• Listing ID: 21310
• Author's Name: Mark S. Robinson
• Your Email Address: mark.robinson@sralliance.com
• About the Author: Mark Robinson has spent the past 40+ years in advertising at some of the industry’s most prestigious agencies. Mark has been featured in Fortune magazine, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and Advertising Age.
  
  Mark is a past member of the American Advertising Federation’s Multicultural Marketing Leadership Council, a national touring lecturer for the Advertising Educational Foundation, and an ongoing mentor for MAIP (Minority Advertising Internship Program) for the American Association of Advertising Agencies.
  
  Mark was chosen by filmmaker Spike Lee to co-found and manage his new agency, Spike/DDB. In 1998, Mark launched Heritage Apparel, an internet-based clothing company that celebrated African American history and heroes. In 2001, he was recognized as the Entrepreneur of the Year for the successful launch of his next company, S/R Communications Alliance; the first 100% minority-owned network of 10 multicultural advertising companies, with combined business of $225 million.
  
  Mark’s 2nd book, “Black On Madison Avenue,” is part deeply personal memoir and part explosive history of what he calls “America’s most un-diverse white collar profession.” Mark is a past member of the Multicultural Marketing Leadership Council, a national touring lecturer and an ongoing mentor for the American Association of Advertising Agencies.
  
  Mark’s 1st book, “Place of Privilege,” tells the story of the first young Black men to integrate the gilded halls of New York’s ultra-exclusive and most prestigious private school, The Dalton School.
  
  Mark Robinson is the recipient of the 2023 Paragon Award from the 4a"s Society of Excellence, and the 1970's Diamond of the Decade Award from the 4A's Foundation.
  
  Mark lives in Ridgefield, Connecticut and is a highly sought-after strategist and advisor to various clients, including political campaigns and community organizations. He also serves on the board of directors of The Connecticut Mirror newspaper.
• URL of the book's purchase link: https://www.amazon.com/Black-Madison-Avenue-Mark-Robinson/dp/1736621548/ref=rvi_d_sccl_4/140-8359837-5580645?pd_rd_w=x2CAg&content-id=amzn1.sym.f5690a4d-f2bb-45d9-9d1b-736fee412437&pf_rd_p=f5690a4d-f2bb-45d9-9d1b-736fee412437&pf_rd_r=2443ZA3209JFJZGB3M90&pd_rd_wg=KPVHg&pd_rd_r=d731a259-9a0f-412d-a10c-d24aa5278371&pd_rd_i=1736621548&psc=1
• Awards, reviews, press releases, and other relevant information: For Immediate Release:
  Contact: Mark Robinson
  Phone: 203-947-0912
  Email: markrobinson@BlackOnMadisonAvenue.com
  http://www.BlackOnMadisonAvenue.com
  
  “Black On Madison Avenue” has now won its seventh literary book award
  
  Mark Robinson’s historical memoir about the advertising agency world of “Mad Men from a Black perspective” continues to receive industry attention and critical praise. The book has just won the BREW Non-Fiction Book Excellence Award from the Chrysalis BREW Project, making it the seventh literary book award the memoir has received since its 2023 release.
  
  “Black on Madison Avenue” has now received:
  ❖ The American Writing Award
  ❖ The Best Indie Book Award
  ❖ The Firebird Book Award
  ❖ The Hollywood Book Festival Award
  ❖The Pinnacle Book Award
  ❖ The North Street Book Prize
  And now,
  ❖ The BREW Non-Fiction Book Excellence Award
  
  “Black on Madison Avenue” chronicles the true experiences of a Black man who has spent 40+ years on Madison Avenue at some of the advertising industry’s most prestigious agencies and gives readers a rare glimpse of what it’s like to be one of the very, very few Black professionals in the advertising agency business.
  
  According to Robinson’s book, advertising decides what America wants. And yet, for an industry that professes to be the vanguard of creativity, popular culture and forward thinking, advertising is one of the most un-diverse white-collar professions in America. Surprisingly, despite all of its public gestures of “wokeness”, the stories contained in the book suggest that Madison Avenue would like to keep it that way.
  
  “Black on Madison Avenue” explains how – and why – the author landed on Madison Avenue, and shares stories of his adventures over the past 40+ years. Yes, adventures, like getting into a shouting match with a Venezuelan Army general in the middle of a military coup. Robinson recounts how he kidnapped advertising legend Jim Jordan, insulted high-ranking Chinese government officials at a formal dinner and launched the first $250 million multicultural marketing holding company.
  
