For the first time since the publication of Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance (Facts On File) in 2003, Google Books has recently added an extended preview to its listing of the title.

The Michael Jackson story has arguably been the most compelling of 2009 and more than once has caused me to rearrange my own writing schedule to help clarify various aspects of the iconic entertainer and philanthropist’s legacy. Towards that effort, I have written the following blogs, articles, and poems regarding Jackson with the most recent listed first:June 25, 2009. At that point, I sat other projects aside and began to write my various memories and interpretations of his life. I also began to chronicle as a Red Room and AuthorsDen author, and as the National African-American Art Examiner, the public and media’s responses to Jackson‘s passing.

As a landscape coffee table gift book, ELEMENTAL The Power of Illuminated Love makes a formidable display by itself for a literary festival event. But given the fact that my co-creator for the title, Luther E. Vann, and I were sharing space with a number of outstanding exhibitors like representatives from The Book Lady Bookstore and Cherokee Publishing, it was clear that we would need some reinforcements to beef up our presentation and help us stand out from the crowd. We achieved this by utilizing two collages of images and clippings that both entertained book lovers and informed them about our work.

Going back and forth between my operational modes as poet, literary author, and journalist, I’m much more accustomed to asking questions during interviews than answering them.However, I was particularly honored to reverse that roll when musician Nhojj generously elected to interview me for his blog at this url: http://www.myspace.com/nhojj

Anyone who has read my reviews of his first two cds on Amazon. com or checked out his rapturous performance of “Peace and Blessings” on my profile page here at MySpace know that he is an exceptionally gifted artist destined for phenomenal achievements in that great spinning galaxy we call the music industry.
Please give yourself a special treat today by checking out the man’s music and his blog interview with this humble poet and author.

Before the hours of insanity and annihilation that changed world history on September 11, 2001, the month of September was noted by members of my family primarily as the birth month for at least a half dozen individuals. It remained, of course, their month after the destruction of New York City’s World Trade Center and the loss of thousands of lives, but the shadow of that event tends to lessen the glow of birthday candles and soften the volume of songs and laughter. Especially for those born on the actual day.