The Writer's Garret

Cake & Prose: Tatiana Obey
2025-04-12 18:00 - 20:00 (America/Chicago) | South Dallas Cultural Center, 3400 S. Fitzhugh Ave., Dallas, TX, 75210, United States
Cake and Prose is back! On Saturday, April 12th at 6 p.m., we’re featuring local acclaimed author, Tatiana Obey. Come join us at the South Dallas Cultural Center for a celebration of Black culture and Black women in fantasy and science fiction.

Cake and Prose is a unique, free literary event with a focus on genre fiction, local talent, and cake. The ingredients are simple:
Three stories. An author shares three stories — read by three different actors. These stories could be any genre. They could be short stories or excerpts of a longer work.
Three songs. A musical performance by a guest artist adds another layer to this night of entertainment. Themes can emerge between the stories and songs.
One cake. During the intermission, there is cake. Really good cake from a local bakery.
Mix together and enjoy! RSVP below!

ABOUT TATIANA OBEY
Tatiana Obey writes badass characters slaying dragons. She is the author of A Forging of Age Duology and Sistah Samurai: A Champloo Novella. She has published short stories in various anthologies and Fiyah Literary Magazine, and is also a contributing editor for Magic in the Melanin: A Black Fantasy Anthology. Learn more about Tatiana at www.tatianaobey.com.

PERFORMER BIOS
MIKAELA BAKER

Mikaela Baker is a SAG-E multi-hyphenated theatre artist here in DFW. Some of her most recent credits include A Streetcar Named Desire (WaterTower Theatre), Measure for Measure, Twelfth Night (Shakespeare Dallas), and you can see some of her directing work later this summer at Echo Theatre and Shakespeare Dallas.

JANEL AGBOR

Janel Agbor is delighted to be making her debut with cake and prose this evening. Janel is a recent graduate who received her BFA with a focus in acting and directing at Texas Woman’s University in Denton. Her recent roles include Sally Bowles in Cabaret, Circe in the Odyssey, Pearl in These Shining Lives, Mary Woolley in A Bull in a China Shop and Jacob Marley in Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol. Her favorite past roles include June/squish in Chicago, and Berthe in Pippin.

ANYIKA MCMILLAN-HEROD
Anyika McMillan-Herod is an actor, writer, and director. She is an alumna of Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and Prairie View A&M University. She also studied Acting at CalArts. She is notably a co-founder of Soul Rep Theatre Company, Dallas’ longest operating theater company dedicated to the Black experience.

MUSICAL GUEST OB
Ob is an artist based between Dallas and Lagos. His debut EP, !love is filled with thoughtful references, daring arrangements, and heartfelt lyrics. Ob cuts across genres to deliver a body of work that calls for its title, both to ourselves and to others. His message remains clear: love wins in the end.

Cake and Prose is back! On Saturday, April 12th at 6 p.m., we’re featuring local acclaimed author, Tatiana Obey. Come join us at the South Dallas Cultural Center for a celebration of Black culture and Black women in fantasy and science fiction.

Cake and Prose is a unique, free literary event with a focus on genre fiction, local talent, and cake. The ingredients are simple:Three stories. An author shares three stories — read by three different actors. These stories could be any genre. They could be short stories or excerpts of a longer work.Three songs. A musical performance by a guest artist adds another layer to this night of entertainment. Themes can emerge between the stories and songs.One cake. During the intermission, there is cake. Really good cake from a local bakery.Mix together and enjoy!​
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Baudelaire: A Guided Discussion with Gregg Thompson
2025-04-05 14:00 - 16:00 | The Writer’s Garret, 215 S. Tyler St., Dallas, TX, 75208, United States
Join us for a conversation on the poetry of Charles Baudelaire, one of the greatest poets of the nineteenth century. Gregg Thompson leads the discussion.
Charles Pierre Baudelaire (1821-1867) was a French poet & essayist, and was a major influence on both French and English language literature.
Gregg Thompson makes his living as a real estate investor, having previously worked in investment banking and the printing industry. He has a BA in History from one land grant college and MAs in Literature and Philosophy. He writes poetry, some of which has been published, and has been engaged with The Writer’s Garret in one capacity or other over several years. Gregg is a father of three grown children.

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Ralph Ellison: The Soul Of A Marxist – A Talk By Quraysh Ali Lansana
2025-03-26 19:00 - 20:30 | Bishop Arts Theatre Center, 215 S. Tyler St., Dallas, TX, 75208, United States
Ralph Ellison, author of what many consider to be the greatest American novel of the 20th Century, was a complicated man. Brilliant, yet complex. Born in 1914 in the deeply segregated neighborhood of Oklahoma City known as “Deep Deuce,” Ellison experienced the poverty and struggle of racism before he could read and experienced profound tragedy at two-years of age. A multi-talented, curious boy into young manhood, Ellison was immersed in both the second-hand welfare and first-hand rage of White people. As Ellison experienced success he possessed a seriousness, a soberness, and what some in the Black Arts Movement considered a pompous disposition. How could Ralph Ellison be both a socialist and an elitist at the same time?
Scholar and poet Quraysh Ali Lansana visits Dallas for a talk on the tension between Ellison’s private thoughts and history and his public success and renown. Read his interview on Ellison.
Quraysh Ali Lansana is author of over twenty books in poetry, nonfiction and children’s literature. Lansana is currently a Tulsa Artist Fellow and a Visiting Associate Professor of English/Creative Writing at the University of Tulsa. He was formerly a Lecturer in Africana Studies at Oklahoma State University-Tulsa where he also served as Director of the Center for Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation. Lansana is Executive Producer of KOSU/NPR’s Focus: Black Oklahoma monthly radio program, which is a recipient of a 2022 duPont-Columbia Award, a 2022 NAACP Image Award, a 2022 Oklahoma Society of Professional Journalists Award and was a Peabody Award nominee. Lansana is also the recipient of a 2022 Emmy Award, a 2022 Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters Award and a 2022 National Educational Telecommunications Association Public Media Award for his roles as host and consultant for the OETA (PBS) documentary film “Tulsa Race Massacre: 100 Years Later.” Lansana is a three-time International Regional Magazine Award-winning Contributing Editor for Oklahoma Today magazine. A former faculty member of both the Writing Program of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and the Drama Division of The Juilliard School, Lansana served as Director of the Gwendolyn Brooks Center for Black Literature and Creative Writing at Chicago State University from 2002-2012 and was Associate Professor of English/Creative Writing there until 2014. His most recent books include Killing the Negative: A Conversation in Art & Verse (with Joel Daniel Phillips), Opal’s Greenwood Oasis, the skin of dreams: new and collected poems, 1995-2018, The Whiskey of Our Discontent: Gwendolyn Brooks as Conscience & Change Agent) and The BreakBeat Poets: New American Poetry in the Age of Hip Hop.
Forthcoming titles include a children’s biography of Ralph Ellison, a memoir on the last decade of his mentor, Miss Gwendolyn Brooks, and a series of books on the Black Rodeo. Lansana’s work appears in Best American Poetry 2019. He is a founding member of Tri-City Collective and serves on the Board of Directors of the Philbrook Museum of Art, Oklahoma Humanities and the Tulsa Press Club. Lansana is a Curatorial Scholar for The Thomas Gilcrease Institute of American History and Art and a Curatorial Board Co-Chair for the Ragdale Foundation. He is a Cave Canem Fellow and a member of the first cohort of the Culture of Health Leadership for Racial Healing Fellowship.
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Community Conversation: Racism, the (Un)Making of Dallas, and Repairing the Damage with Dr. Michael Phillips
2025-03-22 10:00 - 12:00 | Apprentice Creative Space, 919 Morrell Ave. #110, Dallas, TX, 75203
Presented in partnership with the SMU Department of Human-Centered Interdisciplinary Studies, Community Conversations provide a forum for local discussion of relevant contemporary topics in the larger literary dialogue. Each conversation will feature a guest scholar who will facilitate the conversation, as well as contextual readings available prior to the event.
For its inaugural conversation, the series is focusing on Dallas itself, how racism has influenced the development of the city, and how we move forward together to build a more connected, equitable future. Guest scholar Dr. Michael Phillips will lead the conversation, and Dallas Poet Laureate Mag Gabbert has selected a set of poems to supplement.
Natasha Trethewey: “History Lesson”
Roger Reeves: “Cymothoa Exigua”
Claudia Rankine: Citizen: “You are in the dark, in the car…”
Terrance Hayes: “American Sonnet for My Past and Future Assassin [Probably twilight makes blackness dangerous]”
Marilyn Nelson: “Arachis Hypogaea”

