Tayari's Blog: October 2006
October 31, 2006
It's 10:17 pm, do you know where BNH is?
On stage, in Harlem. Without me. If you were at the Apollo tonight, send me a report.
Lord, I love The Brand New Heavies.
Posted at 09:20 PM | ![[comments]](http://www.tayarijones.com/images/comments.gif){kind=small}
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Category:
Current Events
blogcrush
Meet Marlon James. Then go buy his book.
Posted at 09:16 PM | Comments (0)
Category:
The Writing Life
The Power of Amazon?
I blogged a few weeks ago about The Stolen Child by Keith Donohue after discovering it on The Writers Block. I was so impressed that I recommended it to you and I have also assigned it to my students here at George Washington University. Today, as I was preparing for class, I was rooting about for some secondary sources for the discussion and I found out that the major reviewers pretty much ignored this novel when it was released, but amazon.com sent it directly to it's top reviewers and, as a result, The Stolen Child has rocketed to the top of the charts.
I am always heartened to hear of such back-door ways of publicizing a novel. At Tomales Bay last week, I met Donohue's agent who told me that The Stolen Child has sold 50,000 copies in hardcover.
My question to you is how much do you rely on amazon reviews when deciding to buy a book? Do you even check to see what the amazon best sellers are? Do you write amazon reviews on a regular basis?
I only write amazon reviews if I really like a book. If I want to give it three or fewer stars, I keep my opinions to myself. Of course I am entitled to my assessment of any book, but I don't feel obligated to publish them. Part of this may be due to the fact that I am liable to meet these authors in a social setting and I really don't want to chat about THAT over Chardonnay! But really, I don't know what is gained for me to pan someone else's book-- or even give it a lukewarm review. For a person in my position, that seems a little gratuitous. (Word to the wise: don't give an author three stars and then ask her for a favor three years later. She'll remember.)
As for reading Amazon reviews, I do check to see what other readers are saying. One thing I often do when I see a particularly bad review is check to see what other books that reader has reviewed. That list is often the shaker containing all of the grains of salt you'll need to understand the bad review!
Tomales Bay Photographs
Here they are! If you were at Tomales and see yourself, add a comment on the flickr site and I will update the caption.
Posted at 11:24 AM | Comments (0)
Category:
The Writing Life
October 29, 2006
Homeward Bound
I am headed home just as fast as I can. Next week, posting will be back to normal. Mark your calendars. The Brand New Heavies will be playing Los Angeles on November 10. Yes, I will be there. Want to see photos of me and my girls getting ready for the DC show? Tomales Bay pics will be up soon.
October 28, 2006
The Mighty Rutabagas!
Any major team has a mascot and my class at Tomales Bay is no exception. In homage to Claire Davis's excellent short story, 
Labors of the Heart, we have chosen the mighty rutabaga as our class mascot.
But seriously, I wanted to take a minute to say how much I am enjoying my classroom sessions here at the Tomales Bay conference. We are twelve writers from different generations, regions, and races. Most of us had never seen each other before last Wednesday, but we have come together as a reading and writing community.
There is much to do here at the conference: drinks to be drunk, 
elbows to be rubbed, and sleep to get caught up on. Despite this, the class members have taken their time to read all twelve of the manuscripts-- clocking in at about fifteen pages each-- and give one another thoughtful criticism.
You hear so much negative press about writers' behavior when they are together. There is so much made about back-stabbing, competition etc. This class has been the antidote. I feel at once exhausted and renewed.
October 27, 2006
No One Mis-spells OPRAH
Lauren Cerand has written a great essay about the role of lit bloggers in literary publicity. Among of things, she talks about the way that publicists disrespect bloggers by sending them mass emails addressed to "Dear Blogger." The best line is "no one spells Oprah wrong." This, of course, means that if people think you're important, they get it right. If they don't think you're important, you can tell. And why on earth would a blogger help someone who treats her like a peon?
I have to say that I have had the same experience. I get all sorts of emails from people asking me for my help. The letters are often addressed to "Dear Established Writer..." Every now again the person will say, "I haven't read your work, but...". (I kind of interpret this as "I haven't supported you in any way, but will you please go out of your way to support me?) Someone was once tone-deaf enough to say, "I bought Leaving Atlanta three years ago. I haven't read it yet, but I am honored for it to be on my shelf...." What's up with people?
