Weekly Words: Bento Con Tomorrow!!

 

Happy October! Next week, it will be 2030. Seriously, where did September go!?

The past few weeks, I've been gearing up for Bento Con, and now it's here! I've purchased rack cards of my character sketches to sell this time, and I'll have a shop sheet that has links to my hardcover and Kindle versions of the book. I also plan on drawing mockups of the next cover and having a donation sheet. I know what both the next covers will look like, but I'll see if I want to do it for both tomorrow. I literally only have tomorrow left. Ah!

That's really all I have to say haha. I did finish the one book, and all I'll say is a phoned in conclusion to what started as a great series is highly disappointing. I'm back reading Mo Dao Zu Shi, and I'm loving every page. I'm trying to hold back on rewatching The Untamed until I finish, but we'll see if I can make it.

I did have more to say apparently.

Word on the street is Twitch finally created a tag for writers and readers, so, I might do a few things on there. We'll see!

Weekly Words: Am Reading Mo Xiang Tong Xiu's Mo Dao Zu Shi (Book 2)

 

Happy June!

Last week, I said that I was reading the second book of Mo Dao Zu Shi, so I thought I would share some of it, because I read the first book back in September!

HAUNTED BY SIN

Following the trail of a dismembered corpse, Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji arrive at the gates of Yi City: an old, abandoned town shrouded in mist and restless spirits. A fiendish foe awaits them in the shadows, heralding a tale of heartbreak and tragedy. When the mysterious corpse’s identity is finally revealed, the hunt for its killer plunges Wei Wuxian back into the depths of the cultivation world's politics, where he must keep his enemies close and Lan Wangji even closer.

The first book ended with Wuxian and Wangji entering a ghost town, which is one of my favorite storylines in the show. They're chasing this mystery, and they have no idea why. Having watched the show twice, I know why, but seeing how the scenes play out in the books is so exciting. The art associated with the scenes are also just breathtaking!

*chefs kiss* The story behind this picture is so heartbreaking. Someone said it's Shakespearean, and oh man, was it. I don't remember all of the details, but I do know he took out his own eyes and later down the road was tricked into killing his best friend, whose tongue had been cut out, so he couldn't warn him. So tragic. I'm still near the beginning of this book, so I can't wait to see where it ends.

Reading anything fun this month?

Weekly Words: Untouched by Robert J. Crane

It's already the end of January, what?!

And it's a Friday. so far, I've finished two books, so I'm proud of myself. One was short, non-fiction, and non-good, so there's that, but the other was the precursor to the book I'm currently reading: Untouched by Robert J. Crane.

Still haunted by her last encounter with Wolfe and searching for her mother, Sienna Nealon must put aside her personal struggles when a new threat emerges – Aleksandr Gavrikov, a metahuman so powerful, he could destroy entire cities – and he's focused on bringing the Directorate to its knees.

The ending of Alone was very interesting, as Sienna's true power finally manifested, and at least one of her mother's weird rules made perfect sense. I also looked up the definition of paranormal, and I understand why this is labeled that way now. With the introduction of this new character and starting with his past, I'm curious to how the rest of the story will play out. We still have no clue where Sienna's mother is, and like Sienna, I still don't know exactly who to trust. I've already seen a little growth in Sienna, but mostly because her stupid decisions have led to trauma, so hopefully there will be other ways her character arc develops, as I'm reading a grown man writing a sheltered teenaged girl. I'll see.

What are you reading?

Weekly Words: Alone by Robert J. Crane

 

Happy New Year! I can't believe it's 2024. When you get older, time seems to move so much faster. I'll be 40 in July! How!?

Anyhow, with the start of the new year, I've started my most lofty reading goal yet, and that is to read 24 books this year. I have friends who have read 100, and I know I can't do that, but I can at least read two books a month if I get off my phone.

On that note, I have decided to chip away at my growing Kindle collection and have started with Robert J. Crane's Alone from his Girl in the Box series.

Sienna Nealon was a 17 year-old girl who had been held prisoner in her own house by her mother for twelve years. Then one day her mother vanished, and Sienna woke up to find two strange men in her home. On the run, unsure of who to turn to and discovering she possesses mysterious powers, Sienna finds herself pursued by a shadowy agency known as the Directorate and hunted by a vicious, bloodthirsty psychopath named Wolfe, each of which is determined to capture her for their own purposes...

