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BLACK ACADEMY OF ARTS AND LETTERS, INC. 

PROPOSAL FOR A MANUAL FOR BLACK WRITERS 

The black writer, as a newcomer to the publishing world, has singular obstacles to face: the problems of planning time for writing, finding an agent, a publisher, a fair contract, and equitable distribution and publicity arrangements. If these are problematic for white writers, they are even more so for black writers. As a results of the paucity of blacks in all phases of publishing, there is insufficient information about this field in the black community. 

A growing number of college-educated and self-educated young blacks are attempting to have their work published, yet have no legal representatives or literary advisers at their disposal. One need only hear of the experiences of a Chester Himes, Richard Wright, and a Langston Hughes, to know that publishers do exploit writers; or one can read an excellent novel by a new black writer and realize that publishers are so selective in their promotion that they frequently miss the opportunity to promote a new writer sufficiently to realize his market potential. 


The purpose of our manual, which has the working title: TO THE BLACK WRITER: BEFORE YOU SIGN, is to prepare and assist the young black writer as he approaches the various stages of getting published. The working outline is as follows: