’Rosewater’ in stores now
Authors draw inspiration for their novels through their environment, circumstances, imagination, or perception and curate storylines. The creation of characters reflects the different personality traits of the author, the author’s friends, or their imagination. Author Liv Little has taken her skill of storytelling and used it to create a novel in which readers become immersed in the world of her book while also reflecting on their viewpoints on life and love.
Little’s storytelling career started with earning credits in journalism, audio, TV, and curating projects for which she received LGBTQAI+ Broadcaster of the Year, among other awards. She also developed a short story called “The Sister,” which was published in the critically acclaimed Hag.
“When I was 21, I started a media company called Gal-Dem. It’s a platform where people of color and marginalized communities can tell stories that in a way felt authentic, free, and weren’t solely tied to their trauma.” Little said in reflecting on the early years of her career and how she started her publication after experiencing a lack of diversity at her university. “People expect the trauma stories or the coming out stories, and obviously those stories need to be told, but we also need the time and space to tell the stories we want.”
Little’s storytelling is shaped by her ethnic background of Jamaican and Guyanese descent, her time living in South London, and her personal experiences through life, whether good or bad, which propelled her into creating her short stories and novels.
“The evolution of self when you go through this and confront your mentality, it changes you as a person and deepens your ability to feel and tell stories that will help you connect with people,” she said.
Little’s debut novel, “Rosewater,” has received a lot of attention and for good reason. The story revolves around characters and their interaction with one another and also their self-development during the story.
“Elsie, in a sense, describes who Black women are today in the sense that many have to be superwoman, perform at a high level, and act like they are ok even when they’re not. Elsie in the story is not well but performs and acts like she is to everybody around her. She has moments where you see her veil come down and realize how broken she is.” Little said.
“Rosewater” centers around South London poet Elsie, and the book begins with her eviction from her apartment while her love interest Bea is there. The story progresses as Elsie is forced to live with her friend Juliet and then deals with the developing tension between them while dealing with personal issues and family affairs. The overall story is a journey for the characters and the reader as each character expresses and experiences love in different forms and interprets what love means to them.
You can purchase Rosewater at all book retailers and online stores like Amazon.
