#sophfronia scott

[bangbangwhoa]

books I’ve read in 2023 📖 no. 034

Wild, Beautiful, and Free by Sophfronia Scott

“I was a beloved child. I think I knew that before I knew anything else. So now I can’t settle for anything less that such love. That’s just the truth of who I am.”

[eyreguide]

Book Review: Wild, Beautiful, and Free

Wild, Beautiful, and Free by Sophfronia Scott

Plot Summary: Born the daughter of an enslaved woman and a Louisiana plantation owner, Jeannette Bébinn is raised alongside her white half sister—until her father suddenly dies. His vindictive wife refuses twelve-year-old Jeannette her inheritance and sells her into slavery. Now on her own, Jeannette must fight the injustices she faces because of her mixed race. She escapes enslavement and travels from Mississippi to Philadelphia to New York to Ohio, all while searching for purpose, love, and her place in a country torn asunder by the burgeoning Civil War. Everything seems to fall into place when she meets Christian Robichaud Colchester, the white proprietor of Fortitude Mansion, a safe haven for escaped slaves where Jeannette teaches. But despite their instant connection, Jeannette isn’t convinced she belongs in his circle. In a world that tells her she doesn’t fit anywhere, Jeannette must decide what’s more important: bending to the expectations of others or embracing her true self.

Review:

This was a surprising retelling of Jane Eyre because it brought the story into an unexpected backdrop - race and slavery during the American Civil War. The story translates the struggles of young Jane in the original novel at the hands of Mrs. Reed and Mr. Brocklehurst, to the horrific experiences of enslavement, which made Jeannette's story even more impactful.

Jeannette is just as strong willed as Jane, and has the added comfort of having known a loving parent in her father who doted on her and treated her as a general favorite, although it upset his wife. Of course the hatred that Madame Bébinn felt for Jeannette is understandable in one sense - that Jeannette is the product of her husband's infidelity, but in the other sense - that Jeannette is half black - well that takes away all the sympathy we could have felt for her in that situation.

Most of the first half of this book is devoted to Jeannette's experiences as a young girl and I think this aspect is what makes this such an intriguing book. It shows a side of history and humanity that it is important to recognize, as it shaped our country and still has repercussions today. It's very impactful to read about Jeannette's struggle to escape slavery, as well as how it forms her as a woman. And in how it eventually forms the main conflict between her and the "Mr. Rochester" Christian Colchester.

While I enjoyed the romance between Jeannette and Christian - somehow the intensity and the emotional connection just wasn't there. It was hard to follow up with the romance, after such a harrowing and moving depiction of surviving slavery and especially for Jeannette to go through that at a young age. But I did appreciate the nuance in parallel between the original novel and the romance of this one. There is still a sense of mystery, although Colchester's secret is a little different to Rochester. I appreciated the turn this story took, and that the conflict felt right for the characters.

Once Jeannette strikes out again on her own, the author again brings interesting historical realism in how the protagonist becomes a nurse during the Civil War. It felt right for Jeannette, and also added so much to her character for her to show such compassion to others in the face of so much trauma and grief. I felt that this part of the story was also more captivating than the middle section with the romance. And Jeannette gets to reunite with someone that created the perfect, stirring moment that paled a little in comparison to her reunion with Colchester. Which was very sweet in itself, but just not the point of the story.

Jeanette builds some incredible connections with different characters throughout the book, and with the historical realism in the setting - I feel those to be the strong points of the story. The romance and the comparison to Jane Eyre is nice, but if you are at all interested in the setting, this is a wonderful and insightful read.

Goodreads 4/5 stars

I received this book from the publisher or author for a fair and honest review. I was not compensated for this review.

[judgingbooksbycovers]

Wild Beautiful and Free: A Novel

By Sophfronia Scott.

