Many of the essays are written in Shange's recognizable style that includes idiosyncratic spelling, lack of capitalization, and unconventional punctuation.[4] For example, throughout the essays Shange replaces "with" with "wit" or "and" with "n." Shange describes her motivations for defying conventional spelling and grammar rules in the essay "my pen is my machete." She writes about her desire to "attack deform n maim the language that i was taught to hate myself in/ the language that perpetuates the notions that cause pain to every black child as s/he learns to speak of the world."