Marie Brown was one of the first African American editors at a major publishing house.
She was my editor at Doubleday Books and got me a contract for my first book Migrations of the Heart. But Marie was also a godmother, mentor, and publisher to two generations or more of Black writers. She made it possible for us to be published and promoted. Her compassion and generosity and her belief in our talent made a huge difference in our careers.
I remember my agent and me waiting a year for her to get me that contract. It took so long she told me because she was waiting for the right moment to submit it to the editorial board, the moment when she had other editors supporting the book and it could and would be bought.
Marie edited many New York Times bestselling books and overcame the sexism and racism of publishing to keep on keeping on.
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Marita Golden is the author of over 20 works of fiction and nonfiction. She is Co-founder and President Emerita of the Zora Neale Hurston/ Richard Wright Foundation. As a teacher of writing, she has served as a member of the faculties of the MFA Graduate Creative Writing Programs at George Mason University and Virginia Commonwealth University and served as a Distinguished Visiting Writer in the MA Creative Writing Program at John Hopkins University, and at the University of the District of Columbia. She has taught writing workshops nationally and internationally to a variety of constituencies and is a writing coach, workshop presenter, and literary consultant.
