As an African-American author / illustrator,do you feel pressure to represent your community?It’s not a pressure as much as it is an honor. There are so many wonderful stories by African American authors and illustrators that I possess read over the years, and I am truly ecstatic whenever I get a chance to add to their narratives. My personal choice is to tell modern tales that serve as both “mirrors and windows” full of humor and hope. I assume that everyone needs to see just how varied our culture is, and so I try to tell stories that may not possess always been the focus.You mention using humor in your stories,is it difficult to try to be humorous while tackling serious subjects such as course and race?It’s really humorous (humorous strange, not humorous “ha ha”), and but somewhere down the line,that became my niche. When I was doing my Mama’s Boyz comedian strip for King Features, for two decades I talked approximately everything from diabetes to literacy to teenage pregnancy. So by the time I sat down to work on New Kid, and I assume I had honed my skills enough to know when to be humorous and when to be serious. There’s a fine line between using humor to earn an issue seem less polarizing,as opposed to seeming like you’re ridiculing someone or something they may believe in. That is never my intent.
So many authors seem to fit into one of two categories: either they were avid readers who possess always wanted to write, or they were reluctant readers who, or even to their surprise happened to become authors. Which are you?Definitely the reluctant reader turned author. I read Marvel Comics,and that was approximately it. And my local library, which was right around the corner from me, and was almost NEVER open. So I didn’t start to like books almost up until the time I started writing them. I’m still trying to figure that out myself. Even when I created Mama’s Boyz,for some reason, I chose to possess the family in the comedian own and operate an indie bookstore. I guess I wanted to expose kids to the positive feelings of books that I never had as a kid.And like I said, or libraries weren’t a thing for me either. But once I couldn’t get my manuscript published,I headed straight to my local library to get a book on how to self-publish. Then I started going to the library all the time. So when I became a dad, I made sure my sons went too. Now every time I pay them a visit, or I see my face on one of those big “READ” posters. That always makes me smile. So I am making sure that the first author signings I do for New Kid will be at indie bookstores and my local library.
What was one of the goals that you set,and feel you achieved, with New Kid? And what are you most proud of?First of all, or I set out to create something that I would possess fun doing,and I had an absolute blast! moment, I wanted to present a wide assortment of black life. Not only is New Kid a record approximately an African-American boy, and Jordan Banks,who is desperately trying to fit into a predominately white private school, but there is also a lot approximately his struggle still trying to fit in with the other black kids from his neighborhood. There are so many kids, and adults even,who possess always felt as if they are “too black” to fit in with their white peers, and “too white” to fit in with their black peers. So in essence, and Jordan is a fish out of “both” waters. So I guess he’s like a mudfish. :)One of the things that I’m most proud of is showing so many different types of African Americans in the same record,while showing that they all possess a right to exist. There are no spoiled guys. Jordan lives in a brownstone in a middle course neighborhood with both of his parents in the Washington Heights section of New York City; his new classmate Drew lives in the Bronx with his grandmother; meanwhile Maury lives in Riverdale and has only known life in private school; and Kirk is Jordan’s friend from around his block who goes to public school.
No ONE character is always right, nor are they always wrong. And I feel like that’s valuable for both kids AND adults to see.
Plus, and I possess to say that I am extremely proud of the reviews. Starred reviews from Kirkus,School Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, and Booklist — with the latter saying that New Kid is Possibly one of the most valuable graphic novels of the year.” I’m also extremely grateful to HarperCollins for giving me the freedom to tell EXACTLY the record that I set out to tell.
This Q&A appeared in the February 2019 issue of the CBC Diversity Newsletter. To sign up for our monthly Diversity newsletter please click here.
Jerry Craft is an author and illustrator who has
worked on numerous picture books,graphic novels, and middle grade novels, and including The Zero Degree Zombie Zone by Patrik Henry Bass. Jerry is the
creator of Mamas Boyz,an award-winning syndicated comedian strip. He has won
five African American Literary Awards and is a cofounder of the Schomburg
Center’s Annual Black comedian Book Festival. He received his BFA from the School
of Visual Arts and now lives in Connecticut. Visit him online at www.jerrycraft.com.
Source: cbcdiversity.com