“Deadline reports that the series adaption of Sula will follow “two Black heroines from their close-knit childhood in a small Ohio neighborhood called The Bottom, through their sharply divergent paths of womanhood. Nel Wright has chosen to marry, raise a family and become a pillar of the Black community. Sula Peace has rejected the life Nel has embraced, escaping from The Bottom, submerging herself in city life, and coming into her own as a woman more intellectually and sexually free than anyone around her. Eventually, Sula and Nel must face the consequences of their choices, and their complicated bond. Along with a mysterious third man named Shadrack, they create an unforgettable portrait of a strange American community, and the relationships, tragedies and triumphs that define it.”
“Radio host, author, and media mogul Leonard “Charlamagne tha God” Mckelvey is teaming up with actor, director, and comics writer Kevin Grevioux to develop original superhero properties as comics series and graphic novels.”
“Their first project will be Darkstorm, written by Grevioux with art by Ken Lashley, an original graphic novel series featuring a reluctant Black superhero who struggles with PTSD. The graphic novels will be published by Charlamagne’s Simon & Schuster imprint, Black Privilege Publishing.”
Charlamagne and Grevioux are also teaming up with AWA Studios to develop comic book series. Their first project will be The Vindicators, which will star a diverse team of superheroes living in a dystopian future.
“A lot of the black superheroes I loved growing up were street level and that’s cool, but I want to see Omega Level superheroes that look like me and people around me and that’s exactly what we are giving you with Darkstorm and The Vindicators,” Charlamagne said in a statement accompanying the announcement.”
“Donald Glover has tapped Malia Obama to be one of the writers of his new Amazon series tentatively titled “Hive.”, NBC News reports.”
“In an interview with Vanity Fair, the Emmy award-winner said that Obama is “an amazingly talented person,” adding, “She’s really focused, and she’s working really hard.”
“I feel like she’s just somebody who’s gonna have really good things coming soon,” Glover said. “Her writing style is great.”
“Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) made a big production on Tuesday about how wrong it is that children’s books promoting anti-racism are being taught at a private school in Washington, D.C., where Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson is a board member.”
A day later, the very same book “Antiracist Baby" is a No. 1 bestseller on Amazon. Ha!✊
“You may recognize Mahogany, an extension of the Hallmark brand, as a line of greeting cards and gifts that celebrates Black identity with messages of culture, faith, pride, and love. It is designed by a team of African-American writers, editors and artists who are creating cards to empower the community, speak to racial resilience and the Black experience.”
“Most recently, under the leadership of Vice President Alexis Kerr, Mahogany is expanding as a digital platform to uplift Black writers and expression on topics like friendship, romance, motherhood, self-love, fitness and more. Centered on a community of writers, including content from best-selling author Melinda Williams, the site is designed to serve as “a gathering place for Black women to connect with each other, celebrate their culture, sisterhood, and community,” says Kerr.”
“Groundbreaking musician, actor, fashion icon, and futurist Janelle Monáe is joined by literary collaborators Danny Lore and Sheree Renée Thomas for a conversation moderated by ALOK to celebrate the launch of The Memory Librarian at BAM. A sexy, soulful, and dissident collection of short fiction, The Memory Librarian brings to the written page the rebellious and Afrofuturistic world of Monáe’s critically acclaimed album Dirty Computer.
The stories in The Memory Librarian explore the lives of those living in an increasingly surveillance-hungry, totalitarian order—striving to see and hold onto their “dirtiness” without being tracked down and cleaned. Filled with the artistic innovation and brave themes that have made Janelle Monáe a global influence, this anthology sees our battles about gender identity, political violence, and sexuality as matters of space, time, love, and the power of memory.”
EVENT DETAILS:
LAUNCH OF THE MEMORY LIBRARIAN: AND OTHER STORIES OF DIRTY COMPUTER
CO-PRESENTED BY BROOKLYN ACADEMY OF MUSIC, GREENLIGHT BOOKSTORE, AND THE LIT. BAR
APRIL 18 8PM
ALL TICKETS INCLUDE A BOOK. $45, $55, $65. GENERAL PUBLIC TICKETS GO ON SALE ON 3/21/22.
