Events Archive

New York, NY

Sunday, February 24th, 2019
7-9pm
KGB Reading Series

KGB Bar Sunday Night Fiction
85 E 4th St, New York, NY 10003

St. Petersburg Review with Katherine Vaz, Larissa Shmailo, Katherine Young (reading
Aylisli), Laura McCarty & Teresa Carmody.

About “Kraine Gallery Bar” aka KGB: In the years since it opened in 1993, KGB has become something of a New York literary institution. Writers hooked up in the publishing world read here with pleasure and without pay to an adoring public over drinks almost every Sunday evening (fiction), Monday evening (poetry), and most Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. The crowd loves it. Admission is free, drinks are cheap and strong, and the level of excellence is such that KGB has been named best literary venue in New York City by New York Magazine, the Village Voice, and everyone else who bestows these awards of recognition.

London, UK

Thursday, March 15th, 2019

5.30-7.30pm

SE1 7RL
Christian Aid
35 Lower Marsh
London
SE1 7RL

Indivisible: Book Launch
With Diana Francis, Scilla Ellsworthy, Andrei Gómez-Suárez, Joyce Ajlouny, & Kerri Kennedy

40 global leaders and activists reflect on the state of the world, and lasting peace and security in Indivisible – Global Leaders on Shared Security. This collection of essays articulates a persuasive and powerful argument in favour of a new way of looking at a world where we reframe security as a shared goal. This is an exceptional compilation of voices whose places of origin reflect the world of which they speak, and who, in chorus, become a testament to the fact that we can come together, no matter how far-flung we are or how solitary our endeavours may seem, to shape our common future.

London, UK

Friday, March 15th, 2019

6.30-8pm

Friends House
173 Euston Road
London
NW1 2BJ
United Kingdom

For more information: Jenny McCarthy Telephone: 0207 663 1030

Indivisible: Book Launch
With co-editor, Kerri Kennedy

New York, NY

Sunday, March 17th, 2019 |. 7-8pm

10th Annual From the Dark Tower Reading
Sunday Salon
Von Bar at 3 Bleeker Street (take 6 to Bleeker)

I won’t be reading but I’ll be “reading” (think MC w/a little twist) these wonderful poets and writers who wrap up the first decade of this reading I’ve been asked to curate by Nita Novena.

Shastri Akella earned his MFA in fiction at the University of Massachusetts (Amherst). His story won the Bridging the Gap fiction contest at the Slice Writers’ Conference in 2018. His works appears in Guernica, Electric Literature, The Common, Rumpus, World Literature Today, LA Review of Books, Danse Macabre, and European Stages, among other places. He is currently seeking agents for his novel, The Elephant Songs, a queer novel set in 1980s India with an an interracial love story at its core.

Zabe Bent is an engineer living in New York, while working as urban planner and pursuing an MFA at The New School. She is currently working on a novel about the impact of time travel on personal identity, along with a short story collection based on the mixed heritage of her Jamaican family. Zabe spends her free time pursuing creative interests, from silversmithing to cooking to illustration. Find her on social media using @zabebent across platforms.

Cynthia Manick is the author of Blue Hallelujahs (Black Lawrence Press, 2016). A Pushcart Prize nominated poet with a MFA in Creative Writing from the New School; she has received fellowships from Cave Canem, Hedgebrook, the MacDowell Colony, Poets House, and the Saltonstall Foundation of the Arts among others. A winner of the 2016 Lascaux Prize in Collected Poetry and a 2017 recipient of the Barbara Memorial Fund Award for Poetry; Manick serves as East Coast Editor of the independent press Jamii Publishing and is Founder and Curator of the reading series Soul Sister Revue. Her poem “Things I Carry Into the World” was made into a film by Motionpoems, a organization dedicated to video poetry, and has debuted on Tidal for National Poetry Month and WNET Reel 13 Shorts. Manick’s work has appeared in the Academy of American Poets Poem-A-Day Series, Bone Bouquet, Callaloo, Kweli Journal, Los Angeles Review of Books (LARB), Muzzle Magazine, T and elsewhere. She currently resides in Brooklyn, New York.

Wayétu Moore is the founder of One Moore Book, a non-profit publisher of culturally relevant children’s books. Her writing can be found in The Paris Review, Frieze Magazine, Guernica, The Atlantic Magazine and other publications. She’s a graduate of Howard University and the University of Southern California, and is currently a Margaret Mead Fellow at Columbia University Teachers College, where she’s
researching the impact of culturally relevant curriculum and learning aids in elementary classrooms of underrepresented groups. Moore is an Africana Studies lecturer at City University of New York’s John Jay
College, and founding faculty member of the Randolph College MFA program. She lives in Brooklyn, NY.

Jenny Xie is the author of EYE LEVEL (Graywolf Press, 2018), finalist for the National Book Award in Poetry, and recipient of the Walt Whitman Award of the Academy of American Poets and the Holmes National Poetry Prize from Princeton University. She has been supported by fellowships from Kundiman, Civitella Ranieri Foundation, Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, and Poets & Writers.

Philadelphia, PA

Thursday, March 15th, 2018

7-8.30pm

Cannery Reading Series
705 South 50th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19143
215.726.2338

with Emma Copley Eisenberg and Marc Anthony Richardson

Providence, RI

Wednesday, April 18th, 2017

Brown University
Tribute to Robert Coover

With Russell Banks, Marlon James, and Jorge Olivera Castillo

Houston, TX (Katy)

Friday, October 27th, 2017|
6.30 – 9 pm

University of Houston Victoria – Katy Campus
2002 West Grand Parkway North
3rd Floor
Katy, TX 77449

Reading & Conversation

Houston, TX (Victoria)

Thursday, October 26th, 2017
Noon – 1 pm

University of Houston/Victoria
Alcorn Auditorium

Boston, MA

Friday, October 6th, 2017
6pm

Brookline Booksmith
279 Harvard St, Brookline, Massachusetts 02446

Celebrating the tenth anniversary of Palestine Festival of Literature, This is Not a Border is a collection of essays, poems, and sketches from some of the world’s most distinguished artists, responding to their experiences at this unique festival. Both heartbreaking and hopeful, their gathered work is a testament to the power of literature to promote solidarity and hope in the most desperate of situations.

Contributors Teju Cole Teju Cole (Known and Strange Things), and Ru Freeman will be in conversation with Tom Hallock, Associate Publisher of Beacon Press, and Khury Petersen-Smith, Postdoctoral Fellow at the Mellon Sawyer Seminar in Comparative Global Humanities at Tufts University.

