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00:00Good morning, everyone.
00:02Happy Sunday.
00:04How's everybody feeling?
00:06Awesome, wonderful.
00:07My name's Melissa Noel.
00:08I'm the senior news and travel editor here at Essence,
00:10and I'm excited to welcome three amazing authors to the stage.
00:14Please come out and join me so I can introduce you all.
00:17We have Natalie Guerrero,
00:21Ladarian Williams,
00:23Daniel Black.
00:26Oh, come on, a whole cheering section.
00:28I know that's right.
00:30So happy to have each of you joining me this morning.
00:34Have a seat.
00:35Have a seat.
00:38You guys feeling all right?
00:40Feeling great, yeah.
00:41All right, everybody's mic is on.
00:42Sounding good, feeling good.
00:43Hello, hello.
00:44It's on.
00:44Perfect.
00:46So this conversation,
00:48I'm really thrilled to be sitting here
00:50with these three incredible authors and storytellers
00:53who are crafting stories
00:55that really speak directly to the heart of our experiences,
00:59navigating identity,
01:02honoring our legacy,
01:03and finding our place in this world.
01:05So today we're exploring how modern fiction captures
01:09the beautiful complexity of becoming
01:11the people we're supposed to be
01:13through characters who feel as real
01:15as the person who is sitting next to you.
01:18So please join me again
01:19in welcoming our authors this morning.
01:26How's everybody doing?
01:28I'm feeling awesome.
01:29Okay, me too.
01:30So good.
01:30Good.
01:32So I want to start off by asking about the characters
01:35that you create in your stories.
01:38We see complex characters
01:41who are navigating really complex relationships,
01:45some of them pursuing their ambitions,
01:47others trying to find who they are.
01:50What would you say is the biggest challenge
01:52in creating and writing characters
01:54who sometimes must choose
01:56between personal fulfillment
01:58and the people they love
02:00or being exactly who they are,
02:03who they want to be?
02:04And I'll start with you, Daniel.
02:07Okay.
02:08First of all,
02:08I'm just absolutely thrilled
02:09to be up here with my colleagues.
02:11And thank you, madam.
02:12And thank you to all of you
02:14who got up early this morning
02:15after turning up last night.
02:17That's right.
02:18We know what's important, right?
02:19They should have sent us a notice
02:20that said,
02:21if you turn up Saturday night,
02:23be careful
02:23because you might miss your sessions.
02:25But okay.
02:26But to answer this question,
02:30to be honest,
02:32when it's time for me to create characters,
02:34all I do is look around my life.
02:37Right?
02:38The characters are already here.
02:40Black people are characters by definition.
02:42This is true.
02:43Right.
02:43We're funny.
02:44We're complex.
02:46We're wise.
02:47We're crazy.
02:49Right?
02:49We're wounded.
02:50We're healers.
02:52Right?
02:52We're all the things.
02:54Yeah.
02:54The thing that I think
02:55that sometimes gets tricky is
02:57we don't necessarily want to be
02:58all those things publicly.
03:00Right.
03:01Right?
03:01And so the question becomes,
03:03how do you tell the truth about yourself?
03:05How do you tell the truth about a people?
03:07How do you help people to move
03:09through their greatness
03:10and their grandeur?
03:11And still help them work through
03:16the trauma and the trouble
03:17of what it has meant to be black?
03:19Because we are excellent.
03:20We are powerful.
03:21We're marvelous.
03:21We're amazing.
03:22We're wonderful.
03:23That is true.
03:24We're also wounded.
03:25Absolutely.
03:26Right?
03:27We're also troubled in some ways.
03:29And so in this book,
03:30one of the things I'm seeking to do
03:32is help black people learn
03:35how do you heal
03:36with people who have already transitioned?
03:39Those elders, grandmothers, grandfathers
03:41who have already stepped into eternity
03:43but who left you scarred
03:45and left you wounded.
03:47How can you heal
03:48even after they've gone into eternity?
03:51Right?
03:51And so that's what this book explores.
03:53And to do so,
03:55there was some really ugly truths
03:56I had to tell.
03:57And the truth of the matter is
03:58half of those ugly truths
03:59are about myself.
04:00Right?
04:01Wow.
04:02Right?
