AALBC Search
Tramaine Suubi
Tramaine Suubi NONE Tramaine Suubi is a quadrilingual multi-hyphenate Bantu writer hailing from Kampala. They are a graduate of Wheaton College, the Iowa Writers' Workshop, a Yellow Arrow Writer-in-R...
Laila Ibrahim
Laila Ibrahim NONE Laila Ibrahim, a full-time novelist, achieved fame with her book, Yellow Crocus, published in ten languages. Previously a preschool teacher and director, a birth doula, and a Direc...
C. G. Esperanza
C. G. Esperanza NONE Charles G. Esperanza, a South Bronx native, is a renowned author-illustrator known for his unique fusion of jazz, graffiti, and whimsical truth. Known for his book “Red, Yellow, ...
Jay Bernard
Jay Bernard 0000000068355829 Jay Bernard is an acclaimed author, known for works like 'Your Sign is Cuckoo, Girl' and 'The Red and Yellow Nothing,' shortlisted for the 2017 Ted Hughes Award. They als...
Biyi Bandele
Biyi Bandele 0000000120964833 Biyi Bandele-Thomas (1967-2022) was a renowned Nigerian novelist, playwright, director, and photographer. He was celebrated as one of Africa's top 50 artists. Bandele's ...
Porsha Olayiwola
Porsha Olayiwola NONE Porsha Olayiwola, is the City of Boston’s poet laureate and the co-owner of Just Bookish a literary gathering space in Fields Corner in Dorchester. Porsha Olayiwola is the City ...
Brandon Massey
Brandon Massey 0000000038345320 Brandon Massey, born on June 9, 1973, is a passionate writer from Illinois now based in Atlanta. With an early fascination for words and stories, he began writing in h...
Connie Bradley
Connie Bradley NONE Connie Divers Bradley, also known as Cynique, is a retired postal worker and provocative columnist based in Chicago. She has been a notable contributor to the AALBC discussion boa...
Virginia Hamilton
Virginia Hamilton 0000000114915488 Growing up on a small farm near Yellow Springs, Ohio, in the 1940s, Virginia Hamilton was lovingly embraced by the sights, sounds and smells of rural...
Ida B. Wells
Ida B. Wells 0000000083935290 Ida B. Wells, born a slave in 1862, was an influential African-American journalist, editor, suffragist, and early Civil Rights leader. Notable for her documentation of l...
Anita Bunkley
Anita Bunkley NONE Anita Richmond Bunkley is a highly-acclaimed author and motivational speaker. Overcoming initial rejections, she self-published her first novel and has since written five more, all...
Kevin McGruder
Kevin McGruder 0000000071766805 Kevin McGruder is an Assistant Professor of History at Antioch College with interests in African American institutions, urban history, and gay and lesbian history. He ...
Indigo Moor
Indigo Moor NONE Indigo Moor, Sacramento's Poet Laureate, is a multi-talented writer with works ranging from poetry to plays. His award-winning books include Tap-Root and Through the Stonecutter’s Wi...
Shaniqka Thomas
Shaniqka Thomas NONE Shaniqka Thomas is a trustworthy individual known for keeping secrets and offering non-judgmental advice. Her animated personality and genuine approachability have fueled her pas...
Faith Knight
Faith Knight NONE Faith Knight also writes under the pen names FM Knight and Tanzy Kohl. She writes contemporary and historical fiction for adults and teens. Faith Knight is an author, wife, and moth...
James Baldwin
James Baldwin 0000000121446704 “No white critic can judge my work. I’d be a fool if I depended upon that judgement.” James Arthur Baldwin (1924-1987), born in Harlem, NY, was a ren...
Zoe Johnson
Zoe Johnson NONE Comedy writer and stand-up Zoe Johnson started creating characters at 8. At William & Mary, she brought her humor to the student paper; she now trains at Upright Citizens Brigade (UC...
Stubbs
Stubbs 0000000109147509 OHIO PLAYER Coming Of Age… When I was nine-years-old, I’d known early on in my heart that I was my own man. While most of my friends in Cleveland were running to ...
Wendy Jones
Wendy Jones NONE “I come from a family of storytellers. My mother and my grandmother were my first teachers.” The author, raised in a family of storytellers, learned the art of dialogue an...
Michele Andrea Bowen
Michele Andrea Bowen NONE Michele Andrea Bowen, a St. Louis native and Durham, NC resident, is a prolific author with degrees in Psychology, Social Work, Counseling Education, US History, and Public ...