Having written an objectively annoying teenager trying to take on the world herself, Sienna has made me mad several times in this book. She has spent most of years training to fight, and not being allowed to leave the house, so when she thinks she can take on the aforementioned psychopath who is not only psycho but noted as being a very old mythical-type creature, I knew she was delusional.

I'm curious to see how this pans out, because I want to know where her mom is, why she left, and more importantly, what Sienna actually is. The header on the Kindle also notes this series as being paranormal, but it's so far more supernatural, which is why I labelled this post as both.

The dialogue is great. Sienna is an asshole, and I do love an asshole main character. I just wish she wasn't also naively stupid. Hopefully she learns before the bodies stack up.

What are you reading? What are your reading goals this year?

Quarterly Goals: Conventions and Sales

I saw a Reel the other day asking September if it has someone to be, and that's a great question, because how is October on Sunday?

It is a fifth Friday, so that means it is time for my quarterly goals. Last quarter, I sought to publish Fractured Princess, and I did! It is now available in all text formats (see the links below!). My goal for this coming quarter is to record and publish the audiobook. I had started practicing reading it aloud last quarter on Twitch, but then I got sick for an entire month, so now I have to strengthen my vocal cords and lungs back up. I definitely want to get the audiobook out before the year is up, though.

Also, of course, in the next quarter, I would like to try to have--at least--the first two parts of Divided Princess completed. I know just about all of the major plot points. I just need to connect them. If I can say "THE BOOK IS FINISHED" in January, that would be just the bees knees. Wish big. Work big.

My other goal was to make my reading goal. I've read 11 books so far, so that means I'm going to make the 12! Depending on how many I finish, I'll try to add a book a quarter. No promises. I'm only doing it for myself anyway. I started Poe's complete works, because I've only read a few of his short stories and one poem in school ("Annabel Lee"; I haven't even read "The Raven"), so I'm going to power through this weird story about Hans Pfall, which is mostly a rambling so far, and go from there.

Another goal is to try to get more sales in. For me, that will mean a little more marketing and trying to get into more conventions as a vendor. I have Blue Hen Comic-Con in November. I didn't make the cut for the Multiverse Con in October. I know there is a big fantasy one in D.C. in the Spring? Early Summer? So, I will keep an eye on that. Marketing and social media-ing is tougher. I deleted my Twitter account, so I'm down an avenue. I'm thinking more about Threads than any other newer outlet. I like Spoutible. It's being ignored even by articles listing new social media apps, but so far, it's the one with the least issues. I need to keep a better presence on Facebook, but they always recommend I post around 7:00pm. I mean, I guess I can schedule something, but I like to be in the moment. We'll see.

Anyhow, those are my goals. Have a happy Spooky season! I'll see you next month. ;)

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FRACTURED PRINCESS is now available in Kindle, Paperback, and Hardcover! Get your copy today!

Kindle Edition (amazon.com)

Paperback Edition (amazon.com)

Hardcover Edition (amazon.com)

Quick September Writing Update

 

So just a quick update, because I haven't blogged in 3 weeks.

As I mentioned in the previous post, the new direction went very well! The majority of the second chapter was the scene I mentioned in that post (where I was worried I wouldn't be able to use it), so I am at the third chapter now. I was about to keep jumping into the action, but no, I need a little more regular time for Cyan and Jonnie (although, I did sneak in a bit of suspense in the second chapter). By the fourth chapter, I believe it will be time to get into the meat of the story, and with so much already written, I'm partially sure the rest of the writing will be done quickly. I won't declare a date, but things are looking up. I'm excited.

I, for sure, need to make at least a Quarterly Review post next week, so I'm going to start working on it now. haha See you then!

Weekly Words: Am Reading Mo Xiang Tong Xiu's Mo Dao Zu Shi

 

Well, happy September! Summer is basically over, and I've only been on the beach in San Pedro, Belize. Woe is me. I started August with a sinus infection and ended it with COVID, so I'm hoping for a slightly better September.

While sick, I spent this week rewatching Steven Universe. I love that show. But also, I started a new book, which I'm super excited about, because it's the basis for one of my other favorite shows, The Untamed on Netflix: Mo Dao Zu Shi by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu.

Resurrection and Revenge.

Wei Wuxian was once one of the most powerful men of his generation, a talented and clever young cultivator who harnessed martial arts and spirituality into powerful abilities. But when the horrors of war led him to seek more power through demonic cultivation, the world's respect for his abilities turned to fear, and his death was celebrated throughout the land.

