Summer 2013


What I'm up to...

Been busy writing, writing and writing again. My first book, "Free to be Me" is close to completion and will be available for purchase on Amazon Kindle on July 9. I've also been sending individual poems to a variety of poetry contests and last week I learned that my poem "Hermoso Negro" (Handsome Black Man) won Honorable Mention in the 2013 Allan Ginsberg Poetry Awards contest. My poem will be included in the Paterson Literary Review, issue #42 (early Fall 2014) and I've also been invited to read my poem in Paterson, NJ along with the other top three winners. Here's my winning poem!

Hermoso Negro (Handsome Black Man)

Hermoso Negro,” my Dad would say
As he pulled the hairs from his chin with a tweezer
I would watch him move his face closer to the mirror in the bathroom
“Hermoso Negro,” he would say again.

Handsome black man, I guess that’s how my Dad saw himself
Or that’s what he said
And when he visited my school on parents/teachers night
My female teachers acted like he was handsome.

6” 2”, not so dark-skinned with a strong Caribbean accent
A professional man
Who, at a distance looked a little like Harry Belafonte
My Dad was a novelty at my school in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.

“Mr. Woods, you look like Harry Belafonte,” my home room teacher said
My dad would respond with a toothy grin. 

He would set up conferences with my teachers to discuss my entire life
If I should be allowed to watch soap operas
The merits of reading fiction books
What my appropriate bedtime should be 
I often wondered if my teachers understood most of what he was saying
Because at no time did he ever try to minimize his Caribbean accent.

I remember being embarrassed in front of my friends
When he would say “tree” for three, “glass” for window and “How ya goin” instead of How are you?

But he always spoke unapologetically. 

That part I liked.

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Black Writers Guild Co-sponsors Bridge to Authors Program at Enoch Pratt Free Library

I participated in two Bridge to Authors Programs this year: one on May 18 at the Govans Branch and one on June 22 @ the Herring Run Branch. Both programs featured Black Writers Guild members both reading from their work and participating in a panel discussion for attendees. Both programs were great, but the June 22 had a larger turnout partially due to the Fox45 morning interview on June 22 featuring me, Cherrie Amour and other BWG author Maxine Bigby Cunningham promoting the program.



From left: BWG author/board member, Wilma Brockington, Govans Branch Manager and Me!


Here's a link from the Herring Branch Panel discussion:

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Upcoming Performances

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Check www.cherrieamour.com to purchase one of my CDS, for updates, and for performances dates!