Raven Leilani Explained

Raven Leilani
Birth Date:26 August 1990
Pseudonym:Raven Leilani
Occupation:Writer
Nationality:American
Alma Mater:Marist College
New York University

Raven Leilani Baptiste (born August 26, 1990)[1] is an American writer who publishes under the name Raven Leilani. Her debut novel Luster was released in 2020 to critical acclaim.

Early life and education

Leilani grew up in a family of artists in the Bronx before they moved to a suburb of Albany, New York.[2] She grew up as a Seventh-day Adventist, and later left the church.[3] Having attended an art high school, Leilani expected to become a visual artist. She graduated Marist College located in Poughkeepsie, New York in 2012, where she studied English and psychology.

Her first job was as an imaging specialist at Ancestry.com, having previously worked in the archives of Marist College as an undergraduate. Later, she worked at a scientific journal, for the United States Department of Defense, and as a delivery person for Postmates in Washington, D.C. She also worked as an archivist at Macmillan.[4] In 2017, she began pursuing her MFA at New York University, where she studied under Zadie Smith and with writers Katie Kitamura, and Jonathan Safran Foer. She now lives in Brooklyn.

Career

Leilani's debut novel Luster received significant attention at its publishing.[5] The book's publisher, Farrar, Straus and Giroux named the book its novel of August 2020 as part of their "Dare to Imagine" campaign. It is also part of Marie Claire's book club and has been lauded by outlets including Elle, the HuffPost, BuzzFeed News, and The New York Times.[6] [7] It has been praised by authors Carmen Maria Machado, Brit Bennett, Angela Flournoy, and Zadie Smith.[8] Kirkus Reviews awarded Luster the 2020 Kirkus Prize for Fiction.[9] Luster was also awarded the 2020 Center for Fiction First Novel Prize,[10] the 2020 John Leonard Prize at the National Book Critics Circle Awards,[11] the 2021 Dylan Thomas Prize,[12] and the 2021 VCU Cabell First Novelist Award[13]

Leilani's writing is influenced by her background as a visual artist, her life experiences, poetry, and a love of comic books and music. She has written for publications including Esquire,[14] The Cut,[15] and Vogue.[16]

Works

Novels

Short stories

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2020-10-02. The startling debut of Raven Leilani. Brandon. Sanchez. 2020-10-28. America Magazine. en. October 31, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201031225549/https://www.americamagazine.org/arts-culture/2020/10/02/startling-debut-raven-leilani-luster. live.
  2. Web site: de León. Concepción. July 31, 2020. Raven Leilani, a Flâneur Who Is Going Places. New York Times. August 6, 2020. August 6, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200806135229/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/31/books/raven-leilani-luster.html. live.
  3. Web site: Obaro. Tomi. August 4, 2020. If You Like "Normal People," You'll Love "Luster". BuzzFeed News. August 6, 2020. August 5, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200805181830/https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/tomiobaro/raven-leilani-luster-is-the-next-great-millennial-novel. live.
  4. Web site: Varno. David. July 10, 2020. Writers to Watch Fall 2020. Publishers Weekly. August 6, 2020. January 24, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210124035915/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/authors/profiles/article/83832-writers-to-watch-fall-2020.html. live.
  5. Web site: Book Marks reviews of Luster by Raven Leilani . 2024-08-12 . Book Marks . en-US.
  6. Web site: Epstein. Rachel. July 29, 2020. 'Luster' Is Marie Claire's August Book Club Pick. Marie Claire. August 6, 2020. August 6, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200806104328/https://www.marieclaire.com/culture/a33436103/luster-raven-leilani-excerpt/. live.
  7. News: Fequiere. Roxanne. August 5, 2020. Raven Leilani Is Your New Favorite Novelist. Elle. August 6, 2020. August 6, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200806060241/https://www.elle.com/culture/books/a33510646/raven-leilani-luster-interview/. live.
  8. Web site: Smith. Zadie. August 4, 2020. Zadie Smith on Her Former Student Raven Leilani's Debut Novel. Harpers Bazaar. August 6, 2020. August 6, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200806081652/https://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/art-books-music/a33501867/raven-leilani-luster-zadie-smith/. live.
  9. Web site: 2020 Kirkus Prize. https://web.archive.org/web/20201225163736/https://www.kirkusreviews.com/prize/2020/. December 25, 2020. 2021-01-23. Kirkus Reviews. en. live.
  10. Web site: Raven Leilani Wins the 2020 Center for Fiction First Novel Prize. 2021-03-02. The Center for Fiction. en-US. January 23, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210123110817/https://centerforfiction.org/raven-leilani-wins-the-2020-center-for-fiction-first-novel-prize/. live.
  11. Web site: Beer. Tom. 2021-03-25. National Book Critics Circle Presents Awards. 2021-03-29. Kirkus Reviews. en. July 13, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230713002051/https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-and-features/articles/national-book-critics-circle-presents-awards/. live.
  12. Web site: Dylan Thomas Prize: New Yorker Raven Leilani wins accolade . BBC News . 14 May 2021 . 13 May 2021 . May 13, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210513220627/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-57109365 . live .
  13. Web site: VCU Cabell First Novelist Award. 2021-07-27. firstnovelist.vcu.edu. en. December 15, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231215205618/https://firstnovelist.vcu.edu/winners/. live.
  14. Web site: Leilani. Raven. July 23, 2020. When I Left My Faith, I Went to Comic Con. Esquire. August 1, 2020. July 31, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200731113822/https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/movies/a33366043/raven-leilani-comic-con-appreciation-essay/. live.
  15. Web site: Leilani . Raven . Luster (excerpt) . The Cut . 2020-08-03 . 2020-08-27 . August 16, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200816172206/https://www.thecut.com/article/luster-a-novel-excerpt-by-raven-leilani.html . live .
  16. Web site: Leilani. Raven. August 4, 2020. Turning My Back on the Faith that Saved Me. Vogue. August 6, 2020. September 8, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200908214911/https://www.vogue.com/article/raven-leilani-losing-faith-essay. live.
  17. Web site: Leilani . Raven . Hard Water . Cosmonauts Avenue . 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200810183750/https://cosmonautsavenue.com/raven-leilani-fiction/ . 2020-08-10 . dead.
  18. Leilani. Raven. January 20, 2020. Breathing Exercise. The Yale Review. 107. 4. 40–50. 10.1111/yrev.13555. 241706744. August 6, 2020. April 17, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220417051405/https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/yrev.13555. live.
  19. Web site: Leilani. Raven. January 28, 2019. Airplane Mode. SmokeLong Quarterly. April 27, 2024. April 27, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240427022853/https://www.smokelong.com/stories/airplane-mode/. live.

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