New Poems from My Latest Book: Songs & Sketches

Here is a sample of the poetry from my seventh and latest book of poetry, Songs & Sketches:

Precious Childhood

(after the sculpture “Severn” by Francesca Davies)

There’s something in the shadow

cast over her eyes and the light

captured by her forehead—

the singularity of her nose and

lips, and her sure chin accented

by her angular cheeks.

She is a child born into the world

with strength and poise.

Her smile is not eager and her

faith is hard-won. Her youth

belies her wisdom; she is a

resilient young woman.

There’s something so precious

about childhood. The mind yet

to know; the eyes, yet to see;

the promise so clear, but

unsettled—like fertile soil in

spring.

Severn, like a river running through,

runs through their lives like a

welcome torrent, lifting and changing

the landscape as it flows forth.

She, like a thunderstorm, stirring through

the night, making white rapids of

the gone stream, momentarily disrupts

the depth of her family’s feelings for her. 

That family, who peppers her life with

hope and love, is uplifted to see

their reflection in her eyes—

in her open, opaque eyes.

Reaching, stretching; growing,

conquering; hoping, dreaming;

running, remaking; tearing lives

apart to make new things of

their own forgotten dreams.

 --------------------------------------------------------------

An Ode to Mothers

What would they do without her:

her warm, whole-body hugs,

her compassion, her knowledge.

She is as good as they would

hope she would be.

An ode to mothers:

who love despite their broken

hearts; who can see hope through

tears; who have the strength and

stamina to go the distance;

who possess the insight and vision

to see a way forward.

The great protectors of dreams

and broken things. The fixers;

the lovers; the sowers; the menders;

the leaders; the supplicants; the victors.

May their journey be one of love

in the face of heartbreak; dreams

in the emptiest of hollows; freedom

in the wake of all that binds them.

Pray for vision in the darkest

of caves.

New Poems from My Latest Book: The Words That Breathe

Here is a sample of the poetry from my sixth and latest book of poetry, The Words That Breathe:

"Blooming"

In the brown, blooming cornea
of her eyes, I see fire.
Despite her life-less,
forgotten locks, the
fire I see lights a
beauty which will never
be extinguished.
Her dress is shabby;
her shoes are worn;
but the young child she walks
wears a carefully pressed
shirt and matching shorts,
all like new.
He is her proud crowning
glory. A second generation—
a second chance
at life.

----------------------------

"Edifice"

She is tough, 
like the brown skin
weathering time
over her face.
The clothes she wears
are hand-me-downs,
right down to the
over-sized sneakers
adorning her feet.
Her hair is
short,
cropped,
natural,
and respectful.
Her eyes, too, are hand-me-
downs,
from her father, and
his father before him.

Long ago, she left her
father’s side to seek
new roads beyond
the church.
Now, grown prodigal,
her back curls and
her hair grays.

But I see a story
in the way that
she chews fruit
and spits out the pit.
I hear a sage in her
easy words and quick
wit.

She is an edifice
of the street—
reigning down
on the young—
preaching to
those keen enough
to listen.

-------------------------

"Prodigal"

  

He has known winters which

have chilled him to the bone;

He has known summers which have

blistered his back; he has fallen

only to stand again.

Manifold curses and blessings

have marked his path.

He, who left prodigal,

has returned without vengeance,

but with love—affection for

family and neighbor.

He has known other worlds

and yet has returned, with

a love rooted in his beginnings.

The small family he nurtures

is a pride and joy to broader

family and community. The

prodigal son has returned,

knowing all the while that

he was loved. 

-------------------------

"Perfect Digits"

Perfect digits,

all in a row:

New fingers

that will feel

and know

Mama, Papa,

Grandmother

and Grandfather;

uncles and aunts,

sisters and brothers.

How perfect digits will

feel and will know

the certainty of love—

The circumference of family.

-----------------------------

Click here for more information about my sixth book of poetry, The Words That Breathe.

Copyright © 2015 by January Nicole Wilson

Chinua Achebe and the Future of Publishing in Africa

This is the second in a series of blog posts concerning the Chinua Achebe Colloquium 2014, which I attended in early May at Brown University. In this post, I will discuss the challenges and conditions of publishing literature by Africans across the continent. This is a broad topic, but one which was addressed during a panel discussion at the colloquium called, "The Direction of African Writing and Publishing Since the African Writers Series."