Lauren makes as excellent point. When you ask for help, show some respect. Sending a query the wrong way can actually hurt you. Before you sent the rude query, you were an unknown person, but now, you are someone on the Trifling List. And let me tell you, that's a hard roster to get off of.
Posted at 04:47 PM | Comments (2)
Category:
The Writing Life
A Family Reunion
Today, I read at the Tomales Bay Conference. I am never nervous when I read, but this time I felt a little shaky. Why? Because I was 
reading in front of Judith Ortiz Cofer and Ron Carlson, my mentors.
I know that I am a grown woman of 35 years old, the author of two novels, and the winner of an award or two... but I wanted nothing more than for these two to be proud of me. They were so good to me when I was scribbling on Leaving Atlanta. Imagine me: twenty-something, earnest, camped out in front of my professor's door on a Monday morning--manuscript in hand. And imagine my wonderful, patient, and even-tempered mentors deciding NOT to take out restraining orders.
Judith and Ron, you gave me something I can never pay back. Love to you both, always.
Posted at 12:58 AM | Comments (0)
Category:
The Writing Life
October 26, 2006
It's So Lovely Here
Greetings from Tomales Bay Writing Workshops in 
Marshall, California. As you can see, it's gorgeous here. I snapped the photo you see on the left right outside my bedroom door.
I'm teaching a class of about twelve students from various backgrounds. A couple have finished MFAs and some people are retuning to writing after years of pursuing other careers and there are folks representing all the places in-between. We met for the first time this morning-- three hours, but the time was over before we knew it.
I'll be giving a reading tonight along with Dorianne Laux and Judith Ortiz Cofer. Judith Ortiz Cofer was my mentor when I was in school at The University of Georgia. I hope she knows how proud I am to be working here beside her. It feels just, round and right.
October 24, 2006
Ah-CHOO!
Hi, all. I am suffering from a pretty menacing cold-type ailment. Much love to my student, Vesper, who provided me with the amazing foaming vitamin C supplement. I have to crash, but I wanted to bring to your attention a neat contest from Kore Press.
Here's a quote from the website:
Deadline: October 31
(Prize is)$1,000 and chapbook publication by Kore Press will be awarded for a previously unpublished short story written by a woman. All women authors writing in English are eligible, regardless of nationality. Margot Livesey will judge. Submit a story of up to 8,000 words, postmarked by October 31, 2006. For complete guidelines, visit our website.
I love the idea of a single story printed up as a chap. If you win, you'll have to send me a copy, signed, sil vous plait.
And before I go back to frantically packing for Tomales Bay, here are some really disturbing stats provided by Kore Press, in answer to the question of why they publish woman writers:
Percentage of women and men writers featured in "general interest" magazines from September to December 2005:
The Atlantic Monthly
77% men,
23% women
Harper's
82% men,
18% women
New York Times's Magazine
71% men,
29% women
The New Yorker
79% men, 21% women
Vanity Fair
72% men, 28% women
On that note, I am taking my sniffling, sneezing, achy, coughing, stuffy-headed self to bed. Let's hope I wake up in time to catch my 7:00 am plane.
Posted at 08:30 PM | Comments (1)
Category:
The Writing Life
October 21, 2006
Jackie Mitchard Wants To Make It Right
Jacqueline Mitchard, who you may know as the author of the first Oprah-Book, The Deep End of the Ocean, is also the author of Cage of Stars, the story of a Morman girl's search to make sense of her life after her sisters' murders. Apparently, she made some errors in the novel. Readers complained on amazon.com that she misrepresented Mormon beliefs and others noticed inconsistencies within the plot. (I must also say that many many readers loved it as-is.) But here is the interesting part: Jackie has announced on her amazon blog that readers can to email her with their concerns and she will make the necessary changes to the novel before it comes out in paperback. Amazing.
NEW MUSING ADDED: Have you ever wanted to whip out your red pen while reading a book? When I was on tour with Leaving Atlanta, this dude walked up to me and said he had something to say. I thought he was going to say I was a genius or something. Anyway, he had driven way the heck out to Buckhead to accuse me of not being an authentic Atlantan. Why? Because in the book I said that Tasha was going to attend Southwest Middle School the next year. Well, guess what? Southwest was still a highschool in 1979. It wasn't a middle school for a full 18 months later.
