Lesley-Ann Brown

Blackgirl On Mars

“We are the daughters of lost nations;

Born to parents of forced migrations…”

— Lesley-Ann Brown, Author

I have created content for various platforms – from Hip Hop magazines such as Vibe and the Source to NBCBLK. I have also written commissioned poems for artist Jeannette Ehlers, “Black is a Beautiful Word: I & I,” which has been selected to be in the permanent collection at the Royal Danish Library, as well as Julienne Doko’s historical dance performance “W.O.M.B.” I have interviewed creative luminaries such as Kara Walker, the late Coolio, Paul Beatty, Dimitry Elias Leger, NYT’s Bestselling author Tia Williams and Jason Reynolds among others. In addition, I have written book reviews for NBCBLK, and The Quarterly Black Review.

In 2018 I was a ghostwriter on Ben Crump’s award-winning 2019 book “Open Season.”

Aside from my groundbreaking 2005 blog “Blackgirl on Mars” and two published books, one of which was recently nominated for “The Purple Prize,” – I have a solid track record of creating content that works.

I have always had a deep passion for writing since I was four years old and accidentally typed the word “roti” on my mother’s typewriter – a word that means “bread” in my culture, and seemed to underscore how vital this skill would be in my life.

My writing career continued in high school when I experienced the feeling of accomplishment bestowed upon a writer when her work was published. My story, “Take Time to Listen,” about a friend who discloses their sexuality to the other, was published in my school’s paper. Later, I and a host of other high school activists created “Spew,” a zine for the youth chapter of the War Resister’s League, further cementing my passion for publishing – a field I would officially enter while in college. 

I went on to work for Welsh Publishing while studying writing at the New School in Manhattan. While at the New School, I studied under Jane Lazarre and Suzanne Lori Parks. At Welsh, I honed my commercial writing – we created magazines for Nickelodeon and Disney, to name a few. I was fortunate to work under some magazine publishing greats during my tenure there; I learned how to write content that works and edit. 

After graduating from college, I assisted Marie D. Brown of Marie Brown Associates – a literary legend- and freelanced for magazines such as Vibe, The Source, and One World magazines. My job at Marie’s entailed reading manuscripts from the slush pile, writing copious reviews, and reporting back to Marie on any gems found during my deep dives. 

Once I landed in Denmark, I focused on education and continued to publish in anthologies. I also began my critically-acclaimed blog, Blackgirl on Mars in 2005. 

Books:

Blackgirl on Mars (Repeater Books, UK & USA, February 2023)

Decolonial Daughter: Letters from a Black Woman to her European Son (Repeater Books, UK & USA, May 2018)

Commissioned Poetry:

Motherhood is a different country – W.O.M.B. dance performance, 2022 w/ Julienne Doko.

Black is a Beautiful Word, I & I  – w/ Jeannette Ehlers – The Danish Royal Library Collection – 2019

Selected work: 

Anthologies + Journals:

The Road to Hossain– Kult Journal (Copenhagen, 2018)

Blackgirl Survival’s Guide for Life in Copenhagen (Kult, Racism in Denmark, volume 15, Copenhagen, 2018)

The Conquest of Kaira– Marronage (Forlaget Nemo, DK, 2017)

Various poems – Interviewing the Caribbean Vol. 2 No. 2 “A History of Violence pt. 2: The Making of the Caribbean Society

Anti-racism is also Feminism– Feminisme Fordi…(Mellemfolkeligt Samvirke, DK, 2017)

The Forgotten Father: A Tale of Migration– Good Works (Bandit Queen Press, DK, 2009)

Copenhagen on the Real– The Cph Guide (Nyt Nordisk Forlag Arnold Busck A/S, DK, 2008)

Sorte Piger På Istedgade– Kvinder Stiller Skarpt (Information, DK, 2004)

Conversations in Denmark– Expat: Women’s True Tales of Life Abroad (Seal Press, US, 2002)

Listen– In Defense of Mumia (Writers & Readers, USA, 1996

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