"The belief that words have power, that Black stories matter, and that I can write to make a difference all inspired me to become an author." Renée Watson's Literary Life
Renée Watson, author of over 15 books, most recently BLACK GIRL YOU ARE ATLAS and 'skin & bones' takes us through her literary career, and tells us why writing is more important than fame.
I’ve always been very curious about the life that brings a writer to the pen or keyboard. My hope is that in getting to know authors in a new light, we might find ourselves in the process. Today, we are featuring our fourth author, Renée Watson.
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Renée Watson (she/her), is a #1 New York Times Bestselling author. She has published over fifteen books and has received several awards and international recognition. Many of her books are inspired by her experiences growing up as a Black girl in the Pacific Northwest. Her poetry and fiction center around the experiences of Black girls and explore themes of home, identity, body image, and the intersections of race, class, and gender. Renée is on the Council of Writers for the National Writing Project and is a member of the Academy of American Poets’ Education Advisory Council. Renée grew up in Portland, Oregon, and splits her time between Portland and New York City.
What inspired you to start writing?
My earliest memories of writing go back to my childhood. I kept journals and always had a notebook I was scribbling poetry and short stories in. In the second grade, I wrote a twenty-one page story and my teacher told me, “I think you’re going to be a writer one day.” She encouraged my mother to buy me journals and by the time I was in middle school, my theater teacher chose a play I wrote to be the play for school-wide spring production. I am so thankful that I had teachers who really saw this gift in me and encouraged me.
I also learned at an early age that my words could move people and deeply touch them. In my early years, my family didn’t have a lot of money so when the holidays came or for the birthdays of my friends and the elders in my community, I couldn’t afford to buy gifts. I was so embarrassed by this. I wanted to give them something fancy, something grand. But instead, I wrote poems and gave poetry as gifts. So many times people would come to me and tell me how much my words meant to them, that they were keeping the poem, framing it. I knew then that even though I didn’t have a lot of money, I had my voice. And my voice had value.
When I think about what gives me inspiration on the topics I write about and the types of stories I tell, I think back to being a child who loved reading the Ramona series by Beverly Cleary and realizing that Klickitat Street was a real street in Portland, Oregon. Ramona grew up in a neighborhood not too far from me and while I loved that series and related to it, there weren’t Black girls and characters in that series. Much of why I often place the setting of my books in Portland is because I want Black girls and women in the Pacific Northwest to feel seen and validated. I want our stories to go on record. We are here and our stories matter.
I’m also deeply grateful that my high school English teachers made it clear that the written word can speak against injustice, honor ordinary people, and dream a new world. Learning this and experimenting with poetry so early and writing about social issues was such a gift that my teachers Linda Christensen and Pam Hooten gave me. I absolutely would not be the writer I am and write about the topics I write about if it weren’t for having them as English teachers. They challenged me to not only write for entertainment, but to say something, to add something meaningful to the world.
The belief that words have power, that Black stories matter, and that I can write to make a difference all inspired me to become an author.
