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Madame X
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, November 17, 2003 - 03:14 pm: | 
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Someone posed this question on the "dominant female" thread. Interesting -- I think if we're talking numbers, that would be either EJD or E.Lynn Harris...if we're talking quality - I dunno - I rarely read novels by men. |
Anonymous
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Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, November 17, 2003 - 03:32 pm: |
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I would have to go with Eric Jerome Dickey with E. Lynn running a close second. |
Thumper
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Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, November 17, 2003 - 09:54 pm: |
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Hello All,
The dominant male author is EJD, hands down. He took the genre to new limits. He casts a long shadow, sho nuff.
As far as the author who despite sells are making literary strives? There's so many that there is no dominant figure. There's the new guys, some grayheads, and some in between. I don't know. |
Cynique
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, November 18, 2003 - 12:47 am: |
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When I think of a dominant black male author, I think of somebody who would be Toni Morrison's male counterpart; or for that matter, Zane's counterpart because Zane does have good skills. Sorry, but best-selling authors EJD and E. Lynn Harris just don't measure up, as far as I'm concerned. I think more time needs to pass in order to give readers a chance to separate the wheat from the chaff in the dominant black male author category. |
lurkerette
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Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, November 18, 2003 - 07:51 am: |
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Mosley. |
Anonymous
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Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, November 18, 2003 - 08:02 am: |
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No one on this board has probably heard of this young brother yet but as far as depthness of writing, my vote would go to a newcomer, D.V. Bernard. His book is called The Last Dream Before Dawn and one of my college professors suggested that we read it. It was the deepest thing I have ever read and the writing was magnificent. If you get a chance, check it out. For serious readers, it will not disappoint but might go way over recreational readers heads. I doubt he will ever find the fame of EJD of E Lynn but he can definitely write better than both of them put together. |
Chris Hayden
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Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, November 18, 2003 - 02:09 pm: |
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No living male Black author dominates at this point. None is "The Man" as was Richard Wright, Ellison or Baldwin in their times. |
Carey
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Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, November 18, 2003 - 06:41 pm: |
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Oh Dang anonymous, the Heads-up award on D.V. Bernard has already been given out . He was introduced to the board a couple of months ago. The person that dropped his name was as equally impressed with this author. They said he writes better than 99.9% of the authors out today. Now that's saying something. Okay, this is going to give the tipster away. Bernard is on the Strebor label. Thanks for heads-up though, his name has not been mentioned since. Why is he such a secret? |
Posh Patty
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Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, November 19, 2003 - 06:06 am: |
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Oh lawd -- we have another "Kola" lurking on this board under "anonymous" and other names - Ya'll havent figured out that "anonymous" is Zane on the board tooting her own horn -- ? Toot under your name and be proud of it! |
Thumper
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Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, November 19, 2003 - 07:30 pm: |
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Hello All,
First, Zane ain't got no problem posting under her own name. It's unfair to accuse her of doing otherwise.
Yawl know, I got to thinking earlier today. I started pondering on the word "dominant". At first I was going with sales and influence the author has on those in his field. When it comes to black male authors, this question is all the more troublesome, for while it is real easy to say Morrison for the women authors, the same can't be said for male authors. The question we also should be asking ourselves is why are we have such difficulties naming a dominant male author?
One of the reason is the male authors that excellent writers, a few genius, are unknown to the majority of the reading audience. Albert Murray and John A. Williams are still living, but you won't see either men listed on the Essence bestsellers list. Then there's Percival Everret, Charles Johnson, John Edgar Wideman, Albert French, Ernest Gaines and of course Mosley. And naturally there's the younger authors that we are waiting to see how they turn out. All this to say that there are a horde of black male authors that we should know, and writers everywhere male or female, if they had a thimble full of sense, would try to emulate. Even though, I know this, when initially faced with this question, I drew a blank. We have been so conditioned that the literary field is so female orientated, many of us haven't noticed the absence of the male voice. Even when I mentioned Harris and Dickey, yes they are men, but their field is still in the women, girl coming of age or the sista-girlfriend genre (although Dickey is still the best writer in it), and let's be real, right now, that's the only genre that seems to count, much to my dismay. How did we end up here? Although the first answer is the fable that black men don't read, and that black women are now recognized as bankable consumbers, but how does these two things account for such one-sided-ness? |
Samuel
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Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, November 19, 2003 - 08:17 pm: |
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The reason Thumper...is that there is no longer a cohesive unity in the black male community that cherishes "intelligista" or intellectualism anymore--and there are few black male artists, other than Walter Mosley, that are devoutly interested in Black culture as a separate reality from the dominant culture.
