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Blondie's
shares: Whatever It Is or You Call It,
Just Give Me More!
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Profile
But for the quick thinking of her
mother’s midwife, Blondie L. Clayton, the eldest daughter of
her
parents in the hills of North Carolina, would have been another infant
mortality
statistic. Attempting to break free of her mother’s womb,
entangled in the very umbilical cord that had provided nourishment,
Clayton, with every contraction of her mother’s womb, stared
death in the face, cheating death to succeed against incredible odds,
reflected in a lifetime of life changing experiences and victories.
From elementary through high school
Clayton
has blazed a trail of being the first. She was the first African
American twirler and the first African American female science award
holder at the predominately white Thomas Jefferson High School in
Brooklyn, New York (64-67).
Clayton graduated Thomas Jefferson high
school in 1967. Armed with her high school diploma and the words of her
elementary school music teacher: “You can succeed if you work
at
it,” Clayton took it to heart. Pregnant and married right
after
high school, Clayton seized the opportunity to prepare for her future
utilizing her pregnancy time to home school herself in speedwriting and
typing. After her baby was born, Clayton successfully
qualified
for a position as secretary and worked her way into Administrative
Assistant to the Vice President of Operations to over 18 municipal
hospitals in the City of New York.
Desiring to have a career that allowed
her
to travel, Clayton began studying at the Stenotype Academy in New York,
and was recognized by administrative staff as the first student ever to
master the speed of 125 w.p.m. attending a Saturday class.
In 1974, determined to break free of
working for others she left New York for Florida. Her big break in her
new court reporting career came through a man named Bert Friedman.
Despite the subtle prejudices even in the court systems, Clayton never
let it deter her desire to break into this field.
In 1981, Clayton opened her own
court-reporting agency, along with The Blondie School of Court
Reporting. She was the first Black court reporter to win a county bid
to report Zoning Board Hearings.
A death sentence changed the course of
her
life through husband Frank. Her seeking led her on a spiritual journey
that peaked with disclosure that she had been sexually abused, a truth
she had denied for over 30 years of her life.
This turning point was the beginning
of her
writing career; in 1993, Clayton wrote her life story in a book, titled
The Touch of the Master’s Hand (A Journey into Stolen
Innocence),
which was later changed to There In The Midst The Mysterious Exposed.
Clayton’s decision to
self-publish
came after the rejection letters started to pile up. Joined by husband
Frank and her sister-in-law Cheryl, the three set out to make it
happen. The skills of writing, editing, proofing and coordinating book
projects to completion, positioned Clayton’s writing talent
to be
noticed by Martiele Swanko, the Publisher of the Trumpeter Magazine.
After submitting a few stories, Swanko
invited Clayton to send regular submissions. Clayton, wanting to
understand how magazine publishing operated, decided to volunteer one
day a week at the Trumpeter. To her surprise, she knew more than she
thought she knew about organizing and running a publication, which
impressed Swanko. Her commitment and dedication began to move Clayton
into a place of trust and decision making related to the publication.
Swanko made Clayton the Assignment Editor and place every stage of
preparation to publish in the hands of a one day a week volunteer
(Clayton).
Clayton worked with the Trumpeter for
over
four years, freelanced with the South Florida Newsweek, wrote articles
for the Communicator, a professional speakers publication; has written
many articles for the Family Reader; co-founded and published The New
Steps Magazine; writes copy regularly for web masters.
Sixteen years later, Clayton has
guided the
publishing and coaching of over 250 writers into print mediums, whether
books, newsletters or magazines, including the publication of three
additional books of her own: Why Money Isn’t Your Problem,
Making
the Right Connection; You Write You Publish; The Divine Secrets of the
Orange Book Circles, along with having published numerous articles in
periodicals.
.
Community
Involvement:
Co-founder
New Steps For Better Living, Inc. (HIV/AIDS Education for youth and
adults)
Mayor
Blake’s Volunteers in Action team – Cocoa, Florida
The Family Christian Association of America, Inc (FCAA) - Brevard County Family Branch
Chaplin
for Sistaah Talk Cancer Group
Youth
for Christ Volunteer Counselor/Speaker
Articles/blogs:
www.Authorsden.com/blondieclayton
www.blondiepublishing.blogstream.com
www.positivechangeradio.com
www.heisamazing.blogspot.com
Fee Category:
2.5K to 5.0K
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