Published Books

2025
Dream Warrior: Passages of a Creative-Scholar
Melvin Donalson’s Dream Warrior: Passages of a Creative-Scholar reveals a Black man’s artistic and educational journey during America’s decades of changes and challenges. Growing up in the South’s racial segregation of the 1950s...
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2019
The Third Woman
The novel explores the historical and contemporary indifference to the sexual violence against girls and women. The journalist-protagonist connects with women across ethnic, age, and class lines, realizing a simple truth that bears a profound meaning...
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Shout
Set in 1997, Shout is a seven-character play that explores the history of a family, and the many layers of meaning that comprises the concept of family. With its multi-ethnic characters, the play reflects the challenging and subtle ways in which the dynamics...
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2017
Revelations
Revelations is a collection of 40 poems that investigate the intricate contours of the author’s emotions, experiences, and observations. Shaped in a variety of forms and language, the poems articulate things unspoken and illuminate...
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Hip Hop in American Cinema
An exploration of the impact of feature films in bringing hip hop culture to mainstream America, with specific chapters on Tupac Shakur and Queen Latifah. The films analyzed include Breakin’, Krush Groove, New Jack City, 8 Mile, and Hustle and Flow.
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2011
Communion
In the late 1980s, Tony Marcos is a fragile teen who runs away from home and begins a life of survival that ultimately brings him to the streets of Hollywood. Living in an environment where concrete and flesh collide, where fantasies and yearnings...
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2010
Black Directors in Hollywood
“Hollywood film directors are some of the world’s most powerful storytellers, shaping the fantasies and aspirations of people around the globe. Since the 1960’s, African Americans have increasingly joined their ranks, bringing fresh insights...
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2006
“Buddy films” about men of different races depict a world where a peaceful balance is possible and conflicts can be resolved. Since the 1930’s these films have presented various forms of masculinity, reflecting dominating social traditions...
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// Mel Donalson

Creative Writer

Mel’s popular essays have appeared in numerous periodicals, including Upscale; the African American Review; Obsidian; The Independent Film and Video Monthly; the Pasadena Weekly; and Chicken Soup for the African American Soul.

In addition, his short stories have been published in various journals, such as Words of Wisdom; Tucumcari Literary Journal; Obsidian II: Black Literature in Review; and Full Moon: Reflections from Writers and Artists. His three novels include The River Woman; Communion; and The Third Woman.

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Links to Authors and Friends

Image blog Reyna Grande, author
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Description blog Reyna Grande is the author of the bestselling memoir, The Distance Between Us, (Atria, 2012) where she writes about her life before and after she arrived in the United States from Mexico as an undocumented child immigrant. The much-anticipated sequel, A Dream Called Home (Atria), was released in 2018.  Her other works include the novels, Across a Hundred Mountains, (Atria, 2006) and Dancing with Butterflies 
Image blog Bakari Kitwana, author
Description blog An internationally known cultural critic, journalist, activist, and thought leader in the area of hip-hop, youth culture, and Black political engagement, Bakari Kitwana is the Executive Director of Rap Sessions, which for the last fourteen years has conducted over 150 townhall meetings around the nation on difficult dialogues facing the hip-hop and millennial generations. He is the collaborating writer for pioneering hip-hop artist Rakim 2019 new book Sweat The Technique: Revelations
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