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Welcome Poet Tamara Woods: Book Giveaway: Guest Post [Video]

4/28/2014

7 Comments

 
I'm thankful this week to welcome my longtime friend & fellow poet, Tamara Woods, author of the recently released poetry collection, "The Shaping of an 'Angry' Black Woman," as a featured guest on theodorewebb.com.

Tamara has inspired me for a number of years. We wouldn't have the vibrant poetry-literary scene we have today in north-central West Virginia without Tamara's positive energy. In addition to many other events, workshops, etc., Tamara co-founded Morgantown Poets, an ongoing monthly literary event at the Monongalia Arts Center (MAC).

Now living in Hawaii, Tamara continues to share the spoken & written word, encouraging others, at her dynamic blog, PenPaperPad.com.

Without further adieu, here is author Tamara Woods, in her own beautiful words:

PictureTamara Woods, Author
I’m really excited that Ted has given me the opportunity to tell you more about me and my writing. And that I can give one of you guys a signed copy of my book, "The Shaping of an 'Angry' Black Woman."

(To enter the giveaway, leave a comment about why you want to read "The Shaping of an 'Angry' Black Woman" in the comments section below and then SHARE the link to the book (http://sakura-publishing.com/product/the-shaping-of-an-angry-black-woman/) on your social media: Facebook, Twitter, etc. One winner will be randomly selected from among those commenting.)

I grew up in Fairmont, West Virginia, a shy girl, who read way too much and daydreamed even more. Barbie was the first victim of my storytelling. She and Ken went through some very dramatic breakups, which included so much backstory.

In the fourth grade I realized these stories I told could be written down. On paper. My mind was blown. Short stories became my go-to for storytelling.
The next jump in my writing happened in the summer before my seventh grade year. I attended a week-long workshop for African American students at the (then) Fairmont State College. I had no idea that one week would change my life so much.

That’s when I met my “first” love and I learned that I could write poetry. Those potent things fused together, and poetry became my way to communicate my fears, my triumphs and complex emotions that I don’t always have the words to express.

Poetry shows me the way.

Fast forward and college came. I was a journalism major at West Virginia University. It’s where I met so many wonderful people, including Ted, who have inspired me and kept me going. During that time I learned I could do the spoken word, and take a stage. I didn’t have to live in Brooklyn or Chicago. I could do it in Morgantown. And so we did.

I decided I was going to leave the isolation of my Mountain Mama and move to a different place where I could become more connected…so I moved to the island of O’ahu. I know, it sounds like my geography skills are terrible (my sense of direction certainly is). However, moving here did help me connect more—with my writing. And then I realized I wanted to share my writing and my point of view with others. And so “The Shaping of an ‘Angry’ Black Woman” poetry collection started to be formed.

I wanted to address the subject of black women and how we're perceived in society. The negative views people project onto us. And I started thinking about how we are portrayed in media/books/etc. I’ve noticed three general roles: The Slut, The Nanny, The Bitch (aka Angry Black Woman). I don't have the body type for the first, I'm not nurturing enough for the second, so I would be assigned into the third role. I wanted to contribute to this conversation - and let people know that I'm more than just a one-dimensional character. We all are.

Here’s an example of one of the poems that’s in the book, where I talk about my choice to have my hair natural.


TAMARA WOODS was raised (fairly happily) in West Virginia, where she began writing poetry at the age of 12. Her first poetry collection is available at http://sakura-publishing.com/product/the-shaping-of-an-angry-black-woman. She has previous experience as a newspaper journalist, an event organizer, and volunteer with AmeriCorps and VISTA, in addition to working with people with disabilities. She has used her writing background to capture emotions and moments in time for anthologies such as Empirical Magazine, her blog PenPaperPad and writing articles as a full-time freelance writer. She is a hillbilly hermit in Honolulu living with her Mathemagician.

Social Media

Facebook: http://facebook.com/TamaraWoodstheWriter
Twitter: http://twitter.com/penpaperpad
Google+: https://plus.google.com/+TamaraWoods/posts
Tumblr: http://penpaperpad78.tumblr.com
YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/user/pimptwoo/videos
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Click cover pic to read!
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Click pic to read!

Leave your comment below! Tell us why you want to read the book! SHARE the link onFacebook, Twitter, etc.: http://sakura-publishing.com/product/the-shaping-of-an-angry-black-woman/

7 Comments
Tui Snider link
5/1/2014 02:19:47 am

Hi Tamara!

I landed here like a skipping stone, first a tweet, then a blog post, and then another click to get here.

Really enjoyed hearing you read your poem! I think that's my favorite way to take in poetry - straight from the source.

I shared your giveaway link with the peeps at #StoryDam. Some of them write poetry, too. I think they'd enjoy your book and chatting with you. My pal Morgan (who I think you should meet) created #OctPoWriMo it's for sharing a poem each day in October.

As for me - yeah! I hope I win. Even if I don't, your book is now on my to be read list. I've been sneaking back into poetry a little myself.

And hey there, Ted! Nice to meet you, too. I've bookmarked your blog and will be back again soon. :D

Tui
@TuiSnider on Twitter

Reply
Theodore Webb link
5/1/2014 12:22:42 pm

Tui, nice to meet a fellow author (I love that you write about travel!) & thank you for your wonderful comment. Appreciate you sharing the info and letting us know about #OctPoWriMo. I may have to get in on that this October! Sounds like fun! BTW Tui, I just followed you on Twitter. Let's stay in touch. Thanks again for bookmarking theodorewebb.com. You'll continue to see interesting poetry, literary, art, theater, music (etc.) stuff on here, I guarantee :-) Let your friends know you found a great site. There will likely be more book promos in the future. Cheers, ~theodore

Reply
Tamara Woods link
5/1/2014 12:40:47 pm

Thanks Tui so much for helping to spread the word! It was really great to meet some new writers tonight on #StoryDam. I wish I could've stayed longer, but you know how deadlines are. It seems like a really fun group, and I'm definitely looking forward to it for the future.

I'm glad you liked the poem. I think poetry just works better when the person can read it. Or at least it flows better with my mind. Vlogging is a new-to-me thing, but I really enjoy. I definitely think you should try it out.

Again, I'm so glad you stopped by and Good Luck!

~tamara

Reply
Yvonne Spence link
5/2/2014 07:48:52 am

Well, Tamara, I'd like to read your book just because I like you and admire your poetry skills (poetry not being my strong point.) And well, I'm leaving this comment because I've been lazy and haven't yet got round to checking it out on Amazon UK.

Reply
Tamara Woods link
5/2/2014 12:36:04 pm

Yvonne, hello! Thank you so much for entering the contest. I appreciate the support. Gosh, I hadn't thought about Amazon UK. Are books automatically listed there? I'm going to have to look into that. Thank you for bringing that up to me Yvonne. I hadn't thought of it.

Reply
SALLY DESKINS link
5/3/2014 04:16:26 am

You've got me intrigued! I want to read your story. I love your impetus. Sounds stellar.

Reply
Tamara Woods link
5/11/2014 12:26:05 pm

Thank you Sally! I appreciate you stopping by and commenting. It's been a long journey to write this, but well worth it.

Reply

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    To get paper versions of my books or stories, get in touch with me via social media.
    Electronic versions (Kindle) are below (click pics):

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