{"id":69601,"date":"2026-04-13T09:21:39","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T13:21:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/?p=69601"},"modified":"2026-04-13T09:21:40","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T13:21:40","slug":"frank-coauthorship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/frank-coauthorship\/","title":{"rendered":"We Create Rich Characters, While Defying Publishing Norms"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-large-font-size\">My co-author and I have a successful partnership\u2014belying cultural critics\u2019 insistence that novelists stick to their own racial lanes<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-cornell-red-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-4f66d45612aaf80d2d77724f720f26a9\"><em>\u201cChime In\u201d comprises brief first-person essays by Cornellians. Do you have a topic in mind? Email us at <a href=\"&#109;&#97;&#x69;&#x6c;&#x74;o&#x3a;&#99;&#111;r&#x6e;&#x65;&#x6c;&#x6c;i&#x61;&#x6e;&#115;&#64;&#x63;&#x6f;&#114;&#x6e;&#101;&#x6c;l&#46;&#x65;&#x64;&#117;\">c&#x6f;r&#x6e;&#x65;&#x6c;li&#x61;n&#115;&#64;c&#111;rne&#108;l&#46;&#x65;&#x64;&#117;<\/a>! <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>By <strong>Alli Frank \u201992<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text alignwide has-media-on-the-right is-stacked-on-mobile\"><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap\">\u201cHow do two people write one book?\u201d It\u2019s the question that my co-author, Asha Youmans, and I are asked most often. When it arises, we understand that within this one inquiry is actually two.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>First, readers want to know the logistics of <em>how<\/em> we perform what most assume is a solitary act. Second is the unspoken question people want to ask, but shy away from for fear of judgement: <em>Who writes which characters?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>They ask because five novels in, Asha and I are the longest-standing Black and white co-authorship in publishing.<\/p>\n<\/div><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"819\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/NEW-HEADSHOT-A-819x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Alli Frank\" class=\"wp-image-69861 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/NEW-HEADSHOT-A-819x1024.jpg 819w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/NEW-HEADSHOT-A-240x300.jpg 240w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/NEW-HEADSHOT-A-768x960.jpg 768w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/NEW-HEADSHOT-A-1229x1536.jpg 1229w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/NEW-HEADSHOT-A-632x790.jpg 632w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/NEW-HEADSHOT-A-316x395.jpg 316w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/NEW-HEADSHOT-A-280x350.jpg 280w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/NEW-HEADSHOT-A-140x175.jpg 140w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/NEW-HEADSHOT-A-70x87.jpg 70w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/NEW-HEADSHOT-A-400x500.jpg 400w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/NEW-HEADSHOT-A-200x250.jpg 200w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/NEW-HEADSHOT-A-100x125.jpg 100w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/NEW-HEADSHOT-A.jpg 1260w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 819px) 100vw, 819px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/alliandasha.com\/\">Our partnership<\/a> is especially notable given that the industry has sided with the cultural critics\u2014more so than the creative community\u2014in response to a handful of racially based literary controversies over the past decade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While authors are allowed to write characters of different genders, sexual orientations, and religions from their own, race and ethnicity are now seen as proprietary: white fiction writers don\u2019t have the creative right to attempt the narrative of someone nonwhite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Given this current reality, Asha and I know that when we\u2019re asked <em>how<\/em> we write a book together, what people ultimately want to know is if we follow these publishing norms: that Asha writes the characters of color, and I the white narratives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>While authors are allowed to write characters of different genders, sexual orientations, and religions from their own, race and ethnicity are now seen as proprietary.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Asha and I met when I was the assistant head of an independent school in Seattle, and she was the pre-K teacher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In 2017, a story idea came to me about three generations of Black women working in a private school in San Francisco.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Doing my research, I learned this was not a book I would be allowed to write on my own\u2014that my recently acquired literary agent would never be willing to shop it, because no one would consider buying it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What I also knew, from years of reading Asha\u2019s report cards, was that she had a gift for writing about children and families. I invited her to coffee and asked if she\u2019d like to explore my story idea with me. Luckily, she was intrigued\u2014and we set about learning how to write a first novel. Together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignwide size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-1024x576.jpeg\" alt=\"Alli Frank (right) and coauthor Asha Youmans\" class=\"wp-image-69867\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-1024x576.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-300x169.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-768x432.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-800x450.jpeg 800w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-608x342.jpeg 608w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-304x171.jpeg 304w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-152x85.jpeg 152w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-1184x666.jpeg 1184w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-592x333.jpeg 592w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-296x166.jpeg 296w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-1264x711.jpeg 1264w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-632x356.jpeg 632w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-316x178.jpeg 316w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-400x225.jpeg 400w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-200x113.jpeg 200w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A-100x56.jpeg 100w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AA_0090-A.jpeg 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Youmans (left) and Frank have been a cowriting team for nearly a decade.