Emerging African American writers often struggle to find mentors to guide their writing, have trouble getting their work in front of editors or agents who understand their points of view and simply navigate the publishing industry.
Critically acclaimed author and St. Louisan David Haynes is working to connect Black writers to the book industry in new ways through Kimbilio, a fellowship program for Black fiction writers.
African American writers who are at the beginning of their careers and have the potential to win top book prizes in the next few years should be in St. Louis, Haynes said.
“We want this to be a stop for the writers who are really changing the culture," he said. “Kimbilio is well on its way to helping grow and make those changes in the literary world at large.”
Haynes started Kimbilio, which means “safe haven” in Swahili, in 2011 at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. Over the years, the program has provided hundreds of new Black writers with mentorship opportunities, a writing retreat with critiques from notable authors and access to editors and agents. It also offers writers the opportunity to win the Kimbilio National Fiction Prize and access to a reading series that begins this Thursday at Left Bank Books with National Book Award finalist Angela Flournoy and author Denne Michele Norris.
Haynes has written five young adult books and eight books for adult readers, including his latest novella, “Martha’s Daughter.” He said he moved the fellows program to St. Louis’ Grand Center Arts District this year to help grow the Black fiction writers circle in the region and across the country.
The program was born out of necessity. Haynes said while teaching writing courses at Southern Methodist University, Black students told him they did not feel supported enough in their Master of Fine Arts program, as they were often interacting with white students and professors.
“Kimbilio is, I think, more than anything else, it's a place where Black writers who are writing literary fiction and are serious about their work and are looking for a place and a community that can help nurture that,” Haynes said.
For Haynes, bringing Kimbilio to St. Louis was always his intention; it was just a matter of time. He said the St. Louis community is brimming with Black writers who just need the right opportunity. Haynes wants to help writers in the area grow their audiences and get their names in front of major publishing houses.
Lauren Morrow always wanted to attend a writer’s workshop specifically designed for Black writers. The Hazelwood native said she learned about Kimbilio and its mission and applied to be a fellow in the summer of 2023 to escape the demands of everyday life and quiet her mind to write.
“I never spent time specifically with only Black writers for a week, and it felt so nurturing and safe, and creative and productive,” Morrow, 38, said. “Everyone was so supportive of one another.”
She brought with her 20 pages of her debut novel, “Little Movements,” to be critiqued and workshopped. Morrow said she appreciated the block of quiet time Haynes built into the program because it made room for the creativity to flow.
“I think he's (Haynes) created something really wonderful with this program, and it's really special that St Louis is the home, because St Louis has such a rich Black cultural history, and so many wonderful Black writers have come from St Louis.”
Morrow said learning the industry as a new writer can be difficult and that the most common barrier Black writers have is not knowing the first step to becoming a published author. Morrow learned some industry tricks while pursuing her MFA, but she said many Black writers often don’t follow that route.
“When you've done a workshop like Kimbilio, that work is in really wonderful shape, because you've gotten the feedback of not only the people that are in your workshop, but also the professional leader who is a published author and so already knows what that process is like, and I think that's a really important part of the program,” she said.
One of the program highlights for Morrow was spending time with retreat faculty members, who are well-known authors, as they provided sound advice on their work, opening the door to conversations about challenges in the publishing industry and how to overcome them. Some faculty members include ZZ Packer, Jacinda Townsend, Natalie Baszlie and Angela Flournoy.
Flournoy, whose latest book, “The Wilderness,” is long-listed for the National Book Award, said the Kimbilio retreat program and reading series is like no other. She said some Black writers come from schools where they were the only Black students in the class, which can diminish their creativity.
“Many of us have and still do today, just sort of figure out a way to ignore it and still get your work done,” Flournoy said. “But it's not until you're in a setting like Kimbilio that you realize this really was like a drag on my tie, like this really was taking up space in my brain, because you feel what it's like to be able to think about your work without it.”
She said the shared resources and experiences that Kimbilio provides for its fellows set the program apart from any other writers’ fellowship.
“Kimbilio is no kind of hyperbole. It is one of the institutions that's really essential to securing a future of Black literary life in this country,” Flournoy said. “These books we're all excited about, the writers need community, just like everyone else, and that is why Kimbilio is so important.”
