Upcoming Events
Romalyn Ante, Will Harris, and April Yee
RSVP HERE! This January, the Asian American Writers’ Workshop and London-based writer April Yee present a reading with two of the UK’s leading poets: Will Harris (RENDANG) and Romalyn Ante (Antiemetic for Homesickness). This vibrant reading will incorporate visual objects and oral choruses to meet the complexities of communicating beyond... 
Simon Han and Tahseen Shams
RSVP HERE! Our series Radical Thinkers places radical academics directly in conversation with trailblazing writers, poets, and artists, creating and nurturing two-way dialogues that will interrogate some of the most pressing issues facing Asian and Asian diasporic communities today. Featuring an interdisciplinary lineup of scholars and creatives, these unexpected pairings... 
Te-Ping Chen and Charles Yu
RSVP HERE! Join the Asian American Writers’ Workshop for the official launch of Te-Ping Chen’s extraordinary debut short story collection, Land of Big Numbers. Assured and immersive, the stories in Land of Big Numbers move confidently between the United States and China, shifting from realism to magical realism, and forming... 
Chang-rae Lee and Bryan Washington
RSVP HERE! Join the Asian American Writers’ Workshop as we celebrate award-winning writer Chang-rae Lee’s electrifying new novel, My Year Abroad. A surprising, tender, and humorous work, My Year Abroad is a story unique to Chang-rae Lee’s immense talents as a writer, and explores the division between East and West,... 
Nikesh Shukla, Mira Jacob
RSVP HERE! The Asian American Writers’ Workshop is delighted to celebrate the launch of writer Nikesh Shukla’s new memoir, Brown Baby: A Memoir of Race, Family, and Home. An intimate look at love, grief, and fatherhood, Shukla’s memoir “bears witness to our turbulent times” (Bernardine Evaristo) with humor, honesty, and... 
Janani Balasubramanian and Afra Ashraf
REGISTER HERE. One Session, 2 hrs, 6:30 PM ET–8:30 PM ET Cap: 20 Students *This workshop takes place over Zoom. Seats are limited. Tuition is sliding scale $50-$100. To inquire about possible availability of scholarship seats, please e-mail tle@aaww.org.* Join us for a one-session workshop with Janani Balasubramanian and Afra... 
Kazim Ali and Billy-Ray Belcourt
RSVP HERE! Acclaimed poet, novelist, and essayist Kazim Ali joins the Asian American Writers’ Workshop and Milkweed Editions to launch his new memoir, Northern Light: Power, Land, and the Memory of Water. Northern Light, a sensitive and elegantly structured exploration of land and power, is told through Ali’s recollections of his... 
Priyanka Champaneri and Marjan Kamali
RSVP HERE! Join the Asian American Writers' Workshop and Restless Books for a celebration of Priyanka Champaneri's debut novel, The City of Good Death. Priyanka will be in conversation with special guest Marjan Kamali, author of The Stationery Shop. Winner of the Restless Books Prize for New Immigrant Writing, The... 
C Pam Zhang
RSVP HERE! In April, the Asian American Writers’ Workshop will celebrate the paperback launch of C Pam Zhang’s debut novel How Much of These Hills is Gold, which was longlisted for The Booker Prize, among other accolades. Since its publication last spring, this haunting, spare, and achingly beautiful novel has... 
Michelle Zauner and Hrishikesh Hirway
This April, the Asian American Writers’ Workshop will partner with indie bookstore Books Are Magic to celebrate musician Michelle Zauner’s debut memoir, Crying In H-Mart. Best known for her work as the musician Japanese Breakfast, Zauner’s memoir is an astonishing debut: a rich, intimate, and lyrical story about finding yourself,... 
Larissa Pham
RSVP HERE! This May, the Asian American Writers’ Workshop will join Larissa Pham in celebrating her nonfiction debut, Pop Song. Finding inspiration in contemporary art, pop culture, and poetry – from Agnes Martin to Anne Carson – Pop Song is by turns intimate, vulnerable, and inventive, crafting a “perfectly fractured... Past Events
Lee Isaac Chung, Min Jin Lee
Tickets to the film screening are now SOLD OUT. The post-screening discussion between writer/director Lee Isaac Chung and author Min Jin Lee will be livestreamed on the AAWW YouTube channel on January 13 at 8:00pm ET. RSVP Here! On Wednesday, January 13, we are partnering with A24 to celebrate Korean... 