Dr. Michael Phillips is a scholar of American race relations, Texas history, right-wing politics, and apocalyptic religions. His dissertation at the University of Texas was published in 2006 as White Metropolis: Race, Ethnicity and Religion in Dallas, 1841-2001. White Metropolis was awarded the 2007 Texas Historical Commission’s prize for best book on Texas history. His next book, co-authored with longtime journalist Betsy Friauf, is The Purifying Knife: The Troubling History of Eugenics in Texas. It will be published by the University of Oklahoma Press June 3, 2025.

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Lyceum Series: Maya Golden Bethany – What’s My Line? Selecting the Through Line in Personal Essays & Memoir
2025-03-15 10:00 - 12:00 | The Writer’s Garret, 215 S. Tyler St., Dallas, TX, 75208, United States
Welcome to the lyceum.
These free, monthly workshops are held on the third Saturday of the month, and offer writers of every genre and skill level an opportunity to learn, experiment and develop their craft. We hope you’ll join us!
Life is complex and so are our experiences. We endure multiple defining moments in our lifetimes, but how do we weed through our personal or family histories to determine which stories are right for the page? Every event that shapes us is significant, but you don’t have to tell it all in one work. In this generative workshop, Maya will help writers narrow their focus and select the through line for the story they are trying to tell in personal essay or memoir.
Callynth Photography
Maya Golden Bethany is an Associated Press winning and Emmy-nominated freelance journalist in Tyler, Texas where her foundation, 1 in 3 Foundation, serves survivors of sexual trauma with little to no income. Her memoir, The Return Trip, will re-release in hardcover edition on March 4, 2025 from Rising Action Publishing. Her first novel, a political thriller, The Senator, will release April 15, 2025, also through RAPC. Maya has written for Newsweek, Salon, Insider and BlackGirlNerds.com. Maya recently received the Parent Writer Fellowship from the Martha’s Vineyard Institute for Creative Writing. She is a graduate of Texas A&M University.

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Lyceum Series: Jasmyn Huff – Creating The Truth: Essaying
2025-02-15 10:00 - 12:00 | The Writer’s Garret, 215 S. Tyler St., Dallas, TX, 75208, United States
Welcome to the lyceum.
These free, monthly workshops are held on the third Saturday of the month, and offer writers of every genre and skill level an opportunity to learn, experiment and develop their craft. We hope you’ll join us!
What does “Creative” Nonfiction mean? This workshop will explore the truth behind creative nonfiction by looking at the creative essay by examining what makes an essay an essay and how much perceived “truth” it needs to contain.
Jasmyn Huff (she/her) studies Creative Nonfction at the Ph.D. level while also working as an IT specialist and coparenting her son. Her essays can be found in Black Warrior Review, X-R-A-Y, Bending Genres, Sweet Literary, Defunct Magazine, and SugarSugarSalt.

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Mining Your Life for Story: Writing Creative Nonfiction Essays Inspired By Your Life with Lynne Golodner
2025-01-11 14:00 - 16:00 | Apprentice Creative Space, 919 Morrell Ave. #110, Dallas, TX, 75203
Led by award-winning author and writing coach Lynne Golodner, this workshop guides writers in finding inspiration for writing, both nonfiction and fiction, from the people around you, the experiences you’ve had, the rooms of your home and more! You’ll learn how to write personal stories with universal appeal and how to cultivate a steady stream of writing prompts from the details of your daily life. Subject matter is all around you, all the time! We’ll try our hand at personal writing and banish the fears that keep us from putting real stories on the page.
COURSE TAKEAWAYS:

Find inspiration from daily life and create an endless list of subject matter for writing
Confront the fears that surround writing about real life
Build courage and confidence to write creatively and consider publishing
Harness memory, place and relationship to create compelling writing
Gain insight into what it takes to create cohesive, compelling writing

A former journalist and marketing expert, Lynne Golodner is the award-winning author of 10 books. With a degree from the University of Michigan and an MFA in Poetry from Goddard College, Lynne has taught writing and led retreats for more than twenty years. She lives with her archivist husband in Detroit, with a rotating roster of her four young adult children. Learn more at https://lynnegolodner.com.