04:03And this can be difficult
04:04for black people
04:05because we were introduced
04:07to the notion of a God
04:08and a Savior
04:09who was perfect,
04:10who had no flaws at all.
04:12And so our dream
04:14is to get with people
04:15who are flawless.
04:17Although we bring the flaws with us.
04:19Right.
04:20Right?
04:20And so when you start creating characters,
04:22it's like how do you make people
04:23fall in love with characters
04:24who don't look like Christ?
04:26Right.
04:26And who have flaws
04:27just like all of us do.
04:29Yeah.
04:29And the truth of the matter is
04:30I think flaws are divine.
04:32But that's for another...
04:33All right now.
04:35Absolutely.
04:36Natalie?
04:36I'm like inspired.
04:37A whole word.
04:38A whole word.
04:40On Sunday morning.
04:41Exactly.
04:41It's a Sunday morning, right?
04:42It is a Sunday morning.
04:45For me,
04:46I want to build
04:47on what you just said actually.
04:49For me,
04:49it's very much so
04:50when I'm creating a character
04:51thinking about
04:53what they would do
04:53when no one's watching.
04:55So very similarly,
04:56I feel that
04:58if I have almost
05:00like eyes over me
05:02watching what the character's doing,
05:04that's when I know
05:04the character's not being honest
05:05and not being true.
05:07And I wanted,
05:08especially with my main character
05:09who's very messy
05:11and chaotic
05:14and not often likable.
05:17I think a lot of the notes
05:18I got
05:18while I was selling this book
05:20was like,
05:20can you make her
05:21a little more likable?
05:22And I was like,
05:22no.
05:23It's okay if you don't like her.
05:25Right.
05:25And I thought
05:26that was really important
05:27as I was writing a woman,
05:28as I was writing a black woman,
05:30because I felt
05:31the confines
05:34that people put us in
05:35of wanting to be good
05:36were really troubling to me.
05:39And so if you're not
05:40a good black woman,
05:41then what are you
05:42in this society?
05:43And I really wanted her
05:44to find legs
05:46to break out of that
05:47and be able to just be
05:48and exist.
05:49Like, I'm not good
05:50all the time.
05:51And I really didn't want
05:52to put the pressure
05:53on my main character
05:54to be good
05:55or palatable.
05:56And so most of the time
05:58while I was writing her,
05:59I was thinking like,
06:00if I'm okay with someone
06:02watching what she's doing
06:03and being like,
06:03yes, check,
06:04then I have to put
06:06that scene to the side.
06:07Like, she has to be
06:08the most honest version
06:09of herself
06:10and sometimes that's ugly.
06:11And that's when
06:12I found her voice.
06:14So that's what I was
06:15thinking about a lot
06:16when I was writing character.
06:18Yeah.
06:19I think for me
06:20with Malik
06:21in my book,
06:22I always think about
06:23what August Wilson said,
06:24you know,
06:25is confront the dark
06:26parts of yourself.
06:27And, you know,
06:28and I'm butchering
06:28the quote a little bit.
06:29I shouldn't
06:30because I'm a Wilsonite.
06:31But, you know,
06:32and wrestle with your angels
06:33so the demons
06:34so your angels can see.
06:35I take that
06:36with every character
06:37that I write.
06:39Like, Daniel,
06:39like how you said,
06:40like you just,
06:40you know,
06:41black people are this,
06:41they're that.
06:42Like, I sit on the phone
06:44with my mom
06:45and I just listen to her.
06:46You know,
06:46that inspired my mama
06:47Aya character.
06:48For Malik,
06:49I just,
06:51the things that I've experienced
06:52as a teenage boy,
06:54black boy in Alabama,
06:55being criminalized
06:57in the classroom
06:57at a very young age
06:58just because I like to laugh
07:01at this certain joke
07:02or I like to do something
07:03that wasn't,
07:04that was outside of the norm
07:05and being criminalized
07:07for that.
07:08I take all of that
07:10with my character
07:11because at the time
07:13in YA fantasy,
07:14black boys were
07:15kind of non-existent.
07:16Existent.
07:16Right, right.
07:17Or they were the side characters
07:18or they were being killed off
07:20to teach everybody else
07:22about racism.
07:23But in them being killed off,
07:25we didn't get to learn
07:26their interiority,
07:28what do they love,
07:29what do they hate,
07:29what do they laugh about.
