by Lorie Lewis Ham

Reedley College Literary Arts hosts many interesting author events each year. One of the highlights this year will be bestselling author Gabriele Zevin who will be talking about her latest book Tomorrow, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow. Recently we spoke with Reedley College English instructor Deborah Lyns to learn more. She is part of a team who work to bring authors to campus and help to coordinate Literary Arts events.

KRL: What type of events do you bring to the campus?

Deborah: The Reedley College Literary Arts hosts a number of different events. We have a speaker’s series in which we bring authors to our campus to inspire our students and community. We also run a One Book, One College project in which we invite our college community to read a work together during the year, holding a number of panel discussions, classroom assignments and more to lead up to a visit from the author in the spring semester of the academic year.

In the past we have hosted Tobias Wolff, T.C. Boyle, Tommy Orange, Joyce Carole Oates, Manuel Muñoz, Helena María Viramontes, Sofía Segovia, Meg Wollitzer, Javier Zamora, and more. This year we are reading Tomorrow, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabriele Zevin who will come to our campus in May.

We also have a monthly poetry reading called First Wednesday at One with a mixture of visiting poets and contributions by staff and students. We publish Symmetry annually, a collection of student writing and we have also recently launched The Kings River Review, a publication of works by community college students across the country.

KRL: When did you first start having authors speak for these events?

Deborah: The Literary Arts Speakers Series has a long tradition of bringing Pulitzer and National Book Award-winning authors to Reedley College.

In 1999, the Reedley College Speakers Series began with an appearance by local peach farmer and author David Mas Masumoto. In subsequent years, the series went on to host such writers and public figures including Charles Baxter, Nanci Kincaid, Bettina Gregory, Bernard Cooper, Ron Hansen, Robert Hellenga, and Patricia Hampl.

Then, in 2012, to supplement available funds for the Speakers Series, as well as our First Wednesdays at One (1W1) series, and Symmetry, our student literary publication, a group of Faculty formed The Reedley College Literary Arts group. Since its formation, our guests have included Tobias Wolff, Jane Smiley, Richard Blanco, Philip Levine, Joyce Carol Oates, Brian Turner, Manuel Muñoz, Ana Castillo, and many others.

In 2016, the RC Literary Arts adopted the 1Book/1College program, hoping to create a college- and community-wide conversation around a single work in the belief that a shared experience leads to deeper and more meaningful engagement and connection.

That first 1B/1C selection was Richard Rodriguez’s Hunger of Memory followed by T.C. Boyle’s The Tortilla Curtain. For 2018, our common read was The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, featuring members of the Lacks family as our guests. In 2019, we hosted Meg Wolitzer, author of The Female Persuasion. In 2021, we welcomed Tommy Orange, author of There, There, followed by Timothy Egan author of The Big Burn in 2022. In 2023, we read The Murmur of Bees and enjoyed a visit by Sofia Segovia and in 2024 we hosted Javier Zamora, author of Solito. This year we are reading Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow as a community and will welcome author Gabrielle Zevin on May 1 of this year.

KRL: Who are all the authors chosen this year?

Deborah: In the fall 2024 semester, we hosted Fresno City instructor and California poet laureate, Lee Herrick, award winning journalist, Mark Arax, and local children’s author and illustrator Maia and Chalome Gomez.

Upcoming authors for the spring 2025 semester include: David Borofka, the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival who will be performing Romeo and Juliet, the poet Christopher Buckley and the author of this year’s One Book selection, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, Gabrielle Zevin.

KRL: Are any of the authors local?

Deborah: Many of the authors we present are local writers. We hope that showcasing local writers and work that resonates with local concerns will inspire our students and community.

KRL: Is there a cost to attend the events? And do people need to get tickets?

Deborah: All our events are free and open to the public! We also hold an annual fundraiser. This year our fundraiser will be on February 20 at 5 p.m. in honor of returning author and retired Reedley College instructor, David Borofka.

Following the reception at 5 p.m., he will give a reading from his newest work The Bliss of Your Attention. We hope you will join us to celebrate our first event in the new Fine and Performing Arts Building. The reading which starts at 7 p.m. is free. Tickets for the reception are $20 and can be purchased here: eventbrite.com/e/reedley-college-literary-arts-reception-and-david-borofka-reading-tickets-1218177163689?aff=oddtdtcreator

KRL: Will the authors have their books for sale and be doing a signing?

Deborah: We will have books for sale at each event and authors are available for signing.

KRL: Why do you feel this is important to the community?

Deborah: The Reedley College Literary Arts brings local and national authors to our community. Literature is not (and was not) written by dead people; it is a part of our daily, ongoing conversation about present concerns and a connection to a living past. Hearing writers and poets speak to the issues of their craft leads to greater participation on the part of students and an enrichment of their reading experience. The college is meant to be a place for engagement, not only for students, but for faculty, staff, administration, and the community at large.

KRL: I understand that the events will be at the new performing arts building, does that change anything about how they are done?

Deborah: We look forward to sharing the Fine and Performing Arts Building, which is a beautiful new space for performances and readings with you! Come along.

KRL: Where can people follow you online to keep up with events?

Deborah: You can find out more on the Reedley College website:

LIT Arts: reedleycollege.edu/academics/guided-pathways/art-music-english-pathway/english/rc-literary-arts.html

Or follow us on Facebook: facebook.com/p/Reedley-College-Literary-Arts-100063905526562

You can find more Reedley stories in our Reedley News section.

Lorie Lewis Ham is our Editor-in-Chief and a contributor to various sections, coupling her journalism experience with her connection to the literary and entertainment worlds. Explore Lorie’s mystery writing at Mysteryrat’s Closet. Lorie’s latest mystery novel, One of Us, is set in the Tower District of Fresno and the world of community theatre!