Upcoming Events
- Location:
- Wittliff Collections
- Cost:
- Free
- Contact:
- Dr. Charlotte Pence; cpence@txstate.edu
- Campus Sponsor:
- Department of English
Two-term U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón (2022-2025), has been named Distinguished Professor of Poetry at Texas State University.
Limón is the author of seven books of poetry, including Startlement: New & Selected Poems; The Hurting Kind, which was a finalist for the Griffin Prize; The Carrying, which won the National Book Critics Circle Award and was a finalist for the PEN/Jean Stein Book Award; and Bright Dead Things, which was named a finalist for the National Book Award, the National Book Critics Circle Award, and the Kingsley Tufts Award.
Limón is the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship, a Guggenheim Fellowship and was named a 2024 Time Magazine Woman of the Year. She is the author of two picture books, In Praise of Mystery as well as And, Too, The Fox, and was the editor of the anthology You Are Here: Poetry in the Natural World. Her short-form non-fiction book Against Breaking: On The Power of Poetry, was released in 2026.
Limón served as the 24th Poet Laureate of the United States—one of only a handful of poets to serve two terms. During her laureateship, she wrote, “In Praise of Mystery: A Poem for Europa,” dedicated to NASA’s Europa Clipper mission. The poem was subsequently engraved on the spacecraft, which launched on Oct. 14, 2024.
Limón is the author of seven books of poetry, including Startlement: New & Selected Poems; The Hurting Kind, which was a finalist for the Griffin Prize; The Carrying, which won the National Book Critics Circle Award and was a finalist for the PEN/Jean Stein Book Award; and Bright Dead Things, which was named a finalist for the National Book Award, the National Book Critics Circle Award, and the Kingsley Tufts Award.
Limón is the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship, a Guggenheim Fellowship and was named a 2024 Time Magazine Woman of the Year. She is the author of two picture books, In Praise of Mystery as well as And, Too, The Fox, and was the editor of the anthology You Are Here: Poetry in the Natural World. Her short-form non-fiction book Against Breaking: On The Power of Poetry, was released in 2026.
Limón served as the 24th Poet Laureate of the United States—one of only a handful of poets to serve two terms. During her laureateship, she wrote, “In Praise of Mystery: A Poem for Europa,” dedicated to NASA’s Europa Clipper mission. The poem was subsequently engraved on the spacecraft, which launched on Oct. 14, 2024.
- Location:
- Zoom; link provided to MFA grad students in advance of workshop
- Cost:
- Free; only open to TXST MFA students
- Contact:
- Bianca Alyssa Perez; mfinearts@txstate.edu
- Campus Sponsor:
- TXST MFA in Creative Writing; TXST English Department
Tim O’Brien is the author of nine books, including the universally acclaimed books, The Things They Carried, and Going After Cacciato, winner of the 1978 National Book Award. His other novels include If I Die in a Combat Zone: Box Me Up and Ship Me Home; Northern Lights; The Nuclear Age; Tomcat in Love; July, July; and In the Lake of the Woods. His most recent book is the memoir Dad's Maybe Book. He was a major contributor to Ken Burns’ renowned PBS documentary on the Vietnam War (2017), where his writing was featured. In 2012, O'Brien received both the Texas Writer Award and the Dayton Literary Peace Prize Foundation's Richard C. Holbrooke Distinguished Achievement Award.
Description of workshop:
A workshop led by Tim O’Brien will have students read and discuss a maximum of 2 unconventional short stories per workshop. Thirty to forty-five minutes of every workshop will also be dedicated to conceptual free writing, outside any project the students are currently working on. TXST MFA poetry and fiction students are welcome to send their short story in for consideration.
Description of workshop:
A workshop led by Tim O’Brien will have students read and discuss a maximum of 2 unconventional short stories per workshop. Thirty to forty-five minutes of every workshop will also be dedicated to conceptual free writing, outside any project the students are currently working on. TXST MFA poetry and fiction students are welcome to send their short story in for consideration.
