Praat met me: for greater representation of writers and lecturers of colour

Second-year Creative Writing students Janey Mooij and Sãdiqãh Salentijn organise the literary evening Praat met me. During the event, writers of colour, students and the audience engage in an open conversation about authorship, identity and representation. The initiative began when they noticed their work was receiving little feedback. This led them to reflect on the visibility and representation of writers and lecturers of colour within the field.

A lot of reflection

A large part of Creative Writing is about working together. Students read each other’s texts, give feedback and learn from one another. 'It’s really nice to surround yourself with other writers,' says Sãdiqãh.

During the programme you work with writing in a broad sense: prose, poetry, text and performance, but also sound. You write for podcasts or radio, choose subjects that suit you and constantly reflect. What do I want to say? Why am I writing this? And for whom?

'You’re always asking yourself what matters to you and what you want to write about,' says Janey. Students are also encouraged to network and take initiative: to attend events, talk to people and, above all, to be bold.

Too little representation and no feedback

In their own experience, however, something was missing. There was too little representation in the programme: few students of colour, few lecturers of colour and few texts that connected with their experiences. 'In literary history and Think we mainly discussed work by white makers. And when a maker of colour was discussed, the conversation often immediately turned to stereotypes. People say there simply aren’t enough writers of colour,' says Sãdiqãh.

'We thought: that simply isn’t true. We noticed that fellow students often didn’t give feedback on our texts. Not out of unwillingness, but because they were afraid of saying the wrong thing or felt they didn’t have enough knowledge about the topics. That’s understandable, but also frustrating. Because how do you start a conversation about things that feel further away from you?' she says.

From frustration to initiative: Praat met me

Together they decided to take action. They made a list of writers, filmmakers and theatre-makers of colour and approached the head of programme. 'We were encouraged there. Within the programme there is room for initiatives, but you have to start them yourself,' says Janey.

It started small: conversations between the two of them on a sofa in the ArtEZ Library. They collected questions and created a card game to guide conversations. 'We realised we couldn’t do this on our own. We wanted to know how other writers think about this,' says Janey.

That is how Praat met me came about: an evening that brings different perspectives together at one table. Their starting point was always to open the conversation, not to burn bridges.

What it led to

'The reactions were really great. Fellow students said it broadened their perspective and that they now feel more confident asking questions. Asking questions isn’t right or wrong, as long as you’re respectful,' says Sãdiqãh. 'I think it was also important for many students to see several writers of colour sitting at one table. Afterwards we also noticed that lecturers understood the issue better and that the atmosphere in class changed.'

For Sãdiqãh, it also meant personal freedom. 'Professor Soortkill said to me: you should simply write what you want to write and not be too cautious about it. Otherwise you’ll never feel free enough to write. That created space, because I don’t write only for a white reader or only for someone of colour. I imagine a Turkish reader, a Moroccan reader, a Surinamese reader.' She now dares more and writes with a different attitude.

Praat met me is still an evening organised outside the programme, but it is now included in the timetable. Literary production house Wintertuin also covers the costs for the writers, the host and the venue. But Janey and Sãdiqãh have bigger plans.

'Our wish is for this conversation to become part of the programme. Because Creative Writing is a place where you learn together, experiment and grow. It’s also a place where you discover your own voice, while learning to listen to others. Where you realise that writing is connected to the world around you and that when something is missing, you can take the initiative yourself. Praat met me is an example of that,' says Sãdiqãh.