LitHop 2022 - Schedule of Readings
Saturday, October 15th 

4 to 4:45 PM

Raices En Cuatro Direcciones/Roots In Four Directions  
Reading Venue: Fresbrew  (21 and over)

Masiel Monserrat Corona (she/her), Francisco Duarte (he/him), Itzel Xochicuicatl,     Aideed Medina 

This reading will be in Spanish and some Nauahtl without English translation. These poets write intending to keep, find, and create a connection to their families, culture, homeland, and ancestry. Writing in a language other than English is a conscious act of resistance for these poets. All four poets actively create spaces for live multilingual poetry readings in Fresno, statewide, and internationally. The four life experiences of each of our readers represent the four directions in this reading. Each of these poets offers a different root system in contemporary US Spanish poetry—elder knowledge, women's rights, environmental advocacy, and cultural awareness. 

Witchy Writing
Reading Venue: Hart’s Haven Used Bookstore     

Carolina Mata (she/her/hers), Juan Huerta (they/them), Amber Carpenter, Jaie Noelle 

Four writers from the Central Valley of various backgrounds come together to explore the aspect of the witch through their latest pieces. Whether it be through magical characters or writing as an act of magic itself to express self-identity, this reading is dedicated to the witches, brujas, healers, and magic found in our literary community. Some themes to be explored are mysticism as a form of self-expression, partaking in community, and a reclamation of power within a postcolonial society. Magic is a subversion of linear thought, rooted in deep cultural beliefs that push against the grain of normativity. 

Our Place In The Universe, Our Place In The World
Reading Venue: Labyrinth Art Collective     

Ethan Chatagnier (he/him), Carole Firstman, Talia Lakshmi Kolluri (she/her), Jim Schmidt 

Four Fresno-based writers share excerpts from both finished books and works-in-progress examining our place in the world, and the world’s place in the greater universe. Touching on themes of family, communication, survival, conservation, philosophy, and connection, each reading will immerse readers in a fully formed environment where our interdependence on the natural world and our curiosity about the universe beyond are both revealed through fascinating characters and absorbing plots. 

Little Monsters Everywhere
Reading Venue: The Revue (Backroom)   

J.J. Hernandez, Monique Quintana, Marisol Baca, David Campos 

Fantastic beasts lift their heads from glistening canal waters, packs of wild dogs run breathless in the almond orchards, something green is hiding in the sunflower bed. Everyone has a little monster inside them. Sometimes those monsters are those that haunt us. Four poets write about the things that scare them. 

Here and QUEER
Reading Venue: Splash Fresno  (21 and over)

Arielle K. Jones (she/her), Sara Borjas (she/hers), Steven Sanchez, Ying Thao

Four Queer writers share their work illuminating the Queerness of Fresno and the Central Valley. 

Practice Makes Better If Not Perfect
Reading Venue: Spectrum Art Gallery    

David Borofka, Ronald Dzerigian, Janet Nichols Lynch, Chuck Radke 

Like most writers, we have all tried other artistic ventures first (visual arts, music, sculpture, and bowling), and regardless of success or failure, we have come to know the crossover benefits of practice and perseverance as well as endurance and dogged determination. We read to celebrate the arrival of new books in the world! 

They Rise Like a Wave Anthology
Reading Venue: Teazers     

Devadutta Laskar, Preeti Kaur Rajpal, Shelly Wong, C.E. Shue 

Our readers are from the 80+ contributors to the recently published They Rise Like a Wave: An Anthology of Asian American Women Poets by Blue Oak Press. Some 30 or so live in California. This is a political anthology that focuses on women's rights, particularly Asian American Women.