BOOK SIGNING & READING EVENT
Join us for a moving and memorable celebration of truth, healing, and poetic expression.
Date: Saturday, July 12, 2025
Time: 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM
Location: St. Matthews Rosenwald School
At St. Matthews Baptist Church
5410 Louisburg Rd, Raleigh, NC 27616
Featuring:
J. Dwayne Garnett, author of Can I Just Write
With a foreword by David K. Baker, Sr.
Can I Just Write is not just a collection of poems; it’s a soul exposed, a breath exhaled, a mirror held up to the complexities of living, loving, hurting, and healing.
Written by J. Dwayne Garnett, this deeply personal and spiritually grounded journey gives language to the emotions we often silence. Through reflections shaped by grief, injustice, fatherhood, faith, identity, and resilience, Garnett invites readers into the sacred space where vulnerability meets power.
With raw honesty and rhythmic insight, each poem in this collection is both a release and a revelation, crafted not to impress, but to connect. It is for those who know what it means to wrestle in the dark while still searching for light.
Whether read in quiet solitude or aloud to reclaim your voice, Can I Just Write will stir your spirit, affirm your worth, and remind you that your story matters, even when it hurts to tell it.
This is not a performance.
This is permission.
To feel. To speak. To write.
Poetic Explorations Include:
- Literacy as healing and self-expression
- Misandry and its overlooked impact
- Abuse and trauma both seen and hidden
- Fatherhood and responsibility
- Healing forward with grace and wholeness
About the Author:
J. Dwayne Garnett is a Truth Revealer, rhythm-based realist, and man who writes from lived experience. Born in Augusta, Georgia, he turns vulnerability into strength and pain into purpose. His work gives voice to emotions many feel but struggle to express.
He is the author of Random Thoughts, Ampersands and Commas: Love Is Communicating, Ephphatha: Love Is A Parable Reflection Manual, and Can I Just Write, a poetic exploration of misandry, abuse, divorce trauma, fatherhood, and healing.
Garnett is the Founder and CEO of Love Is A Parable, a nonprofit focused on value-based education and togetherness. With 20+ years in higher education and human services, he champions literacy, emotional awareness, and the power of truth.
His words do not seek applause. They seek truth. Even in silence, our stories still matter.
Why This Location Matters:
The event takes place at St. Matthews Rosenwald School, one of the historic schools built to educate African American children during the segregation era. Hosting this event here is a powerful tribute to resilience, legacy, and the enduring power of literacy and voice.
Light refreshments will be served.
Books will be available for purchase and signing.