"Oops," I said. And he seemed satisfied.
Bring Back The Funk In Music!
It's 4:09am, and I am just back from the Brand New Heavies concert at the 930 Club in DC. I have Kamilah Aisha Moon as my blogging co-pilot. We're too overwhelmed to blog the old-fashioned way, so we are just going to have a little chit-chat about the miracle that is the Heavies.
Tayari: Isha, was that hot or what?
Isha: Yeah, they brought it hard.
Tayari: Word.
Isha: What was your favorite part of the show?
Tayari: I liked the part when they sang, danced, played instruments, etc. 
Isha: Me, too. The show was tighter than Susan Taylor's cornrows.
Tayari: It's almost 4:30 in the morning, we need to go to bed. Where's the towel I swiped from the stage? I need to spread it on my pillow.
Isha: Did that towel belong to sexy Andrew, the one on the bass? Or was it Simon's? He's adorable. I know it couldn't be N'dea's. She's too gorgeous to sweat.
Tayari: Don't worry about that. All you need to know about this towel is that it's mine.
(thx, Lauren for the BNH graphic from the NYer)
Posted at 03:02 AM | Comments (2)
Category:
D.C. Diaries
October 20, 2006
BNH in DC, TONIGHT
The Brand New Heavies are playing the 9:30 Club here in DC tonight. Midnight show. I. Am. So. Psyched.
Did anyone catch last night's show in Harlem? If you did, do tell! And while I am asking for favors: Does anyone get the New Yorker? Please scan the drawing of The Heavies and send it to me! There's a free book in it for you!
Posted at 09:31 AM | Comments (2)
Category:
Travels & Rambles
Writing Kids' Books Is Writing Too
There's a new entry up at Dystel and Goderich. Michael Bourrett, the agent in who specializes in children's literature, talks about writing and publishing books for young readers.
Nothing gets my goat more than writers who think that writing children’s books is easy. Let me rephrase that: Nothing gets my goat more than writers who think that writing good children’s books is easy. We get a lot of queries at DGLM, a fair share of them for picture books. I’m the guy around here whose world view most resembles that of a twelve-year-old, so naturally, I’m the guy who represents juvenile fiction and nonfiction. I see them all. And, I greatly respect all the writers who toil away at their keyboards day after day – even the ones I choose not to represent. But, I’m disturbed by the queries that say, “I wrote this picture book manuscript on a lark last night. Want to be my agent?”
Posted at 08:55 AM | Comments (0)
Category:
The Writing Life
October 19, 2006
And The Lucky Winner Is..
I just heard from a very reliable source that the winner of Nichelle Tramble's manuscript critique was someone from THIS blog community. Congratualtions. Since you bid under a secret name, I won't divulge your true identity....
Natasha Trethewey to Read in DC
Natasha Trethewey, one of the brightest poets of her generation, will be reading this Monday at American University. 
She read last semester at GW and gave a gorgeous performance.
Photo by: WT Pfefferle
Her new book of poems, Native Guard, has gotten a lot of attention for her reclaimation of the history of the African-American Civil War regiment, but this book sticks with me for the lovely and heartbreaking poems in remembrance of her mother. Natasha has given me permission to post one of her poems here.
What is Evidence
Not the fleeting bruises she'd cover
with makeup, a dark patch as if imprint
of a scope she'd pressed her eye too close to,
looking for a way out, nor the quiver
in the voice she'd steady, leaning
into a pot of bones on the stove. Not
the teeth she wore in place of her own, or
the official document-- its seal
and smeared signature-- fading already,
the edges wearing. Not the tiny marker
with its dates, her name, abstract as history.
Only the landscape of her body-- splintered
clavicle, pierced temporal-- her thin bones
settling a bit each day, the way all things do.
Take A Writerly Vacation
Next week, I am going to be teaching in the Tomales Bay Writing Workshops in Northern California. I am particularly excited about this experience because I will be working alongside two of my own mentors, Ron Carlson and Judith Cofer. When I was a beginning writer, I didn't know such workshop opportunities existed. I often think how my life would have been different if I had been given access to the many writing opportunities that my peers seem to have known about (magically) since birth.
So, in the interest of getting the word out, I want to spend this post talking about short-term workshops, Writerly Vacations.
