The Writer’s Center welcomes Tamar Shapiro and John Vercher f for a conversation about exploring the impact of wanted and unwanted legacies in their novels.
About the event
Home means many things to many people. It can be a source of comfort and familiarity. It can be serve as a connection to people we love and people we have lost. But home can also be a source of trauma, discomfort, or confusion. In this panel, John Vercher (author of Devil is Fine) and Tamar Shapiro (author of Restitution) will discuss how unfamiliar ancestral homes haunt the characters in their novels. How does family history shape identity and belonging? What does it mean to be connected to a family history one does not want to claim? How can the wounds caused by family secrets be healed?
Tamar Shapiro’s debut novel, Restitution, was published in September 2025 and named one of the 49 Must-Read Books of Fall 2025 by Town and Country Magazine. Her writing has also appeared in Literary Hub, Poets and Writers, Electric Literature, and the Washington Independent Review of Books. After a decades-long career as a non-profit leader in the community development field, Shapiro received her MFA in creative writing from Randolph College in January 2026 and is currently working on her second novel. She grew up in both the U.S. and Germany and now lives in Washington, DC.
John Vercher is the author of three critically acclaimed and award-nominated novels. His most recent, Devil Is Fine, was named one of TIME Magazine’s Top 100 Books of 2024 and was longlisted for the Aspen Literary Award, The PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction, The Mark Twain American Voice in Literature Award, and named a Finalist for the Library of Virginia’s Virginia Literary Award. John serves as returning faculty at Randolph College’s low-residency MFA program and is an Assistant Professor of English and Creative Writing in the graduate and undergraduate programs at Monmouth University, where he also served as the ’24-’25 artist-in-residence. He is currently at work on his fourth novel.
Orlando R. Serrano, Jr. is Head of PK-12 Learning at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History (NMAH). He manages the museum’s programs and resources for PK-12 audiences. He supports and develops informal educational and leadership experiences for students, professional development workshops for educators, and curriculum content. He is also a founding member of The Center for Restorative History at NMAH. In the museum field beyond Smithsonian, he is on the Board of Directors for the Museum Education Roundtable where he serves of Co-Chair of the Editorial Team that shepherds the Journal of Museum Education. Dr. Serrano holds a Ph.D. in American Studies and Ethnicity from the University of Southern California. He is an educator and public academic with expertise in human geography, social movements, and pedagogy. Dr. Serrano’s research and writing have been funded by the Ford Foundation, National Science Foundation EDGE-SBE, and National Endowment for the Humanities.
f 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.
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