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Raven Woods' HIStory book proposal in the 33 1/3 series

HIStory

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I just saw this on Facebook so I thought I would share. She is the owner of the All For Love Blog that some of you might know.

I guess I may as well let you guys in on my big "secret" since the cat will be out of the bag tomorrow when 33 and 1/3 puts out their complete list of proposals. Yes, I submitted a proposal to the series--a proposal on Michael's HIStory album! This is the same series that published Susan Fast's Dangerous and is a very prestigious book series from Bloomsbury Press that annually publishes about 8-9 titles on music albums of the last 50 years (whether well known or very obscure). The selections are made from, on average, about 300-500 proposals sent in, so as you can imagine, the competition is very fierce and there is no guarantee of making the final cut. The editors announced that they received over 500 proposals this go-round. Tomorrow's list is simply Phase 1 of the process, whereby they will list every proposal submitted (I do not envy them that task!) From there, the list will be shortened to approximately 100 and then there is usually another round where that list is reduced to about 30 (though the number varies) and, eventually, from that pool, the eight or nine that make the final cut will be selected. I didn't want to say too much because it's still very early in the game and I am being realistic about the chances of actually making the cut (especially since they just very recently did a Michael Jackson book) so I wanted to see if I at least made the first cut before announcing it. However, after that list goes public tomorrow, everyone's going to know, anyway that my name is on it, lol! Anyway, I guess I AM a little excited because just getting the proposal done was a major accomplishment (they're not easy work!) and it will be exciting just to see my name and proposal on that list! It is a big deal because this series is so huge now that there will be readers and buyers eagerly lining up just to see what titles and artists have been thrown into the hat! And, yes, they do take into account the feedback they receive on the selections (it isn't the only factor, as it still comes down to the quality of the actual proposal) but if they know there is a title that the public is especially buzzed about, it does carry some weight, so supportive comments would be much appreciated. After all, they want to know which books will actually sell! Anyway, the list "should" be up tomorrow, so they said. Here is the website:http://333sound.com/
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https://www.facebook.com/pages/AllForLove/106340832757051?fref=nf
 
Oh fantastic. I really hope it makes it to publication.

I really loved the Dangerous edition.
 
I havent gotten around to the Dangerous book yet, but thanks for reminding me about it- I just got it for my Kindle.

I welcome absolutely anything and everything when it comes to HIStory
 
I'm not familiar with her writing (does anyone have a link to an essay or article she has written before?), but the initiative itself is excellent as there need to be more books about Michael's music.
 
Funkystrong;4101627 said:
http://www.allforloveblog.com/?p=9654


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxm3qWWgIZA&index=31&list=LL5EwqPLUuywdMqoNUKPA3Pw
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She's not to be mistaken with Susan Fast (re. the second link). The All For Love blog is Raven's though.

From her blog:

My name is Raven Woods. I’m a writer, sometime journalist, and all-around MJ fan.I’m not an MJ expert and don’t claim to be. I’m just a fan who enjoys sharing my views and insights with others. I have found that writing about him has helped me get through the grief over his loss. It helps me to put things in perspective. And like many of you, I am seeking justice and closure for what happened to him, as well as hoping that eventually his name and legacy will be fully exonerated by the media.

Some of my credentials include The W.B. Yeats Award, the International Merit Award from “The Atlanta Review,” The Hackney Literary Award, and two writing fellowships: The Albert and Elaine Borchard Fellowship and The Taos Summer Writer’s Conference. I have an MA in English from Mississippi State University and an MFA in Creative Writing from Georgia College and State University.
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Funkystrong said:
The second link is her being interviewed. By the way who is Raven?
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Thanks for the links Funkystrong (and welcome to the board btw). I was referring to Raven Woods though (the author of this proposed upcoming book). I am familiar with Susan Fast's writing already because I own her Dangerous 33 1/3 book. Thanks nevertheless!
 
Another author submitted a proposal for Off The Wall. Here is the full list of proposals: http://333sound.com/2015/07/29/open...list-of-albums-proposed-for-the-33-13-series/

As you can see there is big competition, lots of proposals and only the best ones will be accepted and of course a little support does not hurt. So MJ fans please support the MJ books (although I do not know who is behind the OTW proposal) in a polite, measured way.
 
Please don't forget to show support for the MJ titles on the 33 and 1/3 proposal list!
http://333sound.com/2015/07/29/open-call-2015-the-complete-list-of-albums-proposed-for-the-33-13-series/

HOW do you show support??

AllForLove You can leave comments on their page via the above link. A lot of people are commenting about which titles they would buy or would be excited to see published in the series. I don't think the comments necessarily determine which books get chosen but they do give the editors a feel for which potential titles are generating the most buzz.


https://www.facebook.com/pages/AllForLove/106340832757051?fref=nf
 
Raven's proposal has been turned down:


As many of you may be aware by now, my HIStory proposal did not make this year's shortlist for Bloomsbury's 33 and a third series. However, many have expressed an interest in reading it. The good news is that I don't plan to give up on the idea of writing about HIStory. I have revised the proposal as a stand-alone piece, "Michael Jackson's HIStory and The Art of Musical Autobiography" which can currently be read on Academia.edu and which I also plan to submit to "The Journal of Popular Culture." And I am already planning to fully revise the proposal for 33 and a third's next open call (which I assume will be sometime next year). I think part of the problem I ran up against was that Bloomsbury had just published a Michael Jackson book in 2014-Susan Fast's Dangerous-and for another Michael Jackson proposal to be seriously considered this soon, it needed to have been something radically unique. I haven't given up on the idea of doing a book on HIStory for 33 and a third (I have a very interesting and creative idea simmering) but I still think my current proposal was solid and deserves an audience. Please feel free to comment, share, and promote.
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Here is the link to download: https://www.academia.edu/16633338/Michael_Jacksons_HIStory_and_The_Art_of_Musical_Autobiography
 
I love Raven's blog! And I would sooooooo love HIStory getting the spotlight once again. Such a great album!! I hope these books about Michael's later work allow his post 80's albums the proper acclaim they deserve!
 
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