The Lambda Literary Awards presented their first Randall Kenan Award at the Lammys Virtual Gala on Monday. It was the first award that was announced for this event. Keenan won the 1992 Lambda Literary Award for his collection of short stories Let the Dead Bury Their Dead, and participated in the Lambda College Retreat for Emerging LGBTQ Voices. He resided in Hillsborough and was an English teacher at UNC-Chapel Hill. Kinan died unexpectedly on August 28, 2020.
Many of his writing developed in his home state of North Carolina and focused on what it meant to be poor, black, and gay in the South, shaping an existence that is often overlooked or ostracized.
“He has had a great impact on many as a writer, through his books, and also as a teacher and mentor,” said Sue Landers, executive director of Lambda Literary. His death was sudden and the earth shook. I especially think that black, gay, and southern readers saw themselves in his work, And I felt like he saw through his work. “
Lambda Literary was created 30 years ago to recognize LGBTQ writers and the role they play in influencing the world. “We have a wide network of gay writers and readers, so in January we announced this award, along with three other awards that we give out at Lamis each year and the response has been very positive,” said Landers. “Because Randall was loved and people were really excited to see him honored in this way.”
The first winner of the Randall Kinnan Award was Anna Maureen Lara, a black feminist teacher, novelist, poet, and scholar. Lara made it to Lamy’s lesbian poetry final in 2017.
Reggie Harris, one of the award judges, said: “The submissions for the Randall Keenan Award for LGBTQ black fiction were broad in plot, genre and style. They exemplified the vibrant diversity of our literature and the glorious imagination of our book. It was a pleasure to read all the submissions – choosing a single writer Solo to receive the award is quite a challenge. Anna Maureen Lara’s excerpt from her novel The Erzulli Skirt introduces the reader to Miriam and Michaela, and the time of women in captivity in Puerto Rico, after fleeing the Dominican Republic.
Lara is immersed in the story of her brutal ordeal and hallucinations. Navigating gracefully between the women’s arrests and their memories, visions, and nightmares, the vivid writing makes the reader feel the woman’s confusion, despair, and determination to survive. The prose is beautifully controlled, at once haunting and compelling, and draws the reader, eager to discover the fate of Miriam and Michaela. Anna Maureen Lara is a truly talented and creative writer who deserves to be better known.
“Wow, what a great honor. I was honestly surprised that there are so many incredible black LGBTQ writers right now, ”Lara said. “And it really meant a lot to me that my colleagues and colleagues considered me worthy of this award.
“For me, Randall Keenan’s legacy is his unapologetic beauty in his writing and the ability to imagine worlds beyond what we currently have. Somehow, even though I couldn’t meet him in person when he was alive, I wish there was “Because I felt like we could have had some conversations. What our work has in common is that we walk between magical and mystical limits. And you know, in that sense, he’s a constant and deep inspiration to me, ”Lara said.
Sue Landers said the idea for the award came about when three close friends of Kenan approached her to honor him. It is a tribute to Randall and will also present his work to new generations of readers. We are happy to be able to offer such a large cash prize to black LGBTQ writers as well at this time. “
Landers also said that recognition of the queer literary community is becoming more important as more queer stories are shared and viewed across the media. “I think this is especially true in youth literature. We are seeing an explosion of queer characters in middle-grade children’s literature and young adults, and this is very important because, although these books are being published more and more, students in schools do not have access to representation and positive stories. of LGBTQ and it is very important that young people are reflected in books and stories that are shared and validated in school. stories within those genres. But it’s true. Overall, we are seeing an increase in LGBT narratives in books. “
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