When the synopsis of a book is ’17 North American Black women who packed up everything and moved to Asia’, you might instantly want to pick it up and read from cover to cover.
Canadian author T.K. McLennon thought just that when she decided to reach out to women who had done just that as she set out to write her new book ‘TrailBlasian: Black Women Living in EastAsia’.
The result is a collection of 17 stories written by ‘Trailblasians’ from a variety of English-speaking countries.
Trailblasian is a word she created and defines it as “black people moving to Asia to lend their talents, learn the culture and pave new pathways for the next generation.”
I love stories of people stepping out of their comfort zones to venture into uncharted territories and it’s always more inspiring to me when it’s women.
I actually have a copy of Trailblasianthat I’ll be reading and reviewing in the next couple of weeks and you can pick a copy up too at Amazon.com or Excelovate.com if you want to compare notes on my review.
In the meantime, we’re very thrilled to have T.K. McLennon take a moment and answer some questions for our AuthorSpotlight Series :
What inspired you to become a writer?
I would say a love of reading has been the main inspiration. Being a word nerd and language lover helps too.
Who is your favorite author?
I love many authors but I’d say Toni Morrison because her work is so lyrically beautiful and she respects her readers.
Describe your book in 30 words or less.
An eye-opening nonfiction anthology full of stories you’ve never heard before from courageous women who chose a road less traveled.
Why should we read Trailblasian?
Because you’ve never read stories like this from people like this before, and because you will learn a lot about the world, yourself and other people.
What is your next project?
I’m working on it and will keep you posted!
What books have influenced your life most?
Dr. Seuss’ Green Eggs And Ham because you don’t know anything till you try. Also, Rohinton Mistry’s A Fine Balance because when you think things can’t get worse, they can. But life is still beautiful with laughter and good friends. I could go on and on but those ones come to mind first.
Check out our other Author Spotlights!
