Charmaine Wilkerson is a

Jamaican-American Jamaican Americans are an ethnic group of Caribbean Americans who have full or partial Jamaican ancestry. The largest proportions of Jamaican Americans live in South Florida and New York City, both of which have been home to large Jamaican comm ...

journalist, writer, and author. She is known for her debut novel, ''Black Cake'', which was a

New York Times Bestseller ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States. John Bear, ''The #1 New York Times Best Seller: intriguing facts about the 484 books that have been #1 New York Times ...

Personal life

Wilkerson is originally from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. She has moved around a lot in her own life. She spent much of her childhood living in

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

and some time as an adult living in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. She currently lives in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, where she has been living for over two decades. Wilkerson's father is

Caribbean-American Caribbean Americans or West Indian Americans are Americans who trace their ancestry to the West Indies in particular or Caribbean in general. Caribbean Americans are a multi-ethnic and multi-racial group that trace their ancestry further in tim ...

. Her mother was born and raised in Jamaica. Her father was a

textile artist Textile arts are arts and crafts that use plant, animal, or synthetic fibers to construct practical or decorative objects. Textiles have been a fundamental part of human life since the beginning of civilization. The methods and materials use ...

. Wilkerson attended

Barnard College Barnard College is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college affiliated with Columbia University in New York City. It was founded in 1889 by a grou ...

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

at just 16 years old and graduated with a B.A. in linguistics. She then went on to study at

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

's graduate program in communications.

Career

Wilkerson spent much of her career as a journalist. She began her reporting in California in a major agricultural area. For a period, she also worked for a

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

agency with a focus on agriculture, poverty reduction, and hunger reduction. As a writer, Wilkerson has published a number of short stories. Her debut novel, ''Black Cake'', was released in 2022.

''Black Cake''

Her first novel was published in 2022. ''Black Cake'' was a New York Times bestseller, a Read With Jenna book club pick, and a

Book of the Month Book of the Month (founded 1926) is a United States subscription-based e-commerce service that offers a selection of five to seven new hardcover books each month to its members. Books are selected and endorsed by a panel of judges, and members ch ...

club pick. Before the novel was even published, the TV rights were purchased by

Oprah Winfrey Oprah Gail Winfrey (; born Orpah Gail Winfrey; January 29, 1954) is an American television presenter, talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and media proprietor. She is best known for her talk show, ''The Oprah Winfrey Show' ...

's production company,

Harpo Films Harpo Productions (or Harpo Studios) is an American multimedia production company founded by Oprah Winfrey and based in West Hollywood, California. The name "Harpo" is "Oprah" spelled backwards, and it was also the name of her on-screen husban ...

, as the result of a bidding war. The on-screen adaptation was developed as a

Hulu Hulu (, ) is an American Subscription business model, subscription streaming media service owned by Disney Streaming, a subsidiary of the Disney Entertainment segment of the Walt Disney Company. It was launched on October 29, 2007, initially as ...

series, released in 2023. With her debut novel, Wilkerson wanted to relay the importance and ability of transferring culture and stories through food. Black cake is a Caribbean food that Wilkerson's own mother made, though they called it rum pudding. Wilkerson herself bakes the dessert once a year.

Published works

* ''Black Cake'' (2022) * ''Deluge'' (2023) * ''Good Dirt'' (2025)

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilkerson, Charmaine 21st-century American novelists Writers from New York (state) Barnard College alumni Stanford University alumni 21st-century American women writers Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American women journalists Women of African descent American women novelists