2012 marked the 50th anniversary of the famed African Writers Series, founded by British publishing company, Heinemann, in 1962. The Series published and brought worldwide attention to dozens of  notable African writers, from Achebe to Gordimer, during the post-independence period until the mid-1980s. All of the panelists were publishers of African writers, who added their comments regarding the evolution of the topic at hand. 

Perhaps the most interesting part of the discussion came about regarding the topic of digital books. The publisher at African World Press noted that the dawn of digital publishing marked a "brave new world," a new age for authors and their writing on the continent and across the world. Now, anyone with a laptop and WiFi can become a writer. Gone are the days when a publisher needed to employ 20-30 editors and 20,000 feet of storage space in order to put out a book. Today, an author can print and sell a book as the market demands (hence the term, print-on-demand.)

Digital publishing allows authors to overcome the difficulties of distribution so prevalent on the continent. The bookstores, the roads, the mail and other delivery systems--the physical infrastructure--simply do not exist to get books into the hands of customers in many places on the continent. Accessing books via internet is a promising development for this reason. 

One of the publishers on the panel noted that his press is looking into providing digital books for free to ISP addresses identified as coming from African countries. This would ameliorate the challenge of getting books to students across the continent, many of whom have never read the much beloved African writers whose books are now out of print and hard to find in many cases.

A panelist and audience member agreed that digital publishing could be important in countries like Nigeria, where the appetite for reading is so grand that photocopying bestselling books and selling them in street intersections is a profitable activity. The market for digital books is immense.

It is essential that African students have access to books by Ghanaians, Kenyans, South Africans, etc. in order for them to develop a sense of national and regional consciousness, as well as a sense of the literary canon and history. What Achebe accomplished that was so profound for his contemporaries and for forthcoming authors was he developed a piece of literature that was familiar. He created an awareness of the everyday in Nigeria, particularly for his ethnic group, the Igbos. 

As one audience member, who happened to be an event organizer, a member of Achebe's family, and a fellow Igbo, added during the question and answer session, she "did not know that what [she] was saying everyday was prose." One panelist noted that while Achebe's most famous book has been translated into 70-some languages, it was never translated into the author's native language of Igbo. He went on to say that the book, in fact, is already written in Igbo--the author used the English language to tell stories in a way that only an Igbo would. 

As for the future of African literature, there are a large number of competitions, even beyond the Noma Prize, the Caine Prize, and the Commonwealth Prize, created to identify new literary talent. Zimbabwae and Kenya are hubs of publishing activity. Publishers across the globe are even scouting authors on the internet and social media. Above all, publishers are beginning to recognize the growing market and the need for reading audiences "to see themselves in the stories they read." 

Further, the panelist from Michigan State University Press noted that the role that traditional publishers play will always be relevant. Traditional publishers can identify the market for a given book and the potential impact a book can have on that market. However, if the desire to tell a story is as vast as it has proven to be for self-publishers on this side of the globe, traditional publishers will have a challenge in scouting and maintaining talent.

Chinua Achebe and the Hip-Hop Generation

A few weeks ago, I visited my alma mater, Brown University, for a colloquium in homage to the writing of famed Nigerian author, Chinua Achebe. Achebe had been a professor at Brown before his death last year. His family put together a three-day event featuring panelists, academics and other professionals, from across the world to speak about Achebe's legacy and the future of writers in Africa and in the diaspora. It was a wonderful few days, punctuated with dramatic, poetic, and musical performances by EME & HETERU and others. This is the first in a series of blogs on my experiences at the colloquium.

Perhaps the most memorable and, for me, profoundly moving segments was a panel called "Chinua Achebe and the Hip Hop Generation." Falling mid-way through the last day of discussions, the panel traced the influence of Achebe's most famous work, Things Fall Apart, published in 1958, through jazz, funk, and hip-hop.

One of the speakers, Rob M., who spent years as an editor for hip-hop magazines like "Source" and "Vibe," discussed his multiple trips to various African countries over a period of ten years. He traveled for work and on personal business in search of the deep and abiding connections between contemporary African American experience and those of Africans. His remarks, and those of others about the connections, were enlightening.

