Poets & Writers Theater
Every day we share a new clip of interest to creative writers—author readings, book trailers, publishing panels, craft talks, and more. So grab some popcorn, filter the theater tags by keyword or genre, and explore our sizable archive of literary videos.
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“I love when a character in a novel, or in a story, or even in a poem, experiences a sense of change that they cannot come back from.” In this Books Are Magic event, Aria Aber reads from her debut novel, Good Girl (Hogarth, 2025), and discusses themes of shame, self-destruction, and coming of age as an artist in a conversation with Leslie Jamison. For more from Aber, read her installment of our Ten Questions series.
Tags: Fiction | Aria Aber | Good Girl | Hogarth | novel | Leslie Jamison | Books Are Magic | reading | 2025 -
In this Books Are Magic event, Lili Anolik reads from her new biography, Didion and Babitz (Scribner, 2024), and discusses how the book originated from discovering a box of Eve Babitz’s unsent letters, which included a letter to Joan Didion, in a conversation with Emma Straub.
Tags: Creative Nonfiction | Lili Anolik | Didion and Babitz | Joan Didion | Eve Babitz | biography | Emma Straub | Books Are Magic | Scribner | 2024 -
In this Books Are Magic event, Albert Abonado reads from his second poetry collection, Field Guide for Accidents (Beacon Press, 2024), and discusses Asian American families and the model minority myth in a conversation with Jason Koo. Field Guide for Accidents is featured in Page One in the November/December issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.
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In this Books Are Magic event, Miller Oberman reads from his latest poetry collection, Impossible Things (Duke University Press, 2024), and is joined by poets Jason B. Crawford, Joan Kwon Glass, and I. S. Jones for a reading and Q&A. For more from Oberman, read his installation of our Ten Questions series.
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In this Brooklyn Book Festival Bookend Event at Books Are Magic, the Institute of American Indian Arts presents readings by students, alumni, and faculty of the program, including program director Deborah Jackson Taffa, m.s. RedCherries, Lily Philpott, and Julianne Warren.
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In this Books Are Magic event, Kat Tang reads from her debut novel, Five-Star Stranger (Scribner, 2024), and describes her experience revisiting a novel manuscript years after finishing her MFA in a conversation with author Jinwoo Chong.
Tags: Fiction | Kat Tang | Five-Star Stranger | Scribner | Jinwoo Chong | Books Are Magic | reading | debut novel | 2024 -
In this Books Are Magic event with Adam Dalva, author and translator Laura Marris reads from and speaks about her debut essay collection, The Age of Loneliness (Graywolf Press, 2024), which is featured in Page One in the September/October of Poets & Writers Magazine.
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“The reason why I favor long poems—not just writing them but reading them—is that it just feels like a much truer picture of the self, or selves.” In this Books Are Magic event, Jason Koo reads from his latest poetry collection, No Rest (Diode Editions, 2024), and discusses the narrative opportunities of long poems in a conversation with Bessie Flores Zaldívar.
Tags: Poetry | Jason Koo | Bessie Flores Zaldivar | No Rest | Diode Editions | Books Are Magic | reading | conversation | writing process | 2024 -
“In each of my close relationships, I feel like I get to be a different version of myself.” In this Books Are Magic event, Lilly Dancyger speaks with Leslie Jamison about how she tackled writing about her closest friendships in her first essay collection, First Love: Essays on Friendship (Dial Press, 2024), which is featured in Page One in the May/June issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.
Tags: Creative Nonfiction | Lilly Dancyger | First Love | Dial Press | Leslie Jamison | Books Are Magic | Page One | May/June 2024 -
In this Books are Magic event with Isaac Fitzgerald, author Rachel Khong discusses the themes of race, family, and belonging in her second novel, Real Americans (Knopf, 2024), which is featured in Page One in the May/June issue of Poets & Writers Magazine. “I think it’s both an American feeling and an immigrant feeling, that there’s not enough time and you need to make the most of it,” says Khong.