- Location:
- Zoom; link provided to MFA students before the workshop
- Cost:
- Free; only open to TXST MFA students
- Contact:
- Bianca Alyssa Perez; mfinearts@txstate.edu
- Campus Sponsor:
- TXST MFA in Creative Writing; TXST English Department
Tim O’Brien is the author of nine books, including the universally acclaimed books, The Things They Carried, and Going After Cacciato, winner of the 1978 National Book Award. His other novels include If I Die in a Combat Zone: Box Me Up and Ship Me Home; Northern Lights; The Nuclear Age; Tomcat in Love; July, July; and In the Lake of the Woods. His most recent book is the memoir Dad's Maybe Book. He was a major contributor to Ken Burns’ renowned PBS documentary on the Vietnam War (2017), where his writing was featured. In 2012, O'Brien received both the Texas Writer Award and the Dayton Literary Peace Prize Foundation's Richard C. Holbrooke Distinguished Achievement Award.
Description of workshop:
A workshop led by Tim O’Brien will have students read and discuss a maximum of 2 unconventional short stories per workshop. Thirty to forty-five minutes of every workshop will also be dedicated to conceptual free writing, outside any project the students are currently working on. TXST MFA poetry and fiction students are welcome to send their short story in for consideration.
Description of workshop:
A workshop led by Tim O’Brien will have students read and discuss a maximum of 2 unconventional short stories per workshop. Thirty to forty-five minutes of every workshop will also be dedicated to conceptual free writing, outside any project the students are currently working on. TXST MFA poetry and fiction students are welcome to send their short story in for consideration.
- Location:
- Katherine Anne Porter Literary Center
508 W Center St, Kyle, TX 78640 - Cost:
- Free; only open to TXST MFA Students
- Contact:
- Bianca Alyssa Perez; mfinearts@txstate.edu
- Campus Sponsor:
- Department of English
As part of the TXST MFA Professionalization Series, join poet Saúl Hernández for a conversation on the process of building a poetry manuscript. This session will explore how individual poems can come together to form a cohesive, compelling collection, with attention to sequencing, thematic development, structure, revision, and the larger arc of a manuscript. The event will offer practical insight into moving from a collection of individual poems toward a finished manuscript.
Saúl Hernández is an award-winning contemporary queer poet and writer from San Antonio, Texas, raised by former undocumented parents. He holds an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Texas at El Paso and is a 2025 National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Fellow. His debut poetry collection, How to Kill a Goat & Other Monsters (University of Wisconsin Press) is a Lambda Literary Award Winner in Gay Poetry, a 2025 Writers’ League of Texas Discovery Award Winner, was longlisted for a 2025 PEN Open Book Award, & was awarded the Texas Institute of Letters’ honor-winner.
Saúl Hernández is an award-winning contemporary queer poet and writer from San Antonio, Texas, raised by former undocumented parents. He holds an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Texas at El Paso and is a 2025 National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Fellow. His debut poetry collection, How to Kill a Goat & Other Monsters (University of Wisconsin Press) is a Lambda Literary Award Winner in Gay Poetry, a 2025 Writers’ League of Texas Discovery Award Winner, was longlisted for a 2025 PEN Open Book Award, & was awarded the Texas Institute of Letters’ honor-winner.
- Location:
- Wittliff Collections
- Cost:
- Free
- Contact:
- Dr. drea brown; drea.brown@txstate.edu
- Campus Sponsor:
- Department of English; Therese Keyser Lindsey Literary Series
Roxane Gay is a writer, editor, professor, and cultural critic. She is the author of the New York Times bestselling essay collection Bad Feminist, the memoir Hunger, the novel An Untamed State, and the story collections Difficult Women and Ayiti. She holds the Gloria Steinem Endowed Chair in Media, Culture and Feminist Studies at Rutgers University and is a contributing opinion writer for The New York Times.
