A New Famous Brother
 

Does this mean we all get autographed copies of the book so we can say we knew him when? :D

AWWWWWWWWWW!

That's so sweet! THANK YOU TRINITY!!!!!!

As soon as the book goes on sell I will be sure to let you know so that your chapter can buy in bulk and show support :)

I remember you been working on that book, even when we were close, lol, congrads on the book let us know when it comes out ill pick a copy up

Rashid.....you are truly doing big thangs!


Since you famous and everything, just scribble your autograph on a napkin and I will see how much its worth in about 10 years!

LOL!!!!

Congrats NUMBA
 

I know that you worked extremely hard on that book and I am so elated!!! Good luck with everything!

LOVE

NEWS @ 9
@--->------

A message I sent out today!
 

What's up!

It's Rashid Darden here, your friend and author of the soon-to-be
published novel LAZARUS!

I want to say a sincere THANK YOU to everyone who made the launch of
http://www.oldgoldsoul.com a success! Can you believe we got over a
thousand hits in just three days? The diary, which I enjoy updating
every day, is still very popular, but so is the photo gallery.

I am sending you this note to let you know that the novel is coming
along nicely! Check out my latest news about offers from small
publishers in my diary at www.oldgoldsoul.com. LAZARUS will become a
reality and I appreciate all of the moral support all of you have been
sending me, both personally and through the site.

To that end, I am pleased to announce the launch of a yahoogroup for
all of you who are supporting the novel. Please go to
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/RashidDarden/ and sign up for the latest
news about the novel and the website. Don't get left out of the loop!

So come on back to www.oldgoldsoul.com and see what's new. You won't
be disappointed at what you find!

Much love,

Rashid Darden

ohhh i 'll sign up tomorrow...i saw that email but didnt get a chance to read it

Happy Holidays to you and yours! This is going to be a wonderful winter!

Things are going absolutely great with LAZARUS. Without your support, I’d be nowhere! Thank you all so much for visiting my website and sending in your positive messages. They really do make a difference on the rougher days. It’s not easy trying to publish a debut novel, but you all make it worth my while. Again, thanks!

Save the date: On February 1, 2005, we will begin taking Pre-Orders for Lazarus directly through the website, www.oldgoldsoul.com. ONLY pre-orders will receive special bonuses! Keep coming back to reserve your copy!

As always: Visit www.oldgoldsoul.com and sign the guestbook! I want to know you’ve been there. And if you can’t get enough, you can have even MORE updates via my yahoogroup: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/RashidDarden/

To thank you for your support of my upcoming debut novel LAZARUS and www.oldgoldsoul.com, I’d like to share Chapter One with you! Just click here to read it from the website: http://thebook.oldgoldsoul.com/excerpts.html I hope you enjoy!

Sincerely,

Rashid Darden
www.oldgoldsoul.com

PS - Please forward this email to anyone you think might be interested!

Late to the party but my order is in! Can't wait to read it!

Darden holds no punches. It is this true and raw emotion that makes you eager to keep reading, even after the story has ended. Every word on the page is real, breathing life into each character and emotion into each experience. You become attached to the characters and invested in the experience as if you were right there when it all happened.
-- A Zeta in Washington, DC

Darden presents many pressing issues including fraternity pledging, connecting with family, finding love and soul searching all with astounding accuracy. I am willing to bet most student leaders at any college campus can relate in more than one way to the struggles that Adrian endures throughout the novel. This work is a masterpiece for those entering college, current college students, and college graduates alike.
-- Alumnus, St. John's University

Greetings. As you certainly know by now, I have written a novel entitled LAZARUS. It is the story of Adrian Collins, a gay, black college sophomore who is pursuing membership in a fraternity while trying to keep his relationship secret. That plot probably sounds similar to people you may know – it might even be similar to your own experiences. I feel that I’ve written one of the best novels of 2005. In addition, the early reviews for my novel have compared me to Pulitzer prize-winning novelists. Many have said that I have surpassed E. Lynn Harris in storytelling. The synopsis of LAZARUS can be found here: http://thebook.oldgoldsoul.com More advanced reviews can be found here: http://thebook.oldgoldsoul.com/praise.html

As you also know, I am self-publishing LAZARUS. My intent is not to try to become rich off of this novel – that would be nearly impossible for any first-time author. After years of trying to find an agent and being told that the market was oversaturated with “black” fiction, I decided to forge my own path. My objective in self-publishing this novel is to get my work out there to the public and publishing industry professionals. I figured if agents wouldn’t take a chance on me, I would take my work directly to readers and let my work speak for itself.

But friends….I still need your help. My deadline to submit materials to my book manufacturer is rapidly approaching and I am in danger of having to postpone production because of a lack of pre-orders. The book manufacturer is sympathetic to self-published authors and they are giving me a reasonable quote for a modest number of copies. I am contributing nearly my entire savings and have taken out a loan to defray the costs, but I still need pre-orders to make LAZARUS a reality.

