A reading and conversation between trans nonbinary poets and writers about their recent collections, featuring CD Eskilson, SG Huerta, and KB Brookins.
The Greater Austin Book (GAB) Fest invites our community of readers, writers and illustrators from Travis, Williamson, and Hays Counties to come together for a full day celebration of books. At GAB Fest you can meet participating authors, buy books and get them signed, explore the Central Library, and enjoy a full day of panels, workshops, and programs. This event fosters an environment of inclusivity, encouraging individuals to come together, and celebrate their appreciation for literature.
Join Torch Literary Arts at the Carver Museum for this special National Poetry Month event celebrating Texas Poet Laureate and Torch Founder, Amanda Johnston. Johnston is the founder and executive director of Torch Literary Arts and the first Black woman to hold the position of Texas Poet Laureate.
Join us for an evening of poetry, connection, and celebration as we welcome Zell Miller III, our first Austin Poet Laureate!
Join us for an evening of poetry, connection, and celebration as we welcome Zell Miller III, the 2025-2027 Austin Poet Laureate! This special event will feature music by inspiring performances by:
🎤 Amanda Johnston, 2024 Texas Poet Laureate
🎤 KB Brookins, Founder of Austin Poet Laureate
🎤 Ella Kim, Austin Youth Poet Laureate
🎤 Zell Miller III, 2025-2027 Austin Poet Laureate
Music by DJ Chorizo Funk!
Appetizers and refreshments will be provided.
The Saints and Sinners Literary Festival, held over 3 days each spring at the Hotel Monteleone in the New Orleans French Quarter, features panel discussions and master classes around literary topics that provide a forum for authors, editors and publishers to talk about their work for the benefit of emerging writers and the enjoyment of fans of LGBTQ+ literature.
TIME: 8:30 - 10pm PDT
LOCATION: Prank Bar LA, 1100 S Hope St, Los Angeles, CA 90015
RSVP: not needed!
BLURB: PoemoftheWeek.com presents 9 fabulous poets reading from their latest collections of poetry. Readings by: C Dale Young, Darrel Alejandro Holnes, Allisa Cherry, Jen Yanez-Alaniz, Aaron Coleman, Faylita Hicks, Gerard Robledo, Todd Dillard and KB Brookins.
TIME: 4-6pm PT
LOCATION: ORA (4331 Degnan Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90008)
RSVP: Not needed!
BLURB: An AWP off-site reading hosted and produced by Ashley Devon-Williamston where authors read selections by writers who historically used their poetic voice to speak truth to power and motivate us in resistance to oppressive forces. It features Darius Simpson, Aris Brown, KB Brookins, Elese Daniel, Ayling Dominguez, and Stephanie Niu. Join us!
TIME: 5-7pm PT
LOCATION: KISO Los Angeles (107 4th St, Los Angeles, CA 90013)
RSVP: Not needed!
BLURB: Join Brevity Magazine for an all-trans AWP off-site reading featuring Marisa “Mac” Crane, Melissa Faliveno, Krys Malcolm Belc, KB Brookins, Rivka Clifton, Nic Anstett, Katherine Scott Nelson, and more!
Holding Court features two rounds of literary luminaries at an outdoor venue, with amenities such as food and drink specials, parking, accessible entrances, and easy access to public transportation.
Join award-winning authors as they discuss queer and trans memoir as a form of resistance in the current political climate.
Saturday, March 22, 1:20-2:20pm ET
Join us for a cross-genre gathering of queer and adopted writers discussing the intersectionality of adoption stories, queerness, and their publishing journeys, moderated by Shelley Gaske.
LOCATION: Dougherty Arts Center (1110 Barton Springs Rd, Austin, TX 78704)
DATE: Tuesday, March 4, 2024
TIME: 6:30-8pm
RSVP: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/literary-publishing-101-tickets-1255945860879
Have you written a poem, essay, short story, or other literary piece that you’re eager to get published? Do you have questions ranging from “how do I publish a book” to “how do I find publishing opportunities”? Literary Publishing 101 is for you! Led by award-winning poet and memoirist KB Brookins, this workshop will cover the basics of putting together a submission to literary magazines and presses, from writing a 3rd person bio to what to expect in a writer-editor relationship once you get a yes.
