*POSTPONED UNTIL SATURDAY APRIL 24, 2021*

Conversation with Lonnie Bunch, the 14th Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

Purchase tickets here

About this Event

On Saturday, April 25, 2020, The Antiracist Research and Policy Center will host the 2nd Annual National Antiracist Book Festival in Washington, DC, at American University. It will take place on AU’s picturesque law school campus near the Tenleytown-AU metro station.

The #AntiracistBookfest is the first and only book festival that brings together, showcases, and celebrates the nation’s leading antiracist writers and helps to prepare the writers of tomorrow. Panels are topically organized with two authors and a moderator, and are followed by book signings. There will also be workshops for writers facilitated by leading book editors and literary agents. Mahogany Books and Busboys & Poets will be the official booksellers.

The National Antiracist Book Festival is a ticketed event. All proceeds from ticket sales will go towards The Antiracist Research and Policy Center.

Purchase tickets here

*POSTPONED UNTIL SATURDAY APRIL 24, 2021*

Building a fictional world that stretches across works is its own particular challenge. In addition to paying attention to the usual narrative elements (plot, character, sentences, etc.) the writer of this kind of work must pay close attention to the shape and feel of an additional element: a world that must be both strange and recognizable. In this course, students will examine recurring characters, locations, and objects, as well as setting as “character.”

$35

Register Here

July 18: Fiction Night: Rion Amilcar Scott, Maurice Carlos Ruffin, Daniel A. Olivas, and Michael C. Keith

LIT BALM is a new weekly interactive livestream reading series brought to you by Marc Vincenz of MadHat and New American Writing (Magazine), Jonathan Penton of Unlikely Stories Mark V and Unlikely Books, and your emcee, Larissa Shmailo of the Feminist Poets in Low-Cut Blouses. Every Saturday at 5:00 pm East Coast time expect great writing, panels, open mic, and you!

Free

Watch on Zoom

Watch on Facebook

Ridiculous times call for ridiculous responses. Sometimes the mockery and laughter is the most subversive way to address the outrages of an outrageous society.

This PJ session will look at how to turn humor into sharp blades within your fiction. We’ll look at different approaches to satirical fiction as well as complete exercises with an eye toward practicing writing that skewers, ridicules and outrages.

$55

Register Here

Register here.

The Ivy Bookshop is glad to present virtual versions of our scheduled book launches this summer! We hope you will tune in! On June 17, The Ivy proudly presents the launch for Ashleigh Bryant Phillips, whose story collection Sleepovers is one of the most buzzed about books this season! Ashleigh will be in conversation with award-winning writer Rion Amilcar Scott.

Free

Register here.

NOTE: This event will be held online. Once registrants are verified they will be provided login information for the event by email. Register here.

What are the challenges of writing and publishing the first novel, your second book or your third book? With the collection of writers on June 13, we will be discussing novels that are in the literary, crime fiction, science fiction/fantasy genres, and a short story collection. We will explore not only the themes of their most recently published books, but their unique journeys in writing and publishing them. Meng Jin, author of the novel LITTLE GODS, and Richard Santos, author of the novel TRUST ME, just published their debut novels in 2020. For Rion Amilcar-Scott, his short story collection THE WORLD DOESN’T REQUIRE YOU, published in 2019, was his second book. And for science fiction/fantasy writer Nicky Drayden, ESCAPING EXODUS, published in 2019, was her third book. This will be just the first of three events planned for the Fourth Annual Celebration of Diverse Literary Voices of Texas. It is sponsored by KAZI Book Review and cosponsored this year by the Austin Community College Creative Writing Department, Capital Metro, HEB, and Velva Price, District Clerk. This project is supported in part by the Cultural Arts Division of the City of Austin Economic Development Department.

Free

Register here

Register here.

RENIQUA ALLEN / RION SCOTT / LAURA EVERETT

A new survey conducted during the pandemic by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University found a more- than-threefold increase in the percentage of U.S. adults who reported symptoms of psychological distress--from 3.9 percent in 2018 to 13.6 percent in April 2020. According to the Beth McGinty, one of the writers, “Health care providers, educators, social workers, and other front-line providers can help promote mental wellness and support.” Supportive Housing heroes often use book clubs or current event groups to accomplish this task. In this session, Rion Amilcar Scott, Reniqua Allen and Laura Everett will talk about their recent publications which each uniquely examine the complexi- ties of the world. These scribes will also share tips on the writing process and how their intelligent, fun and witty hard- backs shine lights on issues such as racism, oppression, women’s rights, environmentalism and other multifaceted issues.