Rob noted that, in his work as a magazine editor, he has been a close witness to the evolution of hip-hop from an "outlaw culture from the Bronx" into "the global culture for people of a certain age." Based on his extensive travels across the continent of Africa, he suggested that hip-hop culture is evidence of "Africa reconstructed in modern idioms." He added that, if one were to subtract the "pathology of slavery" from hip-hop, one could see African history and culture manifested in the art form.

Marcus G., another panelist at the event, who spent his youth split between Harlem and Dakar, noted that today's hip-hop captures something of Chinua Achebe's irreverence and dissatisfaction with the status quo. Hip-hop is something of a "disruptive" development that allows so many Africans of the diaspora to recover pieces of their culture and traditions. From hip-hop's focus on cadence, rhythm, and timing to its artists' efforts at storytelling, improvisation/freestyling, and cyphers, there are many connections to be found.

The panelists who spoke about hip-hop echoed previous speakers' remarks, noting that hip-hop, as did Achebe in literature, put people of African descent at the center of an art form. Toni Morrison is renowned for saying that it was not until she read Achebe's Things Fall Apart that she found that she could take the authority to position fundamentally African American stories at the center of literature. This was the genesis of books like Beloved.

Hip-hop, as did Achebe, breaks down the English language and uses it to express and define a radically different reality then can be found in mainstream culture. Despite its misogyny, hip-hop also seeks to answer back to or dignify elements of American culture that are dehumanizing.

Several people on the panel and in the audience mentioned that it was not until hip-hop group, The Roots (now the official band of The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon), put out an album in 1999 entitled, "Things Fall Apart," based upon Achebe's novel, that they became interested in reading Achebe's work. As someone noted, The Roots were so distinctive in the late 1990s--here was a black hip-hop group playing instruments--it was nearly unheard of. The Roots are known to incorporate storytelling and jazz elements into their music. Here's one of my favorites from the album: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJCHeEQV454

Greg E., a comedian, teacher, and panelist in on the discussion, mentioned that he tried to introduce students to literature through his series on YouTube entitled, "Thug Notes," something of a "Cliff Notes" for young urbanites. In this segment, Greg breaks Achebe's novel down into a language that youth can understand. Here is a vignette: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_xtOMiW0ys

One thing audience members pointed out during the question and answer session was that hip-hop was missing a dialogue with the ancestors. The form, in general, does not acknowledge its own evolution, its roots, its heritage, its fore bearers. It owes much to spirituals, jazz and funk. The group The Roots is one of the exceptions.

Marcus noted that social media, despite all its faults, offers the opportunity for dialogue between millennials and their elders. As technology continues to evolve, so, too, will the cultures of the African diaspora.

My Latest Book FREE Tomorrow (Saturday) Only!

Tomorrow my latest book, Love Emphatically, goes live on Amazon! Download it FREE to your PC, iPad, Kindle or other mobile device beginning at 12 am EST tonight. The eBook will be available for free tomorrow only. Check it out at the following link:   http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00K4KYZ5M

Also see a sample poem…

We gather

in low voices and hushed tones

We gather

in high tides despite flood waters

We gather

to celebrate living

We gather

passing down traditions and

holding hands

We gather

to lay another in his permanent

resting place

We gather

to pray and to heal

We gather

in the name of love

We gather

to ward off demons that

stir the heart

We gather

growing and conquering

We gather

being and becoming

We gather

to bear witness to newborns

We gather

to welcome wives and husbands

to our lineage

We gather

to celebrate our boys and our men

We gather

in the name of love

We gather

to break bread

and to watch the full moon

We gather

star-gazing and chasing dreams

We gather

in the name of love

#freeEbook #LoveEmphatically #poetry #amazon

On the Life and Legacy of Amiri Baraka

Amiri Baraka (nee LeRoy Jones) died late last week at the age of 79. The world knew him as a prolific poet, playwright and activist. I knew him as one of my favorite poets, among the first African American poets that I was exposed to and moved by in the 1990s.

I met Mr. Baraka at a book talk  for his acclaimed book of poetry, Tales of the Out & Gone (2007) at Politics & Prose in Washington, DC. After a brief reading, he signed a book that a friend purchased for me.  I remember him, even into his seventies, as a fiery, provocative figure who lived to inspire political dialogue through his poetry, essays and other literature.