Gish Jen, Meng Jin
RSVP HERE! Join the Asian American Writers’ Workshop for our first event of the new year: a joint paperback launch of Gish Jen’s The Resisters and Meng Jin’s Little Gods. These two novels, released in early 2020, sketch out a dystopian near future that takes aim at several current catastrophes,... 
Manan Ahmed, Shahzia Sikander
Presented by the Asian American Writers’ Workshop, this new series, Radical Thinkers, places radical academics directly in conversation with trailblazing writers, poets, and artists, creating and nurturing two-way dialogues that will interrogate some of the most pressing issues facing Asian and Asian diasporic communities today. Featuring an interdisciplinary lineup of... 
Kavita Das, Jafreen Uddin
Author Kavita Das joins Jafreen Uddin, Executive Director of the Asian American Writers' Workshop in conversation about her book, Poignant Song: The Life and Music of Lakshmi Shankar. Shankar, who was Grammy-nominated, was the most prominent Indian female musician in the movement that brought Indian music to the West in... 
Kay Ulanday Barrett, Ashna Ali, Venus Selenite, Porsha Olayiwola, and Jake Skeets
Asian American Writers’ Workshop and Kay Ulanday Barrett present Mouth to Mouth: Open Mic and Showcase! Are you a writer? Come share your work at this virtual edition of our open mic, Mouth to Mouth, a bimonthly showcase dedicated to uplifting Queer, Non-Binary, and Transgender BIPOC poets. Hosted by Kay... 
R. O. Kwon, Jafreen Uddin
This December, we are launching a new virtual event series at the Asian American Writers’ Workshop. Presented quarterly, these virtual “fireside chats” will feature a renowned Asian diasporic author in conversation with Jafreen Uddin, Executive Director of AAWW, sharing updates from the Workshop, and discussing AAWW from a writer’s perspective.... 
Cathy Park Hong, Aimee Nezhukumatathil, Sejal Shah, and Piyali Bhattacharya
This fall, the Asian American Writers’ Workshop is celebrating the art of the essay. Featuring longtime poets and fiction writers with debut essay collections out this year, this conversation will take an intersectional look at Asian American identity, genre, gender, race, publishing, and the way the essay form allows writers... 
Kazim Ali, Sheila Chandra, and Rajiv Mohabir
The Asian American Writers’ Workshop is thrilled to celebrate the launch of Kazim Ali’s newest poetry collection, The Voice of Sheila Chandra. Following a reading from Ali’s innovative and musical new collection, he will be joined in conversation by Sheila Chandra and Rajiv Mohabir to discuss sound, silence, and embodied... 
Kay Ulanday Barrett, Ashna Ali, Donika Kelly, Golden, and Mejdulene B. Shomali
Mic Check! Are you a writer? Come share your work at our first virtual edition of our open mic, Mouth to Mouth. Hosted by AAWW’s fave poets Kay Ulanday Barrett and Ashna Ali, this edition of Mouth to Mouth features Donika Kelly, Golden, and Mejdulene B. Shomali. Mouth to Mouth... 
Noah Flora, Amir Khafagy, Soumya Shankar, Preeti Varathan, Kate Zen, Noel Pangilinan
This October, join us for a celebratory reading with the 2020 Open City Fellows. We’ll hear from Neighborhood Fellows Noah Flora, Soumya Shankar, Preeti Varathan, and Kate Zen, who have been documenting the pulse of metropolitan Asian America as it has being lived on the streets of New York right... 
Tina Chang and Mira Jacob
Tina Chang and Mira Jacob join the Asian American Writers’ Workshop to celebrate the paperback releases of their books Hybrida and Good Talk. Following a reading from their work, they will speak to the intersections of their experiences and creative practices, discussing race, motherhood, and hybrid storytelling structures. RSVP Here!... 
Mahogany Browne, Adnan Khan, Tanya Selvaratnam, Rachel Kuo
AAWW is partnering with Film Forum to present a screening of AGGIE, and a discussion with Mahogany Browne, Adnan Khan, and Tanya Selvaratnam, moderated by Rachel Kuo. AGGIE is a feature-length documentary that explores the nexus of art, race, and justice through the story of art collector and philanthropist Agnes... 
