Extract from Theory of Colour
Leah McGuire
Melo has synesthesia, meaning she associates colour with personality. She falls for the blindingly red fitness instructor named Asher, and heals in the pink company of her childhood friend, Lucy. Lucy is a first-generation immigrant who is proud to be black and immersed in Nigerian tradition. Meanwhile, Melo, who is half Norwegian and half Nigerian, feels like an imposter as a mixed, naturalised American. She doesn’t understand her nationality. She can’t figure out her skin colour. She can’t even synesthise her colour.
About the author
Leah McGuire received her Bachelor’s in Fashion Design at Philadelphia University and her Master’s in Creative Writing at Royal Holloway, University of London. In 2019, she quit designing NFL uniforms to write Theory of Color at a Finnish writing residency called Villa Sarkia. Being a West African and Scandinavian American, Leah uses experimental fiction to explore the uncertainty of racial identity. She has since written a documentary for Vedavision and stories for Good Morning America.