I first read Baraka's poetry in high school in a 1963 publication of American Negro Poetry. His writing was juxtaposed to many of the greats of the Harlem Renissance, including Countee Cullen and Sterling Brown (one of Baraka's mentors). Later, in college, I read some of Baraka's more controversial works like his play, The Dutchman (which was the winner of the prestigious Obie award, sponsored by the Village Voice) and poems like, "Ka' Ba" or "Black Art."

Until his death, I had little idea about the formative and seismic impact he had on the Black Arts Movement of the 1960s and 70s. His works, that I read in numerous Norton anthologies, only hinted at the activist the world knew. In the research that I've done for this blog, I learned that his work to date has been censored. I never read his most influential and polemical work. As a result of his death, surely there will be renewed interest in his activism and his legacy. I anxiously await the publication of a complete collection of his poetry in the years to come.

In the 1950s and early 1960s, he was known as a Beat poet and spent a great deal of time in New York and Paris with the likes of Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, and Jean Paul Satre. He changed his name from LeRoy to LeRoi (meaning "the king" in French), married a young Jewish woman by the name of Hettie Cohen, had two children and lived in Manhattan.

By 1967, after the Cuban revolution, the assassination of Malcolm X and the Newark riots, Baraka became radicalized. He left his wife, Hettie Cohen, changed his name to Ameer Baraka, married Amina Baraka (nee Sylvia Robinson) and moved back to his hometown of Newark, NJ.

During the riots (which Baraka termed a "rebellion" in which 1500 were injured and 27 died), he was captured by the police and brutally beaten. In an account of what took place at that time, he said that the police interrupted his poetry reading and took his script from him, "as if it were a loaded weapon." First, he was beaten in the streets, until neighbors interrupted by throwing glass bottles at the officers. Then he was taken to the police department, where he was beaten further and brought in front of the sheriff. According to Baraka's own account, the only thing that saved his life that day was a call to the police from Jean Paul Satre (one of Baraka's cronies and, of course, a famed French philosopher). I would subscribe these events to urban legend, if I had not heard the words come out of Baraka's own mouth. See "Sources" below for details.

These ideas go to the heart of what the poet claimed and used to motivate other artists of his generation by the mid-to-late 1960s. Art for art's sake was no good. All art is political and the sequence of events in Newark serve to validate this premise. According to one of the panelists from one of the sources below, we, African Americans, have to continue "to develop our own aesthetic." We have "a distinctive viewpoint and different optical and auditory nerves," which is why our art "does not conform to mainstream Western values." This was the foundation of "cultural nationalism." Mr. Baraka aimed to foment racial consciousness and pride, which formed the backbone of the Black Arts Movement.

Baraka is also credited with being the first African American to write a book which traced the role and development of jazz from slavery into contemporary times in Blues People. According to his friends, like Sonia Sanchez, James Baldwin and Maya Angelou, it was in creating this work that "he found his voice." He mirrored Langston Hughes in incorporating jazz elements into his poetry. Today, rap and spoken-word owe their foundation to Baraka and others who built on this legacy of "mass-based poetry." Toni Morrison called Amiri Baraka "the greatest living poet."

More practically, at the height of the poet's growing cultural and political power, he worked to unify African Americans, Latinos, Native Americans and other groups to bring about political change. He helped to inspire each group's own cultural nationalism and is said to have brought about multiculturalism as we know it today.

Over the course of his career, Amiri Baraka served as professor at Yale, Columbia, Rutgers and George Washington University, as well as, twenty years at SUNY-Stony Brook. He was the poet laureate of New Jersey from 2002-03. He leaves quite a legacy, in his children, his students and in his great writing. He will not soon be forgotten.

Sources:

Democracy Now: http://www.democracynow.org/blog/2014/1/10/remembering_amiri_baraka_part_2_featuring

USA Today:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/books/2014/01/09/amiri-barak-dies/4395467/

Fader:
http://www.thefader.com/2014/01/09/amiri-baraka-poet-laureate/

Introducing, Love Emphatically...

Happy New Year, everyone! I hope that you enjoyed your celebrations. I am still celebrating because this new year will bring a new book for me--one which will be released as early as the spring. The book cover is an ever-evolving project. I wanted to share an initial sample with you. I hope that you like it! See below.

Double-click on the image to read the text

Pulling Back the Veil on "Who Will Rise?"

