Post AWP
Now that I’ve had a moment to decompress a bit from AWP, catch up on sleep, etc., I feel like I can get back into the full swing of things. It was lovely to catch up with folks from grad school, be around a great community of writers, and generally soak up the literary vibes. My biggest problem with the conference was that too many cool things were going on simultaneously, which meant I had to pick and choose what I attended. A good problem to have.
The main drag of the book fair
The panels this year focused a lot on connection to traditionally underrepresented communities within literature, such as people of color, women, and LGBTQ folks, and a lot of artistic angst against the established systems. The politics of resistance and how it intersects with literature. There were a lot of tributes to recently passed writers, such as Ursula K. Le Guin. I attended a lovely panel on Native American women’s lit, and another on Asian ghosts in literature.
I also had an amazing run-in with the current staff of Silk Road, a literary magazine that I acted as managing editor and graphic designer for its first issue, and which is now on issue 20! Was super cool to see something I loved continue on in good hands.
Somehow I managed to get away from the book fair with only two purchases. How did that happen? Oh yeah, I have student loans still.
I even got a little bit of writing done, putting together five or six pages on Matrika volume 2. Hopefully I can maintain that momentum heading into summer!