Overview
When: April 4th-6th
Where: The Green Room Theatre and Alumni Writer’s House
Cost: Free and Open to the public
2018 Emerging Writer Festival Schedule
2018 marks the 16th year of the F&M Emerging Writers Festival, featuring five influential writers that are early in their careers, the festival is spread over three days and gives each author the chance to read their own work to an audience, as well as engage in craft talks with faculty, students, and the public. The festival will conclude with a panel discussion at noon on April 6th featuring all five writers, and a ‘Bye Bye BBQ’ social. While F&M puts together prominent literary events year-round, the Emerging Writers Festival is the marquee event for the year and not one to be missed!
Here’s our rundown on Who’s Who at the Emerging Writer:
Raymond Antrobus
Raymond Antrobus is a poet with a string of international slam poet champion titles to his name. Billed as a poet, performer, editor, and educator Antrobus is working to carve his own style in the 21st century. Known for his poetic monologues, much of Antrobus’ work touches being born in Jamaica and raised in East London.
Antrobus will be the second reader on April 4th in the Green Room Theatre (Start-time: 7:30 PM), and his craft talk will occur at 1 pm April 5th in the Alumni Writer’s House. Any writers looking for tips on how to take the performance of their readings to the next level should make a note to catch Antrobus’ craft talk.
Photo Courtesy of raymondantrobus.com, by Tabitha Austin.
Sarah Gerard
It’d be an understatement to say Sarah Gerard does a bit of everything. The truth is she does a lot of everything, and all of it well. Sarah is the author of the novel Binary Star, the essay collection The Sunshine State, two chapbooks, and co-author of a collage and text collection, Recycle, which just released March 2018. If you thought we were done take a breath, Sarah has also published: interviews, essays, short stories in The New York Times, Granata, Vice, and BOMB magazine. All of that while still writing a monthly column for Hazlitt, and teaching writing in New York City.
She’s second reader on Thursday April 5th in the Green Room Theatre (Start-time: 7:30 pm) and her craft talk is 11 am Friday April 6th in the Writer’s House. Grab a seat and hope some of her productivity inspires you!
Photo courtesy of sarahgerard.com, by Levi Walton.
Chinaka Hodges
Chinaka Hodge manages to bring unique skills to the 2018 Emerging Writers Festival despite a roster of multi-talented peers. Hodge is the only writer on the ticket with a focus in playwriting and a script that garnered accolades at Sundance. Along with her playwriting, poetry, and teaching, Hodge is also a founding member of a collaborative hip-hop ensemble dubbed, The Getback. She leads off the Green Room Theatre readings at 7:30 PM on April 5th, and holds her craft talk 9:30 AM on Friday April 6th. If you’ve got an interest in writing for the stage, the screen, or just trying you hand at script writing find a way to make it to see Chinaka Hodge.
Photo courtesy of chinakahodge.com.
Tessa Fontaine
Not many writers moonlight as a badass, but Tessa Fontaine sure does. Fontaine is a non-fiction writer who performed with the Last American Traveling Sideshow swallowing fire and charming snakes for onlookers. She didn’t stop her badass streak there— Tessa has also conducted workshops in prisons throughout Alabama and Utah for five years. Her first book The Electric Woman documenting her time in the sideshows releases May 1st 2018. She concludes the reading in the Green Room Theatre April 4th (start-time: 7:30 pm), and holds court for her craft talk in the Writer’s House on April 5th at 2:30 PM.
Photo courtesy of tessafontaine.com.
Mandy Berman
Mandy Berman’s 2018 Emerging Writers Festival experience doubles as a homecoming. With an MFA from Columbia and an undergraduate degree from Franklin & Marshall (Class of 2009, stand up!) Berman published her first novel Perennials with Random House in 2017 and is currently working on her second novel. Berman leads off the readings on April 4th at 7:30 pm in the Green Room Theatre as well as the craft talks on April 5th at 10:00 am.
Photo courtesy of mandyberman.com.