Letters to a Writer of Color

by Deepa Anappara (Editor), Madeleine Thien (Contributor), Tiphanie Yanique (Contributor)

A vital collection of essays on the power of literature and the craft of writing from an international array of writers of color, sharing the experiences, cultural traditions, and convictions that have shaped them and their work

These seventeen essays by celebrated writers of color start a more inclusive conversation about storytelling and encourage readers and writers to re-evaluate the codes and conventions that have shaped their assumptions about how fiction should be written. Edited by Deepa Anappara, author of Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line, and Taymour Soomro, author of Other Names for Love, this anthology features writers from around the world, from a diversity of backgrounds and across genres, including: American Dirt critic Myriam Gurba, who describes the circle of Latina writers she has always worked within; award-winning novelist Tahmima Anam, who writes about giving herself permission to be funny as an artist of color; and New York Times opinion columnist Mohammed Hanif, who recalls censorship he experienced at the hands of political authorities.

Combining memoir with aspects of craft, this book asks readers and writers to be more inclusive not only in what they read, but how they read, and introduces them to diverse storytelling traditions and techniques. Filled with important questions about the state of fiction and what the future might hold, this is a touchstone for aspiring and working writers and for curious readers everywhere.

Genres: Writing, Nonfiction, Essays, Anthologies, Race

272 pages, Paperback

Published March 7, 2023

About the author

Deepa Anappara was born in Kerala, southern India, and worked as a journalist in India for eleven years. Her reports on the impact of poverty and religious violence on the education of children won the Developing Asia Journalism Awards, the Every Human has Rights Media Awards, and the Sanskriti-Prabha Dutt Fellowship in Journalism.

Reviews

[Rosh ~catching up slowly~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

In a Nutshell: This should be called ‘Letters By a Writer of Color.’ Has many thought-provoking points for writers and readers of all colours, including white. A relevant read in today’s world. Ought to be present in every library and added to literary courses.


It doesn’t take a genius to know that the world of fiction is extremely white-dominated. As the book also tells us, “the publishing industry is mostly white, straight, and abled.” But times are a-changing, finally.

In the last few years, there has been a riot of colour and a rainbow of gender in the fictional world. Today, we get to see books by writers of various ethnic, national and gender backgrounds. We live in times where the "whiteness" of English language fiction has slowly started turning multi-hued. However, does this point to a change in dominant voice? Are things now smooth for PoC writers? You already know the answer to that.

This book is a compilation of seventeen essays by published PoC writers from various countries – Phillipines, Cambodia, India, Nigeria, China, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Virgin Islands, … even the USA. A couple are by writers who identify as members of the LGBTQ+ community. This is diversity in the truest sense of the word, and it brings to the book an honesty and an authenticity you rarely get to see.

(It warmed my heart to see the editors’ backgrounds. The collection is edited by two writers – one Indian and one Pakistani, and if you know the historical background of these countries, you will realise how magical and unusual that combination is.)

I'm not a writer and have no plans of becoming one, ever. But as a reader of colour, I'm aware of how underrepresented and incorrectly represented we are in contemporary fiction, and not just by white writers. Moreover, many readers from "developed" countries jump to generalised conclusions based on the limited PoC fiction they read. Further, they want PoC fiction to cater to THEIR assumptions about the country. For instance, if it is an Indian book, they want only an exotic picture of the nation, with elephants and snakes and peacocks, whether true or not.

If you think that these are problems of the past, you are wrong. An Indian-origin acquaintance of mine, whose Mumbai-based crime-thriller was recently released in the USA, was forced to change the spellings of Indian words in her work to make it ‘accessible’ to US readers. Some of the reviews of her book are scathing, with the reasons for the one-star rating being as asinine as “Too many long Indian names.” Even an established author such as Murakami has had his novels altered during translation to make them more suitable to US audiences. Books like Terry Hayes' ‘I Am Pilgrim' are lauded and frequently part of Best Books lists, regardless of how they are stereotypical about any character not from a Caucasian background. White supremacy is so endemic in contemporary publishing that we don’t even recognise such behavioural patterns as being fundamentally flawed.

So you see why such a book is needed?

I rarely quote lines from ARCs, not just because we aren't supposed to share quotes from such copies without publishers' approvals, but also because I'm too lazy to type them out. But I'm making an exception this once, and I hope the publisher won't mind, because this sentence in the editor's note is the essence of the book, the reason why it exists and needs to be read:
"Readers and reviewers often shelved our fiction under such curious categories as 'cultural interest' or 'Asia', as if we were not novelists but ethnographers or anthropologists. We were asked more questions about the state of our nations than our writing. A single character's experience was often conflated with the experiences of an entire nationality or community."

The title indicates that these are letters written to writers of colour. However, as the editorial note also points out, the content will suit discerning readers as well, especially those who want to explore fiction beyond their own country and skin colour. The essays cover a range of topics, covering character development, translation, conforming to the Western ideal of writing standards, optimal writing conditions, drawing the line between fictional and personal, and a lot more. Some essays are better suited to writers as they focus more on the writing process than on the experience of being a PoC writer. But the book is not a ‘how to’ manual for writers; rather, a sharing of knowledge gained from personal experiences. Hence it should have been titled ‘Letters by a Writer of Color’, which would have further opened up its target readership.

