Letters to a Writer of Color is a collection of essays by writers of color sharing how their experiences, traditions, and expectations (often thrown onto them by others) have shaped their writing. One of the main themes is how the writing community often places demands on writers of color that they don't of white authors. Longing to be their authentic self these writers often felt the same demands in their own communities. I felt the longing to be accepted into both while at the same time could see their struggle to carve their own path. Each essay presents emotions and experiences differently, in a way that shows there isn't one way to write.



Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for a copy of this to review.

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.

I was taking a Chicano Studies class at the time I read this. One of the essays really resonated well during the time— and even after. Absolutely love this collection of essays. Well written, interesting, and I need more!

”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

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.

This forthcoming volume collects short essays from a range of writers of color, many of them well-known and highly accomplished. Ingrid Rojas Contreras, Jamil Jan Kochai, and Kiese Laymon are just a few. All are “On” something—Authenticity, Humor, Translation, Trauma. Addressing themselves and fellow writers of color, the essayists explore issues of representation, institutional and market pressures, community accountability, language, and craft. Sometimes they got a bit repetitive, but I suppose that indicates that some issues are particularly salient for the group. The essays are meticulously crafted to stylistically echo their arguments, but also are often earnest in tone.

I especially think these essays would teach very well. I didn’t agree with everything in them, which made them more interesting to me. I imagine that students at any level could find this collection’s provocations generative, and that they could spark discussions in any creative writing or literature class.

Book Review: Letters to a Writer of Color by Deepa Anappara (Editor) and Taymour Soomro (Editor)
a timely book for everyone who reads and writes.

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.

One of my perpetual resolutions is to read more essays. I love writing in the essay form, but ironically, I don't read many essays beyond Didion's. Letters to a Writer of Color was the perfect collection with which to start my new year. As a writer of color myself, I felt privileged to be able to receive advice from my industry elders. The collection is rich and thought-provoking, bringing together not just writers of color but writers of color from all backgrounds and experiences.

For me, the standout essays are "On Humor" by Tahmima Anam, "On Character," by Tiphanie Yanique, "On Trauma" by Ingrid Rojas Contreras, "On Queerness" by Zayn Joukhadar, "On Telling and Showing" by Jamil Jan Kochai, "On the Inactive Protagonist" by Vida Cruz-Borja, and "On Reception and Resilience by Sharlene Tao"—though it is probably most accurate to say that each essay touched me in its own unique way. Tao's essay in particular allowed me to recognize the flawed perception of "universality" that I had unknowingly perpetuated for years (and often on this very blog). The collection does not shy away from its title—letters addressed specifically to and from writers of color—and this kind of staunch pride allows for a serious, enlightening discussion in each essay.

The collection also encouraged me to reflect on my own experiences as a writer of color. Perhaps because I am young, or because I am growing up in a different time, I haven't encountered many of the issues discussed—the dismissal of writers of color's subjects by instructors or classmates, the insistence on universality, and the forced interpretation of international literature according to Western heroic canon. I feel fortunate to have never (or not yet) experienced these conflicts, but most of all, I am grateful to the writers in this collection for paving the way for me to come of age in a new, more accepting writing environment. This collection is a must-read for readers and writers alike.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Random House, Random House Trade Paperbacks for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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!

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!

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.

Letters to a Writer of Color edited by Deepa Anappara and Taymour Soomro is a collection of essays by authors of different racial, cultural, and geographic backgrounds. Each essay challenges the metrics used in creative writing classrooms around the world. Authors of color deal with so many barriers to publishing their work and once their work is published it is often heavily criticized by readers for being inaccessible or difficult to understand by white readers of the dominant culture.

The tenets of what is considered good writing often privilege a Western perspective that is not inclusive of the experiences of writers of color. The main argument of the collection is that there is no one universal rule(s) that can be upheld when we talk about what defines good writing and storytelling. Some of my favorite writers are included in this collection including Kiese Laymon and Tiphanie Yanique. As a lover of their craft, I cherish what they share about their particular journey of writing and publishing their work.

Tiphanie writes: "....before your own birth this wisdom of character development has been inside of you. The world destroyed you and your people before you in order for you to learn it. Do not let the world take it from you now." She then goes on to write about the distinctions between literary approaches such as psychological realism, social realism, biological realism, magical realism and other realisms that helped me as a reader understand the broader ways stories can be told beyond plot structure and the limitations and expansiveness within each approach.

I really enjoyed the different literary perspectives shared in this book. After reading I have new language to articulate some of the glaring issues I notice in publishing and the hurdles authors of color must overcome in order to get their work into the hands of its intended audience. Lovers of literature and the technique of writing and storytelling traditions will love this collection. I cannot wait to get my hands on a physical copy!

Thank you to the authors and publisher for the e-arc copy!