In a month I’ll be packing for AWP Tampa, where I’ll be taking part in a panel called Faith, Fervor, and Fundamentalism: How Writers Are Impacted By Their Religious Beliefs. I’ll be presenting with Yvonne Brown, Garrard Conley, Sabrina Orah Mark, and Daniel Khalastchi. Each of us will read a short selection of our work, and then we will discuss questions such as how is writing impacted by one’s faith of origin? If a writer no longer practices their faith of origin, what aspects remain?
The five of us grew up practicing Islam, Judaism, and fundamentalist Christianity. We work in poetry, prose, and hybrid forms. We hope to discuss how our faith of origin can be a source of inspiration, illumination, or darkness, and plan to examine how we use the teachings of our faith to reclaim the stories that need to be told.
This panel will take place in Grand Salon D, Marriott Waterside, Second Floor on Thursday, March 8, 2018 from 1:30 pm to 2:45 pm. See you there!