College Park, MD

Wednesday, October 11th, 2017
7-8.30pm

Ulrich Recital Hall
University of Maryland, College Park

Writers Here & Now Series with Ellen Bryant Voigt
Info: Lindsay Bernal (lbernal@umd.edu)

New York City

Tuesday, September 19th, 2017
7.30 pm

Tales of Two Americas:
Stories of Inequality From A Divided Nation

Greenlight Bookstore
586 Fulton Street
Brooklyn, NY

John Freeman in conversation with Lawrence Joseph, Kirsten Valdez-Quade & Jess Rulifson

Santa Fe, New Mexico

Wednesday, September 21st, 2016
Lannan Readings & Conversations Series
with John Freeman

Toronto, Canada

Thursday, September 24th, 2016
Toronto Palestine Film Festival
Panel on BDS & The Arts

Allentown, PA

Thursday, October 6th, 2016
11 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Society of the Arts
Luncheon with Authors

Lehigh Country Club
2319 S. Cedar Crest Boulevard
Allentown, PA 18103

With Bill Clegg (Did You Ever Have a Family), and Natalie Harnett (The Hollow Ground)

Fresno, CA

Friday, October 21st, 2016
Speaker Series
Fresno State University
Department of English
5245 N. Backer Avenue
Fresno, CA 93740

Wayne, PA

Thursday, November 17th, 2016
7 p.m.
Main Point Books
116 N. Wayne Avenue
Wayne, PA 19087

In conversation with John Freeman & Garnette Cadogan.

New York, NY

Thursday, March 16th, 2017
Noon
BMCC

The City University of New York
199 Chambers Street, New York, NY 10007

Richmond, VA

Thursday, March 23, 2017
7 p.m.
VCU Visiting Writer Series
VCU Cabell Library
900 Park Avenue
Richmond, VA 23284-2005

Reading and conversation with LeAnne Howe
(Choctalking on Other Realities)

Chicago, IL

Wednesday, May 11th 2016
7:00 pm – 8:30 pm
Unabridged Books – 3251 N Broadway Street
Chicago, IL 60657
Dreams and Stones: Magdalena Tulli, Bill Johnston, and Ru Freeman, in Conversation with Words Without Borders’ Susan Harris.

San Francisco

Thursday, May 22nd, 2016
3 p.m.
Diesel Bookstore
5433 College Avenue, Oakland, CA 94618
(510) 653-9965

Reading and Discussion with three authors from Extraordinary Rendition: (American) Writers on Palestine, Chana Bloch, Cristina Garcia, and Jane Hirshfield.

Atlanta, GA

Friday/Sunday September 2-4, 2016
Decatur Book Festival
Details: TBA

Allentown, PA

Thursday, September 6th, 2016
Allentown Art Museum
Luncheon With Authors

Discussion with Bill Clegg (Have You Ever Had A Family) and Natalie Harnett (The Hallow Ground)

Fresno, California

Friday, October 4th, 2016
Reading Series
Fresno State University

Washington DC Launch Event

Monday, November 2, 2015, 6:30pm
Politics & Prose at Busboys and Poets
2021 14th St NW, Washington, DC 20009

Ashley Dawson, Editor of Against Apartheid: The Case for Boycotting Israeli Universities (Haymarket), will join me and two contributors to Extraordinary Rendition: (American) Writers on Palestine, Nate Brown and Susan Muaddi Darraj, to discuss the growing chorus of voices speaking out against America’s defense of the occupation of Palestine.

Boston Launch Event

November 4, 2015, 7pm-9pm
Jewish Voices for Peace/Writers for Justice in Palestine
Hope Central Church in Jamaica Plain: 85-87 Seaverns Ave, Boston
Tickets are:
$18: Pre-paid / $20 at the door
$10: Student and low-income
$125: Reception with the authors from 6 -7 pm (includes signed copies of The Blue Between Sky and Sea and Extraordinary Renditions).

Join us for a literary celebration of Palestinian culture, resilience, and struggle, featuring Susan Abulhawa, Ru Freeman, Michael Patrick MacDonald, Claire Messud, Fanny Howe, Askold Melnyczuk, and Alice Rothchild, and Aurora Levins Morales. This is a fundraiser for the Palestinian Festival of Literature and Jewish Voice for Peace-Boston.

Boston, MA

November 16, 2015, 7pm-9pm
Brookline Booksmith

With Ramola D., Askold Melnyczuk, Claire Messud, and Adam Stumacher

Miami Book Festival

November 22, 2015
Extraordinary Rendition: American Writers on Palestine

11 a.m. / Rm. 7106 (Bldg. 7, 1st Floor)
The anthology Extraordinary Rendition: American Writers on Palestine brings together the work of sixty-five prominent writers to examine America’s culpability in the denial of human rights and dignity to Palestinians in Israel/Palestine and beyond. The anthology’s editor Ru Freeman joins contributors Dwayne Betts, Jane Hirshfield, and Tom Sleigh to discuss the issues raised in the collection, including the erasure and reconstruction of histories, the examination of identity, the rights, privileges, and responsibilities of speaking out as artists, the conditions of occupation, and the potential for activism.

London Launch Event

December 2, 2015, 7:30pm – 9:30pm
P21 Gallery
21 Chalton Street London NW1 1JD

With Ahdaf Souef, Richard Hamilton, William Sutcliffe, and Steve Willey.

NYC Launch Event
Friday, December 4th, 2015 7 p.m. The Center for Fiction 17 E. 47th St. NYC 212.755.6710 With Sinan Antoon, Nathalie Handal, Lawrence Joseph, Nancy Kricorian, Rickey Laurentiis, Colum McCann, Jason Schneiderman, Tom Sleigh, and Tiphanie Yanique.

Seattle, WA

January 7, 2016 Elliott Bay Book Company With Ru Freeman, Tess Gallagher, Peter Mountford, and Alice Rothchild

New York, NY

NYC, New School for Social Research Breaking the Silence on Palestine March 1st 6.30 – 8 p.m. With Sinan Antoon, Ibtisam Azem, Teju Cole, and Jason Schneiderman, moderated by Zia Jaffrey

New York, NY

Wednesday, April 20th, 2016 7 p.m. Book Culture 536 West 112th Street Between Broadway and Amsterdam Phone 212-865-1588 Reading & Discussion with authors from the anthology, Extraordinary Rendition: (American) Writers on Palestine.