This is the sixth in a series of blog posts concerning reader-favorite poems from my most recent book, A Poet Speaks of Empire. This post will pull back the veil on "Who Will Rise?" This particular poem concerns the new scramble for Africa and asks a question at the heart of the book, mainly, which world power will emerge victorious in this new era? Does foreign investment in Africa from emerging market nations like Brazil, Russia, India and China represent a new age of imperialism? Or, does it, in fact, represent a new partnership where sub-Saharan Africa shares in the gains of investment? Here's the poem:

WHO WILL RISE?

A vivid past forces our African

imaginations —

now faded memories of Sundiata

and colonial revolutionaries like

Sarraounia  and Nehanda:

beacons, forerunners, trailblazers

in a lost time, whose past battles

parallel our renewed struggle.

What have we learned from our past?

Do we have an answer to imperialism?

Questions that demand answers –

questions we cannot fathom.

What new strength has been added?

Is this a time to conquer or to be

re-conquered?

New masters and old mingle in

our African imaginations begging

the question, “Who will rise?”

In this poem, I ask the question, "Is this a time to conquer or to be/re-conquered?" Is what we're seeing today merely a second scramble for sub-Saharan Africa's mineral resource wealth or is foreign investment more meaningful? Is this a time to reflect on ancient revolutionaries like Sundiata, Sarraounia and Nehanda, who were "beacons, forerunners, [and] trailblazers" who aided in throwing off the chains of imperialism in times past? Finally, "new [colonial] masters," like Brazil, like Russia, like China "mingle" with "old," like Great Britain, France and Portugal, "begging the question 'Who will rise?'"--who will emerge, who will reign? This is a piviotal moment in history--an appropriate time for a poet to speak of empire. 

My continued reading on Africa's rise seems to point to a happy ending for the continent. According to a recent issue of The Network Journal, Brazil's public and private sectors have pledged to re-invest and transfer technologies to the continent in order to repay a "solidarity debt" for the many Africans taken as slaves across the middle of the last millennium. According to former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva: Brazil, which is the world's sixth-largest economy, "owes its current strength to the more than 300 years of slavery during which we exploited the sweat and blood of millions of Africans.”

Brazil's government and multinational corporations plan to make strategic investments in everything from physical infrastructure to agriculture to technology to the auto sector in order to propel growth and expand Africa's growing middle class. Brazil invested $28 billion  in projects on the continent in 2011, up dramatically from $4 billion in 2000. China and Brazil will continue to compete for the demands of the burgeoning middle class. Africa continues to be an increasingly lucrative place to do business. If Brazil and China are any example, the future looks bright for Africa.

Book Signing at Barnes & Noble in Partnership with The Hord Foundation

Last weekend, I was fortunate to have a two-day book event at Barnes & Noble in Danbury, CT in partnership with The Hord Foundation. Last Saturday, I joined The Hord Foundation's founder, Board members and volunteers in an effort to raise funding for The Foundation's college scholarships to African American high school seniors in western Connecticut. (Click here to read more about The Hord Foundation's work.) I signed my books and handed out Hord brochures for nearly three hours.

While south of Connecticut the east coast was pounded with cold and snow, New England was spared the bad weather, at least for a few days. Fortunately, there was a lot of traffic in the store on Saturday and Sunday. We raised awareness about Hord, while raising money and selling my books. A portion of all sales to Barnes customers with a Hord Foundation card benefited Hord's scholarship fund.

It was great to chat with customers and to steer their sales toward books of mine that were appropriate for them or family and friends. Many were shopping for gifts. Nothing beats face to face contact with potential readers. I love doing events like these. They foment wonderful conversation and learning.

On Saturday, A Poet Speaks of Empire was the impetus for a number of conversations. One woman agreed with the book's premise that, in visiting Timbuktu, Mali not long ago, change was in the air. She noted that this seems to be a new era particularly for business in West Africa. Following that conversation, I spoke to a gentlemen whose daughter spent three months working in Botswana as a part of her graduate program. His daughter relished riding the local bus to and from work and no one knowing that she was different, an American, until she opened her mouth to speak. This experience of being part of a majority was new and refreshing for her.

On Sunday, I gave a presentation outlining three of my four published books and even introduced a poem from my forthcoming book of poetry, Love Emphatically. The focus again fell on A Poet Speaks of Empire. A South African gentleman, approached me after my book talk wondering why I chose to write poetry. What followed was a discussion about politics and economics in South Africa today. He said that the focus on materialism and opulence was poisonous. After speaking to him, I got the sense that South Africa seems to be losing its way. The African National Congress seems to be rather dominant, with splintering interests represented in far too many other (possibly weaker) political parties.

