Light-skinned-ed Girl

My NPR Book Recommendations

One of the great things about getting The Girl Who Fell From the Sky published was that it got my name in front of the good NPR Books folks, and I've had an opportunity to do a few different pieces that have aired on All Things Considered. 

My latest one ran earlier this week:  Three Books to Save Nordic Lit from the Dark Side.  Please check it out.  And "click" recommend at the top!  Maybe they'll invite me back if the piece is popular enough--(and guys, it's a paying gig!)

A Short Pause in a Busy Travel Schedule

Hi guys!  I'm back.  After 6 full weeks of traveling the country with The Girl Who Fell From the Sky, I am at home for a full two weeks in a row!  Unbelievable and totally needed.

I've had the most fun time of my life meeting folks who have read the book or are interested in the book.  If you want to follow updates on my tour happenings and doings you can always find posts and photos on my website: www.heidiwdurrow.com/news.  Sometimes I post the same things here, but not often.  But you have to see this: a video of my visit to the Portland Public Schools where two high schools adopted The Girl Who Fell From the Sky as their school-wide read.  It was amazing.  The wonderful artwork you'll see is a bunch of photo collages that the students did in response to the book.  More on that soon--what was even more wonderful than the art were the explanations of their drawings.

Thank you to all of you who have helped me along the way, encouraged my work, and sread the word about the book.  This little book that almost didn't see the light of day is still on the New York Times Bestseller list at #20 this week and #8 on the National Indie Bestseller List. Unbelievable!

These two weeks I've got to knuckle down to do the work I need to do for the upcoming 4th (yes!) Annual Mixed Roots Film & Literary Festival (did you see our new website that the IT folks at Tightly Curly helped us put together?); catch up on work for Mixed Chicks Chat (we're still podcasting BTW--and you can download past episodes for free on itunes); and most of all to do the work on the new novel!

My to-do list is so long, I get an anxiety attack just looking at it.  How will I ever get this stuff done?  Anyone have some time management strategies that work?  Anybody have a cloning machine that I could use to get twice as much done?

My NAACP Image Award Experience

I could not have dreamed of a better experience of the NAACP Image Awards this week. Wow. Wow. Wow. I got to get dressed up twice and hob knob with some very nice-looking and it turns out, very nice people. Thursday's gala was too fun. The talented and lovely poet Camille Dungy introduced me to actor Anthony Mackie and his rep. I'm not sure how I worked up the nerve, but I suggested that he check out The Girl Who Fell From the Sky as a possible new film project since the character Drew would suit him quite well. Keeping my fingers crossed that he likes the read!
Friday night was the actual awards ceremony. And it was surreal. I got to walk the red carpet. Man, was I nervous. And I think it showed. I didn't really gain my confidence until the end of the carpet and then it was just radio interviews--but I do think I rocked those. I was so glad to catch up with the extraordinary writers Dolen Perkins-Valdez, Berniece McFadden, and Carleen Brice (whose book to film won an Image Award--go Carleen!). And how lovely is Terry McMillan? She gave a shout out to me and the other writers nominated. A class act that lady is. I am so excited to do the interview webcast event with her in August. (Did you see the ad in yesterday's NYT Book Review? The night ended on a surreal note when I ran into Vanessa Williams who I met several years ago when I sent her my manuscript. She remembered me! We ended up sitting and talking for a long while and then Holly Robinson-Peete and her husband joined us. Let me just say that these two celebrities were so incredibly lovely and gracious. They posed for every photo that people asked for and were thoroughly down to earth. I am still buzzing from the excitement of the night.