Vanessa Williams’ Love Revelations

I read Vanessa Williams’ book You Have No Idea last year, which is a memoir she co-wrote with her mother.  It’s kind of unique in that for many stories “Ness” tells, her mother also gives her view of how it went it down–usually in terms of Vanessa’s romantic relationships and the infamous Miss America/Penthouse scandal in 1984. Because I’m just a few months away from my own book on relationships (from the male POV), I thought I’d highlight a few things Ness said in her book, from and about the men she loved the most.

Get What’s Wrong With Me? for Free! (Kindle Promo)

I’m excited to announce that my book What’s Wrong With Me? is available on Kindle for FREE for four days this week (April 8-11, 2013 only) as my first Kindle promotion. My ebook is available in all formats, but when I read about the benefits of KDPSelect for authors, I had to take advantage of it. (Amazon is known to frequently change their policies, and not always in favor of independent authors/publishers).

Don’t own a Kindle device? You can read ebooks on your PC, tablet or phone for free with Kindle software from Amazon.  (not an affiliate link)

This Kindle promotion is also being featured on a number of great ebook sites, including:

Bargain ebook Hunter
ebooks Habit
The eReader Cafe
Kindle Book Promos
The Kindle Book Review Daily Freebie Alert
Snickslist
StoryFinds

Will You Help a Sista Out?

Share my work with teen girls (and their parents) you know. Also, if/when you read the book, please post a review. (I don’t shy away from compliments nor constructive criticism!) More reviews help me greatly. Thank you for supporting this blog and my books!

Ending the Blame Game: New Book Coming Soon!

In 2011, my cousin asked me if I would write a book that gives black men a voice in relationships and allow them to speak out, uninterrupted.

 
Ending the Blame Game is compiled from interviews from of educated black men who are single, divorced or remarried with one thing in common: they have experienced single fatherhood and desire to lead a loving black family, and they want to share their voice. Their stories give women insight into the minds of single black fathers who want to be a part of a cohesive family unit, and just want to tell their side of the story. Who says men don’t want to talk? Whether its infidelity, lack of father figures, child support, divorce, breakdown in communication and overall attitudes about the black male-female dynamic, they’ve got it covered.

 
In their own voices, each single father featured shares and discusses what they perceive as obstacles to healthy, committed relationships; instilling their own confidence as men; ways that black women can be supportive of them; how to foster better communication; and how to create a nurturing environment for healthy relationships. But that’s not the end-all-be all: at the end of each chapter is an expert’s analysis, tips, and suggestions for solutions.

 
Special thanks to all of my friends who gave me input on various book cover mock-ups last month.  I’ll give you all updates and what to expect over the coming months.

Size Matters… If You Let It

Source: The Gloss

The most hilarious Christmas-themed commercial I’ve seen this season is from the Georgia Lottery about unwanted gifts. Often, these gifts are either clothing or accessories that we know we would never wear.

It’s hard to buy gifts for some people, especially when it comes to style. But what about when you’re unsure of how to best shop or dress for your style, size, and personal preferences.  I find shopping to be exhausting, and my unhappiest shopping memories by have been (and still are) for shoes.  I’ve been wearing a women’s size 11 shoe since I was 11 years old. My feet don’t always look that big (it depends on the shoe style), but they got wider as became an adult. It seems that many retailers (or shoe manufacturers) do not make beautiful, stylish women’s shoes above a certain size. Sometimes it’s the brand or manufacturer. Sometimes the store will only stock a limited number of shoes over size 9. Whatever the case, it’s always been rough. I’ve heard the same kind of complaints from others regarding finding stylish clothes for plus size girls and women. It’s a great opportunity for a designer to get into, because there’s such a void in the fashion market for it.

I realize that I have a lot of plain-jane clothes like one-color hoodies, shirts and ribbed turtlenecks, and they have me in a fashion rut of sorts. Only with my recent weight loss have I started to consider buying new clothes for myself. So I was excited to find out that one of my favorite stylists* and What Not to Wear co-host Stacy London has written another book this year: The Truth About Style  (Viking) goes into depth about some of the psychology of how we dress, indecisiveness, how the way we feel about ourselves and others’ opinions and judgments of us influence how we dress, and why we choose (or refuse to choose) to give weight to those beliefs and opinions.

