Stereotypically Me

by Arnetta Randall

Stereotypically Me is the result of the epiphany that there are stereotypes for everyone and nobody actually fits them. In story after story in this brilliant collection, Arnetta Randall examines the cross section of identity issues including racism, poverty, sexism, and religion. Regardless of one’s position in life, it is within the human condition to question who they are, and where they belong in the social order. We often find ourselves trapped within where we should be, who we should be, and what we should be doing. Her characters are flawed and on a quest for clarity: a soldier returning from war starts to question everything he’s ever believed in, a wealthy socialite tries to keep her family’s image intact as her husband runs for political office. In addition, a young woman is determined to change her life and stop using her body for monetary gain, a student shocks everyone when she reveals her HIV status. A dinner party becomes the occasion for an estranged family to confront their past while violence hits home for a young man when his best friend is murdered in the streets of Chicago. While the inspiration was Randall’s own personal voyage, it has evolved into a powerful work of social commentary. Stereotypically Me contemplates what it means to be human, and what we can do, in order to do more than just live, but to really be alive.

252 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 10, 2014

About the author

I received a BA in creative writing from the University of Illinois and an MFA in creative writing from Columbia University. I’m a writer, director, producer, and founder of Randall Productions. My films and web-series have screened in multiple film festivals. Open TV, an intersectional platform for artists in Chicago has distributed two of my web series: Hook Ups and Freaky Phyllis. I’ve placed in the HollyShorts Film Festival Screenplay Competition, Female Voices Rock Film Festival screenwriting competition and Inroads Fellowship competition. I’ve been a fellow at Callaloo, Kimbilio, Hurston/Wright and Martha’s Vineyard Institute of Creative Writing. My writing has been featured in Black Youth Project, XO Necole, Nia Magazine, Flash Fiction Magazine, and Tipping the Scales Journal. My work covers race, politics, and gender with the infusion of comedy

Reviews

[Taja Merrell · Rating 2 out of 5]

The editor sucks

This book could be so much better if the editor would have corrected all the grammatical and spelling errors. There were so many errors that it make reading the book unpleasant. Great job to be Arnetta's 1st book. The editing just need to be on point.