Free

Register here

Zoom Reading featuring Kimbilio fellow Leslie-Ann Murray, Rion Amilcar Scott, Jenee Skinner, Kuukua Dzigbordi Yomekpe and Denise Lewis Patrick!

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“Writing about Race.” With Rion Amilcar Scott, Melanie S. Hatter, and Nadeem Zaman; moderated by Alice Stephens. Some of the most exciting fiction writing in America today is from writers of color, and yet the literary gatekeepers, from agents to editors to book reviewers, are largely white. This panel examines the role race plays in the work of three fiction writers of color, and how they navigate the world of publishing.

“The State of the Story.” With Rion Amilcar Scott, Chaya Bhuvaneswar, and Tara Campbell; moderated by Barbara Diehl. Authors often joke that no one publishes short stories, but this panel is here to tell you why that’s just not true. Barbara Diehl, founding and senior editor of the Baltimore Review, leads this panel of successful writers who can attest that excellent short fiction has a wide and avid audience.

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Conversation with Tope Folarin, author of A Particular Kind of Black Man

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Celebrating the Sixth Anniversary of The Inner Loop Reading Series

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The Rumpus and Barrelhouse are proud to present an inspiring evening featuring six of our favorite DC-area writers!

With readings from Rasha Abdulhadi, Jennifer Chang, Rachel Vorona Cote, Eve Ettinger, Danielle Evans, Rion Amilcar Scott, and Mejdulene Shomali. Hosted by Rumpus editor-in-chief Marisa Siegel.

This event is free and open to the public. Original event artwork by Lisa Lee Herrick!

*CANCELLED*

Panel on the short story featuring Rion Amilcar Scott, Ron Austin, Kali Farjado-Anstine, Tara Campbell. Moderated by Salamishah Tillet. Sign up at: https://mailchi.mp/f5e24437f854/trianglehouse

*CANCELLED*

This roundtable will feature new work from GerShun Avilez, Julius Fleming, Jr., Chad Infante, Zita Nunes, and Rion Scott in an informal discussion format. Mary Helen Washington will serve as moderator.

2115 Tawes Hall

For more information contact: Edlie Wong (edlie@umd.edu)

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Conversation with Daniel José Older

Mythology, history, and memory all play central roles in how we process the world, form narratives about our lives, and make sense of our current crises. In this lecture and discussion, we'll dive deep into how these overlapping languages can clash and collaborate to create great stories.

As an author of fantasy fiction-- both historical and contemporary-- Older and Scott are fascinated by the way we tell stories, and make mythology from the past to determine the future. We'll discuss: What do the crossroads of myth and history tell us about where we go from here? How can art and story change the world? And most importantly, how do we USE this knowledge as we return to our desks, to write our own fiction and nonfiction? Come for an engrossing, high-stakes conversation.

*CANCELLED*

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Muse and the Marketplace: Dangerous Satires (craft talk)

Sometimes the mockery of laughter is the most subversive way to address the outrages of an outrageous society. This session will look at how to turn humor into sharp blades within your fiction.

*CANCELLED*

Pop open your favorite craft beer and join us for a FREE VIDEO CHAT about the craft of writing!

We’re joined by award-winning author Rion Amilcar Scott (The World Doesn’t Require You) to talk about rhythm in prose, world building, and whatever else pops up. Rion will be in conversation with Zach Powers, author of First Cosmic Velocity and Director of Communications at The Writer’s Center.

FREE and open to the public. Limited space.

RSVP at this link, and you’ll receive an email on April 2 with instructions for joining the chat via our video conferencing platform, Zoom.

This event is presented in partnership with Old Town Books. We encourage you to order one of Rion’s books, or whatever your next read might be, from Old Town to support local booksellers during the COVID-19 lock-down. Shipping available! Order now »

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Tawes Hall, Ulrich Recital Hall

For more information contact: Lindsay Bernal (lbernal@umd.edu)

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NOVA faculty, staff, students, alumni, and the general public are invited to join the launch celebration for Volume 34 of The Northern Virginia Review (TNVR).  Editor-in-chief Ruth Stewart (Manassas English professor) will present awards for best poetry and art as well as the second annual Robert Bausch Memorial Prize in fiction.  Keynote speaker Rion Amilcar Scott (University of Maryland) will read from his latest collection of stories, The World Doesn't Require You (2019).  Copies of his book will be available for purchase and signing.  Refreshments will be served.