[thebookdragon217]

Happy Sunday! Still looking for books to read for Women's History Month? Add Wild Beautiful and Free by Sophfronia Scott. BIPOC historical fiction is my jam and this one is recommended by one of my favorite authors. Thanks to @tlcdiversity @amazonpublishing for the gifted copy. QOTD: What are you reading for Women's History Month? 🪻SYNOPSIS🪻 From award-winning author Sophfronia Scott comes the story of one young woman’s bold journey to reclaim her birthright and carve out her own place in a world that tells her she doesn’t belong. Born the daughter of an enslaved woman and a Louisiana plantation owner, Jeannette Bébinn is raised alongside her white half sister—until her father suddenly dies. His vindictive wife refuses twelve-year-old Jeannette her inheritance and sells her into slavery. Now on her own, Jeannette must fight the injustices she faces because of her mixed race. She escapes enslavement and travels from Mississippi to Philadelphia to New York to Ohio, all while searching for purpose, love, and her place in a country torn asunder by the burgeoning Civil War. Everything seems to fall into place when she meets Christian Robichaud Colchester, the white proprietor of Fortitude Mansion, a safe haven for escaped slaves where Jeannette teaches. But despite their instant connection, Jeannette isn’t convinced she belongs in his circle. In a world that tells her she doesn’t fit anywhere, Jeannette must decide what’s more important: bending to the expectations of others or embracing her true self. #WildBeautifulandFree #bookish #bookstagram #SophfroniaScott #20booksbyblackwomen #books #23histficbookswithme #reading #igreads #bookphotos #bookworm #historicalfiction #BlackAuthors #20booksbyblackfolx #fiction #bookrecommendation #literature #bookstagrammer #booklover #booksbooksbooks #readersofIG https://www.instagram.com/p/Cp_Yq0Nr-FC/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[revmeg]

I will never fulfill my obligation to surpass myself unless I first accept myself--and if I accept myself fully in the right way I will already have surpassed myself. For it is the unaccepted self that stands in my way--and will continue to do so as long as it is not accepted. When it has been accepted--it is my own stepping stone to what is above me.

Thomas Merton quoted in The Seeker and the Monk: Everyday Conversations with Thomas Merton by Sophfronia Scott, p. 44

[nprbooks]

The 1782 French novel Les Liaisons Dangereuses — a steamy story of aristocrats behaving badly — has been told many times over the centuries in adaptations for the stage and screen. A new retelling, Unforgivable Love, has just as much betrayal and bed-hopping as the original, but in a new setting: glamorous, 1940s Harlem.

Author Sophfronia Scott says she was inspired to set the story in high society Harlem by the story of Madam C.J. Walker — a wealthy, African-American entrepreneur who made her fortune in beauty and hair products.

Find her conversation with Lulu Garcia-Navarro here.

-- Petra

[blacksandbooks]

Unforgivable Love: A Retelling of Dangerous Liaisons

Sophfronia Scott

ISBN 0062655671

In this vivid re-imagining of the French classic Les Liaisons Dangereuses, it’s the summer when Jackie Robinson breaks Major League Baseball’s color barrier and a sweltering stretch has Harlem’s elite fleeing the city for Westchester County’s breezier climes. But there two predators stalking amidst the manicured gardens and fine old homes. Heiress Mae Malveaux rules society with an angel’s smile and a heart of stone. She made up her mind long ago that nobody would decide her fate. To have the pleasure she craves, control is paramount, especially control of the men Mae attracts like moths to a flame. Valiant Jackson always gets what he wants—and he’s wanted Mae for years. The door finally opens for him when Mae strikes a bargain: seduce her virginal young cousin, Cecily, who is engaged to Frank Washington. Frank values her innocence above all else. If successful, Val’s reward will be a night with Mae. But Val secretly seeks another prize. Elizabeth Townsend is fiercely loyal to her church and her civil rights attorney husband. Certain there is something redeemable in Mr. Jackson. Little does she know that her most unforgivable mistake will be Val’s greatest triumph.

[brigdh]