My favourite essays were mostly ones that spoke better to the reader in me. Thus, ‘On Origin Stories’ by Taymour Soomro (Pakistan, Queer), ‘On Humor’ by Tahmima Anam (Bangladesh), ‘On Telling and Showing’ by Jamil Jan Kochai (Afghanistan), ‘On the Inactive Protagonist’ by Vida Cruz-Borja (Philippines), ‘On Art and Activism’ by Myriam Gurba (Mexico), ‘On the Second Person’ by Kiese Laymon (USA), and ‘On Political Fiction and Fictional Politics’ by Mohammed Hanif (Pakistan) were my top favourites, with 4.5 stars or more.

The content proceeds at a slow pace in most instances, but has enough of thought-provoking learnings to merit a patient reading. Each essay ends with a list of ‘Reading Suggestions’ by the contributing author. This was easily my favourite part of the book, and it is going to do a lot of damage to my reading list for sure, making it even more vibrant and colourful than it already is.

The only main change I would have made to this collection would have been to include the writer bios at the end of their respective essay than at the end of the book. Oh, and maybe I would have modified the colours on the cover as well. Such dull shades to denote writings by persons of colour? All non-white cultures are "colourful" [pun intended], so I'd have loved for the cover to appear as vivid in tone.

With the world today being more global than national, the way ahead is for writers, publishers, and readers also to be more catholic in their acceptance of cultural writing. This book will hopefully help us see beyond white and glimpse the glory of colour in fiction that springs from an OwnVoices soul.

3.9 stars, based on the average of my ratings for each of the essays.


My thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Random House and NetGalley for the DRC of “Letters to a Writer of Color”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.


As a parting gift, please allow me to leave you with the brilliant Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie talking about the danger of a single story. Watch. Listen. Learn. Imbibe.
https://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_...




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[A Mac · Rating 5 out of 5]

Actual Rating 4.5

This book is a collection of essays by various writers that discuss the intersections of race/ethnicity and literature. There are 17 essays that discuss topics including structure, translation, crime fiction, and queerness. These essays are largely personal, often reading as a combination of memoir and an analysis of a literary topic, which I found interesting. This approach allowed the essays to be quite personal, which brought the topics to life, as well as provided insights into many different communities. Each essay also ends with a suggested reading list on other essays/books relevant to the topic, which was quite helpful.

I enjoyed that this was the type of book where it’s most beneficial to read one essay then let it sit, rather than simply charging through the book as I usually do. It’s not a quick read but it is an insightful one, not only for writers but also for readers (maybe especially for readers). I’ll honestly probably reread several of the essays in the future and sort through the many, many highlights I made during my initial reading of this.

This read was extremely impactful and should honestly become a part of the curriculum for high school and college literature courses. Reading these essays highlighted things I have never considered and will positively affect how I approach reading from now on. This is a highly recommendable collection of essays for those who are interested in learning more about the endemic racism in publishing/writing that often gets overlooked or shrugged off. It also emphasizes how much work is still needed in the publishing industry and encourages readers to think critically and read diversely.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for allowing me to read this work. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

[Roman Clodia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a rich and fascinating collection of contemporary essays that meditates and moves on the postcolonial conceit of 'writing from the margins'. All the writers are non-white from across the globe and this also tackles issues of writing from queer, female, and non-Christian religious/cultural viewpoints.

One of the clear messages that emerges across the collection is the way publishing gatekeepers as well as readers have expectations that push writers of colour to tell 'immigrant' stories or stories about the histories and traumas of their countries or countries of ancestral origin, how they and their characters are supposed to stand-in for an entire complex nation or community, and how the books need to be 'comfortable' for a white audience. Tahmima Anam, for example, is excellent on how acceptable she was when her Bangladeshi trilogy was published, but how confused agent, publishers, and some readers, critics and reviewers were when she published her The Startup Wife that had other themes and was built on a desire to make readers laugh. The freedom of white writers to tackle all kinds of topics unrelated to their racial status and identity hasn't, it seems, been fully extended to all authors.

This is a collection which, in places, it surprisingly well theorised. It's also one which has much to say to readers as well as writers. Especially important is the concept of Western literary metrics and dogma when it comes to prose and style, and the dangers of writing that springs from non-Western traditions being dismissed as 'badly written' because it doesn't conform to diktats such as 'show, don't tell'.

With thoughtful essays on translation - cultural and literal - especially one on moving from a pictorial/visual language to an alphabet-based language, this is wide-ranging and consistently fascinating.

Many thanks to Vintage for an ARC via NetGalley.

[BookOfCinz · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you are a budding author, I cannot recommend this book enough!

