Happy New Year! I can still say that. According to what Mom used to tell me, I have two weeks into the New Year before wishing happiness becomes passé. I don’t know where she learned her rule but I’ve always lived by it. So, Happy New Year! And in keeping with the traditions of a new year, I’m going to look back at 2016 and remind us both what a great year it was for me as an author.

Last year marked the first year that I could say I was more visible online than ever before. Here is a brief review of the year’s premium events:

Jan – Guest panelist on an Author/Publisher panel sponsored by local library

Feb – Attended Book ‘Em NC Conference as signing author and guest panelist

Mar – Interviewed twice with blog talk radio’s La Femme de Prose, part of Focus on Women Magazine

Apr – Guest author for Poetry and Pastry at the local library// Guest speaker and presenter at Robeson Community College’s Annual Poetry and Prose Awards

May – Featured author in the May/Jun issue of Focus on Women Magazine

**Decided to hire a Personal Author Assistant, Terri Wilson. Best decision ever. ***

Jul – Guest blogger on KerryAdrienne.com // guest at #carolinareads // on blog talk radio with La Femme de Prose

            Published new book, The Book of Now (nonfiction poetry)

Aug – Guest on Yvonne Mason’s Off The Chain podcast/radio show

            Held a Book Launch for The Book of Now in a local wine bar – sold lots of books

Sep – sponsored a hole during a local golf tournament (sold two books online from it)

interview appeared in Don Massenzio’s blog

Oct – Panelist at local library for National Indie Author Day

Nov – article published in Southern Writers Magazine on NaNoWriMo

            Published new book, Breaking the Glass Slipper (fictional memoir)

Dec – on the air with Off The Chain

Awards won in 2016

Global Ebook Bronze Award in Fiction for Midnight Assassin
Global Ebook Honorable Mention Award in Cover Design for Midnight Assassin

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Whew. That was a monumental year! Published two books, received awards, appeared in print magazines, online blogs, and on the radio several times! Something happened every month. I’m very proud of the year.

A quick reality check. Most successful authors would tell you that my year was just okay. Yup, successful authors find much more massive sales due to much more massive amounts of publicity. Makes you sigh, doesn’t it? It does for me.

In an effort to improve publicity and visibility online and in local areas, I started my own street team in May – Sherry’s Team Phoenix. Membership is small right now but I fully expect that to improve this year. (You can read about it via a link under Press, News and Events tab. We’d love to have you join us)

So let’s just take a moment to reflect. You should look back over your year too, and take note of the GOOD things you accomplished. This isn’t the moment to see failure or polish regret. This is the moment to say, “Good job, you made progress and worked hard.” Go ahead pat yourself on the back. Even if you only did one new thing, do it. It is one more thing than you had before and that’s progress!

All right, now I challenge us to do more this year. I have to confess I don’t have a major plan yet. I have two conferences upcoming and I hope to have two books this year (working on it).  I’m entering my two newest books in some awards. But I don’t have a publicity plan yet but I will. Time enough to say what I didn’t do or did incorrectly. For now, what a year 2016 was. And thank YOU for being such a huge part of it. My success is largely due to the support I get from you, the readers. I am grateful.

Good job on last year and Happy 2017! Let’s make this one our best yet, together. I’ll have links to the radio shows coming on the Press/Media page. Look there soon.

I’ll be back later this week to discuss jealousy. Did you know it could be good for you while being bad TO you? Get your green eyes ready for an eye opening revelation.

Until then, I remain Yours Between the Lines,
Sherry

Happy New Year and welcome 2017!

First, allow me to apologize for letting this blog slide for so long. I have been busy writing, just not here. This is my first resolution to change and what I want to discuss with you.

Every new year folks come up with all manner of promises and resolutions. Many last a few months, but most only last about two or three weeks. I’ve been bad at follow through, I confess. I promise and then life distracts, writing distracts, people divert and pretty soon I have forgotten and dust collects. I always resolve to do better and no,I don’t expect anyone to believe me at this juncture. But I’ve changed. Attitudes, plans, style…and only showing you will demonstrate!

Change is what the future is all about and why we try to make resolutions. But sometimes the future is change enough all by itself. The past holds us down (or in place), but the future is fluid, changeable, unwritten, unknown, overflowing with possibilities and promises. The future brings all and we don’t actually need to exert promises because the very nature of “the future” is going to do that for us. We are just too untrusting and impatient to believe in it, so we fill the air and our hearts with wishes and expectations. Most of the time this leads to letdowns. I’m not going to do that to myself or to you.

I believe in the future, despite the heartaches of the past, the disappointments, the trials, the deaths, the hate and fear, the sense of loss and confusion. I believe in it so much that I came back here with determination and hope because I believe in the future. You’ll see soon enough. The future promises that you’ll see more of me and often. Just wait and see. I’m excited!

Right now, please allow me to thank you for supporting me over the past year. I published two books – two!  – The Book of Now (nonfiction poetry), and Breaking the Glass Slipper (fictional memoir). I hope you’ll choose to read one of them and let me know what you think. In the future, I’m going to be talking about the how and whys of each book and maybe inspire you to write your own.

As for the future of 2017 — look forward to books about vampires! Yes the Evening Bower Saga begins this year! You’ll see more of our friend Drahomira as well as Rhea, Jean-Louis, Destin, and so many others!

So we’re looking to the future now. It will bring changes. Stay tuned to see how those unfold. And I will promise you one thing — you’ll like what you discover!  Keep an eye to the Press and Media page for information on upcoming signings, along with links to radio interviews and guest blogging (I’m working on updates now and will have them up in a day or two).

