Writing fiction like a rapper

Angie Thomas wants her books to make people think, laugh, cry and get angry, the same way rap music brings out these emotions

Young adult fiction writer Angie Thomas, who created a playlist to write her latest novel On The Come Up, once pursued a career as a rapper.
Young adult fiction writer Angie Thomas, who created a playlist to write her latest novel On The Come Up, once pursued a career as a rapper.PHOTOS: ANISSA PHOTOGRAPHY, WALKER BOOKS
Assistant Life Editor
  • Published
    Mar 19, 2019, 5:00 am SGT
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As a teenager, Angie Thomas wanted to be a rapper. She did not make it very far.

But rapping laid the foundation for the career of this American author, whose best-selling debut novel, The Hate U Give (2017), placed her at the forefront of issue-led young adult fiction.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on March 19, 2019, with the headline 'Writing fiction like a rapper'. Subscribe
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