He was mildly skeptical about the Chinese's interests in South Africa. While the Chinese are investing in new roads and other infrastructure, their interests remain in removing natural resources. Moreover, the expertise and employment that the Chinese bring to South Africa leaves with them. They don't seem invested in training or hiring locals/indigenous South Africans for business purposes.

Although his overall outlook was perhaps a little bit skeptical, I greatly appreciated his sobering perspective. I look forward to and welcome future conversations of this nature.

Examining Reader-Favorite Poems: "An Homage to the Black Stars"

This is the fifth in a series of blog posts concerning reader-favorite poems from my latest book, A Poet Speaks of Empire. This week I'll examine "An Homage to the Black Stars." I'll interpret the poem and tell the story behind it. Here's the poem:  

AN HOMAGE TO THE BLACK STARS

They took to the streets like

so many birds to the sky:

flocked like children to the

red clay, cheering for those

long-revered.

Long prayed for rain arriving

in rhythm like their praise.

They carried flags and touted shirts

for the Black Stars.

The crowd’s arrival was an

explosion of joy – pounding streets,

confusing traffic, reaching skyward.

The overwhelming volume consuming

the blackbird’s cry. Audible from the

crowd, all but silence.

The "Black Stars" is the name given to Ghana's beloved national soccer team. They're named as such because of the famous black star at the center of Ghana's national flag (see left). This black star comes from Marcus Garvey's Black Star Line, whose ships' destination was West Africa.

The poem above concerns my experience on the streets of Kumasi, Ghana after a wonderful soccer game from the 2006 World Cup played in Germany. I was fortunate to be in Ghana when the Black Stars beat the United States to advance to the second round.

I happened to be returning by car from watching the game with a co-worker's family when the city erupted. Black Stars fans "took to the streets like/so many birds to the sky". Despite the rain, the streets were filled with young men and women "pounding streets,/confusing traffic, reaching skyward" in "long prayed for rain". It was a mesmerizing spectacle. There were so many people on the street that in the car we could only move at the pace of the crowd.

It was a long ride home but a memorable one. The city was on fire in a way that I had never seen and I was there to witness it.

More to come..

"Meet the Author" at Barnes & Noble - Nov. 22

Last Friday, I was invited to take part in "Discovery Friday" at the Barnes & Noble in Danbury, CT. The "Meet the Author" event for local authors was one of many activities and fun planned to kick off book sales for the holiday season. This was a wonderful opportunity to introduce myself to the Danbury community. I had warm and wonderful conversations with a number of fascinating individuals at the bookstore.

I was fortunate to connect with a woman who was immediately taken with my second book, A Dawn Run Hot with Morning. She found that it might make a great gift for a friend of hers who enjoyed poetry and art. I signed the book to her friend and hope that she enjoys her reading. I signed A Poet Speaks of Empire for her, too, and mentioned that it was inspired by my work in Ghana several years ago. A family member of hers also traveled to Africa and, like me, it changed the way she looked at poverty on the continent.

I also spoke with a young woman who was in high school. We agreed that we greatly enjoyed writing and started writing poetry and short stories at a young age. I admitted to writing my first short story at 7 and she mentioned that she started writing many years ago, as well. She also noted that she helped edit her co-op's literary magazine, something I did in high school, too. It is always great to meet young writers and to encourage them to pursue their passions!

I talked briefly with a man who said that he always wanted to be a writer. I noted to him that, these days, it is far easier to publish than it was just ten years ago. With the rise of print on demand publishing, just about anyone with a creative eye can publish a book.

When I noted that I was published independently, he seemed surprised. Eventually, I gave him a business card and he noted that he'd check out my work online. If I had the chance to continue the conversation further, what I would say to him is that he would be shocked by the quality of writing and overall quality of books coming from independently published writers.

I have had the privilege to read a number of books of fiction and poetry through a group on Facebook called "Review Seekers" in which authors offer their books for free in return for an honest review of their book. The amount of untapped talent out there is remarkable!

