All Things Books and Publishing

After a 2 and 1/2 year break, Off the Chain is back and better than Ever. On this show we highlight Indie Artists, from Authors, artists, to songwriters, musicans and all in between. This  time around, my partner in crime will be a friend of mine who I adore. Ian Bush will sit as my co-host. I look forward to this new chapter - so many things to talk about - so many roads to travel. So join us, spread the word. So many new books, music and adventures here on Off the Chain.

Clifton Pettyjohn has served as an essential factor in the religious and educational cultures for twenty-one years and has been influential in the culture of business for five years. With guided passion, he meshes professional training and personal life lessons with practical & biblical principles to transform the lives of divergent individuals. 

Clifton’s view of purpose and transformation exceeds the norm; he expresses this through speaking, coaching and consulting. Clifton urging people to live symmetrically through pursuing “wholeness” in all core areas of their lives. His skills, delivery and personality aid in creating a learning environment for everyone including those viewed as ne'er-do-wells.

Clifton is the author of "From Stagnation to Transformation" which he implements in workshops and his coaching programs. Clifton currently resides in Kent County, Delaware and enjoys traveling the world sharing his message of transformation through purposeful conversations regardless of how uncomfortable and unpopular those conversations are.

CONNECT

Terry’s professional career has been spent in Corporate America working in both for-profit and nonprofit environments. His passion to assist people has never wavered. Terry has helped organizations reach maximum potential and growth. His background consists of Talent Acquisition Management, Recruitment, Client Services, and Program Management with Fortune 100 and 500 companies. These companies have included San Francisco State University - Center for Research and Education on Gender Studies (CREGS), STOP AIDS Project, Robert Half International, Alluma, and XOJET to name a few. In 2010 POZ Health Magazine named him “African-American Person of the Month”.

Additionally, Terry has volunteered his time to various organizations throughout the San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento communities. Since 2007, he has served as a member of the San Francisco LGBTQ Speakers Bureau. He and the organization aim to dispel homophobic and transphobic violence by educating people about the everyday lives of those in the community. He continues to play competitive volleyball and tennis at high levels. Terry also has spent time in South America, China, and France. 

Terry DeWayne Dyer hails from Kansas City, Kansas, yet considers himself a California boy. Primarily growing up in Northern California, Young Terry competed in track and field, played volleyball and basketball, sang, and was active in the community. Terry was a high school All American track and field athlete and went to Chico State University on scholarship for athletics, academics, and music. After spending three years at Chico State University, studying Opera and Vocal Performance, Terry transferred to Sacramento State University where he received his degree in Communications, Emphasis in Public Relations. Currently, he resides in South Florida with his daughter Zola (dog) enjoying the tropical weather and performing in the local music scene.

Dennis Richmond, Jr. was born in Yonkers, Westchester County, New York. He now resides in a co-op in Yonkers. Less than one month after graduating, he led a rally after the outcome of the shooting of Trayvon Martin. After only one day of promoting the event, the turnout was over 200 people. 

Since October of 2013, he was reaching out to guidance counselors to speak to students about college. In 2014, he began doing just that. In April 2015, he was featured on the 36th annual “UNCF An Evening of Stars!” where superstars Big Sean, Toni Braxton, Jussie Smollett, and others performed, he was awarded a $25,000 UNCF scholarship. In 2016, he was selected as one of HBCU BUZZ’s 30 Under 30.

Founder and Director of The New York-New Jersey HBCU Initiative, he was awarded close to a dozen scholarships and has been featured in newspapers and on television across the country. He was awarded the HRHS Appreciation Award (2015), a Proclamation from the Office of Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano (2017), a Citation from the Office of Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams (2017), and a Citation of Merit from Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. He is one of the Branch, Banking, and Trust’s (BB&T’s) Leadership Institute’s Emerging Leaders. In May of 2017, Richmond graduated Magna Cum Laude from Claflin University with a Bachelor of Arts in African and African American Studies.

Dennis Richmond, Jr. is also the Founder of The Dennis E. Richmond, Jr. Scholarship for Black Excellence, an annual scholarship awarded to a graduating senior in Yonkers. Richmond has a passion for education, public speaking, genealogy, music, photography, and history. Richmond is now a substitute teacher in Yonkers, who goes by the name of Mr. R.

Her credentials might not appear at all exciting through the naked eye. As Christine puts it, "I call myself an amateur expert because most of what I know comes from experiencing trauma and living through it".

Christine is an advent writer, with most of her writings featured on the Medium platform and in church publications. She is a Lutheran pastor who is not afraid to speak about her personal experience with mental illnesses nor the stigmas attached to them.