Kansas City, MO

Sunday, February 24th, 2013 6 – 7.30pm Century Ballroom, Westin Hotel Winter Institute American Booksellers Association Where I get to meet awesome booksellers and terrific authors

Boston, MA

March 6th – 10th AWP 2013 Starwood Sheraton I will be everywhere but mostly at the bookfair, at readings, and socializing Saturday, March 9th Room 101, Plaza Level Panel S209. Master of None: Surviving and Thriving without an MFA, With Rebecca Makkai, Samuel Park, Marie Myung-Ok Lee. We discuss life outside the academy; making professional connections and finding a support network; navigating sticky situations where recommendations are required; teaching without a terminal degree; and the challenges and benefits of writing in isolation. We also share how we learned to better our crafts outside of a workshop, and how we got feedback on our early writing.

NYC

March 17th, 2013
4th Annual Bread Loaf From the Dark Tower in NYC Reading Sunday Salon
Starring Michael Copperman, Nicole Terez Dutton, Alexandra Kleeman, Matthew Salesses, and Mario Alberto Zambrano Jimmys43 in the East Village (located at 43 East 7th Street between 2nd/3rd Ave downstairs East Village)

PEN World Voices, NYC

Thursday, May 02, 2013 6.30 pm
The New School Tishman Auditorium
66 West 12th Street
New York, NY 10011
Tickets: $20/$15
Master/Class: Jamaica Kincaid with Ru Freeman Since her first collection of stories, At the Bottom of the River, Jamaica Kincaid has been a leading chronicler of Caribbean culture and tradition. Join us for this frank discussion between two writers who reveal the disparity between the way the world is and the way it could be.

PEN World Voices, NYC

Saturday, May 04, 2013, 2:00pm
Joe’s Pub
425 Lafayette Street
New York, NY 10003
Tickets: $15/$12

PEN Members and students with valid ID Watching the Meter: Poetry from the Taxi Drivers Workshop PEN World Voices Festival invites you into the world of the New York City cabbie: a fractured place where isolation meets socialization and entrepreneurial impulses can be at odds with the job description of getting from point A to point B. Poet Mark Nowak builds on last year’s event with trade unions with this panel of taxi drivers, who will read from their writings, authored during a series of six writing workshops with Nowak. A discussion with the audience will follow. Also features Tararith Kho.

Newtonville, MA

Tuesday, May 7th, 2013 7pm
Reading Newtonville Books
10 Langley road
Newton, MA 02459
617.244.6619
Contact: Jaime Clark I will be reading with Nicole Bernier, author of The Unfinished Work of Elizabeth D.

Portland, ME

Wednesday, May 8th, 2013 7pm
Longfellow Books One, Monument Way Portland, ME 04101

Waterville, ME

Thursday, May 9th, 2013 7pm
Children’s Book Cellar 52 Main Street Waterville, ME 04901 207.872.4543

Philadelphia, PA

Monday, May 13th, 2013 7pm
Barnes & Noble – Downtown 1805 Walnut Street Philadelphia, PA 19103

Brooklyn, NY

Tuesday, May 14th, 2013 7 – 9pm
Powerhouse Arena 37 Main Street Brooklyn, NY 11201 718-666-3049 Pub Date! Book Launch Party Some wine, some words.

New York, NY

Thursday, May 16th, 2013 7pm
McNally Jackson Books 52 Prince St New York, NY 10012 212.274.1160

Washington, DC

Monday, May 20th, 2013
7 pm
Politics & Prose
5015 Connecticut Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20008
202.364.1919 Reading followed by discussion moderated by the Smithsonian Asian & Pacific American Center’s Book Dragon blogger, Terry Hong.

Chicago, IL

Wednesday, May 22nd, 2013
7 pm
Book Celler Inc
4736-38 North Lincoln Avenue
Chicago, IL 60625
773.293.2665

Reading with Rob Roberge and Terese Svoboda

Milwaukee, WI

Thursday, May 23rd, 2013
7pm
Boswell Book Company
2559 N. Downer Avenue
Milwaukee, WI 53211
414.332.1181

Toronto, Canada

Wednesday, May 29
7:30pm
The Harborfront Center
Brigantine Room
235 Queens Quay, Toronto, ON M5J 2G8, Canada

A reading hosted by Tanis Rideout (Above All Things), with award-winning writer of fiction, television and film Rhidian Brook (The Aftermath), and poet and fiction writer Natalee Caple (In Calamity’s Wake)

New York, NY

Thursday, May 30th, 2013
Graywolf Booth
BEA
Signing

Denver, CO

Tuesday, June 4th, 2013
7.30 pm
Tattered Cover Book Store
2526 East Colfax Avenue
Denver, CO 80206

Beaverton, OR

Wednesday, Jne 5th, 2013
7 pm
Powell’s Books – Cedar Hills Crossing
3415 SW Cedar Hills Boulevard
Beaverton, OR 97005
503.228.4651

Seattle, WA

Thursday, June 6th, 2013
7 pm
Elliott Bay Book Company
1521 10th Avenue
Seattle, WA 98122
206.624.6600

Bellingham, WA

Saturday, June 8th & Sunday, June 9th
Booktopia
Books on the Nightstand
1200 11th Street
Bellingham, WA 98225
9-4pm
Q & A

Evening
Author Reception & Signing at Village Books

San Francisco, CA

Monday, June 10th, 2013
6 pm
Book Passage – Ferry Building
1 Ferry Building
San Francisco, CA 94111

Petaluma, CA

Tuesday, June 11th, 2013
7 pm
Copperfield’s Books – Petaluma
140 Kentucky Street
Petaluma, CA 94952

Los Angeles, CA

Wednesday, June 12th, 2013
7.30 pm
Skylight Books
1818 North Vermont Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90027
323.660.1175

New York, NY

Thursday, June 20th, 2013
7pm
The Center for Fiction
17, East 47th Street
New York, NY 10017

Discussion – Details TBA

Martha’s Vinyard, MA

Tuesday, August 20th, 2013
7pm
Reading & Signing
Bunch of Grapes Bookstore

Bryn Mawr, PA

Saturday, September 7th, 2013
Main Point Books
2 p.m.
Book Signing
Click flyer for a look at the whole schedule: MainPoint.Flyer

Brooklyn, NY

Sunday, September 23rd, 2013
Brooklyn Book Festival
5 p.m.
Borough Hall Community Room on 209 Joralemon Street
What Fills the Void After War?
Three acclaimed writers from countries that have known conflict and political unrest discuss war’s aftermath and how it informs their work. With Irish writer Colum McCann (TransAtlantic), Sri Lankan writer Ru Freeman (On Sal Mal Lane) and Iraqi writer Sinan Antoon (The Corpse Washer). Moderated by Rob Spillman (Tin House)

Philadelphia, PA

Tuesday, October 8th, 2013
7pm
Literary Death Match
Underground Arts
1200 Callowhill Street, Philadelphia

Come watch me go toe-to-toe or word-for-word with Kimmika Williams-Witherspoon, Paul Lisicky, and Lee Klein. Judged by Eric Smith, Anna N. Dhody, and Anna Goldfarb, and hosted by LDM creator, Adrian Todd Zuniga.

