Tyler Perry Brings Ntozake Shange's For Colored Girls to the Big Screen

Tyler Perry is bringing Ntozake Shange's award winning play For Colored Girls, to the big screen. I am eager to find out which actresses will be cast in the roles for the movie.

First staged in New York in 1974, Shange's "For Colored Girls..." became one of the most influential plays of its era. Following its acclaimed production at the Public Theater, the play moved to Broadway in 1976 with playwright Shange playing one of seven women who "reveal themselves, their lives, loves, hardships, and ultimately their discovery of strength and love." The production was nominated for a 1977 Best Play Tony Award, and actress Trazana Beverley won a Tony in the category of Best Actress in a Featured Role (Play), running for two years. In 1982, a version of the play was filmed for television with Shange and Beverly repeating their roles alongside Laurie Carlos, Alfre Woodard and Lynn Whitfield.

Writers Digest Conference (New York City)

Writers Digest Conference
Sessions
From educated predictions on the future of publishing to concrete advice on marketing and selling your book, this year's sessions are packed with information that's going to revolutionize the way you look at your writing career. Click on each session for more information.


Friday, September 18
4:00 pm - 4:45 pm
Opening Address: The Changing World of Book Publishing: An Author-Centric View

4:45 pm - 6:15 pm
Decisions, Decisions: Deciding the Best Publishing Route for You
Do You Have a Meaningful Marketing Platform?

8:00 pm - 9:30 pm
The First Annual Writer's Digest Poetry Slam
Saturday, September 19

7:00 am - 9:00 am
Breakfast with the Stars

9:00 am - 10:30 am
Indie Authors and the Temple of DIY
We Control the Audio: Podcasting Your Way to Book Sales
Working with an Independent Editor: Do You Really Need One?

10:30 am - 12:00 pm
Click This! Build an Effective Author Website
Do You Have a Meaningful Marketing Platform?
Panel: How Agents Discover Talent and What They Really Want

1:30 pm - 2:30 pm
Keynote Address: The Book as Platform: Seeding Your Future

2:30 pm - 4:00 pm
Break Free of the Bookstore: Drive Your Online Book Sales
Effective Marketing and Promotion for Fiction Writers
Panel: Moving from DIY to Traditional Publishers

4:00 pm - 5:30 pm
"The Editor Will See You Now": One-on-One Critique Appointments
Sunday, September 20

7:00 am - 9:00 am
Breakfast with the Stars

9:00 am - 10:30 am
Blog Hogs, Social Twitters and Online Tools for Authors
Panel: eBooks, Kindles and the Digitization of the Industry
Top Five Legal Issues You'll Face as an Author

10:30 am - 12:00 pm
Effective Marketing and Promotion for Fiction Writers
Indie Authors and the Temple of DIY
Twitter, Facebook, and I Really Should Update My Website

1:30 pm - 3:00 pm
"The Editor Will See You Now": One-on-One Critique Appointments

3:00 pm - 3:45 pm
Closing Address: Show Me The Energy: Finding the Energy to Write and Complete Your Writing Projects

Mosaic Literary Conference

The Mosaic Literary Conference presents creative ways for keeping books and reading valuable sources of knowledge and creativity. This day of professional-development workshops will help educators incorporate literature into existing curricula to further explore course work that focuses on cultures, history, and social studies.

Early Registration: $30
Regular Registration: $50
Registration includes gift bag, continental breakfast, and lunch

Conference Date: November 7, 2009
Location: Hostos Community College
450 Grand Concourse at 149th St., Bronx, NY

No Party Like a Brooklyn Party!: Big Daddy Kane at Prospect Park

There's no party like a Brooklyn party people, and I've been witnessing that all summer long! I was in hip hop heaven last night, at Big Daddy Kane's concert at Prospect Park sponsored by Celebrate Brooklyn. One of our biggest hip hop icons, Big Daddy Kane, featured in a FREE concert! Yes, free! There is NO PARTY like a BROOKLYN Party for sure! There are few places where you can get this type of live entertainment and inspiration for FREE! Presented by The Lyricist Lounge, the event featured a film screening of the short documentary BDK: The Big Daddy Kane Story (directed by Anthony Marshall), Retro Kidz, Emilio Rojas, Blitz the Ambassador, Rahzel and Ralph McDaniels’ Video Music Box. Ralph "Uncle Ralph" McDaniels video mix was on fire. The mix featured such hip hop classics as: MC Lyte "Paper Thin" , Special Ed "I Got It Made", X Clan "Funkin Lesson", Black Moon "I Got Cha Open", Mos Def Feat. Talib Kweli "Definitition", Dead Prez "It's Bigger Than Hip Hop", and more.

Big Daddy Kane, wearing a crisp white suit, came out to a roaring crowd. He performed the classics we all love such as "Raw", "Set it Off", "Smooth Operator" , "Young, Gifted and Black" , "Ain't No Half Steppin" and others. Kane was warm to the crowd, giving periodic shout outs to people he knew and at one point he even said "Happy Birthday" to a woman in the front row who shouted that it was her birthday. One of the highlights was when Kane performed with his dancers, choreography that included some smooth and daring jumps and turns. Kane's performance was as fresh as his high top fade from back in the day. Check out this video clip from the BDK documentary.

WRITING: Children's Book Insider

The Children's Book Insider has valuable information for writers of children's books.

WRITING: Sarah Lawrence College Writing Institute

I'm on SLC's mailing list, so I thought I would post the information:

The Writing Institute
Non-Credit Courses for Adults
The Writing Institute offers adults the opportunity to improve their skills and become part of a community of writers. Classes are small (14 or fewer students) and employ the workshop method. Through interaction with a skilled and sensitive faculty and with other adults for whom the art of writing well is important, participants become more proficient at thinking precisely, hearing language clearly and expressing themselves effectively.

The Writing Institute offers classes in two 11-week terms, one in the fall and one in the spring. Workshops meet weekly in two-hour sessions, which are held during day and evening hours and on Saturdays. Occasionally, readings and special programs related to publishing or other topics of interest to writers are offered.

Every term at the Writing Institute includes workshops in poetry, fiction, nonfiction, memoir writing, and children's literature. In addition to these, the Writing Institute offers, on a less regular basis, workshops on topics like screenwriting, magazine writing, editing and the personal essay.

Writing Institute Open House
Monday, September 14, 2009
11:00 am - 1:00 pm
Living Room, 45 Wrexham
Meet our faculty, choose the workshop that is right for you, enjoy a light lunch, and converse with other writers. RSVP by phone (914) 395-2205 or email cce@sarahlawrence.edu.

REVIEW: He's Gone...You're Back

NEWS FLASH! Attention all single ladies, and women in relationships - He’s Gone…You’re Back by Kerika Fields is truth telling, inspirational guide for women on the path toward healing from unsatisfying, painful, and toxic relationships. Fields, a writer and photojournalist, reveals her personal experience with healing from break-ups. She advises women to release the habit of being a “Queen of Denial” in an unhealthy relationship. Instead, Fields asks women to turn inward and pamper themselves mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually.

Fields tells women how to recognize when you have had enough in a bad relationship. She also advises women to seek support from friends and loved ones during a break up period. Fields recommends putting as much energy as you can into yourself, your goals and dreams once a relationship is over. He’s Gone…You’re Back also features an inspirational recommended play list of songs, natural foods recipes and a reading list.