07:30And so I did all of that
07:33with my book,
07:34but adding magic
07:35and being connected
07:36to something
07:37because I feel like
07:37black people,
07:38we've been so disconnected
07:39from our lineage,
07:41our history.
07:42That's why it's so important
07:43to listen to the elders
07:44in your family.
07:45Yes.
07:45And if they're still here,
07:47like that's very,
07:48very important
07:48because a lot of us
07:49are being,
07:50they're being,
07:50you know,
07:51they're transitioning.
07:52Yeah.
07:52And so I wanted to
07:54have this beautiful
07:55black boy
07:55learn about his history
07:58and learn about his lineage
07:59from his grandmother
08:00and in that
08:01he has to confront
08:03all the dark parts
08:04of himself
08:04and that means,
08:05you know,
08:06healing
08:07and healing
08:07is not linear.
08:08You know,
08:09there's going to be
08:09a lot of ups and downs.
08:10Ups and downs
08:10as you go through.
08:11Exactly.
08:12And that's what this book,
08:13you know,
08:14Malik is,
08:14that's what I'm taking
08:15to the computer
08:16when I'm writing Malik
08:17because also white boys
08:19in YA,
08:20they get to burn down villages.
08:22They get to,
08:22you know,
08:23they get to cause
08:25all this chaos
08:25and they still be seen as,
08:28oh,
08:28well,
08:28he's just a kid.
08:29But with boys like Malik,
08:31he was held
08:32to a different standard.
08:34And I talk about
08:35all of that
08:36in these books.
08:37Yeah,
08:37and I have a follow-up
08:38question for you there
08:39because in that book,
08:40Blood at the Root,
08:41you create
08:42like a magical world.
08:46And as Malik
08:48is looking for
08:48that belonging
08:49and how did you,
08:51how in creating
08:52that magical world,
08:53right,
08:53that other world,
08:54did you help
08:55your character
08:56navigate trying
08:57to have that sense
08:58of belonging
08:59that we can apply
09:00to everyday experiences,
09:02especially for young Black men
09:03who are trying
09:04to find their identity
09:05and where they belong
09:06in this world.
09:07Yeah,
09:07I think Malik,
09:09he had this magic
09:10when he was seven
09:11and he had all these questions.
09:12And it's so interesting,
09:13I talked to somebody
09:14who actually went
09:15to an HBCU
09:16and his mom died before
09:18and he had all these questions
09:20about his family
09:20and his,
09:21like just his life
09:22and he went to this school
09:24and it kind of answered
09:25all of it for him
09:26because found family is real.
09:28You know,
09:29when you go to college,
09:30you start to find yourself
09:32and Malik in that,
09:34he starts to see that,
09:35oh,
09:35I've been by myself
09:37this entire time.
09:38But there's actually people
09:39that are just like me
09:41that have magic,
09:43that grew up
09:44in a different way.
09:45But now I get to see myself
09:47in others
09:48and I know
09:49that I'm not crazy,
09:51you know,
09:52dealing with all this magic.
09:54So yeah,
09:54I definitely,
09:55I poured in all of that.
09:58I remember,
09:58I didn't go to an HBCU,
09:59which is one of my
10:00biggest regrets.
10:03It is,
10:03because I went to a PWI
10:04and that trauma is real.
10:07It's real.
10:09Sorry, y'all.
10:10Sorry, y'all.
10:10It's real.
10:11And so I,
10:13even like when I went
10:14to Morehouse
10:15for the first time
10:15and stepping on that campus,
10:16I literally was
10:17in Malik's shoes.
10:19And I wasn't even a student.
10:20I was just there.
10:21It's just the feeling
10:22and the presence.
10:22Yeah, it's that energy.
10:24I'm a Howard University
10:25and an alumna.
10:26Oh, yeah.
10:27You know.
10:28And just being on
10:30the presence,
10:31the energy,
10:31you feel the ancestors,
10:33you feel the people
10:34in the space always,
10:35no matter which campus
10:36you're on,
10:37you know?
10:37So I totally,
10:38totally identify with that.
10:39Yeah, my sister used
10:40to say Alabama State University,
10:42she's a graduate of there.
10:43She said her experience
10:44was magical.
10:45And so that's what I...