This event is free and open to the public, registration is encouraged but not required.
📍 Where: Austin Public, 1143 Northwestern Ave, Austin, TX
📆 When: January 29, 2025, 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
On January 29th from 7-9 PM, four talented local screenwriters will present live table readings of their original scripts. Performed by an incredible lineup of local actors, this event will offer a first live reading of scripts that will be tomorrow’s cinematic masterpieces.
Whether you’re a film lover, a writer, or just curious about the art of storytelling, this event is your chance to connect with Austin’s creative talent and be inspired🎭
What to expect:
• 5 original scripts performed live by local actors, written by local screenwriters
• Live feedback given by local producers, directors, and professional script readers
• Networking opportunities with Austin’s film community
Screenwriters:
KB Brookins
Maryan Nagy Captan
Jose Da Hype
Tony Faia
Actors:
Iba Thiam
Mase Kerwick
Jose Da Hype
Micailah OCaii Nobles
Essynce
Marzetta
Rex Stanfield
Paige Freeman
Ray Perez
Jason Reyes
Carolyn Koskan
Erin Simpson
P Michael Hayes
This is a free event, but seating is limited—so reserve your spot now!
Come celebrate Austin’s thriving film scene. We can’t wait to see you there!
NOTES: If you can’t come, please cancel your RSVP to make space for someone that would like to come. Masks are required for attendees, and we will have free masks at the front door, Far UVC lights, and an air purifier running throughout, courtesy of Clear the Air ATX. Austin Public has a wheelchair accessible entrance and bathroom (call them at (512) 322-0145 ext. 3235 for more details). This event is all ages, but strong language will be used in some of the scripts, so take caution when bringing small children. This event has a zero tolerance policy for hate speech or heckling of any kind. Last, this event is hosted and produced by KB Brookins.
Get a sneak peek at the next big thing in film with First Three Pages, Live!
‘Zine Lunch!’ presented by Sarabande Books is a free online workshop on micro-writing and art. Hosted nearly every Friday from 12 - 1PM EST via Zoom, the workshops are designed to be a fun and low-stakes way to make time for creativity. In each lunchtime session, a Sarabande author or friend of the press leads attendees through the creation of a small work of writing or art in zine form. Bookmark this space to see our upcoming ‘Zine Lunch!’ sessions. You can register for upcoming workshops and view recordings of past workshops through the linked images below. Learn more about zine art here.
Workshop title: Mama Let’s PRAISE!
Description: A workshop where participants will close read and create their own poems of praise — including odes, afters, and more!
Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEqdeypqj4pHtGXh2dLwzLk6Yxvl0c_P6JM#/registration
Trying to get your work published can feel like wandering in a maze. If you're running into one dead end after another, not sure which way to turn, this workshop can demystify the process and help you reach your destination—publication.
Mapping the Maze is an online workshop designed for writers who have developed their craft and are now ready to make a concrete plan for getting their work published.
Texas Book Festival connects authors and readers through experiences that celebrate the culture of literacy, ideas, and imagination. The annual Festival features more than 250 authors of the year’s best books and attracts 40,000 book lovers!
KB Brookins will speak at:
Session: Texas Institute of Letters Presents: 2024 Adult Literature Award Winners
Date: SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 16TH
Time/Location: 10:15 AM - 11:00 AM, Texas Tent
Authors: KB Brookins, Drew Buxton & Deborah D.E.E.P. Mouton
Moderator: David Bowles
Books: Freedom House, So Much Heart & Black Chameleon
Description: Each year the Texas Institute of Letters recognizes outstanding literary works by Texas authors. Join us to celebrate three of the 2024 award winners: KB Brookins won the Texas Institute of Letters Award for First Book of Poetry for Freedom House, Drew Buxton won the Sergio Troncoso Award for Best Book of Fiction for So Much Heart: Stories, and Mouton won the Carr P. Collins Award for Best Book of Nonfiction for Black Chameleon: Memory, Womanhood, and Myth.