I recently read the review of Caryl Phillips new book "A Distant Shore". The reviewer, a black man, said that the book could easily have been written by any other race of person--the lead character of the book is a White Englishwoman--the review pointed out that if he had not known it was written by Phillips, he would have easily assumed the author was White. It's reportedly an excellently written book, high in Quality, etc. But it has no black male voice that resonates with black men of today's culture.
Black males today gravitate to the "coolness" of Hip Hop Culture. They also seem to be lost, thinking of "materialism" and "honies" as a movement. Try bringing up Miles Davis or John Coltrane to them--try bringing up Ralph Ellison or James Baldwin. They'd rather hear from Tupac for Literature.
Black women, if you notice, are making all the BEST new black music of today. Lauryn Hill, that Badu woman, etc. etc. are the most innovative and creative--they have "a message", "a purpose" with their art and the community of black women is still intact to react to it.
Colson Whitehead has no such community of black males waiting to "think about" what he's laying down. And like Phillips, I notice that Whitehead is also concerned with blackness as a linear NON-issue. Perhaps it's not US they try to impress--but the white scholar crowd? Morrison, clearly, is ONLY concerned with what black people think of her work. That's an obvious difference.
Go to any Walter Mosley book signing...you see long, long lines of MOSTLY black women. If you ask them why they support him, they will tell you--"he's saying something--TO ME".
Many black male writers today have become the Sidney Poitier character in "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner". They're brilliant, but they've lost touch with the history of their fathers and they refuse to see the black female and black child as intricate parts of their own identity.
There are lots of great black male writers writing today, but they haven't gotten in the streets and taken leadership roles as Toni Morrison, Alice Walker and Maya Angelou have. There is no more Ralph Ellison speeches on society, no more James Baldwin "fire", no more Richard Wright declarations. Baraka is the last lion left, but his attack on Condie Rice seemed unfair and more about getting publicity for himself than arguing her politics. Notice how Rice has been accused of being "frigid" by some black men, "a whore" by others. EITHER OF WHICH...have ANYTHING to do with her politics. It's the kind of behavior you find from black males in Alice Walker novels.
Ishmael Reed has alienated himself from black women by basically glorifying sexism.
Lastly....I consider John Edgar Wideman to be the BEST and most important black male author living in America right now. But again--he's not necessarily "black", you know. It's that new image black men have where the men are on one side and the women and children on the other.
The males are out of touch.
That's what I think.
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JMHO
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, November 19, 2003 - 09:18 pm: |
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All this talk and another obvious choice not yet mentioned, least I don't think so, is Alexs Pate. I've read all of his books. I think he's "in touch." And, his book is the lastest reading selection for book club at this site.
Thumper, I agree. We need to really dig deep in our reading piles and not just act like there are no Black males writers. And, you ask a very good question. Wished I had a good answer. |
yukio
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Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, November 19, 2003 - 10:11 pm: |
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samuel:
What is "black"?
Streaming through your post is the assumption that social commentary is infused in writing inorder to make it good. Is this an accurate interpretation of your commentary, and do others agree that good black writing must speak to the social issue and/or cultural issues of black people?
It seems that many of the black male writers are attempting to be great writers, instead of great "black" writers, what that means. I think that the thematic fissure within black literature is that black women have been able to produce great fiction focusing on black social and cultural issues within the black community, while black men have gone outward.