  Rarely has a new author received the kind of critical praise and recognition of a literary book award, let alone seven of them, but Mark Robinson (himself the recipient of the 2023 Paragon Award from the ad industry’s Society of Excellence) says he is tremendously gratified by the response the book has gotten. Early reviews have given the book a lot of love:
  
  "Mark Robinson has not written the typical Madison Avenue memoir -- thank goodness! 'Black on Madison Avenue' is enlightening, written with tough love, the toughest love this side of a Marine drill sergeant. Mark is frank in his descriptions of the shortcomings of the advertising industry he has worked in for decades and offers concrete steps to take so that it no longer resembles what he calls a 'luminescent snowstorm.' Very much worth reading."
  Stuart Elliott, Former Advertising Columnist, The New York Times
  
  Part autobiography, part history lesson, part cautionary tale. This unpredictable and vivid journey is a rare peek behind the Black curtain. It’s densely packed with stories of an industry that at once accepted and rejected the author’s talents for reasons most obvious to him and those who look like him and is, at its core, the story of all Black men and women who fell in love with an industry that rarely loved them back.
  Danny Robinson, Chief Creative Officer, The Martin Agency
  
  Robinson was the co-founder of Spike/DDB, along with filmmaker Spike Lee and is a past member of the American Advertising Federation’s Multicultural Marketing Leadership Council, a national touring lecturer for the Advertising Educational Foundation, and an ongoing mentor for MAIP (Minority Advertising Internship Program) for the 4A’s.
  
  “I have given my entire adult professional life to this business. Advertising is not just what I do. It is a part of who I am. I am Black on Madison Avenue.”
  http://www.BlackOnMadisonAvenue.com
  
  ###
  
  View the book on Goodreads here: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/125011299-black-on-madison-avenue
• Genre: Memoir / Multicultural
• Titles of All Books: Black On Madison Avenue
  
  Place of Privilege
• Did you love reading books when you were little? Why or why not?: I have loved reading from very, very young. I come from a family of teachers and educators. Books were always considered the most precious thing you could own, and there were always plenty of fascinating books to read in our home. Even before I was old enough for school, I would go to the grocery store with my mom and she would point to the shelf and ask, "What does that soup can say?" Reading was a fun game.
  
  I loved Dr. Seuss and Winnie the Pooh and Beverly Cleary. And then Mark Twain and Maurice Sendak and so many others.
• At what age did you start reading books? What were your best memories of that time?: Kindergarten.
  
  See my answer above.
• What was the first book you loved reading? Why?: I still have my copy of Edith Hamilton's "Mythology." It was probably the first grown-up book that I read. What made the book so special was that it was all about gods and warriors and super heroes, yet it was a grown-up book, a serious book. It let me know that grown-ups believed in fantasy and amazing stories too. It let me know that all of the excitement of my childhood could last forever.
• When did you first think about writing your first book? Why?: All my life I wanted to be an "author." But I was began thinking seriously about writing my first book after an evening spent with two of my old high school classmates. We had not seen each other, nor spoken to each other, in over 35 years. But we met for dinner at PF Chang's in the Westchester Mall. We sat down, ordered drinks and one appetizer as we began talking and trading stories of our past and our present. Three and a half hours later, we still had not ordered any dinner and the restaurant was getting ready to close. We just kept telling stories. At the end of the night, I knew that there was a book waiting to be written, filled with many of the stories we had just shared. So I began to write it.
• What was the greatest obstacle you've encountered when you were writing your book? What made you overcome it?: My greatest obstacle was my day job. Like most people, I had to earn a living, and that swallowed up most of my day. There was never enough time to just sit and write. Too many other demands on my time.
  
  Eventually, I came up with a work plan where I decided that if I could write just one page a day, I could write this book. And I made myself a promise that I could not put my head on my pillow until that day's page was written. Some days I could write two or three pages. But as long as I could keep my promise to myself, the book got written.
• What pieces of advice can you give aspiring authors? What worked for you?: This advice actually comes from Stephen King. He says - and I agree - the two most import things that you must do are READ and WRITE. To the exclusion of almost everything else. Read as much as you can. Read everything. And never make excuses for not writing. Always be writing. Write like it is your trip to the gym.
• Who are the authors or what are the books that had the greatest influence in your own writing? Why?: Robert Ludlum's Jason Bourne books
  
  Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch books
  
  Lee Child's Jack Reacher books
• What are your current or future writing plans? What can readers further expect from you?: Hopefully lots more books.
  
  I am planning a big coffee table photo book, a murder mystery and a book about the history of my family.
• Do you offer a free book copy to interested readers?: Please contact me to discuss.

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