What author of color deserves a bigger audience? What will you do to help introduce more people to this writer?
This is a tough one. The truth is that I don't read all that many authors of color. I'm actively working on fixing that. But most of the authors I come across are already award winners, which tends to lead to a sizable audience. There's not a ton I can do to add to that.
I have been pushing Octavia Butler on more people in the past couple of years. Her science-fiction is short and, I think, particularly pertinent to the world we live in. I wish Parable of the Sower was as popular as 1984 or Fahrenheit 451, because I think it's just as good and important as those classics. But it has also spawned it's own religion, so it's not like no one is reading that book.
At this point I'm trying to expose myself to a bigger variety of voices. And when I find a book I like, I recommend to anyone else I think I might like it. I also have a dedicated boo blog, though it doesn't get that many hits. And I've been trying to steer my book club to books that are written by women of color (we're two for three so far). But the truth is that this is an area where I need to do better.
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