I've heard that your chances of being published by a traditional publisher are equivalent to that of being struck by lightning. With this in mind, it is imaginable that many major publishing houses' "slush piles" are filled with talent. What may be in question is how easy or difficult it is for a book to easily find a market and become a bestseller.

Finally, I ran into a man who, like me, studied English in college and lamented the day when poets wrote accessibly. He remembered a day when Allen Ginsberg, a beat poet from the 1950s and 1960s, came to speak to a group in his writing program and how enjoyable reading poetry was back in the day. I agreed. Many people don't enjoy reading poetry that obscures understanding. I aim for accessibility in my work, almost above all.

In sum, last Friday was a lot of fun. It's great doing events like this one. I look forward to doing more events like these in the future!

Examining Reader-Favorite Poems: "A Poet Speaks of Empire"

This is the fourth in a series of blog posts intended to examine reader-favorite poems from A Poet Speaks of Empire. This week I'll look at the opening poem from the book, entitled, "A Poet Speaks of Empire". This poem is key to the premise of the book. An understanding of the book, A Poet Speaks of Empire, pivots on insight into this poem.

The poem touches upon centuries of struggle faced by many nations in sub-Saharan Africa since the dawn of the trans-Atlantic and trans-Saharan slave trades, through the troubled period since independence from colonialists, up until this new era in the continent's history. Here's the poem:  

A POET SPEAKS OF EMPIRE

From the depths of a frightening bottom

arises the promise of heights only imagined

by history. Mansa Musa[1] could not

dream of the hopes for tomorrow.

From the horrors of a beleaguered past

besmeared with the sale of an aging dynasty

and its people,[2] rises a cypress.[3]

Now compelled by the grip of an ancient

longing, a rising bourgeoisie breathes free.

New and constant inhalations catch the

scent of a budding era, fresh on the heels

of broken beginnings.

Arise, oh great continent, arise!

A new age beckons your voice,

your voyage.

Arise village, arise nation, arise continent!

Children seek their inheritance. A

grand past makes this generation

eager for a magnificent future, bearing

fruit to feed a multitude:

electrifying shanty grids,

irrigating drought-wrought farms,

transporting goods and services,

delivering to markets beyond the

horizon.

Rise to the moment ancient griot,[4]

storied marabout,[5] revolutionary

warrior, rich farmer! Bring your alms,

your drums, your ghosts and your songs;

the children of today must carry on

traditions older than time, ripe as the sea.

The reference to Mansa Musa is important here. In the 13th century, long before the international slave trade, ancient Mali was renowned as a world cultural and financial center. Timbuktu was an undeniable force in the trade of salt, silk and local slaves at the height of empire.   

During a period of decline, beginning in the 17th century, African slave traders began selling Africans (who were already slaves or prisoners of war) to the Portuguese, the British, the Spanish, the Americans and others. The business was extremely lucrative and many African ethnic groups benefited enormously from the trade. 

The sale of slaves was not exclusive to the West; Arabs also had a need for free labor. It is estimated that 30 million people (many of whom perished) were exported across the Atlantic, the Sahara, the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean into ports across the world. 

From a strictly economic standpoint, this was a huge blow to human resources and human capital in sub-Saharan Africa. Imagine, such an enormous number of strong, young Africans, in the prime of their lives, being sold at auction to the highest bidder. Although many ethnic groups benefited financially, the long-term impact on local economies was marked and lasted for generations. To some historians, the enormous export of human capital, in small part, explains centuries of poor economic performance in sub-Saharan Africa. Populations are just being restored today, which may be an element in explaining recent economic gains.

The major question which the poem cited above and the book, in general, address is the question of empire. History has witnessed the rise and fall of empire since the beginning of time. With at least five of the world's fastest growing economies now in sub-Saharan Africa, supported by new trade and investment from emerging market countries in the global South, including Brazil, India and China, the continent's rise to power, economically and otherwise seems highly probable. The economic crisis of 2008 was a watershed moment in economic history for the West. However, it revealed the prowess of emerging market economies across the global South. Many of these nations remained little affected by the crisis and were even witness to growth. Time will tell if the developing world will continue to emerge and if empire will shift to the global South.