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Cake & Prose – Charles' Dickens A Christmas Carol
2024-12-13 19:00 - 21:00 | Apprentice Creative Space, 919 Morrell Ave. #110, Dallas, TX, 75203
Cake & Prose returns for the holidays!
In December, we’re celebrating the Charles Dickens’ masterpiece, A Christmas Carol. Our actors are reading a version of the story abridged by Dickens himself for public readings. And as always, there will be cake from a local bakery during intermission and a musical performance to conclude the evening. This event is family friendly.
Cake and Prose will take place in Dallas on Friday, December 13th at Apprentice Oak Cliff.
A Christmas Carol will be performed by Dani Chambers, Rob Clare, Shawn Gann, and Brina Palencia, with musical guest Ob. We look forward to seeing you there!
RSVP below, with a suggested donation of $10.
ABOUT CHARLES DICKENS
Charles Dickens is regarded as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era. He wrote A Christmas Carol in six weeks and had to pay half the publication costs himself, since his publisher did not see the value of a Christmas story. The novella has never been out of print since its publication in 1843. A Christmas Carol was his first ever public reading in the Birmingham Town Hall on December 27, 1852. His first reading was such a success, he repeated it three days later. Dickens loved to perform A Christmas Carol. He continually edited and adapted the story as a performance piece for several years.
PERFORMER BIOS
DANI CHAMBERS
Dani Chambers is a voice-over actress who specializes in kid voices. She’s been honing her craft since she was just six years old, and her passion for acting has only grown with time. Dani particularly enjoys theater work, where she can fully embody a character and bring them to life on stage.
ROB CLARE
Rob Clare was originally an actor with the Royal Shakespeare Company, then a Staff Director at the UK National Theatre, and Associate Artistic Director of the major UK touring company, Compass. Becoming increasingly interested in differing approaches to working with Shakespearean texts, and especially verse, he completed a doctorate in the subject at Oxford University, and has since become an internationally recognized Shakespeare specialist.
SHAWN GANN
Shawn Gann is a proud Filipino-American ADR Director, Voiceover Artist, and Educator. For most of his career, Shawn has been a theatre maker in Dallas-Fort Worth that has performed on most major stages, started several companies, and has been a producing board/company member with many others; he has also toured nationally and internationally as an actor, which includes performing in Scotland’s 2019 Festival Fringe in Edinburgh.
BRINA PALENCIA
Brina Palencia is an actress working in Dallas and Los Angeles. She’s voiced… a lot of stuff. On camera she is best known for playing Sophia in the CW series Star-Crossed; Ana on Season 4 of The Walking Dead; Jody Evans on Season 7 of Castle; and Kayla Bates in the web series The Troubadoors. Brina can also be seen in several indie films and enjoys writing music.
MUSICAL GUEST OB
Ob is an artist based between Dallas and Lagos. His debut EP, !love is filled with thoughtful references, daring arrangements, and heartfelt lyrics. Ob cuts across genres to deliver a body of work that calls for its title, both to ourselves and to others. His message remains clear: love wins in the end.
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Cake & Prose – Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol (Fort Worth)
2024-12-12 19:00 - 21:00 | Arts Fifth Avenue, 1628 5th Ave., Fort Worth, TX, 76104, United States
Cake & Prose returns for the holidays!
In December, we’re celebrating the Charles Dickens’ masterpiece, A Christmas Carol. Our actors are reading a version of the story abridged by Dickens himself for public readings. And as always, there will be cake from a local bakery during intermission and a musical performance to conclude the evening. This event is family friendly.
Cake and Prose will take place in Fort Worth on Thursday, December 12th at Arts Fifth Avenue.
A Christmas Carol will be performed by Dani Chambers, Rob Clare, Marisa Duran, and Shawn Gann, with musical guest Elizabeth Wills. We look forward to seeing you there!
RSVP below, with a suggested donation of $10.
ABOUT CHARLES DICKENS
Charles Dickens is regarded as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era. He wrote A Christmas Carol in six weeks and had to pay half the publication costs himself, since his publisher did not see the value of a Christmas story. The novella has never been out of print since its publication in 1843. A Christmas Carol was his first ever public reading in the Birmingham Town Hall on December 27, 1852. His first reading was such a success, he repeated it three days later. Dickens loved to perform A Christmas Carol. He continually edited and adapted the story as a performance piece for several years.
PERFORMER BIOS
DANI CHAMBERS
Dani Chambers is a voice-over actress who specializes in kid voices. She’s been honing her craft since she was just six years old, and her passion for acting has only grown with time. Dani particularly enjoys theater work, where she can fully embody a character and bring them to life on stage.
ROB CLARE
Rob Clare was originally an actor with the Royal Shakespeare Company, then a Staff Director at the UK National Theatre, and Associate Artistic Director of the major UK touring company, Compass. Becoming increasingly interested in differing approaches to working with Shakespearean texts, and especially verse, he completed a doctorate in the subject at Oxford University, and has since become an internationally recognized Shakespeare specialist.
MARISA DURAN
Marisa Duran has had the privilege of working with multiple professional theatre companies in the DFW area, and has landed on-camera roles in short films, web-series, and commercials. Marisa works with studios such as Crunchyroll and BangZoom, and lends their voice to various indie projects, video-games, and commercials.
SHAWN GANN
Shawn Gann is a proud Filipino-American ADR Director, Voiceover Artist, and Educator. For most of his career, Shawn has been a theatre maker in Dallas-Fort Worth that has performed on most major stages, started several companies, and has been a producing board/company member with many others; he has also toured nationally and internationally as an actor, which includes performing in Scotland’s 2019 Festival Fringe in Edinburgh.
MUSICAL GUEST ELIZABETH WILLS
Texas-based singer-songwriter and Americana artist Elizabeth Wills has a voice that Dallas Morning News compared to “female singer/songwriter greats such as Carly Simon, Shawn Colvin, and Sarah McLachlan.” Her songs – real and riveting – keep listeners engaged start to finish.

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Journal Writing: Exploring Your Inner Voice with Linda Jones
2024-12-04 19:00 - 21:00 | The Writer’s Garret, 215 S. Tyler St., Dallas, TX, 75208, United States
This workshop is ideal for anyone looking to expand their journaling practice and explore new writing methods for self-discovery and personal growth.
What You’ll Learn:

Various journaling and personal writing styles that can help deepen self-awareness and enhance your overall well-being.

How to develop a personalized journaling routine that supports mental, emotional, and creative wellness.

