Free (nook/Kindle) To Create: Black Writers, Artists… on Art, Careers… [Interviews]

[ATDrake]

Black Writers, Filmmakers, Storytellers, Artists, and Media-Makers Riff on Art, Careers, Life, and the Beautiful Mess in Between by Felicia Pride is a collection of interviews conducted with and discussing Exactly What It Says In The Title, featuring many African-American luminaries, free courtesy of publisher Agate's Digital imprint.

This covers a broad range of creative voices, from The Atlantic editor Ta-Nehisi Coates (Wikipedia) to filmmaker Ava DuVernay (Wikipedia, director of the Selma Martin Luther King, Jr. biopic which is up for the Oscar this year, IIRC?), and many more. There seem to be lots of interesting bits, both personal and professional anecdotes, though it's a shame that some of the interviews seem to be a bit on the short side, since I would have liked to have learned a bit more about some of the projects worked upon, although I guess that's why Google Is Your Friend™.

This has technically been previously offered free in 2012, but it's another one of those books that just doesn't seem to have gotten mentioned on MR before (or my search-fu is just terribad tonight), so I'm going to treat it as a new freebie for the purposes of the daily thread count, since it's a really nifty one that deserves the spotlight, IMHO.

Currently free, probably just until the weekend @ B&N and slated to drop at Amazon sometime after midnight Pacific Time.

And this has been the selected 3rd (non-repeat) free ebook thread of the day.

Because I'm a sucker for behind-the-scenes making-of stuff (I'm listening to a DVD commentary right now, or rather reading the subtitles for it, since my grasp of the Danish language isn't anywhere near good enough to understand what Lasse Spang Olsen is saying without major help), as well as spotlights given to potentially less-well-known but still-deserving persons who've done good work I might be interested in looking up, and this qualifies on both counts.

Enjoy!

Description
To Create is a collection of illuminating interviews with an eclectic set of black artists—including Harry Belafonte, Method Man, Nikki Giovanni, Edwidge Danticat, Edward P. Jones, Booker T. Mattison, and more—as conducted by the writer, entrepreneur, educator, and consultant Felicia Pride. This is an honest, inspiring series of conversations in which Pride and her fellow artists talk openly about the challenges and rewards of working creatively across a multitude of platforms.

Over the course of dozens of frank discussions with writers, activists, and media creators, Pride elicits sincere firsthand perspectives on the struggle to find—or to create, if it's not there—a niche for one's voice in the media landscape. The personable and fluid interview style allows the artists to follow their threads of dialogue to unique, intimate revelations.

The interviews transition smoothly between similar themes, touching on the do-it-yourself mentality of creating; practical musings on media careers; as well as theoretical discussions on art, legacy, and community. Additionally, many of the artists, musicians, and authors discuss finding career longevity through a multi-platform approach, the connection between the personal and political in art, and the ongoing conflict between art and commerce. This is one of the most candid and diversified interview collections within the African-American community, but it is also a stirring look into what it means to be a creator.