Friday, August 24, 2007

A Book of Many Faces

Millenia Black's been MIA from blogland for a while now, and I'd begun to wonder about her lawsuit and how things were progressing. While she's understandably silent on any of those details, she's posted for the first time in months to share the Turkish cover of THE GREAT PRETENDER, her debut novel, named in the lawsuit as being 'blackified' by Penguin/NAL when they acquired it and found out she was an African-American writer. This is despite the fact that the book contains no black characters whatsoever! This still outrages me to no end.

Anyway, before I get carried away.....just wanted to comment on Millenia's recent post. Her post says she's been out of energy, no doubt from the stress she's under. Who wouldn't be when you self-publish a book that attracts foreign editors, only to have those doors closed by racist treatment from a NY publisher? From the look of the covers, her foreign publishers clearly had a different, more commercially viable interpretation of THE GREAT PRETENDER. It's a book of many faces......too bad Penguin had to choose one that unfortunately made a non-black book marketable only among blacks.

7 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Sounds to me like MB is full of self-hatred. Why is she so determined to dilute her blackness and try to go white? That's why she's stressed out, if you ask me, not because of some stupid book cover. She needs to just accept herself and stop trying to be like white people. Yeah I said it.

8/25/2007 1:16 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

If this were not my most respected blog I'd fix your business. I wonder where were you grown up at and what kind of parenting you happen to have received.

How can MB be doing such marvelous feat with such potentials for herself and others who are struggling, and you are so proud and bold to exclaim that she's determine to dilute her blackness. I believe you should do some homework on your judgment, this is too backward of a position for you to take and in fact believe it or not, its folks like you that help block broad-base respect for minorities. Maybe you are not mindful of a higher level treatment for yourself why you say stuff like that, however disposition of that sort does not belong in the Cranium of real intelligent people.

BTW, when white authors write black caharcters, are they diluting their whiteness too? I feel nothing but pure scorn for what you've wrote on this blog.

8/25/2007 9:05 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

AMEN Ancient Reader!

Just because she wants to market her book to ALL people instead of just one group does not mean she is ashamed of or wants to change her race.

8/29/2007 2:05 PM  
Blogger Bestselling Author, Pontif. said...

Greer D........you need help. You're a racist and I agree with what AR said: it's people like you (no matter your race) who make it hard for people to get the equal treatment they deserve. How can aspiring to a higher plain of success be "trying to be like white people"? Are whites the only group who are allowed to have the highest level of success?

Millenia Black is just trying to reach the largest possible audience. If that offends you because she's not keeping herself limited to black folks, you need help. Don't impose your own racial hang-ups on other, more progressive and intelligent people.

That's my piece.

8/30/2007 6:45 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I feel so badly that Millenia's still having to deal with all this nonsense, and to not only have narrow-minded WHITES against her, but narrow-minded BLACKS as well.

Greer D is clearly a diluted idiot. Get a clue.

Justine

9/03/2007 7:53 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hanks:

Good to know that you're still around and it feels just fine to hear those assuring words of knowledge from another individual of sound judgment. There are a few sober people around the place who are not like those seeing through a glass darkly...left up to them alone we all would eat of crumbs that fall from the white racists dirty tables. It's very sad.

I hope Millenia Black's publisher who has behave in such racially despicable manner suffer serious economic woes in times ahead, for denying her of an important inalienable constitutional right. Of course who knows what tomorrow holds.

9/04/2007 5:37 PM  
Anonymous black expressions books said...

So what did happen to Millenia's lawsuit?

7/30/2010 1:28 PM  

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