This story and interview originally appeared in HuffPost’s Books newsletter. Sign up here for weekly book news, author interviews and more.
It’s an impactful thing to see yourself — and the struggles you deeply feel — reflected on television screens and in the pages of books. Michael Arceneaux, a Black gay man who grew up in the South in what he describes as a difficult childhood, said he couldn’t see himself the way so many others could, especially in media dominated by the straight, white and financially comfortable.
In Arceneaux’s collection of essays and other writings — a loosely connected series that will be complete with a third installment, “I Finally Bought Some Jordans,” in March — he describes wanting a kind of representation that goes beyond just Black or just queer, but rather a full-fledged and complex existence that everyone can and should find themselves in.
In his first book, “I Can’t Date Jesus,” Arceneaux discusses what it was like to reconcile what he was taught to believe about homosexuality in an overtly religious household, and who he knew himself to be. Using candid, moving and hilarious prose, he explores how to still have a close relationship with his mother while also not completely agreeing on some of those fundamental beliefs.
But it wasn’t easy to get to this point, according to the author. From very early on Arceneaux said there was some doubt about how commercially viable books written by someone Black and gay would be. As a result, he said he still experiences financial instability, amid inequities within the publishing industry and an on-going inability to shake some of the generational struggles that have and continue to impact Black men, like financial instability which he candidly explores in his second book, “I Don’t Want to Die Poor.”
Despite all of this, Arceneaux’s persistence and dedication to the craft of engaging storytelling has managed to heal and bring together some unlikely audiences. I had the opportunity to discuss all of this with Arceneaux ahead of this upcoming book release, “I Finally Bought Some Jordans,” which will be released on March 12.
Can you tell us a little bit about what readers can expect from “I Finally Bought Some Jordans” and how it relates to your other books?
It’s more of a broader collection of essays than my other two books. There are similar themes of family and identity, but it’s focusing on the chaos of the last couple of years. I write a lot about the pandemic and grief and being impacted by death. I talk about suicidal ideation [and] losing friends to suicide. I try to make sense of how life’s not exactly turning out how I thought it would, even with all of the hard work and certain accomplishments, [while] still trying to maintain a sense of hope. I think a lot of other people are kind of secretly carrying a lot of pain and frustration or grief and still trying to process that pandemic. I hope I can give people some kind of comfort like no, you’re not crazy or alone, these are valid feelings.
I think one of the things that you do so well is you write about these universal human experiences in a very relatable way that makes us all feel seen. Is this something that you intended for your writing to achieve?
My intent with my work in writing or in anything is to make people laugh, make people think, and to also create nuanced narratives about people like me. And when I say people like me, that’s working class, Southern Black, that’s anyone coming from religious backgrounds. And fundamentally, I just didn’t want people to feel as alone, as I often have.
In “I Don’t Want To Die Poor,” specifically, I write about private student loans and how they impacted every facet of my life. Private loans are disproportionately impacting a lot of Black college graduates and students, so I wanted to talk about what it’s like to have that financial insecurity.
Another goal that I had was … particularly in publishing, to make it easier for people to see the commercial viability in stories that they don’t necessarily usually value monetarily and not on equal footing as often their white counterparts.
Is that something then that you think would improve circumstances for minorities in the media and literary world? To make content like yours more mainstream and conventional?
I do, honestly. I think a lot of us would be a lot better off if we really truly engaged with works that are created by people who are not like them because you can learn a lot from different types of people. When I’ve spoken on platforms like NPR and PBS, yes, I got so many messages from young queer black men or boys like happy to see someone like me speaking the way I do to them, and being comfortable in my own skin. But it’s also been very nice to get emails from nice white women in Maine or Vermont, saying they related to my story or, they didn’t get my references, but they Google[d] them, which is what I do when I read something from a white author or something I don’t know. I think smart is smart, funny is funny and a good story is a good story, so to say that my books only appeal to just Black people or queer people is really limiting.
This country is truly segregated by design, in terms of class and race, so we don’t really get to interact as much as they make it seem on certain TV shows and films. So for me to be in these different types of spaces that you wouldn’t expect me to be in, and to speak the way that I do, and be very comfortable in my own skin [to] tell my story, is important because I write about things that are problems that we all share.
You can shop Arceneaux’s works for yourself and pre-order a copy of “I Finally Bought Some Jordans” or keep scrolling to see some of his favorite Black-authored books that have served as personal inspiration for the author and can be vital reading for you.
HuffPost and its publishing partners may receive a commission from some purchases made via links on this page. Every item is independently curated by the HuffPost Shopping team. Prices and availability are subject to change.
"The Secret Lives of Church Ladies" by Deesha Philyaw
Deesha Philyaw’s “The Secret Life of Church Ladies,” a debut that won the PEN/Faulkner Award and enthralled readers and critics alike, will even be adapted
into a project by HBO Max.The fictional short stories detail the lives of “church ladies” and all of the outward social and religious mores they must conform to. But Philyaw also doesn’t adhere to tropes. The writer manages to peel the stereotypical layers of her characters back to reveal all the complexities of their inner lives, from their desires to repressed emotions, all written in brutally honest and beautiful prose.The opening story focuses on a love affair between two women — a doctor in denial of her sexuality and still looking for some intervention from God, and her patient. Another story follows a young girl struggling with the effects of a preacher falling into sin because of a peach cobbler her mother made.
