Yvonne Orji emceed our Annual Awards Benefit, which took place virtually on December 3rd, 2020. Ta-Nehisi Coates presented Chris Jackson with The Center for Fiction Medal for Editorial Excellence. Ethan Hawke presented The Center for Fiction On Screen Award to James McBride and SHOWTIME for “The Good Lord Bird.” Vinnie Malhotra, Executive Vice President, Nonfiction Programming, accepted the award on behalf of SHOWTIME. De’Shawn Charles Winslow announced the 2020 First Novel Prize winner, Raven Leilani for Luster. The Benefit also featured a performance by Laura Benanti and an appearance by Raúl Esparza.
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First Novel Friday: The High Heaven, If the Dead Belong Here, and This Is the Only Kingdom
On the first Friday of the month, we celebrate and launch a selection of the best debut novels published today -
A Final Reading with The Center for Fiction / Susan Kamil 2024–2025 Emerging Writer Fellows
The Center for Fiction / Susan Kamil 2024–2025 Emerging Writer Fellows came together to conclude their cohort year and share... -
Brandon Taylor on Minor Black Figures with Matthew Sitman
We welcomed Brandon Taylor, Booker Prize finalist and bestselling author of Real Life and Filthy... -
Urmila Seshagiri and Anne Fernald on the Experimental Fiction of Virginia Woolf
Acclaimed author and professor Urmila Seshagiri joined us to celebrate the highly anticipated release of The... -
Adam Johnson on The Wayfinder
We welcomed Pulitzer Prize-winning author Adam Johnson (The Orphan Master’s Son) to The Center for... -
Story/Teller Arts: David Henry Hwang on Yellow Face with James Ijames
Tony Award-winning playwright, composer, and writer, David Henry Hwang (M. Butterfly, Chinglish)... -
Oliver Jeffers on I’m Very Busy: A (Nearly Forgotten) Birthday Book with Sophie Blackall
Internationally bestselling artist and author Oliver Jeffers joined us for a conversation about his timely new... -
First Novel Friday: Little Movements, First Time, Long Time, and Pick a Color
October’s First Novel Friday debuts explore creative fulfillment within racialized spaces, the resilience inherent in immigrant... -
Kiran Desai on The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny with Marlon James
Kiran Desai joined us for an evening at The Center for Fiction to celebrate the launch of her luminous, Booker... -
In Translation: Thomas Schlesser on Mona’s Eyes with Idra Novey
Thomas Schlesser joined us for an evening, celebrating the release of his internationally bestselling novel... -
Angela Flournoy on The Wilderness with Brit Bennett and Raven Leilani
Angela Flournoy, critically acclaimed author of The Turner House, joined us to celebrate the highly... -
Rabih Alameddine on The True True Story of Raja the Gullible (and His Mother) with John Freeman
Rabih Alameddine, award-winning author of The Wrong End of the Telescope, joined us to celebrate the... -
First Novel Friday: Dominion, These Memories Do Not Belong to Us, and To the Moon and Back
On the first Friday of the month, we celebrate and launch a selection of the best debut novels published today -
Melissa Lozada-Oliva on Beyond All Reasonable Doubt, Jesus Is Alive! with Alejandro Varela
We welcomed acclaimed poet, screenwriter, and author Melissa Lozada-Oliva to celebrate the highly anticipated... -
First Novel Friday: Hot Girls with Balls, Gingko Season, and Lonely Crowds
On the first Friday of the month, we celebrate and launch a selection of the best debut novels published today -
On Craft: Giving Yourself Permission to Write Your Story
Elissa Altman, award-winning author of Motherland and Poor Man’s Feast, joined us to discuss... -
Gary Shteyngart on Vera, or Faith with Maria Semple
The Center for Fiction welcomed Gary Shteyngart, bestselling author of Super Sad True Love Story and... -
URSA Live: A Night of Storytelling with Deesha Philyaw, Dawnie Walton, and Kiese Laymon
The Center for Fiction welcomed the acclaimed Ursa podcasts, Short Fiction and Reckon True Stories, with hosts... -
On America: Misbehaving at the Crossroads with Honorée Fanonne Jeffers and Imani Perry
The Center for Fiction welcomed acclaimed poet and novelist Honorée Fanonne Jeffers (The Love Songs of W -
The Center for Fiction Presents a Celebration of Toni Morrison’s Legendary Editorship
Award-winning author Dana A. Williams joined us to discuss her latest book, Toni at Random, an illuminating...