I am no longer surprised to find purpose in the people I meet. I am being guided to certain people for a reason. When I complimented Michelle on her Afro at the She Wins Conference last year, I had no idea she had such a rich backstory. When I did a video about the real Great Debaters, I didn’t know Michelle had also attended Wiley College!
Here are some fun facts I learned from her essay: “GROWING UP ON THE ‘COLORED’ SIDE OF THE BORDER:
Meet Michelle Petties, whose grandmother and aunt attended Wiley College, a historically Black college depicted in the 2007 film The Great Debaters, starring Denzel Washington. If you follow me on TikTok, I made a video about the real debaters that you can find under my Must Watch playlist. Michelle also attended Wiley in 1974.
Photo Credit: Michelle Petties | The author’s childhood home at 1208 E. Travis St., formerly known as Border Street.
Michelle was born and raised in Marshall, Texas, on Border Street (now Travis St), which served as a literal line of separation between the Black community situated south of the street and the white one on the north.
Photo Credit: Michelle Petties | The author (third from right, second row) at Sam Houston Elementary School in 1965.
In the fall of 1965, Michelle became one of the first Black students to integrate Sam Houston Elementary School.
A library worker denied her entrance because she was not a “mammal.” “If that sounds strange to you,” said Michelle, “imagine how it sounded to a young Black girl growing up at a time when segregation was still very much a part of the culture.”
Photo Credit: Michelle Petties | George Foreman, perhaps Marshall, Texas’s most famous son, meets President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968. LBJ’s wife, Lady Bird Johnson, was born on a former plantation in Karnack, Texas, which is considered the Greater Marshall area.
Publishing a poetry collection differs from publishing a novel or nonfiction book. One main reason is the editing; poets must pay special attention to this.
When looking for an editor for our poetry collections, we must ensure they know how poems work. Some poems, for example, are not intended to be grammatically correct. They might include lowercase letters where they would not normally be and play with conventions of spelling, layout, and typography.
An editor of poetry must be a critical reader and familiar with current trends in poetry publication. They must work closely with the poet to understand what is deliberate and what is not. A good editor will point out grammatical errors and ask if they are intentional—frequently, they will be, but it is a good editor’s job to ask.
Poetry editors must be willing to respect the intention of the poet. They must exercise restraint in those areas where they think a piece should be corrected when the poet did not intend it to be. It is also helpful to know whether the poem respects the conventions of the form or deviates deliberately. For instance, if there is a misstep in the rhyme scheme, it should be flagged in case the poet wants to adjust it.
In short, authors who self-publish poetry must find editors who are knowledgeable about how poems work. It would be even better if the editor were also a poet.
Today, we are kicking off our spotlight series of the winners of our 2024 poetry contest!
First up is our first place winner, Trevita Johnson!
I have known Trevita for years but did not know she was a poet! Her poem “Her Journey to Joy” inspired and spoke to our hearts. It stayed true to the theme and was easy to understand and digest.
You’ll hear her recite it live this afternoon (1/21/2025, 11:30a) on Instagram Live! You will also read her piece, but details will be provided later. We’ve got something special up our sleeves for that!
About Mrs. Johnson:
Trevita Johnson lives in North Carolina with her husband of almost 24 years, Austaniel Johnson. They have three young men, ages 25, 21, and 19. Johnson graduated from East Carolina University and is a former middle school math and science teacher of fifteen years. She has traveled along her creative path for several years, starting her UrNaturalLocs brand by doing natural hair, locs, and braids. She started creating and selling natural hair clothing, expanding her brand name to UrNaturalLocsGear.
UrNaturalSkinTreatz
Trevita currently sells homemade soaps, sugar scrubs, head-to-toe body wash, and body butter online through her Etsy shop, UrNaturalSkinTreatz. She has been creating skincare under the name KardaYah’s Kreations since 2017 but rebranded in 2020 as UrNaturalSkinTreatz. She uses natural ingredients such as shea butter, coconut, and avocado oil to create healthy skincare.
Trevita enjoys journaling, reading, listening to audiobooks, traveling, and spending time with her grandbaby.
Introducing Our 2024 Poetry Contest Finalists and Prize Package Winners!
I am so incredibly proud of this year’s winners! Please help me congratulate these fantastic poets, who are now winners of Yecheilyah’s Annual Poetry Contest, Season 7!
Her Journey to Joy by Trevita Johnson
Hope Moon, Joyful Skies by Arsenio M. Sorrell, aka Deep Thought the Lyricist
Echoes of Joy by D.A. Springer
Winners, please look out for an email in the next 24-48 hours with details on how to secure your prized package and the next steps for your interviews.
