We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Tameka Fryer Brown a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Tameka Fryer , thanks for joining us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

In June of 2015, nine Black people were murdered during Wednesday night Bible study by a 20-year-old white supremacist seeking to spark a race war. As the investigation into the killer progressed, photographs of him posing with the Confederate flag were discovered and released, which led to a familiar public debate as to whether this Civil War-related emblem was indeed a hate flag, or simply a misappropriated symbol of Southern heritage and pride. It was against this backdrop that I decided to write That Flag, a children’s book about best friends divided over the meaning and significance of the Confederate flag. Even though I knew a picture book for young readers that shed factual light on the Confederate flag—how it came to be and how it is still being used in conjunction with white supremacy today—would not be well-received by some, my mind kept replaying John Lewis’ exhortation about getting into “good trouble.” I crafted That Flag in the spirit of truth-telling, relationship-building, and love.

When I first tried to get it published during the period between December 2015 and February 2016, no publisher was willing to touch it. Fast forward to the summer of 2020, following the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and others. I dusted off the manuscript and, with the help of my new agent, submitted it once again to publishers. This time, it ended up going to auction.

That Flag released in January 2023, when book banning efforts were in high gear. Surprisingly, it has not been placed on any official banned lists. I do believe there is some soft-banning going on with it, due to the fears of educators and librarians, which often leads to proactive self-censorship. That said, it has won numerous awards and accolades since its publication, and many readers have expressed the significant impact its existence has had on them.

That Flag has taught me much about myself, namely that I possess courage enough to act boldly, despite my fears, and that my work has value and is able to inspire change. These two lessons alone are enough to keep me writing for a long time to come.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Tameka Fryer Brown is a picture book author who writes to sow seeds of self-love, pride, connectivity, and inclusion in the hearts of children. Her books have won awards like the Charlotte Huck Honor Award, the Charlotte Zolotow Honor Award, and the Jane Addams Children’s Book Honor Award. They have also been featured on best book lists by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center, New York Public Library, Bank Street College, NPR, Parents Latina Magazine, Little Free Library, Kirkus, and more.

Tameka’s recent titles include Twelve Dinging Doorbells, Not Done Yet: Shirley Chisholm’s Fight for Change, and That Flag. Forthcoming books include All the Greatness in You (November 5, 2024) and Prayer Is (Winter 2026). Tameka is a member of The Brown Bookshelf, Black Creators HQ, Writers and Illustrators of North Carolina (WINC), and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated..

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

My authorial perspective is “mom.” This is something I’ve recently come to realize. Everything I have been inspired to write has come from a place of wanting to pour into kids, to help them cultivate a healthy mindset and self-esteem. The world is so messed up in many ways, and I believe that the way to create change for the better always has been and always will be through the children–the next generation of adults and leaders. So I focus on writing stories that will enrich, educate, and edify them.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

I am still building my audience on social media, to be honest. But the one thing I’ve learned is that it’s better to find the one or two platforms that you enjoy the most (or hate the least) and focus on those.

Post and build community on those. Post a mix of the professional and personal (but not too personal).

Building community comes through interacting with others on said platform–liking, sharing, and commenting on their posts, at a minimum. Your community members will do the same for you, which will help expand your reach.

If you can’t find any social media platform that you enjoy (don’t hate), then pick one and use it like a second website, a place where you post updates about your artistic endeavors.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://tamekafryerbrown.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tamekafryerbrown/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tamekafryerbrown.author/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tamekafryerbrown/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@tamekafryerbrownauthor
• Other: https://linktr.ee/authortamekafryerbrown