Book Signing: 11:15 AM at the Main Signing Tent
Becoming Ourselves: Memoirs of Transformation
Date: SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 16TH
Time/Location: 3:00 PM - 3:45 PM, Kirkus Tent
Authors: Michael Andor Brodeur & KB Brookins
Moderator: Greg Marshall
Books: Swole: The Making of Men and the Meaning of Muscle & Pretty
Description: Join Michael Andor Brodeur and KB Brookins for a conversation exploring the nuances of gender, patriarchy, and transformation. In Swole, Brodeur maps out histories and anecdotes of muscle culture through a multi-genre narrative. In Pretty, Brookins turns a critical eye to gender norms and toxic masculinity as the author recounts their experience growing up as a Black Texan grappling with identity, race and the desire to define oneself independent of societal expectations. Together, these two memoirs uplift and challenge all different modes of masculinity.
Book Signing: 4:00 PM at the Main Signing Tent
Lit Crawl: Texas Poetry Crush
Date: SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 16TH
Time/Location: 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM, Speakeasy, Rooftop (412 Congress Ave., 4th floor)
Participants: KB Brookins, Jenny Browne, Jennifer Maritza McCauley, and mónica teresa ortiz
Description: Have you ever had a crush on a poem? How about a poet? Five poets will share poems by a Texas poet they admire and read their own poems inspired by living in Texas.
Note: Each level is ADA accessible.
More info: https://texasbookfestival.org/festival/
Free RSVP: https://www.praisesongforthepeople.com/event-details/praisesong-for-the-people-austin-2
Spearheaded by Texas Poet Laureate Amanda Johnston, Praisesong for the People: Poems from the Heart and Soul of Texas will commission 70 poets across 7 Texas regions to write original praise poems celebrating everyday people in the state we call home. This project seeks to uplift our diverse and intersecting population across age, gender, and BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, differently-abled, and immigrant communities.
Join us for the launch of the Praisesong for the People readings on October 29th at 7:30 pm at Radio Coffee & Beer featuring Prudence Arceneaux, KB Brookins, Joe Brundidge, Audrea Diaz, Jennine Krueger, Lisa Lynne Moore, Sam Bastone-Treviño, and Sasha West! Hosted by Amanda Johnston.
Learn more about Praisesong for the People at PraisesongForThePeople.com.
Presented with support from Writers' League of Texas, The Academy of American Poets, and Mellon Foundation.
The Southern Festival of Books: A Celebration of the Written Word is among the oldest literary festivals in the country, annually welcoming hundreds of authors and thousands of visitors to downtown Nashville each October.
The Festival, a program of Humanities Tennessee, is free and includes performance stages, food trucks, and loads of publishers and booksellers.
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 27
MEMOIR PANEL with KB Brookins, Corey J. Miles and Julian Randall
1 PM
Obion Room, Tennessee State Library and Archives, Nashville, TN
Book signing will follow the panel with Parnassus!
More info: https://www.sofestofbooks.org/2024-festival-authors
Expect amazing writers & independent lit presses. VersoFrontera: The Best Literary Destination in Texas!
RSVP here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1063605548567989/?active_tab=discussion
Join us on Thursday, October 17 at 7pm for a conversation with two trans writers from Texas, KB Brookins and SG Huerta, hosted by Queertowne.
**if you mised this reading, watch the recording here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ImhnHw3xN_8 **
Join Hundred Pitchers of Honey for a virtual reading with KB Brookins, Megan Merchant, and Joan Kwon Glass! Starts at 6:30PM CT.
Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcqf-6pqjosH9PLbwF_15JERzlaEXNQft1T#/registration
BUY TICKETS NOW: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36399/performance/11458762
Venue: The Englert Theatre
221 E Washington St, Iowa City, IA 52240
6:30pm Doors Open | 7:30pm Stories Begin
The Mainstage is the quintessential Moth experience. A two-act show, featuring a musical act, where the storytellers and a notable host share true personal stories, without notes. Experience true stories live as they're recorded for future episodes of The Moth Podcast and Moth Radio Hour.
