OK Ok OK - I've relasped. My girl Heather emailed me to yell about how this hasn't been updated in eons - and I must say you guys, I pulled up the page I was all ready to type some words into it - but I couldn't do it. Why? Because I've been gone so long - and so many things have happened it was hard to start up again - hard to find my way back. So this is how I'm going to do it. I'm going to take it from today and work my way backwards. Now I can’t guarantee I’ll remember everything so this may come off a bit random...

February 2^nd  - I got an email from my agent, Jenoyne Adams. She says my manuscript is being sent out next week!!! Yeahhhhhh. I am ever tweaking the manuscript and a co-worker of mine (Latia Blackwell) I have to shout her name out because she is fabulous and is going to get even more fabulous and I just want to put it on record that I knew her when... Anyways she's even offered to read it and give me feedback and editing and all that good stuff. This is great because she has editing experience and has even edited works for authors whose books actually sit on the shelves at major bookstores. (All Black Girls Ain’t Got Rhythm is still sitting in my trunk – but at least it’s an upgraded trunk now [see Jan 31^st entry] – so we are moving in the right direction)

I've started another novel. The thing about novel writing is this...while you're writing a novel - a gang of ideas for other novels - follow-up novels - and all kinds of novels pop into your head. And then you finish the novel at hand and realize that all the ideas you had might sustain a short story - maybe a poem but in no way is the idea strong enough to write an entire novel on. And then it happens! Somewhere between picking up your sister's baby's daddy from a 2 year stint in the penitentiary and looking at the tattoo on your other sister's neck - a helluva story jumps into your head and the next thing you know that feeling is in your stomach and this idea you know is an idea that will not only sustain an entire novel but will excite you the entire time.  I introduce to you all Halfway - a novel about the halfway of things. And that's all I can say about it for now - Because the other thing about it is novel writing is mainly done while the novel is being written. But trust me ya'll I can tell some good and exciting things are going to happen in this one ya'll.

January 31st – Now this day started off bad. It put me down in the dumps so much so I couldn’t bring myself to go to work (not that I was going to go to work anyway.  I was having car issues but that’s another story). I woke up and checked my email and it was there I learned that my submission for this amazing anthology wasn’t accepted. My assignment was to write about love. So I did. But the thing about it is my sense of love is really warped (Hey, they should have first asked me what I knew about love). I got to writing about this girl getting her neck tattooed (hint hint – my sister) and this other girl on her way to pick up her boyfriend from a stint in jail (hint hint – my other sister) and I knew that someway somehow all of these things had something to do with love but 1500 words into the story Love hadn’t made an appearance. The deadline for my assignment was drawing near so I revamped something I had already written about a girl who wants to be loved by her abusive father and started cutting herself while her father was beating up her mother (it’s good trust me on this) and I sent that off.

It was rejected. In my rejection I was told that that story wasn’t in line with the vision of the anthology …. They actually wanted something about a more healthy – well-balanced love – and even if it wasn’t all that healthy the love had to have some redeeming qualities.  I was depressed – and I didn’t go to work and because I was having car problems I went out and bought a brand new car. A car I love even though I am trying to find peace with the car note that comes along with it… Hey that’s a form of love isn’t it. I wonder if I can write something about that?

What kind of car did I buy??? A Lexus RX400H (a hybrid) I’m trying to get my environmental responsibility on.

Also at 1pm on this day I was invited to go to the WMET 1160 AM studio where I recorded a commercial for All Black Girls Ain’t Got Rhythm with novelist and host Karyn Langhorne. It was a great experience and great interview. Thanx Karyn.

This was the second commercial I did with this radio station. The first one was in December with Poet - writer - host - renaissance man Kwame Alexander. This one even came with its own White Man in the Sky announcer dude. Karyn heard that one and liked it and asked me to do one for her radio show not only to be aired but to be used as an example of what the Author Spotlight segments would and could sound like for writers who would be interested in using this service as another way of promoting their books.

Funny thing is about 2 months back I did not know Kwame or Karyn personally - today it seems like I am talking with them, running into them or working with them 4 - 200000 times a month. And it all started when a co-worker purchased a copy of All Black Girls and gave it to Karyn who in turn passed it on to Kwame. and in this small world we live in my hair stylist had a copy of my book and to find out she is Kwame's stylist as well. She showed him a copy of my book but by that time he was already familiar with it. And as they say the rest is history - check out the January 4th and January 27th entry to see why... (Uh, I can't promise when those entries will be posted).

 

 

Hey Girl,
I know you're busy and all that, but you could drop your sisters in the writing group a line every now and then. We miss you, but are all oh so proud of your accomplishments. I guess we'll have to book you as a speaker one month soon. Last Friday night I sat in on a group that was formed from one of Marita's workshops and bragged on you like you were my little sister;). I'll be checking out your blog on a regular basis, so keep it updated. Love ya,
Arlene