>>PUB: call for submissions: words and images of black girlhood
in america
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Call for Submissions
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Cornrows, Double-Dutch, & Black Girl Blues:
Words and Images of Black Girlhood in America
Photos by Delphine Fawundu-Buford
Edited by Ibi Aanu Zoboi
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>From sitting in between Mama’s legs holding a jar of grease while she
plaits your hair to confronting that new girl at the playground because
she was talking about you behind your back, Cornrows,
Double-Dutch, & Black Girl Blues will spark the tender memories
of girlhood shared by black women across the country.� No Shirley
Temples and pink laden tea parties here; just sassy attitude, big bold
smiles, beautiful brown skin, all rhythm, and sometimes blues.� The
words will evoke the preciousness and fragility of a black girl, while
reminding you of the resilience and determination of a proud, budding
black woman.� The images will make you wonder at the magic of a black
girl’s rhythm, the precision of the intricate lines, twists, and turns
of her cornrows, and her swift agility as she skips to each beat of the
telephone wire jump rope hitting against the concrete sidewalk.� The
collection will move you to tears as you realize the challenges that
black girls in America face, from poverty and violence to negative
stereotypes and lack of role models.�
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Cornrows, Double-Dutch, & Black Girl Blues will feature
the beauty, the innocence, and the charm of African American girls.�
The interviews, essays, stories, and poems will be reflections of women
looking back on their girlhood days, girls capturing their own essence,
and elders advising their daughters on the importance, the dignity, and
the spirit of a black woman in the making.�
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The editor seeks submissions that speak to the experience of the black
girl aged 7 through 12 in America.� Currently, this is a closed
invitation to women who either work closely with young black girls or
writers who can contribute an intriguing memoir.� Once we have secured
a publisher, an open call will be sent out to young girls across the
country to submit short poems.
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Topics should include, but are not limited to:
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Playground Culture: rope games (“Jack Be Nimble”, “All In
Together”), hand games (Uno, Dos, y Trece mispronounced), hopscotch,
confrontations, and fights (one-on-one or the ever so taboo “jump”).
•�
Sunday Best: frilly party dresses, Easter bonnets, and
patent leather Mary Janes and fold over socks with the laces at the
fringes (you just knew you were too cute!).
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Bows, Clips, & Bobos: girlhood hairstyles and
accessories (colorful plastic barrettes, bows that were burnt at the
ends so they don’t fray, and bobos or bubbles that you pulled out from
their bands to use them as marbles), hair grease brands (did DAX really
get your hair to grow to your shoulders?), wooden brushes (it sure hurt
your knuckles when you got hit with it for touching your hair before it
was done), and the array of combs with the gunk between the teeth from
all that grease.
•�
Brown Sugar and Hot Spice: sweet sayings and harsh words
from mothers, grandmothers, and teachers.
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Honey, I Love: first crushes and famous heartthrobs (Smokey
Robinson, young Michael Jackson, New Edition).
•�
I Am My Sista: images and characters of black girls in the
media (Penny, a very young Janet Jackson on “Good Times”, Dee from
“What’s Happening”, Rudy from “The Cosby Show”).
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Sister to a Sista: best friends, betrayals, bullies, &
backstabbing.�
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Blossoming: the onset of puberty, fascination with budding
breasts, first period, and discovering sexuality.
•�
Daddy’s Little Girl: memories of daddy, the absence of a father
and/or a grandfather, or the presence of uncles, stepfathers, or
mommy’s boyfriend.�
•�
Grandma’s Hands:� memories of and the relationship with Grandma.
•�
Mama Says: girlhood memories of and the relationship with
Mama.
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Guidelines
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Length:� Essays should be no more than 1,000 words.� Poems should
be no more than 1 page.
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Content:� We would like pieces that give snapshots into
one of the topics above.� Essays should be first person, non-fiction
narratives.� We want to hear your story.� Poems should address one of
the topics above.� We want to avoid essays or poems that address black
girlhood in general.� Pieces that pinpoint a specific aspect of black
girlhood are preferred.�
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Format:� Essays and poems should be typewritten and double-spaced on
white paper in 12-point size.� Include all contact information (name,
address, telephone number, e-mail address) on a separate sheet of paper
with a bio, age, and where you spent most of your girlhood (city and
state).� � Name should appear on the top right hand corner of the first
page of your submission.�
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Please e-mail submissions to:
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[EMAIL PROTECTED]
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Deadline:� Submissions must be received by April 15, 2006.�
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Response & Payment:� All accepted entries will be
notified by June 1, 2006.� Payment will be determined once we have
secured a publisher.� You will be notified when that happens.
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About the Photographer:
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Delphine Fawundu-Buford has over ten years of
experience as a photographer.� She has been featured in the photography
anthologies Black: A Celebration of a Culture and Reflections in
Black: A History of Black Photographers from 1840 - Present by Deborah
Willis. Her most notable photograph graced the cover of the companion
book to the Brooklyn Museum of Art exhibition Committed
to The Image: Contemporary Black Photographers. She has
also contributed to magazines such as Vibe, The Source, Essence and Honey.� Her works
were also featured in the critically acclaimed exhibitions Only Skin
Deep at the International Center of Photography and Open:
Artist Working in Brooklyn at the Brooklyn Museum of Art.
Of Sierra Leone and Guinea, West African parentage, she was born and
raised in Brooklyn where she resides with her husband and three sons.
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About the Editor:
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Ibi Aanu Zoboi is a writer and storyteller born in
Port-au-Prince, Haiti and raised in Brooklyn, New York.� A graduate of
the Clarion West Writers Workshop, her short story, Old Flesh
Song, is published in the groundbreaking sequel, Dark
Matter: Reading the Bones, a collection of African
American speculative fiction.� She has received an award from the Women
Writers of Haitian Descent for her story At the Shores of Dawn, and was a
“Tricky Talker of the Year”, an annual tall-tale contest held by the
Afrikan Folk Heritage Circle, the New York chapter of the National
Association of Black Storytellers. She has been a mentor and workshop
provider for girls in Harlem and Brooklyn for the past five years and
lives in Brooklyn with her husband, visual artist Joseph Zoboi, and her
two daughters.�
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