The book features a huge cross-section of authors who share their unique experiences on being a writer of colour. More than that through, they walk you through different elements of storytelling from their perspectives. We read about:


Origin Stories, Structure, Authenticity, Humor, Character, Trauma, Translation, Queerness, Telling vs. Showing, Inactive Protagonist, Crime Fiction, Violence, Art and Activism, Second Person.. etc. If you are a budding writer, I recommend diving into this book.
I particularly loved Tiphanie Yanique’s exploration of Historical Fiction, she said, “all fiction really is (should be) historical and I could not agree more.
Budding writers, read this!

[Louise Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a thought provoking read. It's a collection of essays that are interesting and well written. These essays were written by writers of colour and share how their traditions and experiences have shaped their writing. Each letter focuses on a specific theme or topic connected to writing. The writers share their personal life's, failure in getting published, and their joys. We also get a list of suggested books from each of the authors that they recommend. I'm not a person of colour, or a writer, but i quite enjoyed this book, regardless.

I would like to thank #NetGalley #RandonHouseUK #Vintage and the authors #DeepaAnappara #TaymourSoomro for my ARC of #LettersToAWriterOfColour in exchange for an honest review.

[Kimberly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am not the intended audience for this book. I am neither a person of color nor a writer. However, I am an avid reader and I actively seek out works by authors whose backgrounds and experiences are vastly different than my own, and it is for this reason that I found "Letters to a Writer of Color" to be interesting and relevant to me.

I learned a lot from reading this book and it forced me to confront some of my own shortcomings as a reader- my own microaggressions and unrealistic expectations. I don't expect white characters written by white authors to be representative of the entire white race, why was I viewing characters of color as representative of their entire community, country, or race?

The prevalence of white supremacy in the publishing industry was also eye opening to me. It is ridiculous that publishers expect authors of color to write in such a way that makes their works more palatable and comfortable to white readers. It is absurd that we want our fiction to be apolitical and noncritical. I am of the belief that all fiction should be inherently political, because life is inherently political. White readers as a whole, and I am counted among them, need to recognize the harm we are causing when we insist that an author's writing conforms to our ideas of acceptability, instead of allowing our minds to expand to accept the idea that a book isn't bad or that writing isn't poor because it doesn't conform to Western traditions or closely held stereotypes.

When publishers confine writers of color to "immigrant stories" where everything is resolved when the character learns to conform to white society, tales of the trauma of living in an underdeveloped country that conform to stereotypes white readers have of these places, or expect characters to represent an entire complex community when that, of course, is impossible, they not only place limits on the writer's talent and expression, they also deprive their customer base, the readers, of potentially great literature.

This book is an excellent resource for its intended audience, but also for anyone who wants an honest insight into the publishing world and the expectations and limits it places on authors of color. Thank you NetGalley for the privilege of reading an advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am not a writer of color, but this has much to offer everyone. I do teach future writers of color, at least I hope, so I look forward to sharing these voices and insights with them. I'm already planning a lesson before assigning a family interview for my US history course.

I will put out here - white women main consumers of contemporary literature and fiction YOU REALLY MUST READ THIS. Hopefully it will introduce you to dynamic writers of color while simultaneously prepping you for some of the difficulties they and others confront in the publishing and reviewing process. You know, like Netgalley.

I would offer that instead of this book is too x, has too many "foreign" words, etc, think of what kind of information and scaffolding you need to fully appreciate the work. And then put pressure on publishers to provide that information, just like they offer book club guides. We must lead the charge to confront the white supremacy in the publishing world since we are the single largest contributers to it. Passively and indirectly for the most part. So we need to be mindful and active to confront the harm that our comfort causes.

[Vipassana]

The essay On Structure by Madeleine Thein embodies the lessons she wants to show the reader. Structure may not be the sort of thing that a writer needs to pin down. Luminous.

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

Letters to a Writer of Color, edited by Deepa Anappara and Taymour Soomroo, collects a series of essays by writers of color, written from their native countries or their adopted countries as part of the diaspora. Every essay has its own focus—such topics as humor, violence, translation, and queerness. Among my favorites are Femi Kayode’s “On Crime Fiction,” Mohammed Hanif’s “On Political Fiction and Fictional Politics,” and Deepa Anappara’s “On the Ideal Conditions for Writing.”

Deciding in middle age to write crime fiction, Nigerian-born Femi Kayode begins by rereading crime fiction he loved long ago, realizing the dearth of Nigerian crime fiction, and deciding to take Toni Morrison’s advice: “If there’s a book you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.” Kayode discusses the widespread belief that crime fiction exists to entertain yet argues that Nigerian or other non-mainstream crime fiction demands cultural background that threatens to detract from plot. Using his experience writing his debut Lightseekers, he explains, in part, how he took inspiration from a real-life multiple lynching in Nigeria, researched the event and related ideas, and shaped it into fiction that presents the humanity of the world and his country.

In “On Political Fiction and Fictional Politics,” Karachi journalist Mohammed Hanif narrates his experiences writing and publishing A Case of Exploding Mangos, a fictional account loosely based on the plane crash killing General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq and prompting extensive debate about whether it was an accident or assassination. Drawing on the resultant conspiracy theories and adding his own made up “facts” and theories, Hanif explains his interesting decision to write the book in English rather than Urdu, which could be more widely read by Pakistanis. He goes on to discuss the much later Urdu translation leading to Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq’s son’s defamation lawsuit against Hanif.