HoeZee
HoeZee NONE HoeZee, a self-published author from Brooklyn, New York, uses his experiences from the neighborhoods of Flatbush and Bedstuy to fuel his intense writing. His novels vividly bring to life ...
Jacki Simmons
Jacki Simmons NONE Bronx-born, Harlem-raised author Jacki Simmons found inspiration in her surroundings from a young age. She completed her first short story at 11 and her first novel at 16. After wi...
Adrea Theodore
Adrea Theodore NONE Adrea Theodore is a mother, pediatrician, and children's author based in Durham, North Carolina. With a lifelong passion for reading, her debut book is 'A History of Me'. She also...
Jean “Binta” Breeze
Jean “Binta” Breeze 0000000025335932 Jean “Binta” Breeze (1956–2021) was a renowned Jamaican poet who published eight books and performed globally. She first gained recognition in 1985 at the Inter...
Marlon James
Marlon James 0000000072615785 Jamaican-born author Marlon James, featured on Mosaic Literary Magazine's cover, is a University of the West Indies literature graduate. His debut novel, John Crow’s Dev...
Greg_Thomas
Greg_Thomas 0000000055234489 Greg Thomas, a member of Plano ISD and truancy specialist, has an extensive background in counseling, particularly in substance abuse and at-risk youth. Prior to Plano IS...
Sharrif Simmons
Sharrif Simmons NONE Sharrif Simmons, a poet, musician, writer, and arts educator, has a performance career extending over three decades. Inspired by veteran poet Sonia Sanchez and influenced by vari...
Helene Cooper
Helene Cooper 0000000045708150 Helene Cooper, born in Liberia, is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist for The New York Times. She has served as a Pentagon Correspondent, diplomatic correspondent, and...
Stacey Abrams aka Selena Montgomery
Stacey Abrams aka Selena Montgomery NONE Selena Montgomery is the pseudonym of Stacey Abrams, born Dec 9, 1973, former Georgia House Representative and first Black female major party gubernatorial no...
Gene Edwards
Gene Edwards 0000000110696652 Gene Edwards is an American house church planter, Christian author, and former Southern Baptist pastor. A graduate of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, he stron...
Inked Elephant Publishing House
Inked Elephant Publishing House NONE Inked Elephant Publishing House
John Conyers Jr.
John Conyers Jr. 0000000025669916 John Conyers Jr. was a long-serving Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan, representing Detroit and its surrounding areas from 1965 t...
Elijah E. Cummings
Elijah E. Cummings NONE Elijah E. Cummings (1951-2019) was a dedicated public servant and congressman representing Maryland's 7th District. Born and raised in Baltimore, he studied at Howard Universi...
Ayesha Rascoe
Ayesha Rascoe NONE Ayesha Rascoe, host of NPR's Weekend Edition Sunday and Up First's Saturday episodes, is a former White House correspondent who covered three presidential administrations. Prior to...
Karine Jean-Pierre
Karine Jean-Pierre 0000000500800507 Karine Jean-Pierre is the former White House Press Secretary and Senior Advisor to President Joseph R. Biden Jr. Born in Martinique and raised in New York by Hait...
Andre Seward
Andre Seward NONE Andre Seward, also known as Poetryman7, is a poet who has been writing since 1998. His works are deeply grounded in faith and spirituality, exploring themes of love, grace, and fami...
Clarence Lusane
Clarence Lusane 0000000109374330 Dr. Clarence Lusane, a respected scholar and activist, specializes in human rights, global race relations, U.S. politics, and international relations. Born in Detroit...
Elizabeth Keckley
Elizabeth Keckley 0000000057594701 Elizabeth Keckley, born a slave in 1818, bought her freedom and became a leading figure in Washington society as a dressmaker and confidante to Mary Todd Lincoln. L...
Julian Bond
Julian Bond 0000000110860184 Horace Julian Bond was a pivotal figure in the Civil Rights Movement, politician, professor, and writer. He co-founded the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and t...
Valerie Jarrett
Valerie Jarrett NONE Valerie Jarrett, a long-term senior adviser to President Obama, led several White House initiatives and held key roles in Chicago's government and business sectors. She's recogni...
Dantiel W. Moniz
Dantiel W. Moniz NONE A 2021 National Book Foundation “5 Under 35” Honoree Dantiel W. Moniz is an award-winning author, recognized by the Alice Hoffman Prize and Tin House Scholarship. Her...