Tags: Fiction | Rachel Khong | Knopf | Real Americans | Isaac Fitzgerald | Books Are Magic | Page One | May/June 2024 -
“I do think that everything you see or do or experience does become part of the material that you create with, ultimately.” In this Books Are Magic event, Gina Chung reads from her short story collection, Green Frog (Vintage, 2024), and discusses the cultural importance of mythological creatures in a conversation with Jimin Han. For more from Chung, read her installment of our Writers Recommend series.
Tags: Fiction | Gina Chung | Green Frog | Vintage | Jimin Han | Books Are Magic | short story | 2024 | Writers Recommend -
“Human beings are the only animals that experience denial.” In this Books Are Magic event, Sloane Crosley reads from her new book, Grief Is for People (MCD/FSG, 2024), and discusses her experience writing about loss in a conversation with Sigrid Nunez. A profile of Crosley by Kate Tuttle appears in the March/April issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.
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"It’s life bleeding into stories. I feel like the longer we live, the more life bleeds into stories.” In this Books Are Magic event, Yiyun Li reads from her latest short story collection, Wednesday’s Child (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2023), and discusses story endings, why it can take years to finish a story, and what sustains a plotless story in a conversation with David Means.
Tags: Fiction | Yiyun Li | Wednesday’s Child | Farrar, Straus and Giroux | short story | David Means | Books Are Magic | 2023 -
In this Books Are Magic event, Simon Shieh reads from his debut poetry collection, Master (Sarabande Books, 2023), and speaks about the themes within his book, the power of language, and truth in poetry with Ama Codjoe, author of Bluest Nude (Milkweed Editions, 2022). Shieh is featured in “Performing the Future: Our Nineteenth Annual Look at Debut Poets” in the January/February issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.
Tags: Poetry | Simon Shieh | Master | Sarabande Books | Ama Codjoe | Bluest Nude | Milkweed Editions | Books Are Magic | Debut Poets 2024 | January/February 2024 -
“When you see injustice, you have to bite back.” In this Books Are Magic event, Julia Lee reads from her memoir, Biting the Hand: Growing Up Asian in Black and White America (Henry Holt, 2023), and joins author Hua Hsu for a conversation about healing from family trauma, Asian American rage and shame, and lessons learned from teaching literature to college students.
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In this event recorded at the Brooklyn Heights Public Library and hosted by Books Are Magic, Terrance Hayes discusses his new poetry collection, So to Speak (Penguin Books, 2023), and his new essay collection, Watch Your Language: Visual and Literary Reflections on a Century of American Poetry (Penguin Books, 2023), with poet and memoirist Mary Karr.
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Jamel Brinkley reads from his new story collection, Witness (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2023), and speaks about tone, reveals, and the themes in his stories with Garth Greenwell in this Books Are Magic event. From more from Brinkley, read his installment of our Ten Questions series.
Tags: Fiction | Jamel Brinkley | Witness | Farrar, Straus and Giroux | short story | Garth Greenwell | Books Are Magic | Ten Questions | September/October 2023 | Page One | 2023 -
“What surprised me was that I discovered I enjoyed it sometimes: writing prose.” In this Books Are Magic event, Shane McCrae speaks with Patricia Smith and reads from his debut memoir, Pulling the Chariot of the Sun: A Memoir of a Kidnapping (Scribner, 2023), which is featured in Page One in the September/October issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.
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In this Books Are Magic event, Shastri Akella reads from his debut novel, The Sea Elephants (Flatiron Books, 2023), and speaks about his journey navigating the writing life with author Rakesh Satyal. Akella is featured in “First Fiction 2023” in the July/August issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.
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In this Books Are Magic event, Greg Marshall reads from his debut memoir, Leg: The Story of a Limb and the Boy Who Grew From It (Abrams Press, 2023), and discusses what inspires his writing with author Chloé Cooper Jones. Marshall is featured in Literary MagNet in the July/August issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.