Bryn Mawr, PA

Friday, October 18th
7pm
Main Point Books

Reading and signing with Alan McMonagle and Charles Rice-Gonzalez

Atlanta, GA

Saturday, October 19th, 2013
Atlanta Writers Club
3.15 p.m.
Georgia Perimeter College
Dunwoody Campus
Building NC Room 1100/ Auditorium
2101 Womack Road
Dunwoody, Georgia 30338-4497
770-274-5000
Keynote on Publishing and PR/Marketing
Book Signing to follow

Minneapolis, MN

Wednesday, October 23rd, 2013
7 p.m.
Sister Mariella Gable Prize reading
Gorecki Family Theater
Benedicta Arts Center of the College of Saint Benedict & St. Joseph

Thursday, October 24th, 2013
Common Good Books
7 p.m.
Reading & Book Signing

Harlem, NY

Tuesday, November 19th, 2013
First Person Plural Reading Series
7 – 9 p.m.
Shrine World Music Venue
2271 Adam Clayton Powell
(between 133rd and 134th)

I will be reading with Karen Russell (Swamplandia, Vampires in the Lemon Grove) and one other writer, TBA. This is a fabulous series which typically features 3 writers and one artist (multi-media artist, dancers and performance artists), and each evening closes with sets by the resident DJ Lady DM.

Miami Book Festival, FL

Saturday, November 23rd 2013
Miami Book Fair International
Room 8303 (Building 8, 3rd Floor)
Reading and discussion with NoViolet Bulawayo (We Need New Names), and Alarcón (At Night We Walk in Circles)

Jaipur, India

Jaipur Literary Festival

Friday, January 17th, 2014
Mahindra Humanities Center
2.15 – 3.15 pm

‘Serendip’
With Romesh Gunesekera and Nayomi Munaweera, moderated by Supriya Nair.

Sunday, January 19th, 2014
Panel: ‘On Memoir & The Autobiographical Novel’
with Ved Mehhta, Joseph O’Neill, Philip Hensher, moderated by William Sutcliffe

Seattle, WA

Association of Writers & Writing Programs (AWP) 2014
All the things I plan to do (by duplicating myself), at #AWP14 can be found here. But below is the schedule I will definitely be following on Friday. My all or nothing day which begins at 9 in the morning and does not let up until midnight.

Friday, February 28, 2014

Where Witness Meets the Page: Why We Write What We Write
Room 609, Washington State Convention Center, Level 6
9:00 am to 10:15 am
To bear witness to atrocity through fiction implies a commitment to both narrative and truth. In the social media age, atrocity often reaches us in 140-character packages. Conversely, witness literature focuses a wide narrative lens on the subject. Why write fiction over nonfiction? What moral and ethical questions do writers confront along the way? How do craft and truth intersect? Five authors with varying degrees of closeness to their subjects discuss how they bear witness through fiction.

Discussion with Lorraine Adams (Harbor), Julie Wu (The Third Son), and Nayomi Munaweera (Island of a Thousand Mirrors), Moderated by Naomi Benaron (Running the Rift)

Graywolf Press 40th Anniversary Reading
Washington State Convention Center, Room 615/616/617, Level 6
10:30 am to 11:45 am

In 2014, Graywolf Press celebrates forty years of publishing essential works of contemporary literature. From the Press’s beginnings in Port Townsend, Washington, in 1974, to its current roster of award-winning writers, Graywolf has been recognized as one of the leaders in independent publishing. Please join the publisher and director of Graywolf and these fiction writers, nonfiction writers, and poets for a reading in celebration of the next forty years of Graywolf Press.

A reading with Tree Swenson, Tess Gallagher (Midnight Lantern, New & Selected Poems), Justin Hocking (The Great Floodgates of the Wonderworld) , Leslie Jamieson (The Gin Closet), and Robert Boswell (Tumbledown). Moderated by Graywolf Press’s poetry editor, Jeff Shotts.

Story Quarterly, Mead, and Tran(s)tudies Reading
Velocity Dance Center
7.30 – 8.30 pm

Reading with Rosebud Ben-On, Mark Doty, Kathleen Graber, Jason Koo, Paul Lisicky, Deborah Anne Lott, Laura McCullough, Kamilah Aisha Moon, and Antonio Ruiz-Camacho

Elliott Bay Book Company
8:00 – 10.00
Celebrating 40 years of the triumvirate of independent publishing and bookselling: Elliott Bay Book Company, Graywolf Press, and Riverhead Press.

Leave it to VIDA
8:00pm – 11:45pm
Richard Hugo House

Reading & Celebration with Kate Libo (A Commonplace Book of Pie), Cheryl Strayed (Wild), Alexander Chee (Edinburgh), Pam Houston (Contents May Have Shifted), Nick Flynn (The Reenactments), Melissa Febos (Whip Smart), and Natalie Diaz.

Gaithersburg, MD

Saturday, May 17th, 2014
Reading & Discussion, Cultural Explorations in Fiction.
Gaithersburg Book Festival
4:15 pm
F. Scott Fitzgerald Pavilion

Bryn Mawr, PA

Thursday, May 22nd, 2014
7.30 pm
Main Point Books
1041 West Lancaster Avenue
Bryn Mawr, PA 19010
P. 610-525-1480 (Cathy Fiebach)

Reading with Corban Addison, (author of The Garden of Burning Sand)

Newton, MA

Tuesday, June 3rd, 2014
7pm
Newtonville Books
10 Langley Road
Newton, MA 02459
617-244-6619/Jaime Clarke

An evening of reading and conversation with Alexi Zentner (Lobster Kings)

Bryn Mawr, PA

Wednesday, June 25th, 2014
7.30 pm
Main Point Books
Book Groups Exclusive!
1041 West Lancaster Avenue
Bryn Mawr, PA 19010
P. 610-525-1480/Cathy Fiebach

Camden, NJ

Thursday, June 26th, 2014
1 p.m.
The Stedman Gallery
Fine Arts Complex Rutgers–Camden campus
Summer Writers Conference Reading Series

Reading with poet Michael Dickman, author of two books of poems, The End of the West (Copper Canyon Press, 2009) and Flies, (Copper Canyon Press, 2011) as well as half a book of plays, 50 American Plays, co-written with his twin brother, Matthew,