Some of Us Are Better Coaches Than Players

Source: EUR Web

I like the number 23 simply because it’s my birthdate–it has nothing to do with Michael Jordan’s number or the Brothers Johnson classic song, Strawberry Letter 23. But when I am in the car around 8 am on a Mon-Thurs, I have enjoyed the Strawberry Letter portion of The Steve Harvey Morning Show on the radio–even though it seems that many of the writers of those letters have no common sense.

During part of my road trip for the holidays, I listened to a couple of audiobooks. One of them was The Strawberry Letter by Shirley Strawberry, a radio vet and one of Steve’s co-hosts on his show.

Happiness is in the Process–Not in the Results

Source: ForbesLife

It’s been almost two years since I went to L.A. and attended an event where Russell Simmons was interviewed and then conducted a book signing for his latest book, Super Rich.

I just started and finished the book this month. Awesome!

As usual, I want to share some of the points in the book that I will use. I won’t try to explain them all, even though there is much context surrounding everything listed here. (My personal comments on this list are in brackets.)

I Look Like I Don’t Need a Man?

Source: Love Alert 911

I got this comment from recent ex. Just how does a woman who LOOKS like she doesn’t need a man look?

Hmmmm… I’ll come back to this in a bit.

I read a wonderful book on Labor Day called My Cat Won’t Bark: A Relationship Epiphany by Kevin Darne. I was able to read it on my Kindle in a matter of hours and I recommend it to anyone–male or female–who is unhappy in their relationship. The first point that got me was, “By staying put [in the relationship], you’re saying, “This is the best I can do.” Another excellent point the author makes is to ask for what you want from your partner and then make a decision: “If it’s a deal breaker, get out. If not, learn to live without.” And a third gem: “If you ask your partner for something multiple times and you s/he won’t give it, either they don’t have it in them to give, or they don’t think you’re worth the effort.” See why I couldn’t put it down?

This book confirmed some things that were nagging me about my own relationship. And you know what? The next day, it was over. Or so I thought.

PUSHing for More: A Book Review for the Goal-Getter in You

Source: Scentsy Team Achieve

I just finished the book PUSH by Chalene Johnson. Awesome for a goal-getter like me!  Chalene is the CEO of Powder Blue Productions and a fitness/life coach. One of her programs, TurboKick, is my favorite–it’s actually the only one I’ve tried, so it has to be  !  I love it so much that I put it in my author bio!

The thrust of the book is that from all your goals, you should identify a “PUSH” goal (the one that has a domino effect on the others), and schedule daily to-do tasks to reach that PUSH goal. You start by making a list of 10 things you want to challenge yourself to accomplish in the next 12 months (she says at least one of them should be a health-related), and figure out which one will PUSH you to success in all the others. In other words, which goal will have the maximum effect? (At least that’s what I think she means.) The only thing I’m still confused about is whether you should make to-do task lists for the other 9 goals (I’m thinking yes, but it’s unclear in the book).

I’m an IndieReader Finalist!

My book “Whats Wrong With Me?” has made the cut as one of the top Young Adult titles in the first annual IndieReader Discovery Awards! This contest is exclusively for independent publishers and self-publishers like myself, and my book received 4 out of 5 stars. Winners will be announced this Sunday at the Book Expo America, a large trade show in New York City. I’m excited and happy to be acknowledged!

The Wait is Over: “What’s Wrong With Me?” Book Release!

The wait is over! I am officially an author–two times over!

As I mentioned 2 weeks ago, today is the day of my dual book launch! While people are celebrating Valentine’s Day or going about their business, I am happy, excited, ecstatic and proud to revel in this accomplishment. If you haven’t already, please do browse my one-month-old re-launched website, check out my upcoming appearances, read unbiased reviews of my book, and participate in the special giveaway going on all week!