Linda Jones is a writing doula, transformational coach, journalist, author, certified grief recovery specialist, creative artist and owner of ManeLock Communications, LLC. She helps clients give birth to writing that helps them tell better stories, preserve legacy, and maintain their emotional health and well-being.
Linda has worked as a journalist for several daily newspapers (i.e., The Detroit News, Dallas Morning News, Ft. Lauderdale News and Sun Sentinel) and has contributed to several print and online publications (i.e., The Daily Beast, USA Today (Sunday), People, Heart & Soul and Essence magazines). Highlights of her news career included coverage of the Black Hebrew Israelites, the expatriate Black American community in Dimona, Israel, the historic U.S. tour of South African activist Nelson Mandela when he was released from prison after 27 years, and the historic 1994 election when he became that country’s first Black president.
She is author of: Family Scribes: Writing Memories for Your Family Tree, Final Story Obituary Planner, It’s Only Temporary: A Journal for Surviving Loved Ones and Nappyisms: Affirmations for Nappy-Headed People and Wannabes! Her work has also appeared in Chicken Soup for the African American Woman’s Soul, and Tenderhanded: A Comb-bending Collection of Hair Stories.

The City That Killed The President – A Reading By Author Tim Cloward
2024-11-22 19:00 - 20:30 | The Wild Detectives, 314 W 8th St, Dallas, TX, 75208, United States
The assassination of John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963, shocked America. Instantly, Dallas was blamed for the killing, labeled “the City of Hate.” In the half century since the president’s murder, this city’s artists and writers have produced important, if often overlooked, work that speaks to the difficult burden of our civic shaming.
Here are the works of poetry, theater, journalism, art, the actions of our citizens and political leaders, all the fragments of our cultural life that address this tortured local history. The City That Killed the President is a window into the soul of Dallas, a city reluctant to grapple with its past.
“Tim Cloward has his nerve. The very idea of taking on the psyche of a city as rambunctious and complex—and troubled and tragic—as Dallas would be beyond the courage of most of us, but Cloward more than rises to the challenge he sets for himself. The City that Killed the President is a brilliant dissection of this most American of cities, a particular kind of history in which names, dates, and events are merely starting points for peeling back our collective id and ego. The City that Killed the President is one of the best books you will ever read about Dallas, but you won’t find it on the Chamber of Commerce reading list.”
Ben Fountain, author of Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk and Devil Makes Three
Tim Cloward is a writer/educator who lives in Dallas, Texas. He holds a Ph.D. in Aesthetic Studies from the University of Texas at Dallas. The founder of the poetry/performance troupe Dancing Tongue, he has also worked with Poetry Circus and Question Authority, both acclaimed multi-disciplinary performance ensembles. His work has been seen in a number of publications and he, along with Patty Turner and David Davis, published the influential chapbook Three Dallas Poets in 1986. A prominent arts organizer, he is the former board chair of the North Texas Literary organization, WordSpace. He teaches Theory of Knowledge classes at Uplift Atlas Academy, where he is helping establish an International Baccalaureate program for underserved urban students. The first volume of his The City That Killed the President: A Cultural History of Dallas was published by Deep Vellum Press in Sept. 2023.

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"A Deep And Human Look:" Gwendolyn Brooks' Annie Allen at 75 – Presentation By Quraysh Ali Lansana and Reading
2024-11-20 18:30 - 20:00 | South Dallas Cultural Center, 3400 S. Fitzhugh Ave., Dallas, TX, 75210, United States
Miss Gwendolyn Brooks offered a voice for Black women in literature in the early 1950’s at a time when Black women characters were relegated to maids and nannies. Annie Allen, her second book of poetry, is the groundbreaking work which made her the first Black person to win the Pulitzer Prize in any category. These poems introduce you to Annie Allen and her community as she grows from childhood to womanhood and is faced with poverty, despair, racial discrimination, war and, somehow, hope. October 2024 marks the 75th anniversary of Annie Allen. Lansana will share stories and anecdotes from ten years with Miss Brooks as her last protégé.
Quraysh Ali Lansana is author of over twenty books in poetry, nonfiction and children’s literature. Lansana is currently a Tulsa Artist Fellow and a Visiting Associate Professor of English/Creative Writing at the University of Tulsa. He was formerly a Lecturer in Africana Studies at Oklahoma State University-Tulsa where he also served as Director of the Center for Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation. Lansana is Executive Producer of KOSU/NPR’s Focus: Black Oklahoma monthly radio program, which is a recipient of a 2022 duPont-Columbia Award, a 2022 NAACP Image Award, a 2022 Oklahoma Society of Professional Journalists Award and was a Peabody Award nominee. Lansana is also the recipient of a 2022 Emmy Award, a 2022 Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters Award and a 2022 National Educational Telecommunications Association Public Media Award for his roles as host and consultant for the OETA (PBS) documentary film “Tulsa Race Massacre: 100 Years Later.” Lansana is a three-time International Regional Magazine Award-winning Contributing Editor for Oklahoma Today magazine. A former faculty member of both the Writing Program of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and the Drama Division of The Juilliard School, Lansana served as Director of the Gwendolyn Brooks Center for Black Literature and Creative Writing at Chicago State University from 2002-2012 and was Associate Professor of English/Creative Writing there until 2014. His most recent books include Killing the Negative: A Conversation in Art & Verse (with Joel Daniel Phillips), Opal’s Greenwood Oasis, the skin of dreams: new and collected poems, 1995-2018, The Whiskey of Our Discontent: Gwendolyn Brooks as Conscience & Change Agent) and The BreakBeat Poets: New American Poetry in the Age of Hip Hop.
Forthcoming titles include a children’s biography of Ralph Ellison, a memoir on the last decade of his mentor, Miss Gwendolyn Brooks, and a series of books on the Black Rodeo. Lansana’s work appears in Best American Poetry 2019. He is a founding member of Tri-City Collective and serves on the Board of Directors of the Philbrook Museum of Art, Oklahoma Humanities and the Tulsa Press Club. Lansana is a Curatorial Scholar for The Thomas Gilcrease Institute of American History and Art and a Curatorial Board Co-Chair for the Ragdale Foundation. He is a Cave Canem Fellow and a member of the first cohort of the Culture of Health Leadership for Racial Healing Fellowship.
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Lyceum Series: David Hopkins – 32 Ways To Add A Little Shakespeare To Your Story
2024-11-16 10:00 - 12:00 | The Writer’s Garret, 215 S. Tyler St., Dallas, TX, 75208, United States
Welcome to the lyceum.
These free, monthly workshops are held on the third Saturday of the month, and offer writers of every genre and skill level an opportunity to learn, experiment and develop their craft. We hope you’ll join us!
Succession drama, high stakes tension, and fascinating characters! There’s a lot we can learn from the Bard—especially if you write long-form fiction. In this workshop, we’re going to cover 32 ways you can enhance your stories with some Shakespearean flair.
DAVID HOPKINS is a fantasy novelist with an interest in Shakespeare (hence the workshop), medieval history, fairy tales, and myth. He is the author of The Dryad’s Crown, a story set in the vast world of Efre Ousel. David is married to artist and designer, April Hopkins. They have two daughters, Kennedy and Greta, and a dog named Moose. David is a full member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association and founder of Cake and Prose. David teaches classes through WritingWorkshops.com.