I would also ask, how are we really talking about fiction? Are we talking about themes, styles,etc... you can have a writer narrate a story in a black idiom, a la ellison, and not necessarily focus on black social issues, such as whitehead in the Intuitiionist...... |
ABM
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Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, November 20, 2003 - 05:55 am: |
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Although I am unsure what we mean by "Most Dominant"...," I might pick Walter Mosley. Mosley's body of work is lengthy, laudable and lucrative. To the reader, his writing is accessible yet mature, folksy yet respectful. Mosley both entertains and enlightens.
And he is always provides a profound and revelatory interview.
The quality of Mosley’s writing, however, pales in comparison to that of late-greats Richard Wright and James Baldwin. |
InPrint
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, November 20, 2003 - 08:56 am: |
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Octavia Butler.
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ta bonne fee
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, November 20, 2003 - 07:33 pm: |
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In Print ... I don't think Ms. Butler has the proper credentials to be considered the most dominant Black male writer. |
Chris Hayden
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Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, November 21, 2003 - 10:43 am: |
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All:
Maybe the reason there is no dominant black male figure is because the dominant black writer is Toni Morrison and they only allow one at a time.
I agree about Wideman. Right now he is Charlie Parker or John Coltrane of writing. But I doubt he'll ever have a mass audience. His writing is too dense and complicated. |
yukio
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Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, November 21, 2003 - 01:00 pm: |
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CH:
There is an irony in your comments, for this is a black american website, so who cares what "they" think! Yet, you're comments suggests, perhaps, a deeper possibility, such as the idea that the white literary establishment limits african american genius, or should i say the spot light, to only one black author per generation. This is very real, since WIdeman has been as productive and his work as relevant as Morrison...he only lacks the Nobel!
Again: CH, i would say that Morrison's literature is as "dense and complicated." In my discussions with many readers of her fiction, it is clear that they only understand the plot and not necessarily the subtext, the literary and cultural iconography, etc....and thats ok! I often don't, but i reread and work at her literature as I do with WIdeman. I think both writers are available for the mass audience, the educated reader, and the literati, for give me for categorizing, btw! |
Chris Hayden
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, November 21, 2003 - 01:11 pm: |
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Yukio:
Wideman himself has stated that he has done the things that he has done because he was allowed to do them. They do spotlight one black author at a time--not necessarily of the generation, Wideman not only lacks the Nobel, he lacks the book sales, he lacks the hype, he lacks the Oprah push, he lacks the name recognition--Toni Morrison is a household name. People don't know who John Edgar Wideman is.
Toni may be as dense and complicated but she has the establishment out behind her, he, not having it will not be picked up by the casual reader while she will be because of the publicity push she gets.
Don't take this as me throwing stones at Toni for it-she gets it. She deserves it. But everybody who deserves it doesn't get it. |
Tee C. Royal
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, November 21, 2003 - 09:14 pm: |
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Dominant? Hmmm, I'm not sure as we all have our own connotation of the word, but I will say that some of my favorite male authors others are E. Lynn Harris, Timmothy McCann, and newcomer Keith Lee Johnson.
Brandon Massey, Brian Egeston, and a few others are on my radar as well.
-Tee |
ABM
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, November 21, 2003 - 09:35 pm: |
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Chris,
I agree with your reasons for the disparity in appreciation between Wideman and Morrison. Wideman is a splendid author and were he female he might enjoy adulation rivaling that of Morrison's.
I read somewhere that one of the main reasons why the (mostly White) book 'establishment' are more supportive of books written by AA females than they are of AA males is that the books written by Black females tend to criticize Black men while those written by Black men tend to indict White men. |
Chris Hayden
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, November 22, 2003 - 10:57 am: |
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ABM:
I think that the push behind black women authors occurred because a lot of them, Morrison, Walker, started writing during the femnist revolution (check and see what happened by contrast to black women authors who started writing during the Black Arts Movement--a lot of them received a push from femnist authors and editors and academics.