- Location:
- Katherine Anne Porter Literary Center
- Cost:
- Free; only open to TXST MFA students
- Contact:
- Bianca Alyssa Perez; mfinearts@txstate.edu
- Campus Sponsor:
- Department of English
As part of the TXST MFA Professionalization Series, join picture book author and editor Cate Berry for a conversation on structure in picture books. This session will explore how writers use pacing, page turns, repetition, tension, and visual storytelling to shape a compelling picture book manuscript. Designed for emerging writers interested in children’s literature, the seminar will offer practical insight into crafting stories that work in close collaboration with the picture book form.
Cate Berry is the author of multiple picture books (Harper Collins, MacMillan, Page Street Kids). Her newest, Love is Everywhere (Farrar, Straus, Giroux) releases Fall, 2028. Cate holds an MFA in Writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts, with an emphasis in humorous writing. She has presented at the Texas Book Festival, The Writing Barn, Association of Writers and Writing Programs, and held faculty positions at many conferences nationwide. Ms. Berry is the former humor columnist for Austin Family magazine and is a seasoned presenter, educator and speaker. www.cateberry.com www.cateberryspeaks.com
Cate Berry is the author of multiple picture books (Harper Collins, MacMillan, Page Street Kids). Her newest, Love is Everywhere (Farrar, Straus, Giroux) releases Fall, 2028. Cate holds an MFA in Writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts, with an emphasis in humorous writing. She has presented at the Texas Book Festival, The Writing Barn, Association of Writers and Writing Programs, and held faculty positions at many conferences nationwide. Ms. Berry is the former humor columnist for Austin Family magazine and is a seasoned presenter, educator and speaker. www.cateberry.com www.cateberryspeaks.com
- Cost:
- Free; only open to TXST MFA students
- Contact:
- Bianca Alyssa Perez; mfinearts@txstate.edu
- Campus Sponsor:
- TXST MFA in Creative Writing; TXST English Department
Tim O’Brien is the author of nine books, including the universally acclaimed books, The Things They Carried, and Going After Cacciato, winner of the 1978 National Book Award. His other novels include If I Die in a Combat Zone: Box Me Up and Ship Me Home; Northern Lights; The Nuclear Age; Tomcat in Love; July, July; and In the Lake of the Woods. His most recent book is the memoir Dad's Maybe Book. He was a major contributor to Ken Burns’ renowned PBS documentary on the Vietnam War (2017), where his writing was featured. In 2012, O'Brien received both the Texas Writer Award and the Dayton Literary Peace Prize Foundation's Richard C. Holbrooke Distinguished Achievement Award.
Description of workshop:
A workshop led by Tim O’Brien will have students read and discuss a maximum of 2 unconventional short stories per workshop. Thirty to forty-five minutes of every workshop will also be dedicated to conceptual free writing, outside any project the students are currently working on. TXST MFA poetry and fiction students are welcome to send their short story in for consideration
Description of workshop:
A workshop led by Tim O’Brien will have students read and discuss a maximum of 2 unconventional short stories per workshop. Thirty to forty-five minutes of every workshop will also be dedicated to conceptual free writing, outside any project the students are currently working on. TXST MFA poetry and fiction students are welcome to send their short story in for consideration
- Location:
- Katherine Anne Porter Literary Center
508 W Center St, Kyle, TX 78640 - Cost:
- Free
- Contact:
- Bianca Alyssa Perez; bperez@txstate.edu
- Campus Sponsor:
- Department of English; Katherine Anne Porter Literary Series
Laurie Ann Guerrero is a Chicana poet, essayist, and visual artist born and raised on the Southside of San Antonio. She served as Poet Laureate of San Antonio (2014–2016) and the 53rd Poet Laureate of Texas (2016–2017). Her collections include A Tongue in the Mouth of the Dying (University of Notre Dame Press), winner of the Andrés Montoya Poetry Prize, and I Have Eaten the Rattlesnake: New & Selected Poems (TCU Press, 2021). Her forthcoming collection REDWORK won the 2025 Autumn House Poetry Award.