Philadelphia, PA

Thursday, June 26th, 2014
Author Event Series
Free Library of Philadelphia
7.30 pm

Presentation and signing with Anna Badkhen (author of The World is a Carpet)

San Francisco, CA

Friday, September 26th, 2014
4.30 p.m.
California College of the Arts
Writers Studio
195 De Haro Street (at 15th Street)
San Francisco, CA 94107

Reading and Discussion

San Francisco, CA

Saturday, September 27th, 2014
1 p.m.
Copperfields (San Rafael)
850 Fourth Street
San Rafael, CA 94901
P: 415-524-2800

Reading & Book Discussion Series

Seattle, WA

Friday, October 17th, 2014
7.30 p.m.
2014/15 Lit Series Author
Hugo House
1634 11th Avenue
Seattle, WA 98122
Phone: (206) 322-7030

I will be reading something new written specifically for the series, on the prompt, ‘Rough Day,’ alongside poets Dean Young (Elegy on Toy Piano, University of Pittsbrugh, 2005), and Elissa Washuta (My Body is a Book of Rules, Red Hen Press, 2014)

Sharjah, United Arab Emirates

Wednesday, November 5th – Monday, November 10th, 2014
Author Presentation
Sharjah International Book Fair
Expo Center, Sharjah

Details: TBA

San José, CA

Wednesday, November 12th, 2014
3 p.m.
Mt. Pleasant High School
1750 South White Road, San Jose, CA 95127
408-937-2800 Phone

7 p.m.
Author Event & Signing
The Center for Literary Arts
San José State University
One Washington Square
San José, CA 95192-0223
Event Line: (408) 924-4600

New York, NY

Thursday, November 20th, 2014
7 p.m.
McNally Jackson
52 Prince Street
(between Lafayette & Mulberry)
New York City, NY 10012
212.274.1160

“The Hardest Words” where Taiye Selasi (Ghana Must Go), Tiphanie Yanique (Land of Love and Drowning, 2014), Mira Jacob (The Sleepwalker’s Guide to Dancing, 2014), Allison Hart (Dive Right In, 2014), Elliott Holt (You Are One of Them, 2013) and I read the paragraph that was hardest to write, and discuss our thoughts around it.

Miami, FL

Friday, February 27th, 2014
Brickell Avenue Literary Society

Speaker Series

Seattle, WA

Saturday, February 28th, 2015
Search for Meaning Book Festival
Keynote Speaker
“Our Voices Our Selves”
Location: Sullivan 105
Time: 2:30pm-3:30pm

Event: The World Giving Index released recently, finds the USA holding the rank of #1, #5, and #9 in the respective categories of helping a stranger, volunteering, and donating money. Most Americans achieve this status, however, from a great physical or emotional distance, and consider the “cost” to ourselves before we speak or act. What does speaking for Palestinians have to do with speaking for the people of Ferguson? As it turns out, a great deal.

Lincroft, NJ

Monday, March 9th, 2015
7 p.m.
Brookdale Community College
765 Newman Springs Road, Lincroft, NJ 07738

Speaker Series Event
Co-Sponsored by the International Studies Center

Lewiston, ME

Wednesday, March 11th, 2015
7 p.m.
Bates College
Lewiston, ME 04901

New York, NY

Sunday, March 15th, 2015
7.30 p.m.
Seventh Street Stage at Jimmys43
East Village
Sunday Salon
Bread Loaf From the Dark Tower in NYC
Reading Series
I’ll be MCing our sixth annual event

Philadelphia, PA

Monday, March 16th, 2015
10.15 a.m.
Friends School
Speaker

Minneapolis, MN

Wednesday, April 8th – 19th, 2015
AWP
All the things I plan to do (by duplicating myself), at #AWP14 can be found here.

The rest: TBA

Friday, April 17th, 2015
7 p.m.
Loft Literary Center Mentor Series
Reading

TBA

Haifa & Bethlehem, Palestine

Palestine Festival of Literature

Monday, May 25th, 2015
The Arab Cultural Center
Reading at the inaugural event for the new Arab Cultural Center in Haifa with Suhad Darher-Nashif, Rabeea Eid, Amer Hlehel, Brigid Keenan, Firas Khory, Rana Khoury, and Suhail Matar

Wednesday, May 27th, 2015
11.30 a.m.
Bethleham University

Reading and conversation on Identity with Nathalie Handal, Leila Abdelrazaq, Dirk Wanrooij, and Malika Booker.

Paris, France

Thursday, June 18
7:00pm in UTC+02
Librairie L’Humeur Vagabonde
Paris, France

TLC Author Blog Tour
Tour Stops

Monday, August 17th: Jenn’s Bookshelf
Tuesday, August 18th: Worducopia
Thursday, August 20th: My Friend Amy
Monday, August 24th: Maw Books
Tuesday, August 25th: Lost in Books
Thursday, August 27th: Bibliophile by the Sea
Tuesday, September 1st: A Sea of Books
Tuesday, September 8th: Wordlily
Monday, September 14th: Shhh I’m Reading
Wednesday, September 16th: Savvy Verse and Wit
Thursday, September 17th: Ticket to Anywhere
Tuesday, September 22nd: Musings of a Bookish Kitty
Thursday, September 24th: Fizzy Thoughts
Monday, September 28th: Book Addiction
Wednesday, September 30th: Caribousmom

Chicago, IL

June 11-14, 2009
Chicago
Kriti Festival

Saturday, June 13
10.00-10.45am
Reading from A Disobedient Girl
Roosevelt University, Room 310
430 S. Michigan Ave
(also reading Nitin Deckha & Manisha Sharma)

4:00 – 4:50p.m.
Panel: Politics and Writing (Moderated by Lakshmi Rengarajan of SAPAC, with Mary Anne Mohanraj, Ru Freeman, Deepak Unnikrishnan, Rishi Reddi, Manisha Sharma & Romesh Gunasekera)
Roosevelt University, Room 320

6:00 – 6:45p.m.
Panel: Selling Your First Book (with Tania James, Sheba Karim, Ru Freeman, Minal Hajratwala & V.V. Ganeshananthan)
Roosevelt University, Room 320

New York, NY

South Asian Journalists Association (SAJA)
Convention
Friday, July 10th @ CUNY
Saturday, July 11th @ Columbia University

Chestnut Hill Book Festival, PA

Sunday, July 12th, 2009
1.00 – 3.00 pm
Lemons & Limes
8133 Germantown Avenue
Philadelphia PA 19118
Phone: 215-242-3080
Email: lemonsandlimes2007@comcast.net

