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musings, thoughts, and writings of Barbara W. Klaser


April 23, 2005

Writers pleading with O . . .

I found a link on Bill Crider’s Blog to a wordofmouthwriters.org letter to Oprah Winfrey (link no longer active on 03-07-2008), asking that she focus once again on books by contemporary authors in her book club. The request is made by Word of Mouth, An Association of Women Authors.

I too would like to see Oprah—or anyone in the world with anything near her level of influence—focus on books by contemporary writers again. All but a handful of authors have it tough today, as do small traditional presses and small independent booksellers. Maybe some attention on those quality books, publishers and booksellers will help people rediscover the magic of books.

When you consider the hours of entertainment a good book can give you for your money, it beats many forms of quick, mindless gratification, and it stays with you forever, without adding pounds.

NOTE 03-07-2008: Neither I nor this blog have any relation to Oprah Winfrey. Comments for this post are closed, and comments posted elsewhere on this blog with letters to Oprah will be deleted.

— Barbara @ rudimentary 12:22 pm PST, 04/23/05

9 Comments

  1. Vikk says:

    I think she got burned when Franzen pulled his little temper tantrum. Not too long after she shut the first book program down. Imagine the readers who spent all that time clamoring for her to restart the book club. The new version is her answer. Safe ground and no reason to put up with prima donna, unappreciative contemporary authors. :)

  2. violetismycolor says:

    I understand Oprah’s goal to try and get folks to read the classics and this is a good thing. Unfortunately, literary fiction is in trouble and I would love to see Oprah support that, too…maybe she could do a classic, then a current, then a classic, then a current…this might be the answer.

  3. Reenie says:

    Okay. I’ve thought long and hard about whether or not to hang my ass out on this one.

    I am an Oprah fan to the nth degree. I watch her nearly every day unless the topic is so not interesting to me, which is rare. I am especially enamored with episodes that showcase chubby women transformed into goddesses – that anything is possible! I have a distinct advantage of having a small TV in my studio. Yup. There go any romantic notions people might have about artists. We ain’t swilling the vino with classical music at full volume as we howl our angst across a canvas. Nope. I paint and watch TV – especially Oprah. My smock is a bathrobe and Uggs.

    I might be hazy on details, but I believe this year’s Oprah theme is ‘Reaching for your Dreams’ or ‘Follow your Dreams’ or ‘Beg for your Dreams.’ Viewers have been encouraged to write to the producers regarding a dream for someone else or themselves. Now this is where my ass might start to bulge out and you all can guffaw, but I wrote to the producers regarding my dream to be published. So there you have it. And I say, “Why not?”

    The first week after sending my email, I made sure the beds were made, the dishes tossed in the dishwasher, and brushed the dog. I had to make sure everything was in tiptop shape – good heavens, what if Oprah’s famous blue bus pulled up and my bed wasn’t made! In case you suspect creative embellishment, my ass is fully out now – all of the above is true.

    Well, the blue bus hasn’t arrived, but I’m not discouraged. We creative sorts are somewhat immune to rejection. But don’t worry, I still have my cockamamie dreams…and I make my bed almost every morning.

    Now Barbara, back to your Oprah thoughts. I do wish she would resurrect the segments reserved for emerging authors. I think they inspired us all to sharpen our pencils. Unfortunately, that mountain is still too high for me because getting published is nearly impossible. So, I propose Oprah taking it to another level – to occasionally help people get published. She has the editorial staff, connections, etc.

    Stop Laughing!

  4. I’m not laughing, Reenie. I think it’s a great idea. So is yours, violetismycolor. And Vikk, yes, I suspect it was the Franzen debacle. There’s one kid in every sandbox who’ll kick over the other kids’ castle. The decision is up to Oprah, though, and I personally would’ve been reluctant to sign the letter, even if my name had pull, which it doesn’t. It’s her show.

  5. Etha Gray says:

    Please ask Oprah to take the torch to the president and ask why he can’t just open up all the closed military bases and house the displaced families. These people should not have to suffer like this, for this long. Tell her to please, please ask him. All others who are reading this, send this to anyone and every one. Let’s get a massive mailing going to help these people.

    Thanks

  6. Etha Gray says:

    To those asking for the book club to reinstate or help self published authors. I am a self published author with six books to my credit. They can be viewed at http://www.ethagray.com. However, they are not selling. I do not have enough exposure for them. I really need help. I wish she would help. I wish that she would take Sweet Daddy Red and turn it into a movie. I am willing to donate 50% of the income to the victims of Katrina. That’s how desparate I am to get noticed.