Deepa Anappara’s “On the Ideal Conditions for Writing” is a masterpiece of irony. She begins: “My sister is dying of cancer, and I am writing a novel.” Anappara sits in her sister’s hospital room working on an unnamed novel I recognize as one I read three years ago, Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line, and centered on an optimistic young boy searching for his missing friends although ever at risk of disappearing from the slums, himself. Anappara describes her childhood hardships, her determination to write despite warnings that writers are condemned to poverty, and her struggles with illness and unemployment after moving from India to England. She recounts her decision to study creative writing in graduate school and the pressure to adopt Western ways of writing to fit in while also realizing, “To write like my peers in a Western classroom I have to erase myself, but if I erase myself I have no story.” Despite a chaotic and tragic life, she writes, feeling guilt but writing on, rejecting writing advice that contradicts life as she knows it, accepting that she will never have the ideal conditions to write.

Whatever the specific focus, each author in this collection speaks from the heart, sharing experiences and thoughts to enlighten and encourage less experienced writers of color and providing reading lists to supplement their essays.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for an advance reader copy of this outstanding collection.

[Ritu Bhathal · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a writer of Colour, I was intrigued to read these essays by writers of various shades, with nuggets of advice and situations so similar, we have to sit up and take note.
An interesting read from a wide range of writers of colour. And it awakened an eye-opening sadness that we all face the same barriers in publishing, unfortunately... Unless we conform.
It's not enough to write what we want in the prose that we feel sits naturally and best with us if we want to get past the gatekeepers of the big publishers out there and into the hands of the readers. Or the readers those same publishers seem to think we should be writing for.
There are many more readers out there that don't fit the standard blueprint of all readers as they see it.
As POC writers, we can deliver our stories with different nuances.
We can make that bland story come alive with the extra spice or flavour we can add, depending on our background.
Unfortunately, it is sometimes dictated to us how 'hot' a curry (book) our readers can handle. Often we are stuck writing a mild chicken tikka masala when we want to add so much more.
Our writing should not always be considered a literary piece of art that can be studied and picked apart to learn about certain people. It should be read as fiction. To entertain, make people think, laugh, cry, as just that. Fiction. Not fiction from/for a certain diaspora.
I know I write how I want to write. My own experiences are woven within the stories to make them more real. And I will forever continue my Chickpea Curry Lit!
Many thanks to NetGalley, Random House UK and Vintaage for an ARC.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this eARC.

Letters to a Writer of Color presents a collection of essays from writers of color which delve into their individual experiences as writers and offer guidance, advice, and perspective for other writers.

Though this collection of essays is primarily by and for writers of color, this collection also serves to create and deepen a broader, more nuanced conversation about diversity in the literary world. The memoiric approach to each of these essays provides the reader with unique insight into each writer's perspective and experiences, and allows a level of openness and vulnerability that enables readers to genuinely connect with the material and really think about the experience of reading, and the importance of reading critically.

I don't really know what else to say about this book except that so much of it feels vital to the myriad conversations the book community cycles through online, particularly our treatment of books as marketable consumer products and the increasing tendency the online book community has to insist that reading for escapism automatically exempts one from critically engaging with texts.

[Lalaa #ThisBlackGirlReads]

This is a lovely collection of essays by writers of color that provide a distinct perspective on writing, storytelling, and diversity in the literary world. I love the way each piece provides a unique perspective from each writer and gives a little insight into their journey.

A few of my favourite pieces were:
On Crime Fiction - Femi Kayode where he discusses liberating 'African writing' and On the Second Person by Kiese Laymon where he discusses the racial politics of writing.

Each essay offers something different yet they all go together so seamlessly. One of the things I loved most about this collection is that each author provides their own list of reading suggestions, encouraging readers to dig a little deeper.

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some letters/essays in this collection are golden. I think its an important book and I am glad it exists.

[Yuezhong Zheng · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an advanced reader copy of the book in exchange for my honest review. Expected publication date: March 7th, 2023.

Letters to a Writer of Color is an anthology essay collection about the craft of writing and the writing life, from the perspectives of seventeen writers of color from around the world. These writers each contribute an essay about their writing life and their inextricably related personal life as persons of color. They write about their struggles, pains, joys, triumphs, and failures in the publishing industry dominated by whiteness, and their constant search for their place in the writing world.

This book is full of wisdom, courage, and truths. It is not only for those who write, but also who read.

In the introduction section, the editors share their hopes for this collective effort:

Our hope for this anthology is that it will create a sense of community for readers and writers who feel isolated, misread, silenced, or erased because they do not see their stories on bookshelves or their bodies in fiction.

