Poetry included in the anthology “Black Fire This Time ” by Willow Books, the award-winning division of Aquarius Press, coming out on March 15, 2022

I’m elated to share the news that my poetry has been included in the forthcoming anthology “Black Fire This Time”  curated by Dr Kim McMillon.The anthology will be published by Willow Books, the Award-Winning Division of Aquarius Press, on March 15, 2022..The anthology includes the work of Nikki Giovanni, James Baldwin, Ishmael Reed, Margaret Walker, Dudley Randall, Gwendolyn Brooks, and so many more.

My poem ” Asphyxiated”  is  included in the anthology. My heartfelt gratitude goes to Dr Kim McMillon for giving me the space amongst the stalwarts of the literary community.

In words of Dr. Kim Mcmillon:

Black Fire–This Time publication date is March 15, 2022. Also a shout out to Heather Buchanan, the publisher of Willow Books, an award-winning imprint of Aquarius Press. I am very thankful that she had the courage to publish Black Fire–This Time. We are birthing a baby!

A Beautiful Black baby that celebrates the Black Arts Movement, brilliant writers, an iconic voices of social change like Ishmael Reed, Nikki Giovanni, Sonia Sanchez, Amiri and Amina Baraka, Val Gray Ward, and Francis Ward, Gwendolyn Brooks, Haki Madhubuti, Eugene B. Redmond, Quincy and Margaret Porter Troupe, Lucille Clifton, Aishah Rahman, James Baldwin, Mona Lisa Saloy, Kalamu ya Salaam,Tom Dent, QR Hand, Gloria House, Charlotte “Mama C” O’Neal, Askia Toure, Henry Dumas, and so many more with new artists speaking their truth. Ishmael Reed wrote the Foreword, and Dr. Margo Natalie Crawford, the Introduction. In my Editor’s Notes, I speak of the ancestors, and the power of inclusivity in showcasing Black voices from the LGBTQ+ Community, and allies that have made the difference in our fight as people of color for the rights of all people, and the importance of just straight out love. .

I will be using this anthology to teach Theatre & Social Responsibility this summer at UC Merced. There are a great many scholars and professors whose work will also be showcased. Hopefully, Black Fire–This Time will be taught on college campuses throughout the country and the world. My work has placed an emphasis on Black writers for a reason. I was brought up in a world where people felt so much pain about the injustices they’ve experienced because of Jim Crow Laws, redlining, voter suppression, racism, and the legacy of slavery. I want every Black child to know they are beautiful, and to love their skin, their features, and their heritage. By finding their joy and belief in themselves, they are the ones that will help change this world with other enlightened souls. That is why I teach this as a way of spreading self-love and self determination.

Happy Poetry!!

Megha Sood