ME! Winter Edition

The Winter Edition of ME! Newsletter is out now, (my article is on the second page). I hope you enjoy it, and have a wonderful day!

NaNo 2012 Results and Contest Winners

Well, it's December and that means NaNoWriMo participants are busy editing their masterpieces. That is if they reached their word count goal. I did not reach my goal, unfortunately, but that does not mean it's over and done. My Plan God's Mercy still wants to be written and I still want to oblige. Even though I did not finish the book, this experience taught me what being an author is all about and that is dedication. Of course their is the talent factor, but dedication is what makes an author. It is not east to write a novel, even if you are a talented writer. There are marginal writers that were dedicated and published many titles. They had a goal and worked toward it and became great. That's what I call the Michael Jordan effect. MJ was not great in college, but dedication and practice pushed him toward becoming the best player of his time. So the moral of this post is "never give up". You don't want to be the reason that the world was not blessed with the greatest masterpiece of our generation do you?

Congratulations to the winners of my 50K in 30 days contest. Until next time stay blessed and may God's mercy keep you.

Giveaway (Amazon Gift Card) for your support

Financially fortunate folk have the means to hire personal trainers, managers and agents to encourage, organize and support their careers. When you are a currently unknown author attempting to get noticed by your target audience, out of a sea of talented writers, is definitely an overwhelming experience to undergo alone. For me, promoting myself is especially difficult, because I am not one to seek out the spotlight. However, my business management degree has taught me that a huge risk can produce a huge reward.



So, I put on my marketing hat and decided to sponsor a contest designed to recruit supports, cheerleaders and well wishers. I am going to write 50,000 words in 30 days with NaNoWriMo. Support my efforts and you could win an Amazon Gift Card. It's easy and will take less than five minutes. For contest details, check out my YouTube video. Share with your friends, families, neighbors, co-workers and anyone else that you know who loves to read. Thank you in advance. Let’s go “T” Let’s go!


If you are joining NaNoWriMo this year add me as a writing buddy.

http://nanowrimo.org/en/participants/t-ayan-nelson/buddies

Entry deadlines are 10/31/12 and 11/30/12 so hurry!

The Social Exchange Group: A way for Women to support other Women

I am excited about a new endeavor that my friend, Melica Niccole, and I are pursuing. As entrepreneurs and business minded career women, we both are interested in increasing our networks for exposure and to increase our customer base/subscribers/viewers. We are utilizing current social media platforms to launch a group whose goal is to support one another by reccommending each others events, services or products to our friends. The group is currently accepting new members, for more information, contact us at thesocialexchangegroup@gmail.com.

Check out my friend and business partner's blog http://melicaniccolesrealmofcreativity.blogspot.com/

 

Everybody Say Love

Courtesy of FreeFoto.com

Hello loved ones, the latest edition of ME, a newsletter from Hampton Publishing House, is out today. Yours truly wrote a piece entitled, Everybody Say Love, check it out now. The reason I wrote this piece is because I desire to become more like Christ. I want to love as God commanded us to do. I have found that expressing love to everyone lifts the weight of darkness that surrounded me. God is good, and his saving grace is available to all. "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:" KJV, Matthew 7:7
LovKiyah


Movie Review: Sparkle

Note***I usually do not like to draw attention to myself however, I want to stop hiding behind words. What better way to break free then to post a video onto You Tube?

This is the beginning of my journey, my quest to break free and become fearless.

Don't Forget to Vote>>>>>>

The Movie Review

The original Sparkle had a major impact on me as a young girl. I had so much empathy for the sisters and I hurt with them. The movie ended with me feeling sad and almost depressed. It was a favorite movie of mine but not one that I wanted to see everyday simply because it took an emotional toll on me. I was looking forward to seeing this remake. It did not disappoint. I made sure that I did not set my expectations too high and overall I was pleasantly surprised. There were some disappointing moments however, one being that Tamala Mann did not sing in this movie (what a waste). I was slightly confused as to why the villain was a comedian (Mike Epps). He made me laugh when I wasn’t supposed to laugh which took me out of the scene. I appreciated that the characters in this movie weren’t dirt poor. So their drive to become successful came from a different place, which I think people of today can definitely relate too. Sister’s drive was of course money, but also her desire to be married. Sparkle’s desire was to utilize her God given talents (and become successful).

Final Thoughts:

I liked the original movie better, but I enjoyed this movie and will watch it again.

Overall, I give this movie 7.5 out of 10.

Acting=7
Story=8

Reality TV is Ruining the State of Marriage

“Marriage is not the problem nor is it the solution to a problem”

"What does break up a happy home is when the couple fails to turn on the security system."

Do Jay Z and Beyonce know a secret that the rest of us are not privy too? What about, one of my favorite celebrity couples, Grant Hill and R&B Singer Tamia? It appears that their marriages are solid and built to last. Of course, I can’t know for sure and neither can the next admirer. That is one reason why I believe these public figures have relationships that have lasted as long as they have. They have managed to keep their private business out of the spotlight.

In the eyes of some, these relationships are the exception to the rule, especially in Hollywood. Some people may believe that, given more time, these marriages will become another statistic. I won’t make a claim either way. I believe in marriage because it is the proper order. There is safety and security in marriage. Most importantly, married couples whom are led by God are unmovable. That is not to say that a God headed marriage is free from heartaches or headaches but it does mean that any mountain can and will be moved.

Former couple, NBA player Kris Humphries & reality TV star Kim Kardashian; and the recent dramatic split of NFL wide receiver Chad Johnson and Evelyn Lozada from, you guessed it, reality TV have contributed to the negative view of marriage. Marriage is not designed to be easy. There are times when a couple will find it difficult to communicate resulting in hurt feelings and major disagreements. As long as the couple keeps the incident amongst themselves and they work through the gaps to form a compromise, then irreconcilable difference cannot tear them apart. No compromise, no happy relationship, no marriage.

Marriage is not the problem nor is it the solution to a problem. It is not the cause of unmarried happy couples separating; it should never have been used to save a doomed relationship anyway. What does break up a happy home is when the couple fails to turn on the security system. They are just allowing thieves to walk right in as quiet as a mouse, catching the couple off guard. When people open up their lives for the entertainment of large audiences it will always present unnecessary strain. It leads to a broken security system. Disagreements that may have otherwise been solved will now be replayed hundreds if not thousands of times accompanied by the opinions of people that are only seeing a snap shot.

Even the marriages of couples that we interact with often should not be open for debate. We should not invite ourselves in nor should we accept an invitation. More married couples need to take a cue from Grant, Jay, Tamia and Beyonce. Unless, that is, all you are looking for is a huge payout. What are your motives?

NOTE*** If you are in an abusive relationship, seek help immediately. Call the National Domestic Violence Hot line at 1-800-799-SAFE.