In the last decade, graphic novels have exploded in traditional publishing avenues, exposing
more readers (and writers!) than ever to sequential storytelling. What is it that makes the medium
of comics so enduring, so expansive and so versatile? Words are cheap, yet the unique visual
intimacy of the medium seduces more creative converts every year, and sells millions of books to
folks of every age. What is it about words and pictures in little boxes that’s so magically distinct?
The Distinguished Visiting Writers Series
Author talks and readings from some of the strongest voices in contemporary literature
Every year, the Distinguished Visiting Writer Series brings nationally and internationally recognized authors to the Phoenix metropolitan area for talks and readings, connecting local communities with the national scene.
Events take place throughout the Valley and are open to the public and free unless otherwise noted.
To learn more about the series, you can select a visiting writer event from the list below. For more events, you can view all upcoming events.
Upcoming Visiting Writers
Why Comics? A Meditation on Sequential Storytelling
Shannon Watters
Date: Friday, September 17, 2021 - 6:00pm
Location: Zoom
Genre & Forms: Creative Nonfiction, Memoir
Location: Zoom
Genre & Forms: Creative Nonfiction, Memoir
Writing Through an Apocalypse
Gabino Iglesias
Date: Friday, October 22, 2021 - 6:00pm
Location: Zoom
Genre & Forms: Writing Practice
Location: Zoom
Genre & Forms: Writing Practice
The pandemic was tough and, for many, it brought with the collapse of events and subsequent lockdowns something we'd never experienced at this level: the death of momentum. Unfortunately, that's still going on. In this talk, we'll look at a few writing exercises to get back on track as well as ways to use your social media platform to get the words flowing.
Settler Colonialism and the Founding of the United States
Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz
Date: Friday, November 19, 2021 - 12:00pm
Location: Zoom
Genre & Forms: Creative Nonfiction, Memoir
Location: Zoom
Genre & Forms: Creative Nonfiction, Memoir
The United States was founded as a settler-colonial state embedded in a Constitution that created framework for the fiscal-military state, that is, a state made for war. In the following one hundred years, the US made war on Native nations, ethnically cleansing swaths of territory and installing white settlers with free or cheap appropriated land, including warring against and annexing half of Mexico, until it reached it current geographical reach.
An Evening with Christa Parravani
Christa Parravani
Date: Friday, December 10, 2021 - 6:00pm
Location: Zoom
Genre & Forms: Creative Nonfiction, Memoir
Location: Zoom
Genre & Forms: Creative Nonfiction, Memoir
Join the Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing for a talk with Christa Parravani on Friday, December 10, 2021 from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Arizona MST (8:00-9:30 p.m. EST) on Zoom.
Parravani will also be teaching a workshop, with the Piper Writers Studio. More details about the class will be announced soon.
Please note: this event takes place virtually in Phoenix MST.