^^^ THIS

Aziz Ansari dropped some major truth about television’s diversity problem over the weekend. Speaking at EW Fest, he discussed how Empire, while progress, does not miraculously solve representation on screen. He also shared how he wasn’t in Transformers because of his stance on accents. 

New books for me to discover! Real topics, real life!

Abortion in YA Lit

Day 3 of #authorlifemonth #authormonthlife brought to you by the amazeballs @missdahlelama My last 5 star read. Whoa, so I haven't been reading lately but I definitely remember what my last 5 star read was. The Sista hood: on the Mic by E-fierce aka Elisha Miranda. So a little confession I read and review YA and friggin love it. The themes usually present in YA are themes I wish were present in NA and adult novels more often, my three favorite being cultural identity, racial identity and sexual identity. By our adult years it's like we're supposed to have it figured all out but In my unique case I don't. And this is one of books that I always bring up in my YA presentations when I publicly speak on books. Why I connected to it: 1.An Afro-Latina main character. ( I'm an Afro Latina of Cuban ancestry and this was the first time I read a girl in a book who was Latina, DARK SKINNED not mulata but negra como yo w/a big kinky Afro. I cried reading that because from the cover you can't tell the main character is black) 2.Characters that come from a lower socio-economic background. 3.Queer female characters of color, especially Black and Latina characters of color. (This is the kicker. This is also one of its kind for me because usually #lgbt books are never about black and Latinas. I wish more people knew about this book 😪) 4. Characters that reflected the Hip-Hop culture without being offensive, appropriating or stereotypical. The Sista Hood on the Mic follows Mariposa Colon aka MC Patria, an Afro-Puerto Rican girl from San Francisco, CA with a love for Hip Hop and making a name for herself but she needs a fly crew to do it! That is where The Sista Hood comes in. This was a book about a girl but most important it was about a girl who maybe likes girls. A girl who valued friendships with girls. This book is about empowerment between girls and I think it's sad that more people don't know about this book. The friendship between the girls is something I think is missing from YA. Everything always seems to be centered on getting a boyfriend and while Mariposa wanted to be with someone, her friends were more important. That's, like, a big high five for me!

We’re going to be at @blogboundcon this July! There's a free event we're managing to take the train to. We're mainly going for the workshops, but if you're a YA blogger, consider stopping by!

Dumpster Diving: An Observation on Class in Children’s Books

When my sister and I were kids, we used to play next to (and sometimes on) the dumpsters in the parking lot while my mother cleaned offices. At the age of twenty-two, my mom was a single parent of two small children, putting herself through college while working as a waitress and cleaning lady. We were on food stamps and participated in WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) and AFDC (Aid to Families with Dependent Children). I had free lunch at school. Welfare paid for our childcare so my mom could work and take classes, and somehow, we managed to squeak by.

 Eventually my mom graduated and took a job as a teacher, and things improved. They improved even more when she remarried and we became a two-income household. My lunches went from free to reduced-price. And by high school I paid top dollar for my soggy pizza and curly fries and had an allowance of three dollars a week. Which wasn’t half bad in the 1980s, all things considered.

I was a smart kid and did well at school. I got a generous financial-aid package to attend Harvard and found myself living in the Yard, taking classes from future and former US Cabinet officials when I was the age my mom had been when she was cleaning offices and struggling to put food on the table. I was surrounded by private school kids and legacy students. To say I experienced culture shock is putting it mildly.

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So fuckin amped to be starting this book #Entwined by #harpermiller the cover is so gorgeous and done by @taria and man that girl is hot! This is my first menage book and usually two men on one girl doesn't excite me but this one features f/f/m pairing and I just couldn't turn that down! Plus the male lead is Hapa, say what???? #weneeddiverseromance #ambw #menage #ffm #interracialcouple #interracialromance #romance #hapamen #polynesianmen #blackwomen #undercut #tattoos #irromance #edgygirls

Day 10 of #authorlifemonth favorite non author photo Okay so I totally feel bad for skipping yesterday but I couldn't come up a challenge overcome that my sister @dos_twinjas didn't already address. So this is my favorite picture of my hair after being natural for 6 months after a big chop in September 15'. This was the first time I ever wore my natural texture out after rocking braids nearly every month after I big chopped. I was so afraid that everyone would hate it and some of my family members still do but accepting my hair's natural texture has been a pivotal time for me. Being a black Latina we grow up thinking that beautiful hair is straight aka European hair and it took me 29 years to realize that's not the only type of hair that's amaZing! Just like #Beyonce said "I like my baby hair with baby hair and afros". That line has become my mantra 😂😂😂 In this picture you would think I've always Been confident about it which is why I love it so much. Sorry for the essay😍😎 P.S. my hair is even longer now and ten times bigger and more amazing! #naturalista #curlbox #4chair #naturalhair #Afro #afrohair #pajon #afrocubana #afrolatinx #blacklatina #blackgirlmagic #negra

It's Day 7 of the #authorlifemonth challenge! Much like @dos_twinjas it’s hard for me to actually write “while” I’m listening to music, but I get hype af listening to playlists in anticipation for writing! My first two projects in the #NA #Romance genres have similar tones. So I basically listen to 50% of the same artists. #SamePage has more #NewJackSwing and #90sRnB while what makes #FTHS #playlist different, is due to the Miami vibe. #Reggaeton, #Spanish #pop music and a bunch of songs that highlight #friendswithbenefits themes! It’s fun! #InterracialLove ##weneeddiverseromance ##bwwm #bookstagram #booknerdigans #GLTomas #NA #NARomnace #ContemporaryRomance #EroticRomance #Diversebooks #diverselit #diverse #bisexual #naturalista #miami #providence #blackgirlmagic #FTHS #FriendsThatStill #SamePage #NextChapter #naija #nigerian #afrolatina #afrolatinx #messyromance #afrocubana #interracial #interracialromance #NA #diversityjedi #portugueseboys

Yay! So happy to announce our latest #newadult #na #eroticromance #Samepage available now on netgalley. Had so much fun writing this but nervous to how it will be perceived since it doesn't follow a "traditional" romance format. But all I can say is that it was the romance story I wanted to read and I Cant wait for The sequel which will be on in late February-early March. In the meantime time check it out on netgalley. Link is in bio!! #interracialromance #contemporary #contemporaryromance #bwwm #naromance #multicultural #multiculturalromance #bookstagram #wocinromance #booknerdigans #steamyromance #weneeddiverseromance #Nigerian #naija #newreleases bwwmromance

Tiwa Savage x Mr Eazi x "Keys to the Kingdom" Black Is King