---

[1] Ancient Malian king, 1280 – 1337 AD

[2] Slaves and prisoners of war in ancient Mali were sold off into the trans-Atlantic slave trade and the trans-Saharan slave trade in an effort to raise funds for the failing empire

[3] Species of tree native to southern Africa

[4] West African storyteller who maintains the tradition of oral history

[5] A saint in Muslim Africa believed to have supernatural powers

Book Event with The Links

Last weekend, I attended Founder's Day, sponsored by The Links in Stamford, Connecticut. It was a special event that celebrated the 1946 founding of the organization. Approximately 70 Links members from around the state were in attendance. I served as a vendor, offering my books to those interested. I had a table with all four of my books, business cards, a poster from my original book launch and a notebook where I collected email addresses to announce future books. I showed up prepared to harness the best that The Links had to offer.

The most popular book proved to be The Lily & The Aster. It sat front and center on the table, along with A Poet Speaks of Empire. My pitch was that The Lily & The Aster was a book for book lovers who did not necessarily love poetry--that the poetry, haiku, was simple and made for easy and pleasurable reading.

A Poet Speaks of Empire, my latest book, was also very popular. I believe that what customers found intriguing was the subject matter--the rise of sub-Saharan Africa. The idea was new to some and not so new to others.

During the event, I was seated next to a vendor, let's call her Elizabeth (not her real name), who was selling her own line of cosmetics. Elizabeth's table was very busy with women looking to buy the latest shade of lip color or a hydrating face mask. I was fortunate to catch a spillover of customers from her table.

During a lull in customers, she picked up my latest book and began to read the poem, "Mandela's Resurrection". She noted that she is a member of South Africa's African National Congress and that, since 1995, she traveled to the country six or more times per year for work or to visit friends. What followed was a very interesting conversation about the new South Africa. 

She noted that a new generation of children in South Africa, born since Mandela's release from prison in the early 1990s, did not appreciate the history or efforts put forth to bring about this new era of growth and opportunity. To these children, apartheid is a part of the distant past. The poem that she read was a springboard for great conversation. This is the best I can hope for all of my books, those already written and those to come.

Examining Reader-Favorites: "Through the Eyes of the Guinean"

This is the third in a series of blog posts focused on examining reader-favorite poems from A Poet Speaks of Empire. In this particular post, I'll look at "Through the Eyes of the Guinean." I'll interpret the poem and tell the story that inspired it. This poem deals with the experience of Guinean immigrants whose goal is Europe. The poem concerns the prospect of immigrating to Spain for a Guinean, from French-speaking Guinea, among the most indigent nations in West Africa.

THROUGH THE EYES OF THE GUINEAN

Spain is Africa’s gateway to Europe,

as seen through the eyes of the Guinean.

The unknown road to markets contemplated

and forever imagined. What particular

reality lies on the nation’s shores:

soft sand, white like dust, or, black sand,

coarse with rocks?

Promises of opportunity and new beginnings

make bearable the unknown. The particulars

of a new voyage are footnotes to a grinding

thesis. Rebirth is a luxury afforded to the

daring. Leaving for foreign shores, a detail,

heavy with new meaning –

a family who is never forgotten.

Here I attempt to depict Spain as a "gateway" to "unknown roads" - to "opportunity", "new beginnings" and possibly even "rebirth". Clearly, "the Guinean" sees moving to Spain as the bridge to prosperity, but he/she has reservations about "the unknown". He/she is guided by the compass of making a better future for his/her family.

The story behind this particular poem begins with a friend of mine, whom I met while I was studying abroad in Spain at the turn of the millennium, Samba. He was one of many West Africans who I met while in Spain. Their stories were similar. Each of them arrived in Spain with high hopes--those of going to school or landing a decent job in order to earn money to send back to their families. Saving enough meant sending their mothers to Mecca or building homes for their loved-ones. And they did. As I would come to learn, the obstacles many of them had to overcome to travel to Europe were quite surprising and quite humbling.

My friend, Samba, had a wide network of Guinean friends who would come together in Madrid for meals and to support each other's endeavors. They came from all walks of life and had diverse stories to tell. They often spoke in their native dialect, Fula, among each other, but, occasionally, in my presence, they spoke Spanish, so that I could understand and participate in conversations.

I learned a lot from this group and have many other stories to tell about them. The thought of my time with them warms my heart. Their hospitality and generosity remain with me.

If you haven't already, pick up a copy of A Poet Speaks of Empire to learn more about what this network of individuals meant to me. You'll meet Samba, for the first time, in the introduction to the book.