Why I wrote Little Black Girl
One night while laying in my bed I began to reflect on my love for my daughter. I thought about how beautiful she was. How special she was. How much I love being able to watch her grow everyday. As my mind drifted with these thoughts, I got out my notebook and began to write. “Little black girl, do you know who you are? Do you know that you smile shines bright as the stars?” I was not writing a book to be shared with the world, I was writing my love for my daughter. I wanted her to know that her brown skin was beautiful. Her hair just as it was, it a gift. She could do and be anything just like the strong beautiful black women who came before her. And despite what she may hear in school she was a descendant of Queens not just slaves. I wrote what would later become Little Black Girl the book January 22, 2017. I called Z into my room and read it to her. 10 year old Z smiled, told me she liked it and kissed me on the cheek before going back into her room to watch tv and that was it. I closed my notebook and continued doing whatever it was that I was doing before I started writing, probably watching an SVU marathon. The next day while I was at work I couldn’t stop thinking about what I written the night before. I actually really liked what I wrote. I liked it a lot. So I did something I never typically do when I write, I shared it with my friends. Writing is private for me. I write my thoughts and feelings. What if I write something and people don’t get it. What if they don’t like it? To my surprise both of my girlfriends I shared the poem with loved it. One replied and I quote “LOVEEEEEEEE love love love yes. And if this somehow doesn’t become a book, ima copy it and give it to my future future futtururreeee lil girl.” The other said asked if I could make it into a book or maybe a poster that she could hang in her new baby girls room. My mother who is a teacher said “Brit, you need to do something with that!” My dad said it was something he would write for me! The more I shared it with family and friends the more positive feedback I got. The word book kept flying around but I didn’t even know where to begin that process and honestly how it became a book is another post :) I was so touched that something I wrote for my daughter could be relatable to so many others. Now I flash forward to holding my book in my hands. Receiving emails for people who have purchased the book containing pictures of their little black girls holding MY book. Pointing out that the girls in the book have hair just like theirs or prays just like them. My heart can hardly contain all the love. So if you are reading this post and encouraged me to publish Little Black Girl, thank you for believing in me. If you are reading this after buying a copy of Little Black Girl, thank you for your support and I would love to hear your thoughts in the comment section below. Be on the lookout for my next blog post when I talk about how Little Black Girl became a book including finding an illustrator and my self publishing journey!
