I’ll be leading a panel on Writing Your Way Through a Major World Event, along with writers Katya Apekina, Jasmin Iolani Hakes, Cecilia Rabess, and Lena Zycinsky.

How does a writer walk the tightrope between story and history when tackling a major world event, historical or contemporary? How do they make it their own? Four novelists and a poet discuss their unique approaches to describing Hawaii's colonization, the Russian Revolution, World War II, the 2016 election, and the current war in Ukraine. From balancing fact and fiction to creating a narrative that feels fresh, we will share our experiences whipping reality into a literary shape.