With 30 years of experience, I am a writer and author specializing in first-person narrative nonfiction that exposes deep truths while celebrating resilience and joy.
As an award-winning journalist, I have explored the impact of U.S. migration on small Mexican towns and cities, post-apartheid health care, and the inner workings of state government through the people and relationships that shaped public policy and politics.
My versatile portfolio canvasses race, pop culture, politics, restorative practices, entrepreneurial leadership, personal essays, food trends, and travel. My work has appeared in CNN.com, CNN Español, Hearst Magazines, Good Housekeeping, New Worlder, and Panorama: The Journal of Intelligent Travel.
In industry circles, I’m known for taking a “big idea” and exploring its expression through multiple media—books, film, and personal essays, to name a few. In April 2024, I was a featured panelist at the IIJ 2024 Freelance Conference and a guest speaker at the University of California Irvine journalism class.
Subscribe to my Substack pages “Water in My Bones” to receive my most recent articles.
Currently, I am writing the memoir, Water in My Bones: Finding Freedom in Deep Waters. It is about my quest to learn to swim, dive, and map sunken slave ships in midlife. Previously, I wrote Restorative Communities: From Conflict to Conversation, published by Piper Press.
Books
Water in My Bones: Finding Freedom in Deep Waters is a memoir chronicling my epic quest to learn to swim, dive, and map sunken ships at midlife with a group of Black maritime archeologists. Leveraging dynamic historical research and first-person narrative, the memoir explores the insidious ways the Transatlantic Slave Trade continues to affect the African diaspora centuries after it began and what it takes to overcome multigenerational trauma and embrace joy. Memoir Land published “The Water Spirits Will Carry Us,” an excerpt from the book to wide acclaim and opportunities to teach at the Narratively Academy and speak on independent journalism and creative writing panels and classes, respectively.
Restorative Communities: From Conflict to Conversation is the culmination of four years of research, interviews, reporting, and outreach in Detroit, MI, and Kortrijk, Belgium. Weaving my personal story throughout, I explored the impact of the emerging field of restorative practices in education, the courts, families, and businesses in both cities. The book provides case studies of how large and small communities are building a positive, productive, and more hopeful movement toward justice, equity, and connection.
Selected Articles
Personal Essay
- “The Water Spirits Will Carry Us” (Memoir Land)
- “The Price of Black Girl Magic” (Sweatpants & Coffee)
- “Why I Learned to Swim in My Forties” (Sweatpants & Coffee)
- “The Price of Redemption” (Panorama: The Journal of Intelligent Travel)
- “No One Is From Akumal” (Strangers’ Guide)
Pop Culture
- “How Aretha Franklin’s Powerful Sensuality Paved the Way” (CNN)
- Beyonce and Janelle Monae Are Building a New Language of Black Womanhood” (CNN)
- “Ver a Wrinkle in Time Es Un Acto Politico” (CNN Español)
- “Cowboy Carter and the Power of Silence” (Substack)
- “Taylor Swift & The Distorted Mirror” (Substack)
Race & Politics
- “How Black Women Saved Alabama and Democracy” (CNN)
- “National Geographic Has More Work to Do On Race” (CNN)
- “Celebrate Kwanzaa By Honoring These Meaningful Traditions” (Good Housekeeping)
- “How to Celebrate Juneteenth By Focusing on Education, Freedom, and Family” (Best Products/Hearst Magazines)
- “On Meeting Henry McClendon and Restoring Brokenness” (BANR)
Entrepreneurial Leadership
- “How to Pivot Strategically” (Productive Flourishing)
- “The Practical Magic of Rewriting Our Stories” (Productive Flourishing)
- “How Business Activism Supports Your Business and Community” (Productive Flourishing)
- “10 Ways to Support Yourself When Your Marketing in a Hostile World” (Productive Flourishing)
Food
- “The Future of Food Tech” (Food Beverage Insider)
- “A Push for Civil Rights in Nation’s Food Systems” (Food Beverage Insider)
- “How to Make Your New Years’ Resolutions A Reality: Interview with Chef Nik Fields” (Sweatpants & Coffee)
- “Q & A: Javier Ornelas, A Mexican Chef in a Globalized Tulum” (Eat Your World)
- “Booze-Free Craft Beer From Moor’s Brewing Company Debuts in a Growing Space for Black-owned Brands” (Food Beverage Insider)