There is a time and a season for everything.The real question is: Are you ready to move?Right now, it’s a scary time to be a Black creative. Honestly, it’s a scary time for everybody in the arts. I’ve shared in a previous episode how the Canva bots came for me — they told me that the word slavery was political and banned in their system of tools.Banning books is all the rage. Banning concepts or ideas — stopping the writer or artist at the very beginning — is unfathomable.Vanessa speaking at the Conyers Book Festival.You might say, "Vanessa, AI and bots are just part of the times." And yes, there are many great uses for AI in research and algorithmic approaches. But until we figure out how to train AI without stealing from artists and writers, we are going to continue to have a problem.If you tell me that the season we’re in now involves AI writing novels and creating drawings and graphics to replace artists, I will encourage you to consider the following:Nothing can replace human creativity, authenticity, and zeal.Those impacted by theft or imitation must press boundaries, pursue legal actions when necessary, and most importantly — outlast the wave.Sometimes, winning is simply about longevity.Outlasting your haters is definitely one way to gain victory.For those who follow me, I’m Vanessa Riley. I write in three genres: historical fiction, historical romance, and mystery.Lately, in the book world, I’ve seen so many friends — so many writers like myself who focus on history — getting hurt. Series are being cut short. Book options aren’t being picked up. Doors that were once wide open are now being slammed shut.The reasons are many:They tell us the market is soft.They whisper there are "enough" Black books now.They say history—the kind that reveals hidden figures and rich, complicated lives—is suddenly being gutted, looted, or dismissed.For someone like me, who loves history and is just now finding my footing in historical fiction, it’s dark. It’s absolutely terrifying.The visual arts, films, and TV have also suffered. In January, I heard similar feedback from filmmakers.Hollywood is still "recovering," they say.Budgets are tighter. Risk tolerance is low.Historical pieces, they say, are too "hard to place"—too expensive, too niche.And then—everyone gets dazzled by Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, a historical piece set in the 1930s that genre-bends horror and drama.The film is a hit.Annie and Smoke from the Movie Sinners shot by Eli Joshua.At the time of this podcast, Sinners has grossed over $161 million and is now projected to gross between $300–400 million. A diverse audience of moviegoers—Black, White, Asian, and more—people from all walks of life are coming together to experience this masterpiece of storytelling.Ryan Coogler, I salute you. You had a daring vision, found or created the systems and opportunities to execute it, and made magic.Now is the time of opportunity.We have to shake off our fears and create.We must figure out new ways to tell the stories burning in our souls.To innovate. To evolve. That is pathFinding way through the wilderness is the answer.Sinners showed us the way—not just by being excellent in storytelling, photography, cinematography, and research—but by knowing exactly who the story was for.Ryan and his team pushed the right buttons—the necessary buttons. The heart of the film is Black-centered storytelling: Jim Crow South, inclusivity, and vampires.Because when you know who you're speaking to and what you want to say, you don’t have to dilute the truth to make it palatable.As a Black creative, I’ve often been pressured to center pain and trauma in my stories—because that is what some believe (and still desire) is what sells.Ryan Coogler’s Sinners proves that de-escalating trauma works.It sells.Even in the scariest genres.He took care in how the story was told.Care in how every scene was shot.Care in the research, the respect.He cast with authenticity—from hair to skin to clothes to dialogue.He didn’t sla