Years later, he awakens in the body of an aggrieved young man who sacrifices his soul so that Wei Wuxian can exact revenge on his behalf. Though granted a second life, Wei Wuxian is not free from his first, nor the mysteries that appear before him now. Yet this time, he'll face it all with the righteous and esteemed Lan Wangji at his side, another powerful cultivator whose unwavering dedication and shared memories of their past will help shine a light on the dark truths that surround them.

I watched the show twice and started the manhua (Chinese version of anime) on Youtube, so I know this highlighted scene on the cover like the back of my hand, the first time the wild horse Wei Wuxian (right) went head-to-head with the very strict Lan Wangji (left). I'm 82 pages in at the moment, and so far, the Netflix show stays very true to the book, Chinese censorship laws notwithstanding. There's much more detail about the characters, of course, so we get an even more well-rounded image of them. There are even things I'm noticing in the story as a whole that I missed in the show.

The tv version of the story is a frame story, but in the book, it's written more like flashbacks. Either way, we start in the present and go back into the past to learn why exactly Wei Wuxian was summoned back to life: which was to discover a truth that his summoner uncovered and was ostracized for. We embark on a mystery filled with a little humor, what I expect (from the show) to be a lot of trauma and sadness, and fantastical romance that lives on Tumblr so prominently it's how I discovered the show in the first place. If you stumble upon any iteration of this story, I hope you love it as much as I do!

Weekly Words: Am Reading Sher Lee's Fake Dates and Mooncakes

 

Happy July!

It's my birthday month! As I venture into my last 30-oughth, I'm excited for the things I have planned the rest of this year. FP Take 3 has been an adventure, and I plan to ride it into the next book. But first, some easy reading!

This year, I'm trying to immerse myself in some more diverse reading and support my fellow authors of color. I'm starting with Sher Lee's Fake Dates and Mooncakes, a YA romance whose cover I absolutely love (CORGI!). The colors are vibrant and reminiscent of mooncakes, I believe. I can't wait to try some one day. Here is the blurb:

Dylan Tang wants to win a Mid-Autumn Festival mooncake-making competition for teen chefs—in memory of his mom, and to bring much-needed publicity to his aunt’s struggling Chinese takeout in Brooklyn.

Enter Theo Somers: charming, wealthy, with a smile that makes Dylan’s stomach do backflips. AKA a distraction. Their worlds are sun-and-moon apart, but Theo keeps showing up. He even convinces Dylan to be his fake date at a family wedding in the Hamptons.

In Theo’s glittering world of pomp, privilege, and crazy rich drama, their romance is supposed to be just pretend . . . but Dylan finds himself falling for Theo. For real. Then Theo’s relatives reveal their true colors—but with the mooncake contest looming, Dylan can’t risk being sidetracked by rich-people problems.

Can Dylan save his family’s business and follow his heart—or will he fail to do both?

There are some high stakes right out the gate, and I feel for Dylan. I also love his family so far. Also, Theo is pretty adorable. I don't read contemporary romance that often, but I'm almost never disappointed. I can't wait to see how Dylan and Theo's story plays out.

What are you reading this month?

Find me at Dover Comic-Con!

 Happy Friday!

I'll be about here!

Not much of a post today and a late one, but I did want to share the map of Dover Comic-Con next Saturday with my location! I'm actually close to where I was 2 years ago. I'll be more noticeable this year, because I'll have a bright pink tent!

If you're in the area, hope to see you there!

Weekly Words: Love Radio by Ebony LaDelle

 

Happy Friday!

Two weeks ago, I had what I'm almost sure was a sinus infection from being in the office while they were painting (I wasn't supposed to be there at first, luck of the draw), and I was in bed from Thursday night into Monday. I don't remember what I was doing last Friday, but for the most part, I spent these past two weeks recovering.

If you follow me anywhere else, you'll know I did make time to start the big countdown to FRACTURED PRINCESS's re-release, which is now 18 days away! Pre-ordering for the Kindle is live. The paperback will be available May 30th at Midnight (if I do it correctly. The first go-round, I accidentally released it a day early haha), and the **hardcover**. Will be available shortly after that, so keep an eye out!

This past week, I also started a new book! I'm excited about this one because it is a black ace romance!

 

I absolutely. Love. This cover. Pink and purple are my favorite colors, so I'm biased, but also, just the way he's looking at her and how she's touching his arm. And the "Solid Gold" lettering is a bonus. I can't wait to see how this turns out. It's a romance, so it will most likely be a HEA (happily ever after), but the important part of romance novels is the journey to it. From how it's started, I think it may be a bit emotional.

