We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Chanda Austin. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Chanda below.

Chanda, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

My journey as an author happened about 6 years ago. The storyline was so heavy that many nights I would wake up and write! I knew what I wanted to say and who I wanted the story to reach. I started this journey with little to no money to invest but, had done my research on what it would take from start to finish. I was able to secure an illustrator who allowed me to put a deposit down and pay him as pictures were complete. The illustrations were just the beginning of this process. Next, I needed an editor, For up and coming authors, please invest in a good, vetted one. Lastly, I needed a good graphic designer to put it all together. As I moved through this project, the funding flowed from the most unexpected places and I was able to finish what I thought was my first book. I uploaded the book, had an authors copy sent and I was ready! At the time, I was a classroom teacher and I decided to allow my students to read the book. The students literally trashed it. They gave me some powerful feedback. I must admit that my feelings were hurt but, I needed to hear it. I let the first publication sit. After letting it sit, I reached back out to my illustrator and we talked about how we could move forward with this project. In order to get the outcome that I needed, I had to redo the entire book at the cost of the first project. We did and it literally had a 180 turn around. I released my first project, in May 2021 and it has been done exceptionally well.

My book, Qiana’s Braids is about a little girl getting her hair braided for the first time for Back to School. It is a beautiful story of Qiana and her mother taking a journey history, love, and the Black hair experience. One of my goals in writing this story was to allow Black girls to see themselves in the story in an authentic, unapologetic space.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I am a children’s book author. I ended up in this industry because I felt like there just wasn’t and still isn’t enough children’s literature that represent Black and Brown faces or our unique stories. I am a full-time educator in a large Urban district so, I see what children are reading. I see the stories that are being told in print. The narratives of Black people often can be negative. The stories often times are not relatable to our children. When I look at literacy rates, I often wonder if they are reflective of students not knowing how to read and comprehend or if it is students not having books that were any interest to them.

My most proud moment has to be knowing that my book sits on the shelf of the Baldwin County Public Library in Baldwin County Alabama. The same library that my grandmother often times cleaned but, could not go into to check out a book because she was a Black women in the South.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of this work is seeing the smiling faces. There is also a big reward when schools purchase the book and I receive letters of how engaged the students were and how they want to visit Africa. The biggest reward was having a local principal tell me some pretty amazing feedback from her students after she read the book to her entire student body over the intercom. My heart was happy. I feel that I have a purpose and a mission to share our stories in a way that moves children to think differently about their purpose.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

I have been able to build my reputation in my market by being honest about my “why”. I think there is a unique space that has opened up for Black authors in this current climate that we are experiencing. With the lack of diverse literature, I have had organizations to reach out to me to ask about “the story”. Often times, the conversation reaches to how we as a society can do better with honoring each others stories and experiences. The vail of ignorance can be lifted by simply being intentional with learning about others.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.qianasbraids.com
• Instagram: QianaBraids
• Facebook: Qiana Braids

Image Credits
SnappyDiva