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A review by jw2869
Black Women Writers at Work by Claudia Tate
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
I absolutely loved this book. Originally released in 1985 and reprinted in 2023 by Haymarket this book is a collection of interviews with some of the greatest contemporary writers of the 1950s-80s including Maya Angelous, Toni Morrison, Nikki Giovanni, Audre Lorde, Sonia Sanchez, Toni Cade Bambara and more. Don't be fooled by the title - this book has so much to offer even if you're not a writer (I'm not). I underlined and tabbed that thang up! I also found myself Googling and discovering so many other authors (and historical tea). Speaking of tea - can we talk about that Margaret Walker chapter?! She had me looking up court cases and all kinds of things. I thought Nikki Giovanni's chapter was hilarious because she did not miss a chance to tell the interviewer her questions or the things she asked about were boring. And her response to Kirkus' reviews of one of her books is now my new life mantra "If Kirkus never reviews another book of mine I'll be more than happy. My life is not bound in anything that sells for $5.95. And it never will be." LOLOLOL.
Funny parts aside, the book also gave me a critical lens to understand literature and the publishing business. Sonia Sanchez talks about how the publishing industry controls and contorts what's seen as intellectual Black thought. In discussing the transition from the 60s and 70s to the 80s, she says "certain themes were rewards; others were ignored. And since writers want recognition, many would not talk directly about social change; they would not necessarily talk about what America had done, but would turn inward and begin to talk about victimization."
Toni Cade Bambara resonated the most in terms of lessons I want to take into my life as a free Black woman. She says, "I'm not committed to any notion of 'career'...I don't feel obliged to structure my life in respectably routine ways." She implores us to "maintain a loose grip, a flexible grasp on those assumptions we hold to be true, valid, real. They may not be." She reminded me to continue to be a critical reader and participant in not only literature but the world around me and how it shapes my perceptions of reality. Nikki Giovanni reminds me to allow myself to grow, change, and adapt as I explore and am presented with new and different information about the world. She says "If I never contradict myself then I'm either not thinking or I'm conciliating positions and, therefore, not growing...There would be no point to having me go three-fourths of the way around the world if I couldn't create an inconsistency, if I hadn't learned anything."
As a creator and entrepreneur I got a lot of gems about the creative space and allowing myself to be a vessel and conduit. To allow ideas to come to me, trust the process and its ebbs and flows. Toni Morrison says "There is such a thing as 'writer's block,' and they should respect it. You shouldn't write through it. It's blocked because it ought to be blocked, because you haven't got it right now." It is a personal reminder not to let the demands of capitalism - deadlines, performance, etc. override the natural signals that your body is giving you. You have to give your creativity space to breathe. She later says "Ideas can't come to me when I'm preoccupied...in that situation of disengagement with the day-to-day rush, something positive happened...it's exactly what Guitar said: when you release all the shit, then you can fly."
For me, embedded across the interviews is a nod to the importance of community and legacy. These women weren't just contemporaries, but engaged and supportive colleagues. They read, responded to, edited, and promoted each other's work. They were in critical conversation with each other even if they didn't always agree. They were committed to leaving bread crumbs and clearing pathways for the women writers to follow them. For that I am grateful.
Funny parts aside, the book also gave me a critical lens to understand literature and the publishing business. Sonia Sanchez talks about how the publishing industry controls and contorts what's seen as intellectual Black thought. In discussing the transition from the 60s and 70s to the 80s, she says "certain themes were rewards; others were ignored. And since writers want recognition, many would not talk directly about social change; they would not necessarily talk about what America had done, but would turn inward and begin to talk about victimization."
Toni Cade Bambara resonated the most in terms of lessons I want to take into my life as a free Black woman. She says, "I'm not committed to any notion of 'career'...I don't feel obliged to structure my life in respectably routine ways." She implores us to "maintain a loose grip, a flexible grasp on those assumptions we hold to be true, valid, real. They may not be." She reminded me to continue to be a critical reader and participant in not only literature but the world around me and how it shapes my perceptions of reality. Nikki Giovanni reminds me to allow myself to grow, change, and adapt as I explore and am presented with new and different information about the world. She says "If I never contradict myself then I'm either not thinking or I'm conciliating positions and, therefore, not growing...There would be no point to having me go three-fourths of the way around the world if I couldn't create an inconsistency, if I hadn't learned anything."
As a creator and entrepreneur I got a lot of gems about the creative space and allowing myself to be a vessel and conduit. To allow ideas to come to me, trust the process and its ebbs and flows. Toni Morrison says "There is such a thing as 'writer's block,' and they should respect it. You shouldn't write through it. It's blocked because it ought to be blocked, because you haven't got it right now." It is a personal reminder not to let the demands of capitalism - deadlines, performance, etc. override the natural signals that your body is giving you. You have to give your creativity space to breathe. She later says "Ideas can't come to me when I'm preoccupied...in that situation of disengagement with the day-to-day rush, something positive happened...it's exactly what Guitar said: when you release all the shit, then you can fly."
For me, embedded across the interviews is a nod to the importance of community and legacy. These women weren't just contemporaries, but engaged and supportive colleagues. They read, responded to, edited, and promoted each other's work. They were in critical conversation with each other even if they didn't always agree. They were committed to leaving bread crumbs and clearing pathways for the women writers to follow them. For that I am grateful.