Dear Daughter: A Love Letter was first published on February 14, 2022. I wrote it and gave it to my daughter, Haelee as a gift on this very day, one year ago. I wrote it because she said that my words didnât match my actions. You see I was loving in my actions but not so much with my words. My reasoning was that actions mean more than mere words. Pretty simple logic right? WRONG!!
Nevertheless I set off to do something about my mistake after Haelee told me that I was wrong and that she needed both. She said that she sometimes wondered if I loved her, thought that she was pretty, thought that she was smart, or if I was proud of her because I didnât often express those things verbally. My point in writing Dear Daughter was so that she could see in words and pictures that I loved her before she was born. And not only that, but that Iâll love her until the end of time. What a year itâs been since Iâve released it. Here are some of my personal highlights.
đđ˝ It was covered by Spectrum 1 News in celebration of Fathers Day.
đđ˝ It was a Number 1 New Release on Amazon.
đđ˝ It has been added to several public libraries throughout the US and beyond.
đđ˝ It was covered in a story at my hometown library, Greensboro Main Library as part of Fox 8 Newsâ Black History Month Programming.
đđ˝ I did my first public reading at a black owned bookstore in my hometown, Next Chapter Bookstore.
đđ˝ It has been converted into an audiobook.
đđ˝ I was invited to read it during a couple of author visits at schools and community centers.
đđ˝ I read a portion of it during the Black History Month Read-A-Thon sponsored by Literacy Nation and iReadify on February 13, 2023.
đđ˝ Itâs inspired me to keep writing. Be on the lookout for Joy Comes this summer.
A little known fact is that Iâve had sole custody of my Haelee since she was 2-years-old. On that note, I wrote Dear Daughter to shift the paradigm of black men not taking care of their kids. And with that I wanted to give women young and old across the world a little bit of hope from my heart to theirs. Dear Daughter simply means, âI love not just my daughter but everyoneâs daughter.â
Thank you to all those who have supported me so far on my author journey especially those that pushed me to write, publish, and share