Reading Wednesday... ON WEDNESDAY! :O

Unforgivable Love by Sophfronia Scott. A retelling of Les Liaisons Dangereuses set in 1940s Harlem. There are some immediate differences from the original: it's not an epistolary novel, which I have mixed feelings about; on the one hand, I LOVE epistolary novels, but on the other hand the third-person limited POVs certainly allow Scott to dig deeper into characters' motivations and feelings. In addition, the Marquise de Merteuil (here Mae Malveaux, wealthy heir to a cosmetics fortune, the products all emblazoned with her baby photos) is less of a main character, replaced in her central role by Vicomte de Valmont (Valiant Jackson, equally wealthy club owner and number runner, though stymied in his life-long dream of owning a baseball team; as another character puts it, no one whose money comes from gambling is ever going to be allowed to buy a sports team) and Cécile de Volanges (Cecily, still an innocent young girl, though in this case her inexperience comes from being sent to live on the family farm in North Carolina rather than a convent). The relationship between Val and Madame de Tourvel (Elizabeth Townsend, a deeply religious woman married to an important civil rights lawyer who is currently away working on a case down South) probably takes up the largest page-count of any of this story's many subplots, with Scott working hard to show how two such different people could find a genuine connection, one deep and true enough to change both of their self-images. The biggest difference, though, is one of tone; Les Liaisons Dangereuses revels in its characters' remorseless evil, and isn't particularly interested in giving them tragic backstories to account for their actions. The Marquise de Merteuil and Vicomte de Valmont are terrible, terrible people, but by God they're fun to watch. Unforgivable Love not only gives them those explanatory childhoods, but by making Elizabeth and Cecily equal narrators, shifts the focus from badass villains to normal people struggling with ethical choices. There's a general tone of redemption, of hopefulness, of the possibility of making good out of this tragedy. Which I can't really argue with as a philosophical standpoint, but it's not what I come to Les Liaisons Dangereuses for. It also contrasts harshly with some of the actions required by the plot; Cecily and Val's first sexual encounter in particular is incredibly uncomfortable to read, given that it's described in no uncertain terms as rape, yet Cecily gets over it immediately and happily returns to sleeping with Val. I also think the book's page-count of 500-plus was probably unnecessary; certainly there's a lot of twists and turns in this story, not to mention a fairly large cast of characters, but Unforgivable Love felt like it dragged in parts, particularly compared to the slim swift-moving original novel. But I feel like I'm complaining a lot here, and I didn't actually dislike Unforgivable Love. I love a good modern-AU fanfic (which is essentially what this is), and the analogies Scott has found for the characters' roles are clever and well-suited. Many of the descriptions of settings are absolutely lovely, from Harlem's jazz clubs to a rural farm to the lush grounds of an upstate mansion where much of the book takes place. Cecily's character arc of slowly coming to understand and accept her own sexuality is brilliant and well-written. I love Les Liaisons Dangereuses and will always be interested in retellings of it. Part of my disappointment with Unforgivable Love might simply be that my expectations were far too high. But even if it's not everything I wanted, it's well worth reading, and I hope it does well. 

[DW link for ease of commenting]

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

[My son’s wedding]

* * * *

"Human presence is a creative and turbulent sacrament, a visible sign of invisible grace…Friendship is the sweet grace that liberates us to approach, recognize, and inhabit this adventure." John O’Donahue quoted in The Seeker and the Monk: Everyday Conversations with Thomas Merton by Sophfronia Scott, p. 83 :: [revmeg]

[readincolour]

#BookReview: UNFORGIVABLE LOVE by Sophfronia Scott

Summary: In this vivid reimagining of the French classic Les Liaisons Dangereuses, it’s the summer when Jackie Robinson breaks Major League Baseball’s color barrier and a sweltering stretch has Harlem’s elite fleeing the city for Westchester County’s breezier climes, two predators stalk amidst the manicured gardens and fine old homes Heiress Mae Malveaux rules society with an angel’s smile and a heart of stone. She made up her mind long ago that nobody would decide her fate. To have the pleasure she craves, control is paramount, especially control of the men Mae attracts like moths to a flame. Valiant Jackson always gets what he wants—and he’s wanted Mae for years. The door finally opens for him when Mae strikes a bargain: seduce her virginal young cousin, Cecily, who is engaged to Frank Washington. Frank values her innocence above all else. If successful, Val’s reward will be a night with Mae. But Val secretly seeks another prize. Elizabeth Townsend is fiercely loyal to her church and her civil rights attorney husband. Certain there is something redeemable in Mr. Jackson. Little does she know that her worst mistake will be Val’s greatest triumph. Review: I have to be up front with you and tell you I've never read Dangerous Liaisons and I've never watched the movie. Yet, I was fascinated at the thought of a more modern day telling of a book originally set in 18th century France, in the royal court no less. With scenes set in 1940s Harlem and tony Westchester County, Unforgivable Love is full of luscious people and settings. Mae Malveaux is a petty and heartless woman who uses her fame and wealth to control those around her like puppets. Val Jackson is a conquering hero, and while he's bedded most of Harlem, he's never had Mae. And so the two decide to play a game. If Val gives Mae what she wants most, which is revenge, she'll give him what he wants most. Petty McPettington, right? But Val agrees to Mae's foolishness because male pride and dumb ideas typically go hand in hand. Scott creates the perfect ingenue in Cecily. Sent down South by her mother to reign in her free spirited ways, she's newly arrived back in Harlem and she's country dumb. Elizabeth Townsend loves her husband, but as a civil rights attorney, he's traveling the country trying cases like his name is Thurgood. Elizabeth is a virtuous woman with a generous heart and that's what draws Val to her. Though he's more like Mae than he'd care to admit, he strives to be like Elizabeth. These two women are nothing like the fiery Mae, but they are at the center of the game Val is playing on Mae's behalf. Val's aunt, who has raised him since his parents died, may be the only woman Val loves unconditionally and without motive. She's no shrinking violet, in fact, I get the idea that in her heyday, she was as ruthless as Mae, but not as vindictive. In many ways, she's Val's moral compass. I loved so much about this book: the characters, the descriptive scenery, the dialogue. Though the men are important in this story, the contrasting personalities of the women are most fascinating. It's obvious that the author put a lot of thought and care into the characters and details. I'm not sure if Scott plans to continue her journey in writing with more retellings and/or historical fiction, but I sincerely hope she will give it consideration.