Here is the blurb for your reading pleasure:

Prince Jones is the guy with all the answers—or so it seems. After all, at seventeen, he has his own segment on Detroit’s popular hip-hop show, Love Radio, where he dishes out advice to the brokenhearted.

Prince has always dreamed of becoming a DJ and falling in love. But being the main caretaker for his mother, who has multiple sclerosis, and his little brother means his dreams will stay just that and the only romances in his life are the ones he hears about from his listeners. Until he meets Dani Ford.

Dani isn’t checking for anybody. She’s focused on her plan: ace senior year, score a scholarship, and move to New York City to become a famous author. But her college essay keeps tripping her up and acknowledging what’s blocking her means dealing with what happened at that party a few months ago. And that’s one thing Dani can’t do.

When the romantic DJ meets the ambitious writer, sparks fly. Prince is smitten, but Dani’s not looking to get derailed. She gives Prince just three dates to convince her that he’s worth falling for. Three dates for the love expert to take his own advice, and just maybe change two lives forever.

 

I'm extra biased because Dani is a writer. *heart eyes* I hope she makes it big.

What are you reading this week?

Weekly Words: Women in Writing - Octavia Butler

 

Happy Women's History Month

I DEFINITELY wasn't going to go this month without mentioning the queen of sci-fi. My hero, Octavia Butler. Not only did she write some very prophetic stories (read The Parable of the Sower and The Parable of the Talents and go ahead and have your heart attack), but she wrote some fierce, black women at every single turn. From my introduction to her work in Dawn, to her Patternmaster series, she wrote raw, gut-wrenching narratives that would often than not devastate me to the core. And sadly, as I may have mentioned before, she died of cancer the year before I discovered her work. I would've loved to see what else she would have written, especially in these past 17 years. Or she may have just said, "I told y'all."

But anyway, as you all may remember, my favorite book of hers was her last book, Fledgling.

This book was created on the most interesting premise of vampires not as the Nosferatu or Dracula variety, but the origin of the lore in which those stories were created. Their race, known as Ina, were a territorial society, where the women lived in one community and the men in another. When we begin with the main character, she is awakening in the midst of what appears to be a rebirth of sorts, and a painful one at that. Her skin is burnt, her skull is broken, and the world around her is destroyed. Very strong imagery. Come to find out a little later, her name is Shori, and her mothers genetically engineered her to be a dark-skinned Ina, so she could live in the sun. Some of the other Ina were not pleased with this, so to speak, and destroyed the community. By the end of the book, Shori finds her people and her mothers' killers, and typing this up, I want to read the book a third time. I loved it so much.

You may also know that I wrote a fan fiction based on the book in 2015. Every now and then, I find a comment in my inbox, and it brings me joy to see other Butler fans and hear that they love my little "sequel."

There is also a really cool organization called The Octavia Butler Project that mixes the arts with STEM, and they have two summer programs for young preteens and teenagers and events all through the year. If you haven't heard of them, be sure to check them out and donate if you can!

Next week, I'll close out the week with a shameless plug, so be on the look out! :)

Weekly Words: Women in Writing - Jodi Meadows

 

Happy Women's History Month!

 

This month, I've been highlighting some of my favorite women writers who have written great female characters. I'm sharing this week's a little selfishly because I helped sensitivity read this one, and I love the main character so much.

Jodi Meadows's main character Mira from the Fallen Isles Trilogy felt like a person the teenage me was, minus the trauma from an attempted murder as a child. When she was born, the council basically marked her as the avatar of peace and the end of the enslavement of one of the other isles, which bred some animosity, as ending slavery always does. But anyway, when she learns there is a conspiracy and does the right thing by bringing it to the council's attention, she is thrown into prison where she meets a group of people who will ride with her to the end of the series. Each book had some unforgettable scenes, from the first time Mira uses her dragon power, to the second time she uses it, and her friends see the actual shape of the dragon, to a steamy rain scene I read a couple times (hehe), to the isles STANDING UP (they were trying to prevent the isles from turning back into gods and deserting them. Come to find out, they were always going to leave, but they returned a bigger and better dragon island for the people who survived the literal uprising)! These books were magical.

