My daughter Kiini Ibura Salaam, who is an award-winning writer of speculative fiction, literally introduced me to Walter Mosley. I can’t think of Mosley without recalling the scene from Devil In A Blue Dress with Mouse (Don Cheadle) informing Easy Rawlins (Denzel): if you didn’t want him dead, you shouldn’t have left him with me.
I have found Mosley to be both a genuine literary legend and at the same time a totally humble and accessible individual. So imagine my surprise and delight when I received a shout-out from Mosley in a speech at the National Book Award.
Mosley has a history of helping writers–many times anonymously or without public fanfare. He is one of the most seriously generous writers whom I know.