528 p. Published: September 2017 Disclaimer: Copy of book received from publisher, opinions are my own. November 01, 2017 at 11:00AM from ReadInColour.com http://ift.tt/2gUCCmB

[dont-call--me-sugar]

Happy Book-day Unforgivable Love!

Happy Bookday to Unforgivable Love by Sophfronia Scott!!

I’ve been SO excited about this book since I first heard about it and since I saw the cover. Les Liaisons Dangereuses is one of my favorite films–Glenn Close and John Malkovich were phenomenal and those costumes (!!!) and I just have a love for the story. I haven’t had the pleasure of reading Ms. Scott’s other novels, but I am planning to start with this one. It’s exciting to me to see a woman of…

[bookclub4m]

22 “Literary Fan Fiction” (retellings, adaptations, sequels, parallel novels, etc.) books by BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour) Authors

Every month Book Club for Masochists: A Readers’ Advisory Podcasts chooses a genre at random and we read and discuss books from that genre. We also put together book lists for each episode/genre that feature works by BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, & People of Colour) authors. All of the lists can be found here.

For this booklist, the original story being retold/referenced appears (in parentheses).

Telling Tales by Patience Agbabi (Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer)

The Adventures of China Iron by Gabriela Cabezón Cámara (El Gaucho Martín Fierro by José Hernández)

The Family Chao by Lan Samantha Chang (The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky)

Windward Heights by Maryse Condé (Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë)

The Meursault Investigation by Kamel Daoud (The Stranger by Albert Camus)

Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal (Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen)

Sex and Vanity by Kevin Kwan (A Room With a View by E.M. Forster)

The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor LaValle (The Horror of Red Hook by H.P. Lovecraft)

The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (The Island of Doctor Moreau by H.G. Wells)

The Holder of the World by Bharati Mukherjee (The Scarlet Letter by Nataniel Hawthorne and the Ramayana by Valmiki)

Mama Day by Gloria Naylor (The Tempest by William Shakespeare)

Even in Paradise by Elizabeth Nunez (King Lear by William Shakespeare)

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh (The Tale of Shim Ch'ŏng)

Kaikeyi by Vaishnavi Patel (The Ramayana by Valmiki)

The Wind Done Gone by Alice Randall (Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell)

My Jim by Nancy Rawles (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)

Son of a Trickster by Eden Robinson (Wee'git stories)

Unforgivable Love by Sophfronia Scott (Les Liaisons Dangereuses by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos)

The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nghi Vo (The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald)

Prince of Cats by Ron Wimberly (Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare)

Sansei and Sensibility by Karen Tei Yamashita (Various works by Jane Austen)

Pride by Ibi Zoboi (Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen)

[gjacksarkwen314]

Unforgivable Love By: Sophfronia Scott | Review

Unforgivable Love By: Sophfronia Scott | Review

Unforgivable Love: A Retelling of Dangerous Liaisons By: Sophfronia Scott Rating: 4.5 stars Genre: Historical Fiction, Retellings, Romance, Release Date: September 26, 2017 Publisher: William Morrow/ HarperCollins HarperCollins | Amazon | Barnes & Noble| Book Depository Synopsis: “A dazzlingly dark and engaging tale full of heartbreak, treachery, and surprise.” – Kirkus In this vivid reimagining…

[revmeg]

If we instinctively seek a paradisical and special place on earth, it is because we know in our inmost hearts that the earth was given us in order that we might find meaning, order, truth, and salvation in init. The world is not only a vale of tears. There is joy in it somewhere. Joy is to be sought, for the glory of God.