And what was also so great about them was seeing Mira's character progress from this spoiled but sweet little rich girl with massive anxiety becoming this strong warrior for the people of the isles, even so far as standing up against a mad queen! I will always cherish her.

 

Tune in next week for another character and author I would not let this month pass by without mentioning!

**ANNOUNCEMENT** FRACTURED PRINCESS Available for Kindle Pre-Order

 

 

This is a quick announcement, but I'm very excited about it.

The 2nd indie edition of FRACTURED PRINCESS is now available for Kindle Pre-order!

Visit the link embedded in this phrase to purchase for $7.99!

Weekly Words: Women in Writing - N.K. Jemisin

 

Happy Women's History Month!

Last week, I decided to highlight some of my favorite female characters written by female characters for this month. No one knows when like women, so reading women written by women for women is always a treat.

Y'all know I wasn't going to get too far into the month without posting my queen, N.K. Jemisin! I had so many female characters to choose from, from Yeine and Oree (oh God, I loved The Broken Kingdoms so much *sob*) in the Inheritance Trilogy, to Jo in Far Sector, to the badass ladies in the Great Cities Duology. But it was a no-brainer for me to choose Essun, f.k.a. Syenite, f.k.a. Damaya from the Broken Earth trilogy.

The journey we went on with Essun, from her beginnings as a child given away by her parents to the Fulcrum to a grieving mother looking for her daughter in the middle of what seems like the world finally ending, or ending...for the last time (if you know, you know), was an emotion-filled, suspense filled wonder, and the ending was so satisfying I almost cried. Essun is a strong, determined, slightly broken woman who didn't quite know how to love her children until she loses them, and it was a joy to read such a complex character. No one writes like Norah.

If you haven't read the THREE-TIME Hugo Award-winning trilogy, what are you doing? Check it out!

Weekly Words: Women in Writing - Kristin Cashore

Happy Women's History Month!

Earlier this week, I had an idea to highlight some of my favorite female characters written by women authors. As a writer, I grew up an avid reader, so I've seen many a female character, but it's always special when a woman writes a woman FOR other women to read. So this month, I will share some of my favorites.

Kristin Cashore's Graceling Series

I don't even remember how I can't make came across Graceling, but if you've followed me long enough, you'll know my first pitches for Fractured Princess heralded it as Graceling meets Final Fantasy. It's still accurate, even though these books are around 10 years old now.

The story itself is quietly terrifying, but seeing characters like Katsa, gifted with the power to kill, and Fire, cursed with the power to control people's minds, and how they navigated their lives with the conspiracies happening around them was exciting. Fire, especially, was such a unique character to me. I think I read that book in 3 days. I'll also give a nod to Bitterblue's character, though I wasn't as whelmed by her book as I was by the other two, but she was a princess who was forced to clean up the mess her father created, so she was still a strong female character in her own right.

I might have to read these again. There are so many scenes I remember vividly. If you've never read them, check them out!

Monthly Review and Weekly Words: N.K. Jemisin’s The World We Make

© Creative Commons Zero (CC0)

Happy Last Friday in February!

I've felt both conflicted and free since getting rid of my rotating schedule. A Weekly Words on the FOURTH FRIDAY, WHAT!? I suppose it's because I've been blogging for so long and had built this little system that worked for a while, getting rid of it comes with some weird sense of guilt as though they have their own feelings. I'm killing my blog-darlings, and as a writer that's hard.

But to the trash with that! The freedom means I don't have to wait until X Week to tell you all about something, and that's a good thing! It should lead to less unplanned breaks because I have nothing to say on a particular topic.

So on that note, this week I applied for an LCCN for Fractured Princess. That's exciting, because that gives it a better chance at being available in libraries. Once I receive a number, I'll be able to set up the Kindle edition for pre-sale! May will be here before I know it. 

I've also written a few more words in the new draft of Divided Princess. I do think this restart is going to help me get to the end of the book. It's on my mind more and more now that FP is on the move again.

My reading is also on the move again! I've been beta reading a friend's work the past few weeks, but this week, I was able to start N.K. Jemisin’s next book in her Great Cities series: The World We Make!

All is not well in the city that never sleeps. Even though the avatars of New York City have temporarily managed to stop the Woman in White from invading—and destroying the entire universe in the process—the mysterious capital "E" Enemy has more subtle powers at her disposal. A new candidate for mayor wielding the populist rhetoric of gentrification, xenophobia, and "law and order" may have what it takes to change the very nature of New York itself and take it down from the inside. 

