Episode 41 With Lori Tharps

Lori Tharps is a writer, an author and a lover of all that examines culture and how it plays out in our day to day lives. She says, “I am a Black-American woman married to a Spanish man, and my life is a meltingpot of melanin, curls, accents and adventures.” As an expat writer living in the south of Spain, Lori is now able to devote the majority of her time to writing – no longer squeezing it in with her former professorship at Temple University, and a multitude of other tasks, Lori is excited to be able to live the life of a writer full time. Already a prolific writer, Lori has authored the following titles “Kinky Gazpacho”, “Hair Story: Untangling The Roots of Black Hair in America” (1st and 2nd editions), “Substitute Me”, and “Same Family Different Colors: Confronting Colorism in America’s Diverse Families”. Lori has developed a palate for developing works that examine the intersection of race and real life. Lori proudly states “All my life, I’ve wanted to write stories that would change the world.” She has done just that, especially with “Hair Story….” as it was one of if not the first book that addressed African Americans’ ancestral connections to their hair. Her background as a journalist, educator, podcast host and in-demand speaker have been a perfect conduit for her laser sharp research and observations. She hails from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and in this interview, Lori shares with us the role this industrial city played in her development. Despite the fact that she noticed the inherent segregation in her birthplace, she, through the encouragement of her mother, was allowed to develop her highly creative energies. As a child, Lori wrote plays, assigned parts, and was always looking for ways to express her strong love of writing. As a student at Smith College, Lori was able to study abroad in Salamanca, Spain where she met her soulmate, who was to become her husband. After attending Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism, Lori began her public relations and journalistic pursuits on Madison Avenue at one of the top ten public relations firms, along with Vibe Magazine and Entertainment Weekly. Lori’s current life in Spain is centered around affording her children the opportunity to deepen their relationship with their Spanish heritage, gracing her husband with the ability to spend time with his aging parents, and nurturing her desire to meld all of this with her desire to focus solely on her writing without the demands of a rigorous teaching career (Lori retired from her professorship at Temple prior to moving to Spain). She is an orchestral conductor of sorts! She is biking on the streets of Spain, getting lost at book festivals, and although she can conduct day to day tasks using her verbal Spanish skills, read instructions, menus and other activities of daily living, Lori is determined to learn to read literature in Spanish. She even lets us in on how she plans to strategically accomplish this feat. Lori shared in a recent post on her popular blog My American Melting Pot “I don’t want to exist on the margins of society because I can’t consume the written word.” Because Lori is clearly living a liberal arts lifestyle, we know she will conquer this, as well! Lori’s words of counsel to older women considering moving abroad is to be clear on your “why”, make as detailed a list as possible of all of the logistical steps to be taken, follow the pland and DO IT! anPlease check out and follow this amazing woman on her blog MYAMERICANMELTINGPOT.COM, on Instagram @loriltharps and her podcast My American Melting Pot on the Apple Podcast platform.