It Was Love

So often children ask, “What inspired you to write Darius Daniels: Game On!?” In this and future posts, I’m going to expand on my answer.

First and foremost, what inspired me to write Darius Daniels: Game On! — a journey that took 14 years! — was love. In particular, my mother’s love for me and my love for her, which led to so many other expressions and observations of love.

Witnessing every day, my mother’s love for her children, our family, and community made me want to write a book about just a small sliver of her life. I first tried tell her story with a picture book, but  couldn’t get it to work. In a surprise twist, Darius Daniels: Game On! turned out to be the ticket.

I’m so happy that I found the strength to persevere because now I get to see how the love that lifted me is now lifting children, teachers, librarians, and people from all walks of life.

What has love inspired you to do for someone else?

What would you say?

Poetry, poetry, poetry!
All around outside & flowin’ in me!
I have no hate in my heart,
because it’s all loved up with poesy!
 
Darius Daniels: Game On! & poetry are what’s up in coming days for students at
Lake Ridge Middle School in Woodbridge, VA. They’ll be reading the book for weeks to come, and during my author visit today, we’re going to talk about the power of our own voices, communication breakdowns, the worlds we can make with our words, why we read and write, and poetry as survival. Our goal is to dramatically expand the number of voracious readers at the school because we know words can avert wars, birth peace, and grow gardens of grace in the thorniest space.

What would you say to these students about the power of words? Have a story about how words changed your life? Please share.

*Shoutout to royalbydesign369 for the inspiration of Mantra – Photo credit: Cheriss May