Ed Lin, Marie Myung-Ok Lee, and Ruth Minah Buchwald
In collaboration with the Asian American Writers Workshop and Kundiman, Kaya Press brings acclaimed novelist Ed Lin together with pioneering YA author and co-founder of the Asian American Writers’ Workshop Marie Myung-Ok Lee (FINDING MY VOICE (Soho Teen, 2021 re-release) in conversation to celebrate the release of Ed Lin’s YA... 
K-Ming Chang and Franny Choi
The Asian American Writers’ Workshop celebrates the publication of K-Ming Chang’s debut novel, Bestiary, with a reading and conversation with K-Ming and Franny Choi. Exploring the ways writing about girlhood can reinvent our definitions of community and lineage, and the ways we can grapple with and imagine beyond threats of... 
Join the Asian American Writers' Workshop and Milkweed Editions to celebrate the publication day of World of Wonders with author Aimee Nezhukumatathil and special guests Patrick Rosal, Joseph Legaspi, Sarah Gambito, Oliver de la Paz, and Jon Pineda. This event will be presented virtually at 8:00pm ET/7:00pm CT. The evening...
DJ Rekha, Faith Adiele, Leah Johnson, Jai Dulani, Lisa Ko, Nina Sharma, Daisy Hernández, Quincy Scott Jones, Serena W. Lin, Cyrée Jarelle Johnson, Cathy Linh Che, Mahogany L. Browne, and Kay Ulanday Barrett
***Broadcast on Facebook Live. Link to the event is here*** “I Believe In The Sweat Of Love And The Fire Of Truth” ― Assata Shakur All struggles for freedom are intertwined. We at AAWW join in freedom struggles for Black and Indigenous people and by extension all those... 
Akwaeke Emezi, Elizabeth Acevedo, & Sophia Hussain
**This event will be offered as a Zoom Webinar (seat occupancy of 100) with a Facebook Livestream for overflow.** ***Titles available through Books Are Magic's webpage.*** "I believe in the sweat of love & the fire of truth." - Assata Shakur The Asian American Writers’ Workshop is thrilled to celebrate... 
Staceyann Chin
***VIRTUAL WORKSHOP: This workshop will take place on Zoom.*** Thursday, July 2nd, 2020 11 AM - 1:30 PM EDT (2.5 hours) TUITION: Sliding Scale $50-$75 How do we create work that is deeply personal but is intended to be political? Join us for a unique virtual poetry intensive with powerhouse,... 
Kay Ulanday Barrett, Ashna Ali, Jimena Lucero, Cyree Jarelle Johnson, Natalie Sharp, Rajiv Mohabir, Jubi Arriola-Headley, Eddie Maisonet, Oliver Baez-Bendorf, & Brandon Kazen-Maddox.
**VIRTUAL EVENT: This event will be offered as a Zoom Webinar and live streamed on the Asian American Writers’ Facebook page.*** If you wish to join the Zoom webinar, please register through Eventbrite and we will send a link the day before the event. Join us on THURSDAY June 18,... 
Featuring Nadia Q. Ahmad, Tarfia Faizullah, and Samira Sadeque
***VIRTUAL EVENT*** THURSDAY MAY 28, 2020 | 7-8PM EST Livestreamed on the Asian American Writers’ Facebook page. Join the Asian American Writers’ Workshop for a virtual reading and fundraiser for Laal NYC, featuring Nadia Q. Ahmad, Tarfia Faizullah, and Samira Sadeque. These accomplished journalists and poets celebrate Bengali culture in... 
***VIRTUAL EVENT*** Livestreamed on the AAWW Facebook page. Join us for a powerful celebration of Asian American voices, featuring an acclaimed lineup of some of our community's most prolific poets and spoken word artists. Tune in for readings by: Aria Aber • George Abraham • Kazim Ali • Hala Alyan...
Amita Swadhin, Elliot Fukui, sethu laxmi nair, & Hyunhee Shin
April 30, 2020 6PM-8PM EST ************ Nationally-recognized survivor activist Amita Swadhin will co-facilitate a healing circle inspired by their national storytelling and organizing project Mirror Memoirs. They will be joined by Mirror Memoirs members and survivor storytellers Elliott Fukui, Sethu Nair, and Hyunhee Shin. For this circle, we welcome all... 
