Tiffany Haddish: ‘Sharing is caring’
While she’s best known as a comedian, Tiffany Haddish is also the New York Times bestselling author of The Last Black Unicorn. On Thursday, I had the pleasure of hearing her talk about her latest book, I Curse You with Joy.
“When you say something on stage, they don’t always believe you. They think you’re making it up,” she said, adding that when you put it in a book, people assume what you’re saying is true.
Another difference between her standup work and her books is that her books give her space to tell some of her stories that aren’t funny. While she told the crowd to “find the funny” in their lives, she confessed she’s still trying to find the funny in some of the darker episodes of her upbringing as she bounced from foster home to foster home.
For example, when asked about the best gift she ever received, Tiffany Haddish said it was a suitcase she got from one of her foster parents. “I had all my clothes in garbage bags,” she said, “and I felt like garbage.”
She encouraged the audience to share their stories, even the tough ones, saying it makes people feel less alone. “Sharing is caring,” she stressed.
I couldn’t help but hear echoes of sportscaster and broadcaster Robin Roberts, who has encouraged people to “Make your mess your message.” It was that advice, in part, that led me to start writing my dystopian sci-fi trilogy, Project T.A.G., which is inspired by the loss of my daughter. Beyond a good story, I hope others can see that tragedy can be turned into something beautiful.
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