by John Reid

“Don’t forget – no one else sees the world the way you do, so no one else can tell the stories that you have to tell.” Charles de Lint

Last week at BlerdCon, there was a forum titled “Black Heroes Matter.” Hosted by Dr. Sunyatta Gaines, and featuring Howard University professor Dr. Greg Carr and David Crownson, author of “Harriet Tubman: Demon Slayer,” it talked about the impact of seeing Black superheroes such as Storm and Black Panther on the silver screen resonated with the culture. During the Q&A session, I met a young man who is doing the same thing through his writing. Jaurice Smiley, who has written and published two books, talked about why representation is important and how we can see similar characters on a bigger stage.

To find out more about his books, please visit the links for both Tourian and The Royal Gray Box. Also, visit his Instagram page for more information.