You’ve read her books; you’ve been to her book signings and every time you’ve read a news notice about her winning a literary award, you beamed with pride. Sometimes, you even wish you could be her; or write like her!

Bet you went ahead and tried to pre-order her latest book Claire of the Sea Light even before it was available for pre-order. You’re that obsessed!

I’m talking about Edwidge Danticat, of course.

You’ll never write like her. Yeah, sorry to break the news to you! But fear not, you will be served with a special treat today! Some heartfelt advice from her on writing.

Let’s get started with the questions!

One…

When you’re writing a book, how do you know when you’ve done all you can on it? When it’s arrived to that level where you’re really satisfied with it, since writers it seems don’t think they’ll ever reach perfection?
I know I’m done when I find myself putting in and removing the same things over and over. In other words, when the editing starts getting repetitive, then I know I’m done.

Two…

What do you have to say to writers who feel that nothing they write is good enough?
When I was just starting out, a teacher of mine gave me the best advice on that front. She said, the mind is infinite and there are only so many words in any language. We all sometimes feel like what we write doesn’t live up to what we imagine. You just have to keep trying to get it as close as possible. You learn to write by writing, so keep writing and you’ll get a little better with each piece. As for doubts, all writers have doubts at some point or other, about the story, about the ability to tell it, even those writers who’ve been writing for a very long time.

Three…

What’s the best way to deal with writer’s block?
Read. Change your pace. Exercise. Go to the movies. Do something else. Have some fun. Take a break. Live your life. Sometimes you just need to put some space between you and the work you’re doing. I’ve been unstuck many times while reading. Take the pressure off yourself for a while and in some cases, the flow returns.

Four…

What’s your advice to aspiring writers about perfecting their craft, developing a style of their own and about writing itself?
Read a lot. Read Broadly. And write. Write. Write. You can only become a writer by writing. You can only discover your singular voice by writing your own singular story, whatever that may be. Don’t be discouraged. Keep at it. Remember you’re the only person who can tell the story you want to tell. Others can tell their story, but only you can tell yours.

Are you a writer? Which of these pieces of advice did you find most helpful?

[Photo Credit: Charlotte Christopher]

Award-winning playwright and actress Dominique Morisseau may seem like one of those professionals whose success was handed to them on a silver-rimmed gold platter. The truth is that the University of Michigan BFA graduate has been at it for quite some time. She’s been honored for her creative labors with prestigious prizes like the Jane Chambers Playwriting Award honoree, and even two NAACP Image Awards, and not to mention the John F. Kennedy Prize for one of her plays. Film is in the future, for sure. After all, theatre and film are the dearest of cuzzos. If the intensity present in her plays Sunset Baby, Follow Me To Nellie’s, and Blood At The Root are some indication, then her future features for the big screen are bound to be more complex than the films we’re used to.

K. St. Fort: When you’re writing a play, what do you do when you get stuck, whether what direction the plot should take…or how the character should be developed?

I go back to my outline. Rarely will I start a play these days without some outline or story structure that I’ve written out. It helps me not get stuck in the play. But occasionally when I do write blindly (with no outline) and I get stuck, I stop and think about where I want the story to go. I may begin an outline from that point forward so that I can see the finish line. It’s hard to write without visualizing the finish line. Once I know where I’m trying to go, I can always find the words to get myself there. Knowing where I’m going is the hardest thing to figure out and the most necessary.

K. St. Fort: If you could recommend three books to the creatives out there, what would you recommend? And what effect have these books had on you?

I’d recommend four: Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichi, The Street by Ann Petry, Native Son by Richard Wright [and] Breath, Eyes, Memory by Edwidge Danticat.

K. St. Fort: What effect have these books had on you?

Each of these books opened up my senses, made me laugh and cry, charged me to wrestle with my social and racial politics, and asked me to look deeper into my own soul. Loved them all.

K. St. Fort: What would you say to someone who wants to be a film director or a playwright?

Find a mentor who can help you measure your steps and who can help you strengthen your voice as an artist. We can’t do any of this alone, so find someone who you admire—several people, actually—and look at their work. Try to decipher what about it excites you. And then, seek their guidance so that you have resources to build your art. But first and foremost, exercise your craft whenever you can. Write. Write. Write. Direct, direct, direct. Whenever. However. Just do it.


K. St. Fort: Anyone observing your career can see that you’re on the brink of making the transition from stage to screen.

I’m expanding, for sure, and adding the screen into my repertoire. I deeply respect television and filmmaking these days. However, I’ll never be fully finished with the stage. Just expanding. Not replacing. I will love and practice theatre forever!

K. St. Fort: Where do you see yourself…say five years from now—career-wise?

Doing more of what I do now but better and more efficiently. I’m still growing as an artist. I plan on having a long career in Theatre, TV and Film. I want to write more about Detroit, Haiti, NYC, and other places that I’ve been or that resonate with me. As a filmmaker, I’m only just beginning. So in five years, I see myself with a completed film and perhaps my own TV series. That’s the plan. Let’s see what happens.

CLICK HERE TO READ PART ONE OF THE INTERVIEW WITH DOMINIQUE MORISSEAU.

CLICK HERE TO VISIT DOMINIQUE MORISSEAU’S WEBSITE.

Edwidge Danticat was nominated for an NCAAP Award for Best Book for Untwine in the Outstanding Literary Work-Youth/Teens category, her Young Adult novel earlier this year. And now, she’s been named a National Writer’s Conference honoree. She’s receiving her award at the Center for Black Literature at Medgar Evers College of the City University of New York. Her book Brother, I am Dying was part of the prestigious The Big Read Miami program.

This is her reaction to both honors, in an exclusive statement she gave to moi:

“I am extremely honored of to have my memoir in The Big Read Miami program. One does not do this kind of work for accolades, but it is always very heartwarming to know that my work has touched people and that they have reacted to it so kindly.

Given the climate we are in now, with all the electoral rhetoric and anti immigration talk, I am very happy that people will be reading and discussing Brother, I’m Dying at this particular time. I hope the book will shed some light on the lives of people who have gone through and continue to go through similar experiences and I hope it leads to more productive and humane conversations both in private and public places.”

Congratulations Edwidge Danticat. And call the carpenter and have him build another shelf for more awards. Good for you, girl.

CLICK HERE to read other articles (including interviews) about and with Edwidge Danticat.