ABSTRACT
This chapter explores collaborative-dialogic (C-D) practice through a literary lens by comparing Harlene Anderson's work to Toni Morrison's 1993 Nobel Prize lecture. Morrison and Anderson challenged the status quo in their respective disciplines of literature and family therapy, contributing to paradigm shifts that earned them acclaim. In their writing and storytelling, Anderson and Morrison emphasize relational ethics as an essential ingredient of dynamic conversations and relationships. The chapter presents literary examples demonstrating how C-D practices are applicable to diverse contexts, such as therapy, teaching, and organizational development. Anderson interest is in exploring relational processes such as mutuality, intentionality, not-knowing, uncertainty, reflexivity, curiosity, authenticity, "withness" practices, and mutual transformation. Mutual transformation, a key aspect of C-D practice, characterizes the final lines of Morrison's Nobel Prize lecture. The griot uses collective language to communicate satisfaction that all conversational partners in the fable experienced a transformation.
