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April 28, 2022 (Thursday), 7 p.m.
QUEER MEMOIR MATTERS
In-Person Event
Page Against The Machine
2714 E. 4th Street Long Beach, CA 90814, 562-588-7075
Jonathan Alexander & Myriam Gurba
Free | www.patmbooks.com
Register to attend on the Page Against The Machine Facebook Events Page
A great event! Updated with photos and post event comments by Jonathan Alexander.
“So exciting to read with Myriam Gurba and discuss writing queer memoir. The conversation was enlightening and the crowd generous and response. I’ve been thinking ever since about the unexpected people in one’s life who inspire memoir. When writing about ourselves, we usually think of the major people and events, but sometimes, small off-hand comments can spark ideas. I think, for instance, of the friend who told me in the aftermath of Katrina that I’d be writing about NOLA for the rest of my life — and she’s been right so far!”
A big thank you to Chris at Page Against the Machine for hosting @patmbooks and to Cheantay at the Long Beach Post for listing the event in her round-up!
Writing about queer lives is more than just “saying gay” in a culture still trying to suppress queer lives.
Join Long Beach author Myriam Gurba and Los Angeles writer Jonathan Alexander for an in-person discussion of “Queer Memoir Matters.” Myriam and Jonathan will discuss their work as queer memoirists and why such work is needed now more than ever. Writing about queer lives is more than just “saying gay” in a culture still trying to suppress queer lives. It’s exploring, often provocatively, the outer reaches of being queer, of forming intimate relationships that defy expectations, challenge norms, upend conventions, and forge new alliances and possibilities for loving. About Myriam’s work, Jonathan says, “I so admire Myriam’s “Mean,” a book that makes me squirm with both delight and fear — the fear of recognizing myself in a sexist and racist society but with the equal delight in feeling how we overcome sexism and racism together to learn to love one another.” See Jonathan’s interview with Myriam for his “Writing Sex” series for the Los Angeles Review of Books here. Register to attend on the Page Against The Machine Facebook Events Page.
About Myriam Gurba
Myriam Gurba is a writer and artist. She is the author of the true-crime memoir Mean, a New York Times editors’ choice. O, the Oprah Magazine, ranked Mean as one of the best LGBTQ books of all time. Publishers’ Weekly describes Gurba as having a voice like no other. Her essays and criticism have appeared in the Paris Review, TIME.com, and 4Columns. She has shown art in galleries, museums, and community centers. She lives in Long Beach, California, with herself. www.myriamgurba.com
IG @alt_myriam_gurba666
TW @lesbrains
FB http://www.facebook.com/myriam.gurba
About Jonathan Alexander
Jonathan Alexander is a writer and podcaster living in Southern California. His newest book is “Dear Queer Self: An Experiment in Memoir” (Acre Books, March 14, 2022). It is the third book in The Creep Trilogy, following “Bullied: The Story of an Abuse” (Punctum Books, November 4, 2021) and “Creep: A Life, A Theory, An Apology” (Punctum Book, 2017). He also wrote the related memoir, “Stroke Book: The Diary of a Blindspot (Fordham University Press, October 26, 2021). He is Chancellor’s Professor of English at the University of California, Irvine. www.thecreeptrilogy.com www.the-blank-page.com.
IG @jonathanalexanderinirvine
TW @profjalexander
FB http://www.facebook.com/jfalexander
For review copies, interview or any questions, please email andy@popularpublicity.com
Photos: Jonathan Alexander by Carla Wilson, Myriam Gurba by Geoff Cordner, “Dear Queer Self” by Jonathan Alexander cover, “Mean” by Myriam Gurba cover.
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