We're not afraid of the stories that have made us and that have formed me. But in the end, I would hope that there is this message of us remaining. I wanted to have this declarative statement to ground the book, to say, you will encounter a lot of terrors and traumas that my family has gone through. My grandma lived on Cemetery Lane, and there was a lot of darkness there. The home was key as a place of beauty but also terror and secrets. I realized as I was telling the stories of my grandma and me and my father, location was key. In that book, the characters are making sense of this ghost-force haunting their home. The title is a subtle nod to Toni Morrison's novel Beloved and the speech that the matriarch Baby Suggs delivers to this intergenerational group of people.

What's the significance of that location and the intention behind your dedication? You dedicate This Here Flesh to the house on Cemetery Lane. It was a slow unfolding, but I realized that this was the book I wanted to write first. I would go to write about lament, and I had nothing to say about it without starting with my grandma crying on the linoleum floor, and I had nothing to say about dignity if I couldn't start with my dad greasing our scalps every morning. Their stories were so alive in me, it was like I couldn't write anything else. Simultaneously, I had these conversations with family to preserve my family stories. As I began to write, I realized that my strength as a writer is in storytelling. Riley: When I began Black Liturgies, I thought I was going to write a book of serious contemplative nonfiction. RNS: How did this book grow out of your Instagram account? This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Religion News Service spoke with Riley about her evolving spirituality and the vulnerable process of sharing her new book, released by Convergent Books on Feb. 'I think people will be surprised just how much of myself this book contains,' said Riley.Ĭiting influences such as James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, Howard Thurman and Julian of Norwich, Riley explores spiritual questions about dignity, belonging, rage and rest through her family's stories. But with Riley's debut in print, This Here Flesh: Spirituality, Liberation, and the Stories That Make Us, that's about to change.

This here flesh cole riley