10:46That's what you emulated
10:47in the book, for sure.
10:49Yeah, in the book, yeah.
10:49And I felt that.
10:51I felt that.
10:51That was real.
10:52Thank you so much for that.
10:54For each of you here,
10:55I wanted to know,
10:56you know,
10:56you're writing about
10:57Black characters
10:58in spaces
10:59where we oftentimes
11:00don't see them,
11:01where they may be left out.
11:02We don't often read
11:04about Black characters
11:06in such spaces,
11:08in fantasy worlds,
11:09classical theater,
11:10or in Southern literary canon.
11:13How does it feel
11:14for you to create them
11:15in these spaces
11:16and give them voice
11:17not only through your books,
11:18but also in just being
11:19in this space now
11:20and being able
11:20to talk about it?
11:21And I'll start with you, Daniel.
11:24You know,
11:25the thing I'm most committed to
11:28is moving the white gaze
11:32out of the way.
11:33Okay.
11:33Right?
11:34That's what I'm most committed to,
11:35just getting white folk
11:36out the way.
11:36And then we can really
11:38tell ourselves the truth.
11:39We can really look at ourselves
11:40and we can really be honest
11:41in ways that we're skeptical
11:43about when we're on display.
11:45Right?
11:46And one of the things
11:47that I'm very, very much
11:49concerned about in literature
11:51is the complexity of
11:54and the place of Black fathers,
11:57especially the way we historically
11:59have understood Black fatherhood.
12:02Like, for example,
12:02many people have known about
12:06and heard about
12:07during enslavement,
12:09they had these things
12:10called breeders.
12:11You know, these Black men, right,
12:12who were used to impregnate women,
12:14et cetera, et cetera.
12:15But I've not yet read a study,
12:18I've not even read an article
12:19that asks the question
12:22the ways in which these breeders
12:25were traumatized
12:26for what they had to do.
12:30Right?
12:30Even this notion
12:32of breeding a woman, right?
12:34I think people just assume
12:35that because they're men,
12:36any man would want to have sex
12:38any time he can.
12:39Right?
12:40That means then
12:41that we as Black people
12:42are participating
12:42in the bestial construction
12:44of the ways in which
12:46we understand Black men.
12:48Right?
12:49And I've been thinking about
12:50the ways in which
12:50a Black man must have been horrified
12:52to have to go into a cabin
12:56and to confront this woman,
13:00right, because he was forced
13:02to do something, right,
13:03that was against his will.
13:05Right?
13:05We understand that the woman
13:06is violated, and she is.
13:07But the man is, too.
13:09And it's that violation
13:11that seemingly we've never
13:12talked about
13:13and seemingly not even,
13:14really, even believe
13:15that has me really,
13:17really troubled
13:18as a Black man.
13:19In other words,
13:20I'm wondering what has happened
13:22to the idea of Black men
13:24as divine beings.
13:27Right?
13:27And so what I want to do is
13:29I want to restore
13:30that divinity, right,
13:32to what it means
13:32to be a Black man.
13:34Thank you so much for that.
13:35That was...
13:35That was really powerful.
13:38Yes, sir.
13:39That was really, really powerful.
13:40That was very powerful.
13:43Wow.
13:44Sorry, I'm just taking
13:44a little minute
13:45because I was like...
13:46A moment of silence.
13:47Yeah, just...
13:48I just...
13:48Y'all needed a moment
13:49right there.
13:50But I just thank you
13:51for just being so raw
13:53and honest
13:54in your response there.
13:56Yes, ma'am.
13:56Really appreciate that.
13:58Natalie?
13:59I will follow up.
14:01She's like,
14:01I'm going to do my best.
14:02I'm going to do my best.
14:04No, I...
14:06Actually, I'm going to
14:06just tell a quick anecdote
14:07which is that
14:08when I was growing up,
14:09I was incredibly creative.
14:11I was reading all the time.
14:13I was also in love
14:14with musical theater.
14:16And I grew up,
14:17similarly to you,
14:18I went to a PWI
14:19but I also grew up
14:20in a very white neighborhood.
14:22And so in that,
14:23I remember looking around
14:25one day
14:25and as a child
14:26I was actually a theater kid.
14:28I was on Broadway
14:28and I did a lot of theater.
