Glory Edim

Glory Edim is an American writer and entrepreneur. She is best known as the founder of the reading network Well-Read Black Girl. Edim received the 2017 Innovator's Award at the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for her work.[1]

Early life and education

Edim was born and raised in Washington D.C. to Nigerian immigrant parents who had survived the Biafra war.[2][3] Edim's father moved back to Nigeria in the early 90s; when she was in kindergarten, she and her mother joined him.[2] The two soon returned to the States after Edim fell ill.[2] Her mother, previously a historian, pursued a nursing degree.[2] They frequently visited her father in Nigeria.[3]

Edim attended Trinity College on a full scholarship before transferring to Howard University, her father's alma mater, where she studied journalism.[1][4]

Career

Edim launched Well-Read Black Girl (WRBG) on Instagram after moving to New York City in 2015.[5] An avid reader, the WRBG moniker came from a nickname that her boyfriend gave her printed on a t-shirt for her as a gift.[6][7] Edim was frequently asked about the shirt by strangers on the subway, which often turned into conversations about what she was reading at the time.[6]

Each Instagram post featured an archival photo of an African American woman writer with a caption that featured a quotation by that writer.[2] Eden stated that her goal for WRBG was to develop a community for Black women to discuss their interest in literature by Black women writers.[6] The commenters (mostly Black women) began conversations in the comments, which prompted Edim to launch a Brooklyn-based book club for WRBG.[2] Authors such as Naomi Jackson and LaShonda Katrice Barnett attended the meetings upon her invitation.[2]

Edim developed the idea for an annual literary festival of the same name with the help of writer Tayari Jones.[2] In June 2017 Edim used Kickstarter, where she worked full-time, to raise $40,000 for the event.[6][8] The inaugural festival took place in September 2017 in Brooklyn and sold out.[6]

She published an anthology called Well-Read Black Girl: Finding Our Stories, Discovering Ourselves (Ballantine Books) on October 30, 2018.[2] Edim studied anthologies by Toni Cade Bambara to inform the style of the anthology.[3] The book includes authors at various stages in their careers, such as Morgan Jerkins, Jacqueline Woodson, and Jesmyn Ward. Edim wrote the foreword.[2] Of putting together the anthology, Edim stated "I was trying to replicate the intimacy you have in a book club within the community, where it feels like someone is sitting next to you and telling you a very personal and loving story."[2] The anthology received positive critical reception. Utibe Gautt Ate wrote in a review for LA Review of Books, "The anthology’s premise, “When did you first see yourself in literature?” is a seemingly simple question each author is asked to illuminate, yet for the black women here it opens a glorious Pandora’s box and sparks a telling journey of how black girl readers become black woman writers."[9] Publisher's Weekly stated, "Speaking directly to black women readers, this book contains a journey from which anyone can derive enjoyment and benefit."[10]

Edim is planning the release of two more books: a memoir titled Raised By Books, and a second Well-Read Black Girl anthology.[4][11]

Accolades

References
  1. León, Concepción de (2018-10-25). "'Well-Read Black Girl' Is Bigger Than Glory Edim". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-05-07.
  2. Israel, Yahdon. "How Glory Edim and Well-Read Black Girl Are Creating and Transforming Communities of Readers". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 2020-05-07.
  3. "'Well-Read Black Girl' Turns Books Into Community". NPR.org. Retrieved 2020-05-07.
  4. "Q&A: How Glory Edim found her voice in her anthology 'Well-read Black Girl'". Los Angeles Times. 2019-02-13. Retrieved 2020-05-07.
  5. Gadegbeku, Zoe (2018-10-25). "Well-Read Black Girl's Glory Edim continues to grow her empire". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2020-05-07.
  6. "Meet the innovative literary leader Glory Edim of Well-Read Black Girl". Los Angeles Times. 2018-04-12. Retrieved 2020-05-07.
  7. Evans, Dayna (2017-10-11). "How I Get It Done: Glory Edim". The Cut. Retrieved 2020-05-07.
  8. Knoepp, Lilly. "How This Well-Read Black Girl Became An Entrepreneur". Forbes. Retrieved 2020-05-07.
  9. Ate, Utibe Gautt. "We All Get to Dream: On Glory Edim's "Well Read-Black Girl: Finding Our Stories, Discovering Ourselves"". Los Angeles Review of Books. Retrieved 2020-05-08.
  10. "Well-Read Black Girl: Finding Our Stories, Discovering Ourselves". www.publishersweekly.com. Retrieved 2020-05-08.
  11. "Becoming Your Own Gatekeeper". Columbia Journalism Review. Retrieved 2020-05-08.
  12. "Q&A: How Glory Edim found her voice in her anthology 'Well-read Black Girl'". Los Angeles Times. 2019-02-13. Retrieved 2020-05-07.
  13. "Thompson-Spires Wins Hurston/Wright 2019 Award for Fiction". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved 2020-05-08.
  14. Nakamura, Reid (2019-03-31). "NAACP Image Awards 2019: The Complete Winners List". TheWrap. Retrieved 2020-05-08.
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