Three Et Alia Books Among 2021 "Arkansas Gems"

Arkansas Gems is an annual publication of the Arkansas Center for the Book. The just-released 2021 poster features three Et Alia books.

Arkansas Gems posters and bookmarks are published annually to highlight new works about Arkansas or by authors from the Natural State and are introduced each year at the National Book Festival in Washington, D.C.

Congratulations on selection to author Crystal C. Mercer, photographer Arshia Khan, author/photographer Ashley Murphy, author Tracy Peterson, illustrator Lindsay Witting, and Sloane LaFrance.

This marks the fourth consecutive year that Et Alia books have been selected as gems.

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Crystal C. Mercer

Arshia Khan

It’s Wash Day! But Elise doesn’t want to wash her hair. Will a visit from her favorite Auntie CC, encouragement from her big sister, Gisele, a poem laced with magic, and a special gift passed down from the women who came before her be enough to change her mind?

Sprinkled with #BlackGirlMagic and an ode to cultural beauty, From Cotton to Silk encourages girls everywhere to appreciate their hair in its natural state and love themselves just the way they are. Its enchanting pages reveal 467 hours of hand-stitching poured into textile renderings that blend cloth, culture, and the superpowers of the kinky, curly coif.

8.5 x 11 Hardback, 36 Pages. ISBN: 978-1-944528-24-9

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Tracy Peterson

Lindsey Witting

Cartwheels is a great story for opening conversations and explaining the basics of dyslexia to children.

Lively Sloane loves to make up dances, put on shows, and do art. But as she heads into first grade, nothing frustrates her more than reading. In math, the numbers go together right in her brain, but no matter how hard she looks at letters, and no matter how many times her teacher and parents say “focus,” she would much rather do cartwheels. She feels sad that she isn’t keeping up with her class and isn’t reading the “right way.” Then, she finds out that she has dyslexia. Join Sloane on her journey to learn to read, gain confidence, and find her own special kind of smart.

Based on the real-life teacher/student relationship between veteran first-grade teacher, author Tracy Peterson, and student Sloane LaFrance.

Available in 8.5 x 8.5 Hardback ($18.95, ISBN: 978-1-944528-12-6 ) or Paperback ($11.95, ISBN: 978-1-944528-13-3). 34 pages

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Ashley Murphy

This is not about a virus. This is about us. 

The Masked Project presents 100 portraits taken by photographer Ashley Murphy during the spring 2020 surge of COVID-19. From behind cotton and polypropylene, stars and grommets, leather and paisley, feathers and studs, eyes unmask worlds about personhood and pandemic life. The collection and flash reflections from Murphy’s brief portrait sessions are moving reminders that alongside fear of the unknown stands the refusal to shrink and the unrelenting drive for self-expression. From a safe distance, we emerge bold and brave, known and remembered.

This signed coffee table edition offers intimate encounters with each subject, including full-bleed images extending edge to edge. This book will be printed in small print runs and availability will vary. 8.5 x 11 hardcover coffee table book with premium black & white images. 216 pages. ISBN: 978-1944528102

2021 Year In Review

What a year! I always find it easy to focus on what is undone, but look what we accomplished at this small press for big voices this year! Our authors and interns work so hard (and I work pretty hard myself, I have to say). Together, we gave a pandemic year trying to keep us down a pretty good run for its money:

• Published four books (Children’s books From Cotton to Silk: The Magic of Black Hair by Crystal C. Mercer and Cartwheels: Finding Your Special Kind of Smart by Tracy Peterson; Nonfiction anthology Truths We Tell: Stories From The Yarn Stage curated by Hilary Trudell; and Memoir/Relationships book Invitation to Intimacy: What the marriage of two couples therapists reveals about risk, transformation, and the astonishing healing power of intimacy by Dr. Judy Tiesel-Jensen;

• Celebrated the highest number of sales in the press’s history with Cartwheels, representing the book’s helpfulness in the lives of kids, families, therapists, and teachers experiencing or working with those experiencing dyslexia and other learning differences;

• Earned numerous awards: But First, Save 10: The One Simple Money Move That Will Change Your Life by Sarah-Catherine Gutierrez (Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPYs)Bronze in the Self-Help Category) and The Hospice Doctor’s Widow: A Journal by Jennifer A. O’Brien (Nautilus Book Awards Silver in Death & Dying/Grief & Loss; Indie Book Awards Winner in Relationships; International Impact Book Awards winner in Book Interior Design; and Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPYs)Bronze in the Gift/Specialty/Journal Category).

