Diane Lefer's Blog

Hello and goodbye to my visitors.

I’m no longer maintaining the blog but I won’t delete any of the older posts in case any are of interest to anyone.

Be well!

Ripe Fiction pairs fiction with news stories. Yesterday, on International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, they published the shortest story I’ve ever written.

Show the children’s bodies. Show them next to a photo of a deer shot by a hunter. Then tell me why any American civilian needs or has the right to weapons of war.

So Shepherd Books asked me to recommend five books that I could relate to my own obsessions and my novel Out of Place. I could have said so much more about these books (and added others), but the word limits were strict! https://shepherd.com/best-books/for-recovering-erased-history

I am so happy to see the third volume of Among Animals is now out from Ashland Creek Press, publishers of beautiful work about the environment and natural world. Thank you, Midge Raymond and John Yunker for including one of my stories. (And to Naomi Racz for publishing it first in Stonecrop Review).

https://ashlandcreekpress.com/books/amonganimals3.html

If you had hoped to catch our reading and discussion this morning but the date and hour made it impossible, the 90-minute event was recorded and is available here to view, if you wish, at your convenience.

I had previously read two of Ibrahim Nasrallah’s novels but still was not prepared for the overwhelming power and beauty of his poetry. He read in Arabic with the English translation on the screen, so we non-Arabic speakers could appreciate the meaning and use of language while also having the benefit of the sound and rhythm of his poetry.

Thank you, Allison Hedge Coke and the UCR Writers Week Festival for making this possible, to Playwright Esther Banegas Gatica for introducing me, and writers Hannah Roberts and K. Quyen Pham for hosting the session and asking great questions.

Wednesday 2.16 at 6:30 PM (PST)As part of the UCR Writers Festival, register here Richard Van Camp, Isabella Madrigal, & Sophia Madrigal – Crowdcast to hear three Indigenous storytellers: Richard Van Camp (Dogrib Tłı̨chǫ writer of the Dene nation, Canada) and Isabella Madrigal and Sophia Madrigal (enrolled members of the Cahuilla Band of Indians and of Turtle Mountain Chippewa descent)

I hope some of you can join me Thursday, Feb 17th at 10:00 AM (Pacific time) when I’m honored to be paired, at the UCR Writers Week Festival, with Ibrahim Nasrallah, the internationally acclaimed Palestinian author who will be Zooming in from his home in Jordan. Here’s the link: Diane Lefer & Ibrahim Nasrallah – Crowdcast

(I posted a different link and hour a few days ago, showing me appearing for the 6:30 PM session. Programming an international festival can get tricky and the schedule had to be juggled at almost the last minute, so please disregard earlier notices.)

If you can’t make Thursday at 10 AM but do want to hear us, I believe Crowdcast will keep the video available on their website.

And while you’re at it, do check out the complete schedule for the Festival. All sessions are free and captioned and with ASL interpretation and each must be registered for separately.

Enjoy!

Diane

In Mexico, today is the Day of Love and Friendship, so in that spirit, I wish a happy day to all!

But I’m looking forward to tomorrow to these sessions coming up at the UCR Writers Week Festival that I’ve been posting about.

First, at 2:00 PM (Pacific Time), two writers I admire so much for their written work and also for their contributions to the community: Allison Hedge Coke (who is also directing this amazing weeklong festival) and Luis Rodriguez. Register here

Then, at 6:30, join me when Cornelius Eady offers his poetry and the music of his trio, and Rupa Marya also performs liberation music with her group. She is author, doctor, professor and activist and I really want to hear what she has to say about her mission to decolonize medicine. Register here

And please stay tuned as my session may be rescheduled and I may be posting a new link and time soon!

The UCR Writers Week Festival, beginning Feb 12, has such a fabulous lineup, it means a lot to me I get to be part of the 4th session on Feb 17th. Please join me, virtually, but really, seriously, check out the whole schedule and register, free, for as many sessions as you possibly can! Schedule 2022

Thursday, Feb 17th at 6:30 PM PST, I’ll be with Australian eco-poet John Kinsella and Chinese author Luo Ying. We’ll start off reading excerpts from our work, then there will be a Q&A with audience.

Thank you, Allison Hedge Coke!