An Interview with Natasha Tarpley

by Bridgett C. Gayle

"I chose this structure because it was not my intent to write an autobiography or biography of my mother and grandmother. The snapshots allowed me to capture important moments in each of the women's lives, like postcards from each point in their development."

Natasha Tarpley's memoir, Girl in the Mirror: Three Generations of Black Women in Motion, takes an intimate journey through her maternal lineage. The literary world is comparing this young and upcoming writer to Maya Angelou. I not only had the pleasure of reading this lyrical memoir but also to interview Tarpley.

Bridgett Gayle: Who is the girl in the mirror?

Natasha Tarpley: She is a reflection of our past and our possibilities for the future. She is the reflection of my grandmother, mother, aunt, and sisters from whom I learn daily life lessons. But the girl is also a reflection of those women whom I don't know but am connected to through history and experiences.

Gayle: In your memoir, the past, present, and future are like links of a chain, each link building upon the other to make the whole strong. The lives of your grandmother and mother are your links to your past, present, and future. How did their lives affect your self-image?

Tarpley: I see my grandmother, mother, aunts, and sisters in my own reflection. It's like peeling back the layers of years and defenses we've built up until we return to that place where we are small, where the little girl in all of us still lives. I was surprised to find so many similarities in our lives. There were so many echoes. For example, we all made similar choices in our romantic relationships. We struggled with loving the men in our lives and were always asking ourselves if we were good enough or to blame for our men's loveless actions. Each of us looked to men to provide a sense of completion and fulfillment that we really needed to discover within ourselves. I don't blame myself anymore. I'm learning to identify what I want and need in a relationship. Settling just isn't worth it.

Gayle: Your grandmother left the South bound for Chicago. And your mother left Chicago for Boston after your father died. What meaning can you give to those journeys?

Tarpley: These physical journeys represented their internal migration, the movement of one state of their lives to another. I also left home to find and create a place of my own.

Gayle: But why make public the emotional and physical struggles of your mother and grandmother?

Tarpley: I didn't set out to make my grandmother's and mother's lives public. Actually, the book grew out of a series of narrative poems that I was writing for my senior thesis in college. The poems were first-person narratives giving voices to historical people like Nat Turner. The point was to understand on an intimate level how historical movements were reflected in the present. At that time, I began interviewing family members about their historical recollections. After drowning in historical data, I decided to narrow the focus to the inspiring stories of the two women to whom I was closest. And thus, Girl in the Mirror was born.

Gayle: You write eloquently what could have been a mess of past and present memories, flashbacks, letters, and poetic soliloquies. How do you make it look so easy? And why in the first person?

Tarpley: There were times I couldn't seem to break it down into manageable pieces. I decided to write in a series of short vignettes or snapshots. I chose this structure because it was not my intent to write an autobiography or biography of my mother and grandmother. The snapshots allowed me to capture important moments in each of the women's lives, like postcards from each point in their development. I chose the first person because it is immediate. I didn't want to define them through third-person narration, I wanted the women to speak.

Gayle: Why and when did you start putting your thoughts to paper?

Tarpley: I started writing when I was seven years old. I don't know why exactly. Watching my mother, who used to write a lot, inspired me to write. I found that writing was a space where I could control and imagine the outcomes of things, which I couldn't do in "real" life. Writing is also a way of making something beautiful. I love the sound of words, the places and things you can create with them. I can't sing, so writing is the closest I can come to making music.

Gayle: Have any tips for new writers?

Tarpley: I would tell new writers to read everything. And do things that you love and inspire you, whether it is listening to music or lighting candles or cooking. Also, listen to people and things. Become an observer some of the time. Be aware of your surroundings, the color and mood of the sky, the trees, the smell of the air. All of those things feed your work.

Girl in the Mirror isn't Tarpley's first successful effort. She also has received rave reviews for her children's book, I Love My Hair, and edited the anthology Testimony: Young African-Americans on Self-Discovery and Black Identity.

© 2000 by Bridgett C. Gayle

Bridgett C. Gayle is a free-lance writer for literary e-zines but makes her living as a magazine editor. She is also embarking on the formidable task of writing her first novel.