'Kin' novelist Tayari Jones on the college class that changed her life : NPR
NPR • • general
Key Points:
- Novelist Tayari Jones credits a creative writing class at Spelman College, taught by Pearl Cleage, as a pivotal moment when she first took herself seriously as a writer.
- Her latest novel, Kin, set in 1950s Louisiana and Atlanta, explores the lives of two young women bonded by loss but diverging paths, and was inspired by her desire to write for comfort rather than the original contract topic on gentrification.
- Jones challenges the narrative of female "frenemies," emphasizing the importance of appreciating women and reflecting on her transformative experience at an all-women's college.
- She draws on personal grief, particularly the loss of a close friend, to inform the emotional depth in Kin, highlighting the profound impact of friendship
