In 1992, acclaimed author Terry McMillan gave us four of the most alluring Black women characters we’ve encountered in fiction with ‘Waiting to Exhale,’ capturing perfectly imperfect women navigating friendship, love, loss, divorce, familial tensions, and personal awakenings ahead of the new year.
This made me think about Waiting to Exhale and how it framed women’s interior lives so tenderly—how rooms, conversations, and quiet moments carried just as much weight as the plot. Thank you for naming that feeling so clearly.
You’re welcome! And yes, ‘Waiting to Exhale’ (both the novel and the film) displayed so many authentic, intimate experiences between the characters. I wrote about the book for my undergraduate thesis, and taught the film to my own university students as a grad student, and only then did I really see how in-depth McMillan went in this story. I’m happy to know it’s still so relevant 30 years later!🩷
This made me think about Waiting to Exhale and how it framed women’s interior lives so tenderly—how rooms, conversations, and quiet moments carried just as much weight as the plot. Thank you for naming that feeling so clearly.
You’re welcome! And yes, ‘Waiting to Exhale’ (both the novel and the film) displayed so many authentic, intimate experiences between the characters. I wrote about the book for my undergraduate thesis, and taught the film to my own university students as a grad student, and only then did I really see how in-depth McMillan went in this story. I’m happy to know it’s still so relevant 30 years later!🩷
Wow. I’d love to read your thesis if you’re willing to share!