Today we’d like to introduce you to Curtis Bunn.
Hi Curtis, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I am a long-time journalist–first in sports at the NY Daily News and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the last four years as a news reporter at NBC News Digital–who transitioned 25 years ago into an author who has written 10 novels and three non-fiction books. The foundation of everything for me started long ago, as a kid growing up in Southeast, Washington, D.C., where my parents provided me and my siblings with books to go with all of our birthday and Christmas presents. I was fascinated by how the stories could take me to another place, and I became a voracious reader. When I discovered at 13 that I wanted to be a journalist, reading had instilled in me many principles of writing. When I graduated from Norfolk State University in 1983, I had three job offers. And while my work at Norfolk State University at the student newspaper, The Spartan Echo, was paramount in launching my career, reading books all of my life was the foundation. And so, even as I crafted this rewarding career in journalism, my passion for books remained. After I wrote my first novel, Baggage Check, in 2001, I understood the value of book clubs. A few years later I created the National Book Club Conference, which has become the premier annual literary event featuring Black readers and authors. The 2026 NBCC, which we call Literary Bliss, will be held in Atlanta the end of July. Meanwhile, understanding a strong way to connect with and support young students would be through books, I created the National Youth Book Conference. The NYBC is unique in that we bring in authors into Title 1 schools in metro Atlanta, hundreds at a time, purchase the books and donate them to the students. The authors read to them, sign the books to each student to help them build a personal library. The focus is to not only donate books to them, but also to let them see and meet an author, the idea being they can become what they see. It is the ultimate reward to see the excitement in the young students, knowing they have been impacted in a unique way that has proven to be lasting. So what I do, ultimately, has been driving by the power of books and influence they have had over my life.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Hardly anything worth achieving has a smooth journey. With the National Book Club Conference, at the outset, the concern was getting someone to come to the event after I set it up. LOL!!! No one really knew me, but I contacted one of my favorite authors, Walter Mosley, and he loved he idea. His commitment legitimized the NBCC. So when I contacted other authors to attend, and I told them Walter Mosley would be there, they figured it was the place to be. So my issues around getting authors to attend was solved. The next problem was getting readers to register. I waited about two weeks after sharing about it to readers across the country before a group of ladies from Pennsylvania sent a check for registration. I was ecstatic. I thought, ‘Well, this is really happening.” And it did. Now, for 22 years we have given readers up-close-and-personal exposure to some of the top authors in the country, while also launching and supporting the careers of countless authors by giving them exposure to hundreds of avid readers.
With the NYBC, the issue was–as it usually is with startups–money. Raising funds to purchase the authors’ books was a challenge. I took the President Obama approach of asking many people for a little. It took a while, but we inched our way to have a few events at elementary schools. We flew in an 11-year-old author from Houston, Texas to read her lovely book to students, put her and her mom up in a hotel and treated the kids at Georgia Prepartory School to something special.
Then, as the word spread of the impact of the NYBC, Hachette Book Group in New York came in as a major sponsor, providing books and flying in its authors from across the country to read to kids, sign books and generally uplift them. Recently, the Atlanta Boule awarded the NYBC a phenomenal grant, which has given us a cushion to execute events at schools monthly. Our financial concerns are not over–are they ever?–but we are now in a position to give the kiddies in underserved areas unique literary experiences, with the idea that books will become important to them as they were to me, and lead them to a productive life.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
My passion for reading as a youth helped with my imagination and creativity, which led to all I have done as a professional. I wanted to be a journalist at 13, and my passion remains in that discipline, so I am a journalist first. In the first phase of my career, I was known for my award-winning work as a sports journalist in New York, covering the NBA, the Summer Olympics in Seoul, Korea and many other sporting events. I transitioned in 1996 to Atlanta, where I covered the Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, countless NBA Finals, World Series, Super Bowls, championship boxing, college bowl games. . . you name it.
Most recently, I wrote for four years for NBC News about Black life, concerns, issues, culture, people–the most rewarding work of my career because I was part of the people informing a voting electorate at a time when information was needed he most.
Before that, in 2008, I took a buyout from the AJC and focused on novel-writing, while also doing journalism work on upstart news websites like AtlantaBlackStar.com. I also continued to fortify the NBCC as the No. 1 annual literary event with authors like the legendary Alice Walker, Terry McMillan, Iylana Vanzant, Ambassador Andrew Young, Dr. Michael Eric Dyson, Pearl Cleage, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, R&B stars KEM and Tyrese, Dr. Cornel West, Susan L. Taylor, actors Jenifer Lewis, Victoria Rowell and Hill Harper and countless others.
I evolved into a artist through writing books. My novels are mainly set in Atlanta and they address real-life issues that are relatable to he masses: various elements of relationships, homelessness, mortality. Being creative through writing books is a freedom that does not exist as a journalist. As a journalist, I write based on facts and what people say or do. As a novelist I can make up facts, circumstances, quotes, dilemmas to explore whatever topics I like, which is so freeing. Writing books take me away from my daily life. I’m able to immerse myself into my imagination and the characters I create, the situations I conjure up and resolutions I develop. It’s fun to be creative in that way an exercise that muscle.
So, for some people, I’m known as this journalist who traveled the world reporting on sporting events and who transitioned into a reporter writing important news stories that mattered. To another group of people, I’m the author whose first book, “Baggage Check,” was No. 1 on the Essence magazine’s bestsellers list and whose books give high-definition images into the minds of men in relationships and tackles real-life issues that most people can relate to. Above all, I’m a creative–whether as a journalist, novelist, conference and nonprofit founder.
Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
Interesting that I don’t watch any one podcast or visit any one resource. I love social media–and I loathe it . . . depending on what pops up on my thread. When I love social media, I’m entertained, I’m learning something, I’m informed, I’m uplifted–by history, news, quotes, heroism, humor. I daily visit news organizations The Washington Post, NY Times, AJC and NBC News. I use social media pop-ups, so to speak, to see partial podcast interviews. I taught sports reporting for four years at Morehouse College and I referred students to impactful books by sensational author WIl Haygood. When I taught Creative Writing at my alma mater, Norfolk State, in 2018-2019, I made sure the students purchased a small book called, “What It Feels Like,” a collection of short stories by real people that share what it’s like to be shot, what it’s like to be bitten by a shark, what it feels like to walk on the moon and other interesting stories. It helps people learn, but also how to tell a story. So, my interests are varied and I can be taken in any direction depending on how I feel and what pops up in my feed.
Pricing:
- $350: Registration for the 2026 National Book Club Conference, July 31-August 2 at the Westin Buckhead.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.nationalybc.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/national_youth_book_conference/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/National-Youth-Book-Conference-100070947142411/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/curtis-bunn-794aa56/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@FelitaBunn
- Other: https://nationalbookclubconference.com/
Image Credits
Credit for me at podium and presenting awards to Andrew Young, Michael Eric Dyson, Jenifer Lewis and Alice Walker goes to Barry Roosevelt. The rest are mine taken by cell phone.
