love he never dreamed Abigail would reciprocate—or return to South Africa to find refuge in his own thriving company and the budding romance he left behind. After much soul searching, Don comes to realize that his destiny is inescapable. Patricia Haley’s evocative modern-day interpretation of these popular biblical tales will keep readers riveted until the stunning conclusion.

“New York Times” best- selling author Kimberla Lawson Roby is Haley’s  first cousin and recommended the book!

6. “The Blueprint: A Plan for Living Above Life’s Storms” by Kirk Franklin.

Seven-time Grammy® Award-winning Kirk Franklin did not start out with a “blueprint” for his life. Before the age of four, he and his sister were abandoned by their parents. His sister became a crack addict, but Kirk always knew he had to find another way, even without a positive example to model himself after. Now Kirk provides an inspiring blend of faith and grit, serving up wisdom on provocative topics, including:
•The true definition of manhood
•Why faith that only takes place in a church is dead
•Sex and the responsibilities of parenthood
•What it means to be “Christian moderate with swag” in the 21st century
and more.
The Blueprint takes faith out of the pews and delivers it into the real lives of all who struggle.

I met Kirk Franklin several years ago in Nashville at a gospel music convention, and he was really a down-to-earth, nice man!

7. “Losing My Cool: How a Father’s Love and 15,000 Books Beat Hip-Hop Culture” by Thomas Chatterton Williams.

A pitch-perfect account of how hip-hop culture drew in the author and how his father drew him out again-with love, perseverance, and fifteen thousand books.

Williams is the first of his generation to measure the seductive power of hip-hop against its restrictive worldview, which ultimately leaves those who live it powerless. Losing My Cool portrays the allure and the danger of hip-hop culture like no book has before. Even more remarkably, Williams evokes the subtle salvation that literature offers and recounts with breathtaking clarity a burgeoning bond between father and son.

Most of the music that is being passed off as hip-hop today is really just the soundtrack for what appears to be a slow genocide of our young black men and women…Maybe I’m just getting old…At any rate, this book is so necessary…

So what are you reading this summer? Let me know because I can never read enough books…And hopefully one day, I will join the ranks as a published book author 🙂

Any thoughts?

Below is the trailer for Chicki Brown’s book. Check it out…

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The List…

Hello World,

Happy Hump Day! Yay!

So this weekend, I will be attending the Faith & Fiction Retreat right here in the A. As the name suggests, some of the top authors in Christian fiction will be there. The featured authors are Tiffany L. Warren, who is actually the organizer of the event; Kimberla Lawson Roby, a New York Times best-selling author; Victoria Christopher Murray and Sherri Lewis, an Essence Magazine best-selling author. While these are the featured authors, many other authors will serve as author panelists at the retreat. It will be fun I’m sure! And I don’t think it’s too late to attend! Check the Web site for more info…

So I have been asked to moderate a discussion on Sherri Lewis’ book “The List.” Below is a description of the book from her Web site.

Single and satisfied? Not Michelle, Angela and Lisa. These saved but sexy, successful black women think they’re getting too old to keep waiting on God to send their soulmates. Under the protective eye of their more spiritual sistergirlfriend, Vanessa, and the scrutiny of newly saved manhater, Nicole, the ladies go on a hilarious adventure to “be found” by their husbands.

Armed with their list of essential must-have’s, would-be-nice’s, icing-on-the-cake’s, and total-deal-breakers, they start their search – but soon encounter issues specific to the saved woman on the dating scene. Is online dating okay for Christians? How long do you wait before you tell the hottie you just met that you’re celibate and plan to stay so until married? He’s too fine to pass up – how saved does he really need to be? And of course, how do you keep things holy when he’s oh-so-sexy?

It’s not long before they realize they still have to trust God to know what’s best for them and that He loves them enough to send them everything on The List.