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Poetic Expression: Discovering Your Voice Through Verse with Linda Jones
2024-11-13 19:00 - 21:00 | The Writer’s Garret, 215 S. Tyler St., Dallas, TX, 75208, United States
Designed for both beginners and seasoned writers, workshop will introduce you to unique styles of poetry that allow you to express your emotions, thoughts, and experiences in creative and impactful ways.
What You’ll Learn:

Techniques for crafting poetry that captures emotions and ideas in powerful, concise forms.
How to use structured poetic forms to enhance creativity and focus your expression.

This workshop is perfect for anyone looking to explore the expressive potential of poetry and deepen their writing practice.

Linda Jones is a writing doula, transformational coach, journalist, author, certified grief recovery specialist, creative artist and owner of ManeLock Communications, LLC. She helps clients give birth to writing that helps them tell better stories, preserve legacy, and maintain their emotional health and well-being.
Linda has worked as a journalist for several daily newspapers (i.e., The Detroit News, Dallas Morning News, Ft. Lauderdale News and Sun Sentinel) and has contributed to several print and online publications (i.e., The Daily Beast, USA Today (Sunday), People, Heart & Soul and Essence magazines). Highlights of her news career included coverage of the Black Hebrew Israelites, the expatriate Black American community in Dimona, Israel, the historic U.S. tour of South African activist Nelson Mandela when he was released from prison after 27 years, and the historic 1994 election when he became that country’s first Black president.
She is author of: Family Scribes: Writing Memories for Your Family Tree, Final Story Obituary Planner, It’s Only Temporary: A Journal for Surviving Loved Ones and Nappyisms: Affirmations for Nappy-Headed People and Wannabes! Her work has also appeared in Chicken Soup for the African American Woman’s Soul, and Tenderhanded: A Comb-bending Collection of Hair Stories.

Haiku & Senryu with Joan Canby
2024-11-10 14:00 - 16:00 | The Cultured Cup, 13731 Omega Rd., Farmers Branch, TX, 75244, United States
Most of us are familiar with the Haiku poetic form–or at least we think we are.
Haiku are 3 lined short poems about nature with a serious theme and have a Japanese kigo (seasonal word) or a kireji (a cutting word). Senryu are 3 lined short poems about the human condition, often humorous or cynical that do not use kigo or kireji words. In this 2 hour workshop, we’ll divide the time roughly in half between reading and composition, with the opportunity to share before the end of the workshop.
Joan Canby is a member of the Haiku Society of America. Her haiku/senryu have been published in Modern Haiku, Frogpond and Ouachita Life. Her website is: joancanby.com.

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Mina Loy's The Last Lunar Baedeker: A Guided Discussion With Gregg Thompson
2024-11-02 14:00 - 16:00 | The Writer’s Garret, 215 S. Tyler St., Dallas, TX, 75208, United States
Join Gregg Thompson for a guided discussion of modernist poet Mina Loy’s The Last Lunar Baedeker.
Gregg Thompson makes his living as a real estate investor, having previously worked in investment banking and the printing industry. He has a BA in History from one land grant college and MAs in Literature and Philosophy. He writes poetry, some of which has been published, and has been engaged with The Writer’s Garret in one capacity or other over several years. Gregg is a father of three grown children.

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Lyceum Series: Lauren Kalstad – Splendiferous Travels! A Journey into the World of Writing Children’s Books
2024-10-19 10:00 - 12:00 | The Writer’s Garret, 215 S. Tyler St., Dallas, TX, 75208, United States
Welcome to the lyceum.
These free, monthly workshops are held on the third Saturday of the month, and offer writers of every genre and skill level an opportunity to learn, experiment and develop their craft. We hope you’ll join us!
Let’s explore the many adventures and colorful characters we encounter through children’s literature. Participants will discuss favorite stories from childhood, and what makes for an unforgettable tale that stays with us for a lifetime. We will explore how to craft characters, themes, storylines, and develop style all by digging into your vision. Join us as we learn what it takes to weave our ideas into a beloved children’s book!
Lauren Kalstad is a poet, essayist, and author of the children’s book, To the Stars in Bumper Cars. Her poetry and essays have appeared or are forthcoming in Querencia Press, Thimble Literary Magazine, The Orchards Poetry Journal, and World Literature Today. Recently, she was a semifinalist for the Crab Creek Review Poetry Prize. She received her MFA from New York University and currently teaches at the University of North Texas. She lives in Dallas with her husband, daughter, and dog.

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Cake & Prose: Kate Khavari
2024-09-28 19:00 - 21:00 | Arts Fifth Avenue, 1628 5th Ave., Fort Worth, TX, 76104, United States
Cake & Prose is back!
Cake and Prose is a unique literary event celebrating genre fiction, local talent, and cake. The ingredients are simple:
Three stories. An author shares three stories — read by three different actors. These stories could be any genre. They could be short stories or excerpts of a longer work.
Three songs. A musical performance by a guest artist adds another layer to this night of entertainment. Themes can emerge between the stories and songs.
One cake. During the intermission, there is cake. Really good cake from a local bakery.
Mix together and enjoy!
This month, come hear the work of Kate Khavari, author of A Botanist’s Guide To Society & Secrets – a Saffron Everleigh mystery, performed by Katelyn Barr, Jenn Emerson, and Jacob Trevino, with musical guest Joe Rogers.

KATE KHAVARI (AUTHOR)
Kate Khavari is the author of fiction ranging from historical mysteries to high fantasy epics. She has her parents to thank for her fascination for historical mysteries, as she spent the majority of her childhood memorizing Sherlock Holmes’s and Poirot’s greatest quips. She lives in the Dallas-Fort Worth area of Texas with her husband, two children, and a lovely garden that contains absolutely no poisonous plants.

