Kwame Alexander is a poet, educator, producer and No. 1 New York Times bestselling author of 38 books, including An American Story, Becoming Muhammad Ali, and Rebound to name a few.
His latest book for young readers, The Door of No Return, is a coming-of-age tale set in the African Asante Kingdom of 1860.
He’ll be visiting Everett High School in Lansing as part of an event with the Capital Area District Library Monday night.
He spoke with WKAR's Megan Schellong to discuss the messages behind his stories.
Interview Highlights
On the inspiration behind "The Door of No Return"
Yes, I have always been interested in Black history. And in school, and in so many books, the starting point for Black History is often 1619 or the arrival of Africans in America to become enslaved. And so I've always thought, “well, what about the lives of these Africans before they came to America?”and I visited Ghana 11 times. And on several of those journeys, it sort of hit me that these people who were stolen from their land, they had families, they had kids who went to school, who swam in the ocean, who lived, hoped, dreamed, danced, ate, loved, just like everyone else. And so I thought, “why not tell a story about the beginning, the true beginning of Black history, that, in fact, Africans in America was our middle?” Slavery was our middle, that maybe a story about a beginning might be something I could tackle.
On how the pandemic influenced his creative process
Well the pandemic was a was a portal for me, I know it devastated a lot of people, a lot of communities. For me, it was a portal to this, like unlimited writing time, the space to just think and be and write and walk. And I got to be home and play softball in the front yard with my daughter. And just really be free to think and dream. And so I miss that feeling of being free. That's how I viewed it. And I've spent the past year trying to figure out how to get back to that portal. That was really a muse for my creativity.
On what wearing multiple creative hats has taught him about storytelling
There are many different ways to tell a story. And I want to explore all of them. And I want to ultimately, my mission is to change the world one word at a time.
Interview Transcript
Megan Schellong: Kwame Alexander is a poet, educator, producer and No. 1 New York Times bestselling author of 38 books, including An American Story, Becoming Muhammad Ali, and Rebound just to name a few.
His latest book for young readers, The Door of No Return, is a coming-of-age tale set in the African Asante Kingdom of 1860.
He’ll be visiting Everett High School in Lansing as part of an event with the Capital Area District Library Monday night.
And he joins us now to discuss the messages behind his stories.
Kwame, thanks for being here.
Kwame Alexander: Thank you so much for having me.
Schellong: It's an honor to be speaking with you today. Can you tell us a little bit about your inspiration behind The Door of No Return? From my understanding, you were inspired by a trip that you took to Ghana?
Alexander: Yes, I have always been interested in Black history. And in school, and in so many books, the starting point for Black history is often 1619 or the arrival of Africans in America to become enslaved.
And so I've always thought, “well, what about the lives of these Africans before they came to America?” And I visited Ghana 11 times. And on several of those journeys, it sort of hit me that these people who were stolen from their land, they had families, they had kids who went to school, who swam in the ocean, who lived, hoped, dreamed, danced, ate, loved, just like everyone else.
And so I thought, “why not tell a story about the beginning, the true beginning of Black history, that, in fact, Africans in America was our middle?”
Slavery was our middle, that maybe a story about a beginning might be something I could tackle.
Schellong: Yeah, I love that you're doing that. And you know, so much of what we hear, I think in America, right, is about the trials and tribulations of the Black community, but you're trying to highlight the celebratory stories, too.
Alexander: Yeah, because it's not all tragedy. Some of it is triumph. It's not all woe, a lot of it is wonder. And so I want to write about those stories. They're all important. They're all valuable. But I want to write about the stories that are in fact, uplifting and much more true to an actual beginning of the story of Black people in America. And so let's explore that.
Schellong: Kwame, is there a story of yours that has been your favorite to write or most difficult?
Alexander: Oh, this one, The Door of No Return. By far it was the hardest story I ever wrote because of the tragedy that I knew was coming because of the impending doom. And, and I wanted to write a book ultimately that, that my daughter, my teenage daughter would not be devastated by, that she would be informed, inspired, entertained, and empowered by, and certainly that took a lot of strategy and energy, from my vantage point as the creative, as the writer, as the artist crafting this piece. So it was just very, very challenging.
Schellong: You're talking about how difficult it was to write in that dark space for so long and I mean, I’m sure the pandemic could’ve had an impact too, on your writing, how did that influence your creative process?
Alexander: Well the pandemic was a portal for me, I know it devastated a lot of people, a lot of communities. For me, it was a portal to this, like unlimited writing time, the space to just think and be and write and walk. And I got to be home and play softball in the front yard with my daughter.
And just really be free to think and dream. And so I miss that feeling of being free. That's how I viewed it. And I've spent the past year trying to figure out how to get back to that portal. That was really a muse for my creativity.
Schellong: You’ve worn many hats throughout your creative career from poet to writer to producer. And now you’re even producing a new Disney Plus series, The Crossover. What has wearing all of these hats taught you about storytelling?
Alexander: There are many different ways to tell a story. And I want to explore all of them. And I want to ultimately, my mission is to change the world one word at a time.
Schellong: You want to create those portals for other people.
Alexander: That’s it.
Schellong: Kwame Alexander is a poet, educator and author of 38 books, including The Door of No Return. Kwame, thanks for your time today.
Alexander: Thank you for having me, Megan.
Schellong: He’ll be at Everett High School, located at 3900 Stabler Street in Lansing [Monday] from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. as part of an event with the Capital Area District Library. And CADL is a financial supporter of WKAR.
This conversation has been edited for clarity and conciseness.