Spoken word poet, author and activist, Mahogany L. Browne is making efforts to help Black women find magic in themselves. Being a writer, Mahogany writes for “sisters surviving human trafficking, young girls I saw walking with their shoulders hunched and their eyes down” and we are so inspired by her.
Talking about how she started writing, Mahogany says “I’ve been writing since fourth grade. I’ve been a full-time writer since 1999. I’ve been a full-time artist since 2001. Writing has been in my blood since I was stealing books from the library and being asked to bring them back five months later. I’ve been a writer since before I could remember. I would tell stories to anyone that would listen.”
Just like many writers, Mahogany gets her inspiration from the many things happening in our society – around us. “The mothers of the victims of police brutality. The sisters surviving human trafficking. The college graduates and the college dropouts. The collage makers, coffee baristas and my grandmothers. The women with hard to pronounce names and magically spelled nicknames. The bop. The dances and the girls with the asymmetrical haircuts.” She says.
Mahogany does not leave us without any advice. To all writers and black women, Mahogany says “Read constantly. Write even more. Find you a crew that would like to provide feedback. Find circles outside of your circle. Look at what is being published, what voice is missing? Introduce that voice to the canon. Don’t be deterred.”
If there is one lesson we have learned from this leading lady, it is to NOT BE DETERRED! What have you learned? Share with us.
Source: 21ninety.com