The Moth is true stories, told live and without notes. As an organization, it celebrates the ability of stories to honor the diversity and commonality of the human experience. This curated live event features five storytellers who share true stories on an array of topics, creating an experience that is intimate, inspiring, captivating, theatrical, and enlightening. The Moth is a nonprofit dedicated to the art and craft of storytelling. For 25 years, The Moth has presented over 40,000 true personal stories, told live, without notes, to standing-room-only audiences and virtually around the globe. Renowned for showcasing a broad range of human experiences, The Moth produces approximately 600 live and virtual shows each year and has an ongoing presence in 28 cities worldwide. Additionally, The Moth runs storytelling workshops for high school students, teachers, adults and advocates from around the world through its Education, Community and Global Programs, and MothWorks, which uses the essential elements of Moth storytelling as an empathetic communication tool.
Free food, free poems, voter registration!
RSVP HERE: https://alienatedmajestybooks.com/events/654820240921
Join three award-winning writers for a reading from their respective works that dive into unique perspectives on what it means to belong.
What does it mean to be a literary and political subject in the afterlife of colonization? Texas-based Nigerian American poet Ayokunle Falomo sifts through Nigerian stories and mythologies to explore the self, family, and nationhood through the intimate lens of father-son relationships and a reckoning with colonizers. KB Brookins’s personal experiences growing up in Texas informs their memoir, blending Black queer studies and cultural criticism to explore notions of beauty and toxicity of Black masculinity from a transgender perspective. Award-winning poet Sara Bawany’s Quarter Life Crisis dives headfirst into the brutal reexamining of a period in one’s life described by many as a time of uncertainty, insecurity, and doubt for the future, one that is rooted in the intersection of faith, mental health, and justice.
✦✦✦ ABOUT THE READERS ✦✦✦
Ayokunle Falomo is Nigerian, American, and the author of AFRICANAMERICAN’T (FlowerSong Press, 2022), two self-published collections and African, American (New Delta Review, 2019; selected by Selah Saterstrom as the winner of New Delta Review’s 8th annual chapbook contest). A recipient of fellowships from Vermont Studio Center, MacDowell, and the University of Michigan’s Helen Zell Writers’ Program, where he obtained his MFA in Creative Writing—Poetry, his work has been anthologized and widely published in print and online publications: The New York Times, Houston Public Media, Michigan Quarterly Review, The Texas Review, New England Review, Write About Now among others. You can find more information about him at afalomo.com.
KB Brookins is a Black queer and trans writer, cultural worker, and visual artist from Texas. KB’s chapbook How To Identify Yourself with a Wound won the Saguaro Poetry Prize, a Writer’s League of Texas Discovery Prize, and a Stonewall Honor Book Award. Their debut poetry collection Freedom House won the American Library Association Barbara Gittings Literature Award and the Texas Institute of Letters Award for the Best First Book of Poetry. KB’s debut memoir Pretty released in May 2024 with Alfred A. Knopf. Follow them online at @earthtokb.
Sara Bawany is a clinical social worker and second-year MFA Poetry student at Texas State University. She published (w)holehearted: a collection of poetry and prose in 2018, and her second book, Quarter Life Crisis, was published in October 2023. She is the Assistant Managing Editor at Porter House Review and is an instructor at House of Amal, a writing institution for Muslim youth. You can learn more about her work atwww.sarabawany.com.
NO RSVP NEEDED!
Panel title: Pride and Prejudice
Time: 4:00-5:00 PM
Location: Mississippi State Capitol, Room 103
Description: In these works of memoir and fiction alike, authors describe the tumultuous journey of self-discovery in the face of people and places who are not so accepting.
Panelists: Mesha Maren – Shae, KB Brookins – Pretty, Jonathan Corcoran – No Son of Mine
Moderator: State Representative Fabian Nelson
All authors will sign books at the Signing Tent @ 5:15pm!
RSVP here: https://www.thewordfordiversity.org/margins
Date/Time: Sept 10, 5-5:55pm CT
Format: Virtual
Panel: Personal Storytelling Rooted in Place
Panelists: KB Brookins, Neesha Powell-Ingabire, Jose Olivarez
Moderator: Jenna Nishimura
Join us for the official adult Austin Poet Laureate Program kickoff party!