NYC Book Launch & Reception

Tuesday, July 21st, 2009
6pm
Embassy of Sri Lanka
630 3rd Ave
New York, NY 10017-6705
(212) 687-8898
by invitation only

New York City

Thursday, July 23rd, 2009
7 p.m.
Barnes & Noble
86th & Lexington Ave
150 East 86th Street
New York, NY
212-369-2180

Wynnewood, PA

Sunday, July 26th, 2009
Author Event
3 p.m.
Borders Books & Music
80 East Wynnewood Road
Wynnewood, PA 19096
(610) 642-0362

Bryn Mawr, PA

Tuesday, July 28th, 2009
7 p.m.
Borders Books & Music
1149 E Lancaster Ave
Bryn Mawr, PA 19010
(610) 527-1500

Click think-globally-poster for a look at the terrific book covers! I will be reading with my good friends Josh Weil, author of The New Valley, Rachel Pastan, author of Lady of the Snakes, Lise Funderberg, author of Pig Candy, Jim Zervanos, author of Love Park, and Elizabeth Mosier, author of My Life as a Girl.

Ripton, VT5

August 9th – 23rd
Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference

Waterville, ME

Monday, August 24th, 2009
5 – 7 pm
Children’s Book Cellar
52 Main Street
Waterville, Maine 04901
(207) 872-4543
kidsbookscellar@verizon.net

Camden, ME

6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
August 25th
Maine Literary Festival Event
Cross-cultural Experiences: Literature of New Voices in America
Reading Room, Camden Public Library
44 Main Street
Camden, ME 04843
Tel: 207.236.3440

Doylestown, PA

7:00 PM – 9:00 PM
First Friday Event: September 4th
Doylestown Bookstore
16 South Main Street
Doylestown, PA 18901
Tel: 215-230-7610
Fax: 215-230-7613

Jamaica Plain, MA

Friday, September 11th, 2009
7pm
Jamaicaway Books
New England’s only multicultural bookstore!
676 Centre St
(between Burroughs St & Seaverns Ave)
Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
(617) 983-3204

Newtonville, MA

Sunday, September 13th, 2009
2pm
Newtonville Books
296 Walnut Street
Newtonville, MA 02460

Boston, MA

Monday, September 14th, 2009
7pm
Grub Street
160 Boylston Street,
Boston, MA 02116
tel: 617.695.0075
Email: info@grubstreet.org

I will be appearing with two friends, Rishi Reddi (Karma & Other Stories) and Rakesh Satyal (Blue Boy), to read from our work and speak on a panel.

Bryn Mawr Film Institute

Wednesday, September 16th, 2009
7.30pm
Bryn Mawr Film Institute
824 West Lancaster Avenue
Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania 19010
610.527.4008 x 109
Email: Info@BrynMawrFilm.org

BMFI will screen the amazing documentary, Who Does She Think She Is? by Academy-award winning film maker, Pamela Tanner Boll, about five women who “refuse to make a choice between mothering and creativity, partnering and independence, economics and art.” The artists are Janis Wunderlich, Angela Williams, Camille Musser, Maye Torres and Mayumi Oda.

I will speaking on and moderating the panel to follow, when four local artists will discuss the value of a creative life, the compromises that are made and those that are refused. The panel will include ceramic artist Jill Bonovitz, dancer Laura Katz Rizzo, and essayist Kathy Stevenson.

Sunday Salon, New York City

Sunday, September 20th, 2009
7pm

Sunday Salon Reading Series
Jimmys
Seventh Street Small Stage
43 on 7th St.
between 2nd/3rd Ave.
(Subsway: 6 to Astor Place. Walk east to 2nd Avenue
then south to E. 7th Street, east to the theatre)

I will be reading along with Billy Lombardo, Wesley Yang, and Cheryl Burke.

Philadelphia, PA

Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009
6 p.m.
Barnes & Noble
1805 Walnut Street
Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia, PA 19103
(215) 665-0716

Think Globally, Read Locally comes downtown! I will be reading with my good Rachel Pastan, author of Lady of the Snakes, Lise Funderberg, author of Pig Candy, Jim Zervanos, author of Love Park, and Elizabeth Mosier, author of My Life as a Girl.

Camden, NJ

Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009
7.00 – 8:00pm
MFA Reading Series & Reception
Stedman Gallery
Rutgers-Camden
101 Cooper Street
Camden, NJ

Click here for more information and a write up about my fellow-reader, Jane Allison.

KGB, New York City

Sunday, September 27th, 2009
7.00 pm
Sunday Fiction Series
KGB Bar
85 East 4th Street
New York City, 10003

And if you want the real story behind the forming of this incredible space, from Denis Woychuck, click that link.

Boston

Monday, October 5th, 2009
Four Stories Reading Series
The Enormous Room
7-9pm (music starts @ 6)
569 Massachusetts Ave
Cambridge, MA 02139
(Central Square, Red Line subway stop)

I will be reading at the fabulous Four Stories Boston event “Conspicuous Consumption: Stories of eating, shopping, spending, taking.” Featured readers include Erica Ferencik, (Cracks in the Foundation), Tracy McArdle, (Confessions of a Nervous Shiksa and Real Women Eat Beef), and Amy Yelin, (Boston Globe Magazine, the Boston Globe, the Gettysburg Review, and Literary Mama; and recipient of a notable essay mention in the Best American Essays 2007)

San Francisco, CA

Friday, October 16th, 2009
7:30 p.m.
Books, Inc. in Mountain View
301 Castro Street
Mountain View, CA 94041
650-428-1234
Contact: Rob Garcelon, Sandy Chargin or Nadine Orzechowski

Saturday, October 17th, 2009
East of Here: Stories from “Dangerous” Lands
LitQuake 2009
San Francisco
South Asian & Arab Writers Rock LitCrawl
Bollyhood Café, 3372 19th

Authors from the Middle East, South Asia, and Afghanistan shed light on the clash of cultures, religions, and societies, both here and there.

Curator: Soumeya Bendimerad
Ru Freeman, Shilpa Agarwal, Elmaz Abinader, Tamim Ansary, Shanthi Sekaran

Washington, DC

South Asian Literary & Theater Arts Festival (SALTAF)
Saturday, November 7th, 2009
10 – 5.30 pm
Baird Auditorium
National Museum of Natural History
10th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW

I am delighted to participate in the 6th annual SALTAF, alongside Daniyal Mueenuddin, author of In Other Rooms, Other Wonders and Kamila Shamsie, author of Burnt Shadows.

