In a powerful homage to the women who shape our world—and often go uncredited for it—David E. Talbert is stepping into a new chapter.
The acclaimed filmmaker, known for Almost Christmas and Netflix’s Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey, has sold his debut memoir Everything I Know About Being a Man (I Learned From a Woman) to Storehouse Voices, an imprint of Penguin Random House, in a six-figure deal, Deadline reports.
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The memoir is inspired by Talbert’s own experience navigating fatherhood after growing up with little to no contact with his own father. Raised by a single mother, the multi-hyphenate creative came to a striking realization later in life: the wisdom he passes down to his son—the essence of his manhood—was largely shaped by the strength, love, and lessons of a woman.
Now, forty years and countless creative projects later, Talbert is bringing that full-circle clarity to the page. The memoir promises to be both intimate and instructive, a personal reckoning layered with humor and heart.
But he isn’t stopping there.
Talbert is also developing a half-hour television comedy based on the book’s themes. The series will follow a first-time dad trying to become the father he never had, while managing the chaos that comes with breaking generational cycles—without losing his mind in the process.
Long committed to the elevation of Black voices behind the scenes, Talbert—alongside his wife and producing partner Lyn Sisson-Talbert—launched HBCU Next in November 2023. The fellowship program, housed at the USC School of Cinematic Arts Summer Program, is designed to provide students from Historically Black Colleges and Universities with real-world access to the film industry. Through mentorship, training, and storytelling that centers Black life in all its texture, HBCU Next is shaping the next generation of culture-bearers.
Cover photo: David E. Talbert’s Memoir Lands Six-Figure Deal / Credit: David E. Talbert
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