Allow Me to Reintroduce Myself....
The world has changed a lot since 2015. Including mines.
1. After 12 years at the same employer, I decided to take a leap of faith and return to public libraries. As of March 13 (I know I started when the world went to Hell), I am an Adult Services Librarian at one the suburbs of Charleston. There have been bumps in the road (including working from home for two months, not meeting patrons until June and loosing a coworker in October), but it's been a great experience.
2. I also work part-time at Turning Page Bookshop, the only Black-owned bookstore in South Carolina. My friends Valinda and Arrylee opened their store in Goose Creek almost two years ago. I help sell books at events (when there were events), write promotional materials and press releases, help with social media and suggest books to be ordered. They listen to me...most of the time. LOL.
3. I did a lot of traveling in the Southeast (before the pandemic) with books. I did the Savannah Book Festival and National Book Club Conference in Atlanta a few times. I also traveled to Bookmarks Festival in Winston-Salem and the Southern Festival of Books in Nashville (which also allowed me to kill two birds with one stone since my sister and brother-in-law live there). I also attended the National Conference of African American Librarians when it was in Atlanta. I traveled with Valinda to Spartanburg for the Southern Independent Bookseller Association Trade Show. In non-book travel, I saw Beyonce again...twice (Formation Tour in ATL and OTRII in Columbia - with Jay-Z). And Mariah at The Fox. That was awesome.
4. I also helped start the Black Ink Book Festival. It's a long story (I have a story about the beginning on my drafts that may see the light of day). When I was on the planning committee, we did bring Kwame Alexander and Terry McMillian (which I am still shocked about that). And I brought a lot of independent authors that they probably wouldn't have without my outreach. But I'm not on the committee anymore (and that's fine).
5. And it's time to start writing again. For years, I have struggled to put words into paper and on screen. Most of this is from insecurities about writing that stem from getting my BA and having a short-lived career in journalism. And I put a lot of pressure on myself the first go-around to try to write when I didn't feel if it. This time, I am just going to write for me and if folks read it...that's awesome. I'm not going to pressure myself to write each week. But I will try to write if I have something to say or to promote a book that I really enjoyed.
I hope you enjoy this second act of The Reading Diva. Please feel free to reach me by email! I'm also on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Instagram and Clubhouse (readingdiva).
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