Night Owl Reviews’ – The Melting Pot by C. Morgan Kennedy

Highlighting Diverse Books 

Let me begin by thanking the ladies at Romancing the Genres for asking me to guest post about my book review column. I am incredibly thankful for this opportunity to discuss a topic near and dear to my heart: DIVERSITY.

Two years ago, I had lunch with Tammie King – the tour de force behind Night Owl Reviews. At some point during lunch, she asked me if I would like to take over the diversity column for her free monthly e-magazine. The original column was focused on diverse romance and was almost exclusively African-American-centric romance – which was fabulous. My only ‘problem’ was that, even though I am a romance author working towards publication, my taste in books extended beyond romance.

Tammie and I had some conversations about how I wanted to expand the scope of the column, change the name, and focus on a broader definition of diversity….and thus, The Melting Pot: Stories with Diversity and Multiculturalism was born.

My column has showcased books that feature Cuban, Mexican, African-American, LGBTQ, plus size, Asian, interracial, and other-abled characters. Note that I am focusing on characters and diverse stories… the authors aren’t necessarily members of minority populations. We live in a diverse world and I would like to see more stories that reflect that diversity. I want to see authors move beyond the stereotypes and tell stories that include a rich tapestry of characters with depth and emotion. Yes, I read for an escape, but I also enjoy learning more about new perspectives and hidden histories.

No matter the genre (I read just about everything), I’m always on the hunt for well written stories with amazing casts of characters. Every December, I post a selection of diverse children’s books, too. If you have any recommendations of great authors or books, please leave a comment or reach out to me via Facebook, Twitter, or my website / email. I’d love to hear from you.

C. MORGAN KENNEDY

About C. Morgan Kennedy:

I have a confession to make. I’m a time traveler. I love flinging myself into the future, then hurtling fast to an alternative past. In my usual time-space-dimension, I’m a mechanical engineer and business woman. So, I have a natural penchant for hover cars and steam or aether powered engines. I was born in the wrong era, I’m actually a child of the sixties – 1860, 1960, 2060.

Steampunker, futurist, blerd, artist, contemporary author, and marketing maven…a real creative force of nature – that’s me in a nutshell.

Keep tabs on my adventures via my blog, Morgan’s Mix Tape, on my website: http://www.cmorgankennedy.com.