The Queenmaker: A Q&A With Wendie Zahibo
Wendie Zahibo. Photo Credit: Blxckdreads
Meet Wendie Zahibo.
Born in Marseille, and raised in Guadeloupe, Wendie Zahibo has made an art form out of queen making. She is the founder of Reines des Temps Modernes, a website that delivers “a daily dose of feminine inspiration for the Millennial generation who do not apologize for existing” and she’s a familiar face when it comes to creative events.
A queenspiration in her own right, Wendie is one of the dope women of the diaspora doing dope things.
And, this is a Q&A that is three years in the making.
We’ll give you the backstory: In May 2017, after we came across a promotion for the event Art.Women.Energy, aka AWE, we blindly reached out to the Reines des Temps Modernes Facebook page in effort to track down the creator. She was one of the first, if not the first, humans we reached out to about an interview for the then yet-to-be-launched Apres Josephine.
In the years since, we have watched as Wendie’s resume continues to grow.
In addition to the Webzine RTM, Wendie, who returned to Guadeloupe about three years ago, has co-founded Mabouica Festival, and published two books: “Reines des Temps Modernes” and a book of poetry titled “Corsé de Cuirs.”
Flitting through social media may give the impression that the publishing world is diverse but the data says otherwise. A recent New York Times article revealed that only 11 percent of fiction books published in 2018 were written by non-white authors. But, it’s hard to find figures for Black and brown authors in France where color blindness is an exalted fictional tale.
The truth is, we’re happy to see Black women forging paths in the events space and publishing realm, which is why Wendie is our latest Les Gens.
We reached out to Wendie for a Q&A surrounding RTM, centering Black women and her recent book of poetry. Here’s what she had to say.
Tell us about yourself.
Hi, my name is Wendie ZAHIBO. I’m African-Caribbean. I actually live in Guadeloupe, where I grew up from the age of three to eighteen. I came back almost three years ago. Dad is from Ivory Coast, Mum from Central Africa, and I was born in Marseille (South of France).
I’ve been following Reines Des Temps Modernes for a couple of years now. I reached out to your Facebook account back in the day when French was really a struggle for me, but I could still understand the craft and intention behind the project. And, of course, the beauty and creativity that went into producing the work. How did you come up with the idea for this platform?
I founded Reines Des Temps Modernes six years ago. At the beginning, it was a coffee table book where I revived ten African and Afro-Caribbean heroines from black history. The idea was born during a trip to Brazil in 2014. In the three subsequent years, I worked to create and promote the book and the history of those black women. While promoting, I started to interview French black and inspiring women about their projects, dreams, and ideas. At the beginning, everything was on a Tumblr. And in 2017, I decided to create this platform to give a voice to French Black women who were doing some badass stuff!
What I love about Reines Des Temps Modernes is your commitment to centering Black women. In a place like France, what has been the response to creating a space that prioritizes Black women?
When I started this project, I wasn’t expecting any responses. So, I try to never pay attention to what people or “France” would say about it. A few times, some people would send me messages to question me about the fact that we don’t speak to “every woman” or the fact that we don’t speak to “men.” My answer is that the Internet is full of content. If you don’t find your interest in RTM, you will find something for you on another platform. Go find it!
As Mama Toni Morrison said: “The function, the very serious function of racism is distraction. It keeps you from doing your work. It keeps you explaining, over and over again, your reason for being. Somebody says you have no language and you spend twenty years proving that you do. Somebody says your head isn’t shaped properly so you have scientists working on the fact that it is. Somebody says you have no art, so you dredge that up. Somebody says you have no kingdoms, so you dredge that up. None of this is necessary. There will always be one more thing.”
So, I try to stay focused!
How do you make your space inclusive to people who are non-binary or trans?
We don’t want to speak for anybody. We want people to speak for themselves. So, we try, as we can (because I think it’s never enough), to let people speak about their own story. When we choose our QUEENSPIRATION, we try to show that there are so many different kinds of Black women out there. We try to choose wisely. But as I said, we still have a lot of work to do to make it inclusive at its best.
In 2016 (?), you self-published your first book Queens of Modern Times/Reines Des Temps Modernes, what was that process like for you?
