To Love Me Too

ECU Author/Contributor (non-ECU co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)

Brianna Johnson (Creator)

Institution

East Carolina University (ECU )

Web Site: http://www.ecu.edu/lib/

Abstract: My flash non-fiction practice is influenced by Randon Billings Noble and Jennifer Marie Brissett, while my imagery and interest in black diaspora is rooted in slave narratives, and African and African American literature. I hope to create a collection of flash non-fiction pieces that can either stand alone or tell one chronological story. I currently have the beginnings of this work completed. I hope to create a modern slave narrative with echoes of feminism. This work is inspired by writers like Fredrick Douglass, Chimamanda Adichie, Zora Neal Hurston and Jennifer Marie Brissett. I want to follow Douglass's chronological scheme in Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass an American Slave. Written by Himself. I will also be drawing from the inspiration of Christianity and its impact on each experience, much as Douglass did. Novels such as Purple Hibiscus, and Their Eyes Were Watching God will be used as inspiration for imagery and carrying a larger thematic image. "Breathe Deep, Breathe Free" will inspire some of the design elements that will be featured in my work. "The Dangers of a Single Story" has inspired the honest, transparency of this work. These authors are the reasons why I began writing. I was inspired by their honesty, and dedication to love and freedom. They've shown me a beauty about being unapologetically all that I am in my intersectionality. They've also shown the strength that comes with breaking expectations and daring to make a new path. These writers taught me that my unique form of expression matters and has every right to be heard. In the past, I have missed the opportunities to create moments that my audience can relate to. I hope to closely study how and when to incorporate images that will give my audience a stronger intimacy with my experiences. I hope my thesis recreates the same magic that slave narratives did. My work could open the door for conversations of what it's like for a black woman to grow up in America as a nobody. I was highly influenced by the boldness that Sojourner Truth had when she advocated for women to have the same rights as men. I was moved when I saw the trials that Douglass faced. I was enchanted by Kambili and Janie's journey from girls who could only be told what to do, to ladies that chase after freedom. I hope to awaken someone else's inner strength and I hope that my bite size experiences can effectively change the way a girl sees herself.

Additional Information

Publication

Thesis

Language: English

Date: 2023

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