These writers tell their individual stories and share their concerns for the world of fiction writing:

Taymour Soomro on the expectation that writers of color represent their own people, that they should “stay in their lane”;

Ingrid Rojas Contreras on writing about trauma and the commodification of trauma;

Xiaolu Guo on the burden of self-translation when writing in your second language;

Jamil Jan Kochai on writing and existing as an Arab/Muslim queer writer in a world where western-story telling is preferred;

Femi Kayode on liberating “African writing” from the poverty porn;

Myriam Gurba on white writers’ stereotyping and exoticizing of black and brown stories to satisfy the curiosity and feel-goodness of the white audience;

Kiese Laymon on how much “racial politics“ is enough to be a “real black writer” and the pain of writing the stories that no one wants to read;

Sharlene Teo on writing as a transnational experience - where one grows up in one country and now lives in another;

any many more.

Each essay is different. Each offers insights and very personal stories, about how writers of Asian, Black, African, Latinx, Muslim, queer, and immigrant identities navigate the world. They challenge us, as readers, to see beyond the story in fiction - that it’s not only about the story, but also about who wrote it, and why. It teaches us, as readers, to discern and perceive more critically(e.g. Myriam Gurba’s now famous critique of the 2019 best-seller American Dirt).

When I read this book at the end of 2022, I just started my Substack and had not published anything. I was mostly lurking around, creating drafts and deleting. I was nervous about putting my words out in the world and fearful about being judged. Who am I to review books and why would people care what I think?

I grew up in China and moved to the US to study when I was 18. I’ve always struggled writing in English, a history degree later. I make grammar mistakes, write sentences that are too long, and have to constantly look up English words that appear in my head to make sure it actually means what I think it means. I self-translate in my head. Sentences and words come into my head in English and Chinese, often mashed up with one another. I doubt myself.

Then, I came across these essays as if these letters were written to me. I learned that my words hold power, that my stories can be interesting, and that my perspectives do matter. That my imposter syndrome comes from not seeing enough of myself or my story in online writing. That I must write for myself first before I write for anyone else.

It’s a timely book for those who read and write, a book that calls for more inclusive conversations about the craft of fiction writing and the writing life. It resonated with me and I think it will resonate with many of you. I hope you check it out when it comes out on March 7th.

Each author ends their essay with a list of reading suggestions, encouraging readers to take on more readings to expand their knowledge. In that realm, here are mine:

Decolonizing Methodologies by Linda Tuhiwai Smith

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu

The Best We Could Do (graphic novel) by Thi Bui

Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning by Cathy Park Hong

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

This review was also published here: https://everytinythought.substack.com...

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5, rounded up. the essays in this were all pretty consistently good (though i can think of one in particular that i thought was significantly worse in writing quality though still interesting, without it this may have been bumped up in score), and brought an interesting perspective. and featured essays from writers i love, including kiese laymon and madeleine thien. i loved On Trauma by Ingrid Rojas Contreras and On Character by Tiphanie Yanique and On the Second Person by Kiese Laymon, and i bookmarked quite a few others but since the ebook got returned to the library i cant remember exactly what the bookmarks meant! would highly recommend.

[J Earl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Letters to a Writer of Color, edited by Deepa Anappara and Taymour Soomro, is a wonderful collection of essays (letters) that go far beyond just offering advice and insight to writers.

These essays are largely memoirish in nature, using personal experience (both directly related to writing and not) to illustrate the points each writer is emphasizing. While these certainly benefit writers who may experience any form of marginalization it is also great insight for any reader who read actively. To the extent any text is co-created (I hesitate to say co-written) by the author and each individual reader, these essays help readers better understand the lives of their collaborators, as well as better understand how to relate to, and gain more from, any work they are reading.

What makes this a book I can confidently recommend to most readers is just how enjoyable it is to read. There is hardship, there is some humor, and of course there is writing (creative) advice that runs from the pragmatic to the theoretical. Yet there is primarily a sense of the human being who is writing each essay, there is an invitation to join them and understand how they have arrived at where they are. For writers I know I recommend this even more enthusiastically.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.

[Cheri · Rating 5 out of 5]

”These essays continue a conversation that other writers of color have begun about the whiteness of English-language fiction and the disservice it does to readers and writers. We need more stories from more cultures, races, communities, and nations to dismantle structures that suppress difference and to challenge the perception that difference is failure. This book is not, and shouldn’t be, the last word on the subject.’ - Deepa Anappara and Taymour Soomro

Seventeen stories varying in length and theme on writing,

On Origin Stories - Taymour Soomro On Structure - Madeleine Thien
On Authenticity - Amitava Kumar
On Humor - Tahmima Anam
On Character - Tiphanie Yanique
On Trauma - Ingrid Rojas Contreras
On Translation - Xiaolu Guo
On Queerness - Zeyn Joukhadar
On Telling and Showing - Jamil Jan Kochai
On the Inactive Protagonist - Vida Cruz Borja
On Crime Fiction - Femi Kayode
On Violence - Nadifa Mohamed with Leila Aboulela
On Art and Activism - Myriam Gurba
On the Second Person - Kiese Laymon
On Political and Fictional Politics -Mohammed Hanif
On Reception and Resilience - Sharlene Teo
On the Ideal Conditions for Writing - Deepa Anappara

While these individual essays vary in theme, the connecting theme is about a need, a desire for those of us who read, as well as those who write, to expand the way stories are written and thus expand not only what we read, but how we read.