RSVP HERE: https://alienatedmajestybooks.com/events/654320240906
Friday Sep 6th, 2024, 6:00 PM-8:00 PM @ Alienated Majesty Books (Austin, TX)
Join us in celebrating the release of Occupy Whiteness by Joaquín Zihuatanejo. Joaquín will be joined in reading & conversation by local poet KB Brookins.
✦✦✦ ABOUT THE BOOK ✦✦✦
Occupy Whiteness is a collection of hybrid erasure poems from inaugural Dallas Poet Laureate and multi-world slam competition winner Joaquín Zihuatanejo. Starting from long-form works of literature by straight, white men, Joaquín Zihuatanejo occupies their pages, erasing words and sections, leaving only his poetry behind — the white space that remains becoming colonized Brown verse. Occupy Whiteness is an act of rebellion that reclaims spaces and highlights a history of erasure of Brown life.
An unflinching look at the present day, the collection is haunted and blessed by the image of ancestors who braved the river and desert to travel into border states for the opportunity of freedom. These are poems meant to agitate and create unease, to make the reader realize that neither their author nor the immigrant children he describes are Other. Through poems and interspersed photography from the border, Zihuatanejo poignantly depicts this equally beautiful and brutal place we call home.
✦✦✦ ABOUT THE GUESTS ✦✦✦
Joaquín Zihuatanejo was recently named the inaugural Dallas Poet Laureate for 2022-2024. Hailed as “The People’s Poet” by The Dallas Morning News, Joaquín credits his Abuelo, who was the first person to place a book in his hands and challenge him to read aloud, as his first teacher and the source of his poetic inspiration. He received his MFA in creative writing from the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico. His work has been published in Poets.org, Southwestern American Literature, Yellow Medicine Review, Sonora Review, among other journals and anthologies. His poetry has been featured on HBO, NBC, and on NPR in Historias and The National Teacher’s Initiative. His new collection of poetry, Occupy Whiteness, is out now from Deep Vellum Publishing. Joaquín was recently named a Poet Laureate Fellow by the Academy of American Poets and received a $50,000 prize in honor of the good work he has done in Dallas as their first poet laureate. Joaquín has two passions in his life, his partner Aída and poetry. Always in that order.
KB Brookins is a Black, queer, and trans writer, cultural worker, and visual artist from Texas. Their writing is featured in Poets.org, HuffPost, Teen Vogue, Poetry Society of America, Oxford American, and elsewhere. KB’s poetry chapbook How To Identify Yourself with a Wound won the Saguaro Poetry Prize, a Writer’s League of Texas Discovery Prize, and a Stonewall Honor Book Award. Their debut poetry collection Freedom House, described as “urgent and timely” by Vogue, won the American Library Association Barbara Gittings Literature Award and the Texas Institute of Letters Award for the Best First Book of Poetry. KB adapted Freedom House into a solo art exhibit, which debuted at Prizer Arts and Letters in April 2024. Their debut memoir Pretty (Alfred A. Knopf) released on May 28, 2024.
This will be an artist talk where KB Brookins (joined by Em Shapiro) and sari shryack will speak about their exhibits currently up at the Dougherty Arts Center. No RSVP needed.
Freedom House: An Exhibition is a multimedia installation of poems, film, furniture, and digital collages that simulate what freedom — embodied in everyone’s most delicate and personal place, a home — looks, feels, and sounds like. All 16 digital collages in this exhibit are based on poems in KB Brookins’ book of the same name, Freedom House. KB aims to make poetry more than what can exist on a page.
To request images for exhibit and publication consideration, please contact KB.
September is just around the corner, which means so is our next One Page Salon! 🍂 Join the Writers' League of Texas on September 3rd from 7:30 to 9:30 CDT at @radiocoffeeandbeer and listen to readings by @earthtokb, @f.a.flores, @evangriffith14, @deannaroyauthor, and Julie Poole.
Want to pick up a book while you're there? Austin's local bookstore, @reveriebooks, will sell our readers' latest books and other great reads on-site! ☕
![PRETTY at [margins.] Book Festival!](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ccb069851f4d4eb5656ee4a/1723074679365-HLF5N1ER21WJR3WF5BRG/Screenshot+2024-08-07+at+6.51.14%E2%80%AFPM.png)