I think if Wideman wrote more like E Lynn Harris or Jerome Dickey or Walter Moseley--ie on those subjects--he might be bigger. I think if he was a female and wrote the same things he would probably still not have the audience--look at bell hooks and juliane malveaux.
I think the main reason they are more supportive of books written by AA females, at least fiction books, is that most AA readers of fiction tend to be females and most AA females are writing what these readers want to read--not saying that the establishment doesn't ignore books that indict white men--if I was in their position I'd have never published The Bell Curve or The Real Anita Hill or Rev Abernathy's slime job on MLK. |
Anonymous
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, November 23, 2003 - 11:20 pm: |
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Um, Posh Patty, I am definitely not Zane. If you were really paying attention, you would have noticed in one of my previous posts on the other thread that I clearly stated that I have not even read all of her books. I would assume that Zane has read all of her own books since she wrote them.
Geesh, some people really just want to be dramatic. Even you said in a post that Zane was the dominant female author right now and so did Thumper. How do we know you are not Zane since you are tooting her horn as well?-LOL
On another note, while Zane, Eric Jerome Dickey, E. Lynn Harris, Toni Morrison, Terry McMillan and everyone else being debated here are laughing all the way to their banks, I am currently reading The Ecstatic by Victor LaValle. I have to admit when I first saw the cover for the paperback, I was shocked. Then again, it was so horrid that I just had to purchase the book to read it. I am only a few chapters in but it is definitely different. Has anyone else read it or his other book, Slapboxing with Jesus? |
Ms. Vaughn
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, December 08, 2003 - 07:54 pm: |
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Anon,
They're teaching his book of stories at my college. The teacher is doing him and Colson Whitehead from the contemporary bunch and then following a literary line backwards to the slave narratives. Af-Am Male Literature/ People in the class liked the book a lot but said it's a lot of swearing in it. |
Troy
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Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, December 09, 2003 - 10:32 pm: |
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The most dominant black male author would be Walter Mosley -- hands down. He is a solid & prolific writer, he has cross over appeal, he is ubiquitous, he is socially concious, he supports the community, he sells a whole lot of books, he writes across several genres, he is a humourous and interesting speaker, he is a student of literature, while at the same time being a down to earth regular guy. I believe Mosely's impact will increase -- personally I look forward to it.
Sure there are authors who can beat Walter on any of the above criteria but no no one comes close in all categories combined.
Wideman is too obsure and past his prime. Though he couda been a contender. He had all the requisite attributes. Plus the physique and sex appeal which Mosely lacks.
E. Lynn and Eric Jerome Dickey are also dominant black authors based almost solely upon sales and popularity. They are young and have the potential to grow in dominance. Though I believe Harris will have a harder time appealing to hetersexual men in a significant way. Either way unless something happens to Mosley Dickey and Harris will not approach Mossley's dominance.
Did we forget about Omar Tyree he has potential in terms of dominance. While he is often viewed as overly arrogant and egotistical he continues to be one of the hardest working men in publishing. If he was a strong writer he would surpass Diceky and Harris easily in terms of dominance.
Less popular, but even more dominant than Harris or Dickey are authors like Kalamu ya Salaam and Haki Madhubuti. The impact of these men is not only felt through their literature but their social influence. The men are instituion building, leaders -- hence their dominance and importance. The are also active and young enough to have an growing impact over the next couple of decades.
Now I know this young man is not a writer of novels, but even as a cartoonist he is a writer. Aaron McGruder will be a very dominant force in future years. With a few more years of maturity we will begin to witness the birth of a Black "author" more dominant than Mosley.
Obviously I viewed dominance as more than just book sales and writing skill.
Today, Black women authors are more dominant than their masculine counterparts. For every dominant male I can think of I can think of two women.
b.t.w. ta bonne fee, I think Inprint's selection was a joke (devious grin).
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