Day One of Black History Month

It's officially day one of Black History Month. Here are my thoughts going in. Come along for the journey!

Day One of Black History Month

It is officially the first day of Black History Month and I want to start the month strong. So, let’s talk. 

I am dreading this month. 

Black History Month is one of the hardest times to be a Black content creator. I know from the outside looking in, you probably assume that February is 28 days of non-stop celebration. You see our followers and mutuals adding our names and photos to recommendation posts and assume that we feel loved and valued in a way that we don’t experience the rest of the year. But the truth is, February is filled with some of the most vile language we will experience all year in online spaces. At least, that has been my experience as a Black content creator.

My comment sections, DM’s and email is filled with hatred, slurs, and condescension from February 1st through February 28th. People who feel threatened by the advancement of Black people show up in droves to make sure that we feel small. Which is only complimented by a host of celebratory posts that will end the moment celebrating us is not “in”. 

It’s honestly a lot. 

And to be honest, I am nervous about how much worse it will be this year. Diminishing Black people is very much in at the moment. Which is why I am writing this. Because despite all of that, you are going to see me pushing for this community more than ever before. Because I firmly believe that creating space for Black and brown voices is as important as ever before. And you may see me talking about being overwhelmed, or frustrated, or even angry. But I will continue pushing, because this matters to me.

I have spent the last few years pushing non-stop for marginalized voices in publishing. Because I believe literature has the power to change the world.  You’ve seen me say that a thousand times and you’ll keep hearing me say it, because I mean it. And I think history proves it. The arts—including literature—have a profound impact on the development and shape of every society. And it is important to me that the art our generation produces includes the voices of Black and brown people. 

Earlier today, I saw someone ask the question, “How can you keep making content like everything is normal?”

Well, here’s my answer… because this fight became more relevant on January 20th, not less. The fight for Black and brown voices in literature became more important as white supremacy became the law of the land. It has been less than two weeks since he took office and already major corporations have abandoned their commitment to diversity and inclusion, a major publisher has launched a new conservative imprint, and racist rhetoric has grown louder, with fewer checks and balances. This fight—the fight to champion Black and brown voices in publishing—is more important than it was the day I started it. We cannot allow the bigots to drown us out. We MUST keep fighting for our voices to be heard.

So for me, while I will continue to talk about important issues, and to lend my voice to every fight for liberation I have insight into, I will continue to dedicate my platform to bringing meaningful change to the publishing industry. 

And as I remind you often, I need your help to do it. 

If you are not already subscribed to this community, please consider signing up. Because I will continue to put out blogs and essays on important bookish questions, I will continue to challenge white supremacy in this industry, and I will continue to highlight the voices in the margins. And by subscribing, you are giving yourself access to all of that content so that you can both grow individually and lend your voice to those important conversations. 

In that same thread, if you have the means, I am asking you to subscribe or upgrade to the $5 or $12 tier. As always, I want this community to stay as accessible as possible, so if that is outside of your means, please do not feel pressure to do so. Nearly all of my content is readily available at the free tier. And I hope to be able to keep it that way long term. But for those of you who would not be negatively impacted by a monthly investment of $5 or $12, please consider subscribing at one of those levels. 

The goal here is to resource this community to do meaningful work. Publishing is expensive. And on top of our publishing projects, I also hope to be able to bring together the resources to pour into indie projects and to continue the fight for Black and brown indies. For that to happen, we need resources. 

And lastly, here is something you can do right now to pack a punch for this community: pre-order our first publication.

Cry, Voidbringer is an anarchist, female-rage fantasy about a conscripted warrior who is rebelling against the Queen she has been forced to fight for in order to protect a powerful young girl who she is desperate to stop the Queen from turning into her next weapon of war. It asks its readers to consider the moral implication of war and to consider whether it is even possible to reform corrupt systems, or whether it is better to burn them to the ground and see what comes up from the ashes. A timely conversation, if you ask me.

You can pre-order the book anywhere you buy books, including bookshop.org, where you can grab the e-book for just $9.99 , and the paperback for a dollar off at the moment.

Anyway, yeah… it is day one of Black History Month and my hope is that we can spend this month propelling this community forward so that the work we do can have as big of an impact as humanly possible. The vast majority of publishing companies are run by white men and actively diminish the voices of Black and brown authors. Left Unread is fighting to change that, and I hope you will join us in that fight. 

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Michael

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Feb 1

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