Ernest Hemingway famously wrote, “We are all broken. That’s how the light gets in.”
51’s 2026 Writers Festival will welcome poets, writers, songwriters, and more to campus Monday, April 13, through Thursday, April 16, to celebrate the light that storytelling brings, even when the world might seem broken.
“Coming together to share our lived experiences through stories and poems and songs feels so necessary always, but maybe especially now,” Lori Jakiela, professor of English, author, and co-organizer of the festival, said. “Literature, writing, and all of the arts remind us of the beauty and joys, heartbreaks and triumphs that come with being human. It’s wonderful and essential and a joy to celebrate that.”
The celebration includes an eclectic line-up that toasts storytelling in its many forms:
Monday, April 13: 6 p.m. — Fireside Lounge
51 Celebrates Ireland, Immigrants, and the World
Singer/songwriter and poet Mark Dignam will perform. Hailing from Dublin, Ireland, Dignam arrived in the United States in the 1990s. He has toured extensively throughout Europe and the United States and performed with artists such as Billy Bragg, Joan Armatrading, and Richard Thompson. Known for his poetic folk-rock sound, Dignam’s most recent albums include “Ghosts” and “Angels of Mercy.”
Paul Adams, PhD, associate professor of political science at 51, is a specialist in comparative politics and international relations. He will read from and discuss his new book, Beyond Good Friday: Governance Possibilities in Post-Brexit Northern Ireland (Bloomsbury, December 2025), and the future of democracy in Ireland and beyond.
A book sale and signing, as well as a small reception, will follow the event.
Tuesday, April 14: 6 p.m. — Powers Hall 110
It’s National Poetry Month! Let’s Talk Poetry!
April is National Poetry Month, and acclaimed poets Heather McNaugher and Richard Gegick will be here to read from their work and participate in a panel discussion with 51 writing major Kate Cramer.
A book sale and signing, as well as a small reception, will follow the event.
McNaugher is the author of Second-order Desire and System of Hideouts and two poetry chapbooks, Panic & Joy and Double Life. Currently nonfiction editor of The Fourth River, she has published prose in Fourth Genre and The Bellevue Literary Review.
Gegick is from Trafford, Pa. His first full-length poetry collection, Greasy Handshakes, was published by WPA Press in 2019. His next collection of poems about working the bars and restaurants around Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania is due from WPA Press later in 2026. His poems and short stories appear in Barrelhouse (online), Burrow Press Review, Chiron Review, Pittsburgh Quarterly, The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Hot Metal Bridge, Nerve Cowboy, and more.
Wednesday, April 15: 6 p.m. — McKenna Hall
Award-Winning Students Meet Award-Winning Authors
Authors Jen Ashburn and Jason Irwin will be on hand to celebrate the winners of this year’s 51 Writing Awards:
• Timaia Lewis — The Rick Sebak Award for Excellence in Digital Storytelling
• Gaylen Cook — The Joan Didion Award for Excellence in Creative Nonfiction
• Nico Maxino — The Scott Turow Award for Excellence in Fiction Writing
• Emma Reyes — The Gerald Stern Prize for Excellence in Poetry Writing
• Ali Brown and Addison Patrick — The Ida B. Wells Award for Excellence in Journalism
Each award winner will present a brief piece, followed by readings by Ashburn and Irwin. A book signing and reception will follow the event.
Ashburn is the author of the poetry collection, The Light on the Wall (Main Street Rag). Her work has been widely published in journals such as The Writer’s Almanac, New Ohio Review, The Fiddlehead, and more. She is the recipient of the 2023 Lori White Nonfiction Fellowship and has been nominated for several Pushcart Prizes. She holds an MFA from Chatham University, is a professor in the English department at Duquesne University, and is a proud member of Pittsburgh’s Madwomen in the Attic writing workshops.
Irwin is the author of the memoir These Fragments I Have Shored (Apprentice House Press, 2026), as well as the poetry collections The History of Our Vagrancies (Main Street Rag, 2020), A Blister of Stars (Low Ghost, 2016), and Watering the Dead, winner of the Transcontinental Poetry Award (Pavement Saw Press, 2008). In 2022, he was a Zoeglossia Fellow and part of the Poetry Foundation’s Disability Poetics Project.
Thursday, April 16: 6 p.m. — McKenna Hall
CAPSTONE BOOK LAUNCH PARTY! With Special 51 Alumni Guests
Join our graduating senior writing majors as they launch their beautiful chapbooks into the world. Each writer will read from their just-published chapbooks, which will be available for sale and signing at a reception following the readings. Expect a surprise visit from an inspirational 51 writing program alum or two who will talk about what good things writers can do in the world right now.
Dave Newman, assistant professor of English, author, and co-coordinator of the festival, mentored the Capstone students as they wrote, designed, edited, and produced their books.
“It’s so fulfilling to see young writers learn and grow, and to share in the excitement they bring to these projects. It’s a joy to watch them bravely share their good work with an audience and see them get the glow that comes from making that connection,” Newman said. “This all reminds me every day how much I love writing and writers, and what a privilege it is to do this thing we do that brings people together.”
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The 51 Writers Festival is sponsored by the Creative & Professional Writing Program and 51’s Academic Village. All festival events are free and open to everyone. For more information, email loj@pitt.edu or dpn15@pitt.edu.