Had a little fun with ChatGPT making versions of SJS DIRECT Characters. Not an expert in AI, but these are pretty close to the descriptions of each character I present in my books. From these images, I could easily see these as frames for a movie or a TV Series!
First up is John Haynes. Looks just like I described him in the Morris Phillips Penthouse. Everything here fits the dark mood of John Haynes stories. Looking at this pic, I can see how people say John Haynes has a Buffy/Angel Vibe. It kinda feels like that show!
Next up is John Haynes and E'steem. This is how I imagined them going out for a night with John's car, The Deuce. Got to say live action E'steem looks HOT. I know The AI got the car wrong, it looks more like a 1970-1973 Deuce and a quarter, not a 1976 one, but it looks cool.
Next up is Isis. Got to say the Goddess next door is beautiful bubblin brown sugar in this pic! If she were on TV she'd look fantastic!
And, here's AI Spinsterella. This image of Matilda looks like it was RIPPED straight out of my imagination! It's like my words come to life She looks spook-Tacular.
Finally, here's Matilda as she first appeared as The Black Widow in Spellbound. She looks just like a frame from a Spellbound movie.
Now I'm no fan of AI, and I wouldn't use it for covers or anything commercial. I look to support indie artists when it comes to my commercial projects. But it was just fun to see what my characters would look like if they were given a chance to come to life. And from the looks of things many of my concepts would work well if they were translated to the screen for a live-action version.
A long time ago in a ghetto far, far away I wanted to be a comic book writer.
I wanted to build on the legacy of Bill Cosby and Robert Townsend and create positive stories and images that created a richer picture of Black life outside of what was presented in mainstream media.
I’m starting to realize that dream was a waste of my time.
I spent 25 years of my life writing positive stories about the Black experience. Wanting to open up the imaginations of Black people with stories about Black Goths, Black Sororities, Black gods and Black goddesses.
The kinds of stories Black people SAY they want but when it comes time to put their money down these same Black folks disappear.
Dealing with the Black nerd and the Black comic fan is like dealing with an insane person. They complain that there aren’t enough Black characters to represent Black people at mainstream companies like Marvel and DC. Yet When a Black creator like myself spends their money to make books with said Black characters these same black people don’t show up to buy them.
No, instead they make a plethora of excuses. Telling me my characters are not Black enough,
Too light skinned. Too Dark Skinned. Not wearing natural hair. And the ultimate Kicker-Too Black.
And if you create a White character and try to appeal to White audiences, you're a sellout and an Uncle Tom. Even though most of them have White and nonblack girlfriends and White and nonblack boyfriends.
Damn. Just Damn.
There is no pleasing the Black nerd or the Black comic fan If you’re a Black creator. Because most black nerds and Black comic fans don’t want Black characters from Black creators. They want White acceptance.
Look at how FAST the DC Blackout ended when they heard White people disapproved of it. Dudes BITCHED UP once they got a little pushback from White people.
Most Black nerds and Black comic fans are brainwashed slaves who live for White approval. If the White comic fans don't approve of something they don't buy it. If they can't get brownie points from White people they don't support it.
Because they fear reprisal from the White masters in their heads if they have the audacity to have a mind of their own.
If that ain’t a slave I don’t know what is.
For most Black nerds and Black Comic fans, Black characters in comic books, science fiction and fantasy aren’t a way for us to use our imagination to see ourselves outside of the stereotypes of the mainstream media. They're not expression of Black empowerment. They’re not an expression of Black love. They’re not a creation we make to take control of our image. They’re not a way to tell our stories about our culture and our experience.
They’re an attachment they use to get the attention of White Social circles.
Yeah, Black nerds and Black comic fans like Black characters. Only if a they’re in a White space and approved of by White people. If a White person or a White approved Black person doesn’t make it they don’t want it. Because supporting anything made by a Black person threatens their standing or attempt to get standing in those White social circles.
Black nerds don’t want anything made by a Black person who isn’t White approved. They don’t want to create a black space where we imagine who we want to be outside of white people.
There’s no White people to get the attention of there. There’s no White people to seek validation from there. There’s no White people to get approval of there. You can’t way to get brownie points with White people in a Black space.
You have to deal with other Black people. And they don’t want to be among us. Or seek approval from us. That doesn’t give them the power they could take supporting our own.
When we take control of our image it’s us taking power over ourselves. When we seek approval of our own work it’s us taking power over our own mind. But that flies over the head of the Black nerd. Supposed to be book smart but sadly is so filled with self-hatred they can’t pick up the knowledge a Black creator tries to give them.