Posted at 08:20 AM | Comments (0)
Category:
The Writing Life
October 17, 2006
Busy Day
Hi everyone, I am so sorry for the posting slow down. I am ripping and running. I am making my lesson plan for the week-long class I am teaching at Tomales Bay in Northern California. Also, I am reading tonight at George Washington University. I'll be reading something a little different so I have to practise. Did I mention that I am teaching my class this afternoon? So, please hang in there with me. Meanwhile, there is a new post at my agent's place. This is about the "death" of chick lit. Some of the issues she raises can also be applied to so-called "urban lit."
Posted at 12:14 PM | Comments (0)
Category:
The Writing Life
October 15, 2006
New Author Photo
Well, here is my new headshot, taken by the wonderful Marion Ettlinger. The 
woman is a magician. I am quite pleased with the picture, but now I am feeling a little weird after seeing this blog post that sort of pokes fun at writers who don't quite live up to their author photos. (thx, mermama)
I guess this means a sweet farewell to my old photo that you can see on the left side of this page. It was taken by my good buddy, Rick Powers, who has just been nominated for the National Book Award. Congrats, my friend. You deserve this and more.
UPDATE: My author photo is giving Sarah deja vu! What's your opinion?
Posted at 11:30 AM | Comments (13)
Category:
The Writing Life
October 12, 2006
Be Honest With Me!
A former student recently shared with me a draft of a novel. "Be honest with me," she said. "Should I just throw the whole thing out and write something new?"
The honest truth is that this is a decision only the writer can make. The bookends are entirely your own decision. No one can tell you what or when to write, and no one can tell you when to give up.
"The Writer's Block" On Line
KQED, a San Francisco NPR station, features author readings on its excellent website. I find most of the readings to be very engaging, though about as diverse as a carton of eggs. I also like the program because it let's me find out where the buzz is. It's sort of funny. I'll hear an author over there and think, "What a good story! I want to know more!" and then I go to Amazon and find out that the book is in the top 100!
Anyway, my favorites are The Stolen Child by Keith Donohue, although it is not the sort of story I usually like. Listen to it and the next thing you know, you'll be buying the book. I also really dug Crawlspace by Edie Meidav. Mary by Janis Cooke Newman is also terrific and I am a person who does not get into "historical fiction." So, my advice is to explore the site. It's a good opportunity to explore new writers, new genres, new ideas, all for free!
October 11, 2006
Me, Reading in DC
Just a heads up: I am going to read on Tuesday night, 8pm, at George Washington University. The reading is going be in the Marvin Center, 3rd Floor Ampitheatre. The event is FREE. Come on out. It'll be fun.
Posted at 11:08 PM | Comments (1)
Category:
James Nachtwey: Witness
I was not familiar with James Nachtwey's work until now. He bears witness to some of the greatest attrocities of our time. View his work and be changed.
Posted at 10:03 PM | Comments (0)
Category:
Current Events
October 10, 2006
Got A Manuscript?
I just trucked over to ebay and I saw that The full manuscript critique offered by Nichelle Tramble is at ten bucks. Go bid. Ten bucks? She'll read your whole doggone manuscript? BID!
Posted at 08:57 AM | Comments (0)
Category:
Rhymes with BIGGER
There's an article in Editor and Publisher about whether we should continue using the phrase "The N-Word" when speaking about a certain racial epithet that refers to people of African descent and rhymes with BIGGER.
[T]he Washington Post's assistant managing editor for copy desks, Don Podesta, is urging writers there to use some other reference than "the N-word.""We've used this euphemism in more than a dozen stories in the last month. It's trivializing and almost cutesy, as in 'Johnny said the f-word in school today, Mom,'" Podesta wrote in a memo to staffers last week.
So how should it be reported? Should the newspapers just write the word out in all it's infamy? Or should they say something like "a common racial slur." How can you say it, without saying it, and still let the newspaper readers know how bad the situation was?
(via ed)
Posted at 08:05 AM | Comments (1)
Category:
Current Events
October 09, 2006
The Before Columbus Foundation
Since today is "Columbus Day," I thought I would take some time to talk about the American Book Awards, which are given by the Before Columbus Foundation. Folks who are not in the writing world, often confuse the American Book Award with the National Book Award, but let me tell you, there is a big difference.
