Pen Parentis Authors Show Off Their Shorts At Literary Salon

Just because you don't have a lot of time doesn't mean you can't write award-winning work. Authors Jose de Pierola, Dawn Raffel, and Richard Peabody explore the theme of "Shorts" and read from latest work at the next Pen Parentis Literary Salon on Tuesday February 11th at 7pm. The general public is welcome to add their voices to the discussion. Columbia MFA graduates, M. M. De Voe and Christina Chiu will moderate this entertaining literary event.

Pen Parentis Salons are held in LMHQ's main event space on the 20th floor of 150 Broadway, three blocks south of Fulton Street. Readings will be followed by a moderated roundtable and book signings. Refreshments are complimentary with $10 admission, waived for members of Pen Parentis, students (21+), and those in need. The readings will be Livecast on Facebook.com/penparentis, but the discussion will happen in-room only.

Featured Readers on Tuesday, February 11th at 7 pm:

José de Piérola was raised in the Peruvian Andes, where he traveled extensively as an engineer during the Peruvian civil war in the 1980s. In the 1990s, he worked as a computer consultant in Los Angeles, before he began writing fiction. His work has won awards in Peru and Spain. His short stories have been anthologized in Peru, Mexico, and France. He has published Shatranj, Summa caligramática, El camino de regreso and Un beso del infierno. Fabulations is his first book written in English. He juggles a teaching life in Texas with a family life in California.

Dawn Raffel's latest book is The Strange Case of Dr. Couney: How a Mysterious European Showman Saved Thousands of American Babies. NPR selected it as one of the great reads of 2018. Previous books include a memoir called The Secret Life of Objects, two critically acclaimed story collections, and a novel. Her work has appeared in publications ranging from O, The Oprah Magazine and the San Francisco Chronicle to BOMB and NOON. Her work has been widely anthologized. She has taught creative writing in the MFA program at Columbia University; Summer Literary Seminars in Russia, Canada, Lithuania, and the Georgian Republic; and the Center for Fiction in New York, and now works as an independent editor.

Richard Peabody is the founder and editor of Gargoyle Magazine and additionally edited 25 anthologies including Mondo Barbie and A Different Beat. He taught at Johns Hopkins University for 15 years. His most recent book is The Richard Peabody Reader (Alan Squire Publishers). His next book of poems, "Guinness on the Quay," is forthcoming from Salmon Poetry in 2019.

All featured writers are also parents.

Pen Parentis is a 501c3 literary nonprofit that helps writers stay on creative track after starting a family.

RSVP is strongly recommended: penparentis.org/calendar

Transportation info: 2/3 A/C or 4/5 to Fulton Street; or R/W, E and Path to Cortlandt/WTC.

This PEN PARENTIS LITERARY SALON is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.