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>In January 2019, we sold <em><a rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.penguinrandomhouse.com\/books\/612373\/tiny-imperfections-by-alli-frank-and-asha-youmans\/\">Tiny Imperfections<\/a><\/em> to Penguin Random House.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Our writing mission solidified in the wake of George Floyd\u2019s murder in May 2020\u2014when readers seeking to understand the racial unrest across America were turning to books like <em>White Fragility<\/em>, <em>Caste<\/em>, and <em>How to be an Anti-Racist<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Asha and I wanted to offer a complement to these heavy, thought-provoking works of nonfiction\u2014to use humor and joy to explore the challenging topics of race, religion, education, privilege, and parenting. We loftily decided that we were going to strive to become the book world\u2019s \u201cWill &amp; Grace\u201d of race.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>Asha and I know that when we\u2019re asked <em>how<\/em> we write a book together, what people ultimately want to know is if we follow these publishing norms: that Asha writes the characters of color, and I the white narratives.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>So to return to the first part of the question: \u201cHow do two people write one book?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I am the story keeper\u2014creating the hero\u2019s journey, the twists and turns, the elements of surprise. I take the first pass at a couple of chapters, then send them to Asha with a slew of questions; she gets busy tinkering with sentence structure and dialogue while I start the next set of chapters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We go back and forth like this\u2014what we refer to as \u201cliterary leapfrog\u201d\u2014until a rough 95,000-word book is down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What happens next is our secret sauce. We read our manuscript aloud to one another six, seven, eight times. Slowly. We analyze, debate, hand-wring, and ultimately agree on every last sentence, word, and strategically placed comma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"Alli Frank (center) and coauthor Asha Youmans (right) are interviewed onstage by a moderator\" class=\"wp-image-69860\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-800x450.jpg 800w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-608x342.jpg 608w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-304x171.jpg 304w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-152x85.jpg 152w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-1184x666.jpg 1184w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-592x333.jpg 592w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-296x166.jpg 296w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-1264x711.jpg 1264w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-632x356.jpg 632w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-316x178.jpg 316w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-400x225.jpg 400w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-200x113.jpg 200w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A-100x56.jpg 100w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/AlliandAsha2-crop-A.jpg 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The novelists on a live edition of the podcast <em>Totally Booked with Zibby<\/em> in March 2026.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>When you have charged yourselves with threading a humorous needle on highly emotional topics, there can be no room for disagreement; we must be fully aligned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now, to answer the second question that most are more bashful to ask.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>No, Asha does not solely write, nor have the final say on, our characters of color because she is a Black woman. Nor do I get to play the Jewish or rural American card just because I am both those things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>We analyze, debate, hand-wring, and ultimately agree on every last sentence, word, and strategically placed comma.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>This is contrary to current publishing best practices, but we both believe that we first and foremost write the human experience, and behind our characters\u2019 humanness lie the distinguishing characteristics that make them unique.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Over five novels and two film\/TV options, have we become better at writing multicultural casts of characters? You bet we have, just as anyone improves at their craft the more years they toil towards mastery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Most importantly, we have given ourselves the grace and permission to write whoever we want, however we want. Because we believe that is the beauty of fiction: having the creative freedom to develop people and worlds that we know will touch someone, but not everyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Also a graduate alum of Stanford, <\/em><strong><em>Alli Frank \u201992 <\/em><\/strong><em>lives in Sun Valley, ID, with her husband and two daughters. She is the co-author of <\/em>Tiny Imperfections<em>, <\/em>Never Meant to Meet You<em>, <\/em>The Better Half<em>, <\/em>Boss Lady<em>, and <\/em>Run for Your Life, Callie Kingman<em>, as well as a <\/em>USA Today<em>-bestselling essayist.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>(All images provided.)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">Published April 13, 2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>My co-author and I have a successful partnership\u2014belying cultural critics\u2019 insistence that novelists stick to their own racial lanes<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":68,"featured_media":70007,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"alumni_hub_syml_posts":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[639],"tags":[],"cornell_year_post":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-69601","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-perspectives"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.2 - 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