John Henrik Clarke
John Henrik Clarke 0000000109007688 Dr. John Henrik Clarke was born January 1, 1915 in Union Springs, Alabama and died July 16, 1998 in New York City. His family came from a long line of sha...
Keith Boykin
Keith Boykin 0000000034973717 Keith Boykin is a multi-talented author, political science professor at Columbia University, CNN commentator, and actor with a history of LGBT advocacy. A Harvard and Da...
Janet V. Kennedy-Jacobs
Janet V. Kennedy-Jacobs NONE Janet V. Kennedy-Jacobs is a registered Church Business Consultant, specializing in compliance with federal and state regulations for churches and clergy. She is the Pres...
Athena Dixon
Athena Dixon NONE Athena Dixon, a Northeast Ohio native, is a renowned poet, essayist, and editor, featured in 'The BreakBeat Poets Vol.2: Black Girl Magic'. An alumna of VONA, Callaloo, and Tin Hous...
Marvin X
Marvin X 0000000023827167 Marvin X, born in 1944, is a renowned poet, playwright, and essayist associated with the Black Arts Movement. Known for co-founding the Black House and Black Arts/West Theat...
Kelsey Norris
Kelsey Norris NONE Kelsey Norris is a writer and editor from Alabama. Her debut story collection, House Gone Quiet, is a finalist for the Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction. Kelsey Norris is a ...
Nikki Turner
Nikki Turner 0000000040675687 Nikki Turner, renowned as “The Queen of Hip Hop Fiction”, is an Essence best-selling author known for shedding light on the unseen side of street life. Balancing work an...
Sharon M. Draper
Sharon M. Draper 0000000374578086 Sharon M. Draper, acclaimed author of the Sassy series and numerous teen novels, is a New York Times bestseller and multiple Coretta Scott King Award winner. A forme...
Lawrence Jackson
Lawrence Jackson 000000004075078X Lawrence Jackson, former White House Photographer for President Obama for eight years, now operates a photography business in Washington, DC, where he resides with h...
T. D. Jakes
T. D. Jakes 0000000383058082 Bishop T.D. Jakes is the founder of The Potter’s House, a 30,000-member church and global humanitarian organization. Known for his best-selling books, he's recognized as ...
Nora Deloach
Nora Deloach NONE “I use [mysteries] as the opportunity to introduce people to real African-American characters.” Nora DeLoach (1940-2001), a mystery novelist and social worker, saw her de...
Vanessa Walters
Vanessa Walters NONE Vanessa Walters, born 1978 in London, is an acclaimed international journalist, playwright, and author. Known for her two YA books and 'The Nigerwife', she's a Tin House and Mill...
Johnny Compton
Johnny Compton NONE Johnny Compton is an HWA member renowned for his short stories published in various markets and his podcast, Healthy Fears. He is also the author of The Spite House. Johnny Compto...
Tiya Miles
Tiya Miles 0000000114701869 Tiya Alicia Miles is a historian and professor at the University of Michigan. Specializing in African American and Native American histories, she's the author of award-win...
Tracy Price-Thompson
Tracy Price-Thompson 0000000063835532 Tracy Price-Thompson is a highly decorated Desert Storm veteran, a successful author, and a retired Army Engineer Officer. A graduate of Rutgers University, she ...
Del Sandeen
Del Sandeen NONE Del Sandeen is a Florida-based copy editor and speculative fiction writer. She made her debut with “This Cursed House” in 2024. Her work has been featured in FIYAH Magazine, Nightlig...
Travis Hunter
Travis Hunter 000000001976938X Travis Hunter, author and mentor, gained recognition with his debut novel, The Hearts of Men. His published works include several successful novels and a young adult se...
David Lee
David Lee 0000000110370724 David Lee is an esteemed leader with nearly 30 years of ministry experience. Serving under T.D. Jakes Ministries, he led the Sunday school department and taught the first m...
Angela Flournoy
Angela Flournoy 0000000436914613 Angela Flournoy, author of The Turner House, a National Book Award finalist, has been recognized with numerous awards including the PEN/Robert W. Bingham Prize. A Nat...
Doreen Rappaport
Doreen Rappaport 0000000073677013 Doreen Rappaport, an award-winning author of 48 children's books, is celebrated for her unique storytelling style that combines historical facts with intimate narrat...
