THANK YOU, MS. BUTLER!

Ek'abo Ebi! (Welcome Family!) 

It was the late 1990’s.  Sitting at my desk at work, I was twiddling my thumbs, waiting for an attorney to call me with my next assignment.  Suddenly the phone rings. A friend of mine was on the line. 

“Guuurl I have something that I think you should read!” She said excitedly. “Pick up this month’s issue of Essence Magazine.  There’s an excerpt from a book called Wild Seed.  The author’s name is Octavia Butler.  Read it and tell me what you think!” 

During my lunch break, I ran downstairs to a little magazine shop on the first floor.  I snatched up that month’s magazine and settled down in a quiet corner on a comfy chair.  Within in minutes I was caught up in a world I had never visited before.  A harsh world where slavery was prevalent, a woman was a healer and shape shifter, and a spirit wore the shell of human bodies.  Oh and did I say that this was in Africa? 

At that time, I was an avid reader of African-American authors such as: E. Lynn Harris, Terry McMillian, Walter Mosley, Colin Channer, Bebe Moore Campbell and Maya Angelou.  But this was the first time I heard of Ms. Butler or read a book of speculative fiction written by a WOC (woman of color).  To say that I was hooked was an understatement.  As a huge fan of shows such as Star Trek, Farscape, Babylon 5 and Xena: Warrior Princess, I had a real appreciation of stories influenced by sci-fi and fantasy.  But I had even more appreciation for a well written story that not only started in Africa, but inflamed my imagination and exposed me to characters that were outside society’s idea of popular fiction. 

That same evening, I ran to the nearest Barnes and Noble and picked up Wild Seed.  I finished that book in 24 hours.  After that I experienced the destruction of Doro (Sorry. Spoiler Alert) in Mind of my Mind, discovered Clay Ark’s disease in Patternmaster, and was exposed to a new alien species called the Oankali in Imago.  I read everything I could get my hands on that Ms. Butler wrote.  Her work was and continues to be a positive addiction for me. LOL! After reading her books, I could never look at literature the same way again.  If anything, I began to demand more of the kind of books I read. 

Don’t get me wrong, I still love a good action filled romance with some historical fiction on the side (Yay Nora Roberts and Amanda Quick).  But when I started reading books like the Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis and The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, I realized just how layered and thought provoking sci-fi/fantasy could be.  I discovered that regardless of the race, it takes a special kind of person to create the worlds that rolled out of the minds of authors such as J.K. Rowlings and Ursula K. Le Guin (A Wizard of Earthsea). 

So in 2003, I decided that I wanted to become a part of that group.  I wanted to contribute my little piece to the big picture.  I wanted to become an author.  And what started as a pre-school book for my boys developed into (what I now proudly call) a YA fantasy influenced by West African culture. 

Thanks to Ms. Butler, and others like her, I found the courage to throw my hat in the ring.  To someday become a part of the list of WOC who contribute to speculative fiction. Griot, Bard, Jali, the name does not matter.  As a storyteller I have been blessed with a gift and I intend to use it. 

“All that you touch
You Change.

All that you Change
Changes you.

The only lasting truth
is Change.

God
is Change.”
-Octavia E. Butler

Thank you Ms. Butler for your incredible imagination, your cause and effect on the world and the change your writing started within me. I am better for it.  Is there someone out there (a writer, friend, family member etc.) that has influenced you as a writer?  If so, drop me a line and tell me about it!

Mari e laipe!

See you soon!

S-

***** 

Thanks for visiting ‘Amachi is Hope.’ If you were inspired or felt a connection with today’s blog (or any of my previous entries) please leave a comment. J

OPENING THE DOOR TO CRITIQUING

Ek'abo Ebi! (Welcome Family!)

Finding the courage to write a book is one thing.  But it’s quite another to have your work critiqued by others.  You leave your work open to the opinions and thoughts of your peers and sometimes even strangers.  You hope that when you take this chance, that you will gain something worthwhile.  A new opportunity to hone your craft may present itself.  A new idea or suggestion might help your story flow better.

But what happens when that reader does not share an interest in your choice of genre?  Does it make sense for him/her to read your work?  If you have no interest in poetry, sci-fi or even romance why take the time to critique that person’s work? Sure if you’ve been writing for a long time, you may be able to help your peer sift out problems with technique, grammar or flow.  But I believe that you lose the pleasure of reading the work, if you find it dull or boring.  I am not a fan of books based on horror, so I would never read or offer my opinion regarding such literature. 