Thomas Merton quoted in The Seeker and the Monk: Everyday Conversations with Thomas Merton by Sophfronia Scott, p. 64

[grammarlyapp]

<b>Writers</b>' Day returns to Bay Path University

LONGMEADOW – For the 17th time on April 15, writers from around the region will gather at Bay Path University for a day of instruction and networking. This session will feature Karol Jackowski, Sophfronia Scott, Lisa Romeo, Suzanne Strempek Shea and Jonathan Green. Novelist and journalist ... https://ift.tt/2uRPpQs

[macmillanusa]

MACMILLAN PUBLISHERS AT AWP 2017!

Visit us at AWP’s 2017 conference in Washington D.C.! We have an awesome lineup of authors and events that you won’t want to miss.

Be sure to visit Booth 682 for information and books, February 9-11!

9:00am: Amanda Petrusich joins panel for Dylanology (Capitol and Congress - Marriot Marquis); Meghan Daum gives a reading of Selfish, Shallow, and Self Absorbed (Room 203AB); Sarah Blake appears in “Global Narratives Within US Literature” panel (Room 204AB)

10:30am: Steven Sherrill joins panel “Leashing the Beast: Humanizing Fictional Monsters” (Capitol and Congress - Marriot Marquis); Alice Anderson appears in “But That’s Not How It Was: Memoir Writers on Pushing Back Against Expected Narratives” panel (AWP Bookfair Stage, Exhibit Halls D & E)

12:00pm: Chris Abani appears in “Not Just Novelists: On Publishing Contemporary African Poets” (Marquis Salon 6); Ruthanna Emrys and Kij Johnson join panel “The Infinite in the Finite: One Hundred Years of H.P. Lovecraft’s Legacy” (Liberty Salon I, J, and K); Dinty W. Moore appears in “The Multiheaded Beast: Challenging Genre in Creative Nonfiction” (Capitol and Congress - Marriot Marquis); Kelly Luce appears on “A Field Guide for the Craft of Fiction: Finding Structure” (Virginia Barber Middleton Stage); Christa Parravani joins panel “Write Your Memoir like a Novel” (Room 202A)

Also at 1:30pm: Gayle Brandeis joins panel “Speaking of the Dead: Craft & Ethics in Nonfiction” (Archives - Marriot Marquis)

Also at 3:00pm: Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich appears on “The New New New Journalism: Reporting with the I” (Marquis Salon 1 & 2); Deb Olin Unferth joins teaching roundtable “ R239. Together with All That Could Happen” (Marquis Salon 12 & 13); Meghan Daum appears on “Mommy Dearest/Daughter Darling: Putting Words in Her Mouth” (Liberty Salon N, O, & P); Joy Harjo and Amy Stolls join panel “Transforming Adverse Audiences to Verse: Lessons Learned from the NEA Big Read” (Room 102B); Joy Castro appears on “Celebrating 15 Years of American Lives: A University of Nebraska Press Reading” (Room 203AB)

4:30pm: Michael Byers joins the “Science in Literary and Mainstream Fiction: A New Wave” panel (Room 101)

6:00pm: Simone Zelitich appears in “Two-Year College Creative Writing Caucus” (Room 204C)

9:00am: Gayle Brandeis, Caroline Levitt, and Christa Parravani appear on “Can You Go Home Again?” (Marquis Salon 1 & 2); Rachel Dewoskin joins panel “Home: A Four-Letter Word” (Liberty Salon N, O, & P); Julia Fierro appears on “A Novelist’s Job: The Realities, Joys, and Challenges” (Room 203AB); Kristen Dombek appears on “Shape-Shifting and Writers' Centers” (Room 204C)

10:30am: Yusef Komunyakaa appears on “Outward in Larger Terms: Adrienne Rich's Collected Poems” (Marquis Salon 5); Thrity Umrigar appears on, “Writing the Dual Self: Opening Spaces for Hybrid Identities” (Marquis Salon 7 & 8); Nayomi Munaweera joins panel  "I’ve Never Heard of That Country: Sri Lankan American Writers on Shaping an Emerging Literary Identity” (Monument-Marriott Marquis); Deb Olin Unferth appears on “Novels and Short Stories: How a Narrative Finds Its Form” (Liberty Salon N, O, & P); Anne Finger joins panel “Body of Work: Exploring Disability, Creativity, and Inclusivity “ (Room 203AB); Helen Phillips gives a reading on “Crafty: Four City University of New York MFA Graduates Read from Their Work” (Room 204AB)