By self-publishing my novel, I hope to get attention to my talents and skills as a writer, not make a profit. All proceeds from this novel will be reinvested right back into my career. All I’ve ever wanted to be is a writer, and I hope you can help. If you are interested in pre-ordering LAZARUS, please visit: http://thebook.oldgoldsoul.com/order.html

Thank you very much for even reading this far. I hope you are moved to support this endeavor. Feel free to forward this email to anyone you feel would be interested. A new visitor to my website is just as valuable as a pre-order.

Thank you so much. God bless.

Hey folks, today is the LAST DAY to pre-order LAZARUS! Get yours now!

http://thebook.oldgoldsoul.com/order.html

Rashid Darden
Author of LAZARUS
www.oldgoldsoul.com

I don't know WHY ya'll are blowin his head up with his own thread....*hate*

.................................................. .................... :p

Seriously though, congrats and I wish you much success!!

Hey everybody! Thanks for the well-wishes on LAZARUS!!! I had a great weekend with my Alpha Phi Omega Brothers at Georgetown as we welcomed 14 neos into our brotherhood. I also celebrated the sixth anniversary of my line’s initiation! It was an awesome weekend, and I updated my photo gallery with pictures. If you’re still an undergrad, seriously consider becoming part of Alpha Phi Omega – it’s one of the best decisions I ever made.



www.oldgoldsoul.com is constantly being updated! In addition to plenty of photographs, the diary is updated nearly every day! People tell me it’s funny – I just tell it like it is, I suppose.



For the latest updates on appearances, click here: http://rashid.oldgoldsoul.com/appearances.html If you’d like to arrange a book talk, signing, or include me on a panel discussion, just shoot me an email! Also, even though I don’t currently have the resources to travel EVERYWHERE in the US, please let me know of any annual festivals or fairs that happen in your area, no matter how big or small. That kind of information is invaluable to me, especially for advanced planning.



New praise has been added! Come see what people are saying about LAZARUS! http://thebook.oldgoldsoul.com/praise.html



As always, you may order LAZARUS at this link: http://thebook.oldgoldsoul.com/order.html. They are still $14.95 plus shipping, and I hope you’re able to purchase one – it’s not too late!



LAZARUS is on the way! We are still aiming to send books out during the first week of April, as advertised, but I must admit there have been slight delays with our printer. However, I highly recommend them! Shoot me an email for their contact info if you are considering publishing your work on your own.



Thanks for all the support! Keep checking the site out for all the latest updates!

Happy 6th Anniversary homeboi!!! :D, congrats to the Spring '05 MA neos and congrats on your book. You are doing it big!

Dayum have we known each other for that long? I gotta get to DC so we can meet!

Save the Date



Old Gold Soul Presents:
A Toast to LAZARUS
The Debut Novel of Rashid Darden



Saturday, April 30, 2005
7pm
Takoma Station
6914 Fourth Street, NW
Washington, DC



Just one half-block from the Takoma Metro



RSVP: rashid@oldgoldsoul.com

looking forward to some reading!
 

Got the book today, and I'm looking forward to reading it! Congrats on being a published author, Senurset I....you deserve all the happiness in the world for seeing your "baby" born!

I got mine today too. :)

Awwww thanks y'all! Enjoy!

Guess what?

Old Gold Soul was listed as one of Keith Boykin's HOT BLOGS! Check out http://www.keithboykin.com

Another cool link, that Frederick Smith found for me, is a review of Lazarus at Books to Watch Out For. Lazarus was reviewed by Richard Labonte, and I am overall pleased with his thoughts. http://www.btwof.com/enews_extras/Im...TML.html#TofC3

AND

Check out the lovely interview I had with Steven G. Fullwood! It's pretty neat! http://blog.stevengfullwood.org/archives/000474.html

this stupid book had me up all nite reading it!!! :mad: :mad: :mad: i got no sleep!!! how dare he write a book this interesting to make me lose sleep!:p

Nikki Giovanni and me!
 

This is the day I have worked so hard to see.

On Sunday, November 20, 2005, from 3pm to 5pm, I will be participating in the 2005 Literary Expo, sponsored by the Federal City Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. The event will be held at American University in the Kay Spiritual Life Center. You can visit http://www.thefcacdst.org for the details.

The headlining author will be Nikki Giovanni. I am honored and humbled by the chance to participate in this event with her. She has been my inspiration and role model – her poetry inspires me to constantly do better. It is beautiful, yet plainspoken. I love her!

If you have that Sunday free, please consider joining me at this event. It will be the most special day of my year so far. To be invited to this event in the first place was honor enough, but to learn that Nikki Giovanni would be there is overwhelming.

Thank you all for supporting me so far – without you, I wouldn’t even be here!

Oh Rashid...that is amazing. Be sure to tell us all about it! :)

Covenant alert....read the signature.... :)

^^^That's fantastic! Congratulations!!!

About time! :D

Rashid, you know I'll be ordering one! Gotta support you - I know how long this has been a dream of yours, and I'm thrilled that you're working to make it a reality!!

I ordered my copy first thing this morning! :D