alpha1906.bsky.social
The Most Famous Person You've Never Heard Of.
32 yr Husband. 26 yr Dad. 40 yr Alpha man. Life member for all.
Author: The Divine Nine & Blackballed
Metaphor Club Owner
ManU. Lakers. Cal, Lakers fanatic
570 posts
1,185 followers
249 following
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We have room for 50 attendees and approximately 20 spots left. Email us at [email protected] if you'd like to attend or share with someone who'd like to attend.
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This isn't about the fluff but the information and Q&As. So, if you're attending, bring your notebook, your pointed questions (uh...no 'I have a comment, not a question), and, more importantly, get to know the people attending the conference for future collaborations.
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4pm: Matt Claybrooks: From Writer to Showrunner
(credits: Everybody Hates Chris to Lil Kev)
5pm: Poppy Hanks: From Pitch to Development Exec
(credits: Barbershop to They Cloned Tyrone)
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1pm: Michelle Gillies: From Pitching to Pilot
(credits: Playin' for Love to The Honorable)
2pm: Ken Whittingham: From the Director's Chair
(credits: Malcolm & Eddie to Abbott Elementary)
3pm: Jazzy Collins: From the Casting Director's Eye
(credits: The Bachelorette to Very Important People)
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8am: Light Breakfast
9am: Lawrence Ross: From Book Idea to Book Shelf
(credits: LA Times bestseller: The Divine Nine)
11am: Saladin Patterson: From Writer to Showrunner
(credits: Frasier, Wonder Years)
Noon: Terrell Tilford: From Stage to TV/Film Actor
(credits: Guiding Light to Switched at Birth)
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- and that means bringing these wonderful people to our club so they can impart their knowledge and, if you're ready, a chance to shoot your shot.
The conference fee is $150 (which, by the way, helps keep this club going), and the schedule is tight.
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Now, for the first time, we're holding our first conference on April 12th from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m!
MetaFEST is an all-day conference for aspiring writers, directors, producers, showrunners, and development exes.
Our goal at the Metaphor Club is to shrink access and privilege
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Joan Morgan, Amy Aniobi, Anthony Sparks, Brittney Cooper, Chanel Craft Tanner, Susana Morris, Walter Mosley, Damon Young, Michael Harriot, Jemele Hill, Kadir Nelson, Kwame Alexander, Kemp Powers, Raynelle Swilling, Saladin McCullough, Franklin Leonard, Korin Williams, Selwyn Hinds, Michelle Amor...
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The sister who hosted it should get the chance to host it!
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This workshop covers everything from the book idea to the bookshelf. It's a three-hour workshop, so be prepared to hear me for a while. LOL
The cost is $50. If you'd like to attend, email me at [email protected]. Feel free to share.
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When he said that he'd just thought of what he was gonna say that morning, that's when a best friend should have stepped in and said, "then don't say that shit. you haven't thought this thing through.'
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When I first ate a Marie Calender pot pie, I felt rich. LOL
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Ugo is the bomb!
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Thank you so much, Jemele!!! You're an excellent writer and having you in class has been a pleasure. We laugh as much as we talk about writing! lol
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The cost will be $50, and there will be snacks, soft drinks, and pizza.
The night is designed to get you out of your writer's rut, out of isolation, and get the words on the page.
With the two rooms, we have room for 60 folks. Wanna get on the list? Comment below.
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P. You come to a Black business because you need a service or product, and that Black business had a vision about providing it to you. We don't believe we have a divine right to exist, and we do the best we can. Hopefully, you'll shop with us REGULARLY. And then tell friends.
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O. We pay a whole bunch of people. Yes, we pay our employees, but we also pay the local homeless guy to clean up our parking lot. There are a lot of folks in the community who need a hand. We've done this since we opened and we've NEVER been disappointed. Never.
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N. As a Black business owner, I do not want your advice if I don't solicit it. This isn't because Black business owners don't strive to be better—we do. It's just that you have no idea about the practicalities of my business. The theory is different from reality.
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M. Black business owners do a whole bunch that you never see. Know what it's like to see human feces at biz door in the morning? That's old hat. Our job is to make it feel like everything is okay, even if the heat doesn't work magically.
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L. Black business owners pay themselves last if they can at all. Like...way last. And we don't pay ourselves anything close to the hourly minimum wage rate.
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K. Having a Black business doesn't mean not welcoming non-black customers. We pour billions into white corporations, and any time we get those dollars back from white customers, that is a win. However, it doesn't change the focus of who and what we stand for.
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j. Most Black businesses make tiny profits. In seven years, we've self-funded and poured any profit back into our company. Why? We are an essential part of Black LA, and it's more than just a business. People depend upon us, and we take that mission seriously.
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i. Don't like a Black business? I promise you there are a thousand others in the same category. You won't offend me if you choose my Black competitor over me. Some like steak, others chicken. But I'm more interested in keeping your dollar in the community.
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h. Supporting Black businesses isn't community service; it is a choice. It is a philosophical choice, saying, "My money goes to this business because I love the service, and I know that how I spend my money expresses my values."
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g. Black business shouldn't be a replication of cold, hard white capitalism. If you're a Black business owner who doesn't love your customers, get out. If you're about hustle and grind, get out. If you don't build relationships with your customers, get out.
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f. Black businesses reward loyal customers. Nothing makes me happier than telling a loyal customer we're providing a service for free. Remember when I said free was expensive? Not when your customer invests in you. You're more than willing to VOLUNTEER free for them.
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It's a bit like juggling 100 balls and not letting one fall. Inevitably, they fall. You email, greet customers, check inventory, make sure bills are paid, and yes, we can forget your request. It's not personal, but it can be overwhelming.
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e. If you don't like a Black business, and that is fine, it is much better to tell someone to open a competing business where they can do better than to think you have to harangue that business at what they do wrong. Again, running a business is hard.
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d. If you see something wrong with a Black business, the owner has seen it well before you but is limited to what they can do. Are they short-staffed? It may mean they've had a bad month and can't pay someone, so they'll have to work two or three jobs themselves.
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Black businesses have expenses, lots of costs when it comes to a brick-and-mortar, that you don't take into consideration. Using water, TP, and electricity during a 'free' event is costly, not to mention staffing.
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c. Free is the enemy of Black businesses. No skillset, hookup, expertise, or partnership potential you can propose will ever compensate for the cost of doing it for free. So stop asking. No one goes into Dennys and asks if they can get a free meal for marketing.
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b. Black businesses are often self-funded and family-run. This means that we depend heavily on positive cash flow, well before profit. So, if you like a business, don't just talk about how you like it; be intentional about patronizing it each week. That helps us keep the lights on.
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I have plenty of Black customers who love themselves and us, and we'll work our asses off to please them.
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a. Don't bring your internalized self-hate to my biz. If you walk in believing Black biz are inferior, then I don't want or need your money. Too often, folks walk in LOOKING for something, ANYTHING, to confirm their self-hate about Black people and Black businesses.
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Hate Trump all you want, but he's delivering, even if they're pyrrhic victories that go away via court rulings, actions based on what he promised. His voters won't care if he gets the policy done; they'll credit him for trying.
Democrats need to learn that quickly
.
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And I'm not confident that, even if that happened, my party, the Democratic Party, would even know how to take advantage of the opportunity. They've proven inept in knowing who their voters are and what we want. So when they get power, they talk about the limitations versus the possibilities.