Andrea Abi-Karam, Romaissaa Benzizoune, Sham-e-Ali Nayeem
***VIRTUAL EVENT*** Livestreamed on the Asian American Writers’ Facebook page. //NOTE ON ACCESSIBILITY// A live-edited accessible copy of the program can be found here: aaww.org/poetryprotestvirtual Minnesota-based Mizna joins the Asian American Writers’ Workshop to present I Am Deliberate And Afraid of Nothing: Poetry, Prose, and Protest, a reading of Mizna...
March 26, 2020
7:00 PM
7:00 PM
Kay Ulanday Barrett, Ashna Ali, juliany taveras, Ricardo Hernandez
***POSTPONED FOR A FUTURE DATE*** Mic Check! Are you a writer? Come share your work at the next edition of our open mic, Mouth to Mouth. Hosted & curated by AAWW fam Kay Ulanday Barrett and Ashna Ali, this edition features juliany taveras (jae) and Ricardo Hernandez....
March 18, 2020
7:00 PM
7:00 PM
The Asian American Writers’ Workshop
110-112 West 27th Street, 6th Floor Between 6th and 7th Avenues Buzzer 600
New York New York 10001
110-112 West 27th Street, 6th Floor Between 6th and 7th Avenues Buzzer 600
New York New York 10001
How can Asian American writers build a more robust network? What does it mean to be a writer of color in these times? This fifth annual Asian American Caucus is a town-hall style hang out and community space. Come meet other Asian American writers and discuss fellowships, publication opportunities, and...
Four fiction writers speak to the ways they tackle questions of the frontier in their work, from immigrant families in the Alaskan wilderness, Little House on the Prairie, and the disturbing legacies of the American West.
Thaddeus Rutkowski, Ed Lin, Timothy Liu and Joanna Sit
Come celebrate the relaunch of Thaddeus Rutkowski's novel Haywire! "Fractured, witty, vibrant -- Rutkowski gives us his whole life, from stabbing butterflies to sitting through group therapy, but doles it out in bite-sized chunks that never seem forced. Fine writing and hilarity are to be expected (Ned Vizzini). Originally published by...
February 28, 2020
7:00 PM
7:00 PM
The Asian American Writers’ Workshop
110-112 West 27th Street, 6th Floor Between 6th and 7th Avenues Buzzer 600
New York New York 10001
110-112 West 27th Street, 6th Floor Between 6th and 7th Avenues Buzzer 600
New York New York 10001
Kay Ulanday Barrett, Ashna Ali, Wo Chan, Catherine Chen
Mic Check! Are you a writer? Come share your work at the next edition of our open mic, Mouth to Mouth. Hosted & curated by AAWW fam Kay Ulanday Barrett and Ashna Ali, this edition of Mouth to Mouth features Wo Chan and Catherine Chen. Mouth to Mouth seeks to...
February 27, 2020
7:00 PM
7:00 PM
The Asian American Writers’ Workshop
110-112 West 27th Street, 6th Floor Between 6th and 7th Avenues Buzzer 600
New York New York 10001
110-112 West 27th Street, 6th Floor Between 6th and 7th Avenues Buzzer 600
New York New York 10001
Tyrell Haberkorn, Sophia Terazawa, Nguyen Quoc Vinh, Gina Apostol, Vicente Rafael
Join us for a special night of readings and discussion to launch a new folio in the Transpacific Literary Project: Insurgent Tongues. In efforts to dismantle the languages of domination, contributors to the folio and guests will share their distinct approaches to probing the insurgent nature of language and languages...
February 13, 2020
7:00 PM
7:00 PM
The Asian American Writers’ Workshop
110-112 West 27th Street, 6th Floor Between 6th and 7th Avenues Buzzer 600
New York New York 10001
110-112 West 27th Street, 6th Floor Between 6th and 7th Avenues Buzzer 600
New York New York 10001
Viet Thanh Nguyen, Swati Khurana
Join Kundiman and Asian American Writers' Workshop for an evening with Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Viet Thanh Nguyen, author of The Sympathizer. Nguyen's most recent book is Chicken of the Sea (McSweeney's 2019), co-authored with his elementary-aged son Ellison and illustrated by mother-son pair Thi Bui and Hien Bui-Stafford. In this...
February 7, 2020
7:00 PM
7:00 PM
The Asian American Writers’ Workshop
110-112 West 27th Street, 6th Floor Between 6th and 7th Avenues Buzzer 600
New York New York 10001
110-112 West 27th Street, 6th Floor Between 6th and 7th Avenues Buzzer 600
New York New York 10001