LITERARY FESTIVALS: GETTING OUT AND ABOUT AMONG MY FELLOW LATINA/O AUTHORS!

October has been a literary feast for me and for many of my friends and colleagues who also happen to be authors. Here's the lineup of places I've been this month, plus some writers with whom I had the pleasure of appearing and who were great to talk to:

                                OCTOBER 2:  DUARTE (CA) FESTIVAL OF AUTHORS

Set in a beautiful senior residential complex, we were among tall pine trees, winding paths, and green patches of grass that define the parklike boundaries of the complex. Approximately 75 authors participated, but only about 7 are Hispanic. Two of us--my son, Victor Cass, and I--spoke on a panel. Our topic was "Mystery and Fiction." 

The following Latinos were participants in this well-regarded festival:

• Alex Moreno Areyan, author of Images of America: Mexican-Americans in Los Angeles (Arcadia Publishing, 2010):  Through hundreds of archival photos and meticulous narrative, the book chronicles 100 years of contributions by Mexican-Americans  to the development of L.A., including iconic U.S. Congressman Edward R. Roybal. Alex also participated in the prestigious 13th Annual Los Angeles Latino Book & Family Festival (see below).
• Victor Cass, author of Telenovela (Outskirts Press, 2009);  Love, Death, & Other War Stories (iUniverse, 2005); and Pasadena Police Department: A Photohistory, 1877-2000 (Herff-Jones, 2000):  Victor's newest book, Telenovela, is a fast-paced, engrossing romantic comedy/drama in which two beautiful daughters of immigrants form a deep friendship that withstands romantic troubles with a mutual love interest.
• Randy Jurado Ertll, author of the memoir, Hope in Times of Darkness: A Salvadoran-American's Experience (Hamilton Books, 2009):  Randy's book details his hardships in violence-torn El Salvador and his rise to a better life when he emigrated to America as an adolescent, though he first had to survive life in a gang-torn section of Los Angeles. His journey is filled with political insights and courage.
• Vanessa Libertad Garcia, author of The Voting Booth After Dark: Despicable, Embarrassing, Repulsive (Fiat Libertad Co., 2009): Vanessa's book details the angst of young, gay Latinas and Latinos in Los Angeles against the backdrop of the 2008 American presidential election campaign. She alternates between poetry and prose vignettes to capture her characters' desperation, romantic interludes, and realizations about life.
• Roberta Martinez, author of Images of America: Latinos in Pasadena (Arcadia Publishing, 2009):  From the early unheralded pioneers, men and women, who helped found Pasadena, to the various leaders and community activists who helped shape Pasadena into the world-class city it is today, Roberta teaches us some modern history that is often ignored in local classrooms.
• Philip Victor (Philip Victor Colon), author of Jaguar Spirit ; Soul Assassin; and other graphic novels (Aerosol Press: 2004, for these two):  A Puerto-Rican American writer from East L.A., Philip is an award-winning comic book writer who also produces and publishes his novels. His creations are based on Mayan mythology, are bilingual, and are appropriate for readers of all ages.

I'm the seventh Latino author at the Duarte Festival. My book, The Heavens Weep for Us and Other Stories (Outskirts Press, 2009), has been positively reviewed by various Latina/o authors. It is a compilation of 12 short stories set  mostly in Texas, California, and Chicago. You can learn more about it on my author website at http://www.thelmareyna.com/, which includes its title story in its entirety, as well as samples of my other publications.



Victor Cass



Vanessa Libertad Garcia

Below: Randy Ertll & Roberta Martinez (l-r)

                                   LOS ANGELES LATINO BOOK & FAMILY FESTIVAL

 On the weekend of October 9 & 10, the campus of California State University, Los Angeles, became the stage for the largest gathering of Latina/o published authors in the history of the United States. Over 120 authors from all over America came together to serve on panel discussions, solo presentations, and booth displays of their books. Previously described on this site, the festival was a huge success with strongly established pioneer Hispanic authors, emerging writers, and everyone in between sharing their collective experiences and creativity with thousands of attendees that represented the spectrum of multicultural, multigenerational America. There were readings, signings, and Q&A's galore! Indeed, this was the literary feast of the year.

 Here are some photos of participating authors:



Working hard and having fun!



Award-winning nonfiction author,
Laura Contreras-Rowe (r)



I served as moderator on a panel with the following
engaging authors, from l-r:
David Bueno-Hill, Vanessa Libertad Garcia,

Manny Pacheco, & Ed Rodriguez 



I felt very honored to meet Chuy Ramirez, Texas author of Strawberry Fields,
a very thoughtful, poignant novel about a family of migrant workers
whose children rise above their poverty and come to understand
the dichotomies of their bi-cultural world.

                                        

    Here are the wonderful women of Teatro Chicana:
A Collective Memoir & Selected Plays--
(l-r) Felicitas Nunez, Delia Rodriguez, &
Laura Garcia with me, their fan!
(Felicitas, Laura, & Sandra Gutierrez, not shown,
were the editors of the book.)
                                                                                                                                                                                                           *                *                 *

One of the highlights of this year's Latino Books & Family Festival was the presentation of the First Annual "Latino Books into Movies Awards," an exciting new venture. Two or three books were chosen in several different movie categories (Action & Adventure; Animation; Comedy; Documentary; Drama; Kids & Family; Romantic Comedy; and Suspense & Mystery). Professionals in the entertainment industry served as judges and selected winners and runners-up. Click here to read all about it: http://www.box.net/shared/avl3g1fhpx#/shared/avl3g1fhpx/1/53508294/522850838/1
Congratulations to these authors whose works we may someday see on the "big screen."