14:30But in that,
14:32I remember waking up
14:33one morning
14:33and thinking to myself,
14:35am I the only black girl
14:36in the world
14:37that's creative?
14:38Hmm.
14:38Is there anyone else like me?
14:40And is it like,
14:41am I an enigma
14:42because I have this creativity
14:44but the only people around me
14:46were white girls
14:47and boys
14:48who seemed to be
14:49allowed to be creative?
14:50And so when you ask
14:52the question about
14:53why it was important
14:54to build my main character,
14:56Siomara,
14:57into a world
14:59that was like classically white
15:01and in classical theater,
15:02I thought it's because
15:04I really wanted black girls
15:06who love reading,
15:08are smart,
15:09are hyper-intelligent,
15:11who have this love
15:13for a niche musical theater play.
15:16Like, that exists
15:18in abundance
15:21in our communities.
15:23And if we don't know
15:24that the black girl
15:26sitting next to you
15:27is also listening
15:28to Hamilton
15:29and her AirPods,
15:31then we are
15:32almost disconnected from it.
15:34We can't talk about it.
15:35And I also think that
15:36there's essentially
15:38one experience of blackness
15:40that I think is
15:41widely broadcast
15:42for women,
15:43especially in Hollywood
15:44and books,
15:45and it feels like
15:46an experience
15:46that I don't always relate to.
15:49And so I think to myself,
15:50like, how can we continue
15:52to build and hone
15:55into the story
15:56that we're not a monolith,
15:57that we all have
15:58this hyper-intelligence
16:00within us?
16:01And so that was really important
16:03and I thought,
16:03I love musical theater
16:05and that would help me
16:06get through writing this book,
16:07just giving myself
16:08personally, selfishly,
16:09a little bit of
16:10what I love in here.
16:11But I also really wanted
16:13people who read this book
16:14to connect
16:16to something niche
16:18and be allowed
16:19to connect to it.
16:20I love that,
16:21as you said,
16:21you know,
16:22that you felt like
16:23you were the only one
16:25for a long time,
16:26but writing this
16:27was part of
16:28maybe like that catharsis
16:29as well,
16:30just letting other people know,
16:31like, hey,
16:32we're out here.
16:33There's secret society
16:35out here.
16:36Love it.
16:37Join us.
16:38Yeah, I mean,
16:38for me,
16:39it started off
16:39even with the book cover.
16:41Even before I signed
16:42the contract,
16:43I said,
16:43hey,
16:43my non-negotiable
16:44is to have a black boy
16:45on the cover.
16:46I know that's right.
16:47I love that.
16:48And my agent probably was like,
16:49please don't say non-negotiables
16:53in the negotiation deal
16:54because I remember
16:55going into Books A Million
16:56back in Alabama
16:57and seeing Percy Jackson,
16:59seeing Katniss Everdeen,
17:01Edward,
17:02and I've never seen,
17:04the only black boy
17:05I've seen on the cover
17:05was Bud and I Buddy
17:06and Watson's Going to Birmingham.
17:08And that was
17:09when I was like six or seven.
17:11And so,
17:12that was my non-negotiable
17:13because I wanted to see
17:14a dark-skinned black boy
17:15on the cover,
17:16powerful,
17:17standing in front
17:18of a Spanish monstery
17:19because we all know
17:20what Spanish monstery means
17:21in the South
17:22and he is invoking
17:23the power of his ancestors.
17:25And I wanted that
17:26for all three books.
17:28So that was number one.
17:29And also,
17:31even like down to the colleges,
17:33like removing the white gaze.
17:34Like I even wrote a scene
17:36where they traveled
17:37to the Haitian Revolution
17:38because I didn't learn
17:40about that until in my 20s.
17:42Uh-huh.
17:42Shout out to the
17:43Alabama school systems.
17:44I didn't learn about it.
17:46And I was like,
17:47what would it be like
17:47if I was actually transported
17:49to the Haitian Revolution
17:49and learning
17:50that it inspired
17:51so many black,
17:53like so much black history
17:54in Alabama,
17:55Louisiana,
17:56all the way up
17:57to the Carolinas.
17:58Right.
17:58It inspired so much.
17:59Across the diaspora.