In order to defeat him, and the Enemy who holds his purse strings, the avatars will have to join together with the other Great Cities of the world in order to bring her down for good and protect their world from complete destruction.

I'm almost 100 pages in, and I'm already stressed out! The action in the first book was amazing, so seeing even more magical city avatar action almost right out of the gate again is exciting! I'm sad that this will be the last book, but I can dee how weaving current events into a world of magical realism could get exhausting. I wish I loved Delaware enough to write a love letter book to it hahaha.

See you in March!

September Writing Update

 

We're going to be in 2032 if we blink too long!

It's the THIRD Friday of September, can you believe it? Not only does that mean we are a few days away from my favorite season, but it also means that it's time for a writing update!

So last month, I mentioned that I finished the first part of Divided Princess. I started the first chapter of the second part. I did one major revision to it, because I brought in a character earlier than they were needed, and it was getting in the way by my forgetting they were there haha. I need them later, so I'll put them back in then. It just makes sense.

I'm going to pause the writing and read the first part back to see how it all feels. I think that will also help me with the next few chapters before I get to where I need to go in the story. One thing I do want by the end of the series is for there to be less crying haha. Jonnie cried a LOT in the first book. Of course, she went through a lot of grieving in that book, too, so it should be understandable. I just want NO tears from her by the third book, if possible haha. We'll see how that goes. 

In other news, I'm going to Kensington (Northeast Philly) tomorrow to meet MultiMind for her book signing! I featured her in my Black Author Spotlight back in January, and her hustle is so inspiring. I can't wait to be able to promote FP again. She's given me so much knowledge about self-publishing and has helped me in this journey so much, I can't thank her enough.

I need to try to record some Patreon videos today, one for last month and one for this, and I'm also supposed to be working (what else is new?), so I'll cut this here. Have a good weekend!

Black Author Spotlight: PYIF

 

Happy Friday!

It is the first Friday of SEPTEMBER, and we can freak out about that later. It is time for another Black Author Spotlight! The goal of this segment is to highlight black authors who are often marginalized and ignored in the publishing industry. Black writers usually turn to self-publishing--an already densely populated industry--to have their stories seen, and it is said that we have to work twice as hard to get half of what our white counterparts have. Hopefully, shining a little light on these authors will help to signal boost the work they are putting out there.

Today, I am highlighting Allen "PYIF" (Push Your Imagination Further) Greene.

This author is actually very near and dear to me: he's one of my cousins! We come from a very artistic family, from music to illustrating to writing, we are very right-brained.

PYIF is a sci-fi light novelist who is finally actively pursuing his dream toward publishing. I've had the pleasure of reading his first few draft pages, and I think readers will be in for a treat!

PYIF has created a GoFundMe to help with art commissions and copyright buyouts. Please support if you can! He's almost halfway there!

Follow PYIF on Instagram!

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If you are a Black author who would like to be in the spotlight, email me the following information at debreneebyrd@gmail.com

Name or Pen Name

Genre

Website/Blog

Social Media handles

Book (if any) and where to buy

Permission to use photos

Black Author Spotlight: AJ Woodson

 

Welcome to August! It is the first day and the first Friday of the month, so it is time for another Black Author Spotlight! The goal of this segment is to highlight black authors who are often marginalized and ignored in the publishing industry. Black writers usually turn to self-publishing--an already densely populated industry--to have their stories seen, and it is said that we have to work twice as hard to get half of what our white counterparts have. Hopefully, shining a little light on these authors will help to signal boost the work they are putting out there.

Today, I am highlighting AJ Woodson.

AJ Woodson is the creator and Editor-in-Chief of Black Westchester Magazine, a webzine for people of color in Westchester, NY, and the tri-state area. As the website states, "BlackWestchester.com is committed to be a platform to profile life, culture, economics, politics, sports and entertainment and those who are representing vision in these marketplaces and who can both encourage and provide role models to other men and women. BlackWestchester.com, through its online magazine, monthly newspaper, weekly talk radio show and editorial content, will be a vessel of community information throughout Westchester and the Tri-State area of New York. Our mission is to promote the concept of “community” through media." Black Westchester Magazine currently has close to 1,000 articles, with topics ranging from entertainment to politics, and hosts seven radio shows.

AJ also wrote a book about the creation of the webzine called Black Westchester - The Origin Story And How My Faith Was Instrumental in This Great Experiment, which tells of how the magazine came to be.

