Call for Submissions—Brista to Brista: Letters of Affirmation by Black Gay Men
Edited and with an Introduction by Darius Omar Williams (Dandaluka Vanga)
DEADLINE EXTENDED TO OCTOBER 7, 2012
Call for Submissions:
21 years after the groundbreaking anthology Brother to Brother: New Writings by Black Gay Men, edited by Essex Hemphill and originally conceived by Joseph Beam, in a bold literary-critical-political response, Dr. Darius Omar Williams (Dandaluka Vanga) seeks submissions for a new anthology in celebration of the kinships shared, abandoned and lost among black gay men: the cultural, sexual and gendered framing of both brother and sister fused together as “Brista”, a popular form of sentiment and endearment coined in contemporary same gender loving tradition. The anthology will specifically include provocative personal letters of affirmation written by and to black gay men to encourage, uplift and empower one another through their individual and collective quest for companionship and political autonomy while also highlighting the intersected identities of lovers, brothers, sisters and friends in this codified world of sexual essentialism.
Also, to bridge the gap between our heterosexual and same gender loving brothers, a section entitled "Honorary Bristas" will be included in the anthology to provide a healing space for black men who identify as "heterosexual" or "straight" to speak power, truth and light to their same gender loving brethen in the form of a personal letter (personal letters written to co-workers, friends and biological or non-biological kin)
Topics might include:
-Personal letters to historical black gay icons including but not limited to James Baldwin, Bayard Rustin, Joseph Beam, Essex Hemphill and E. Lynn Harris
-Personal letters of affirmation from black gay men to their bristas both past and present: biological and non-biological brothers, “sisters”, colleagues and friends (ie. words of healing, loving, forgiveness and ‘water under the bridge’)
-Personal letters examining, investigating and contemplating the severing/loss of bristahood
-Personal autobiographical letters (from the author to himself) as a self-portrait of redemption, power and self-love
-Personal letters from and to black gay men whose relationships have evolved from bristas to lovers and the liminal spaces in between (a measuring of the stakes involved insofar as the degrees of bristahood are concerned)
-Personal letters to loved ones living or who have transitioned because of HIV/AIDS
-Essays in the form of personal letters on the rising of Brista(s) as a term of endearment and its linkage to the nature and politics of race, sexuality, spirituality and gender
Also, to bridge the gap between our heterosexual and same gender loving brothers, a section entitled "Honorary Bristas" will be included in the anthology to provide a healing space for black men who identify as "heterosexual" or "straight" to speak power, truth and light to their same gender loving brethen in the form of a personal letter (personal letters written to co-workers, friends and biological or non-biological kin)
Submission Guidelines:
Cover Letter
Brief Biography
MSWord electronic submissions 12” Times New Roman Font (11 pages maximum) to: brista2brista@gmail.com (all documents should be saved and submitted as your last name_Brista to Brista) Your submissions may include a single or series of letters to one or more different bristas, again, totaling no more than 11 pages. Also please include the date and time in which your personal letters were written. Title Example : My Dungeon Shook: Letter to My Nephew on the 100th Anniversary of the Emancipation by James Baldwin from The Fire Next Time (1962)
Warmest Regards,
Dr. Darius Omar Williams, editor
Brista to Brista: Letters of Affirmation by Black Gay Men
Deadline: October 7, 2012
Contact, inquiry and submission information:
brista2brista@gmail.com