Chicago, IL

Sunday, November 15th, 2009
4.30 pm
Author Event
Women & Children First
5233 N. Clark St.
Chicago, IL 60640
Tel: 773.769.9299
wcfbooks@aol.com

Monday, November 16th, 2009
9.30 am
Oakton Community College
International Education Week
Keynote Speaker
847-376-7118
schuster@oakton.edu
Location: 1604 DPC

Washington, DC

January 8th, 2009 12 Noon
Speaker Series
State Department

Colombo, Sri Lanka

Monday, January 25th, 2010
4.30p.m.
American Center
44 Galle Road
Lecture: “Emigrating, Immigrating, and Writing,” followed by Q&A

The event is free and open to the public. Those wishing to attend should email Glen Davis at DavisGS@state.gov so their names may be added to the access list. There is limited parking available.

Galle, Sri Lanka

28th – 31st, January, 2010
Galle International Literary Festival

Friday, 29th January, 2010
Hall de Galle
10 – 11 a.m.
Panel: “Who Do You Think You Are?”
I will speaking with Michelle de Kretser, Gillian Slovo, Lal Medawattegedera and David Blacker about which stories we have chosen to tell about Sri Lanka and why. This session is free and open to the public.

Saturday, 30th January, 2010
4.45 – 5.45pm
Maritime Museum
Reading & Conversation

London, UK

Wednesday, February 3rd, 2010
9.30am
Rattansi and Ridley Show, SKY 515
Current Affairs programme
Location: HMS President, River Thames

5.15 – 7.00pm
Event with Reading Group at St John’s Library
Contact: Amy Crouch
Learning Support Librarian
St John’s Wood Library
20 Circus Road
London
NW8 6PD

Thursday, February 4th, 2010
11.30 – 12pm
Interview with BBC World/The Strand interview
BBC Bush House, Strand, London WC2

1 p.m.
Interview with BBC Asian Radio interview with Nikki Bedi
Roz Hutchinson to accompany.
TV Centre,West London

Philadelphia, PA

Tuesday, March 16th, 2010
The Episcopal Academy
1785 Bishop White Drive
Newtown Square PA 19073
484-424-1400

New York, NY

Sunday Salon Reading Series
Bread Loaf ‘From The Dark Tower’ Reading in NYC!
March 21st, 2010
7 pm
Jimmy’s Small Stage
43 on 7th St.
between 2nd/3rd Ave.
(Subway: 6 to Astor Place. Walk east to 2nd Avenue then south to E. 7th Street, east to the theatre)
I will be reading with Charles Rice Gonzalez, Emily Raboteau, Reginald Dwayne Betts & Nina McConigley

Drew University, NJ

Monday, April 5th, 2010
7pm
Founders Room in Mead Hall
Creative Writing Program & Womens’ Studies
Reading Series
Drew University
36 Madison Avenue
Madison, New Jersey 07940,
973-408-3000
Contact: Wendy Kolmar – wkolmar@drew.edu
Details: TBA

Denver, CO

Association of Writers & Writing Programs (AWP)
April 7th – 10th, 2010

Friday, April 9th, 2010
Room 106 @ the Colorado Convention Center
Noon – 1.15pm
700 14th Street, Denver, CO, 80202
Phone: (303) 228-8000
Panel: Writing South Asia—Issues of Representation and Identity. Samrat Upadhyay, Rishi Reddi, Anis Shivani, Gemini Wahhaj, Oindrila Mukherjee and I discuss the way in which writers from South Asia have taken the Western literary world by storm and how this recent popularity gives rise to new challenges. How do you represent contemporary South Asia in authentic, original ways and stay commercially viable? How do you write for a Western and a regional audience at the same time? How do you balance the political and aesthetic? Come hear writers of Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Nepali, Sri Lankan, and Indian origin read and discuss their fiction.

Friday, April 9th, 2010
9pm – Midnight
Women in Letters & Literary Arts (WILLA) Goes Live
Denver Press Club

There will be a performance by Burlesque Performers: Vivienne VaVoom & Cora Vette, both of Black Box Burlesque followed by readings by thirty-three writers including Cheryl Strayed, Antonya Nelson, WILLA founders Cate Marven and Erin Belieu, and myself.

Orlando, FL

Friday April 16th and Saturday, April 17th, 2009
International Book Festival
University of Central Florida
Orlando, FL

Washington, DC

Saturday, April 24th, 2010
10 – 11. 30 am
Asian American Literary Review Symposium
University of Maryland
Ulrich Recital Hall,
Tawes Hall, University of Maryland
College Park
Readings by me and Peter Bacho Discussion to follow. 8_a-symposium1

The day-long events include readings bySonya Chung, April Naoko Heck, and fellow advisory editors, Kyoko Mori, and Karen Tei Yamashita

Sunday, April 25th, 2010
10-11:30am; 11:30-12:00pm
Montgomery College
Human Rights Arts Festival
Round table discussion that folds in questions from the audience moderated by Terry Hong from the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program.

Iowa City, Iowa

May 16th – 24th
University of Iowa
International Writing Program/Life of Discovery
I will be participating in a cross-cultural exchange in creative writing between American and Chinese writers in a program lead by Christopher Merill, along with Matt Hart, Kiki Petrosino, Kyle Dargan and Vu Tran.

New York, NY

May 21st, 2010
6-8pm
Reading & Discussion
Center for Fiction
17 East 47th Street,
between Fifth and Madison.
Admission is free and open to the public.
Through the Girls Write Now program, curated by Maud Newton.

Yunnan, Sichuan & Beijing, China

June 24-July 9
University of Iowa
International Writing Program/Life of Discovery

This is the second leg of the program in cross-cultural exchange in creative writing between American and Chinese writers lead by Christopher Merill, along with Matt Hart, Kiki Petrosino, Kyle Dargan and Vu Tran.

Princeton, NJ

Wednesday, April 20th, 2011
Princeton Public Library
Author Event

Porter Square Books, Boston

Reading with Ann Hood (The Red Thread, The Knitting Circle and others)

August 24th, 2010
7 p.m.
Porter Square
Porter Square Books
Porter Square Shopping Center
25 White Street
Cambridge, MA 02140
We are located in the Porter Square Shopping Center on Massachusetts Ave., about two miles north of Harvard Square and directly across from the Porter Square station commuter and subway stop.
-491-2220
info@portersquarebooks.com

The Housing Works, Soho, NYC

Reading with Jessica Jiji, (Sweet Dates in Basra, Harper Collins, 2010)

September 13th, 2010
Time: 7 pm
The Housing Works
126 Crosby St
(between Prince St & Jersey St)
New York, NY 10012
Neighborhood: SoHo
(212) 334-3324
www.housingworks.org/bookstore

New Brunswick, NJ

Saturday, May 7th, 2011
Keynote Speaker
Manavi
Annual Community Dinner/Fundraiser
6.30pm
Akbar Restaurant
21 Cortland Street
Edison, NJ 08837

Manavi is a New Jersey-based women’s rights organization committed to end all forms of violence and exploitation against South Asian women living in the U.S. Established in 1985, Manavi (“woman” in Sanskrit) was the first organization of its kind in the U.S. Manavi’s programs involve direct service provision for women survivors of violence; grassroots organizing for social change within the South Asian community; and informing the practice of mainstream U.S. institutions and organizations to better serve South Asian women survivors. Through its work Manavi ensures that women of South Asian descent in the U.S can exercise their fundamental right to live a life of dignity that is safe and free from violence.

