INTRODUCING
WRBG
FESTIVAL
2020
This year's festival theme is Black Political Power: Past & Present. From your favorite poets and journalists to frontline activists and everyone in between. We will gather virtually on November 6th - 8th to read/celebrate/mourn/study and plan our way forward, in only a way that we can. The best work happens when it is fortified by the written word, a sharp pen, and you: Black women & Black people at large.
We cannot think of a better way to mold our collective fears, anger, and anxieties than to take up every literary tool we have and build something new, beautiful, and enriching.
“The best art is political and you ought to be able to make it unquestionably political and irrevocably beautiful at the same time.”
― Toni Morrison
keynote
NIKKI
GIOVANNI
Nikki Giovanni is a living legend.
Her early work was centered as a response to the Civil Rights and Black Rights movements and has since inspired generations of poets and activists alike. Giovanni has also been a prominent voice in the Black Arts Movement and Black feminist movements, speaking openly about women’s gender equality and sexual freedom.
We are honored to have Nikki Giovanni at this years festival where she will be speaking about her newest collection Make Me Rain, the poet’s role in the revolution and the past and present of Black political power.
2020
OUR PANELISTS
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OUR AUTHORS
SCHEDULE
Friday, October 30th
5PM - 6PM EST
IG LIVE Conversation with Hafizah Geter
Glory Edim and Hafizah Geter discuss what it means to be “unamerican”, the grief of migration and Geter’s latest poetry collection Un-American published by Wesleyan University Press.
Thursday, November 5th
3PM - 4PM EST
IG LIVE Conversation with the Underground Museum
Virtual bookstore tour and conversation with community member Asha Grant. The Underground Museum is a cultural outpost complete with a garden, bookstore, and film screenings, dedicated to ensuring access to contemporary art and ideas for all of LA's residents.
5PM - 6PM EST
IG LIVE Conversation with Ashley Farmer
Ashley Farmer speaks with Glory Edim about her book REMAKING BLACK POWER and the legacy of Black women in political movements.
Friday, November 6th
1:00PM - 2:00PM EST
IG LIVE - That Wasn't In My Textbook
Toya’s podcast that helps you uncover the history of things you always wish you learned from that boring bulky textbook. We have a special-themed Black Political Power episode with writer Evette Dionne.
3:00PM - 4:00PM EST
Literary Agent 101: Exploring the author-agent relationship
4:00PM - 5:00PM EST
IG LIVE - An Editorial Vision
Nicole Counts, senior editor at One World, and Rakia Clark, senior editor at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, talk everything editorial! Join Nicole and Rakia on IG live to talk about their editorial strategies, the book business, and answer your questions on editing.
6:00PM - 7:00PM EST
In Conversation with Luvvie Ajayi Jones
Luvvie Ajayi Jones is a New York Times bestselling author and sought after speaker who's been thriving at the intersection of comedy, justice and professional troublemaking for 17 years. Join Luvvie and Glory Edim in conversation about her new book Professional Troublemaker: The Fear Fighter Manual.
7:00PM - 8:00PM EST
IG LIVE - In Conversation: Legacy Russell and E. Jane
Author and curator Legacy Russell defines Glitch Feminism - a vital new chapter in cyberfeminism that explores the relationship between gender, technology, and identity.
Saturday, November 7th
10:00AM - 10:45AM EST
After the Rain Conversation with Alex Elle
Self-care storyteller Alex Elle will help kick off the 4th Annual Virtual Well-Read Black Girl Festival. WRBG Founder, Glory Edim, and Alex will discuss her new book After the Rain: Gentle Reminders for Healing, Courage, and Self-Love. Together we’ll learn how to overcome obstacles, build confidence, and cultivate abundance.
11:00AM - 11:45AM EST
Race and the newsroom: How Black women Shape Media
Panelists: Errin Haines, Zerlina Maxwell, Helena Andrews-Dyers
Moderator: Ko Bragg
Five insightful journalists will discuss the role of Black women journalists in the newsroom and the current state of American politics.
12:00PM - 12:45PM EST
In Conversation: Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam
Moderator: Ebony LaDelle
Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam, co-authors of the YA novel-in-verse Punching the Air, discuss how art can be healing and transformative.
1:00PM - 1:45PM EST
Use Your Voice: The Power of YA
Panelists: Tiffany Jackson, Kim Johnson, Ashley Woodfolk
Moderator: Nic Stone
YA writers Nic Stone, Tiffany Jackson, Kim Johnson, and Ashley Woodfolk discuss race, identity, and the value of youthful perspectives.
2:00PM - 2:45PM EST
“How Did You Write That Book?” Craft Talk
Panelists: Alyssa Cole, Alice Randall, and Megan Giddings
Moderator: Jenn Baker
This cross-genre conversation brings together three brilliant authors to discuss craft, creativity, and mastering the key elements of storytelling.