  7. Lamar Cole says:

    Oprah Winfrey is one of the best examples of being born into humble circumstances and pulling oneself up by the bootstraps and going on to become one of the most confident, powerful, and successful persons in the world.

  8. Tony Stewart says:

    Dear Oprah,

    I would like to somehow get my new book listed in your book catalog. I really feel you’d be interested in my story. I have never received a fair chance in life and was hoping you’d at least read my story. Listed is only a small piece, but I’ve been writing it for years and would be honored to talk with you about it. I have been trying to contact you for years to no avail. Please get back to me if you would. Bless you.

    A fan and survivor of abuse,
    Tony Stewart, author

    I has written an autobiography entitled “Scars of Affliction - Forgiven, but Not Forgotten” that is similar to the book “A Million Little Pieces” with the exception that it is 100 percent TRUE about my abusive life while growing up in L. A.
    The environment in which we lived was actually a scary place, bordered by violence, fantasy, illusion and chaotic madness on the home front. Now that I have bitten into the forbidden fruit and opened the tender wounds of our yesteryear, it’s time to tell our story.
    The painful segment of my life actually begun on the day I was born, when the doctor slapped my bare rear end with his hand and I reacted with a painful cry. This was my first breath of life, my punishment for being born. As it turns out, the slap on my rear would turn out to be an early sign of the many beatings and abuse that would follow in my lifetime, and my father would later confirm this with many lashings of his belt. The painful lessons of life had taken its toll on my brother Ron and me. We paid our dues with excruciating beatings that left black and blue marks, shamefully decorating our childhood bodies.
    We were raised to hide our bruises in school or in the public.
    The beatings made us tough. In school, we were rarely hurt when the bigger kids punched us. We’d turn the tables and wallop on them. I remember telling one bully, “My father hits harder than that.” This is not a story written to peddle misery; it’s a story about the reality of the hostile environment in which we lived in. My parents learned “first hand’ that the strike of a belt could deliver a painful resolution that quickly helped to solve problems.
    These punishments were handed down from their forefathers and mothers onto us, their own beloved children. Agonizing beatings and abuse were common practices in the home front during our era. Police seldom got involved in family disputes even when the children cried out for help. Our parents were the law, unless someone ran away from home or was brutally murdered, it wasn’t police matter.
    In my rising years, I always felt like a slave to my parents. The kids in our family were mainly bought into the world to do chores and do as we were told, or be severely punished. Other kids in the neighborhood would laugh and make fun of us because we wore third-hand clothes with holes in them, no shoes and only took a bath once a week, on Sunday. Our family seldom went to see doctors or dentists, even though medical attention was critically needed on occasions.
    I do remember going to the doctors for brutal assaults from my vicious stepbrother on occasions, but we didn’t have any medical insurance and couldn’t afford to pay doctor bills, so most injuries or illnesses were taken care of at home. We had nine kids in our family, plus two parents and we were dreadfully poor. My father refused welfare and any other outside help because he didn’t believe in charity. Some of the school kids and neighbors envisioned us as people with incurable diseases and filthy lifestyles, because we were so poor.
    In school, we were incorrectly taught that there are winners, and losers in the sports and in life in general. In all actuality all kids should be considered winners, because there were no losers in school. Some of us just had harder lives and were not given everything on silver or gold platters. I was always a nervous shy kid, afraid of my elders, and society. I wasn’t even allowed to smile for school pictures or I’d be severely punished by my threatening stepmother. I felt so worthless inside, in my elementary through teenage years, I honestly didn’t care if I lived or died. . There was no love in my family, only many unhappy times. Thank you for your time and consideration.

    Tony Stewart, author
    Scars of Affliction - Forgiven, but Not Forgotten

    [comment moved by admin]

  9. Barbara says:

    Tony, your comment was moved, because it wasn’t related to the topic of the post where you left it. I’m sorry you’ve had such a difficult life. Unfortunately a lot of people have, and abuse is a terrible sickness our society needs to find a way to cure.

    But my blog is not the place to write a letter to Oprah. “Letter to Oprah” was simply the title of this blog post, about a letter that a group of writers sent her. I’m changing the post title to keep people from getting confused again. I’m also closing the comments again, and please, people, don’t comment on other posts with any more letters to Oprah.

    If you want to contact Oprah, I suggest you search for her website and find contact information there. I don’t know her and I don’t represent her in any way.


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