7-Year-Old Natalie McGriff Wins $16,000 for Comic Book About Natural Hair

Natalie McGriff is the 7 year old author of The Adventures of Moxie Girl. Her new comic book tells the tale of a little black girl who hates her natural hair texture. After cleansing her Afro puffs with some magical shampoo, however, her textured coils take on super powers that have the ability to save Jacksonville, Florida’s public libraries from being eaten by monsters.

[Related: Female Entrepreneur and ‘Maverick’ Jumpstarts Business with $500 and a Priceless Purpose]

McGriff presented The Adventures of Moxie Girl at One Spark, the world’s largest crowdfunding festival designed to connect creators with the resources they need to bring their ideas to life. Her comic book was a win, as the young author took home a check for $16,423.69.

Angie Nixon, McGriff’s mother, helped to author the book upon realizing that her daughter suffered with self-esteem issues and hated reading. “‘She now realizes how powerful and awesome her hair is and that in order for her to write a cool book, she needs to read more books and learn different word,'” Nixon says.

McGriff is the winner of One Spark’s Education category. Over 530 projects reportedly competed at One Spark and 300,000 people attended.

At the Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Summit in Atlanta, May 13-16, we will host several sessions that further explore the topics of entrepreneurship. Sessions like Finding Support for Your Business and Suppliers & Millennials Building Brands in the Digital Space may prove to be of benefit if your children have an entrepreneurial spirit like 7-year-old McGriff. The panels will discuss financing arrangements to jumpstart your business and how successful millennials landed partnerships with the world’s largest retailers, respectively.

The Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Summit hosted by Nationwide is set for May 13—16, 2015 at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta. Expect innovative sessions, high-powered speakers, and an early peek at the products, trends, and services you’ll need to stay ahead of the curve. To register and find out more, visit www.blackenterprise.com/es/. Join us at the Entrepreneurs Summit, Where Innovation and Capital Meet.