Poetess and writer W. Coleman was lauded by critics for her farsighted and utterly novel outlook. The author of 20 books of poetry and prose, Coleman concentrated on racism and the problems of outcasts in California. The poetess frequently wrote her works to shed light on the lives of the downtrodden and the oppressed, ignored men and women who walk the streets of states across America. Read more on losangeles1.one.
The rhymester, who wrote short fiction and screenplays for Hollywood series, did not belong to academic circles. Unlike most African American artists, the poetess did not have the opportunity to receive a university education. Her work was a combination of different styles with literary, musical and cinematic allusions. Learn more about the life story of poet John Cage here.
Biography
Wanda Evans was born in the Watts neighborhood of LA in 1946. Her parents inspired her to be an avid reader. The woman commenced writing poetry at age 5 and released her earliest poems in a provincial paper at 13. Nevertheless, she did not like state schools she was educated in during the 1950s and 1960s and regarded them as dehumanized. Coleman went to a few colleges. Although she did not earn a degree, she repeatedly gave seminars and then lectured at the higher education level.
The writer had numerous occupations between the 1970s and 1980s. She honed her writing technique during nights and weekends by taking writers’ courses in and around LA.
Coleman released her first short story, Watching the Sunset, in Negro Digest/Black World in 1970. Throughout the 1970s, Coleman tried her hand at theater, dance, television and journalism. The poetess won an Emmy Award for her work as a writer on the television soap opera Days of Our Lives, but Coleman’s passion for nonprofit writing has not diminished.
Her love of poetry was strengthened by the possibility of writing powerful public speeches. While she was involved in the LA poetry scene, Coleman was affected by poets H. Coulette, D. Wakoski, J. Thomas, C. Eshleman and C. Bukowski. She was also guided by publisher J. Martin. Her first manuscript of poetry was released in 1977.
Her further creative activities extended beyond music to include visual arts, theater and public speaking. As a rhymer, she began to make a name for herself provincially. The poetess performed at nearby rock clubs reciting poetry. She was often asked to give speeches in prisons, campuses, rock clubs and institutions across the United States and abroad (Amsterdam, Paris, Stockholm, Sydney).
Creative path
For several years, Coleman’s work drew interest outside the area’s literary community. The talent the woman demonstrated in her books Mad Dog Black Lady (1979) and Imagoes (1983) helped her receive a National Endowment for the Arts grant and a Guggenheim Fellowship for Poetry. In 1987, she released Heavy Daughter Blues, a hybrid collection of short stories and poetry.
The following year, the fully fictionalized volume A War of Eyes and Other Stories appeared. It reinforced the wave of critical acclaim and recognition that had centered on Coleman during the 1980s. A collection of autobiographical short stories and prose poems entitled African Sleeping Sickness: Stories & Poems was released in 1990. It won the Harriette Simpson Arnow Prize for fiction.
Her first novel, Mambo Hips and Make Believe, was released in 1999. Jazz and Twelve O’Clock Tales, Coleman’s second volume of short stories, was issued in 2008 by Black Sparrow Books.
Features of creativity
When she began writing as a member of the Watts Writers Workshop, which emerged after the 1965 riots, the literature of LA was largely a literature of exile. Home, of course, is a complex concept, and even as she conquered LA, Coleman also fought against the city. The poetess was outraged by its inequality, broken promises, social and racial hierarchies. The sonneteer said that the character of the commune in which she grew up was deeply provisional and susceptible to continual changes in the social and political sands. W. Coleman stayed committed to researching racism, the female experience and LA. The city was an important element of the poetess’ work.
Cheeky, snappy and slyly poignant, W. Coleman wrote some of the best poetry about cars and their central role in life in LA. After all, to live in a big city, a car is a requisite. For Coleman, the car was also fundamental on other levels. She once stated that she often fantasized about running over people she didn’t approve of with her car.
Turning to the sonnet form, the lyricist demonstrated remarkable artistic skill, debunking prejudice against writers representing racial minorities, lower social strata and women. She proved that the sophisticated literary form is not the prerogative of a separate “elite” group of artists. The writer’s rebellion was manifested both at the level of form and content.
Coleman draws the reader in long, winding lines that keep moving forward. Her poetry is also characterized by flamboyant vocabulary. In her opinion, one detail is never enough. W. Coleman presents history from the perspective of African Americans, depicting black ancestors who suffered from slavery. The author’s poetry is particularly sympathetic to the hardships and tragedies experienced by African Americans. American literary critics characterize W. Coleman’s poetry as sarcastic, satirical and filled with an objective vision of reality.
Although the poetess resisted any tradition, Coleman acknowledged that her writing was influenced by the blues tradition and the music of the African American church. Despite the hardships in her life (raising three children, often juggling more than one job), Coleman found time to create and recite her work. Since the late 1970s, Coleman had released eight books. Distinguishing herself from other African-American writers from the South and East, Coleman saw herself as a distinctly West Coast writer. She remained committed to depicting the diverse life in the city, giving voice to the voiceless and making the invisible visible.
Awards
W. Coleman had received awards from the California Arts Council in fiction (1982) and poetry (2002), a proclamation from the City of Los Angeles, and the first literary award from the Department of Cultural Affairs in 2003. She was a nominee for California State Poet Laureate at a time when the woman was regarded as the unofficial poetess laureate of LA.
Coleman was also awarded the prestigious 1999 Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize by the Academy of American Poets, becoming the first African-American woman to ever win the award. W. Coleman was a finalist for the 2001 National Book Award.
Coleman died in 2013 after a long illness. In 2020, Black Sparrow Press released Wicked Enchantment: Selected Poems by Coleman. The collection covers four decades of the lyrist’s work and numerous pieces from her series The Complete American Sonnets. The book has been highly commended by critics. Writing in the New Yorker, Dan Chiasson called Coleman one of the biggest writers to emerge from LA.