18:00So just to see
18:01this black boy learn that
18:02and be entrenched
18:04fully in his blackness
18:05and learning about it
18:07and learning the complexities
18:08of Haitian voodoo
18:09and hoodoo
18:10and like his spirituality.
18:12And because that spirituality
18:13was demonized
18:15because of Hollywood.
18:16Because of that gaze.
18:17That gaze.
18:18Can I add something?
18:19Yes, of course.
18:20This is so powerful
18:21what you're saying.
18:22Because one of the things,
18:22I did go to an HBCU
18:24and I've been a professor
18:25at Clark Atlanta now
18:26for 30 years.
18:27I know.
18:28That's right.
18:29Clap it up, clap it up.
18:30Love this audience.
18:31And as I'm listening to y'all,
18:33one of the things
18:34that I think is so powerful
18:35now in hindsight
18:36is the joy of a black kid
18:39going to a black college
18:40is intelligence
18:42is not an achievement.
18:44Yes.
18:45Yes.
18:45Right.
18:46Intelligence is who you are.
18:48Yeah.
18:48Yes, sir.
18:49It's what we do.
18:50It's what you bring.
18:51It's like the difference
18:52between if you grew up
18:52in a white church
18:54and if you grew up
18:54in a black church.
18:56Right.
18:56There's a difference
18:57between the Holy Ghost
18:58and the Holy Spirit.
18:59Okay.
18:59And the Holy Ghost
19:01does different kinds
19:02of things.
19:03Right.
19:03And it just makes me
19:04really, really clear
19:06that we should protect
19:08black children
19:09from these all-white spaces
19:11I think at times.
19:12Yeah.
19:13Because very often,
19:14yes, it seems like
19:15you get better resources,
19:17but you don't get
19:18a better self-worth
19:19out of it.
19:20Right.
19:21Right.
19:22And the self-worth
19:23I think is worth more.
19:24Absolutely.
19:24Absolutely.
19:26Who gets preaching?
19:27Right?
19:28He is preaching.
19:31Right?
19:31Don't be yas.
19:32Keep clapping it up.
19:33I want to just thank
19:35each of you.
19:36I want to take a moment
19:37to acknowledge
19:38the intentionality
19:39with which each of you
19:40spoke about
19:41choosing your characters,
19:43choosing your book covers,
19:44choosing the nuances
19:45in which you wrote
19:46certain sections of the book.
19:47I think it is so critical.
19:49We think about
19:49the publishing space.
19:50We think about media.
19:51We think about
19:52the representation
19:53or the lack thereof.
19:54And just hearing
19:55about the intentionality
19:56in which you did
19:57everything about your books.
19:58I'm just so appreciative
20:00of that.
20:00And just hearing
20:01the responses
20:01from the audience.
20:03I know they are too.
20:04So I just want to thank you,
20:05each of you,
20:06for that.
20:07And this conversation,
20:08I didn't get to go
20:09to church this morning,
20:10but I feel like
20:10I'm in church right now.
20:11You're in church.
20:12So keeping the conversation
20:16moving,
20:16I know this is moving
20:17pretty fast.
20:18I wish we could talk
20:19for much, much longer.
20:20But the last couple
20:21of questions that I have,
20:23we know in today's
20:25publishing landscape
20:26can be difficult,
20:28but what has been
20:29your biggest yes moment
20:30when you realized
20:32that your story
20:33had truly connected
20:34with your readers?
20:36Wow.
20:37I just had one.
20:41I was on TikTok Live
20:43with someone,
20:45and he told me
20:46that a group
20:47of young black men
20:49in a juvenile correction
20:50facility,
20:52they were passing
20:53my books around.
20:54Oh my God.
20:55Like,
20:56because they were like,
20:56I've never seen
20:57nothing like this before.
20:59Wow.
20:59And he told me
21:01that they said,
21:02like,
21:02I don't read books
21:03because books are boring.
21:04And they read my books
21:05cover to cover.
21:06And one of them
21:07is about to get out.
21:08And he said,
21:08he actually just applied
21:09to an HBCU.
21:10Wow.
21:11Wow.
21:12Which is because of my book.
21:13It was,
21:14that was beautiful.
21:15Like,
21:16I couldn't believe
21:17when I heard that.
21:17I was like,
21:18all because I sat
21:19at a computer
21:19and wrote this story
21:20and inspired somebody else.
21:22That's so awesome.
