Friday, June 20, 2014

Remembering Ayofemi, Remember Why



Ayofemi Folayan passed away recently.  She was my first writing teacher, and I owe her a tremendous amount of gratitude.  In the early 1990's, I was a few years out of acting school, and not acting.  Creativity had always been a strong tool in dealing with the world, and I needed to be creative.  As any actor will you, you're never acting enough and you're usually waiting for someone's permission to act. 

I started her writing workshop, a space she had for LGBT people of color.  She wanted space for young writers to say whatever they wanted to say.  She encouraged writing exploring issues of being a double minority.  I had been in creative spaces before--I had a degree in Theatre.  However, her class was different.  She asked us to travel deeply within ourselves, uncork our thoughts on truly difficult themes: racism, homophobia, immigration.  She helped me become a person who could comfortably speak my mind--with tact and generosity.  She helped developed my Voice. 

One day, she said she was selling her computer for a newer one.  I bought it.  And still have it.  I typed out stories on this old clunker.  I dug it out to look at it and remember my joy of writing in the first place. 

It's been twenty years, and I may have become a little jaded.  I'm being asked to consider "the market" when I write.  Can I sell whatever story I'm writing.  I must confess I had been having some frustration with my current novel.  I feel like my Voice had been muddled.  I'd been choking on what to say.

With Ayofemi's passing, I'm reminded as to why I started writing.  I wanted to do something honest and true.  I wanted to put something out in the world that was valuable.  I wanted to be the kind of writer Ayofemi would have been proud of.  And I still do.
 

 


Thank you, Ayofemi, for your service.

3 comments:

ReWriteMan said...

Thank you, Noel.
Ayofemi was also my first writing teacher. I attended an Open House at the Center and signed up for 'Word Play!' on a whim.
Without Ayofemi's faith in my talent, and repeated commands of 'There is no wrong way to write, just do it!', I would not have a writing career.

Cheryl said...

This is a lovely post, which I will file under Inspiration To Get Off My Ass And Write. :-)

circuitmouse said...

I find it hard to think of Ayofemi as "gone"...somehow she's always close by, over my shoulder, inspiting me, still...