The first project, in 2011, was called the Up from Here Project. If all goes according to plan, that project will launch a book in September of this year, and all proceeds will be donated to the Teaching for Change organization in Washington, DC.
This year, the Blackbird Fly Project is taking the LWC Initiative in a little different direction. I'm opening it up to young writers in the age ranges of 10-21 years old, and I'm paying each contributor an advance of $100, with a royalty of 40%, to be divided equally between the contributors.
I'm really excited about it, but it's hard to gauge the level of enthusiasm from others is. Folks say they want change. They say they want opportunity. And yet, it feels like a constant struggle to get people to do stuff more than just talk about stuff.
But, I'll keep plugging away, anyway. Here's hoping for more participation for the Blackbird Fly Project; but if not, maybe I can get the one contributor I have so far to consider writing and contributing more of her own work. If I can offer just one person an opportunity that she might not have had otherwise, then that's still a good thing.