21:23That is,
21:24that's amazing.
21:25That's awesome.
21:25Yeah,
21:25what an impact.
21:27Thank you for sharing that.
21:29I will say,
21:30my book comes out
21:30in a week and a half.
21:32Come on now.
21:33Come on now.
21:34Come on after that.
21:36Congratulations.
21:37What a way to start off
21:38a new week
21:39and your book
21:39coming out next,
21:40coming out next week.
21:42So I've had limited,
21:44limited ways
21:46in which I can talk
21:46to my readers.
21:47But what I will say
21:48is there are people
21:49who were,
21:49who've gotten
21:50the early copy
21:51who have just,
21:52there was one girl
21:53specifically
21:54who slid into my DMs
21:55and she said,
21:56hi,
21:56like,
21:57I'm a black Dominican girl
21:59from Washington Heights.
22:00I want to be a performer.
22:01I've never seen myself
22:03in a book.
22:05And I can't believe
22:06how specific it was.
22:08It felt like
22:08I was writing my life.
22:10And I was like,
22:11so taken aback
22:13and I just DMed her back
22:14saying,
22:14thank you for DMing me
22:17and thank you for telling me
22:18because so often
22:18it feels like
22:19you're kind of right.
22:20Like,
22:20this was a Word document
22:21on my computer
22:22not too long ago,
22:23right?
22:24And so it's like
22:25for someone to say
22:26that they sat down,
22:27she goes,
22:27I read it in one sitting
22:28and I just flew through it
22:30and I thought,
22:31I can't believe
22:32how much this book
22:33sees me in my life.
22:35And I was like,
22:36thank you for telling me
22:37because I would never know
22:38that what people's reactions are
22:41unless they come to me
22:42because reviews
22:42and critics are one thing
22:44but hearing from a reader
22:45is so much more important
22:48and so much more impactful.
22:49And so,
22:50I'm excited for next week.
22:52And we're excited for you.
22:54We are.
22:55We'll be keeping up.
22:56We're excited for you.
22:57That's so awesome.
22:59That's so awesome.
23:00I think,
23:01I've had lots of yes moments.
23:03I think one of them is,
23:06I wrote a book many years ago
23:07called Perfect Peace.
23:09And I think one of my
23:12most memorable
23:13is when a group
23:14of Hollywood producers
23:15called me and asked me
23:16what I would think about
23:17a movie version
23:18of Perfect Peace.
23:20Right?
23:20And it's going to happen
23:22and I think
23:24just dreaming of
23:26the translation
23:26of your text
23:27to screen.
23:28To screen.
23:29Right?
23:29Was just a real affirmation
23:32of just the power
23:34of literature.
23:36So, yeah,
23:37that's probably what I'd say.
23:38Yeah.
23:39Wow.
23:40I could talk to you guys all day.
23:42Literally.
23:44Thank you each
23:45for sharing that.
23:46I think it's really important
23:48and powerful
23:48for people to know,
23:49especially, you know,
23:50no matter where they may be
23:51in their career
23:52or what they're working on,
23:54to know that
23:55those yes moments
23:56come in ways
23:57that you may not expect.
23:59Those moments
24:00sometimes come
24:01when you're just not sure
24:02if you're going to
24:03kind of get to the next step,
24:05but people are really able
24:06to help keep you going
24:07and also remind you
24:08of your why.
24:09Absolutely.
24:10And I think you all
24:10reminded each of us today
24:12like about those why's
24:13that we have
24:14when people come to us
24:15in ways that we wouldn't
24:16expect a DM,
24:18a juvenile correction facility.
24:20I don't think I'll ever
24:21get over that one
24:22for sure.
24:23And then like you said,
24:24seeing your text
24:25going from what you wrote
24:26to screen,
24:28that's really powerful.
24:30So to close here,
24:32this is a question
24:34that I thought would be,
24:37do something a little different.
24:39If the main character
24:40in your latest,
24:42in your book
24:43was sitting in
24:43this audience today,
24:45what advice do you think
24:47they would give
24:47to young black readers
24:49and dreamers right here
24:51or just in general?
24:55I'll go first.
24:57Okay.
24:58You're like,
24:59I'm talking about this.
24:59I'm thinking.