Perhaps it’s synchronicity at work that I was asked to moderate a discussion on this book…At the advice of a spiritual mentor, I came up with my own list back in 2003 (the actual list I wrote back then is included in this list)…With 51 qualities, it is a list to rival Chilli’s!!! I must say my list kept me on track back then when I wanted to date a man just based on how he looked and the chemistry we had although he lacked other redeeming qualities…yes, I have dated some crazy but fine dudes in my day….but since then, I have learned that it is quite unrealistic to expect a man to have everything you want…

And in my fact, I have pared down my list to “essential must-haves!” And I have allowed God to direct my thinking as well…My father told me that only God truly knows what you need, and you have to allow Him to lead you to that right person list or no list…

So what are the qualities that your ideal man must have? Did you make a list? Are you planning to make one? Did you get what you need and what you want? What are your “essential must-haves?”

Please share…

Any thoughts?

Chilli from TLC discussing her own infamous list on the VH1 reality show, “What Chilli Wants.”

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Wait, I say, Wait on the Lord…

Hello World!

This morning, I’m still waiting on the Lord to fulfill my lifelong dream of being a published book author…Maybe I have not done enough or maybe it is just not my time as of April 24, 2010…(I believe it’s the latter…)

But I’m encouraged this morning because I know that I’m in God’s will, and I am trying to follow His plan for my life…I went to a writers conference in 2008 to get some encouragement from the Lord about this very same dream…I had been reminding the Lord of my desire to write Christian-themed books and the fact that I’m just a good writer anyway…(I think I once heard this sentiment in a commercial…”It ain’t braggin’, if you can do it.” And I can write…)

So anywho, I did hear from the Lord…although it was not the answer I wanted…His answer to me was “wait…” Literary agent Steve Laube read this poem during a session aptly titled, “Lose Wait the Write Way.”  Below is the poem…

Wait
by Russell Kelfer

Desperately, helplessly, longingly, I cried;
Quietly, patiently, lovingly, God replied.
I pled and I wept for a clue to my fate . . .
And the Master so gently said, “Wait.”

“My future and all to which I relate
Hangs in the balance, and you tell me to wait?
I’m needing a ‘yes’, a go-ahead sign,
Or even a ‘no’ to which I can resign.”

“You promised, dear Lord, that if we believe,
We need but to ask, and we shall receive.
And Lord I’ve been asking, and this is my cry:
I’m weary of asking! I need a reply.”
 

Then quietly, softly, I learned of my fate,
As my Master replied again, “Wait.”
So I slumped in my chair, defeated and taut,
And grumbled to God, “So, I’m waiting for what?”
 

He seemed then to kneel, and His eyes met with mine . . .
and He tenderly said, “I could give you a sign.
I could shake the heavens and darken the sun.
I could raise the dead and cause mountains to run.”
 

“I could give all you seek and pleased you would be.
You’d have what you want, but you wouldn’t know Me.
You’d not know the depth of my love for each saint.
You’d not know the power that I give to the faint.”
 

“You’d not learn to see through clouds of despair;
You’d not learn to trust just by knowing I’m there.
You’d not know the joy of resting in Me
When darkness and silence are all you can see.”
 

“You’d never experience the fullness of love
When the peace of My spirit descends like a dove.
You would know that I give, and I save, for a start,
But you’d not know the depth of the beat of My heart.”
 

“The glow of my comfort late into the night,
The faith that I give when you walk without sight.
The depth that’s beyond getting just what you ask
From an infinite God who makes what you have last.”
 

“You’d never know, should your pain quickly flee,
What it means that My grace is sufficient for thee.
Yes, your dearest dreams overnight would come true,
But, oh, the loss, if you missed what I’m doing in you.”
 

“So, be silent, my child, and in time you will see
That the greatest of gifts is to truly know Me.
And though oft My answers seem terribly late,
My most precious answer of all is still . . . Wait.”

 Okay, okay so I’m still waiting…and trying to figure what God wants me to do next – if anything – …Should I go to yet another writers conference? Should I query another agent? Should I network with more published authors? Should I hate on yet another writer who has managed to get published with miniscule effort?  (y’all pray for me…) What are you waiting on God for today?

Any thoughts?

P.S.  Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD. Psalm 27:14