One of the most powerful things about the gift of literacy is the ability to be transported by words.

There’s something magical about reading or listening to a story and building the images in your own mind. That process makes me feel ten times more connected to characters, and it builds a deep empathy that stays with me long after the last page.

Through books, I’ve learned so much about mental health representation, about experiences far from my own, but also ones that echo my reality.

As...

If you know me, you know it’s no secret: I am an Alexandria House STAN!

Like, no shame, all caps, full chest stan.

When I launched Beauty, Brains, and Books Book Club, her book Goal was one of the first books I chose. And whenever someone asks me where to start with contemporary romance, whether they’re new to the genre or finding their way back, I always say, “Start with Alexandria House.”

Why?

Because in her books, Black women are being loved loudly and unapologetically.

The representation is...

Hey Love Letter Collectors ,

I wanna get deep for a second.

I wrote Three Months in Accra at one of the darkest points of my life. For five years, I was the Executive Director of an organization I loved. But I left. I left because my health was taking a nose dive. Even though the work was fulfilling, the cost was too high on my mental, my physical, and my emotional well-being.

And while it was 100% my choice to leave, I was grieving. Grieving the six-figure salary. Grieving the friendships that...