On behalf of my vampires who are anxious to come out and play, I wish you a VERY Happy New Year. Now lean in…my vampires want a New Year’s Kiss….

And I remain, as always,
Yours Between the Lines,
Sherry

(The post originally appeared in Kerry Adrienne’s blog as Poetry Can Work Against Social Injustice, but I changed the title here to reflect a positive stance)

Poetry Can Work For Social Justice

I’m delighted to announce the release of my new book, The Book of Now, a volume of nonfiction poetry on subjects ripped from today’s headlines. This book covers social issues and contends that we must be more aware and responsible for these issues in order to find a way to correct or right these problems.

Now before you roll your eyes and groan, “oh not poetry,” wait! This poetry can be a powerful force for good!

Forbes Magazine has long highlighted poetry with responsibility. Take for example an article Jul 9, 2010 about Poetry and Pollution. The newly announced poet laureate (then) W.S. Merwin wrote of ecological disasters.

But Merwin is by far not the first to use his pen and write with a “social responsibility.”

In literature, where we seek social justice, first you have to understand what is meant by social responsibility. The best definition I ever read was, “the awareness of social injustice, from the local to the global, necessitates specific actions to combat those injustices. In other words, social responsibility and social activism are inextricably intertwined; once aware of the injustice, one is morally obliged to act.” (Naomi Benaron, author, 2012).

For fiction writers, there is a long history of literature intertwined with a need to highlight social responsibility and therefore find social justice. From Quixote, Dickens and Jane Austin through more current folks like Parsipur, Merwin, and Lucia Mann. There is a compelling need for writers to seek answers in the darkness and to speak out with authority whenever possible to shine light, right wrongs, and seek betterment.

But what of the poet? What makes the poet separate from the fiction writer? And are they more or less powerful with the pen?

I think it begins with a belief that social responsibility begins with children. What better way to send a message than a poem that one can remember, recite, and then remember forever? Besides understanding that poetry has always been a voice in the dark, finding those lights shows us how much social injustice has been highlighted in poetry.

Once Chinese immigrants were incarcerated at Angel Island, California during the early 1900s. They wrote their poetry on the walls, despite being told not to. Their poetry filled the halls of their prison and became known as the “talking walls.” From these walls, we learned of their belief in a right to freedom. And that they believed no one has the right to restrict their right to protest injustice. Their poetry was a powerful tool. Here is a short quote from one of the Chinese poems:

“For days I have been without freedom on Island.
In reduced circumstances now, I mingle with the prisoners.
Grievances fill my belly; I rely on poetry to express them.”

The beautiful language highlighted the impoverished conditions and sparked a need for a more fair and just society.

Another desirable aspect of poetry is its ability to present ideals and stress a position, to step off neutrality without the ugliness. There is a responsibility in our country to propose freedom and democracy. Political dictators and oppressionists have attacked these sorts of poets because they find social injustice poetry to be dangerously seditious. Which is exactly why I – and so many others — find it powerful.

Those young Chinese poets also did not take their use of poetry lightly. There was nothing common or funny about the literary tool. In their culture, poetry is the preferred method for highlighting social injustice. This is what makes their “talking walls” so important, that they leaned on their culture as they sought to expose social injustice. It also comforted them, giving something familiar.

Most of all, I think the power of poetry exposing social injustice comes in humanizing issues and reaching people on an emotional level. Poetry allows us to gently empathize, find common ground and to make what is scary or heinous more touchable. Again, it starts with children, learning to deal with social isolation, bullying, differences, and finding understanding in diversity. Shel Silverstein and Dr. Seuss did it for children and made it easy to remember. Maya Angelou made it easy for adults to understand and want to do better.

This was exactly my thought when I wrote The Book of Now. Not that it could be for children, because truthfully it is too harsh for little kids. But that I can cover terrorism, bullying, abuse, political bigotry and so many other harsh and divisive issues while pointing out the need for and the power of diversity, understanding and knowledge.

Today’s important poets have shown me the way. From Swiss poet Daniele Pantano, Harlem Renaissance poet Langston Hughes, to U.S. Poet Laureate Juan Felipe Herrera, poetry ignites the issues and sparks a need for change. And these changes may simply be in how we view an issue, more enlightened, more open-minded, more resolved.

I certainly don’t expect to remake the world or create a tsunami of change. However, with my new book of poetry, I want others to see subtleties, discover new emotions, and open dialogues of change. There are controversial issues in The Book of Now. We have to be fearless and open-minded if we are going to make this world a better place. Poetry is my way of highlighting social injustices and directing where our social responsibility might be. I think poets make the unpalatable more digestible, because they do it with compassion inside their honesty.

I content that poets believe in possibilities. Like me, The Book of Now does, too. I hope the message resonates with some of you and that you will take up the banner against the social injustices highlighted in The Book of Now. Join an illustrious population of people striving for a better world, and using poetry to do it!

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The Book of Now is available from my CreateSpace page, or you can order from the links on the book page or directly from online retailers.

OR if you want a signed copy, just fill out the form on the Contact Me page.

Thanks for stopping by!
I remain, yours Between the Lines,
Sherry 

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****The following items will always appear to keep you posted on activities.*****

WIP (Works in Progress):

Writer’s Workbook – Learning to Write Everyday – Beginners Volume  Release AUG 2016

– first novel in the Evening Bower series, about vampires and other supernatural creatures
– fictional memoir – November 2016!
– four-part fairy story (part one complete)

On the Desk: (next reading): TBD

Off the Desk (book just finished): A Toxic Trousseau (#8 in series) by Juliet Blackwell

Coming Soon:  Interview with new folks and more about upcoming projects. Plus meet my assistant (yes, you want details!)