JOE ROGERS (MUSICAL GUEST)
Joe Rogers is a native Fort Worth pianist and composer. He has master’s degree in music composition from the University of North Texas. A prolific composer, his work includes both jazz and musical theatre. Currently the resident composer at Hip Pocket Theater, he was music director and composer at Jubilee Theatre for 20 years. He was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Tarrant County Live Theater League, and keeps up a busy schedule of jazz performances in Fort Worth and Dallas, including a recent concert of his original music with the Fort Worth Civic Orchestra. He has been an important part of Arts 5th Avenue with Gracey Tune since its inception in 2001.

KATELYN BARR
Katelyn Barr is a voice and stage actor local to Dallas. Some of her favorite anime voiceover credits include Mina Ashiro in Kaiju No. 8, Himeno in Chainsaw Man, and Ryukyu in My Hero Academia. In theatre, she has been seen in Luckenbooth Theatre’s Little Women (Marmee), Imprint Theatreworks’s The Doll (Alma), and as a member of the Folding Chairs Comedy Troupe. Katelyn is thrilled and grateful to be participating in her first Cake & Prose event!

JENN EMERSON
A sometime actor, sometime writer, sometime corporate drone, and full time weirdo, Jenn is super happy to be back reading for Cake and Prose. She’s looking forward to eating your words.

JACOB TREVINO
Jacob Trevino graduated from Texas Christian University with a BFA in Theatre with Emphasis in Acting in 2019. A DFW Native, Jacob works in Higher Education at Southern Methodist University. Jacob loves reading stories, playing board games, tabletop role-playing games, and supporting the arts. Jacob resides in Arlington, Texas with his Wife and Dog.

About A Botanist’s Guide To Society & Secrets
London, 1923. Returning from Paris, botanical researcher Saffron Everleigh finds that her former love interest Alexander Ashton’s brother, Adrian, is being investigated for murder. A Russian scientist working for the English government has been poisoned, and expired in Adrian’s train compartment. Alexander asks Saffron to put in a good word for Adrian with Inspector Green. Despite her unresolved feelings for Alexander, Saffron begins to unravel mysteries surrounding the dead scientist.

As if a murder case weren’t enough, her best friend Elizabeth’s war-hero brother, Nick, arrives in town and takes an immediate interest in Saffron. Saffron learns Alexander has been keeping secrets from her, including a connection to Nick, who Saffron and Elizabeth begin to suspect is more than he seems.
When another scientist is found dead, Saffron agrees to go undercover at the government laboratory. Risking her career and her safety, she learns there are many more interested parties and dangerous secrets to uncover than she’d realized. But some secrets, Saffron will find, are better left undiscovered.

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Lyceum Series: Anthony Gabriel – Accessing And Assessing The Abstract: A Poetry Workshop
2024-09-21 10:00 - 12:00 | The Writer’s Garret, 215 S. Tyler St., Dallas, TX, 75208, United States
Welcome to the lyceum.
These free, monthly workshops are held on the third Saturday of the month, and offer writers of every genre and skill level an opportunity to learn, experiment and develop their craft. We hope you’ll join us!
Poetry is a medium that relies on abstraction and dealing with abstract conceptions such as emotions and feeling, ideas, beliefs and concepts. Though poetry can and does rely on the concrete, it is rooted in places and spaces of introspection and reflection. In this workshop, participants will read and analyze examples of poetic abstraction, then apply these concepts in composition.
Check out the syllabus
Anthony Gabriel is a poet who received his MFA at New Mexico State University, where he also served as the poetry editor of the literary magazine Puerto Del Sol. He currently lives in Denton, Texas with his wife and two kids and is pursuing his Ph.D. at the University of North Texas. His work can be found in The Red Rock Review, Beaver Mag, Swamp Ape Review and The Shore, among others.

Lyceum Series – Janelle Gray – Ready, Set... Dialogue: Writing For The Stage
2024-08-17 10:00 - 12:00 | The Writer’s Garret, 215 S. Tyler St., Dallas, TX, 75208, United States
Welcome to the lyceum.
These free, monthly workshops are held on the third Saturday of the month, and offer writers of every genre and skill level an opportunity to learn, experiment and develop their craft. We hope you’ll join us!
This two-hour workshop will explore the differences between screenwriting and playwriting in order to capitalize on tools that make a strong script for the stage. The class uses scripts that demonstrate how to create and develop setting through character and dialogue. Participants will learn to identify characteristics about their protagonist and setting that will help them develop authentic dialogue that makes a script stand out.
Check out the syllabus
Janelle Gray is a creative, scholar, and instructor from Dallas, Texas. Her portfolio consists of four books, an album, plays, short films, multiple TV series, and feature films. Gray holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communications and Spanish from Stephen F. Austin and a Master of Liberal Arts in Creative Writing and Literature from Harvard University Extension School and is a doctoral candidate at The University of Texas at Dallas. Gray is a produced playwright whose interdisciplinary methodology explores the connections between creative works, history, and actions toward equity in creative and academic spaces.

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Lyceum Series - Hannah Smith - No Place Like Home: Poetry Of Place
2024-07-20 10:00 - 12:00 | The Writer’s Garret, 215 S. Tyler St., Dallas, TX, 75208, United States
Welcome to the lyceum.
These free, monthly workshops are held on the third Saturday of the month, and offer writers of every genre and skill level an opportunity to learn, experiment and develop their craft. We hope you’ll join us!

A poem is a gesture toward home.
-Jericho Brown
As Brown suggests in his poem “Duplex,” the act of writing poetry can allow us to reach towards a sense of self & belonging. In this course, we will consider the relationship between place and home. We’ll look towards the material world around us, the people in our lives, our communities, nature, and systems of obstruction & oppression as avenues through which to interpret the concept of “home.” We will discuss a selection of poems interpreting “home” in different ways, and the course will end with a generative writing exercise.
Check out the syllabus
Hannah Smith is originally from Dallas, where she now works for Southwest Review. She was a 2023 National Poetry Series Finalist and Jake Adam York Semifinalist, and her poems have been published in Best New Poets, Gulf Coast, Ninth Letter, Image, and elsewhere. She received an MFA from the Ohio State University, where she served as the Managing Editor for The Journal. Her collaborative chapbook, Metal House of Cards, is forthcoming from Finishing Line Press.