Anita Doreen Diggs
Anita Doreen Diggs 0000000117054812 Anita Doreen Diggs is a renowned editor, novelist, and lecturer, with experience at Random House, Time Warner Trade Publishing, and Thunder’s Mouth Press. She's a ...
Van Jones
Van Jones 0000000120304157 Van Jones, a Yale-educated attorney, is a best-selling author, environmental activist, and White House policy advisor. Known as a social entrepreneur, CNN political contrib...
Baratunde Thurston
Baratunde Thurston 000000036545820X Baratunde Thurston is an Emmy-nominated host, comedian, and NYT bestselling author of 'How To Be Black'. His diverse career includes working for The Onion, The Dai...
Bernette Ford
Bernette Ford 0000000038486553 Bernette Ford, founder of COLOR-BRIDGE BOOKS, was a renowned children's book packager and consultant, and an advocate for diversity in children's literature. She held s...
Toni Tipton-Martin
Toni Tipton-Martin 0000000035718195 Toni Tipton-Martin is an award-winning food journalist and community activist, recognized for her efforts to promote healthier communities. She's a recipient of th...
Brook Susan Parker
Brook Susan Parker NONE Dr. Brook Bello (formerly brook susan parker), CEO/Executive Director, and Founder of More Too Life, Inc. and Living Above the Noise Center in Florida. She is a #Champion fro...
Robert G. Barnes
Robert G. Barnes NONE Dr. Robert and Rosemary Barnes are coauthors, conference speakers, and experts on marriage and family issues. Robert is executive director of Sheridan House Family Ministries an...
Gary A. Johnson
Gary A. Johnson NONE Gary A. Johnson, founder of a management training and consulting company, is renowned for running popular web platforms like Black Men In America.com. With significant experience...
April Ryan
April Ryan 0000000437119582 April Ryan is a White House correspondent for American Urban Radio Networks since the Clinton era and a CNN political analyst. She has been featured in numerous renowned p...
Sheryll Cashin
Sheryll Cashin NONE Sheryll Cashin, an acclaimed author and Georgetown University Law Professor, focuses on US racism and inequality. Recognized by the NAACP and New York Times, she also worked in th...
Jacqueline Johnson
Jacqueline Johnson NONE Jacqueline Johnson is a multi-disciplined artist and award-winning author known for her work in writing and fiber arts. She has taught poetry at multiple institutions and has ...
Tracey Baptiste
Tracey Baptiste 0000000037347738 Tracey Baptiste, a Trinidad-born author, made her debut with 'Angel’s Grace', lauded by NYC librarians. Once a teacher and ballerina, she now writes and edits childre...
Adam Clayton Powell
Adam Clayton Powell 0000000121314963 Adam Clayton Powell Jr. was a Baptist minister and the first African-American elected to Congress from New York. He represented Harlem from 1945-71. A national De...
Wes Moore
Wes Moore 0000000071753983 Wes Moore is an author, TV producer, and political analyst born in 1978. He's the CEO of BridgeEdU and Robin Hood Foundation, focusing on education and poverty relief. A mi...
Elizabeth Dowling Taylor
Elizabeth Dowling Taylor 0000000120815969 Elizabeth Dowling Taylor is a PhD holder from UC Berkeley with a 22-year career in museum education and historical research. She directed interpretation at M...
Tiffany Dufu
Tiffany Dufu NONE Tiffany Dufu, author of Drop the Ball, is a prominent figure in women's leadership. She was part of the Lean In launch team and currently serves as Chief Leadership Officer at Levo....
Leland Melvin
Leland Melvin NONE Leland Devon Melvin, born in 1964, is a former NFL athlete turned astronaut, scientist, and educator. He flew with the Space Shuttle Atlantis, crafted optical fiber sensors at NASA...
JaNay Brown-Wood
JaNay Brown-Wood NONE JaNay Brown-Wood is a celebrated children's author and educator, known for her award-winning book, “Imani's Moon.” She teaches as an ECE professor at American River College and ...
Rasheda Ashanti Malcolm
Rasheda Ashanti Malcolm NONE Rasheda Ashanti Malcolm is a celebrated writer, playwright, and founder of Candace Magazine. She's received awards including the National Black Women Achievement Awards a...
Bonnie St. John
Bonnie St. John 0000000036620085 Bonnie St. John, the first African-American Winter Paralympic medalist, is a highly accomplished individual. Despite losing her leg at age five, she ventured into var...
