The 2023 cohort of the School of Critical Studies’ MFA Creative Writing Program will showcase its diverse range of writing in the 2023 edition of the Next Words Reading Series, a series of four free events in various Los Angeles locations running through April and May.
Next Words 2023 coincides with the Institute’s 50th anniversary celebration, culminating in a showcase at REDCAT in downtown Los Angeles. At each of the four events, students will present five- to 10-minute readings of their works, spanning fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and prose, as well as writing that blends multimedia, visual, and audio elements. The cohort is also publishing an anthology booklet of their writing samples, which will be available to purchase as physical copies at each reading.
The Next Words series aims to spotlight the work of the 2023 cohort while simultaneously preparing them for creative industry experience once they step off the graduation stage in May. Each event is also an opportunity to support emerging talent in Los Angeles, enabling the public to connect with the students and their work firsthand.
“The faculty of the CalArts MFA Program in Creative Writing are bursting with pride over the creative achievements of the class of ‘23,” said MFA Creative Writing Program Director Anthony McCann. “With their wild and wide-ranging talents, they have put forward in their work a range of genre diversity and commitment to experiment that really embodies the core values of our unique, non-tracking graduate program. These events are sure to be a blast!”
The four events are as follows:
The bats have left the tower
Saturday, April 22, 4 pm
Beyond Baroque
681 Venice Blvd., Venice, CA 90291
FreeFeaturing the work of Madelaine Auble, Brandon Cooper, Andrew Hubbell, Collin Jonkman, and William Lockwood
The spaces between us
Tuesday, May 2, 7 pm
The Ripped Bodice Bookstore
3806 Main Street, Culver City, CA 90232
FreeFeaturing the work of Lemiaye Miyazaki-Taylor, Michelle Cushing, Paola Parreno-Merino, Michael Diskint, and Charlie Fry
At the edge of the labyrinth
Wednesday, May 3, 7 pm
The Poetic Research Bureau
2220 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles
FreeFeaturing the work of Ayla Combes, Yaz Archer, Nick Barner, Charlie Bohem, Farah Abouzeid, Jamiah Lincoln, and Brian Ffrench
CalArts Writers Showcase
Sunday, May 7, 3 pm
REDCAT
631 W 2nd St, Los Angeles, CA 90012
Free with reservation (registration will open soon)The CalArts MFA Creative Writing class of 2023 will present exciting glimpses into their wild and varied work. Audience members will get a feel for the incredible range of experimentation that characterizes the literary endeavors of students in the Creative Writing program.
