I want the meet-cutes, the breakups, the makeups, and the final chase scene followed by the big speech where one person declares their love for the other. There is more to them (and their lives) than the painful, heavy issues imposed upon them by society.
We need to afford marginalized people the full measure of their humanity. We need marginalized people to know that there is joy in this world and that they are deserving of it. Why aren’t there more swoony love stories starring Black girls or Asian boys? Where are the stories of queer or disabled or gender-nonconforming kids experiencing pure, unadulterated joy? Where are their happily-ever-afters? You possess just as much magic as anyone else. You can be the one the world has been waiting for. These books say to that young Black girl or gay boy, you can be the hero. Or the main character is gay, but the book is about something other than the struggle of coming out. Again, issue books save lives.īut there’s another kind of life worth saving: the metaphysical one.Ī non-issue book is one where, for example, the main character is Black, but the book does not center on the pain of racism. They tell oppressed and ostracized children that there are people out there like them and that life can get better. I will go so far as to say that issue books save lives. We live in an age where we need issue books. Sometimes they’re shelved in the general population as well but not often. In general, these books have a lot of pain in them, and you can find them in the Black Interest or LGBTQ+ shelves at your local bookstore or library. Or the main character is a child of immigrants and the book is about the challenges of the immigrant experience. Or the main character is gay and the book is about coming out and the consequences, usually negative, of that action. You know what an issue book is: It’s one where, for example, the main character is Black and the book centers on slavery or racism or police brutality. I talk about the surreal experience of having both of my books- Everything Everything and The Sun Is Also a Star- adapted into major motion pictures.īut the the last two slides are my favorite: issue books vs. As part of my visit, I generally give a presentation, which usually includes a slideshow depicting my journey to becoming writer, details on my writing process, and some advice for overcoming writer’s block. But as much as I loved those titles, they always left me with nagging questions: Where were the girls who looked like me? Didn’t Black girls ever fall in love?Īs a writer for young people (my next book Instructions for Dancingis out June 1), I happily get to go on a lot of school visits. I had so many favorites: When Harry Met Sally, The Princess Bride, Before Sunrise, Say Anything, Moonstruck, Notting Hill, not to mention an unreasonable number of Harlequin romance books. When I was growing up, I loved romantic comedies and romance novels. I want stories that are not only about pain.
Or rather, I want more stories about Black people. I want different stories about Black people. I promise you, I promise you, I already know. To illuminate history, perhaps? To persuade, maybe? Still though, I don’t need to be persuaded that slavery and racism are evil. The more charitable part of me hopes that maybe there’s something else these movies are trying to do.
How many stories that center Black pain can America make and consume? Sometimes I think movies like these are a salve on the open wound that is racism in America. I empathized with slaves and their struggle, and therefore I cannot be racist.
I imagine an internal dialogue that goes something like: I watched that movie and witnessed the brutality and cruelty perpetrated against Black people. And what do these stories hope to achieve?Ī not-so-charitable part of me thinks movies like this exist to make people feel good about themselves. The question I keep coming back to is: How many stories that center Black pain can America make and consume? There are so many of them. Because I no longer want to watch fictionalized accounts of Black people being abused and killed. I mean the specific me-Nicola Yoon, Black woman, mother, wife, author, publisher. When I say it’s not for me, I don’t mean the me that is a generalized notion of a Black person living in America. But I’m never going to see it because I don’t think that story is for me. It’s won many accolades, including the Academy Award for Best Picture and near universal praise, so perhaps it’s more than fine. I’ve never seen 12 Years a Slave, and I’m never going to.