On this episode of Badass Black Girl, M.J. talks with Lynell George, a journalist, essayist, and researcher, about her new book A Handful of Earth, A Handful of Sky: The World of Octavia Butler. They start by discussing her journey to becoming a writer. Lynell shares her favorite Octavia Butler anecdote and why she chose Butler’s life to write about. M.J. asks why creativity is important. She also asks Lynell what about Butler’s life surprised her when she was researching the book. Lynell shares how she finds time to work on her passion projects, given the demands and challenges of being a journalist. They discuss how the location she grew up in influenced her professional choices and what she discovered about herself while writing the book about Butler. You can learn more about Lynell on her website.
Lynell George is an award-winning journalist and essayist. She is the author of three books of nonfiction including No Crystal Stair: African Americans in the City of Angels and the Los Angeles Times bestseller, After/Image: Los Angeles Outside the Frame. She is a former staff writer for the Los Angeles Times and L.A. Weekly. Her writing has appeared in various collections, including Speculative Los Angeles, Writing Los Angeles, and Another City: Writing from Los Angeles. Her liner notes for Otis Redding's "Live at The Whisky A Go Go: The Complete Recordings" won a 2017 GRAMMY award. Her latest book, A Handful of Earth, A Handful of Sky: The World of Octavia E. Butler, is a finalist for a 2021 Hugo Award in the Related Work category.