All of these are worth reading, but I enjoyed some more than others. Some share personal aspects of their lives, their struggles with both writing and life. I have read a few of these authors before, but not all, and some of the genres are not ones I’m typically drawn to, but will undoubtedly be helpful to people who appreciate the genre. Each section ends with ’Reading Suggestions’

Out of these seventeen, all of which I enjoyed even if I am not a fan of the genre they write, there were two which really stood out for me - Zeyn Joukhadar’s, thoughts on writing, as I had loved their beautifully written ’The Thirty Names of Night’ which I read some time ago. The other one was the last one in this collection - ’On the Ideal Conditions for Writing’ by Deepa Anappara, which was breathtakingly lovely and really brought this wonderful collection to a thought provoking and more than satisfying conclusion.

A thought provoking collection on writing, the frustrations, as well as the joy of writing as well as reading.


Pub Date: 07 Mar 2023

Many thanks for the ARC provided by Random House Publishing Group - Random House, Random House Trade Paperbacks

[M. K. French · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection is written by various writers of color, using empathy and wisdom to point out the conventions used in fiction. Why are novels written the way that they are, and using the structures that have become so familiar? They talk about using their backgrounds to lend authenticity to writing, censorship, the creation of art, humor, and giving themselves permission to be themselves and not a watered-down version for public consumption. Different cultures, genders, and sexualities are represented, giving us an array of opinions to look at our assumptions regarding what we read and how we evaluate it.

We open with an essay questioning truth in fiction, and the con that some people play regarding identity. Though other essays tackle different aspects of literature, it's still a topic thread running throughout. What determines an individual's true self, and how much of that belongs on the page? It's a question that always comes up, because the adage "write what you know" is there. Those from marginalized identities struggle with that question more, never feeling like their reality truly holds value. This can also be applied to story structure, as the three (or four or five) act structure tends to rule Western fiction. Other cultures have different traditions and focus in story, but that doesn't make it any less valid. Each of these writers puts forth a piece of their own history, and how that affected their writing and techniques. The phrases used, the choice of story to tell, the details to make it feel "authentic," all stem from the background each author has. The country or culture of origin, educational background, literary history and manner of getting published all play a role.

This collection of essays poses questions with no easy answers. It feels like a Fine Arts or literature course, which is rather the point. Each essay has suggested reading at the end, as well as examples within the text. The authors brought their own histories to the questions, showing us how to answer them. Vida Cruz-Borja talks about this frequently, and I liked seeing practical applications in essays, especially those by Femi Kayode and Xiaolu Guo. Bring the details that are important to characters. Show the village their ancestors grew up in. Make them fully realized people, not stereotypes or cardboard cutouts. Honor trauma, don't exploit it simply for shock value. Give characters of color the same careful attention in the world-building stages that white ones get, without fear of rejection or misunderstanding. These stories will get published and read, and the reader will see them as authentic.

[Karoliina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to the publisher for inviting me to review this title. I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

These essays are addressed to writers of color and, at the same time, benefit readers. Especially readers coming at stories with a Western perspective, expecting a certain narative structure and style from all fiction, as if the literature from their culture (or our culture - I'm included in this) was the universal standard. If you have engaged with literature from other cultures with an open mind, you do quickly learn that the way to enjoy that literature is to not measure it against your own culture's standards. Opening your eyes to other ways of telling a story is like discovering for the first time that Western music theory is not the only one that exists - it rocks your very foundation of what art is supposed to be and how we judge it.

The first essay in the collection, On Origing Stories, happens to be by an author I read recently (Taymour Soomro who wrote Other Names for Love), and it was a pleasant surprise to get to hear about his background and writing process soon after reading his debut novel. The other essays I was particularly drawn to were Xiaolu Guo's On Translation which talks about the complexities of writing in English and communicating your own story to an English-speaking audience, as well as Ingrid Rojas Contreras's On Trauma where she dwells into how to write about real-life trauma while respecting the experience and not turning it into "trauma porn" or by feasting on the shock value. And, of course, Zeyn Joukhadar's On Queerness, which talks about how difficult it is to talk about your sexuality and gender in a language other than English, when terms like "queer" do not have a good translation but, at the same time, English isn't the language of your identity and not being able to talk about your experience without code-switching feels alienating (I feel this frustration, since my native language does not have separate words for sex and gender, for example).

You'll come away from this collection with a lot of additions to your TBR pile, because in addition to wanting to pick up these authors' works, every essay ends with a list of recommended reading on the topic to expand your worldview further. All in all, these essays will help you engage with literature from other cultures in their own terms and make you a more adventerous, mindful reader. Highly recommend.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an advance copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Whew. It took a long time to finish this book. Every single essay left me so keyed-up, my brain buzzing, my stomach overwhelmed with a maelstrom of feelings. I had to take a break of a few days after each 20 minutes of reading to just let things settle, to try and make sure the much-needed nutrition got down into my bones.