If you join a critique group, try to connect with those that share the same or similar interests as yourself.  I find that they will be more open to the story you have written, the characters you’ve created and even the scenes you’ve developed in your mind.

When I first allowed someone to read my work, it did not occur to me that fantasy was not their cup of tea.  The comments they made rubbed me the wrong way.  And then I realized, this person was not a reader of sci-fi or fantasy based books.  They never followed Star Trek, couldn’t name an Avenger if you paid them, and knew nothing of the Chronicles of Narnia! LOL!  Basically, they did not or could not understand where I was coming from. 

After that I knew, that if I wanted fair, knowledgeable, receptive critiques it should be read by someone who shares an interest in my choice of genre, who has an interest in writing or just someone who’s an avid reader.  Perhaps, one who’s open to all types of literature?  If you don’t approach it with an open mind you just might miss out on something truly exceptional.

Recently, I had the pleasure of receiving critiques (Note: Not all critiques are pleasurable LOL) from a number of individuals who enjoyed my work and gave me very useful ideas on how to enhance my story.  You can read your book a hundred times, and not see what another set of eyes can.  Those eyes can pluck out scenes that need more detail, or can tell you ways to make a simple sentence more powerful, or in my case the best ways to introduce foreign concepts to my readers without confusion.

Regardless, I still feel a bit of tension each time I present another part of my story.  No matter how you approach it, you expose your work and yourself (thoughts, feelings, ideals) to scrutiny.  But I believe that taking the step to having your work critiqued is one of the best things you can do for yourself as a writer.

Mari e laipe!

See you soon!

S-

*****

Thanks for visiting ‘Amachi is Hope.’ If you were inspired or felt a connection with today’s blog (or any of my previous entries) please leave a comment. J

DUDU ITAN OSÙ

Ek'abo Ebi! (Welcome Family!) 

Dudu Itan Osù, Black History Month.  Would you believe I was two days into February before I thought of the importance of this month?  It’s really easy to do that when you are caught up in life’s daily routines.  But it made me wonder, if I forgot, did others do so as well?  Have we in some way become more lax, less appreciative of what this month represents. Have we failed to remember all those who fought winning and losing battles to get us here? 

Besides Dr. King, Nelson Mandela, Rosa Parks, and Malcolm X, there are so many others that have caused change.  The ones who made the biggest difference in even the smallest ways?  The ones who opened the door for others, allowing them to become a part of history?  The ones who sacrificed much for the greater good?  The ones who moved forward regardless of the adversity? 

Here are a few examples: 

During the 1930s, painter Charles Alston founded the 306 group, which convened in his studio space and provided support and apprenticeship for African-American artists, including Langston Hughes; sculptor Augusta Savage; and mixed-media visionary Romare Bearden. 

In 1938, first lady Eleanor Roosevelt challenged the segregation rules at the Southern Conference on Human Welfare in Birmingham, Alabama, so she could sit next to African-American educator and activist Mary McLeod Bethune. Roosevelt would come to refer to Bethune as "her closest friend in her age group." 

Female science fiction author Octavia Butler was dyslexic. Despite her disorder, she went on to win Hugo and Nebula awards for her writing, as well as becoming the first science-fiction writer to receive the MacArthur Foundation "genius" grant in 1995. 

"I wanted to write a novel that would make others feel the history: the pain and fear that black people have had to live through in order to endure."

– Octavia E. Butler 

Paul Cuffee, a philanthropist, ship captain and devout Quaker who supported a return to Africa for black citizens, transported 38 free African Americans to Sierra Leone in 1815. He also founded one of the first American integrated schools in 1797.

African-American Matthew Henson accompanied Robert Edwin Peary on the first successful U.S. expedition to the North Pole, reaching their destination on April 6, 1909. In 2000, Henson was posthumously awarded the National Geographic Society's Hubbard Medal. 

Buffalo Soldiers— a name given by Native-American plainsmen—were the all-black regiments created in the U.S. Army beginning in 1866. These soldiers received second-class treatment and were often given the worst military assignments, but had a lowest desertion rate than their white counterparts. More than 20 Buffalo Soldiers received the Medal of Honor for their service. The oldest living Buffalo Soldier, Sergeant Mark Matthews, died at the age of 111 in 2005, and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery. 

Cathay Williams was the first and only known female Buffalo Soldier. Williams was born into slavery and worked for the Union army during the Civil War. She posed as a man and enlisted as William Cathay in the 38th infantry in 1866, and was given a medical discharge in 1868. 