When I was a kid I thought black superheroes and Black fantasy characters were supposed to be a symbol of Black power. But it seems most of the Black nerds only see Black power from the limited space of a White world.
Sad. Just sad.
God told me I do good work. But people wouldn't appreciate it in 2004. And in 2026, I see his word did not turn back to him void. I want to keep going like God told me, but I'm starting to see it's a fruitless task.
I spent 25 years of my life trying to reach the Black reader. Trying to show them a different picture of Black life. And I’m starting to realize I just wasted my time. After having a heart attack last year, I’m just thinking about walking away from SJS DIRECT. I’ve lost thousands of dollars and years of my life chasing a dream trying to reach Black audiences that don’t want what I’m selling. At 52, I'm starting to realize It might be just time to move on.
With a heart failure diagnosis, I need to manage my stress so I don't exacerbate my condition. And there's nothing more stress inducing than dealing with most Black folks. Many of my viewers and readers are good people. But dealing with folks on social media is a headache.
With my health in decline I realize there’s nothing I can do for Black people. And the only thing I can do is leave them to the Tyler Perry’s The Ice Cubes, The Curtis 50 Cent Jacksons, The Lee Daniels, The Oprah Winfreys and dysfunctional media they’ve imbibed over the last three decades. Most Black folkswill be LOST and remain LOST, still complaining no one makes anything for them, when people have been making them things for years.
Only they refuse to buy them because they aren’t Black enough or Too Black for them because they come from a Black person. It's an endless cycle of insanity that would make The Joker shake his head and walk away.
My advice to all the Black indie creators out there: Just keep your money in your pocket. You won’t be able to get that TIME out of your life back you invest in whatever you want to create. You won't get any money back on what you spend to fund your dream. Yeah, you want to make something to represent your people, but your people will not represent and support your work. Go enjoy the rest of your life and leave the insane people to their insanity.
I was watching a Valuetainment video that stated why 60% of Gen Z men aren’t dating. He thought it was because Gen Z men were anxious and socially awkward.
That’s not the reason Gen Z men aren’t dating at all.
The person who made the Valuetainment video was completely out of touch with today’s modern world Gen Z is experiencing. Things have changed a LOT since the late 90s and the early 2000s when the content creator was in the dating market.
In fact the world is a very different place than it was 30 years ago or even 40 years ago. Back in 1980, a teenager in high school worked a part time job for minimum wage at a McDonalds flipping burgers, or a Woolworth or supermarket stocking shelves or ringing up orders as a cashier. Some even got jobs in auto shops or working for mechanics. They could just walk in somewhere, ask for a manager, tell them they were looking for work and they had a job that same day working afterschool and on weekends.
Teens had MONEY to date because they worked jobs. And as they worked those entry-level jobs from 14-17 they got experience. By the time a kid turned 18, in 1980, they had worked for at least two to three years on the job.
So they could AFFORD to date and move out of their parents’ homes at 18. Or they could move out of the place they lived to a city. And when they arrived at that city with $800-$1000 on a Greyhound bus they could pound the pavement with a series of references from local jobs, and get a job making $300 a week in a week. If they went to college or secretarial school, they could make $500 a week.
And getting an apartment in 1980 was easy too. After securing that job a kid could talk directly to a landlord about an apartment and secure that place in that same city for a $200 security deposit and $600 for first and last months rent. A person could practically get their life started and have place to stay, a stable job and some money in the bank all at 18 years old.
If someone wanted transportation in 1980 you could get a used beater car for like a VW Beetle, Ford F100, a Chevy Impala, Buick skylark or Oldsmobile Cutlass or a $250-$500. Or if you made $500 a week you could buy yourself an entry level new car like a Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla, Nissan Sentra, Dodge Omni or a Chevy Chevette for $5000.
Unfortunately, things aren’t that easy today. Starting in the 90s many Boomers in management took away the gateways to adulthood from young men and women that were given to them. When I graduated high school in 1992, a high school diploma wasn’t enough to be qualified to stock shelves, be a cashier, or fold sweaters at The Gap. No, you needed a to be a college student and have letters of recommendations to be considered for those jobs that paid minimum wage.
In the 90s a person needed a Bachelors degree to get an entry-level job as an administrative assistant, work in a mailroom, or a clerical job in an office. The same job a kid could get in 1980 with a high school diploma or being a college student. The same job that paid $300-$500 a week required someone to spend four years in college and get $200,000 in student loans to get.
In order to get an apartment things got more complicated as well. A person couldn’t go straight to a landlord anymore. No, had to go through a management company, pay an application fee, and they had to have a background check Then they had to wait for these to come back to be approved to get the apartment This cost anywhere from $2000-$3000.
