1 – 2:15 PM—Literary Discussion WORLD EDITIONS PRESENTS SASKIA DeCOSTER, ANNELIES VERBEKE, AND KRISTIEN HEMMERECHTS The Festival is pleased to partner with World Editions in presenting three distinguished Belgian authors. Saskia de Coster is the author of seven novels, and her most recent work, the Cutting Edge award-winning, We and Me, is newly translated and…

1 – 2:15 PM—Literary Discussion POETRY PANEL TBD Hotel Monteleone, Royal Ballroom, $10 or Literary Discussion, Combo, or VIP Pass

2:30 – 3:45 PM—Literary Discussion MAKING AN ENTRANCE: MEET OUR DEBUT NOVELISTS One of the thrills of reading is discovering a new voice, a new sensibility. These four novelists have made great entrances onto the literary scene during the past year. Bryan Camp has added a new layer of supernatural fantasy to the New Orleans…

2:30 – 3:45 PM—Literary Discussion DILLARD HUMANITIES STUDENTS PRESENT: FOLKLORE IN SOUTHERN DRAMA This discussion and presentation showcases dramatic literature that emphasizes the use of folklore as a major component of performative text. In The Purification by Tennessee Williams, folklore becomes a driving force that unravels a tale of haunting revenge. Dirt Bleeds, a contemporary…

2:30 – 3:45 PM—Literary Discussion THE FICTIONAL TENNESSEE: WILLIAMS PORTRAYED IN CREATIVE FICTION AND DRAMA Once a writer becomes a cultural fixture, he or she is portrayed in popular culture, including creative fiction. Perhaps the first instance for Williams was Donald Windham’s roman à clef, The Hero Continues (1960) and most famously as the thinly…

4 – 5:15 PM—Literary Discussion The National Book Foundation presents: THE POWER OF SEXUALITY IN CONTEMPORARY LITERATURE WITH GARTH GREENWELL AND JUSTIN PHILLIP REED In the Western world, sexuality is regularly demonized and shamed, making the subject difficult to navigate. But more and more, contemporary writing challenges this taboo, recognizing that desire in literature can…

10 – 11:15 AM—Literary Discussion WHEN HISTORY LENDS ITSELF TO FICTION Why do we love historical fiction? Is it the rich atmosphere of bygone days, the thrill of discovering unknown stories, the way we are transported to other places, other times? These four novelists tell us how they work: Hannah Pittard, who explores the impact…

11:30 AM – 12:45 PM—Literary Discussion LITERARY REPUTATIONS IN MOTION This is the happy Age of Literary Recovery. In recent years, the works of lesser known or all-but-forgotten writers like Lucia Berlin, Solomon Northup, Clarice Lispector, George Schuyler, Tess Schlesinger, and Sui Sin Far have been given new life in reprint editions, films, and museum…

11:30 AM – 12:45 PM—Literary Discussion WELCOME HOME: IMMIGRANTS AND IMMIGRANT CULTURE IN NEW ORLEANS As a port city, New Orleans has long welcomed members of various cultures to our population. Loyola professor Justin Nystrom has followed the culinary and cultural fortunes of Italians, Tulane professor Mark VanLandingham has studied the resilience of the Vietnamese,…

10 – 11:15 AM—Literary Discussion TAKE ME AWAY: CELEBRATING A SENSE OF PLACE Readers rely on books to transport them to places they fantasize about, places they hope to see, and sometimes to celebrate the places they know well. These panelists shine with their knowledge of setting: in Acid West, Josh Wheeler takes us to…