On this 40th anniversary of observing a U.S. federal holiday honoring the life and legacies of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., this blog post riffs on perceptions, expectations, and inheritances across generations and cultures.  There are so many elements to enjoy and appreciate about the characters, storylines, themes, and visual cues and queues that make Heated Rivalry compelling media. For me, Shane and his nuclear family dynamics in isolation and in the context of a racialized worldview resonate as familiar.  An expectation of excellence projected onto and infused into a beloved only child* born to parents who endured hardship and overcame challenges in order to succeed as individuals and as a couple, these parents set high standards and expect their offspring to meet and exceed them. It's a common stereotype about Asian people. It's been my personal experience that Black people in and from African nations and in the United States aspire and strive toward greatness as th...

Rewatching Heated Rivalry and reading upbeat romances have distracted me from and helped me take time to process 2 recent losses of people who have loved and encouraged and supported me throughout my life. They lived long, mostly healthy, rich, meaningful lives that contributed so much to others. I'm working hard to let my gratitude outweigh my grief.   These books offered intrigues and added joy.  [bookstack of 7 books, from top to bottom: All the Men I've Loved Again, Second Chance Romance, Much Ado About Hating You, All Superheroes Need Photo Ops, Crash Test, Undead and Unwed, The Baby Dragon Bakery]  All the Men I've Loved Again by Christine Pride asks What if? when young lovers who were separated by challenging circumstances cross paths again later in life.  Crash Test by Amy James offers fans of Heated Rivalry a racing world homage that hits similar emotional notes and nods within a more condensed timeline and different narrative structure.  Much Ado About...

Generous, thoughtful people who love me gave me lovely books for Christmas! One to help me feed my body, another to strengthen my spirit, and a third one that supports maintaining hair health and appearance. [3 books arranged face up: Taste of Home Made from Scratch Home Cooking Made Easy, Beautiful Braids Boutique Workbook Learning to Braid Natural Hair Techniques, Black Firsts 4,000 Ground-Breaking and Pioneering Historical Events 3rd Edition]  Taste of Home, Made from Scratch Home Cooking Made Easy  Beautiful photos of the final results with each step-by-step recipe, some with multiple photos to show recipe progression.  Beautiful Braids Boutique Workbook, Learning to Braid Natural Hair Techniques by Nicole Taylor  This book offers definitions of terms, tools, supplies, and techniques in addition to detailed text instructions and results photos for braiding beginners. A test, skills drills, and lined pages for note taking at the end encourage practice for further ...

There are so many reasons why Heated Rivalry is entrancing millions of people. Showing the explicit pursuit of connection and love as a worthy and rewarding endeavor is one of them, especially in contrast to the real world environment of divide and conquer.   [a rectangular fabric table runner with a painterly pattern of cottages and trees; it's folded in half and draped over the left side of a black travel case]  As a genre, Romance rules in every way except one. It's the most profitable and popular genre in publishing. Dedicated bookstores, streaming channels, annual conventions, workshops, fan sites, hash tags, and podcasts; sold-out author/book tours, events with casts of adaptations and original screenplays--all of them attract and sustain and grow attention, engagement, and cha-ching. (Theatrical releases of rom-coms have dwindled over the years and the few that get released have launched with a high failure rate, but let's save that discussion for another time along ...

Poet Laureate of The Write Women Book Fest Aressa V. Williams and her team of family and supporters hosted a joyous book launch event this past Saturday upstairs at the South Bowie Branch of the Prince George's County Memorial System. The poet, educator, author charmed and advised us through sharing anecdotes about her life and reading from In Deanwood. [Advance Reader Copy of In Deanwood, A Memoir by Aressa V. Williams arranged under a Heal Write Away business card, 3 thank you ornaments: a snowman, a card catalog entry shaped like a star, and bookshelves shaped like a heart]    [a framed sketch of the house at 5000 Sheriff Road where the author grew up, a paperback copy of In Deanwood, and a framed black & white photo of the author]  [a full-color banner of Pancakes & Chocolate Milk, Prose and Poetry by Aressa V. Williams arranged on a table with clear vases filled with Christmas ornaments at each top corner of the banner]  Thanksgiving is over and it's off...

Along with unfinished business from the past that haunts the present  [5 books; 3 face up and 2 spine up, from left to right: Best Woman, The Gist of Bid Whist, Blind Date with a Werewolf, Crazy Spooky Love, The Year of the Wind]  Read  Best Woman by Rose Dommu  new adult contemporary romance  Penguin Random House, September 2025   Madcap. Tenderhearted. Poignant. Satisfying.  Crazy Spooky Love (Melody Bittersweet #1) by Josie Silver  new adult contemporary romance  Penguin Random House, September 2025  Ornery relatives. Dangerous spirits. Romance gone wrong with potential for it to go right. Intrigue. Mysteries. Laughs.  Blind Date with a Werewolf by Patricia Briggs  adult contemporary supernatural romance  Penguin Random House, October 2025  This novel rendered in 5 short stories (3 previously published and 2 new) is all about Asil with cameos of Moira, Tom, and other series favorites. Looking for love in all t...