Essah's Way

Episode 107. Merrie Joy Williams uncovers the beauty of her writing process and the importance of embracing multiple experiences that influence storytelling.

Merrie Joy Williams is a poet, novelist, editor, and writing tutor, with an MA in Creative Writing from the Manchester Writing School. She was shortlisted for the 2020 Bridport Poetry Prize, and is a winner of The Poetry Archive’s ‘Wordview 2020’, featured permanently on their website. She is also the recipient of a London Writers Award, and Arts Council England awards for both poetry and fiction. 

 

She is an Obsidian Fellow, a Hawthornden Fellow and was a poet-in-residence with Manchester Poetry Library, where she first explored being fostered as a baby. Much of her work currently explores how the places where we come from influence our lives; including Manchester, a commission by Historic England rresearching Woolwich High Street, and parental roots in Jamaica – a place she hasn’t been to since a child.

 

Her debut collection is ‘Open Windows’ (Waterloo Press, 2019). Magma has described the collection as 'assured, driven by sonorous language and a strong autobiographical narrative’.

merriejoywilliams.com

Episode 106. Isaiah Smart reveals the power of love and community while making space for creatives to evolve in Atlanta.

Isaiah Smart is a writer, project manager, and A&R at Dreamr Digital. Dreamr Digital is dedicated to artist development and career enhancement. Their efforts are rooted with the art and artist in mind first.

https://dreamr.digital

Episode 105. Dahlma Llanos-Figueroa reveals the importance of honoring her ancestors by writing about African roots and realities of Puerto Ricans.

Dahlma Llanos-Figueroa was born in Puerto Rico and raised in New York City. She is a product of the Puerto Rican communities on the island and in the South Bronx. She attended the New York City public school system and received her academic degrees from SUNY at Buffalo and CUNY Queens College. As a child she was sent to live with her grandparents in Puerto Rico where she was introduced to the culture of rural Puerto Rico, including the storytelling that came naturally to the women in her family, especially the older women. Much of her work is based on her experiences during this time.

The trade paperback edition of Daughters of the Stone was released in March 2019. The hardcover edition was shortlisted as a 2010 Finalist for the PEN/Robert W. Bingham Prize. In 2020 the self-published paperback edition won the 16th Annual National Indie Excellence® Awards for Multicultural Fiction. Awarded the 2021 NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellow in Fiction, Dahlma’s short stories have appeared in various anthologies and literary journals throughout the United States, Africa, and Brazil. The English and Spanish language editions of Dahlma’s second novel, A Woman of Endurance will be released in March 2022. Since her retirement, Dahlma continues to dedicate herself to her writing, speaking engagements, and workshops. She resides in the Bronx with her husband, photographer Jonathan Lessuck.

www.DahlmaLlanosFigueroa.com 

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Episode 104. Essah Cozett celebrates her 30th birthday by reflecting on her journey and encouraging others to live the life of their dreams.

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Essah Cozett Diaz is a Liberian-American poet, podcaster, and PhD candidate specializing in Literature and Language of the English-speaking Caribbean at the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras. Her research is rooted in storytelling, migration, and African tradition healing practices. Currently, she is serving her second term as Chair of the Caribbean Without Borders Graduate Student Conference. In 2016, she founded Hermanas Del Agua to create a safe space for women to practice strategic self-care in Puerto Rico. Cozett is also a co-editor of the forthcoming collection Mothering, Community, and Friendship (Demeter Press, 2022). Her writing has appeared in several international print and online publications. She loves encouraging others to move forward with ease in pursuit of their dreams. 

https://www.essahcozett.com

Episode 103. Ariana Benson reveals the importance of storytelling through poetry, memory, and nature while giving thanks to Black institutions that have developed her voice.

Ariana Benson is a poet-storyteller from Chesapeake, Virginia. She holds a BA in Psychology from Spelman College, where she graduated as Valedictorian, and an MA in Poetic Practice from Royal Holloway, University of London, where she studied as a 2019 Marshall Scholar. She was a finalist in the 2019 Auburn Witness Poetry Prize and received the 2021 Graybeal-Gowen Poetry Prize. Her poems can be found in ANOMALY, Lunch Ticket, Southern Humanities Review and Auburn Avenue, where she serves as Nonfiction Editor, and are forthcoming in Shenandoah and an upcoming Diode Editions Anthology. Through her poems, she strives to fashion a tapestry of Blackness that stitches together histories and memories across space and time, speaking to the infinite richness and depth of our existence.

Episode 102. Luk Gama speaks about his artistic practice of blending ancient traditions with current cultural forms in Guadeloupe. C’est moi is a bilingual episode in English and French.

Graphiste-auteur, je vis et travaille en Guadeloupe. Je m'intéresse aux arts-graphiques sous toutes leurs formes. Graphic - author , I live and work in Guadeloupe. I'm interested in graphic arts in all their forms.

https://www.patreon.com/lukgama

Episode 101. Vanessa Riley discusses the importance of storytelling, archives, and Black women’s empowerment which inspired her recent novel Island Queen.

Episode 100. Shemeeka Johnson shares how her transformation started by preparing her mind and training her body which changed her life.

Meeka is a fitness enthusiast who began her own personal weight-loss journey at 326lbs. After two years of eating clean and working out consistently, she lost more than 140lbs naturally and is now dedicated to helping others tap in to their potential and embark on a fitness journey of their own.

Book title: Inner Animal, a Riveting Story of Internal Motivation and Natural Weightloss

Realbodyfitclub.com

Episode 099. Jeremiah Wiggins enlightens us to make conscious decisions, establish healthy relationships, and embrace life’s transformations.

Jeremiah was born and raised in the small town of Waynesboro, Georgia. Being the oldest of six siblings, he was one of the first in his family to attend university. He attended Valdosta State University where he received his B.S. degree in Psychology and African American Studies. After graduating, Jeremiah moved to Atlanta and works in the technology industry as a HR Generalist. Jeremiah’s focuses are lifestyle, spirituality, politics, sociology, and psychology.

Episode 098. Essah Cozett returns to the mic recharged and ready for a new season. She reflects on her summer in Georgia and fellowship with Cornell University’s Migration Institute.