Fall for the Book Festival, Fairfax, VA

September 21st
4.30 p.m.
Reading
Location: Main Tent
Fall for the Book Festival
4400 University Drive MS3E4
Fairfax, VA 22030
Tel: 703-993-3986
fftb@gmu.edu

Collingswood Book Festival, NJ

October 2nd, 2010
Book signing and discussion
Time & Location: TBA

Collingswood Book Festival
Collingswood Public Library
771 Haddon Avenue

Baltimore Book Festival, MD

Sunday, September 26th, 2010
5.30 pm
Festival Stage
Reading and discussion followed by a book signing
Baltimore Book Festival
Mount Vernon Place
600 Block North Charles Street
Baltimore, MD
Contact: Heather St. Clair
410-752-8632
hstclair@promotionandarts.com

Minnesota State University, Minnesota

Thursday, April 28th, 2011

Good Thunder Reading Series
Minnesota State University, Mankato
230 Armstrong Hall
Mankato, MN 56001
Contact: Richard Robbins, Director of Creative Writing
507.389.1354

Talk, interview with local NPR and reading in the evening.

Blue Bell, PA

Saturday, November 5th, 2011
Writers’ Conference
Montgomery Community College
4-5pm

Workshop: Ready to Be Cyber-bullied? You Are Ready to Blog!
Writing for an online forum–on people, poetry, politics and everything in between–takes guts and a thick hide. Your work is immediately visible and, for better or worse, immediately quotable, cut/paste-able and shareable. It also lives forever, your words easily summoned to vilify you and your world view. Let us talk about the what, when, why and where as well as the how to and how not to of blogging.

Toronto, Canada

Thursday, September 27, 2012
6:00 – 10:00 PM
Sri Lanka Diaspora Benefit Reading
I will be participating in a reading and discussion as part of reading series organized by Sri Lankans Without Borders, with a view to contributing to inter-communal dialogue within the Sri Lankan diaspora, as well as the process of reconciliation. Proceeds from this series will be donated to children’s literacy programs in the Aboriginal community in Canada and rural communities in Sri Lanka. The program also supports PEN Canada in its efforts to promote the freedom of expression of writers in Sri Lanka.

Blacksburg, VA

November 5 – 7th
Keynote & Discussion
Virginia Tech
507A McBryde Hall
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, VA 24061Contact: Katrina M. Powell, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of English
Director, Women’s and Gender Studies
540-231-5932
kmpowell@vt.edu/wgs@vt.edu

Chicago, IL

Thursday, April 12th
5:30-8:00pm
Speaker for the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights, annual gala
Baker & McKenzie
300 E. Randolph, Suite 5000
Chicago 60601
Contact: 773 702-9560 or info@TheYoungCenter.org

view-invitation

AWP – Washington, DC

Wednesday, February 2nd – Saturday, February 5th, 2011
2011 Annual Conference & Bookfair
February 2-5, 2011
Washington, DC
Marriott Wardman Park & Omni Shoreham Hotels

Along with listening, gabbing, dancing and and equal measure of eating and drinking, I will also be doing serious things like these:

I Am Not a Terrorist: The Political Writer
I will be speaking on this panel along with Lorraine Adams, Nathalie Handal, Porochista Khakpour and Luis Alberto Urrea. Panel moderated by Terry Hong.

As national borders disintegrate through war and technology, fictional ones do not necessarily follow suite, often staying true to place; but must writers whose lives are political, and who function as spokespersons for worlds that American readers may never visit, write politics into their art? Writers with ties to current debates about Iran, Palestine, Algeria, Sri Lanka, Mexico, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, discuss the burden of truth and the choices they make as cultural translators.

The Road Less Traveled: How to be a Writer Without a Full-time Academic Gig
I will be speaking on this panel along with Cheryl Strayed, Steve Almond, Amy Holman, Christian TeBordo, and Marisa de los Santos

The path to solvency and security for most writers is to pair writing with full-time jobs in academia. On this panel, six authors will talk about their lives as writers without the de facto college teaching gig. Panelists will discuss the range of ways they’ve supported themselves, the reasons they’ve chosen the paths they have, and also the liberations and constraints they’ve experienced as writers outside the writer-faculty track that’s so deeply embedded in what it means to be a writer today.

Chicago, IL

February 29th – March 3rd, 2012
Association of Writers & Writing Programs (AWP)
I will be rocking the book launch party for Eugene Cross’ fantastic debut fiction collection, Fires of Our Choosing, getting my daily laps at the book fair and keeping the lobby bar in business while also making dozens of last-minute plans, listening to some fabulous writers and having A Proper Breakfast each morning. I will also be serious and erudite at the following official events:

Thursday, March 1st: 10.30 – 11.45
Continental C, Hilton Chicago, Lobby Level
R129. Troubling the Label: When Does a Text Become Feminist?
(Arielle Greenberg, Cate Marvin, Amal Amireh, Eloise Healy, Ru Freeman)

From conception to critique, what is the significance of when the label is applied? Does it matter who applies it? How do we interpret works of literature through a contemporary feminist context? So to Speak: A Feminist Journal of Language and Art brings together writers, publishers, and academics to discuss the stage at which a work is labeled feminist and the issues implicated with labeling, writing, and publishing socially conscious work.

Thursday, March 1st: 3 – 4.15pm
R214. Writing Class: Representing Socioeconomic Realities in Your Work
Wiliford B, Hilton Chicago, 3rd Floor
Courtney Tenz, Josh Weil, Ru Freeman, Sabra Wineteer, Ta-Nehisi Coates.)

As economic realities devolve the broader American Dream, writers are shaping a new U.S. life narrative. This panel collects contemporary authors’ responses to this socioeconomic shift by asking: will class-focused writing replace the American race and ethnicity paradigm? Can such a shift illuminate the differences in income and status and lead to greater understanding? Or will the money gap cut out most socioeconomic classes and usher in a new era of class appropriation in literature?