Presenting Our Virtual Fall–Winter Season

The Academy of American Poets is pleased to present its Fall–Winter Season, which will be entirely virtual and run from September 2020 through February 2021. Programs include a reading and panel discussions by the Academy of American Poets Chancellors at the biennial Geraldine R. Dodge Poetry Festival; Books Noted Live, a new series of readings and conversations featuring poets with new or forthcoming titles; and the Blaney Lecture presented by Adrian Matejka, author of the graphic novel Last On His Feet (Liveright, 2021) and the poetry collection Map to the Stars (Penguin Books, 2017), a finalist for the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize, and a 2019 Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellow.

The Academy of American Poets’ 2020–2021 Fall–Winter season is made possible in part by support from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and the New York State Council on the Arts. 

SCHEDULE:

Friday, September 25 at 7 p.m. EDT: “Books Noted Live: A Reading and Conversation” with Honorée Fanonne Jeffers, author of The Age of Phillis (Wesleyan University Press, 2020), which was longlisted for the 2020 National Book Award for Poetry, and Tyree Daye, author of Cardinal (Copper Canyon Press, 2020). Free with registration. 

• Order Jeffers’ book. 
• Pre-order Daye’s book. 

Thursday, October 1 at 7 p.m. EDT: “A Q+A with Maggie Smith.” An exclusive conversation with poet Maggie Smith about her forthcoming book, Keep Moving: Notes on Loss, Creativity, and Change (Simon & Schuster, 2020). Available only to members at the Patron level and above. To become a Patron of the Academy of American Poets and join this free event, visit: https://poets.org/membership

• Pre-order Smith’s book. 

Sunday, October 4 at 10 a.m. EST: “New Works: A Poetry Reading” at the Brooklyn Book Festival with Aria Aber, Ricky Maldonado, John Murillo, and Diannely Antigua, introduced by Nikay Paredes, the Academy of American Poets’ Programs Manager. The Brooklyn Book Festival, the largest free literary event in New York City, is now a virtual program for all from September 28–October 5, including Bookend Events. Free and open to the public. 

Wednesday, October 7 at 8 p.m. EDT: “World in Verse: A Multilingual Poetry Reading” and celebration of the winners of the 2020 Poems in Translation Contest from Words Without Borders in partnership with the Academy of American Poets. Featuring readings by Bryan Mendoza, Enrique Villasis, Bernard Capinpin, Chenxin Jiang, plus others and hosted by contest judge David Tomas Martinez. Free with registration. 

Friday, October 9 at 7 p.m. EDT: “Books Noted Live: A Reading and Conversation” with Pamela Sneed, author of Funeral Diva (City Lights Books, 2020) and Aditi Machado, author of Emporium (Nightboat Books, 2020) and winner of the 2019 James Laughlin Award from the Academy of American Poets. Free with registration. 

• Pre-order Sneed’s book.  
• Pre-order Machado’s book. 

Friday, October 23 at 7 p.m. EDT: “Books Noted Live: A Reading and Conversation” with Yona Harvey, author of You Don’t Have to Go to Mars for Love (Four Way Books, 2020) and Taylor Johnson, author of Inheritance (Alice James Books, 2020). Free with registration. 

• Order Harvey’s book. 
• Pre-order Johnson’s book. 

Friday, October 30 at 7 p.m. EDT: “Books Noted Live: A Reading and Conversation” with Kazim Ali, author of The Voice of Sheila Chandra (Alice James Books, 2020) and Joshua Bennett, author of Owed (Penguin Books, 2020). Free with registration. 

• Order Ali’s book. 
• Order Bennett’s book. 

Thursday, October 22—Sunday, November 1: The Academy of American Poets Chancellors at the biennial Geraldine R. Dodge Poetry Festival. The Dodge Poetry Festival, the largest poetry event in North America, is now a virtual program for all. For the full schedule of festival events, including a reading and panel discussions featuring the Chancellors, visit: https://www.dodgepoetry.org/. Free and open to the public. 

Sunday, November 15: A conversation with Claudia Rankine, author of Just Us (Graywolf Press, 2020), and Terrance Hayes, an Academy of American Poets Chancellor and National Book Award-winning poet. Produced in collaboration with the Library Foundation of Los Angeles. More information available soon at Poets.org.  

Friday, December 4: A reading and celebration of When the Light of the World Was Subdued, Our Songs Came Through: A Norton Anthology of Native Nations Poetry edited by Academy of American Poets Chancellor and U.S. Poet Laureate Joy Harjo. Co-produced by the Tippet Rise Art Center and the Adrian Brinkerhoff Poetry Foundation in collaboration with In-Na-Po. More information available soon at Poets.org.
 
Thursday, February 11: The Blaney Lecture with Adrian Matejka, author of the graphic novel Last On His Feet (Liveright, 2021) and the poetry collection Map to the Stars (Penguin Books, 2017), a finalist for the National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize, and a 2019 Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellow. The Blaney Lecture on contemporary poetry and poetics is offered annually by a prominent poet and is made possible by a generous gift from the estate of Dr. Dorothy Gulbenkian Blaney. Free with registration.