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April 7, 2026

Yecheilyah’s 8th Annual Poetry Contest Judges: BrinwiththePen

Greetings, Esteemed Poets! This week, we are rolling out some of the amazing poets who are helping with this year’s contest. Up next is BrinwiththePen. Love-centered poet Brinwiththepen inspires safety and inclusion through her poetry and the workshops she facilitates. Brin joined Atlanta’s poetry community in 2021 and pours into the intentional time and space… Continue reading

creative writing, General Topics

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April 6, 2026

Yecheilyah’s 8th Annual Poetry Contest Judges: Joshua “Roses” Clark

Greetings, Esteemed Poets! Today, we are rolling out some of the amazing poets who are helping with this year’s contest. Up first is Joshua Clark. Joshua Clark, who goes by Roses, is a Dallas-based spoken word poet, creative specialist, and Texas Chapter Leader of the Poetry Business Network. He is the CEO of Sculpted Roses… Continue reading

creative writing, General Topics

2026, Annual, blog, blogger, books, Joshua Clark, judges, National Poetry Month, poem, poems, poetic, poetry, poets, roses, Sculpted Roses Company, writing, Yecheilyah’s 8th Annual Poetry Contest
March 27, 2026

In Joseph’s Shadow Part Two

People knew his father and what he had contributed to the movement. They still spoke Joseph’s name with a kind of reverence, as though saying it might conjure the courage of another time. His photograph—creased at the corners, and yellowed with time, hung in barbershops and church foyers, beside posters for fish fries and gospel… Continue reading

creative writing, General Topics

authors, black history, blog, blogger, blogging, books, Ficiton, fiction, historical, historical fiction, history, short story, stella, Stella Series, WIP, Work in Progress, writers, writing
March 8, 2026

In Joseph’s Shadow: Part One

Tanya McNair, dressed in her favorite navy-blue blouse, which bore a faint trace of glitter from the campaign rally a month ago, moved from group to group of the crowded apartment. Her living room was alive with chatter, laughter, and the occasional burst of applause from friends and neighbors whenever a commentator announced another state… Continue reading

creative writing, General Topics

authors, black history, blog, blogger, blogging, books, Ficiton, fiction, historical, historical fiction, history, romance, short story, stella, Stella Series, WIP, work-in-progress, writers, writing
February 23, 2026

Ain’t No Red Carpet for the Prophet

We quote Martin with a rhythm that swells the chest. Malcolm’s words hum with power. Assata’s taste like survival. Garvey’s comes out like a storm breaking over the sea. Lumumba’s booms like djembe drums. Angela’s words convince the tongue it is brave. But no one applauds the silence that follows a truth told too clearly… Continue reading

Poetry

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February 9, 2026

Black History Lives

The more I study Black history, the more I am humbled by how close it still is to us, and how often the past breathes in the same rooms we do. It lives in the hands of my elderly aunts and uncles, in my husband’s great-aunts now in their eighties and nineties, in the quiet… Continue reading

creative writing, General Topics

16th Street Baptist Church Bombing, black history, black history 365, Black History Month, blog, blogger, books, Genealogy, history, moment, movement, Sarah Collins Rudolph, writing
December 16, 2025

Yecheilyah’s Book Reviews – Chains of Gold by Ken Robb

Title: Chains of Gold: Based on the True Story of Slavery During the California Gold Rush Author: Ken Robb Publisher: Word Star Ink Genre: Historical Fiction, US Historical Fiction Published: September 22, 2025 Pages: 438 pages The year is 1852, and Carter is shouting his freedom into the face of the law as deputies close in,… Continue reading

book reviews

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About Me

My name is Yecheilyah (e-see-li-yah), and my work confronts historical erasure and advocates for a more inclusive understanding of Black history. Through my literature and poetry, I uncover and preserve the rich, often underrepresented stories of African Americans. I also host an annual poetry contest.