• Sarah-Catherine Gutierrez and her Save10 Movement, co-founded with Stephanie Matthews, created a partnership with the Women’s Foundation of Arkansas through which SC (aka Ladysplaining Money) did an Arkansas College Campus tour of six campuses, delivering essential lessons on saving and preparing for retirement early to hundreds of women before they enter the workforce. Copies of But First, Save 10 were provided for 500 registrants;

• Produced our first card pack, Money Talks Conversation Cards, including 70 questions from Ladysplaining Money and personal finance thought leaders to spark empowering, change-making money discussions among women;

• Ran two successful Kickstarter campaigns (175 backers pledged $9,528 to fund From Cotton to Silk at 129% of our goal; 120 backers pledged $7,170 to fund Truths We Tell at 102% of our goal);

• Provided manuscript editing and publishing advice for dozens of authors;

• Donated or worked with a donor to provide copies of Cartwheels and Butterfly Dreams: A Friendship Takes Flight by Carol Dabney to dozens of children at Our House for their summer programming, accompanied by two days of readings, activities, and live music by Tracy Peterson and Carol Dabney;

• Et Alia authors appeared on numerous podcasts, on the news, in dozens of articles (including Ladysplaining Money appearing in Real Simple and The Wall Street Journal), on the radio, live on stage, and even in a documentary film (The Mud & The Lotus author Courtney Robinson);

• Signed contracts for three 2022 and 2023 books, including a second children’s book by Cartwheels author Tracy Peterson;  

• Celebrated countless connections of books and readers.

THANK YOU to our readers and supporters for the vital role that you continue to play in the life of Et Alia!

Who's in The Book? Storyteller Reveal from Truths We Tell: Stories From The Yarn Stage

We’ve got one week left to raise the last 36% of our goal! We are so thankful to the 70 backers who have helped us reach 64% / $4,547, and it’s all in during these last 7 days so we can bring the power of storytelling to print.

This last week, we’ve got exciting things in store . . .

All week long, we will be revealing the storytellers featured in Truths We Tell: Stories From The Yarn Stage and sharing hints about their stories that reveal the range and richness of narratives you can expect in the book.

Stay tuned for more storyteller reveals throughout the coming week . . .

Thank You to our Kickstarter Backers for From Cotton to Silk: The Magic of Black Hair

Our Kickstarter Backers Gave Sew Much

30 Days

Goal: $7,350 / ACTUAL: $9,528

175 Backers

Regarding this outpouring of support, Crystal C. Mercer says, “Every fiber of my being is woven in thanks to all of the people that became a part of a tapestry of supportive love. From Cotton To Silk: the Magic of Black Hair is a dream come true, primarily because you all believed this was an important story to tell. And here we are, telling melaninated babies everywhere that they are beautiful in their natural state. I am so grateful.”

A special thank you goes out to Erica Swallow and Brett Wood, who supported the project at the highest level of $500 or more.

