Thomas cites Tupac Shakur as inspiration for her writing. This story, compounded by the deaths of Trayvon Martin, Tamir Rice, Michael Brown, and Sandra Bland, was a major influence on the novel.
During this time, Thomas also heard about the shooting of Oscar Grant on the news. While she was a college student, one of her professors suggested that her experiences were unique and that her writing could give a voice to those who had been silenced and whose stories had not been told. While querying her first manuscript, she began another that would soon turn out to be her first novel, The Hate U Give. Thomas' initial intention was to write fantasy and middle grade novels however, she was worried that her stories would not matter. She was the first black teenager to graduate from her creative writing course. Thomas went on to obtain a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Belhaven University. She was, however, the subject of an article in Right On! magazine. In her adolescence, Thomas shared her skills as a rapper, although her career in music was short-lived. In an interview with The Guardian, she recounted how her mother took her to the library the following day to show her that "there was more to the world than what saw that day". When she was six years old, Thomas witnessed a shootout. She grew up near the home of assassinated civil rights activist Medgar Evers, stating that her mother heard the gunshot that killed him. Thomas was subjected to multiple instances of gun violence at a young age. Angie Thomas was born and raised in Jackson, Mississippi, where she still resides.
0 kommentar(er)