"A Love Song for Ricki Wilde" by Tia Williams
Contemporary romance author Tia Williams, best known for her cult-favorite “Seven Days in June,” published her next novel, “A Love Song for Ricki Wilde,” earlier this month. This anticipated love story is also Williams’ first foray into the genre of magical realism. The book’s eponymous protagonist doesn’t feel like she fits in with her prim socialite sisters, even though she hails from the very same Atlanta family dynasty. Ricki is too artistic in nature and has a deep-felt wanderlust. So she leaves her home in the South for a brownstone in Harlem, where she decides to open a flower shop. At her very core she can still sense the life and history of the Harlem Renaissance, which has left its imprint on everything around Ricki. And one evening during a Leap Year, the modern world seems to blend with the past, as Ricki meets a handsome yet curious musician who will change her life in mystifying ways.
"Their Eyes Were Watching God" by Zora Neale Hurston
When published in 1937, Zora Neale Hurston’s “Their Eyes Were Watching God” received either enthusiastic praise or outright rage (sometimes from the author’s own contemporaries). Now this classic work is widely considered to be one of the great novels of the 20th century. It’s a richly woven story about a young Black woman, Janie Crawford, coming of age during the Jim Crow era. The narrative follows Janie through her experiences with family, her search for love and eventually her independence. Hurston soars at utilizing colloquial dialect, allowing her to immersively convey how she saw Southern Black Americans’ language in the early 1900s. And while the novel begins with Janie’s earlier life and all the struggles that came with it, her character is one of resilience as readers witness her continual fight for her own happiness.
"No Ashes In The Fire: Coming of Age Black and Free in America" by Darnell Moore
When author and journalist Darnell Moore was 14 years old he was brutally attacked by three boys who poured gasoline on him in an attempt to set him on fire. Routinely the target of violence in his hometown of Camden, New Jersey for being gay and Black during the height of both the AIDS and crack epidemics, Moore’s memoir is a hopeful reflection of how bravery and optimism served as positive forces in his life — even as he existed in an environment of neglect, impoverishment and fear forgotten by white America. He tells of his search for connection and his later success as a journalist and leading organizer within Black Lives Matter. Through Moore’s activism and salient voice, this personal recount is, according to the book’s publisher, a powerful reminder “that liberation is possible if we commit ourselves to fighting for it, and if we dream and create futures where those who survive on society's edges can thrive.”
"The Source of Self-Regard" by Toni Morrison
The late Toni Morrison is one of the most respected writers of all time, responsible for works like “The Bluest Eye” and “Sula.” Morrison’s frank and truthful words on racism and womanhood remain essential in modern-day conversations about the Black experience, and this is even true with her nonfiction work. “The Source of Self-Regard,” a collection of “essays, speeches, and meditations on society, culture, and art, spanning four decades,” according to the publisher, is brimming with the strength of Morrison’s convictions and talent. It’s organized into three parts: first, a prayer for those who died on 9/11; the second, a deep reflection on Martin Luther King Jr.; and last, a eulogy for James Baldwin. Throughout Morrison's chosen writings she manages to tackle both longstanding issues and contemporary Black cultural movements.
"I'm Telling the Truth, but I'm Lying" by Bassey Ikpi
A collection of intimate essays from Nigerian American author Bassey Ikpi bravely shares her experiences with mental health and an existence stuck between two cultures. When Ikpi was four, her family moved from her birth country of Nigeria to Stillwater, Oklahoma in the 1980s. This monumental move caused a shift in Ikpi’s very soul, a move that she says triggered lifelong anxiety and undiagnosed bipolar disorder. By adulthood she became a spoken word artist, and even toured with HBO's Russell Simmons’ Def Poetry Jam. And though Ikpi used her experiences and creativity to find artistic release, her mental health fell by the wayside, eventually leading to a breaking point. She’s since become a lifeline for many people struggling with their own mental health conditions, which routinely face stigma and lack of medical support, especially for Black women in America. "I'm Telling the Truth, but I'm Lying" is a frank and honest reflection from Ikpi that doesn’t try to glorify or provide a quick-fix narrative regarding mental illness, but rather a call to find compassion.
“Brotherman: The Odyssey of Black Men in America — An Anthology" by Herb Boyd and Robert L. Allen
Compiled and edited by journalist, author and activist Herb Boyd, “Brotherman” is a phenomenal and essential collection of works by Black authors. The anthology features over 150 writings, essays, poems and biographies, including never-before-published writings, all arranged into various topics that have and continue to shape Black men today. Contributors include Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr., Jackie Robinson, Sidney Poitier, Dr. Cornel West and more. The goal of this collection is stated clearly by editors': "to create a living mosaic of essays and stories in which Black men can view themselves, and be viewed without distortion."