Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Charles Waddell Chesnutt


Living in this area means that I write in a region where many famous authors once lived. I'm at the center working on my play when I discover that one of the consultants is a big Charles Chesnutt lover. I worked on a website for Chesnutt with one of my professors but nothing ever came from the work. I fell in love with Chesnutt's "The Quarry". I loved the color-line literature because I thought it was foreign without leaving the United States. You could leave your entire racial and cultural background simply by passing for white. I can't imagine what life was like for Chesnutt and other colored writers of the time period. I remember researching "The Blue Vein" Societies that were prominent here in my hometown. I would highly recommend reading Chesnutt's works for any aspiring writer. Although you may not relate to the color-line literature, however, we've all had to overcome some obstacle in our lives. Ohio has a storied history where writers are concerned, and you owe it to your writing career to make those one-tank trips to see the places where these famous authors lived and worked.

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