Hard. Difficult. Exhausting. I started working on this book in 2014. I succeeded in self-publishing in 2016. Two years of hard work, of learning! Today, I can say that it was hard, difficult, and exhausting. But I don’t regret anything. It was challenging but so rewarding. But I don’t know if I can do it again :). Self-publishing is being able to think and handle everything: writing, promoting, marketing, editing, delivery, press relations, packaging, communication… I learned so much from that time. If I can do all those things today, it’s thanks to these years of sacrifices.
Have you always known you wanted to be a writer? Do you remember your favorite books as an adolescent?
Not at all. I wanted to be successful when I was young. I wanted to be a dancer first. I think this will be my only regret, lol. I never thought that I could become a writer. I didn’t even like to read when I was young. I started to love books when I started to work on Reines Des Temps Modernes. I started to discover all those amazing black authors from America, Africa, the Caribbean… It changed my relationship with books.
RTM changed my life really. It opened some doors, it opened my imagination, my relation to possibility. When you start to interview all those amazing women telling you that everything is possible, you start to believe it.
“The function, the very serious function of racism is distraction. It keeps you from doing your work. It keeps you explaining, over and over again, your reason for being. Somebody says you have no language and you spend twenty years proving that you do... None of this is necessary. There will always be one more thing.”
In addition to being a writer, you’re also a visual artist, right? Tell us a little about the side of yourself that sees things in colors versus in words.
I don’t know if I would call myself a visual artist. But I can understand why you said it. As I said, since I started to work on Reines Des Temps Modernes, I felt like if I wanted to do something, I could do it. My imagination is mine, but I needed to decolonize it (I’m still working on it) in order to allow myself to believe that I am able and that I can create.
I see stuff in poetry. A situation is poetry. People are poetry. Nature is poetry. Life can be poetry. And when I see poetry, I see colors, texture. It’s more a feeling, a sensation, a mood. I work a lot with my intuition. I feel like a ship. Sometimes, I’m not the one creating; I let my ancestors speak through me. I’m the messenger!
Recently, you released a second book. A book of poetry. What do you want people to discover through your poems? (Side bar: I love that you put your poetry to music at your book party.)
Thank youuuu. :)
I want to offer a space of meditation, of reflexion, of concentration. I’m really inspired by this quote of Toni Morrison. The absolute need to stay focus, especially in this time of deep distraction due to racism, sexism, islamophobia, homophobia… We, as black people, need also some space to rest, to breath, to listen, to connect with ourselves and our ancestors. I don’t know if I succeed, but I tried to put this intention into this book.
What are 2-3 poems that make you feel like a queen?
From another author, I would say “Still I rise” de Maya Angelou. From myself, I would say “Je suis”, from my first book “Reines Des Temps Modernes” and “L’Afrique est une femme”.
Each week, you share queenspiration on Instagram. I’m curious, what women, in general, have left a lasting impression on your life?
I feel so lucky about those Queenspirations, because, for me, every interview is a therapy :). Everytime I interview a black woman, I feel good right after. So all of those women left something on me. This month for exemple, we had Douce, a journalist, Charlotte an afro-vegan chef, then Bertoulle, an author and sex performer, then Kelly an entrepreneur. With Douce I was able to speak able militantism and journalism, we spoke Charlotte about food, afro diet, with Bertoulle, about women sexuality, and with Kelly about business and plan. I’m interested in all those subjects. I don’t know how to explain it but I feel really lucky, I learn a lot by listening to them.
What’s the difference between life in Guadeloupe and life in France?
Guadeloupe is home ! Everything is better at home! It doesn’t mean that everything is easier. Not at all. We have some big challenges. But it’s home. I had to choose my home. That’s the difference for me.
France is currently on lockdown. What, if anything, have you been working on during lockdown?
Woah. A lot. I worked on promoting my second book. Surviving with my first business. I just co-created a second business. I have another book project. Keep creating content for Reines Des Temps Modernes. Animate and create some online events for women in tech. Reading. Planning. Working on the other levels I want to reach. The lockdown had been very busy for me!
[Ed Note: This Q&A was conducted in November.]