As a domestic violence survivor she was blacklisted by her Bishop; because she spoke out, which led to her and her family relocating to DE. Her new Bishop is an ally who not only supports her telling my story, he encourages her to do so.

Christine is the mother of two children, a 20-year-old daughter who just finished her 2nd year of college/nursing school and a 17-year-old severely autistic son, who is non-verbal and needs to be monitored at all times. He was 3 yrs old when they received his autism diagnosis. This was shortly after finding out he had lead poisoning - the people who treated him at the told us they had never seen numbers as high as his. Racism played a big role in doctors initially dismissing the symptoms of lead poisoning because we were white, middle class and only poor, black children get lead poisoning.

Christine is passionate about lifting up other women - especially women of color and trans-women. She can talk for hours about domestic violence, why misogyny (just like racism) is a cancer to the human race, and how we - as a society - need to face the realities of our illness and get the treatments necessary to heal.

Anthony Baker is the.C.E.O. of a nonprofit community organization called "Helping The Homeless". As an organization, they are committed to changing lives and making others smile. In addition to providing hands-on services for the homeless community all over Philadelphia, they also have a big brother mentoring program where participating youth are taught the value of giving back to their community. To learn more about the organization call 2154878589 or email them at [email protected].

Raised in Fort Washington, Maryland, Jonathan C. Harris is no stranger to leadership, hard work, or success. At the age of ten years old, he earned the right to be a guest weatherman for a day on Fox 5 DC News. He has already received over 100 honors and awards including Forty Under 40 for Prince George’s County, MD, TEDx Talk speaker, TEDxFortWashington Founder/Director, American College Personnel Association (ACPA) Outstanding Men’s Program, high school Valedictorian and the Kiwanis Club Citizenship Award. One rainy day and a flat tire later, Jonathan’s life would change forever when car troubles inspired him to write a book.  In March 2016, Jonathan’s published his debut book, “Master of Ceremonies: A Male’s Guide for a Successful Life." In February 2020, he became the owner of Jharris Publishing, LLC to help more aspiring authors feel comfortable telling their stories. 

In addition to being an author, Jonathan serves as a motivational speaker, life/career coach, and blogger. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, investing in the stock market, spending time with family and friends, mentoring the youth, volunteering in the community, video games, and watching movies. He is the founder of the movement, #GiveAuthorsAChance, which encourages kids to read more, be exposed to more authors, and for more media outlets to recognize and support authors. For information about book talks, author visits and workshops, visit https://www.authorjon.com/

Andrew Weston is known as a 21st Century renaissance man with a skill set that ranges from web development to event managemeMichael nt. Michael is a sought-after voice and has, for many years, been a source of inspiration, motivation, empowerment, direction and insight to many. His current professional roles include Brand Strategist, Speaker, and Entrepreneur. Michael is the founder of branding & identity service, Supernormal, in which he aids brands in the fashion, coaching, and entertainment industries in establishing and elevating their brand identity and business strategy. In all the work he does, Michael is engaged in fulfilling his mission of “equipping a team of normal people for a supernormal mission.”

Social Media:

Instagram: @mich_a_el_andrew & @the_reforum

Facebook: 

https://www.facebook.com/MichaelAndrewWeston/

https://www.facebook.com/TheReForUm/

Gary Sinclair is a certified coach and speaker with the John Maxwell Team and consultant to leadership teams in both the business and faith communities. He is a published author in a variety of national publications and blogs and has written four books available at Amazon.com. Book titles include: Never Quit Climbing: Overcoming Life’s Seemingly Insurmountable Mountains; Now: Breaking Free From the Someday Syndrome snd two shorter, practical books on marriage and parenting all published through Amazon.com. He has master's degrees in both counseling and theology and work experience as a speaker, educator, minister/chaplain, musician and coach. He’s loves hiking in the mountains, travel, reading, composing, writing and spending time with family.

"Araya Baker is a therapist, writer, and educator who is known for synthesizing activism and mental health. For nearly a decade, Araya has been deeply involved in transformative mental health advocacy initiatives aimed at empowering underserved communities––from contributing to the formation of the city of Houston’s first public mental health survey, to serving as a crisis counselor for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, as well as The Trevor Project, the leading crisis lifeline for LGBTQ+ youth. In a number of articles, essays, and interviews featured in The New York Times, Teen Vogue, Huffington Post, The Good Men Project, and other publications, Araya has explored how to develop social justice-informed counseling frameworks and interventions, and ways to dismantle systemic barriers to quality mental healthcare for minoritized populations. In 2018, The Mighty recognized Araya, alongside Demi Lovato and Lady Gaga, as a Mental Health Hero.

Araya earned an Ed.M. in Human Development and Psychology at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and an M.Phil.Ed. in Professional Counseling at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education."