Ernest J. Gaines
Ernest J. Gaines 0000000114766881 Ernest J. Gaines, born in Louisiana in 1933, is a celebrated author known for his unique historical resonance. His works, which earned him numerous awards including ...
Reginald Harris
Reginald Harris 0000000022558452 Reginald Harris, a noted poet and IT Director at Poets House, NYC, is a winner of the 2012 Cave Canem/Northwestern University Press Poetry Prize. He's received multip...
Gloria Mallette
Gloria Mallette NONE Gloria Mallette is a renowned author who began her career self-publishing “Shades of Jade” which was later picked up by Random House and made several best-sellers lists. Her work...
Monique S. Hall
Monique S. Hall NONE Monique S. Hall, former basketball scholar, overcame a turbulent past involving crime and prison to become a bestselling author. Her debut novel, 'Two Tears In A Bucket', caught ...
Kamala Harris
Kamala Harris 0000000065826859 Harris Made History as the First Female Vice President Kamala Harris, born in 1964, is a U.S. Senator from California, known for her work in civil rights and public safe...
Keith Mallett
Keith Mallett 0000000033964456 Keith Duncan Mallett, born in 1948, is a prominent artist trained in New York City. He spent 15 years as the in-house artist for Frontline Art Publishers and now works ...
Steve Cannon
Steve Cannon 0000000363821597 Steve Cannon (1935-2019) was a key figure in the Black Arts Movement and a prominent Black writer from New Orleans. He moved to NYC in 1962, where he engaged in literary...
Jamila Woods, Mahogany L. Browne, and Idrissa Simmonds
Jamila Woods, Mahogany L. Browne, and Idrissa Simmonds MULTIPLE Jamila Woods, a Chicago-based poet influenced by Lucille Clifton and Gwendolyn Brooks, explores themes of blackness and womanhood. Maho...
Brandon Taylor
Brandon Taylor 0000000510801896 Brandon Taylor, senior editor at Electric Literature and staff writer at Literary Hub, is a celebrated writer with fellowships from Lambda Literary, Kimbilio Fiction, ...
James Earl Hardy
James Earl Hardy 0000000042416478 James Earl Hardy is the author of the bestselling B-Boy Blues series, including B-Boy Blues, which has been praised as the first gay hip hop love story and is celeb...
Cheryl Woodruff-Brooks
Cheryl Woodruff-Brooks NONE Cheryl Woodruff-Brooks, a legislative assistant at the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, is a passionate writer and author of the 2017 book “Chicken Bone Beach.” She ...
Lalanii Wilson-Jones and Treavion Davenport
Lalanii Wilson-Jones and Treavion Davenport MULTIPLE Lalanii Wilson-Jones is a Dallas-based entrepreneur involved in Home Health Care, Hospice, Child Care, and event planning, as well as mentoring em...
Treavion Davenport
Treavion Davenport NONE Treavion Davenport, also known as Trea “The Storyteller,†is a renowned storyteller, ghostwriter, and producer from Detroit. She's authored urban fiction and self-help boo...
Dawnie Walton
Dawnie Walton NONE Dawnie Walton, a celebrated fiction writer & journalist, explores identity & pop culture. She's an MFA graduate from Iowa Writers' Workshop, a recipient of fellowships from MacDowe...
Kawai Strong Washburn
Kawai Strong Washburn 0000000500666563 Hawaiian-born author Kawai Strong Washburn is known for his work in McSweeney’s, Best American Nonrequired Reading and more. He's a 2015 Tin House and Bread Loa...
Safia Elhillo
Safia Elhillo 0000000464340864 Safia Elhillo, author of 'The January Children', is a celebrated Sudanese-American poet. She's notable for her 2016 Sillerman First Book Prize, 2018 Arab American Book ...
Kimberly Gee
Kimberly Gee NONE Kimberly Gee is an author-illustrator inspired by her experiences raising twins. She writes about the joy and challenges of parenting, creating books like “Mad, Mad Bear!” and “Toda...
Connie Schofield-Morrison
Connie Schofield-Morrison NONE Connie Schofield-Morrison, a mother, author, and entrepreneur co-runs Morrison Graphics, an art gallery in Atlanta, with her husband. She manages both her family and bu...
Willard Motley
Willard Motley 0000000081324621 Willard Francis Motley was a renowned columnist, freelance writer, and novelist known for his work in the Chicago Defender under the pseudonym Bud Billiken. He founded...