Marketing Minority Literature

The African American Market.

Publishers and book-sellers discovered a large African American market during the 1980s. African American women in particular swarmed bookstores in search of contemporary fiction such as Tina McElroy Ansas Ugly Ways, Bebe Moore Campbell's Brothers and Sisters, and Connie Briscoe's Sisters and Lovers—all published in 1995. "Although women read more in general, there's a higher proportion of female readers in the African-American community," Clara Villarosa, owner of the Hue Man Experience bookstore in Denver, Colorado, said in 1995. "Black women want to pick up a book, sit down and forget about their troubles for the day." A frequent lament among critics, however, was that, as all American readers, African Americans tended to buy popular fiction rather than serious literary works. According to literary agent Denise Stinson, "consumers are continuing to read lighter fare; and not...

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