In 1881, Sophia B. Packard and Harriet E. Giles founded what would become the first college for black women in the United States. The school was named Spelman College after Laura Spelman Rockefeller and her parents, who were abolitionists. Laura was also the wife of John D. Rockefeller, who made a significant donation to the school. 

Phillis Wheatley became the first published African-American poet in 1774 with her collection Poems on Various Subjects, a work of distinction that looked to many literary classical traditions. 

“Twas mercy brought me from my Pagan land,

Taught my benighted soul to understand,

That there's a God, that there's a Saviour too:

Once I redemption neither sought nor knew.

Some view our sable race with scornful eye,

“Their color is a diabolic die.”

Remember, Christians, Negroes,

black as Cain, May be refin'd,

and join th' angelic train.” 

– Phillis Wheatley 

Renowned African-American architect Paul R. Williams mastered the art of rendering drawings upside-down so that his clients would see the drawings right side up. Williams's style became associated with California glamour, beauty and naturalism, and he joined the American Institute of Architects in 1923.  Because he worked during the height of segregation, most of the homes designed by African-American architect Paul R. Williams had deeds that barred blacks from buying them. 

In 1926, Carter Godwin Woodson established Negro History Week, which later became Black History Month. The month of February was chosen in honor of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln, who were both born in that month.

Well, I hope my trip through history has in some way, enlightened you, educated you and/or reminded us all of what was done in the past and what we are capable of doing in the future. No excuses fam!

Mari e laipe!
See you soon! 

S-

*****

Thanks for visiting ‘Amachi is Hope.’ If you were inspired or felt a connection with today’s blog (or any of my previous entries) please leave a comment. J

WRITING’S NEVERENDING CHALLENGES

Ek'abo Ebi! (Welcome Family!) 

I’ve been told on more than one occasion, that when you write a book you should try to make it universal; something that most people can connect to in some way, shape or form.  A number of things can make that difficult.  If you are not a veteran writer, sometimes finding the right words to express a thought, portray a scene or even connect with a reader can prove problematic. 

This can also be the case when you write outside the norm.  As you are aware, my book Amachi’s Hope is influenced by West African culture.  Throughout my story, the reader will come across a number of names, terms, and deities that are not apart of the English language or American culture.  For that reason, I have included a glossary of terms at the end of the book.  But what if the reader is not the type who would be inclined to “flip to the back” and find out what a word means.  Where does that leave you? Do you go out of your way to make things easier for the reader?  Or do you say, “Forget that! I’ve put too much work into this to start again.” 

Another issue that has come up is my use of West African names for the characters in my book. As I mentioned before, this story is affected by West African culture (Yoruba in particular).  Someone told me that “the names are too much to remember.”  Why would I use everyday names for my characters?  My book is based in Africa, during a time past, when gods ruled and magic still existed.  The use of names like: Michael, Angela or Jordan, do not apply. J How often are authors approached about changing the names in a story because it has too many syllables or it doesn’t fit the status quo? Frustrating… 

I do not want to lose a reader/follower because they are confused or impatient when the definition of a word is not immediately available.  But does that mean that I change my story into something I don’t want?  Something I would not be proud to put my name on? 

One of my favorite authors, Colin Channer, of Waiting in Vain and other exceptional pieces of literature, is a Jamaican who writes from a Jamaican perspective.  He uses patois (a Jamaican dialect) in his books.  And he makes references to terms, foods and vernacular that only someone from the West Indies would appreciate and/or understand.  As someone who was raised in a West Indian household, I found that I could relate to the characters and I understood the terms used throughout the book.  But I also realized that regardless of the language used in the book, readers were still able to connect with the characters in the story and their experiences. Universal… I get it. 

Readers, like me, can be fickle.  There are times when we want light reading.  Something funny, sexy, or outrageous.  Then there are times when we want to read a book with punch; a book that sends a message or shares a moving experience.  There are books for adults, books for teenagers and books for young children.  There are hard covers, paperbacks and e-books.  There is so much to choose from that it is more important than ever to reach your audience and hold them. 

So I am faced with a new challenge.  How do you connect with your readers while holding on to your story’s objective?  How much are you willing to lose to get the attention of the right reader, agent or publisher?  These are definitely points to ponder. 

Mari e laipe!

See you soon!

S- 

*****

 

Thanks for visiting ‘Amachi is Hope.’ If you were inspired or felt a connection with today’s blog (or any of my previous entries) please leave a comment. J