The Next Big Thing

Many of us know how hard it is to get our work published and recognised throughout the global African/Black community due to the large number of mainstream publishing houses that will walk right over or ignore any manuscript that will not make them an immediate commission -the next big thing. That being said, many of these giant publishing companies and their counterparts or 'bullhorns' (mainstream media) are usually only interested in African/Black literary works when they can make them a fast profit which usually is at the expense of the community. In recent times many African/Black publishing companies have established themselves independent of the usual 'giants.' Although this is a giant step in the literary arena for African/Black people; there are still many of our own companies that overlook our genius while trying to stay current with certain trends in African/Black intellectual circles. What this means is that while the usual writers of history as well as our most dignified and distinguished Pan-African authors/scholars/speakers are essential in our quest and hunger for knowledge; it does negate the fact that there are countless up and coming African/Black people who have the ability to scribe books, essays, articles, etc. whose insights are beyond comparison. Sadly, some of the most talented and innovative writers/artists of our time go unnoticed simply because they have been rejected so many times by publishers who they thought would appreciate their work(s), or because they lack the necessary resources and 'know-how' that is instrumental in achieving success as a writer. It's time that these beloved geniuses take the realm of socially conscious and intellectually aware literature back into the hands of the people from whence it originally came. Bless.