 All in all, these two author festivals gave our Southern California community ample exposure to some of the greatest literary talents in Latino literature today. I was humbled and honored to have been included in their company and came away inspired and motivated to learn more about my colleagues. Kudos to author Reyna Grande and to Cal State LA Professor Roberto Cantu, Ph.D., for their leadership in organizing and staging the Latino Book & Family Festival, with the collaboration and support of their outstanding team of volunteers, including Latino Literacy leader, Jim Sullivan.

THE LARGEST GATHERING OF LATINA/O PUBLISHED AUTHORS IN OUR NATION'S HISTORY!

We Latino authors are so fortunate to live in Southern California. Other than the remarkable weather, access to culture, wonderful population diversity, forward-thinking mindset, artistic ambience, etc. etc. that Californians usually rave about, there is one even more important reason to celebrate California:

American literary history will be made in Los Angeles on the weekend of October 9 and 10, 2010, at the 13th Annual Latino Book & Family Festival (LBFF).

Why? More than 130 of us Latina/o published authors will come together at this event to present workshops and panel discussions, do book readings and signings, and dialogue with readers and fans. This is one of the largest literary festivals in America, but definitely the one with the largest contingent of Hispanic authors.

This public event is free and highly popular with mult-cultural and multi-generational audiences growing in number each year. It will be held at California State University, Los Angeles. Though a large number of the Festival's writers live and work in California, several are coming from other parts of our country, such as two Texans--Chuy Ramirez, whose new book was recently reviewed on this site; and Daniel Chacon, a lauded fiction writer who teaches at the University of Texas, El Paso--and a novelist and short fiction writer from Arizona, Stella Pope Duarte.

Great Diversity of Publications

The Festival authors represent the spectrum of genres in literature: novels and novellas, short stories, poetry, drama, screenplays, children's literature, young adult literature, memoirs, essays and other nonfiction, graphic novels (comic books), scholarly writing, and so on. Many of the Festival's writers are prize-winning authors, such as:

• the Festival's Director, novelist Reyna Grande
• novelist Montserrat Fontes  
• Pulitzer-Prize finalist Sonia Nazario
• emerging historian and longtime radio personality, Manny Pacheco
• poet and fiction writer, Melinda Palacio
• New York Times best-selling "chick lit" author, Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez.

Many more award-winning writers will be present at the festival, including established, renowned authors such as Daniel Olivas; and emerging young adult literature author, Sandra Lopez. You'll learn more about this exciting pool of talent at the Festival. Read on....

Some Latino Literary Icons: Luis Rodriguez & Victor Villasenor

One of the early modern Latino writers in our country, author of 14 books and countless other writings--including fiction, poetry, and nonfiction--Luis Rodriguez'  astounding literary career has spanned over 30 years. He has published in every major genre, and has conducted countless workshops and book talks in venues spanning academic settings, community settings, prisons, and Native American reservations. Luis is perhaps best known for his 1993 memoir, Always Running: La Vida Loca, which has sold more than 300,000 copies; has won numerous awards, including the Carl Sandburg Literary Award; has been adapted into plays performed across America; and was performed for two years as a play at Los Angeles' famed Mark Taper Forum.

Luis' website (http://www.luisjrodriguez.com/bio) details the many media appearances he has made, including appearances on PBS and the Oprah Winfrey Show. He has been interviewed and his works have been reviewed by major media, including the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Christian Science Monitor, Entertainment Weekly, LA Magazine, and La Opinion. Luis is often considered one of the leading Chicano writers in the United States today.

Another literary icon who will be present at the LBFF next month is Victor Villasenor, best-selling, Pulitzer-Prize nominated author of Burro Genius. Victor's highly-acclaimed Rain of Gold, a book inspired by his family that took him 16 years to research and write, will be part of an HBO mini-series scheduled for filming in Spring 2011. His website (http://www.victorvillasenor.com/ ) also talks of his "nine novels, 65 short stories, and 265 rejections" prior to selling his first novel, Macho!, which has been compared to the writing of Nobel-Prize winning American author, John Steinbeck.

Victor's long literary career has been an inspiration to many generations of Mexican-Americans and others. His works are studied in schools across America, and he was featured as an "American Latino TV Hero" in May 2010. In addition to his novels, Victor has written short stories, nonfiction, and the screenplay for "The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez," which starred Edward James Olmos.

The Authors in Action: Workshops and Panel Discussions

On Saturday, October 9, panel discussions (with almost all of them having 5-6 authors) will begin at 11 a.m. and end at 6 p.m. Then, on Sunday, October 10, the same timeframe will be followed, with these panel presentations lasting one hour each. In almost every time slot, four panels will be going on simultaneously in different rooms of Salazar Hall on the campus. See the website for a map of the Festival's location.

The weekend will be filled with literary fun and enlightenment, with a total of 53 presentations scheduled. The audiences will have the opportunity to ask questions of the authors and engage in discussions of their work. Topics of panel discussions range from children's literature, poetry, filmmaking, self-help, short stories, novels, getting literary agents, self-publishing, to history of folklorico dancing and cartoon books. It's a buffet of literary delights!

When we aren't presenting, many of us authors will be available on the festival grounds at our own booths to sell and autograph our books and chat with fans. What a great opportunity to meet your favorite authors or to meet new ones to expand your horizons!

More Information at the Website

Go to the festival's website at  http://www.lbff.us/  to see photos of last year's festival, photos of this year's author participants, bios of these writers, their websites, and the schedule of the panel presentations. See you at this historic festival!