Posted at 08:15 AM | Comments (0)
Category:
Current Events
October 07, 2006
Y'all Don't Have Geniuses Down There
There's an interesting article in Slate about who tends to get genius grants. The author stays away from the tricky question of race, but the issue of regional bias. Southerners are S.O.L. (Unless they happen to be "sensitive writers." Am I sensitive enough?)
No matter what, don't live in the South. Southerners rarely qualify as geniuses unless they're sensitive writers or colorful advocates for the poor. (This year's only Southern winner is typical: Auburn Professor Samuel Mockbee builds houses for poor Alabamans out of old tires and hay bales.)
(thx, mister champ)
Posted at 08:51 PM | Comments (1)
Category:
October 05, 2006
Chance of a Lifetime
Do you have a fiction manuscript that you need help with? Well, this is your lucky day. (I am not calling any names, but at least one member of our blog community has mentioned a certain 600 page manuscript....)
Nichelle Tramble, author of The Dying Ground and The Last King is offering up her services for charity. Go to ebay to bid on a FULL MANUSCRIPT CRITIQUE. All procedes benefit Love Without Boundaries, an organization that is working hard to alleviate the suffering of the world's children. Bid, support the cause, and get some feedback from a terrific writer. Sounds like win-win to me!
Posted at 09:51 PM | Comments (0)
Category:
The Writing Life
The Short Version
Day-before-yesterday, I gave a reading at Emory University. I'll write a longer post tomorrow. But, Ladylee was there. Check out her post on the event.
October 02, 2006
Rejection from the Other Side of the Table
The nice folks at my agency have a new blog up. This time, agent Jim McCarthy, talks about what it's like to send rejections:
About once a day, I get an e-mail from someone who is not taking rejection sitting down. They often tell me that I’ve made a terrible decision. Many point out that I’ve passed on the next Da Vinci Code. And that may be true. I don’t know anyone in this business who hasn’t regretted a rejection letter they’ve sent. I vividly remember seeing a project I had turned down displayed in a publisher’s catalog for the first time. I had a hunch when I first read it that there might be something there, but I eventually passed thinking it wouldn’t play. Oops!
Read the rest.
Stephen King On Writing
One thing I love about Stephen King is that he talks so much about writing itself, not the madness of publishing. And think what you will about his writing, no one can question that he does a whole lot of it. He's got a great article in the Post. Here's a juicy paragraph:
There's a mystery about creative writing, but it's a boring mystery unless you're interested in this one small animal, sometimes quite vicious, that makes its home in the bushes. It's a scruffy little thing with fleas and often smells of whatever nasty mess it's been rolling in. It can never be more than semi-domesticated and isn't exactly known for its loyalty. ... believe me when I say there's little mystery or tragic romance about the rest of it, which is why they never show the working part in movies about writers, only the drinking, carousing and heroic puking in the gutter by the dawn's early light.Dig this: The so-called "writing life" is basically sitting on your ass
Click here for the whole thing.
and thx to the champ, of course.
Posted at 09:01 PM | Comments (2)
Category:
The Writing Life
On My Way To My Natural Habitat
Tomorrow, I hit the road, bound for Atlanta, Georgia where I was born and raised, to read at Emory University. This means I have to pack. While I was waiting on my clothes to finish drying, I was clicking around YouTube and guess what I found: a black woman on the Colbert Report. Amazing. And funny too.
Also, before I hit the road, I'll give you an update on the mysterious watermelon slice on my back porch. I still don't know what's up with that.
At the urging on friends, I called the police who arrived quick fast in a hurry. (So that answers your other question: I don't live in a black neighborhood.) Well, the officer, a brother, fairly easy on the eyes, came and took a look around.
"It's a watermelon," he said.
"Sure is," I said.
"Hmm," he said, "It would be different if it was, like, a cantaloupe."
"Or even a honey dew," I said.
Brother-Officer was kind enough to dispose of the offending slice. "I am going to file a report of suspicious activity," he said. "That way, if things escalate, we can have a paper trail."
"Escalate?" I said. "You mean like next time they might leave a fried chicken dinner?"
"I don't think they'd go that far," said Brother-Officer.
"Well, what about a two piece snack with biscuit?"
"Light or dark?" he asked.
"But really," I said. "What if there's a cross burning?"
Brother-Officer said, "For something like that, you'd definitely want to give us a call."
Fine print: details have been embellished for the sake of drama.