25:03My main character
25:04would tell readers,
25:08dreamers,
25:09authors
25:11to dream beyond.
25:14And that is something
25:15that I was really intentional
25:16about in the book.
25:17It's that we all
25:19have dreams too.
25:21And not that they're
25:22out there for us to dream,
25:23but that we're entitled
25:24to those dreams
25:25and entitled to making
25:26those dreams a reality.
25:27And that's something
25:28that she goes through
25:29a lot in the book.
25:30And I think by the end of it,
25:32well, I won't spoil it,
25:33but she,
25:34I'm not going to spoil it.
25:35But I think she learns
25:37that lesson
25:38and I think she would be
25:38saying to readers
25:39and to aspiring writers
25:41to not only
25:43to keep dreaming,
25:44but have a sense
25:45that you are 100%
25:47entitled to that dream.
25:48And no one can take it
25:49away from you
25:50if you know that
25:51it's yours to have.
25:54Love that.
25:56I think Malik would tell
25:59the black boys
26:01in the crowd,
26:02black boys,
26:03like you do have
26:04magic powers.
26:05I think he would tell
26:06the black girls,
26:06like you are
26:09the foundation
26:09and like I think
26:11he would tell them,
26:13he would definitely
26:14think them.
26:15I think also
26:16that stay connected,
26:20meaning take,
26:21you know,
26:21again with your elders,
26:23take pictures,
26:24scrapbooks,
26:24anything.
26:25Stay connected
26:26to your history
26:27because it's so important
26:29because that's how
26:29you know who you are
26:30and that's what
26:31you're going to carry
26:32throughout your entire being.
26:34so I think that,
26:35I think that's what
26:36he would honestly
26:37stay connected
26:38and he would really
26:39speak to each
26:41and every one
26:41of the person
26:42in the audience
26:43to say,
26:43you do matter,
26:44you do have magic powers
26:46and that means
26:47so many things.
26:48So, yeah.
26:49Yeah, love that.
26:50I think my characters
26:52would say,
26:52read for your life
26:53because one of the things
26:56that is true
26:57is if white folks
27:00were willing to kill us
27:02for learning to read,
27:04literally to create laws
27:06of the land,
27:07right,
27:08denying your ability
27:10to read,
27:11that means
27:12what they knew
27:13was that reading
27:14is the most dangerous thing
27:16that a person can do
27:17because the acquisition
27:19of knowledge
27:20allows one
27:21to access power,
27:23right,
27:24and when you're able
27:24to access power,
27:26you're able to change
27:27the reality,
27:28right,
27:29and so I think
27:30we've misunderstood
27:32our ancestors'
27:34fight to read.
27:35I think we've
27:36misunderstood it.
27:37I think we've
27:37thought about it
27:38simply as
27:39they just wanted,
27:41you know,
27:41the ability
27:42to pick up a book.
27:43No,
27:44what they wanted
27:44was the ability
27:45to construct a world
27:47in which they live
27:48and make their own
27:49rules and regulations,
27:50but what they understood
27:51is that if you don't read,
27:53somebody else
27:54is always constructing
27:55the world for you,
27:57and so I think
27:58my readers would say,
28:00read for your life.
28:03Come on.
28:04That's right.
28:05Awesome.
28:06On that really
28:09powerful ending note,
28:11I want to thank
28:12each of you
28:12for joining us today
28:14here at the
28:14Essence Author stage.
28:16Daniel Black,
28:17Natalie Guerrero,
28:18Lederian Williams,
28:19thank you so,
28:21so much
28:21for your time.
28:23Congrats on these books.
28:25Congrats on,
28:26you know,
28:26Publish Day next week.
28:27We're here for it.
28:28Pub Day.
28:29Pub Day.
28:30Yes.
28:31And thank you all
28:33for being so attentive,
28:34so engaged,
28:35and thank you for inspiring us
28:37on this Sunday morning.
28:39We hope you have
28:39a really beautiful rest
28:41of your day
28:41and continue to enjoy
28:43your Essence Festival.
28:45Yes, and of course,
28:46we can't let you be
28:47at the author stage
28:48without having our authors
28:49here to sign some books,
28:51so if you'll please join us
28:52around the corner,
28:53they'll be available
28:54to sign, to chat,
28:56and please be sure
28:57you support.
28:58Alrighty, take care.
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