The Writer’s Center welcomes three celebrated authors — Afabwaje Kurian, Alonzo Vereen, and Tricia Elam Walker — for a panel discussion on writing and publishing across multiple genres. Moderated by Aaron Hwang.
FREE & open to the public. Register below.
Afabwaje Kurian received her MFA from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. Her short fiction has appeared in McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern, Callaloo, Crazyhorse, The Bare Life Review, and Joyland Magazine. She has taught creative writing at the University of Iowa, for the International Writing Program, and for The Writer’s Center. Born in Jos, Nigeria, and raised in Prince George’s County, Maryland, and in Ohio, Afabwaje now divides her time between Washington, DC, and the Midwest. afabwaje.
Alonzo Vereen is a graduate of Morehouse College and the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. He’s worked as an editorial assistant at Crown Publishing Group, where he served on the editorial teams for Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen’s Renegades, Matthew McConaughey’s Greenlights, Seth Rogen’s Yearbook, and Jimmy Chin’s There and Back. He has contributed to The Atlantic Monthly and is the author of Historically Black: American Icons Who Attended HBCUs.
Tricia Elam Walker is an award-winning author, educator and recovered lawyer. Her novel, Breathing Room, was published by Simon&Schuster / PocketBooks. Her work has appeared in The Washington Post, The Baltimore Sun, Essence and other publications. She has provided commentary for NPR, CNN, the BBC and more. Tricia’s short stories are included in the O.Henry Prize Stories, New Stories from the South and other anthologies and her essays are published in Father’s Songs, Dream Me Home Safely, It’s All About Love and more. Several of her plays have been produced and her first children’s book, Nana Akua Goes to School, was published by Random House in June 2020. It won a 2021 Children’s Africana Book Award and the 2021 Ezra Jack Keats writer award. Her second picture book, Dream Street was published in November 2021, garnered five starred reviews and was a New York Times Best Children’s Book of 2021 selection. Tricia is an Associate Professor of Creative Writing at Howard University in Washington, DC.
Aaron Hwang is a third generation Chinese-American author. He holds an M.F.A. in Fiction from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, a B.A. in English from Yale University, and is the author of three books with Hachette Book Group. He lives in Rockville, MD.
About Before the Mango Ripens
In Rabata, everyone has secrets—especially since the arrival of the white American missionaries.
Twenty-year-old Jummai is a beautiful and unassuming house girl whose dreams of escaping her home life are disrupted when an unexpected pregnancy forces her to hide her lover’s identity. Tebeya, an ambitious Dublin-educated doctor, has left prestigious opportunities abroad to return to the small town of her birth, and discovers a painful betrayal when she strives to take control of the mission clinic. Zanya is a young translator, enticed by promises of progress, who comes to Rabata to escape a bitter past and finds himself embroiled in a fight against the American reverend for the heart of the church and town.
United by their yearning for change, all three must make difficult decisions that threaten the fragile relationships of the Rabata they know. As tensions mount and hypocrisies are unveiled, the people of Rabata are faced with a question that will transform their town forever: Let the Americans stay, or make them go?
Set against the backdrop of 1970s Nigeria teetering between post-colonial dependency and self-rule, Before the Mango Ripens examines the enduring themes of faith, disillusionment, and the search for belonging. Both epic and intimate, Afabwaje Kurian’s debut announces a brilliant new talent for readers of Imbolo Mbue and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.
About Historically Black: American Icons Who Attended HBCUs
A vibrant collection of biographies and illustrated portraits that capture the brilliance of more than thirty American icons, Historically Black is a celebration of Black excellence in fields ranging from politics to STEM, sports to pop culture, and more.
From the moment the first HBCU was founded in 1837, Black Americans from all walks of life have created collegiate experiences that enrich and transcend mainstream postsecondary education. Today, more than 100 colleges and universities are registered under the HBCU banner and over 200,000 students are enrolled. With a legacy of marching bands, drill teams, choral ensembles, homecoming, and more, attending an HBCU is an emblem of pride and a source of joy.
Historically Black documents not only HBCU cultural traditions but also the remarkable stories of former students. HBCU attendees in the book include: Booker T. Washington, James Weldon Johnson, Ida B. Wells-Barnett, W.E.B. Du Bois, Mary McLeod Bethune, Alice Dunbar Nelson, Zora Neale Hurston, Howard Thurman, Langston Hughes, Thurgood Marshall, Bayard Rustin, Dorothy Vaughan, Katherine Johnson, Mary Jackson, Leontyne Price, Martin Luther King, Jr., Toni Morrison, John Lewis, Bob Hayes, Oprah Winfrey, Kamala Harris, Hakeem M. Oluseyi, Taraji P. Henson, Erykah Badu, Stacey Abrams, Ta-Nehisi Coates, Chadwick Boseman, Hebru Brantley, Ibram X. Kendi, J.R. Smith, Megan Thee Stallion, and Mo’ne Davis.
About Dream Street
Visit a truly special street bursting with joy, hope, and dreams. Inspired by the neighborhood where they grew up as cousins, this gorgeous picture book from an award-winning illustrator and critically acclaimed author is the perfect gift or keepsake for every generation.
Welcome to Dream Street–the best street in the world! Jump rope with Azaria–can you Double Dutch one leg at a time? Dream big with Ede and Tari, who wish to create a picture book together one day. Say hello with Mr. Sidney, a retired mail carrier who greets everyone with the words, “Don’t wait to have a great day. Create one!” On Dream Street, love between generations rules, everyone is special, and the warmth of the neighborhood shines.
A magical story from the critically acclaimed author of Nana Akua Goes to School and a Caldecott Honor and Coretta Scott King Award winning illustrator. Illuminating this vivid cast of characters are vibrant, joyful illustrations that make this neighborhood––based on the Roxbury neighborhood in Boston where the author and illustrator grew up together as cousins––truly sing. This book is a perfect way for parents to share with their children the importance of community.
If you need an accommodation for this event, please contact us at access@writer.org. We will attempt to fulfill all requests, but advance notice is necessary to arrange for some accessibility services.