Producing African American literary studies for the Public

Our Black Lit Network project is funded under the Mellon Foundation’s Public Knowledge initiative, which aims “to increase access to knowledge that helps to build an informed and engaged society.” Receiving this grant has been important in encouraging me to orient my mind and efforts toward producing work in accessible, public-facing terms. 

Scholars of African American literature are not always primed to reach the public at large. Much of our time and energy is understandably devoted to teaching classes, while the bulk of our publishing goes to specialized journals rather than newspapers, magazines, or other outlets designed for general audiences. 

I have engaged in public programming for decades, though such work has not always been a mandate of the field. My interest partly stemmed from a desire to connect my studies of Black Arts activities to contemporary contexts. In addition, when I directed the Black Studies program for several years, I was more inclined to develop public programming than I might have been had I worked solely within English. 

My work on the Black Lit Network has extended this public focus into digital fields and other realms. I have continued using this blog to share publicly oriented work, while also creating new initiatives: whiteboard animations, video essays, the Literary Navigator Device (previously known as the Novel Generator Machine), a Literary Data Gallery featuring data visualizations, a random generator for novel dedications, a podcast series, and more. 

Together, these developments allow me to present African American literary studies to the public in new and exciting ways.

Related:

• Developing the Black Lit Network