Jan 24

Book covers: is a picture really worth a 1000 words? Can you tell a book by its cover?

by B.L. in Most popular, Must read, What the experts say, Worth a look 0 comments
Hello, Everyone, I’ve been trying to figure out what makes one book sell while another doesn’t. Let me explain what I mean. I published three books on October 31 of 2014. You heard right— on Halloween of last year. I chose that date because one of my books…. Oh, snap! I forgot to mention the titles of my novels. They are SAFE HAVEN, OLD MAN PETERSON, murder it’s all in the family and I’M YOUR BABY TONIGHT but what about tomorrow? Anyway, I chose All Hallows Eve to release my books like so many caged ravens because one of my books, I’M YOUR BABY TONIGHT, has an erotic, Halloween-themed masquerade ball in it. My first cover for I’M YOUR BABY TONIGHT had a busy Halloween-themed cover. The book barely sold. I knew my writing was good, but who would know that if the cover made readers pass on my book? Let’s see if I can dig up a copy of that cover? I frankly loved that cover, but when I posted on a site that reviews book covers, they didn’t. They asked me, “What do babies have to do with pumpkins, cigars, and guns?” They recommended that I shouldn’t combine […]
Jan 15

I AM CHARLIE?

by B.L. in Most popular, Must read, Other, What the experts say, Worth a look 0 comments
January 8, 2015 Too bad these young men couldn’t be taken alive and interviewed I want to know why they were killed and did they actually do what the media and police says they did. Nobody seems to want to examine the racism and the prejudice against Muslims. I keep hearing the BS on from white media who are acting like they don’t understand this. These guys probably aren’t terrorists any more than MLK or Malcolm were. They are young men of color who don’t feel a part of society…duh…sounds familiar, doesn’t it? The USA manages to send its racism around the world without even trying hard, doesn’t it? Did I mention what happened in Paris and what’s happening here BLACK LIVES MATTER and the willingness the police unions to stage a Blue Flu action, could be teachable moments about white privilege and Black lives don’t matter attitudes? I’m not creative enough to design something but I sure can see the links. Can you?
Jan 15

NYC POLICE KILLINGS AND THE HAYMARKET MASSACRE

by B.L. in Most popular, Must read, Worth a look 0 comments
January 5, 2015, Dear Bill Fletcher, I read your article I agree with most of it. I do think that the young man who killed the 2 cops had a good reason to be in New York on that day. I believe that he wanted to eliminate everybody in his life that day including his family in Brooklyn who refused to let him into their family home. I’m betting that he hung out in the city wasting time at the mall, hoping if he returned to the family home he could get in and kill them too then himself. When his people wouldn’t provide access (I believe for a second time or third time that day) he grew enraged. He killed the next thing besides his family that represented authority… the two police officers sitting in their car. I just don’t believe he came to town with the intention to murder the two cops. I believe they represented a substitute for authority (that is his family) to his very sick mind. It saddens me that Pat Lynch and his fellow officers have used these murders to their benefit. It’s almost as if they were waiting for something like this to […]
Jan 09

The thing about white privilege

by B.L. in Most popular, Must read, Worth a look 0 comments
On December 19, 2014, I read this article about white privilege. For those of you who don’t know what white privilege is, you should read the article entitled, “The thing about white privilege,” on LinkedIn at http://linkd.in/1v996HQ. However, just in case you don’t want to read the article right now, here’s a definition. In brief, white privilege is what rules our country today. It’s what allows a young white person living in New York City not to understand what stop and frisk is because he or she will never experience being stopped by a police officer and searched (that is fondled) looking for drugs simply because he or she is white. It’s what allows a young white person to shop in an exclusive or brand name store and not worry about salespeople following them around because they might steal something even though they have more than enough money to pay for anything they want. It’s what allows an applicant with a white sounding to get a call back for the job over all other applicants with Black or Hispanic sounding names when everybody has the same qualifications. It’s allows a white couple to receive a lower mortgage rate or refinance […]
Dec 04

NO RESPONSE TO AN ARTICLE I READ ABOUT THE FEAR OF PUBLIC SPEAKING

by B.L. in Must read, Worth a look 0 comments
In 2011, I’d been struggling with platforms and how to sell my books for years. Not that I’ve published a great number of books, I hadn’t. I’ve published only one but I’ve written several other books, the exact count is 38 romance and mystery novels, one, how-to book based on the workplace memoir I published and another memoir. I bet you’re asking yourself why haven’t I heard of this writer before? Well, you haven’t because I’m one of those writers you mentioned in your piece, Strutting Your Stuff in Your Platform Shoes. You know the writer who is too shy to sell her books in public. I did one and only book signing in 2008 when my book “Mr. Jefferson’s Piano and Other Central Harlem Stories,” a workplace memoir first came out. I had an upset stomach for days afterward. Before you ask, yes, the book signing was a success. According to the bookstore owner, I sold out the store’s 50 pre-ordered books but it was still an unpleasant experience for me. Several months later, I did a public speaking gig at a local library describing how to write a workplace memoir. It attracted six or seven people. It was […]
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