This episode features our latest livestreamed from Saturday, May 13, 2023 in honor of Mother’s Day weekend. We chatted with poet and nonfiction writer, Shirley A. Jones Luke who read for our 2021 Black History Month virtual event.
Shirley A. Jones Luke is a poet and writer. Based in Boston, Massachusetts, Ms. Luke has an MFA in Creative Writing from Emerson College. Her poems focus on culture, family, and society. Ms. Luke is working on her first collection entitled Traumaland, a manuscript in progress.
When preparing for Black Writers Read, we ask each guest on why do they write. Here’s what Shirley had to share:
"I write to survive. Writing keeps me alive. I write because I owe my deceased mother a book. I write for the future. My words and works will outlive me. Writing is immortality. I write to share and to inform. I write because there are those who wish to erase our stories from history. I write because our stories matter. At this time, there are those who worship guns over people. There are those who want to ban our books. I write to stop the erasure of my people's history in this country. Poetry is a powerful medium. I use poetry to express my feelings and thoughts. Poetry is a flexible form. I can do so much with my words through poetry."
Shirley’s work is available on her website at allpoetry.com/Sjluke. Also find her work on Medium.
To follow Shirley's writing journey on Instagram: @writercreativessjl
To follow Shirley's love of fashion on Instagram: @fashionistasjl