“Howard University has received a $2 million donation to digitize a major collection of Black newspaper archives in hopes of making it more broadly available to researchers and the public.
The Black Press Archives, dating to the 1970s, contains over 2,000 newspaper titles from the U.S. and countries in Africa and the Caribbean. It includes well-known U.S. papers like the Chicago Defender and New York Amsterdam News as well as publications in French, Xhosa and Kiswahili.”
“Since 1976, the nation has celebrated the contributions and achievements of Black Americans each February. This commemorative moment in the yearly calendar serves as a reminder of where we’ve been, as well as how far we’ve come. MasterClass, an online education subscription platform, is making a glimpse of that history available to everyone for free this month, releasing a three-part, 54-lesson class entitled “Black History, Black Freedom, and Black Love.”
“Through the insight and wisdom of Jelani Cobb, Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw, Angela Davis, Nikole Hannah-Jones, Sherrilyn Ifill, John McWhorter and Cornel West, the complimentary class examines the nature of race relations in America.”
Essence mag is “highlighting books from Black women historians to celebrate the annual holiday.”
“Despite the spate of book bans and calls to eliminate teaching certain subjects in public schools, Black authors are still putting in the work to keep us fully knowledgable of America’s true history. Here are five books to add to your library published by Black women historians.”
01 - All That She Carried, Tiya Alicia Miles
02 - South To America, Imani Perry
03 - Four Hundred Souls, co-edited by Keisha N. Blain and Ibram X. Kendi
04 - Bound in Wedlock, Tera Hunter
05 - African American Women in the Struggle for the Vote, 1850–1920, Rosalyn Terborg-Penn
“U.S Mint announced it has begun shipping out the first quarters featuring trailblazing American women, beginning with poet, writer and activist Maya Angelou, the first Black woman to appear on the quarter. “
“Angelou is depicted on the coin with her arms uplifted. Behind her are a bird and the rising sun, which are “inspired by her poetry and symbolic of the way she lived.”
Jeannine A. Cook is the owner of Harriett’s Bookshop, an independent bookstore located in the Fishtown neighborhood of Philadelphia. Established in February 2020, the bookstore, named for freedom fighter Harriet Tubman, is on a mission to “celebrate women authors, artists, and activists under the guiding light of [Tubman].”
“December 2020 I took my first ride on [horseback] in partnership with the Fletcher Street Riding Club. From there we’ve periodically found ways to bring together the world of horses and books. It is believed that Harriett Tubman stole a horse to deliver her elderly parents to freedom. There is a rich riding tradition among our ancestors and many indigenous cultures.
“Prentice Penny keeps lining up post-Insecure work. The TV writer and producer, who recently inked a pack to move his Penny for Your Thoughts shingle to Disney’s Onyx Collective, is also turning his attention to comic books.”
“Partnering with Stranger Comics’ Founder Sebastian A. Jones, Penny is launching a yet-to-be-named joint venture to identify and support new talent in the independent comic book world — functioning as an incubator and development lab for BIPOC creators and their IP to find inroads to publication and adaptation to other mediums. Jones and Penny have already identified two projects, David Crownson’s Harriet Tubman Demon Slayer and Jaycen Wise from creator Uraeus, both of which area already be developing for TV.”
“The Saint Heron Library continues the work we have been building by preserving collections of creators with the urgency they deserve,” Solange said. “Together we seek to create an archive of stories and works we deem valuable. These works expand imaginations, and it is vital to us to make them accessible to students, and our communities for research and engagement, so that the works are integrated into our collective story and belong and grow with us.”
“The collection of 50 books is free and will be available — first come, first served — to U.S. -based residents only, starting Oct. 18 on Saint Heron’s website. Once checked out, readers will have access to their one selected book for 45 days.”
