The Eleventh National Black Writers Conference - March 29, 2012 – April 1, 2012

I first attended this conference, held at Medgar Evers Collegs in Brooklyn, NY, in 2008. I enjoyed the experience and vibe (still thinking about this tasty vegetarian restaurant across the street), and found the discussions and workshops informative and motivating. While I haven't been able to attend since, I haven't forgotten about this conference and would like to attend the next one, Thursday, March 29, 2012—Sunday, April 1, 2012.

I wanted to share the program details in case it should interest someone enough to register and hear passionate roundtable discussions on The Impact of Migration, Popular Culture, and the Natural Environment in the Literature of Black Writers.

Here's what they have planned for participants:

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Pre-Conference Activities

Spoken Word Workshop
Sponsored by the NBWC and PEN American Center
Edison O. Jackson Auditorium, Medgar Evers College

Youth Programs

10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Workshop, readings, and program activities for elementary, middle-school and high-school students.
Founders Auditorium, Medgar Evers College

Call for Papers: Presentations

10:00 a.m. to 3:15 p.m.

Exploring Themes in the Works of John Oliver Killens, Ishmael Reed, and Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o

Poetry Café

6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Sponsored by the Central Brooklyn Public Library

Friday, March 30, 2012

Film Screenings: Selected films and shorts based on literary themes
11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Edison O. Jackson Auditorium, Medgar Evers College

Elders Writing Workshop

4:00 p.m.–5:30 p.m.

Elders Writers Workshop Presentation
Edison O. Jackson Auditorium, Medgar Evers College

Official Conference Opening

7:00 p.m.–8:30 p.m.

Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, Featured Speaker and Honoree
Founders Auditorium, Medgar Evers College

Concert: Off-Site Event
9:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m.

Jazz concert and cultural program

Saturday, March 31, 2012

NBWC Reading Series

12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

The National Black Writers Conference Reading Series is sponsored by the African American Literature Book Club, the Brooklyn Literary Council, Mosaic magazine, the National Black Writers Conference.

Panels and Roundtable Discussions

Defining “Urban,” “Street,” and “Hip-Hop” Literature: Its Evolution and Impact on American Culture

11:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m.

This panel is based on the concept that the publishing industry, mainly mainstream, and some writers and editors, have labeled “urban literature,” “street lit,” and/or “hip-hop literature as stories with an urban setting that portray the gritty side of black American life. Moreover, they have viewed the new crop of black writers of this literature as not being “literary” and have often characterized their stories as poorly written. Yet, for years, black writers such as Donald Goines, Iceberg Slim, and Chester Himes wrote books that fit into what might be called “urban literature.” Yet white writers such as Richard Price, author of the raw street novel Clockers, and Hubert Selby, author of Last Exit to Brooklyn, wrote books with urban-based themes. These writers did not have their texts so categorized. Are urban-based stories by white writers classified differently than urban-based stories by the new group of black writers? How much does the craft of writing play in the manner in which the books are defined? Who determines the definition? Should we broaden our definitions and understanding of urban literature?
Is this literature here to stay or is it just a fad? We want the participants on this panel to discuss the origins of urban-themed stories, what constitutes them, how are they defined today and what impact these stories reveal about contemporary American culture.

Migration and Cultural Memory in the Literature of Black Writers

1 p.m.–2:30 p.m.
Sponsored by the Pan-African Literary Forum

The globalization of today’s society and the migration of black writers to various parts of the African Diaspora have had an impact on our definitions of black writers and on the literature they produce. One theme central to the literature of black writers throughout the African Diaspora is the value of cultural memory. Cultural memories convey the spirit, language, traditions, music, art, history, values, and belief systems of a people. When there is no cultural memory, there is no way for people to survive. The writers on this panel will examine the ways in which black writers who move back and forth among the geographical boundaries of the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Europe define themselves across cultural boundaries and represent and analyze cultural memory in the literature they produce.

The Impact of Popular Culture on Politics in the Literature of Black Writers
5:00 p.m.–6:30 p.m.

We live in a society constructed by politics and our nation has developed a political consciousness that informs our elections, our media, our literature, our films, our economy, and our global interactions with the world. Our civil rights, religious, and societal movements are informed by politics. Politics is often at the center of our lives. As citizens of this country, we continually examine the impact of politics in our lives. Black writers have always responded to politics through the critical analysis of politics in the government, popular culture, and world economy and through the creation of political thrillers, suspense stories, and cautionary tales. The panelists will discuss the impact of politics in the literature of black writers from these varying perspectives.

Tribute and Awards Program

7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Founders Auditorium, Medgar Evers College
1650 Bedford Ave.
Brooklyn, NY 11225

VIP Reception
ABI Bldg., Medgar Evers College
1638 Bedford Ave.
Brooklyn, NY 11225

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Talkshops

10:00 a.m.–11:15 a.m. Fiction; Poetry; Book Reviews

11:30 a.m.–12:45 p.m. Dramatic Writing; Creative Nonfiction; Book Proposals

Panels and Roundtable Discussions

Black Writers and Ecoliterature: Stories, Essays, and Poetry Shaped by the Natural Environment

12:00 p.m.–1:30 p.m.

As our global society becomes smaller and the impact of global warming and natural disasters are magnified, issues of conservation and the need to protect the natural habitat and the environment have become more pressing. Black writers have responded to these issues in varying ways. Through their novels, essays, poetry, short stories and plays, they have written cautionary tales that prepare us for what will happen if we do not protect the environment and their works have raised public awareness about crises such as war, famine, and natural disasters. Writers on this panel will discuss the literature that raises public awareness about the need to restore life-sustaining communities.

The Role of Social Media: Black Writers Take Literature to the Web

2 p.m.–3:30 p.m.

The use of the social media for marketing, promoting, and publishing in the writing world is well documented. There is an argument that social media techniques have leveled the playing field and have helped to make the writing and publishing of books more accessible for all writers. The writers on this panel will discuss the implications of the Internet for black writers and the ways in which the Internet can be used and/or has been used to affect the marketing and kind of writing produced by black writers.

Being Sold or Selling Ourselves: Black Writers and the Marketplace

4:00 p.m.– 5:30 p.m.

Black writers face a number of challenges in the publishing industry. Publishers, for example, often believe that there is no audience for serious literary fiction. The literature created by black writers is often narrowly defined, thus resulting in the fact that black writers are marginalized from mainstream presses and forced to either self-publish or publish with small independent presses. The literary industry professionals on this panel, from mainstream, independent and small presses, discuss these challenges and offer their perspectives on solutions for overcoming these obstacles.