Why Black Authors and Readers Rock

The event I attended this last weekend - The Black Authors & Writers Rock Weekend - was one of those reader-oriented parties I try to be part of every year. The concept is as simple as it is beautiful: bring a number of book club members together with several authors so that they can get to know one another. Sharon Lucas, the lady brave and ambitious enough to execute that concept has wisely broken it into two parts. On Friday evening she offers a cash bar and hor d’oeuvres to the roomful of avid readers and has the authors present in a fairly formal way. This year I was lucky enough to be on a panel, “Men of Literature” with five other successful writers who are book club favorites:  Dwayne Alexander Smith, EarlSewell, Brian W. Smith, RM Johnson, and Curtis Bunn. Their work deserves your attention.
Then Saturday 40 or so authors gathered for an all-day book fair, during which attendees enjoyed panels in other rooms. With lunch we got a nice keynote address from Dwayne Alexander Smith, author of 40 ACRES. It turned out to be a great place to introduce my newest novel, and I signed quite a few for the roomful of appreciative avid readers.
Everything I’ve said above would be great for any kind of reader oriented literary con. But why do we need a BLACK authors and readers weekend? When you pick up a mystery or romance novel do you really care what the author looks like? Well, we can debate whether or not anyone should, but the truth is, some people do. Some readers prefer to read books by people who are part of their own culture. This event had attendees from at least eight book clubs, all of whom were African American women. The clubs were as much social groups as literary groups and much of their reading is about Black culture in the 21st century.
It is also true that some authors don’t want to speak to a general audience. Personally, I think this is a mistake that limits an author’s progress, but some of the writers at this event have proven that targeting an audience and giving them what they want is one path to a certain level of success.
Another truth: books aimed at the African American reader rarely get the display space and attention in bookstores that others get. Worse yet, all such books are often lumped together and displayed with “street lit.” Trust me, none of the authors at last weekend’s event were writing about thugs, drug dealers or hookers.
So to an extent it is a vicious circle. Authors who don’t expect fair treatment in bookstores rely on these book clubs to get the word out about their work, and the word-of-mouth support of these book clubs really can make an author a success.

So I will continue to attend Bouchercon and Thrillerfest, but I will also make sure I get to the Black Authors and Readers Rock weekend. Because it lets me reach an important audience who are not represented at the mainstream Cons.