It was getting harder to get jobs. And without a job most men didn’t have the disposable income to date.
As we went from the 90s to the 2000s the job market changed. As the internet began computerizing jobs, many of the entry level jobs like secretary typist, and messenger disappeared as companies used software like Microsoft Office . After 9/11 a person couldn’t pound the pavement and talk directly to a manager due to fears of people participating in a terrorist attack or a mass shooting. After 9/11 then you needed to be invited into an office to come there for an interview.
And that situation with jobs got worse after the 2008 recession. That’s when most jobs stopped being about personal interactions and paper applications. And everything went online. People had to apply online and wait to get ghosted. A situation that got even worse post COVID. Now in order for someone to apply for a job they have to fill out hundreds of applications online. And if they are lucky to get a response they have to go through a gauntlet of three, four, five and even six interviews before they get a job offer.
And management companies were creating more hurdles for getting apartments. In addition to insisting tenants having a job for a year, they’re charging people for an application fee, charge for a background check, a credit check, a and a reference check. In some bigger cities you need a guarantor to back you before you can even apply for the apartment.
Now if you are lucky to get approved for the apartment you have to have first and last month’s rent and a security deposit. Which can be several thousand dollars. Most studio and one bedroom apartments go for $2000-$3000 a month. So a person has to have at least $10,000-$12000 just to get their first apartment.
Which they have to try to get along with payments on a $200,000 student loan debt.
Not to mention buying a car costs anywhere from $10,000 for a used car to $50,000 for a new entry level car like a Ford Maverick or Toyota RAV4.
It’s a lot harder for a Gen Z to get their lives started as twentysomethings than boomers, Gen X and Millennials when the only jobs can get only pay $12-$17 an hour. Or if they’re lucky And that’s if they get through the five interviews. And having that job means they’ll have to deal with an erratic schedule where they have hours one day and may not have work hours the next. If they’re lucky they’ll be able to stay on the job for six months to a year.
Hard to think about dating when your work situation and home situation is unstable due to your finances being out of order.
The Math ain’t mathing for Gen Z. So most Gen Z ain’t dating. Not because they don’t want to but because they can’t afford it. Unfortunately most old folks just don’t count the cost on the numbers to see how they just don’t add up for most young people.
Most employers pay 1986 wages in 2026. So Gen Z men can’t afford to live life like their Baby Boomer, Gen X, Millennial counterparts. If a teen or a twentysomething gets some money these days they buy an Xbox PS5 game. Or they go out alone to buy manga. It’s all they can afford to do.
The dire economic situation gets compounded by the modern women Gen Z men deal with. In addition to the horrible job and housing market Gen Z men have to deal with the worst generation of women in history. Most Modern women have learned a culture of unrealistic expectations after three generations of feminist programming that teaches them to commodify men and not see them as people. Most Modern women are looking for a rich young man who is six feet tall, has six pack abs and makes six figures.
A social construct that doesn’t exist.
Along with the unrealistic expectations most modern women make it impossible to approach them. In the aftermath of the #MeToo movement, a man has to fear being arrested for harassment if he approaches a woman. He fears being fired if he simply says good morning to a woman. Because a simple allegation of sexual harassment from a woman to HR can get a man fired.
In between the economic instability and the hostile modern women, most Gen Z men have just walked away. This is why many men in other countries like China, Korea and Japan are “lying flat” they’ve given up on life because they just don’t see anywhere to go without an opportunity at a job or an opportunity to move themselves ahead.
Most Gen Z men have no reason to date because they get no support to go out in the world How can you go out and date without a job to pay for it? How can a man take a woman somewhere to get intimate when he can’t afford his own place?
A dude making $300-$500 a week in 2026 can’t afford to go on a date. $300-$500 from a part time job don’t spend like 1986. Dinner and a movie costs $250-$300. And a dude gotta pay for their bus fare, bills and their rent on that same income.
With everything costing so much and a man making so little, a man has to make a sacrifice for his survival. And in the post #MeToo era, Gen Z men have to sacrifice dating in order to maintain their freedom.
Until the economic situation changes for Gen Z men they won’t be able to afford to date. In order for a man to invest in a life in the world, we have to invest in them. Pay a Gen Z man a living wage where he can afford to live and he’ll participate in society. Get rid of the draconian punishments for looking at a woman the #MeToo movement established and men may approach women Get rid of the unrealistic expectations from commodifyg men and no fault divorce maybe working class men will want to build with women. In order for Gen Z men to date, they need an incentive to build a life. If companies and governments want their nations to grow then they have to plant the seeds by investing in their men. Take care of the men and they'll take care of society.
