 September - October 2004
Tales From Da ‘Hood and Other Urban Stories!
by Alvin C. Romer
My, how the African-American reading industry has changed! More titles are being published yearly, upwards of 30% according to Publisher’s Weekly. We’re trendy in our buying habits and succumb to the stylistic renderings that move us to support whatever page-turner worthy of our time. To some, this type of writing is not apropos to what they think is valid, nor will they support and give these writers a chance, but the hip-hop and gangster motif runs rapid in a certain literary genre that is all the rage and should not be ignored. We speak of Urban Fiction, the Sista Girl novels, and most recently forays into new territory such as paranormal and speculative fiction that glorifies to some extent the urbane.
 Venture into any bookstore and there’s a new visual effects taking place. Popular novels once graced the bookshelves have been replaced by books depicting tales from the neighborhood and stories reminiscent of life with all the imagery needed to tell it like the authors see it. These new authors are muscling in, and have been given clout for more of it. Carl Weber, Vickie Stringer, Shannon Holmes, K’wan, Wahida Clarke, LaJill Hunt, Jihad, Teri Woods, et al. They come armed and dangerous. They write about the lives of prostitutes, low life denizens with a dollar and a dream, and every wide-eyed youngster looking for a place or plateau for prosperity. This is a chance to take literary logistics on a wild and willing ride in the minds of the people that made it happen, and the vehicles they used to get there – the independent companies that are fueling the fire.
 Fade to the aforementioned author Weber, an entrepreneurially minded type who reaped benefits by realizing that there was much more at stake with this genre and set out to change it better results. Out of his total vision came Urban Books. Vickie Stringer spent time in the slammer but saw more than just bars of banishment in realizing that the stuff she did time for was fodder for stories she knew people either identified with, or wanted to read. She went on to found Triple Crown Publishing. StreborBooks and its founder ZANE, is another major player in this field who I consider a marketing maven bar none!
 Moreover, the major publishing houses are expanding imprint operation and giving homage to us in many different concessions for legitimacy supporting what is hot to stabilize their coiffures. Our authors are self-publishing more, taking marketing quirks and turning them into bastions of power, touring with due diligence and conducting conferences for membership. More often than not we go on basking in the literary arena enjoying our reading privileges without stopping to think about what going on around us, and not taking the time to really understand the importance of reading for continuity. The new installment of The Romer Review invites you to read with an open mind as we explore what the reading public seemingly has grasped in certain segments of the buying public. These are people in the 18- 25 year-old ranges.
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