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THANGS JUST AIN’T THE SAME FOR GANGSTAS EDITED
BY NIKKI BOSOMPEM I wonder what Urban Street Lit would be like today if Donald Goines was still around penning.
Donald was a great writer and storyteller. Beyond that he was consistent and creative, and although he was writing within
the boundaries of fiction, his tales were life-like to the reader. Goines gave a clear description to the social ills surrounding
him and many others living in and around the conditions he was writing about. More importantly, he kept it “GANGSTER,”
without over- exaggerating the plot. He signed his signature in word of every title he put out and he had it all: introduction,
characterization, action, suspense, highs, lows, and a consistent flow all the way to the climax. For some time now, Street
Lit has been receiving harsh criticisms from some book reviewers and readers alike. A few of these criticisms are justified
because of the presentation of the product. For instance, when the author has written the work in a manner that doesn’t
actually put the reader there, but rather speaks to the reader as if he/she was actually present at the time of the events
in question in which he or she gives little or no background or foundation to the events that are taking place. This includes
no proper character introduction, scene transitions, and lack of description or details. On the other hand, some of these
criticisms are in bad taste, like giving a book a bad review on content alone. A reviewer may cite a book as a poor presentation
because he or she thought it contained too much drugs or sex in the book. In my opinion, this is a weak excuse for a bad review.
The author may be using these things to show character or plot development. If a person is always smoking, having sex, or
being violent, the author quite possibly is trying to give the reader a look into the character’s personality. Personally,
I would want as much detail as possible whether it was drug, sex, or whatever as a reader because I don’t know the characters
yet. I just met them. Along with a physical description I would like to know the character’s habits and mind mechanics
especially if I am going to be following this character throughout the book. Also, as a reviewer you have
to be able to decipher the many different genres that exist under the umbrella of Urban Fiction, i.e. Street Lit. I’m
not expecting the same thing from a Terry McMillan that I am expecting from a Nikki Turner. Both are great authors of different
content. I understand there are other elements that are supposed to help the story along and when applied properly they give
a nice highlight to the flow of the story, but these elements can’t and shouldn’t overshadow the key point of
the story. If the main character is a drug dealer, chances are his actions and surroundings are going to reflect that of a
drug dealer. I think reviewers should be more critical of things like: Did the story flow as the author presented the events?
Did the author stick to the storyline as he or she presented them? Was the plot set and developed from the beginning to the
climax? I’ll admit consistency and originality is lacking in the Street Lit genre and repetitiveness kills
creativity which will eventually kill the craft for most Street Lit authors who are penning today. Most authors come off like
they just rewrote their favorite author’s story by changing the character’s names and stripping the plot to avoid
recognition of the original author’s work. That’s where the repetitiveness comes in. By all means you are
penning fiction, but you are also penning in a genre where reality is the pivotal focus of your audience. Glamour and exaggeration
are a marriage, but all marriages have their problems. As a writer, you have to realize that glamour is really in the eye
of the reader. The glamour that surrounds the tragedy in most Street Lit tales should only be used as a prop in the true writer’s
showcase. Even through repetitiveness, our use of language coupled with our personal style should allow us to be crafty in
our expressions. Prisons and jails are a huge piece of the Street Lit market, however, brothers and sisters
that are incarcerated are starting to go from wanting to read the story to penning the story. I can dig it, get that money,
and while you’re at it bring that color to the art. These incarcerated individuals show me two things: First, the generation
after Goines took the torch from him but have yet to run the race. When your audience closes your book and says, “I
can do that,” or even worse, “I can do that better,” it’s time to tighten up your craft. People weren’t
rushing to write books when Goines was doing his thing because he was too good. Sure there were others that were writing back
then and to their credit, they were true authors of the script. But Goines was good and consistent because he put out sixteen
books in a five year period. The second thing I observed is that the readers are searching for something that has yet to present
itself or if it has presented itself it hasn’t remained present throughout the course of titles in the market right
now. I’m hoping to refresh that spark into the true readers and fans of Street Lit. To reiterate, as a Street
Lit author, I realize that my principal audience is going to be the people that are living in and around the conditions that
I am writing about. I try to keep that fresh in my mind as I write so my creativity doesn’t take me away from my element.
I want the reader walking with me every step of the way. I always aim for vision through words. I boldly incorporate the mannerisms
and structures around my characters from the urban fashion to urban terrain. I don’t believe there’s a such thing
as being too detailed or visual in writing. If a character walks in the room I want to be in that room as an observer and
it is the author’s job to take me there. I hope to find or restore whatever the readers of Street Lit feel is missing.
There are so many different elements to the urban subculture that can be put into book format. When I first started writing,
I largely wrote about hustlers of narcotics, but as I continued to grow as a writer, I realized I could write about many different
things in the urban subculture as well as other themes outside of the urban subculture. That’s what I think completes
me as an author. When I read your joint, I want to be able to relate all the way through if you are writing about the streets
because I am from the streets. Although your book maybe a street fable, you face one of the toughest critics out there because
like all things in the streets things are critical. Do your research. Things just ain’t the same for gangstas. If you’re
going to write Street Lit give it that edge, that grit. Make me fall in love with the rogue, the desperado, the thug, the
hood. I’m a fan first. How about some hardcore?
Author Aaron Bebo
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