February 2017 – On Becoming

~Now~

Some Fridays, Amani made plans to meet her work colleagues at one of Downtown L.A.’s overpriced rooftop bars. For a city native like Amani, the words “Downtown” and “nightlife” sat uncomfortably on the tongue. The Downtown L.A. Amani remembered consisted of two extremes: pristine office buildings and makeshift tents inhabited by the city’s overwhelmingly Black and brown homeless. But the transplants at her office didn’t know—or didn’t mind—that so many impoverished people had literally been removed from the cityscape to make way for their favorite bars and clubs. No, the transplants only knew glitzy downtown, a gentrified space full of vibrant lounges, upscale shopping, and fancy lofts.

Even though Amani committed to these Friday meet-ups, she never failed to cancel because Friday evenings were reserved for her grandfather. Always. Continue reading “At King and Western “ →

My friends are writers. Not all of them, but a significant number. When you throw a bunch of writers together, they talk about books and exchange notes on craft. One of these writer friends of mine–a really close friend whom I’ve been blessed to know for ten years (!)–suggested that we record our conversation about writing and share it widely. I realize that not all of my readers know me personally, and even fewer know what I think about writing as process and form. This was my opportunity to rectify that! I’ll be sharing another piece on the topic soon. I also have another creative piece in the works that I’m eager to publish. In the meantime, however, I hope you enjoy this snippet of two nerdy friends talking about something that equally frustrates and excites them.

Until soon… Continue reading “On Writing: A Conversation Between Friends” →