Tulsa

The crowd cheers for a performance during Tulsa LitFest 2023.

 

The free Tulsa LitFest 2024 will bring local creatives together at venues across Tulsa on April 18-21. The festival features events including book and poetry readings, author talks and workshops, as well as open mic nights, trivia, musical performances and a local author and small press book fair presented in a variety of bookstores, taprooms and cultural centers near downtown.

 

“LitFest is made for all flavors of creatives, writers and book enthusiasts,” said Lindsey Smith, director of the Center for Poets and Writers at OSU-Tulsa. “We, as a community of creatives, wanted to create a space where you can discover and collaborate with cool people doing cool things. Whether you want to learn how to craft comics and write screenplays, check out readings from some amazing authors, or you just want to browse through the books at the small press and Indigenous book fairs, LitFest is made for you.”

 

Registration is required for select events, such as the screenwriting workshop hosted at Oklahoma State University-Tulsa. All events are free with the exception of the jazz show “Bitter Crop: A Reading and Tribute to Billie Holiday,” which takes place at Fassler Hall downtown on April 21, with a ticket price of $15.

 

This year’s special guest highlights include readings from Terrance Hayes, Mona Susan Power and RJ Joseph.

 

Hayes is a National Book Award winner, MacArthur Foundation Genius Award recipient and Guggenheim Fellow, among many other accolades. His most recent publications include a collection of poems, “So To Speak,” and collection of essays, “Watch Your Language. American Sonnets for My Past and Future Assassin” and “To Float in the Space Between: Drawings and Essays in Conversation with Etheridge Knight” were released in 2018.

 

Power, a member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, is the author of four award-winning books of fiction, including “The Grass Dancer,” “Roofwalker,” “Sacred Wilderness” and “A Council of Dolls.” She is a graduate of Harvard College, Harvard Law School and the Iowa Writers' Workshop.

 

Joseph is a Stoker Award nominated, Texas-based writer and professor whose writing regularly focuses on the intersections of gender and race in the horror and romance genres and popular culture. She has had works published in various venues, including the 2020 Halloween issue of “Southwest Review” and “The Streaming of Hill House: Essays on the Haunting” Netflix Series.

 

Smith, Whitty Books owner Victoria Moore, Tri-City Collective founding member Quraysh Ali Lansana and Fulton Street Books owner Onikah Asamoa-Caesar serve as the leadership team, working together to provide eclectic and original opportunities for local creators, as well as a platform for indie authors and artists.

 

“Working alongside these community leaders to shine a spotlight on creativity and storytelling is truly an honor,” Smith said. “We’re all excited to come together and celebrate the wealth of talent in our community and beyond.”

 

For a full schedule of events and workshop pre-registration, visit tulsalitfest.org.