Living Histories

We were recently in Charleston, South Carolina for a week. There was a day I needed to print something so I decided to go to the nearest public library to work for a while and print. I visited the Baxter-Patrick James Island Library, which reminded me so much of the Pflugerville Library I got a little homesick. It was wonderful to sit and work for a while, wander around looking at the new titles and see all that libraries like these offer their communities.

On the way out, I noticed a beautiful shaded trail on the other side of the parking lot and decided to visit it. It lead to a sign that said, Evergreen Cemetery.

I walked carefully among the gravestones, not wanting to disturb this peaceful space. There were several members of the same family, dating back from the 1860’s to 2010. Before I left, I went to sit on the wooden circular benches provided in front of the gate to the cemetery, contemplating this beautiful resting place that the community continued to care for, and the stories of those buried there.

In his book, Over My Dead Body: Unearthing the Hidden History of America’s Cemeteries, author Greg Melville provides intimate histories of several historic cemeteries in the United States, and doesn’t shy away from the ugly pasts of those burial sites, including how many historic cemeteries were segregated, and how many historically Black cemeteries are underfunded, and forgotten, including the one that Sally Hemings was interred in as she and her children were denied entry into the Jefferson family plot at Monticello.

While we were in Charleston, my husband and I also had the opportunity to visit the International African American Museum. What I appreciated most about this museum was how it centered the history of the African cultural and linguistic diaspora across the America’s from before the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade to the present day, and how that diaspora continues in Charleston and other coastal areas of the Southeastern US with special focus on the Gullah Geechee communities. As a 90’s kid, I grew up watching “Gullah Gullah Island” on Nick Jr, but now as an adult am able to situate my understanding of these communities more clearly through a historical lens. In the museum, this beautiful short film by Julie Dash stuck with me, and I wanted to share it here.

I was grateful to be able to visit these places of historical knowledge and community care taking, and it caused me to reflect again on how history and information has always been controlled in this country to reflect a national story of freedom and prosperity that never really existed, and how our fascist government is trying to control what history and information is available to us now as a means of further propaganda and control.

But what has always been a real part of the “American” story is how the most brutalized and marginalized communities here, from people of the African diaspora to indigenous communities of the Americas to immigrants, have come together and fought for their well-being, cultural heritage and liberation despite all attempts by the US government and this white supremacist society to kill, displace and erase them.

I also finished reading Omar El Akkad’s One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This and woah, this book was one I read carefully and wanted to highlight almost every sentence. This is a book I would recommend to everyone. It is a vital indictment of Western neoliberalism and empire and the way that it has historically dehumanized Arab people’s and people of the Global South, specifically focusing on the Israeli oppression and genocide against Palestinians. I greatly appreciated how the author situated his own experience as an Egyptian man living in the West and his role as a journalist which has allowed him to witness the ways that neoliberal capitalist empires like the United States, Canada and more have created societies where endless violence, extraction and apathy is permissible. It provides an important opportunity for those of us in the imperial core to confront the ways we have been complicit in these systems and what forms of resistance, big or small, are needed to affirm that to live this way is not conducive to life, and that other ways are not just possible, but that this current way we are living is not inevitable.

Critically reading these books helps me to more critically engage with the world around me and with my own work. And now, as my younger sister is starting college, we are in dialogue about the state of the world and what she is learning. Being a college student in the US right now often seems frightening and disheartening, with college administration capitulating to the Trump administration’s fascist attempts to control open discourse on campuses. But I am heartened by her and youth activists who demonstrate time and again that despite our society’s attempts to control them, to use propaganda to turn them away from the work of liberation, that they are able to think critically, to discern the truth in their experiences and keep fighting. We all have work to do in confronting propaganda, engaging critically with history to better understand the necessary work of the present in our attempts to imagine and facilitate a more hopeful future.

What are you reading right now that is helping expand your understanding of the world we live in?

To find more photos and videos of our travels, follow me on Instagram or Tiktok!

I have plans to do two longer newsletters this month, but I wanted to send this one out sooner since I have some updates and I wanted to share these thoughts. Stay tuned!

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What’s Happening with Leticia?

As I work on several projects in progress, I am also revising my poetry chapbook that will be out in November of this year (details TBA) and my next book horror collection, The Remedy is the Disease, out next May from Undertaker Books, my historical paranormal novel, this new ecohorror/speculative story collection I started, a fantasy graphic novel script, and more!

