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A Gathering At The Meeting Tree

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By

Milton J. Davis

There must be more. These four words drifted in and out of my thoughts as I typed the words of my first novel, Meji. Of course, I had no way of proving it. All my searching had turned up nothing. No matter how hard I looked, no one had ever written an African based sword and sorcery book.

But the scientist in me knew better. Ten years prior I’d submerged myself in African history, culture and mythology. Segu, the excellent historical fiction novel by Marse Conde sparked my imagination and my efforts. I had expected to find few books and sources but instead I was overwhelmed with information. Shifting through it all I realized I had discovered my passion and eagerly set about writing the type of stories I always wanted to read. This was when those four words first entered my head.

In 2005 I finally focused my efforts and began writing Meji. I pulled together my scattered notes and prose that had accumulated over twenty years, the four words still lingering in my head. Then it happened. I discovered a book titled Dark Matters. As I read the stories, I came across a story titled Gimmile’s Songs, a story about a female warrior woman named Dossouye penned by Charles R. Saunders. I immediately took to the internet, attempting to find out more about this writer. I came up with nothing. Years later as I worked on Meji I took to the internet on my periodic search and there he was. Nightshade Books had re-released Imaro and Charles R. Saunders was everywhere. I immediately purchased Imaro and was overjoyed. It was exactly what I had been searching for.

Once again, I sought him out and was finally able to meet him and came up empty. Then hope sprang forth again. Uraeus, a member of Black Super Hero started a thread announcing that Nightshade Books was dropping Imaro but that he was going to continue producing the books for Charles through Sword and Soul Media. I quickly contacted Uraeus who was kind enough to put me in contact with Charles. At that point a great friendship began and I learned that Charles had coined a name for what I wrote: Sword and Soul.

So, I was not alone, but the words still lingered. There must be more. And there were. As Charles and I released our works and networked through the Black Science Fiction Society and across the cyber universe we found them. Some were published writers delving in other genres; others were aspiring writers following the arduous path of publication. Soon we were exchanging notes, stories, critiques and opinions, reveling in the conversation and comradery. The next decision was obvious to me. There needed to be a meeting, a gathering of story tellers to celebrate sword and soul and display the diversity of interpretations.

And so, the idea of Griots was born. Between the covers of this book are 14 writers sharing their stories of sword and soul, each spinning a tale that helps define the genre and expand its boundaries.  Accompanying them are 14 artists giving tangible interpretations of these stories. Their visions are not presented to limit those of the reader but to provide a foundation from which to expand.

Jeli. Jali. Gasere. Griot. Just as there are many words to describe the legendary African storytellers/historians, we present to you a wide range of voices and images to describe this emerging genre. The storytellers are gathered under the meeting tree. Let their voices stir your soul.

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