- Location:
- Zoom; link will be sent to MFA students prior to the event
- Cost:
- Free
- Contact:
- Bianca Alyssa Perez; mfinearts@txstate.edu
- Campus Sponsor:
- Department of English
What can you do with an MFA in Creative Writing if you don’t want to teach? This TXST MFA Professionalization Series panel brings together MFA graduates who have built careers outside of higher education. Panelists will share their professional journeys, discuss how their creative writing training has shaped their work, and offer insight into careers in fields such as publishing, nonprofits, communications, arts organizations, and other creative industries. The conversation will help current TXST MFA students imagine the many ways their writing, creative, and critical-thinking skills can translate into meaningful careers beyond academia.
Panelists include:
Panelists include:
- Claire Bowman, Editor-in-Chief and Co-Executive Director at Host Publications
- Cloud Delfina Cardona, freelance book cover designer and Marketing Coordinator at Gemini Ink
- Christine McSwain, Operations and Community Engagement Coordinator at Hub City Writers Project
- Leslie Shipman, Founder & Literary Event Management at The Shipman Agency
- Location:
- Katherine Anne Porter Literary Center
508 W Center St, Kyle, TX 78640 - Cost:
- Free
- Contact:
- Bianca Alyssa Perez; bperez@txstate.edu
- Campus Sponsor:
- Department of English; Katherine Anne Porter Literary Series
Maggie Shipstead is the New York Times bestselling author of three novels and a short story collection. Her novel Great Circle was shortlisted for the 2021 Booker Prize and the Women's Prize for Fiction. She is a graduate of Harvard and the Iowa Writers' Workshop, a former Wallace Stegner Fellow at Stanford, and the winner of the Dylan Thomas Prize and the L.A. Times Book Prize for First Fiction.
- Location:
- Wittliff Collections
- Cost:
- Free
- Contact:
- Dr. drea brown; drea.brown@txstate.edu
- Campus Sponsor:
- Department of English; Therese Keyser Lindsey Literary Series
Born in Trinidad and raised in Queens, New York, Cheryl Boyce-Taylor is the author of seven collections of poetry. In 2021, her verse memoir, Mama Phife Represents, won The Publishing Triangle’s Audre Lorde Award and honors her son, Hip-Hop legend Malik, aka Phife Dawg, of A Tribe Called Quest. Her latest collection, The Limitless Heart, won the 2024 CLMP Firecracker Award. Cheryl is currently working on her eighth collection of poetry.
- Location:
- Katherine Anne Porter Literary Series
508 W Center St, Kyle, TX 78640 - Cost:
- Free
- Contact:
- Bianca Alyssa Perez; bperez@txstate.edu
- Campus Sponsor:
- Department of English; Katherine Anne Porter Literary Series
Amanda Johnston is a writer, visual artist, and the 61st Poet Laureate of Texas — the first Black woman to hold that honor. Born in East St. Louis and raised in Austin, she is the author of Another Way to Say Enter and founder of Torch Literary Arts. Her work has appeared in Poetry, Callaloo, and The Moth Radio Hour. She is also cofounder of Black Poets Speak Out and an Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellow.
- Location:
- Katherine Anne Porter Literary Center
508 W Center St, Kyle, TX 78640 - Cost:
- Free
- Contact:
- Bianca Alyssa Perez; mfinearts@txstate.edu
- Campus Sponsor:
- Department of English; Katherine Anne Porter Literary Series
Tim O'Brien is one of the most celebrated American writers of his generation. A Vietnam War veteran, he is the author of The Things They Carried (a Pulitzer Prize finalist), Going After Cacciato (winner of the National Book Award), and In the Lake of the Woods (named best novel of 1994 by Time). He taught creative writing at Texas State University for over twenty years and lives in Austin, Texas.
- Location:
- Wittliff Collections
- Cost:
- Free
- Contact:
- Bianca Alyssa Perez; mfinearts@txstate.edu
- Campus Sponsor:
- Department of English
Details to be announced once the winner is selected.