Had an opportunity to meet poet
Ruth Forman last week. She did a reading and poetry writing workshop. Incredible!
I never considered myself a poet, but after the workshop... well, let's just say I have a very elementary beginning of a poem. And I'm loving her poetry book,
Prayers Like Shoes. Hear her read in
this NPR interview. Take her poetry class at
VONA.
Ruth Forman is a highly acclaimed writer and poet, as well as a former teacher in the
Poetry for the People program at UC Berkeley. Her books include We Are The Young Magician, Renaissance (which was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize), Young Cornrows Callin Out the Moon, and Prayers Like Shoes.
She has been described as a writer who "not only upholds the traditions of the 'sistapoets' in whose steps [she] follows--Audre Lorde, Alice Walker and Sonia Sanchez--but also boldly blazes brand new trails." In its starred and boxed review, Booklist said, "Ruth Forman['s]... poems are alive and kicking; they pound and pulse with a hard-won sense of self, beauty, femininity, strength and righteous indignation. ... Forman is sexy, bittersweet, funny, feisty and real."
A graduate of UC Berkeley (she's a former student of June Jordan, Opal Palmer Adisa, Paula Gunn Allen and Yusef Komunyakaa) and the USC School of Cinema-Television, Ruth frequently collaborates on music, dance, theatre, and media projects.
She provides readings and workshops to a wide variety of audiences, presenting her poetry nationally and internationally in forums such as the United Nations, the PBS series The United States of Poetry, the
National Black Arts Festival, National Public Radio, and numerous university and community literary programs.
Highly recommended.
fs
If you're in the L.A. area today (Tuesday, March 30), stop by Esowon Bookstore in Leimert Park area. 
So, if you're familiar with the work of author Marissa Monteilh (Hot Boyz, May/December Souls), you'll be happy to know that she writes erotic novels as Pynk. And Pynk's newest novel, Sexaholics, has just been released in bookstores.
Just learned that Terry McMillan has a new novel, Getting To Happy, coming out in Fall 2010. The book continues the story of the four women in Waiting To Exhale -- Gloria, Robin, Savannah, and Bernardine. And thanks to Authors In Color blog, I also learned that the author has been doing some reading previews of the novel.
My good friend Anita writes a blog called Don't Be A Slut, which chronicles lessons learned from dating experiences in her teens and twenties.
Though her novel, Secrets of a Soap Opera Diva, is a couple months away from its release date (May 4), Victoria Rowell is all aboard the publicity train.
The Lambda Literary Awards celebrate outstanding literature focusing on or by members of the LGBT community. 
Honey B isn't just the name of Beyonce's character in the new Lady Gaga video, Telephone.
So everyone's raving about Wench by Dolen Perkins-Vasquez.
If you're in the L.A. area this weekend, you might want to check out the Dianne Reeves concert at the Luckman Fine Arts Complex.
As the weather shows us glimpses of warmer weather, Pride season gets closer. And with it comes the new crop of LGBT focused books for the upcoming season.
Had an opportunity to meet poet Ruth Forman last week. She did a reading and poetry writing workshop. Incredible!
If you're in the L.A. area, you've gotta make your way down to Hermosa Beach to the lovely New Orleans Cafe.
