If you missed the first two ReadOuts, another chance to attend this unique festival of lesbian literature comes again Friday, Jan. 31 through Sunday, Feb. 2, at the Gulfport Public Library. This year, ReadOut is bigger than ever, with 23 featured authors scheduled to read from their works and engage with an audience of readers and writers.
Saturday, Feb. 1 – Tampa Bay’s acclaimed author Sheree L. Greer will deliver the keynote “Why Our Stories Matter.”
Among her many achievements, Greer, who teaches writing at St. Petersburg College, is the author of two novels, “Let the Lover Be” (a Rainbow Award Finalist) and “A Return to Arms.” Greer’s work has been featured in literary journals, magazines, and anthologies, and her most recent work “Bars” was nominated for a Pushcart Prize.
Her talk begins at 10:30 a.m.
Saturday, Feb. 1 – Nia & Ness excavate what it means to be an out, black lesbian couple through poetry and dance
Black, lesbian, dancer-poet performance art duo Nia & Ness will perform their newest work, “home” at Gulfport’s Catherine Hickman Theater at 8 p.m. Tickets to the show are available online at niaandness.bpt.me, or they may be purchased in-person at Beach Bazaar, in Gulfport.
Sunday, Feb. 2 – Sheree L. Greer to lead ReadOut 2020 writer’s workshop
Where can you attend a three-hour writing workshop led by a Pushcart-nominated author and not have to blow an entire paycheck? The ReadOut 2020 writing workshop at the Gulfport Library from 9-noon is your golden opportunity!
Tampa author and St. Petersburg College writing professor Sheree L. Greer will lead a writer’s workshop titled, “You are the Protagonist: Using Your Experiences to Create Compelling Fiction and Non-Fiction.”
Greer describes “You are the Protagonist” as a program that asks writers to “deeply consider the power of their own personal challenges and triumphs in crafting compelling fiction and non-fiction. The interactive workshop features exercises in memory-mining, exploratory free-writing and reflection-based revision. Writers will also have an opportunity to share their work.”
Participants are asked to bring writing materials and an adventurous, positive attitude.
To see the full schedule of ReadOut 2020 events, go to gulfportreadout2020.bpt.me. Registration for the free events is not required, but you can register there to get event reminders.
Funding for ReadOut 2020 was provided through a grant from the Florida Humanities with funds from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