When I say this is the most important book I've read in the past year, I mean it without exaggeration. When I say I feel like my life could have been different if I'd read it when I was young, I mean that, too. Each essay is completely different from all the others, but each one does an impeccable job of laying out so clearly the ways the world seeks to shut down people's voices. That alone is a gift. To feel validated, to feel less alone-- an incredible gift. Added to that is the real, honest, hard-earned wisdom on how to persevere, how to survive, how to keep trying to tell authentic stories in the face of so much BS.

When I look back on my life at all the gaslighting, all the ways big and small that my perspective and creativity were disenfranchised, the ways that so many of the brilliant authors and artists of color in my life have been ----not even fighting uphill battles, but scaling vertical-ass walls to get their work seen? It drives me crazy and disheartens me, and as soon as this book comes out, I'm buying a physical copy to keep by my bed, to turn to like a bible when I'm feeling sick of everything and want to give up. And I'm gonna be that obnoxious person who buys extra copies to foist on all my friends.

I wish I could highlight a few of my favorite authors from the collection, but honestly, there is not a single dud in the entire book. Some essays resonated more strongly with my experiences, as they talked about the intersections of race with gender, trauma, queerness-- but not a single one made me feel like, "oh, ok, this one I'm just gonna skim". This should 100% be required reading in high schools all across the country, and even if, like me, you're fully into middle-age, it's not too late to get a ton out of this book. Aside from all that I learned from it, it's just chock full excellent writing. Funny, moving, and at times playing with form in ways that are interesting and unpretentious-- truly worthwhile just as a a pleasure read, not as, like, homework.

[Ben Dutton]

Sometimes a book comes along that makes you wonder why nobody else has said those things before. Things that help shift your perspective on something you thought you knew well. This book did that for me. Let me explain:

I am a writer. I taught creative writing classes at university for a few years. I read a lot, and widely. I think Tiphanie Yanique in this collection put it best: I am a product of my literary upbringing - white and western, steeped in psychological realism. My prism will always be that. Writers of colour are taught in this mode too. This can strangle a writer into a straight jacket they perhaps shouldn't wear. Reading her essay, and all the others in this very fine collection, talked about a way of writing that is different.

The above makes me sound ignorant of other writing not of my white western background, which couldn't be further from the truth. When I was a student at the university I ended up teaching at, I found a distinct lack of ethnically diverse writing there, so I talked about Achebe, Garcia Marquez, Gurnah and more. I tried to show other ways of writing and thinking about writing but this collection did it so much clearer and concisely than I ever did. It also showed me new ways of thinking about writing and the craft of writing.

I wondered whilst reading if this collection would be of interest to someone not involved in writing or teaching writing - and by the end of the second essay I had decided that it would be. This collection is full of fascinating insight. It will bring you into contact with a great many writers, swell your TBR pile, and help improve your reading of writers of colour - especially true if you are not that to begin with.

This is a vital, urgent and necessary collection that should be obligated teaching on all creative writing classes around the world. It was an absolute pleasure and honour to read it and I thank all of the writers within it for so beautifully explaining their craft to us.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC.

[Liz (Quirky Cat) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book Summary:

Letters to a Writer of Color is a collection of essays exploring literature, and its impact on sharing experiences. As such, it delves into the lives and stories of real people, covering cultural traditions and other elements that impacted these authors' works.

My Review:

If there is a book that needs to exist today, it's Letters to a Writer of Color. There are a lot of reasons to love this collection of essays. The first reason is (I hope) pretty obvious. More than that, I adore that it discussed the need for more inclusive publishing and reading practices.

Yeah, you read that right! We can all be better about reading more inclusively (myself included – I'm working on it, but as I said, we can all do better). These essays help explain that it isn't just what we read but how we read. I loved that point.

If you have the time, please go and read Letters to a Writer of Color. It'll open your eyes and help share new perspectives.

Highlights:
Nonfiction
Essays

Thanks to Random House Trade and #NetGalley for making this book available for review. All opinions expressed are my own.

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[Sabrina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before I went off to creative writing school in North America I was writing every day, juggling 5-6 weekly columns with other journalistic features and my creative writing experiments. I had all the brash confidence of a twenty-something with a readership in the thousands (more credit to the Daily Star brand image than my own skills or lack thereof). I was told that getting into the graduate program was a fantastic opportunity and would open many doors for my writing.
What those two years in a largely White program did was completely shatter my self-esteem and leave me riddled with mental health issues that persist to this day. I was convinced I was not cut out to be a writer, even when a decade of journalism, a published anthology of shorts, a successful microfiction challenge tells me otherwise.
It’s hard to articulate what happened in those two years without sounding like I’m sour-graping. Reading these essays made me feel seen, heard, understood. Amitava Kumar told me that ‘authenticity’ isn’t so black and white. Tahmina Anam told me I didn’t have to be an ambassador for my culture just because I come from an ‘exotic’ place. Femi Kayode let me know there are more approaches to genre than my white teachers would admit. Deepa Anappara recognised the complexity of my feelings regarding having to find time and space to write even when the world heaps so many other duties to me. And they were just telling their own stories.

