Jewelle Gómez

Jewelle Gomez is an acclaimed American writer whose work spans fiction, poetry, essays, and theater. She is best known for her groundbreaking novel "The Gilda Stories" (1991), which won two Lambda Literary Awards and reimagines vampire mythology through a lesbian feminist lens. The novel follows an escaped slave who navigates two centuries of life, exploring themes of identity, community, and marginalization. Gomez's other notable works include the short fiction collection "Don't Explain", the essay collection "43 Septembers", and the poetry volume "Oral Tradition". Her writing has been featured in over a hundred anthologies, including "Dark Matter: A Century of African American Speculative Fiction" and "Home Girls: A Black Feminist Anthology".

Gomez's writing is deeply influenced by her multicultural heritage and activist background. Raised in Boston by her great-grandmother, Grace, a woman of African American and Ioway descent, Gomez draws from her family's history of resilience and marginalization. Her involvement in Black theater, lesbian feminist activism, and magazine publishing—including her work with the "Conditions" collective—shaped her literary voice. Her plays, such as the theatrical adaptation "Bones and Ash" and the recent "Waiting for Giovanni" (a meditation on James Baldwin), further demonstrate her versatility. Currently, Gomez is working on a comic novel titled "Televised", which examines the lives of Black Nationalist movement survivors, showcasing her enduring engagement with social and political themes.