Please help us celebrate these generous backers:

Nichole Acosta 

Kelli Russell Agodon

Scott Allen 

Isabel Anthony 

Michel Arnold 

Denise W. Barreto

Shannon Blue 

Lindsey and Crystal Boerner 

Amy Bradley-Hole 

Clint Brockway 

Marie Butcher 

Amy Carpenter 

Melanie Castellano 

Denise Chai 

Medeleine Chaisson 

Tabby Clancy 

Tara Cole 

Trigaila Cole 

K. Coleman 

Krystal Kaye Cornelius 

Jo Cruz 

Ashley Daniels 

Derrick and Cara 

Amber Dionne 

Julianne Dunn 

Bukola Ekundayo 

Audrey Evans 

Hannah M. Evans

Johnny F. Evans 

Sydney Lartigue Fameni

Steph FH 

Kathleen Fluegel (Auntie Kathleen)

Amber Fonner 

Jana Forkel 

Laura Frankenstein

Stewart Fuell 

Meg Gholson 

Jess Gisler 

Kimberley H. 

Jensyn Hallett 

Gin Hartnett

Tanya Hollifield 

Adele Holmes 

Wendy Holmes

Devon K.

K8 

Jen Karetnick 

Janis F. Kearney 

Danica King 

Anna Kimmell

Holly Kinnamont

Marjorie Lacy 

Laura 

Learning Instigator & Love Activist 

Oriana Leckert 

Julius K. Lindsay 

Emily Loker 

Omar McFarlane 

Kerri Michael 

Mac and Ashley Murphy 

Andrea L Neal

Rhonda Owen 

Paloma

Ashley Papineau 

Jessie Parker 

K. Parker 

Alexandra E. Payne 

Mary Pamela Perez 

Petra Philana 

Michon J. Pittman 

Nicole Pitts in Detroit, Michigan

Heather E. Pristash 

Jamila M. A. H. Robinson 

The Rodgers Family 

Jamila Rowser 

SJ 

Martin E. Stein and Scott A. Saxon 

Jaquay Smalls 

Rebecca Lynn Gaylor Snyder 

Shan L. Spyker 

Kristal Rose Stockman 

Melissa Struthers 

Erica Swallow

Shawn Sweeney

Sara Swisher 

Ivanna Terrell 

Benjamin G. Thompson

Luis Torres 

Trust Tree 

Hilary J. Trudell

Joyce Turley

Stephanie Vanderslice 

Shan Ware 

Liyah Wasson 

Shanika Whitehurst 

Tyler Williams 

Brett Wood 

Yvonne, Curly Girl

We Did It! Kickstarter Funded 129%

WE DID IT, together!

175 Kickstarter backers supported From Cotton to Silk: The Magic of Black Hair by Crystal C. Mercer and we finished in 30 days 129% funded with $9,528 pledged. We are SO grateful to everyone who helped us climb to the top.

Although we didn’t reach our full stretch goal, we got close enough that you can expect to see HAIR. SEEN. Heard. Conversations About Our Crowns cards.

THANK YOU! This outpouring of support has helped us dream big, and we are just getting started.

Happy Giving Tuesday! We're 66% Funded and We Need Your Help!

It's giving Tuesday! We love supporting Central Arkansas Library System, Celebrate Maya Project, The C.D. Wright Women Writers Conference, Women's Foundation of Arkansas, and other organizations promoting literacy for all and strengthening women (especially in their creativity).

Crystal C. Mercer's Kickstarter for her book From Cotton to Silk: The Magic of Black Hair is an incredible way to support a Black woman artisan in her craft--an entirely hand-stitched children's book representing 467 hours of sewing love. With 80 believers, it's 66% funded! But it's all or nothing and your support means everything. There are loads of handmade rewards at all levels to thank you for backing this project that is unique in all the world. Hope you'll spend a few minutes with "Auntie CC," to see a couple of book pages and learn more!

And whomever you choose to give to today, may you be awash in joy and appreciation for your gifts!

Join Et Alia on Our First Ever Kickstarter with Crystal C. Mercer!

Has this ever been done before? If so, we haven’t seen it! Every page of From Cotton to Silk: The Magic of Black Hair shares a bold, beautiful, masterful hand-stitched textile rendering that reflects dozens of hours of skill and love from the hands of Crystal C. Mercer.

The numbers speak: of the 3,716 books surveyed by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center (CCBC) in 2019, Black/African main characters made up only 12%. Don’t you agree that this just won’t do?

