Shelf Media hosts the annual Shelf Unbound Indie Best Book Competition for best self-published or independently published book. You can find the winner, finalists, long-listed, and more than 100 notable books from the competition in the December/January 2024 issue of Shelf Unbound.
About The Author: Jeffrey Blount
Jeffrey Blount is an award-winning author of four novels, including The Emancipation of Evan Walls, which won the 2020 National Indie Excellence Award for African American fiction.
Alongside his literary achievements, he is an Emmy-winning television director and a Virginia Communications Hall of Fame inductee. During his 34-year career at NBC News, he directed iconic programs like Meet The Press and Today, becoming its first African-American director. Blount’s documentary scripts are featured in institutions like the Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture.
Interview with Jeffrey Blount
Could you give us a glimpse into the heart of your book?
JB: Two quotes that were inspirational to me as I wrote this book take you to the heart of the story quickly. From Bryan Stevenson, Each of us is more than the worst thing we’ve ever done. And Article One of the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Every Human Being is Born Free and Equal in Dignity and Rights. First, the novel is about failure and the possibilities of redemption. Where and how can we find it. Sometimes it is in how we help others and in the notion of self-forgiveness. Second, it is about, first and foremost, recognizing each other at the level of our shared humanity. If we do that, I feel it is almost impossible for us to allow our fellow human beings to suffer in this world. And we will step up and provide the care that is necessary to help others have the same kind of life and dreams that we desire for ourselves.
What sparked the initial idea for your story?
JB: I like to think of my work as literary activism. I hope to entertain but I truly hope to influence readers. I have carried several issues for quite some time that I’ve wanted to highlight with my books. Separate conversations with my wife and my father helped me cull the idea for Mr. Jimmy From Around the Way out of my library of ideas. Those conversations centered around rural poverty and stepping up to help others. I call the main idea The Activism of Kindness.
How did writing this book impact you personally?
JB: I certainly change with every book that I write. It’s like having an extended conversation with myself. The life lessons I hope to share with readers often intensify within me by the time I’ve finished. The motivation I hope to inspire in readers grows in me also and I am changed. With this book, it’s caused me to look closely at the people in my community. It’s taught me to realize that I am capable of helping people in ways that I never considered. It’s taught me that I should do those things and that even as I help others, I am helped.
Were there any unexpected insights or discoveries along the way?
JB: Yes. Particularly while researching rural American poverty. I think many readers will be shocked by what I found and included in the novel.
What lasting message or experience do you hope readers will carry with them?
JB: I have mentioned the poverty and the struggle of folks who live in that world. But there is so much more. There is laughter, joy, fun, and so much love and care. First, I would like them to sit with all of that goodness for a while. Then, I want them to acknowledge that there are fellow human beings in need. I want them to remember the quote every human being is born free and equal in dignity and rights. I want them to feel motivated to go out into the world to do their part in making that a reality. And in that way, Mr. Jimmy From Around the Way is already succeeding and it makes me so happy. Two quotes from readers speak to this and their words are the really important messages I’d like folks to hear.
“In addition to rooting for Mr. Jimmy and his neighborhood,
you may find the inspiration to help out in your own unique way.”
“I have never had a fictional book strike such a call to action in my soul before.”
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Article originally Published in the December/January 2024 Issue “2024 Indie Best Award Winners”