The Gray Area with Sean Illing

The rugged majesty of revision

Jul 15, 2021

Kiese Laymon, a celebrated novelist acclaimed for his memoir "Heavy," dives deep into the intricate challenges of retelling personal and cultural narratives. He discusses reclaiming the rights to his works, emphasizing the importance of authenticity in addressing complex societal themes like race. Laymon reflects on the struggles Black writers face, including the pressure from mostly white audiences and the impact of systemic racism on storytelling. The conversation also touches on the need for diverse voices in literature and the healing power of revision.

01:00:26

Episode guests

Kiese Laymon

AI Chapters

Episode notes

Intro

3min

Navigating Language, Identity, and Revision

22min

Reflections on American Exceptionalism and the Ethics of Achievement

2min

Navigating Audience Dynamics for Black Creators

4min

Voices of Justice: Embracing Diversity in Discourse

11min

Navigating Struggles and Creativity

11min

The Influence of Solitude and Southern Heritage on Creativity

3min

The Significance of Seasonal Relationships and Creative Experimentation

2min

Vox's Jamil Smith speaks with novelist and author Kiese Laymon in a far-ranging conversation about Laymon's reacquiring the rights to his own books, the struggle of retelling our own stories, and the challenges of articulating American narratives that include all Americans accurately.

Host: Jamil Smith (@JamilSmith), Senior Correspondent, Vox

Guest: Kiese Laymon (@KieseLaymon), author

References:

"What we owe and are owed" by Kiese Laymon (Vox; May 17)
Long Division by Kiese Laymon (Scribner; 2021)
How to Slowly Kill Yourself and Others in America by Kiese Laymon (Scribner; 2020)
Heavy: An American Memoir by Kiese Laymon (Scribner; 2018)
"Why I Paid Tenfold to Buy Back the Rights for Two of My Books" by Kiese Laymon (Literary Hub; Nov. 10, 2020)
"'RS Interview: Special Edition' With Ta-Nehisi Coates" by Jamil Smith (Rolling Stone; Nov. 20, 2020)
"The Roots of Structural Racism Project: Twenty-First Century Racial Residential Segregation in the United States" by Stephen Menendian, Arthur Gailes, and Samir Gambhir (Othering & Belonging Institute; 2021)
"Black churches taught us to forgive white people. We learned to shame ourselves" by Kiese Laymon (The Guardian; June 23, 2015)
"Now Here We Go Again, We See the Crystal Visions" by Kiese Laymon (Vanity Fair; Nov. 19, 2020)

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This episode was made by:

Producer: Erikk Geannikis
Editor: Amy Drozdowska
Engineer: Paul Robert Mounsey
VP, Vox Audio: Liz Kelly Nelson

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