3:00PM - 3:45PM EST
Ida B. Wells and The Black Women’s Suffrage Digital Collection
Panelists: Michelle Duster, Evette Dionne, Shaneé Yvette Murrain, and Allison Robinson
Moderator: Glory Edim
We explore the legacy of Black women suffragists with authors Evette Dionne and Michelle Duster, great-granddaughter of civil rights pioneer Ida B. Wells. Archivist Shaneé Yvette Murrain and doctoral candidate Allison Robinson explore how digital artifacts can help us better understand the legacy of Black women suffragists. Join the virtual tour of the collection!
4:00PM - 4:45PM EST
Reading History, Plotting Futures
Panelists: Charlotte Brathwaite, Dr. Martha S. Jones, and Jaimee Swift
Moderator: Savannah Wood
Dr. Martha S. Jones's new book Vanguard charts 200 years of Black women's political organizing in the United States. Charlotte Brathwaite's participatory theatrical productions guide audiences to articulate their relationship to democracy. Through Black Women Radicals, Jaimee Swift highlights diasporic lineages of Black women activists. This conversation will consider the benefits and shortcomings of looking to historical sources to chart a way forward; what we can learn from studying Black women activists' lives; and how to incorporate this knowledge into an engaged civic life.
5:00PM - 5:45PM EST
Wandering in Strange Lands
Morgan Jerkins and Kaitlyn Greenidge discuss the complicated history of Black people in America from their arrival on slave ships, to the Great Migration, and through the present political moment.
6:00PM - 7:00PM EST
Behind The Book: Making Black Futures
An intimate conversation between co-editors Kimberly Drew and Jenna Wortham on their creative process and preserving the preciousness of their friendship while working together.
7:00PM - 8:00PM EST
Black Women On The Page
Panelists: Shayla Lawson, Melissa Valentine, and Raven Leilani
Moderator: Stevona Elem-Rogers
The creator of Black Women Are For Grown-Ups, Stevona Elem-Rogers, joins writers Shayla Lawson, Melissa Valentine, and Raven Leilani to discuss the many ways Black women influence and shape mainstream culture.
Sunday, November 8th
11:00AM - 12:00PM EST
Black Womanhood in the UK
Panelists: Kenya Hunt and Minna Salami
Moderator: Glory Edim
Kenya Hunt and Minna Salami discuss their writing identities and how storytelling can spark transformation.
12:00PM - 1:00PM EST
Feminism Today
Panelists: Mikki Kendall, Koa Beck, Mia Birdsong
Moderator: Carla Bruce-Eddings
Koa Beck, Mia Birdsong and Mikki Kendall will be led in conversation by Carla Bruce-Eddings about the current state of feminism, how to show up, and who it leaves behind.
1:00PM - 2:00PM EST
Transcendent Kingdom
Yaa Gyasi and Alexis Okeowo discuss Gyasi’s latest book, Transcendent Kingdom, and the realities of grief, familial obligations and Alabama.
2:00PM - 3:00PM EST
How to Look: Octavia Butler’s Legacy
Lynell George and Blair Imani discuss the greatness of Otavia Butler, her ideas on how to be in the world and George’s latest book and creative process.
3:00PM - 4:00PM EST
I Turned Myself into Myself: A Nikki Giovanni Tribute
Poets: Mahogany L. Browne, Naomi Extra, Aricka Foreman, Hafizah Geter, Aja Monet, Morgan Parker
Six poets share the ways in which Nikki Giovanni’s work and legacy has influenced them and perform their own personal work and poems by Giovanni.
4:00PM - 5:00PM EST
Keynote
In our keynote conversation, living legend Nikki Giovanni joins the Well-Read Black Girl festival to discuss her latest collection, Make Me Rain: Poems and Prose, her role in the Black Arts Movement and Black political power. She will be in conversation with WRBG Founder, Glory Edim.
SUPPORT
DONATE TO
OUR MISSION
This year Well-Read Black Girl moved its annual Literary Festival online due to the pandemic. We are finding new ways to expand our community virtually with panels, workshops, and author conversations. While the event is 100% free, donations are greatly appreciated. Your contributions expand our vision and bring our programming to life.
Make a tax-deductible donation through our fiscal sponsor
COMMUNITY PARTNERS
Afro Charities produces artistic and educational programs that connect people across generations and socioeconomic divides. Established in 1963, Afro Charities is a non-profit partner of the historic AFRO American Newspapers. Through this partnership, we have the great honor of working with the AFRO’s extensive archives. Our programming creates meaningful opportunities for our community to engage with this indispensable resource.
The Digital Public Library of America empowers people to learn, grow, and contribute to a diverse and better-functioning society by maximizing access to our shared history, culture, and knowledge. Discover over 40 million images, texts, videos, and sounds from across the United States at dp.la.
That Wasn’t In My Textbook with Toya Coleman, is a digital lesson on the history of things you always wish you learned from that boring bulky textbook - without the boring pretentious language and whitewashed topics. Listen here
SUPPORT WRBG
JOIN US
ON PATREON
Our Patreon serves as a virtual gathering space for aspiring writers to practice their craft & be in community. Together we'll set writing goals, share inspiration, and become better, bolder storytellers.
You'll have access to regular guest authors, publishing industry professionals, and agents who will share their experiences and answer your questions.