With all the 2027 books written, I had nothing to do. So I Started working on an E'steem story Idea I wanted to write for several years. Now that I've finally got all the story points fleshed out in an outline, I'm putting fingers to the keyboard on my second mystery story.
I'm trying to get back to the Monster High All grown up themes that made E'steem's book a fan favorite. Everything is still rough, but I thought I'd share the first chapter with you so far. THIS IS A FIRST DRAFT SO NOTHING IS FINAL
Chapter 1
Time to make some magick. In the kitchen.
I sit in the dressing room looking at the reflection of myself in the vanity mirror wearing a green silk designer dress and heels. Not what I’d usually cook in, but when I’m making an appearance on a livestream that’ll be seen all over the world I need to look my best.
While I’m used to making magick with a wand and a cauldron in Avalon, I want to show I make magick in a different way in this 21st Century. I’ve always had a passion for cooking. And now that I’ve worked past my centuries of bitterness and anger, I want to share my love of food with people all over the world. I’m hoping that when people hear the name Morgan Le Fay in from this age forward they’ll associate it with a world class foodie, not a evil sorceress.
Now that I’m made up and dressed up and in wardrobe, I’m just doing my best to calm my nerves before I make my appearance on the Morris Dish livestream. John Haynes went to a lot of lengths to get me on this show and I want to make a smashing first impression on all the mortals when I show them how much more they can do with Morris Phillips’ Lady Fae’s Cake Mix. He was kind enough to give me this opportunity to launch this new product line after I did him wrong to get back at E’steem, and I want to make the most of my chance at redemption.
I’m trying to take my mind off my anxieties about being on camera looking at some TikTok videos when the door to my dressing room cracks open. I look at the time on my Smartphone. 9:35. Our show starts at ten, so I know it’s not time to go to air. Is something wrong?
I realize what’s wrong isn’t one of the PA’s coming to let me know about a change to the schedule. It’s the host of Morris Dish, Gordon Razzy. The lean middle aged blonde Michelin Star chef dressed in a slim fitting designer shirt, black slacks and Italian shoes. From the frown on his face, I can tell he’s not here to tell me to break a leg. “I see you’ve managed to cast a spell on someone to get an appearance on my show Morgan.” Gordon snarls.
I thought he’d keep things professional. But it looks like he’s still holding a grudge against me for serving those dry scones years ago at the British Baking Show when I started getting serious about entering the culinary world. I’m going to have to turn the other cheek if I hope to get through today’s show. “Well, I’m launching a major product line for Morris Phillips. So I’d have to say my cooking has improved-”
“Selling box cakes and packaged cookies?” Gordon sneers. “Even with your elfin magic you’re still amateur hour-”
That’s Fae magick. And I’d like to think I could get on the gourmet level with a little more practice. “That’s what you say until you taste what I’ve got planned for today’s show.”
“I’m hoping you’re not planning on practicing some of your witchcraft-”
I’m not a witch. I’m a Sorceress. There’s a difference. “You know I don’t practice sorcery in the kitchen-”
“No, if you used your magick in your cooking it might just be edible.”
“So I guess you’re not here to tell me to break a leg?”
“I’m hoping I don’t break my teeth on whatever concoction you make with that mess of a cake mix you’re pushing-”
“My cake mix isn’t a mess-”
“Just don’t pull anything on my show.”
After giving me my warning, Gordon storms out of the dressing room. While the old me would turn him into a toad, the new me has got too much riding on today’s show to get into it with him.
Bad girl Gone Good! Good Girl starts over! Three days after walking away from her life as a demon in Lucifer’s Legion, E’steem is starting her life over with Christ. As she starts to walk down the path of the straight and narrow towards Salvation, she sets a course for her life on earth as a New Creature in Christ. Is this the start of a new path of greatness for E’steem? Or is she on a road harder than the path to Hell?
E'steem: A New Woman is the final book of the SJS DIRECT 2026 catalog! This one is a flashback story set three days after the Temptation of John Haynes. It's a story that sets the mission for E'steem as she starts her journey as a new creature in Christ as she continues her relationship with John Haynes starts her relationship with God.
It was a miracle I was able to get these SJS DIRECT 2026 books out. Last year I had a heart attack and I hadn't written much outside of Isis: Runway of Doom and part of Act I of John Haynes: An Offer He Can't Refuse. But with God's help I was able to finish writing all the books for this year and the ones for next year.
E'steem: A New Woman will be available in paperback and KindleUnlimited on May 15! If you have a KindleUnlimited subscription you'll be able to read E'steem: A New Woman and all the other SJS DIRECT 2026 Catalog books for free!
Dropping today in Paperback and #KindleUnlimited!
Isis: Runway of Doom
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