2 to 2:45 PM

Works of the Central Valley Fiction Writers - II

Reading Venue: Mi Cafecito

  • James Garcia Jr

  • Janell Coberly

  • Karon Ruiz

  • Roh Morgon

Selected readings from published works by members of the Fresno-based Central Valley Fiction Writers: "Dance on Fire" by James Garcia, Jr.; "The Bubble" by Janell Coberly; "Grace in the Shadows" by Karon Ruiz; and "Monster" by Roh Morgon. This is one of two reading presentations by the Central Valley Fiction Writers.

Black Freighter Press @ LitHop

Reading Venue: SourMilk

  • Landon Smith

  • Ladi Revolutionary

  • Alie Jones

  • Tongo Eisen-Martin

Black Freighter Press is excited to be back in Fresno at LitHop for the third year with more writers we admire.

La Calle y Las Estrellas
Reading Venue: Teazer’s World Market

  • Chica de Luz

  • Sel Borges

  • Laura Sermeno

  • Daisy Magallanes

Cucatlicue Collective brings the energy of poets of the earth that you find in a backyard show with the full Moon shining in a SoCal sky wearing the stars as the studs of her Battle Vest. hosted by Tauri and soledad con carne

Writing in a Climate of Fear

Reading Venue: Spectrum Art Gallery

  • Samina Najmi

  • Mai-Linh Hong

  • Talia Lakshmi Kolluri

  • Aideed Medina

Where there’s love, there’s fear. We live in a time of collective fear because the threat to what we love is everywhere: in ICE raids, in the suppression of free speech on campuses, and the gutting of federal programs on which our lives and arts; in gruesome global wars that implicate us, and in the climate crisis itself. But might we harness fear as a catalyst for our art? And might that be a way of making meaning when we’re feeling our most powerless? Four writers respond to our times in poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction.

Writing Across Boundaries

Reading Venue: Hart’s Haven Bookstore

  • Ethan Chatagnier

  • Talia Lakshmi Kolluri

  • Connie Owens Patton

  • Sally Vogl

A sense of place serves as the connective tissue for all these pieces, although each presenter offers a unique aesthetic. The writings cross boundaries in myriad ways. First through different genres, including fiction, nonfiction and poetry. Next, the pieces explore what the characters seek and how they interact, based on their interior perceptions, motivations and expectations. Yet when a sense of place becomes too rigid, the characters in all these works strive to find possibilities beyond it.

Sampaguita Press Showcase

Reading Venue: Tower Yoga LOTUS ROOM

  • Ellie Lopez

  • Keana Aguila Labra

  • Lorenz Mazon Dumuk

  • Arlene Biala

Co-Founder, Keana Aguila Labra, will introduce Sampaguita Press authors, published and forthcoming, during this event. Authors may include: Maria Bolaños, David Maduli, Lorenz Mazon Dumuk, Ellie Lopez, Kyle Doria, Ellie Labampa, Shaena Mae, & Arlene Biala.

Sin Permiso: Rebeldía y Alegría

Reading Venue: Goldstein’s

  • Jasmine Leiva

  • Rebeca Abidaíl Flores

  • Katherine Ayala

  • Stefan Romeo Leiva

El Salvador exists in the US psyche and its 24hr news cycle solely as shorthand for fascism and despair. As Salvadoran writers we reject this single narrative. Would it shock you to know we exist with liberation, joy, beauty, and resistance in our DNA? To paraphrase the poet Mario Benedetti “in my country the people live with joy even without permission”. This reading is a chorus of joy and resistance led by Central Valley Salvadoran writers who want you to see behind the imperial facade of despair and see the sacred lineage we carry.

The Art Borrowed

Reading Venue: Cell Pros

  • Peter Garza

  • Halimah Smith

  • Brianna Alvarez

  • Sean Andersen

It is life-giving and inspiration-granting – art forever dwells in the recesses of our minds.

These four poets will share inspirations drawn from a number of artistic mediums whether it be stories, songs, paintings, or physical spaces. The following poems will delve further into what it means to be inspired – the mimicking of voice and tone we cradle in our infancy as writers, the endless consumption of art we seek in our desire to contain “the canon,” the inevitable monomania we confront within the stellar highs of our craft, and the abysmal lows we uncover through the imperfections of our creation.