After 18 years, author Terry McMillan is releasing a sequel to her bestselling novel Waiting to Exhale called Getting to Happy, according to the Examiner.

In the novel, McMillan follow up with the characters, Bernadine, Savannah, Gloria, and Robin.

It’s said that it might also be turned into a movie. Waiting to Exhale is one of my favorite movies ever, but someimes sequels ruin it for me. Obviously, I wouldn’t want to see anyone other than Whitney, Angela, Lela, or Loretta play the roles. Hopefully it will be as good as the first.

Relationships of any kind can be hard. Friendships and work relationships all need to be worked on, but it seems like intimate relationships between a man and woman are the hardest.

Being in a relationship is like having another full-time job. No one likes to think of it like that, but that’s how it is. You have to work hard for it to be successful. When it’s great the rewards can pay off big time, but when it’s not, you’re plotting ways to get out.

Naturally since relationships can be rough, there are thousands of books on decoding them and how to make them better. The latest popular book that was burning up the New York Times bestseller list was Steve Harvey’s Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man. I admit, I was one who bought the book and I thought it was good at the time.

He makes key points on what every man needs:

1. Support
2. Loyalty
3. The cookie, i.e. sex

Well, of course, in a relationship a woman should be loyal and supportive, and sex is a must. I thought, “Steve Harvey is so right. In order for a man to focus on me, he has to focus on himself first. We need to let a man be a man,. So if he’s having a bad day, it’s because Steve Harvey said that’s the reason. It will get better later on.”

F*** that. If I could shake myself for thinking that, I definitely would. I am not the one to push my feelings aside or downplay them for anybody. I have bad days too. Does that mean I’m not going to call my boyfriend because I’m upset when someone else does something wrong to me? Am I not going to see him because I feel a little tired or busy that day? No. That’s not how relationships work. We don’t pick and choose when we want to be in them when we’re in one.

When I thought  about what Steve Harvey wrote just proved to me that men are selfish and don’t think of anyone but themselves. I should have known not to trust a bald man when a mustache and veneers.

What about what we want?

If you have to read a book on love and relationships, my recommendation would be The Conversation by Hill Harper. I know you might be thinking, what does the dude from CSI: NY to give me advice on love?

The great thing about Harper’s book is that it prompts a dialogue between men and women so we both know what the other wants and needs.

The major thing I took away from his book is that if I have a problem with the person in my relationship, I should be telling him — not my girls. We always run to our friends for advice, which can be helpful, but we really need to talk to the one we’re having the issue with. (This goes for all types of relationships.)

Talk it out, learn, and grow. We need to learn how to work together and love each other.

Celebrity authors are not a new phenomenon. I don’t really understand or fully accept this trend, but it does happen. Most recently, actress/comedienne Sherri Shepherd released a memoir/self-help book called Permission Slips: Every Woman’s Guide to Giving Herself a Break and actor Tracy Morgan wrote the autobiography I Am the New Black. I’m not a real fan of celeb autobiographies because they’re usually written by ghost writers or another author who has a tiny credit at the bottom of the book jacket.

The new — and totally unnecessary — fad in the book world is that reality stars are releasing books. It’s bad enough that you wonder if they read at all, but do we really need to read what they think?

There are a slew of reality stars who have a book or are looking for book deals:

• Heidi and Spencer Pratt of The Hills – How to be Famous: Our Guide to Looking the Part, Playing the Press, and Becoming a Tabloid Fixture
• Miss J of America’s Next Top Model – Follow the Model
• NeNe Leakes of Real Housewives of Atlanta - Never Make the Same Mistake Twice
• Jon and Kate Gosselin of Jon & Kate Plue Ei8ht – Multiple Bles8ing: Surviving to Thriving with Twins and Sextuplets

Now, I’m not knew if they know this, but being on a reality TV show, we viewers see just about every minute of their lives — what restaurants they eat at, where they shop, the dumb things they say. We talk about them the next day at work after the episode airs or gab on the phone to our girls about what happened. We already know so much about them, is there a need to buy their books?

In my opinion, no. But you already knew that. I understand everybody is trying to make a buck out there and capitalize on their fifteen minutes of fame, but there are plenty of credible writers who need their books read because they have a passion for it and they’ve spent many years crafting their talent. How much training does it take to be a reality star?

I’m not saying don’t support these reality show stars (I support them every time I watch a mundane episode of The Hills or a marathon of ANTM  or RHOA). All I’m saying is there are plenty of others who need our support too. Let’s add them to our reading list, shall we?