With your help, we can position this book as a beacon of self-worth for young Black girls!

Your Kickstarter support will:

• Cover Crystal’s cost of textiles and sewing materials

• Pay for textile photography by Arshia Khan

• Cover book layout design by Dave McClinton at African American Design Group

• Bring the retail price point from $21.95 to $19.95 to align it more closely with consumer expectations and make it more accessible to the girls who need its message most

• Ensure that publishing costs are covered prior to publication so that we begin public sales with profitability

We are overjoyed to share this book and related rewards at all price points with you, including custom jackets and custom fabric portraits, as well as kente cloth bookmarks and kente totes—
all handmade by Crystal!

If we surpass our goal of $7,350, we’ve got some big surprises up our sleeves.

Opening Day of Crystal C. Mercer's Solo Exhibition THREADING THROUGH

T-H-R-E-A-D-I-N-G-T-H-R-O-U-G-H- Pan African Textiles and the Stories They Tell is a fusion of research, my Southern United States heritage, and my African ...

Congratulations to Crystal C. Mercer on the launch of her first solo exhibition today at University of Central Arkansas! This video is the perfect opportunity to get the insider’s peek at some pages you’ll see in her forthcoming children’s book, From Cotton to Silk: The Magic of Black Hair (forthcoming November 20) and to get to know CC in all her glow. She is hand-stitching every page of this book, pouring 60 hours into every page that will ultimately become not only a testament to the magic of black hair, but nearly 30 individual quilt pieces.

ABOUT THE EXHIBITION:

For My Grandmothers: Tarvell Linda Shears Mercer and Leola Strong Brown

-T-H-R-E-A-D-I-N-G-T-H-R-O-U-G-H- Pan African Textiles and the Stories They Tell is a fusion of research, my Southern United States heritage, and my African lineage that features hand-crafted and hand-embroidered textile renderings that represents my signature artistic aesthetic and my draw to culture, activism, and social justice narratives of class, gender, and color. The visual representation of this work will blend the various fabrics being studied and will combine text and technique to illuminate the messages that cloth communicates. Utilizing fabric as the conduit between the past and the present, this display is paying respect to my own experiences, current and evolving Black culture, and the long spiritual memory of my ancestors.

Take a walk with me on this gallery talk and learn more about each piece in the exhibition!

Open to the public at UCA Downtown, 1105 Oak Street in Conway, Arkansas from August 3rd - 31st. Social distancing and face coverings are required.

Join us for a Publishing Panel at the C.D. Wright Women Writers Conference

The schedule for the 2019 The C.D. Wright Women Writers Conference is up! Et Alia is a proud sponsor once again this year.

Hope you'll attend and head to the "Women and Publishing" breakout session with Eliza Borné, Jo McDougall, Crystal C. Mercer, Katy Henriksen, and Et Alia director Erin Wood. Erin is also offering publishing consultations for the conference and you can sign up for those as well, info in link if you hunt around a bit (or if you can't find, let us know and we’ll make the connection).

Hope to see you November 8-9 in Conway!

Breakout Session I, 9:15–10:30 am

1. Women and Publishing

(Erin Wood, Eliza Borné, Jo McDougall, Crystal C. Mercer, and Katy Henriksen)
​Location: Fireplace Room, McCastlain Hall

Small press leadership and publishing, New York publishing houses, academic presses, book and textile arts, magazine publishing, manuscript editing, and writing—these women have done it all and have each shared their stories in Women Make Arkansas: Conversations with 50 Creatives by Erin Wood (Et Alia Press, 2019). The five will discuss how to land internships and jobs in publishing, how to break through barriers, self-publishing versus large press versus small press, tips to keep publishing and editing jobs from killing your own writing, and how to avoid potential pitfalls along the way.

A huge thank you to Arkansas Life for featuring hand lettered quotes to create by from six contributors to Women Make Arkansas: Conversations with 50 Creatives! What a perfect way to share these women's wisdom. Check out the full issue here.