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Lyceum Series: Bahar Momeni - The Graphic Novel Experience: From Concept To Creation
2024-06-15 10:00 - 12:00 | The Writer’s Garret, 215 S. Tyler St., Dallas, TX, 75208, United States
Welcome to the lyceum.
These free, monthly workshops are held on the third Saturday of the month, and offer writers of every genre and skill level an opportunity to learn, experiment and develop their craft. We hope you’ll join us!
The Graphic Novel Experience: From Concept to Creation will explore the dynamic world of graphic novels. Participants will explore the art and narrative techniques unique to this medium. Throughout the course, participants will analyze and discuss seminal works, including “Maus” by Art Spiegelman and “Persepolis” by Marjane Satrapi. Participants can also create their own graphic novel concepts, focusing on character development, visual storytelling, and thematic depth. At the end of the course, learners will present their main storyline and portagonist and receive peer feedback, enabling a collaborative and creative learning environment.
Click here for syllabus

Bahar Momeni is an Iranian-American award-winning writer, poet, translator, and human rights activist. She’s working toward her Ph.D. in Literature at UT Dallas, where she teaches creative writing and literature.
She has published works in both Farsi and English. Her writings explore themes of women’s resilience and everyday resistance, contributing to ongoing conversations in modern literature. In 2023, Bahar received the “Outstanding Emerging BIPOC Creator Award” from UT Austin, highlighting her impact as a BIPOC creator. She also receives the “2024 Future Art Writers Award” from MOZAIK Philanthropy and San Francisco State University. Currently engrossed in her debut semi-autobiographical graphic novel, The Trees We Carry, Bahar aims to extend her discourse on identity, displacement, and resistance.

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The Common Language Project: Ascent - Reading
2024-05-19 19:00 - 20:00 | Turner House, 401 N Rosemont Ave., Dallas, TX, 75208, United States
Sunday, May 19th | 7pm
Free | RSVP Required
Born of a desire to bring the many members of the North Texas poetry community into conversation with each other, The Common Language Project places participants in the same room and turns them loose to dream. We hope you’ll join us for a reading of some of the poems from the anthology at the beautiful Turner House in Oak Cliff to officially close out this year’s Dallas Is Lit!
This year, we invite you to the ascent. Harrowing or halcyon, up the stairs or to the stars, scaling a mountain or soaring in your soul, humans have sought to rise, physically and metaphorically, since we first drew breath. Float into new levels of consciousness, climb a pyramid, or rocket beyond the safety of the atmosphere, then share your journey with us–the risks you brave, the horizons you’ve crossed, the view as it’s unfolding before you.
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29th Anniversary Celebration
2024-05-19 17:30 - 19:00
Help us celebrate twenty-nine years of connecting people through the power of language with a reception and gorgeous charcuterie spread from Grazing Dallas in the beautiful Turner House.
Presented by the R. L. & Phyllis Glazer Foundation.

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Book Making Workshop For Kids! With Elizabeth Mellott
2024-05-19 15:00 - 16:30 | Oak Cliff Cultural Center, 223 Jefferson Blvd, Dallas, TX, 75208
Can books growl? They can growl, roar, purr, or whatever you design your creature to do! Spend the afternoon making your own pop-up accordion book! Participants will be guided through the construction of creating a V fold pop up page, an accordion book, and have time to illustrate their own story. Students can create a monster, dinosaur, cat, or whatever creature they design. All materials will be supplied.
The Oak Cliff Cultural Center located on Jefferson Blvd and is a 3 minute walk from the shops and restaurants of the Bishop Arts District.
This workshop is appropriate for kids ages 9-13.
About Elizabeth Mellott:
Elizabeth Mellott’s passion in the arts is to build community through education, creativity and service. Elizabeth has taught children’s summer art camps for over 25 years and has taught full-time at Collin College for 18 years. As a professor, she teaches photography and book arts. Additionally, she opened Lizzie’s little darkroom in 2023 serving as a community darkroom in Oak Cliff and a space to host community events. Elizabeth’s commitment to art is with the goal to enrich lives, both individually and communally.

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Drag Story Time
2024-05-19 14:00 - 15:00 | Whose Books, 512 W. Davis, Dallas, TX, 75208, United States
Story time can only be more fun when drag is involved! Join local drag queen Aunt Marge as she reads stories that will inspire all of us to be our true, authentic selves, then share a cupcake and grab a photo.
This event is open to all ages. RSVP is required.

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Eat, Drink & Be Literary Rom Com Brunch
2024-05-19 11:00 - 12:30 | Turner House, 401 N Rosemont Ave., Dallas, TX, 75208, United States
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The only thing better than brunch with your besties is brunch with your besties while watching scenes of your favorite literary couples in the middle of lovers’ quarrels! Enjoy tasty tacos (courtesy of Milagro Tacos Cantina), wine and entertaining scenes enacted in front of you (or maybe next to you) by talented local actors from some of the best romantic comedies ever written.
With performances by local favorites Presley Duyck, Sienna Riehle, Brett Warner, Aaron Clifford White and Sky Williams.
$35 Tickets available now through ticketdfw.com.

Spooky Stories Terror & Tacos
2024-05-18 21:30 - 23:00 | Apprentice Creative Space, 919 Morrell Ave. #110, Dallas, TX, 75203
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Join us to hear from acclaimed playwright and screenwriter Michael Federico in conversation with Maryam Obaidullah Baig, as they explore horror literature in its many iterations and ages. Federico will also read his favorite excerpts from his favorite horror writings.
Michael Federico is an award-winning playwright, screenwriter, and recipient of the National Endowment of the Arts New Works Grant and the Dramatist Guild of America’s New Works Grant. Some of his plays have been seen in Dallas, New York, Chicago, Austin, and San Diego. Many of his plays are sitting in a drawer. Michael’s horror comedy, The Finale (Bad Omen Pictures; High Octane Media), is available for streaming on Amazon, Apple, and YouTube TV. Michael is currently a full-time writer and script editor for the MrBallen: Strange, Dark, and Mysterious podcast (Ballen Studios, Amazon Music) and the co-host of the horror movie podcast, Terror and Tacos. He has a BFA in Theater from SMU and an MA in Humanities from UTD.

