“expensive curation”

A few months ago when I was first contacted by Amazon Encore, I did an online search to find out more about the venture.  This article came up; I read it with interest, and never forgot the (anonymous) author’s equation: “publishing = expensive curation.”
Publishers have controlled the direction and profits in the books market for so [...]

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It’s OFFICIAL!

Ok, the official press release has gone out; you can read it here, or you can just tell me what you think of the new cover:

The new Amazon Encore edition of Wish will come out in February 2010, but you can pre-order your copy now.  I guess I should be on cloud nine, but right [...]

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Neesha rocks

Do you know about Neesha Meminger?  You SHOULD!  She’s the author of Shine, Coconut Moon, which I loved (read my review here) and works tirelessly to enlighten the kidlit community on issues of race & representation (read her brilliant essay here).  Now she’s turned her critical eye on my YA novel, and I couldn’t be [...]

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covergirl

As much as I love to teach, I forgot just how tiring a day of teaching can be!  But I’m grateful that my friend’s students at Brooklyn College were so engaged and open to discussing the material I brought into the classroom this week.  I now need to put my feet up, but first I [...]

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rich reward

I hope it’s not annoying that I keep posting other folks’ emails in here, but it really does a heart good to hear that your book’s out there in the world, *meaning something* to someone.  I got this message just a while ago from a teacher I met at Brooklyn College’s School of Education last [...]

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job well done

I’m super tired right now, and need to put my feet up but wanted to jot these notes down first:
1.  Many thanks to everyone who left such thoughtful and supportive remarks over at Justine’s blog.  It was doubly thrilling to have such a great review AND such outrage over my inability to find a publisher [...]

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thrills & chills

It’s cold outside!  It actually feels like autumn, yet the roses are still blooming in the botanic garden and the bees are busier than ever…I stepped back into the ring today and redeemed myself for the crappy shopping I did on Monday; I’m BEAT, but will now cook some lunch (a HOT lunch, b/c it’s [...]

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acknowledgements

Yesterday I finally sat down and started to prepare my manuscript for submission.  The final contract hasn’t arrived yet, but I figured it couldn’t hurt to have everything done and ready to go.  Writing the Acknowledgements page was tougher than I thought; I wrote one last summer, when I first self-published Wish.  But so much [...]

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Something like an open letter to the children’s publishing industry

In 1986, poet/activist June Jordan published a brilliant essay titled “The Difficult Miracle of Black Poetry in America: Something Like a Sonnet for Phillis Wheatley.”  I taught this essay in my course on black women writers; I revisit it often and especially when I am feeling disheartened and demoralized by the publishing industry.  Unlike some, [...]

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the future of black lit

Sofia Quintero posted this link on Facebook and I thought some of you might be interested.  It’s an interview with Ron Kavanaugh, founder of Mosaic Magazine, in which he discusses the viability of the Kindle, the future of literary fiction, and the seeming dominance of “street lit.”  Here’s a taste:
A: I would like to answer [...]

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