I don't ususally use my blog for self-promotion, but I did want to let folks know why I have been so busy the last few months and really not posting as much as I had. I was blessed to write a five book series dear to my heart - it's on music and how celebrities can change things with their public voice and philanthropical work. Each book is a biography on a popular Hip Hop or R&B artist. For those of you who have known me a really long time, you know that in the 1990s I covered entertainment and sports and politics for The Oklahoma Daily, stringing for a couple of other newspapers in the state of Oklahoma and writing for a few regional magazines. I finally got back to covering entertainment with this book series.
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| Preview my new book series on Hip Hop and R&B artists on Mason Crest. |
- John Legend,
- Lil Wayne,
- Travis Scott,
- Nicki Minaj,
- Post Malone.
They're targeted toward 7th to 12th graders, but in a good way. Rather than trying to sell some toys or merch to an age group over-marketed to, these books look to inspire them, educate them and help them get started on their own careers in music, writing, acting or any other pursuit.
Each chapter has what the journalists know as "breakout boxes" - a special set of paragraphs that explain a topic in the main text. In this case, I got to write about political issues and history. For example, I wrote about the history of the events behind the John Legend song, "Glory."
Every chapter has educational activities at the end of it. They encourage kids to explore the topics discussed further or to find a performing arts high school near them like the one Nicki Minaj attended or to join the local chapter of a philanthropy for which their favorite performer volunteers.
They make fun reads and the hard covers have QR codes that lead kids to more content - online. All of it is clean and appropriate for the age group. I, personally, chose each of the videos the books link to while writing the content. I skipped over any with explicit lyrics or videos. I have friends who home-school their kids due to religious reasons and although that is far from my own attitudes, I wanted to write something that they and their friends could feel comfortable using. To me, it is all about the audience. I take a far different attitude writing for adults. We deserve all the good stuff and naughty words. Kids need to be kids though.
I hope these books do the same thing that the ones like it did for me as a kid. Junior high school me, living in tiny Cottageville, SC, read the paperback version of these on Andy Gibb and KISS. Not only did it awaken an interest in music writing, it set me on a course that took me halfway across the country to attend college and establish businesses in Oklahoma. I've met a lot of interesting musicians since I began writing entertainment in 1990 and sports in 1993. (Many thanks to StubHub for giving me an outlet for that this year with its NCAA football updates.)
So, here's the link to my publisher and its nifty preview. I hope you enjoy reading these as much as I enjoyed writing them. Thank you to Mason Crest for giving me the opportunity to make a dream come true. I hope these books help another small town girl make hers come true, too.
http://www.masoncrest.com/site/index.php/thematic-biographies-50/hip-hop-r-b-culture-music-storytelling-at-2020.html
All the best,
Carlie Lawson