[Haerlee · Rating 3 out of 5]

For context, I am an American Black woman who reads widely and deeply. I am often called upon to offer recommendations of non-Western and writers of color to help "decolonize" reading lists and syllabi. As such, I was quite excited by this book and was challenged greatly by the opening chapter. There, the author sympathizes with white cisgender people who were unmasked as masquerading as someone they are not, like Rachel Dolezal. The sympathy and empathy offered to these actors argues that there is "truth in fiction" and that perhaps we can set aside some personal issues and understand that what they were doing was no different than other authors imagining the lives of others. I still have to sit with this ask, because of now, I cannot overlook the harm, privilege, and audacity these actors enjoyed; but that is only one chapter. In later chapters, we begin to get offerings that I expected: knowledge and craft from writers of color to writers of color: the chapters on humor and realism especially resonated with me. Further, I like that many chapters offer a reading list of examples of writers of color who exemplify excellence in their craft.

All told, I would recommend this book for libraries as a resource. I think that writers will be able to find something that strikes them.

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was scanning the new releases on my public library shelves and selected this book. It was purely happenstance and it will forever change how I interact with books and media. White dominance pervades the publishing industry, and Yellowface is a bestselling, fictional novel exploring this experience. I encourage you to read that book too.

“Letters to a Writer of Color” includes 17 personal essays from writers of color who detail how Western white dominance in the college setting, in writing workshops, in publishing, in readership impacts their work - from creation to editing to reception. Their essays detail how storytelling elements often vary by race, how translating impacts key messages, how the white gaze is wanting of trauma. I think back to several books I’ve read recently and understand through the essayists personal experiences how these elements impacted my reading and my reviews.

I do not wish to place the burden of my learning on people of color and, therefore, I want to be clear that I, as a white reader and writer, am not the intended audience for this book. The essayists are writing for other people of color, a place of understanding and bravery, collective presence. Yet, there is a reason I picked this book off the public library shelf and I will sit with those new understandings.

[Peter Willoughby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book.
It is not the kind of book that I would normally read, although I do enjoy a wide range of books, in my mind the only relevant criteria are am I enjoying what I read, is it well written, does it say something important, or new, and lastly am I a better person for having read it.
With this book, all of the relevant criteria were covered.
Not all of the letters covered all of the criteria, but they were all covered nonetheless.
I was drawn to this book by the fact that some of my favourite authors had written letters in it.
I was not disappointed. I am too old to become an author, although I have written lots of reports and letters in my lifetime, and I have seen and heard lots of people, places and events, the previous usually being helpful in creating a good story.
I would recommend this to anyone that is considering writing as a career, or as a hobby. It has some invaluable advice, not only about writing , but also about how to deal with the book industry.
I would also recommend it to anyone who likes reading good books, because as well as being readable, it also takes the reader down a layer of understanding of the writer's mind and the process of writing.
My thanks to the publisher for an advanced copy for honest review.

[Jesica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, this is a book I'd been waiting for. This anthology covers so many of the conversations I've had -- and heard -- with writers of color in my experiences as an editor and coach. It should be essential reading for everyone in the publishing industry as well as every white editor wanting to know how it feels to be a writer of color trying to be heard in an industry which prioritizes white readers and white perspectives. The world of ideas and creativity is so much richer for the diversity of perspectives which writers of color bring and when those perspectives get watered down for the sake of "relatability" or "palatability" on behalf of white readers, much is lost: not least of all the opportunity for our world to move forward in it's understanding of what it means to be a human being in a world predicated on racial hierarchy who is not at the top of that imaginary but all too real pyramid.

[Jamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a compelling collection of letters, each focused on a specific topic or theme related to writing, (on trauma, on second person, etc). I expected these letters to be pretty straightforward, more like writing advice, perhaps even a bit dull in its approach. Instead, (and maybe a result of great editorial direction), these letters often let us into the personal, tracing the lives and writing ups/downs of each author. These letters give a full experience of writers life. The focus on POC writers adds such richness, and addresses questions not often talked about in mainstream narratives about writing processes. My favorite part about the book is the reading list at the end of each letter!

[Robin Price · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of those hugely important books that needs to be explored like a lost continent: it is full of hidden gems, eye-opening honesty, heartbreaking pain and spirit-lifting hope. It is educational and enlightening and needs to be savoured.
As a reader and a writer I have always felt the need of reader and writer to have a connection. I don't mean we need to be the same. In fact as a reader I tend to take more from writers who come from completely different cultures to my own.
It becomes more and more important for the future of literature that writers of color are included in the mainstream but at the same time must retain their individual voices. Perhaps it is the big publishers who are most at fault? But times are changing now ...

[Neha · Rating 5 out of 5]

The feeling while reading this book was similar to the feeling of being in an affinity group for writers of color. Experiences that are common of those on the margins were outlined and described with vulnerability and care. As someone working to improve their writing and voice in PWIs, this was an invaluable resource.

I happened to read this while reading Yellowface by R.F. Kuang and though I’ve got separate thoughts on Yellowface, the books played off each other well - Yellowface as exaggerated fiction from the eyes of the dominant inspired by lived experiences, and this book of letters as realistic accounts of what it’s like to be a marginalized voice in an industry dominated by Anglo capitalist culture.