WOW! Press e-Newsletter: Fall, 2006
WOW! Press e-Newsletter
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Janis F. Kearney |
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In This Issue:
President Clinton helps Launch former Diarist's Presidential Biography (Picture Gallery)The Writing Life....
Appeal to Readers: “Call Your Local Bookstore”
Author LOVES Book clubs
President Clinton helps Launch former Diarist's Presidential Biography (Picture Gallery)
Kearney is joined by UK friends June Sarpong and friend, Nic Careem and Richard Adershiyan
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Kearney is joined by Canadian friend Maria Shin, and Little Rock Nine icon Minni Jean Brown Trickey
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To order Conversations...from Hope to Harlem, please visit our online store.
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Former Clinton Diarist enjoys the day with Clinton Library official and friend Lynda Dixon |
Janis F. Kearney is joined by her brother Jesse L. Kearney, a former Clinton aide and her father, 100-year old James Kearney |
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Kearney joins Clinton Library Director, David Alsobrook and Asst. Director of the DePaul Humanities Center, Anna Vaughn
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Open Book Program Director Marrice Coverson joins Janis F. Kearney and her nephew Quinton, during the day's booksigning.
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Author poses with Autrilla Watkins, former babysitter to William Jefferson Clinton; and her grandaughter.
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Photographs courtesy of Marian I. Jones ©2006 |
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The Writing Life....
September might as well have been January, for me...it was a new beginning; a new opportunity for me to touch people, especially readers, with a
spanking new book. And, in this case, with Conversations: William Jefferson Clinton...from Hope to Harlem, I am
able to touch the world through the voices of others, almost 100 African Americans who share their thoughts, memories, opinions of America's 42nd
President. (the very one that the great writer Toni Morrison declared was our "first black president.")
I am one grateful writer. I get to do what I dreamed of doing for so many years...storytelling; gathering others' stories and sharing them with the
world. This lonely, wonderful vocation for me is just that...a calling, a mission. It was ordained, I truly believe, long before I appeared in my
mother's womb. I'm convinced that each of us have pre-ordained purposes for living. This doesn't mean we won't do many things, choose many different
paths; but, it is that one thing that was written in the sky long before we took a breath that will give us the most pleasure, the most sense of
"aah...finally."
When I left the role as presidential diarist in 2001, there was no question what the rest of my life would be like; or, how I would continue serving.
It's not that I had wasted time during the first half of my life, it is just that I knew what I was meant to do...and, I meant to do it! Writing is my
service. It would be great to do it for free, but unfortunately, I have to live. I write is to touch others through my books, my stories, my words;
in hopes that they will inspire, move, transform. My greatest joy is my ability to serve as a vessel for the many voices that have long been ignored,
muted by the society in which we live. This gives me untold joy.
So, this new year of writing holds promise and excitement for me. Like most writers, I am already thinking and planning for that next book. The open
secret is that the next book will be a sequel to my memoir, Cotton Field of Dreams: A Memoir. Those of you who
read the book know that I ended it in 1987. Look for the sequel in early 2008.
Thanks, and remember my Author's Pact: I'll keep writing as long as you keep reading.
Appeal to Readers
Writing our World Press Appeals to Readers: Become proactive lovers of Books!
A funny thing keeps happening around the country as readers visit their local bookstores in search of this new biography written by Clinton diarist
Janis F. Kearney: they are walking up to bookstore managers, asking for copies of Conversations...from Hope to Harlem,
only to be told that there are none in stock, or the book is "not in the system." Though Kearney's book is carried by one of the two main book
wholesalers/distributors in the country, bookstores have yet to add it into their system. Writing our World Press has, as of yet, not been given a clear
explanation of why this is happening with the Clinton biography, when it was not the case with her first book,
Cotton Field of Dreams: A Memoir.
The small publishing company, however, is busy responding to a flurry of emails and calls from readers interested in purchasing and reading the new biography
of America's 42nd President. The book is unique in that it is collection of conversations with almost 100 African American -- voices that would likely never
be heard, had Kearney not traveled the country for two years, interviewing people like baseball great Hank Aaron, civil rights icons Congressman John Lewis
and Dr. Dorothy Height; president-to-be baby-sitter Autrilla Watkins, President Clinton and many, many more. Kearney believes this is a book well-worth reading,
and keeping in your presidential history library!
To order Conversations...from Hope to Harlem and other WOW Press books, please visit our online store.
Author LOVES Book clubs
Author Janis F. Kearney admits that much of the success with her first book, Cotton Field of Dreams: A Memoir, can be credited to its popularity with book clubs around the country. "They called, emailed and sent messages through friends," she laughs. "I absolutely love book clubs...they are readers, they love books, and they share with each other." Kearney says she attended more book club discussions than she would have ever dreamed, and enjoyed every one. While she admits she couldn't afford to travel across the country to participate in book club discussions, she was amazed at the creative ways members found to include her. "I ended up responding to members' questions via email, and even participated in conference calls during the meetings, "It was the closest thing to actually being there." The author invites book clubs to check her tour schedule to see if they can tie in their discussions with her appearance in their cities. "There's nothing like having a lively discussion about one's book with readers, to keep the excitement for my writing alive," Kearney says.
If you are interested in becoming a contributing writer for our Writer's Life column, or a contributing editor for WOW! Life Stories, send us your best submissions to editor@writingourworldpress.com
Please visit our online store to purchase books from WOW Press.