We asked our authors from around the world to share their thoughts on why they write, why they read, and the books that have influenced them.
Here’s what they had to say.
Tell us why you read and share your favorite books! Join the discussion @HarperCollins on Twitter using #hc200.
Elizabeth R. Cowan
I write to unread what has been written about me in error and with malice. I write against the expectation that black characters jump through a cathartic dog-and-pony show of enlightenment, thus being impressed into service as the nation’s moral consciousness by exemplifying unrequited Christian ideals of forgiveness and reassuring audiences of America’s eternal benevolence. I write against the Horatio Alger myth, against the fallacious paradigm that accuses the poor of being lazy, and against the strained optimism of the slave narrative. I write for those of us who did not—or cannot—get away.