Maryam Obaidullah Baig was born and raised in Pakistan, where she was trained in the historical Pakistani tradition of memorizing, translating, and recitation of Urdu poetry. To extend and fortify her research interest in the subject, she also studied English, Persian and Ancient Greek to understand forms in Urdu poetry in light of poetic expression in those languages. Baig received her Bachelors degree from University of Punjab, double majoring in English Literature and Political Science with a minor in Persian, and received her second Bachelors and her Master of Fine Arts in art, performance and technology from UT Dallas. Baig is a translator, playwright and a fiction writer, and often draws her inspiration from ancient literary texts, folk lore, epic poems and fantasy literature from Pakistan.

$20 Tickets available now through ticketdfw.com.

Touch U With My Mind Erotic Poetry Salon
2024-05-18 21:00 - 22:00 | Daisha Board Gallery, 2720 Bataan St., Dallas, TX, 75212
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Sensual and seductive, this hour-long salon of spoken word hosted by Lyrik Hunter features the talents of A.Psymmetry and Mz. Jolie in an exploration and celebration of the joys and pleasures of the human body. For Mature Audiences; 18+ admitted.
LyriK Hunter, a current resident of Dallas, Tx, has been writing and singing, since a young age and performing consistently since 2020. LyriK’s attempt to conquer stage fright and fear of public speaking turned into an unexpected blessing, early on, allowing her to spread, love, encouragement, and inspiration to the world, through her passionate delivery of words on an international scale. Lyrik is also published author, singer/Songwriter, Actress, Recording Artist, Host, Teaching Artist, Mentor, and full-time entrepreneur, and often referred to as the “singing storyteller” or the”heart healer” by her peers. She is 1/3 of the Denton Black Film Festival’s Poetry Slam 2024 Champion Team, S.I.P. (SISTAS IN POETRY), and known for shattering the walls of boxes and breaking barriers of what most say poetry should look like, by delivering riveting, vivid, and vulnerable expressions of all emotions, with a side of melodic vocals. IG/FB/TikTok : @lyrikhunter
A.Psymmetry is multi-gifted, having many accomplishments across different genres. From poet, to novelist, to performance artist, to designer, to baker, to athlete, to healer. She is the creator of the award-winning banana pudding Banomnom Pudding, 1/3 of the 2024 Denton Black Film Festival Slam Competition winning team, S.I.P. (SISTAS IN POETRY), and a rising face on the DFW poetry scene. She believes that tapping in to each of her God-given gifts will allow her to have a fulfilling and purposeful life and encourages others to do the same.
Follow her on IG: @a.psymmetry and @banomnom.pudding
Mz Jolie is a poet who moonlights as a singer. She hails from Compton California. She is the She. E. O. of Jolieizm LLC, where you can lay down your burdens and pick up inspiration. She is community focused and believes in giving back with Jolie’s Gems, where she teaches the youth poetry, as well as, donates to a local food shelter. She is the 2024 Color Purple Slam Champ. She is 1/3 of S. I. P. (Sistas in Poetry), the 2024 champions of The Denton Black Film Festival Poetry Slam Collab. Mz Jolie is the top 30th woman poet in the world for 2021 WOWPS. She is the curator and host of Express Yaself Open Mic. She is a quadruple threat with the skills to sing, act, model, and write.
Follow her on IG: @Mzjoliethepoet
Tickets from $25 available now through ticketdfw.com.

One Page Salon Presented By Writers' League Of Texas
2024-05-18 19:30 - 21:00 | Apprentice Creative Space, 919 Morrell Ave. #110, Dallas, TX, 75203
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The One Page Salon (called “the best literary evening in town” by the Austin American-Statesman) is a monthly reading series presented in communities across Texas by the Writers’ League of Texas.
Five outstanding writers will read one page from a work in progress, which means the audience will be among the first to hear new material from our talented line-up: Lakiesha Carr, Amanda Churchill, Maya Golden, Manuel Luis Martinez, plus The Garret’s own Executive Director Aaron Glover. Mix in a bit of literary chit chat, fun & games, laughter and so much more for an evening you don’t want to miss!
$20 Tickets available now through ticketdfw.com.
Lakiesha Carr graduated from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, and received her MFA at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, where she was awarded a Maytag Fellowship for Excellence in Fiction and a Jeff and Vicki Edwards Post-graduate Fellowship in Fiction. A journalist and writer from East Texas, she has held various editorial and production positions with CNN, The New York Times, and other media. Her writing has received support from the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, the Callaloo Creative Writing Workshop, the DC Commission on Arts & Humanities for nonfiction writing, and the Kimbilio Fellowship for fiction writing. An Autobiography of Skin is her first book.

Amanda Churchill is a writer living in north Texas. Her work has been featured in Hobart Pulp, Witness, River Styx, and other publications. She proudly serves on the board of the Writers’ League of Texas and holds a master of arts in creative writing from the University of North Texas. Her debut novel, The Turtle House, a work inspired by the life of her grandmother, a Japanese war bride, publishes in February 2024, from Harper Books.

Aaron Glover’s first chapbook, Bio Logic, was released in February 2017 via INF Press. His poetry appears in the Virginia Quarterly Review, Illya’s Honey, the Red River Review, Chicon Street Poets, and elsewhere. From 2011-2016, he was on faculty in the Department of Performance Studies at Texas A&M University. As a performer and director, he worked throughout Texas and the Great Plains. He holds an MFA from the University of Houston.

Maya Golden is an Associated Press winning and Emmy-nominated freelance journalist in Tyler, Texas where her foundation, 1 in 3 Foundation, serves East Texas. Her memoir, The Return Trip, is set to be released on November 14 from Rising Action Publishing Co. Her first novel, a political thriller, The Senator, will release in April 2025, also through Rising Action Publishing Co. For Newsweek, she has written about women in sports journalism. For Salon, she’s written about fandoms and healing, for Insider, she’s written about addiction, and for Black Girl Nerds, she’s written about Complex PTSD, dissociative disorders, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe. She is a graduate of Texas A&M University.

Manuel Luis Martinez serves as professor of literature and directs creative writing at the University of Texas-Dallas. His novels include Crossing, Drift, Day of the Dead, Los Duros, and most recently, Fortunate Monsters. His scholarship on the American Counterculture includes the book, Countering the Counterculture:Rereading Dissent from Kerouac to Rivera. He holds a Ph.D. from Stanford University, and is the recipient of multiple fellowships. His work has been recognized by the American PEN Center, the Dobie Paisano Fellowship, and the MacDowell Colony. He was inducted into the Texas Institute of Letters in 2013. He was awarded an American Book Award for Los Duros. He is currently working 0n a novel, Tougher Than Us.