*CANCELLED*

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Megan Angelo (Followers), Rion Amilcar Scott (The World Doesn’t Require You), and Deb Olin Unferth (Barn 8) discuss their satirical books that use humor to challenge the status quo. Book sales and signing will follow. FREE to attend and open to the public.

*CANCELLED*

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Tara Campbell (Midnight at the Organporium), Peg Alford Pursell (A Girl Goes Into the Forest), and Rion Amilcar Scott (The World Doesn’t Require You) discuss their meditative, eye-opening, and at times bewitching short stories.

*CANCELLED*

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PEN Presents: Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah & Rion Amilcar Scott. (Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, Rion Amilcar Scott, Katie Zanecchia) PEN America is proud to present Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah in conversation with Rion Amilcar Scott, two writers known for their innovative approaches to genre, form, and writing beyond reality. Adjei-Brenyah was the recipient of the 2019 PEN/Jean Stein Book Award for Friday Black, a collection of short stories that imagines an America where racial injustice and capitalism continue to flourish unchecked. Scott’s debut story collection, Insurrections, was awarded the 2017 PEN/Bingham Prize for Debut Fiction and the 2017 Hillsdale Award from the Fellowship of Southern Writers. Katie Zanecchia, Director of National Outreach at PEN America, will moderate.

HemisFair Ballroom C1, Henry B. González Convention Center, Ballroom Level

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Reading alongside Kristen Arnett, Sarah Rose Etter, Elissa Gabbert, Vivian Lee, and Sadie Dupuis.

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They Must Have Felt: Imagining Emotional Landscape and Place. (Darlene Taylor, Breena Clarke, jacinda townsend, Rion Scott, Crystal Wilkinson) Writers of historical fiction often face empty spaces when researching the past. With fragmentary records, diaries, letters, artifacts, art, and vague memories passed from one generation to the next, these writers speculate about geography, sociology, and emotional landscapes. This panel discusses the work of historical imagination in shaping the interiors of characters, interpreting the past, and recovering silent voices in history

Room 205, Henry B. González Convention Center, Meeting Room Level

*CANCELLED*

Please join us at the Smithsonian National Museum of African-American History and Cultureto hear award-winning author Rion Amilcar Scott speak to us on the theme of “Invest.”

Registration opens on the 24th here: https://bit.ly/2tQe08r

Join us for an exciting evenings of reading, music, and burlesque celebrating love - the good, the bad, and the sexy.

(Purchase tickets here)

About this Event

Join MoonLit and Tyrese Coleman for an exciting literary salon celebrating love - the good, the bad, and the sexy. Enjoy music, readings by local authors, comedy by Diana Veiga, a special burlesque performance by Eva Mystique, and a some sexy surprises. Featuring: Dan Brady, Regie Cabico, Bassey Ikpi, Thien-Kim Lam, Anthony Moll, Deesha Philyaw, Monica Prince, Rion Amilcar Scott, and Laura Zam.

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Friday, February 14 at 7:30

Smith Public Trust

Tickets: $10

*Doors Open at 7:00

(Purchase tickets here)

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This event is sponsored and supported by Barrelhouse Magazine, Fear No Lit, Loyalty Books, Neon Hemlock Press, Mason Jar Press, MoonLit, Split Lip Magazine, and SmokeLong Quarterly.

Fearless and imaginative, Sparks writes in the tradition of Angela Carter, Karen Russell, and Kelly Link; focusing on the extraordinary, she makes the familiar strange and the strange feel like home. In her third collection she uses every literary trick at her disposal—myths, fairy tales, ghost stories, and post-apocalyptic scenarios—to spin the adage that “history likes to lie about women.” Fueled with anger and her instinct for the uncanny, these stories lay out the larger truths of the #MeToo era and point to the worlds that might lie beyond it. Sparks will be in conversation with Rion Amilcar Scott, author of Insurrections and The World Doesn’t Require You.

This event is free to attend with no reservation required. Seating is available on a first come, first served basis.
Click here for more information.