As I plan for the release of my next two books, I am also visiting bookstores in the areas where we are traveling to plan book release events, workshops and more.

Do you have any bookshops I should visit or reach out to in the north east (besides in New York City)? Comment and let me know!

Fall Workshop!

I’m very excited to be offering this fall workshop, Creature Feature, on Thursday, October 23rd, 6:30-8:30pm EST on Zoom.

Are you a storyteller interested in exploring the tales of cryptids and creatures that go bump in the night? Have you ever considered how to push the boundaries of what storytelling could be by incorporating horror, folktales and traditional stories in your work? In this generative writing workshop for adults 16+, we will explore short stories and hybrid pieces that help us understand why we are drawn to the monsters and creatures across a variety of cultural folklore, especially the ones most meaningful or culturally significant to you. Then, you’ll have the opportunity to write your own pieces using persona and other storytelling techniques. You will even create your own creature! Cost: $100. Register here!

Other Services I Offer

I also offer editing and consulting services to help you with your own creative projects! I have over a decade of experience helping writers of all ages develop their creative voices and their work with a caring and supportive approach. I love helping people learn more about their creative processes to best tell their stories.

I am currently taking on clients ages 16 and up for my services, although if your child would like support honing and publishing their work, I am happy to work with younger clients upon request. Since I write across a variety of genres, I am able to work with folks who are writing poetry, creative nonfiction, short stories, novels and more, with a special place in my heart for horror, speculative fiction and fantasy. If you are working on a comic, that is fantastic. I would love to work with you! Or, please share with other writers you know who might be interested!

Giveaway!

I am offering free one-hour editing/writing mentorship consultations for the first few folks who donate $20 or more to The Sameer Project, a grassroots organization of Palestinian volunteers who are working tirelessly to provide meals, baby formula, water and medical supplies to families in Gaza despite the continued Israeli bombing and blockade. Comment or email me to let me know once you’ve donated and we can schedule a time to chat!

What I’m Reading: The Kids Are Alright

As a teaching artist who has worked with youth for many years, I love reading YA and Middle Grade works, and especially in September when students go back to school. Last year I made an entire reading list of Back to School Horror. It is beyond vital for children and youth to see themselves and their stories reflected in the books they read, and to have access to high-quality, diverse books. Unfortunately, access to these books is under threat now more than ever. Next week is Banned Book Week, and you can find lots of ways to support libraries, bookstores and communities who are actively working against book bans. If you’re in Texas, The Texas Freedom to Read project is also always looking for community support, especially after the latest legislative session pushed through more limitations on what students can learn and read in schools and local libraries. In addition, you can support the work of my former organization, Austin Bat Cave, and the Bat Mobile by donating funds to help them keep the Bat Mobile going and delivering free books. If you are in Austin, you can also reach out to them to give them books in good condition you no longer want for them to redistribute to local children and youth.

Since it is also still Latinx Heritage Month, I also wanted to highlight two books I am currently reading by authors I greatly admire that speak to the importance of diverse literature for youth and uplifting youth agency and their voices.

The first is The Story of My Anger by Jasminne Mendez. I will read everything that Jasminne writes and was thrilled to receive an ARC of her latest book. Use the link above to read the synopsis and get your copy (or request your local library purchase it!)

The other is What Fell from the Sky by Adrianna Cuevas. Adrianna is another author and cool person I follow and whose work I really love. Use the link above to read the synopsis and get your copy (or request your local library purchase it!). I am listening to the audiobook on Hoopla!

Call to Action: Opportunities for Solidarity and Care

Boycotts work. Strikes work. Collective organizing works. History has shown us this time and again that people united hold more power than those who would oppress and exploit you.

I am heartened by the courageous activists from around the world aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla who attempted to break the illegal Israeli blockade of Gaza this week, following in the footsteps of many others before them. Now, these activists, including one from my hometown of Austin, Tx, have been arrested by the IOF and are being threatened. One action we can all take is to keep our eyes on the status of the folks aboard those ships, pressure government officials and continue to call for their release, as well as for the establishment of a humanitarian corridor to Gaza to provide desperately needed aid. The US administration has demonstrated with the new “peace” plan released that they plan to occupy and completely ethnically cleanse Palestinians from the area, stripping them even further of their dignity and agency. Our solidarity is needed now more than ever.

In addition, due to the government shutdown in the US, if you are able to supporting local mutual aid groups, free fridges and food banks, this will most likely be necessary as people’s access to benefits and resources are affected.

Take care, each and every day ❤️

Leticia