Aspen Words Literary Prize

Melissa Rivero Believes in the Resilience of the Human Spirit

Rivero’s novel The Affairs of the Falcóns follows an undocumented family journeying from Peru to New York City.

February 18, 2020
Melissa Rivero

Rion Amilcar Scott Wants You to Read One Poem a Day

Scott shares writing advice and the inspiration behind his story collection, The World Doesn’t Require You.

February 18, 2020
Scott Rion Amilcar

Beth Piatote Writes Native Stories for Native Readers

Piatote’s The Beadworkers is an inventive, mixed-genre debut collection that draws on Indigenous aesthetics and forms.

February 18, 2020

Christy Lefteri on the Shadows of Trauma

As the daughter of refugees, Lefteri wants to re-sensitize us to the human suffering we see on our screens.

February 18, 2020

Nicole Dennis-Benn Is Redefining Womanhood

Dennis-Benn’s novel, Patsy, tells the story of a black immigrant woman fighting to discover her sense of self.

February 14, 2020
Nicole Dennis Benn

Bryan Washington Tells the Many Stories of Houston

Washington’s debut story collection, Lot, is a nominee for the Aspen Words Literary Prize.

February 13, 2020

Kali Fajardo-Anstine Shares the Untold Stories of the American West

Fajardo-Anstine’s work provides literary representation to Latinas of indigenous ancestry.

February 12, 2020
Kali Fajardo-Anstine

Brian Allen Carr on the Stories We Tell Our Children

Carr is the author of the novel Opioid, Indiana, a nominee for the Aspen Words Literary Prize.

February 11, 2020

Steph Cha on Racial Tensions and Representation

Your House Will Pay deals with a clash between two families, one black and one Korean, a year before the L.A. Uprising.

February 10, 2020
Steph Cha

Jacqueline Woodson Will Not Be Erased

The author believes her role is to remind her readers how this moment for Black people came to be.

February 7, 2020
Jacqueline Woodson