12:00pm: Tyler McMahon joins panel “Peace Corps Writers: Crossing Borders, Spanning Genres” (Marquis Salon 1 & 2); Daniel Torday does a reading for the West Branch 40th Anniversary Reading (Marquis Salon 3 & 4); Amy Stolls appears on “Advice to Nonprofit Organizations Seeking Funding from the NEA” (Room 102B)

1:30pm: James Thomas appears on “From Flash Fiction to Microfiction: How Many Words Are Enough?” (Marquis Salon 3 & 4); Rakesh Satyal joins panel “Beyond the Book Deal: What Really Happens When a Publisher Signs Up Your Book” (Marquis Salon 6); Joy Castro appears on “Latina Memoir: Writing a New Chapter of the American Experience” ( Liberty Salon M); Brin-Jonathan Butler appears on “The Art of Rendering Sports into Writing, a Multigenre Discussion” (Monument-Marriott Marquis); Lisa Roney appears on “Foremothers: Southern Women Writers” (Liberty Salon I, J, & K); Kathleen Rooney joins panel “Surviving the End Times: Finishing a First, Second, or Fifth Book” (Marquis Salon 6)

3:00pm: Margot Livesey appears on “The Village of Your Novel” (Room 207B); Amy Stolls joins panel “Conversation about the Economy of Art (the Gift, the Market, the Puzzle)” (Room 202B)

4:30pm: Caroline Bock appears on “Young Adult Literature: A Political and Social Revolution” (Liberty Salon L)

6:00pm: Simone Zelitch joins panel “Two-Year College Creative Writing Caucus” (Room 204C)

9:00am: Alice Anderson appears on “Social Media: Breaking Barriers for the Marginalized, the Remote, and the Academic Outsider” (Room 204C); Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich appears on “Murder She Wrote: Women Writers on Writing Violence” (Liberty Salon I, J, & K); Derek Nikitas appears on “A PhD Program in an MFA World” (Marquis Salon 7 & 8)

10:30am: Caroline Bock joins panel “Get in Formation: Form in Young Adult Literature” (Liberty Salon N, O, & P); Traci L. Jones and Sophfronia Scott appear on “Writing White Characters” (Archives-Marriott Marquis); Kyoko Mori appears on “Does Gender Matter? Wrestling with Identity and Form in the Golden Age of Women’s Essays” (Marquis Salon 1 & 2); Frank X. Walker appears on “Subverting Reality: Using Real People in Fictionalized Settings” (Marquis Salon 3 & 4)

12:00pm: Geoffrey Brock appears on “What's Found in Translation” (Marquis Salon 12 & 13); Vicki Hendricks appears on “Such Mean Stories: Women Writers Get Gritty” (Room 202A); Yusef Komunyakaa and Robert Pinsky appear on “21st-Century Troubadours” (Ballroom B); Helen Phillips joins panel “Writing the Abyss: Turning Grim Reality into Good Fiction” (Marquis Salon 1 & 2); Irina Reyn appears on “Immigrants/Children of Immigrants: A Nontraditional Path to a Writing Career” (Liberty Salon N, O, & P)

1:30pm: David Odhiambo appears on “Narratives of Immigration and Displacement” (Liberty Salon N, O, & P); Lisa Roney joins panel “Practicum and Beyond: Publishing Courses and Literary Citizenship” (Marquis Salon 6); Laurel Snyder appears on “No Easy Readers: On the Art and Craft of Writing for Children” (Marquis Salon 3 & 4)

3:00pm: Garth Greenwell joins panel “Socially Conscious Fiction: Writing That Can Change the World”  (Liberty Salon L); Louis Bayard appears on “Wayfaring Stranger: Writing Away from Our Experience” (Marquis Salon 7 & 8)

4:30pm: Sarah Blake, Sarah Domet, and Kathleen Rooney join panel “Attempting the Impossible: Strategies for Writing Creative Biography” (Room 101); Geoffrey Brock joins “Us & Them: A Writer/Translator Reading “ (Marquis Salon 6)

8:30pm: Margot Livesey joins “A Reading and Conversation with Margot Livesey and Colum McCann, Sponsored by Arts & Letters / Georgia College” (Ballroom C)