It is currently available on Amazon, but you can purchase an autographed copy through Paypal or Cashapp via $MrAJWoodson. Click here to read the article with the news.

You can follow AJ on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter at MrAJWoodson.

His website will soon be available at www.mrajwoodson.com.

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If you are a Black author who would like to be in the spotlight, email me the following information at debreneebyrd@gmail.com

Name or Pen Name

Genre

Website/Blog

Social Media handles

Book (if any) and where to buy

Permission to use photos

Black Author Spotlight: S.D. Johnson

 

Happy July! It is the first day and the first Friday of the month, so it is time for another Black Author Spotlight! The goal of this segment is to highlight black authors who are often marginalized and ignored in the publishing industry. Black writers usually turn to self-publishing--an already densely populated industry--to have their stories seen, and it is said that we have to work twice as hard to get half of what our white counterparts have. Hopefully, shining a little light on these authors will help to signal boost the work they are putting out there.

Today, I am highlighting Samone "S.D." Johnson.

Samone is a self-published speculative fiction author, wife, and mother of three. She is also a mentor, beta reader, proofreader/editor, copywriter, and ghost writer, and she also helps promote other books! She actually has her own author spotlight as well! Samone's website is equally as active as she is. You can view her current read as well as books she's read previously, and watch her booktuber videos!

Her first series, The Fallen Scion Series, is currently available on Amazon, and if you visit her website, you might actually find a free sneak peek of Book 1: The Scion's Descent *wink*. Here are the awesome covers of all three books (peep the backgrounds!):

And here is the synopsis:

The Falling Scion Series is a coming-of-age story dropped at the crossroads of Mad Max and family deception. The year is 2305 in a post-apocalyptic dystopian United States. Our fragmented Scion Yoli has grown up regal and privileged in the Shore Delegation but is seemingly transformed overnight when she is kidnapped by a sister that she never knew existed and told the truth about her bloodline and pedigree. She can’t trust anyone and she’s full of resentment, and all she wants to do is run from all of it. She doesn’t have time to be smitten with Solomon the Post Trader or lose her best friend and Daily, Selah. Yet, with learning the truth, she’s forced to deal with it head-on or be consumed by the deceit.

Everything changed for Yoli, the day the men of the Pit and their heinous leader Santana got their hands on her. Santana tortures Yoli, in hopes to get information from her that could change the course of their history. Not to mention this evil man is revealed to be Yoli’s uncle and mortal enemy. After an all-hands-on-deck heist to get her back from the Pit. Yoli goes through a tragic drug-induced detox only to be forever changed from the sheltered heir of the Shore Delegation to a wild child still grappling with life after the enemy has sieged and destroyed her home. The once life-loving young lady has become a dark, brooding, life-hating, hedonist drowning her broken pieces in debauchery. Along with Solomon the Post Trader (the man she has come to swoon after), her new sister Stacia (the one she once admired and now loathes), the people of the Bottoms, and the bounty hunters, the group finds themselves at the Barnes Military Base with the Pit looming close behind them. This is where Yoli learns two of the most crucial parts of her existence and she realizes that she has to get her act together and her life in order if she is going to live to see another day. It’s this bit of information that her sister was hiding that took from a young adolescent girl to a woman that must make adult decisions. One of those things is that her traditional tattoo Scion markings that she received at the age of thirteen during her coming-of-age ceremony, hold the key to a “promised land” beyond the desert wasteland that they all know. It’s that map in her Scion markings that her greedy uncle Santana will stop at nothing to get his hands on.

It’s at this moment that Yoli rises up and uses the information that Santana was after to keep her loved ones safe. She decides that it's her time to lead and stop crying about a past that she cannot change. Yet even that causes a whole new set of problems. The Pit is hot on her trail and she still can’t shake the burden of lies that she has to carry every time she looks at her sister, but she perseveres with the little hope that she has left. It’s lead her people or die trying time.

Faced with the tragic loss of one of Yoli’s loved ones, she decides that enough is enough and heads out after the enemy on her own to put an end to the torment that her family has suffered. She wanted to look death in the face and conquer it once and for all. Will she succeed?

Sounds intriguing! I love a good complicated family narrative.


Once again, you can visit Samone's website at http://www.authorsdjohnson.com/.

Follow Samone on Twitter and Facebook at authorsdjohnson.

Follow her on Instagram.

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If you are a Black author who would like to be in the spotlight, email me the following information at debreneebyrd@gmail.com

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