The Rumpus Interview: Connecting our Past to our Present

“Our language reflects our personal history and culture. I try my best to preserve language because it is one way we can connect our past to our present. Alice didn’t just fall out of the sky and land in New Jessup—she was raised by loving parents who did the best they could for her andContinue reading “The Rumpus Interview: Connecting our Past to our Present”

The PEN TEN: An Interview with Jamila Minnicks

“The words truth and fiction seem at odds because fiction is, by definition, a product of our imagination. But bell hooks told us: “To be truly visionary, we have to root our imagination in our concrete reality while simultaneously imagining possibilities beyond reality.”  Historical fiction is the concrete reality of our past meeting the imagination of our pen. SomeContinue reading “The PEN TEN: An Interview with Jamila Minnicks”

Writing to Preserve My Family on the Page

“Family has blessed my life and trusted me to tell our stories for true. To render us on the page in recognizable ways. From the first word to the last.” artwork courtesy of Catapult; Jacket design courtesy of algonquin books Read the full essay here Published by Catapult Photography by Samia Minnicks

Music Made the Moonrise…

The mask requirement could not hide the excitement in anyone’s eyes when MC Lyte took the stage to kick off I Am Woman: A Celebration of Women in Hip Hop at the Kennedy Center a couple of weeks ago. The lineup was spectacular–OGs like MC Lyte, Yo Yo, Monie Love and Da Brat sharing the stage withContinue reading “Music Made the Moonrise…”