#WritingBlackJoy is coming!

You can listen to this below.

#WritingBlackJoy Writers Gallery Project will be a virtual space/gallery centering, sharing and promoting the stories/voices of Black writers with joyful/ uplifting stories. It will be launching RIGHT HERE in this corner of the internet this summer! Click here to get on my mailing list so that you are the first to know about it!

The publishing industry (and the world at large) is a complicated place. I did some research and I discovered that in a recent survey by Lee and Low books (in conjunction with Boston University) on diversity in publishing show that only 5% of books published are written by Black, Afro-American and Afro-Caribbean writers. In addition, 76% of publishing staff, review journal staff and literary agents are White.

I was (and continue to be) fortunate enough to grow up in the Caribbean, and at school, we read a range of books by a variety of authors, including authors from Africa, the Caribbean, the UK, Europe and North, Central and South America.

But growing up, when I would read the stories and books from Black authors, I was always struck by how depressed I felt after reading them. They were almost always stories of struggle. They were exposing the dark side of injustice against people who looked like me, from outside and within our own communities. Yes - they gave a voice to those who had been traumatized, abused or otherwise disenfranchised, and told of our resilience and the fact that we are still here, but also I felt as if they reinforced the narrative of victimization of Black people. They didn’t give me any hope for the future, or love or desire for a life in this skin. Fortunately, growing up in Barbados, I know that one of my biggest influences was the representation around me as I was taught by Black teachers, had Black bosses, saw Black bank managers, doctors, even the prime minister. I know that this was a great influence on me that made me continue to believe what was possible for myself. 

When I left the Caribbean to study and work in the UK as well as travelling to the US, Europe, Canada and Australia, I noticed that the representation was not there in the way it had been in Barbados - and there were hardly any Black lecturers/doctors (apart from myself), public figures (well there was Rihanna - also from Barbados!), and my mind went back to the books I had read and continued to read. 

I began to think that while it was important for the difficult stories of trauma to be told, particularly from people who have experienced them, I also wanted to hear more joyful stories, about love, about heroism, about triumph - that were written by and about Black people. I wanted to read and hear stories that made me proud to be a Black woman, instead of feeling like there was nothing for me to look forward to. I wanted the world to hear those stories to begin to believe we were capable of being more than just victims. I thought about the types of books that I really enjoyed reading, and that made me happy, and was sad that almost none of them centred the stories of Black characters, written by Black authors. As I began to write and self-publish my own books, I discovered that some of those stories are out there! But they may not be as accessible, or as easy to find by Black readers, and that was where I got the idea for this project from.

I want to create a space for these authors to share these stories, excerpts from their books, poetry, features and uplifting creative non-fiction. I want to be able to build a readership for these authors, and a desire to read more of these types of stories/ an appetite for joyful stories by and about Black people. I want to expand the platforms of Black authors (as a whole and particularly with joyful/uplifting stories), and increase the appetite for these types of stories. I want to make it more possible for the stories to be read, for the authors to be published (traditionally or self-published). I want them to build the confidence and courage to know that these stories are necessary and will be read and heard. I want young readers and writers to want to write more of these stories. To read more of these stories. And I want these stories to give us all hope to change the narrative around living in the skin that we are in. 

I want to create the type of representation I grew up with in the stories that we tell and read - positive representation. JOYFUL representation!!

And this project is coming to my corner of the internet in September - with author features and interviews and sharing their writing. You will be able to receive these straight to your inbox!

Best of all, you can be a part of this launch through my crowdfunding campaign by making a contribution below. My aim is to raise $1000 USD to cover the costs associated with this project for the first few months! 

You can unlock digital thank you’s (and some in real life ones!) for your contribution, as well as being a part of what I am hoping will be an incredible project. I’ve listed the different tiers at the bottom of this page.

I hope you contribute and I can’t wait to bring this project into the world!

(If you are located in Barbados and want to make your contribution in local currency, please email me here for details.)

If you are a Black writer who has written (or continues to write) stories which would be perfect for this project, then email me here!

And if you want to get on the list to be the first to find out when this goes live, click below!

*Tiers and the gifts you receive for contribution!

Tier 1 - up to $20 USD - digital thank you card.

Tier 2 - $30-50 USD - digital thank you card and digital version of “Everything is a Thing” book.

Tier 3 - $60-100 USD - real card in the mail, digital version of Everything is a thing” book as well as the digital accompanying book club journal.

Tier 4 - $100 USD - real card in the mail, real copy of “Everything is a thing” book and access to a group coaching call with me around your writing!

Tier 5 - $200 USD - real card in the mail, real copy of “Everything is a thing” book and a one-on-one coaching call with me around your writing!

Please email me if you want to make a different contribution, and you don’t see the amount here.