Zakiya Dalila Harris: ‘Publishing is such a spoofable world’

The author of a debut novel about diversity in the workplace on how black people act around white people, embracing her hair, and what’s changed a year after George Floyd’s murderZakiya Dalila Harris was born and raised in Connecticut and is currently based in Brooklyn. Now a full-time writer, she previously worked in book publishing, an experience she draws on in her highly anticipated debut novel, The Other Black Girl, which combines thriller with social satire to tell the story of Nella, the only black employee at a fictional publishing house, until Hazel joins the company. The book charts how the two become frenemies, explores the challenges of surviving in a systemically racist workplace, and was the subject of a 15-way auction prior to publication in the US.What were your own experiences in publishing and how have they played into the book?I worked in publishing for two and a half years. I was an editorial assistant then promoted to assistant editor. I felt fortunate, as a part of me enjoyed editing and I felt I was good at it, but it’s also an exhausting job for an entry-level person in terms of the pay. I was also one of the very few black people in the company – it wasn’t as bad as Nella in the book, but I was the only black woman in editorial in a full-time position for a while. I thought: why does it feel like we’re living in 1955 still, in terms of what we value? Publishing is such a rich, easily spoofable world.Code-switching is the act of switching up how... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2021-06-05 17:00:15 UTC ]

Other news stories related to: "Zakiya Dalila Harris: ‘Publishing is such a spoofable world’"


Reuters Names IDG Exec as New CMO | People on the Move

[caption id="attachment_160867" align="alignright" width="150"] Josh London[/caption] Reuters named Josh London as its new chief marketing officer, effective immediately. Most recently the CMO at IDG Communications, London will now be responsible for all aspects of marketing at the company,... Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2019-06-26 15:38:09 UTC ]
More news stories like this


For Fans of Ottessa Moshfegh, a Debut Novel of Female Psychosis

Juliet Escoria’s “Juliet the Maniac” sees the life of a bipolar teenager in gut-wrenching fragments. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2019-06-24 09:00:07 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Author Linda Holmes shares her D.C. Dream Day with a four-legged friend

The host of NPR's "Pop Culture Happy Hour" podcast has written her debut novel, the romantic comedy "Evvie Drake Starts Over." Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2019-06-19 22:05:02 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Hachette Books Ireland snaps up Instagram debut novel from White

Hachette Books Ireland has snapped up an "incredible" debut novel by Irish journalist Sophie White about the world of Instagram influencers. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-06-17 14:38:06 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Antrobus and debut author Youngson triumph at SoA awards

Raymond Antrobus and 70-year-old debut novelist Anne Youngson are among the winners of this year's £100,000 Society of Authors' Awards.  Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-06-17 02:12:28 UTC ]
More news stories like this


'Fleishman Is In Trouble' Investigates The Gender Sympathy Gap

Taffy Brodesser-Akner's debut novel is a divorce novel wrapped around a mystery: What are women really up to? Continue reading at The Huffington Post

[ The Huffington Post | 2019-06-16 12:00:06 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Zaffre bags 'timely' reality show novel from debut author Acton

Zaffre has bagged an "unbelievably timely" debut novel from Helly Acton, which has already been optioned for TV, in a two-book deal. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-06-14 12:23:54 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Ocean Vuong’s Debut Novel Is a Cascading Meditation on Generational Trauma

Ocean Vuong reads from his stunning debut novel, On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous. Continue reading at Slate

[ Slate | 2019-06-14 12:00:01 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Allen & Unwin scoops Oxford scholar's 'astonishing' debut

Allen & Unwin will publish the debut novel by Sophie Hardcastle, a research assistant at Oxford University, exploring “the female ill-treatment at the hands of men”. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-06-13 21:53:54 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Picador pre-empts 'razor-sharp' debut from Leilani

Picador has pre-empted a “razor-sharp, brutal and darkly comic” debut novel from recent NYU graduate Raven Leilani about a black millennial woman pulled into a suburban white couple’s life. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-06-13 21:43:52 UTC ]
More news stories like this


In Mona Awad’s ‘Bunny,’ squad goals include Pinkberry, creative writing and murder

“We call them Bunnies because that is what they call each other,” explains Samantha Heather Mackey, the narrator of Mona Awad’s new novel, “Bunny.” “Seriously. Bunny. … Bunny, I love you. I love you, Bunny.” Awad does so many things right in “Bunny,” her follow-up to her 2016 debut novel,... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2019-06-11 15:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


My TED talk: how I took on the tech titans in their lair

For more than a year, the Observer writer has been probing a darkness at the heart of Silicon Valley. Last week, at a TED talk that became a global viral sensation, she told the tech billionaires they had broken democracy. What happened next?If Silicon Valley is the beast, then TED is its belly.... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2019-04-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


INDONESIA FOCUS: Q+A Laksmi Pamuntjak

Indonesia is the country of focus at the London Book Fair this year and recently at Frankfurt - to what extent do you think Indonesian literature is finally having it's moment in the spotlight? I cannot say for certain what these one-off ‘spotlights’ on Indonesian literature would mean for... Continue reading at British Council global

[ British Council global | 2019-02-08 10:06:53 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Suspect arrested in fatal shooting of 7-year-old Houston girl

Authorities in Texas have charged a 20-year-old man in the shooting death of a 7-year-old black girl who was killed while riding in a vehicle with her family. The Harris County Sheriff's Office announced early Sunday that Eric Black Jr. was charged with capital murder in the death of Jazmine... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2019-01-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Facebook has 'black people problem,' ex-employee says

As Facebook defends its handling of Russian political interference, an ex-employee published another scathing critique of the company's culture. Facebook "has a black people problem," Mark S. Luckie wrote in a lengthy internal memo circulated earlier this month and made public on Facebook... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2018-11-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


How to be a black woman and succeed: two friends who have written the manual

Elizabeth Uviebinené and Yomi Adegoke have turned a dream into a hot publishing property – a self-help guide for black womenIn March 2015, Elizabeth Uviebinené had a brainwave that a less determined 22-year-old might have dismissed as a water-cooler pipe dream. It was ignited by a single chapter... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2018-06-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


UCL's adventures in Open Access yield global reach

In the two and a half years since its launch, UCL Press has made considerable strides. Benedicte Page reports. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2017-11-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Viking Nabs Former Intelligence Director James Clapper's Book

The yet-to-be-titled book is scheduled for publication in 2018 and will trace Clapper's career in the military and his six and a half years as President Obama’s senior intelligence advisor. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-07-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Not Your Bubbe’s Kasha Varnishkes: Jewish Cookbooks

For many people in the U.S., the phrase “Jewish cooking” calls to mind a specific kind of dish: “heavy, old-fashioned, and maybe not very good for one’s health,” says Kim Lim, assistant editor at Skyhorse. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-03-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this