R. Flowers Rivera is a Mississippi native with a Ph.D. in African-American literature and creative writing from Binghamton University. As an author of two books, she writes about the stories of oppression within the black community in America. Stories that she is familiar with from her own experiences and the experiences told by her grandmother and the women in her community that she grew up with. Ultimately, she aims to be a witness for her home place and all of the stifled voices — of Gulfport, Mississippi — as a means of documenting a disappearing way of life as well as signalling to others who may feel isolated.
Back in 2015, Raquel was a decorated writer for her published books Heathens and Troubling Accents. Since then, she has taken a long break from writing and focused on her career as a professor of literature. Yet deep down, the stories of her identity called to her frequently.
She decided it was time for another book release. This time, a composition of stories her grandmother has shared with her.
With a new book coming along the way, Raquel decided that it was time to do more. She envisioned herself as a vessel to share the stories of her life and the lives of her Mississippian community through more than just her writing. She wanted to be able to speak about the history that she has lived in and also celebrate the sacrifices of her community which has brought the African-Americans of the South to where they are today.
To truly understand her point of view and her passions, a series of personal branding workshops was conducted, focusing on her origin story and the values that she carried deeply with her.
We explored her values, her mission and refined her identity as Black-American woman, writer, and poet.
Throughout the project, from design to application, we wanted to exhibit her bold yet sun-shining personality we felt was her true distinctive trait. By combining elements of her heritage and mixing it up with her love for poetry and no-respectability politics, our team of writers and designers put together a welcoming, informative, and resourceful website that is now a tool for her to carry out her personal mission.
Refining her online presence, we decided to use everything that makes her R. Flowers Rivera. From creating a public library of Black music on Spotify, to developing a roadmap of focused materials to benefit her audiences and create a tribe that learns and unlearns with her.