Each of these poets will receive an individual spotlight on the blog and an interview feature. We are eager for you to hear their winning poems and the inspiration behind their pieces.
Please head over to Instagram and show them some love. The post will go live on my page shortly. View and follow @yecheilyah.
Cool Fun Fact: When we announced the semi-finalists, I didn’t know who the three winners would be. At least not consciously. It wasn’t until we went over the poems with a fine-toothed comb and arranged them that I realized I had placed the winning poets in almost the exact order of the poems we loved most!
There was not a single poem I did not personally enjoy.
Everyone contributed something distinct while also teaching us something.
The variety and ingenuity, from visual to audio, were incredible. I appreciate how everyone put their best foot forward. I thank you for participating and sharing your heart with us!
Without further delay, the poets who have made it into the semi-finals and will go on for a chance to win the cash prizes are as follows (in no particular order):
Her Journey to Joy by Trevita Johnson
Hope Moon, Joyful Skies by Arsenio M. Sorrell, aka Deep Thought the Lyricist
Joy in the Morning by Lilanie, aka Kerece Williams
Echoes of Joy by D.A. Springer
Parable of the Daughter by Chérie J. Grant
Only three of these five will advance to the finals! That’s right. You are looking at your winners and don’t know it. And nope, they are not in order of placement for all you smart people, tee hee.
The ultimate announcement will be made on Thursday, January 2, 2025! Which of these dope poets made it to the top 3? Stick around and find out!
We pushed it back a day in case some of you return from travel.
As with each year, you can read the winning poems on this blog. We are also interviewing them live, so you don’t want to miss that!
In the meantime, please show these poets some love when you see the post, which goes live on my page shortly. View and follow @yecheilyah.
Social media is a necessary tool for connecting in today’s world and it is a must for all businesses to have a social media presence in some capacity.
There are people whose entire livelihoods are built into their social media accounts. Platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and now Threads have become creator economies where high performing content gets you paid.
But what happens if you are hacked, the app malfunctions, or in the case of TikTok, the app is banned? Now all that work you’ve done and all those people you connected with are gone in an instant.
That’s why I believe authors should focus as much energy into building their own communities.
Community Membership Website
Outside of meeting up with people in person, community membership platforms are the next best thing. I am a member of a few, and I love that the person has their own social app, which they control. There are paid membership sites like Mighty Networks and Skool, and free ones like Discord. The only reason I don’t have one of my own is because I am already managing so many websites, including this blog. Otherwise, I would definitely consider it.
Blogging
This blog has helped me tremendously in my work, and Imma stick beside her.
Email List
By email list, I do not necessarily mean an author newsletter that reads like an ad. These newsletters usually have updates on the author’s latest books and events and usually go out once a month or so. (Pretty much whenever the author has a new book out.)
However, most author newsletters are boring, long, and cluttered with too many images.
The emails I am talking about are where the author speaks to their readers like friends. They might share thoughts on what’s happening in the world lately, how they feel, or offer an inspiring story. They might also throw in an update, but not so many that it becomes a billboard for their books. These emails might come out several times a month, and readers are okay with them because they are fun and inviting.
These emails are usually simple and sent using third-party providers like Mailerlite or Mailchimp. They give people the option to unsubscribe if they want, which is kinda legal. If you are sending out mass spammy marketing emails with no way for people to unsubscribe, you are breaking privacy laws.
Text List
By text list, I mean a professional text line for your business, not your personal number. This can be used to offer short, quick updates, alerts for sales, or an inspiring quote. Personally, I don’t have a text line, nor do I want one, but it is an option. Many businesses use them and do well.
In-Person Meet-Ups
This one is pretty self-explanatory. In person meetings, workshops, and events will always provide a special kind of value you won’t find online and I don’t think we should neglect them. Zoom meetings can also be a great way for meeting up to see people face to face.
As for socials, remember to back up your content, download your data, and save viral moments like videos you might want to repurpose later!
Thank you to everyone who participated in the contest this year. We will announce the semi-finalists on Friday, December 20, 2024.
In the meantime, the contest hoodies and t-shirts are now available on the website! Your support helps us keep this contest going year after year and keep it free to enter!
They are comfy, like a warm hug, and come in black and dark chocolate colors, with more to come. Sizes go up to 3XL.
The website also has a donation page if you are not interested in the gear but want to help.
The PBS Blog 