Photos from Big Joy Salon

Julie Bloemeke and Cleo Creech

Cal Gough

A'Roara Thunder

Brent Calderwood

Julie Bloemeke

Chad Shone and Griff Tester

Don Perryman

Rupert Fike

Theresa Davis Delivers Keynote, Performs at 2011 AQLF

Local favorite Theresa Davis, talks about her influences and perspectives. Theresa tells about her recent slam championship. She also performs Going on a Bender, 451, and "Breathing Lessons".

Part 1, Keynote Address

Part 2, Keynote and Going on a Bender

Part 3, Views and Perspectives, Crazy Stuff Kids Think

Part 4, Theresa performs 451

Part 4, Breathing Lessons

Bryan Borland of Sibling Rivalry Press Delivers Keynote Address

Catch Bryan's keynote address where he reads his "Flawed Families in Biblical Times", he also discusses his connection with Ganymede Press, starting Sibling Rivalry Press and discusses LGBT Publishing.

Donate to AQLF & Win Royal Wedding swag

Tomorrow is the Royal Wedding and our AQLF friend and supporter Karen Head brought this official magnet back from a recent trip to London. The magnet features William and Kate and is perfect for the Anglophile in your life. The person who makes the biggest donation by 11:59 p.m. ET on April 29 will get the magnet. To make a donation via PayPal just click the Donate button in the sidebar.

AQLF is a nonprofit organization, so your donations go directly to programming and aiding in bringing authors to Atlanta for the festival. This year's AQLF is June 23-25.

Cheers!

2011 AQLF Keynotes Announced

Bryan Borland is a Pushcart-nominated poet from Little Rock, Arkansas, and the owner of Sibling Rivalry Press. His first book, My Life as Adam, was one of only five collections of poetry included on the American Library Association's "Over the Rainbow" list of notable LGBT-themed books published in 2010. He is the founding editor of Assaracus, the only print journal in the world dedicated exclusively to the poetry of gay men. His work has appeared in Gay & Lesbian Review Worldwide, Breadcrumb Scabs, Referential Magazine, vox poetica, Ganymede, and Velvet Mafia, among others. For more about Bryan, visit his website at www.bryanborland.com.

Theresa Davis is a poet, spoken word artist and teacher. In 2011, she won the Women of the World Poetry Slam held in Columbus, Ohio. She has released two albums of her work,  This is for Family and The Uncivil War, as well as two published collections, Torn and Head Games. She is a member of The Word Diversity Collective/Art Amok and represented Atlanta as a member of the 2006 - 2010 Art Amok Slam Team. Davis has shared the stage with Eve Ensler, Jane Fonda, Pearl Cleage and Doria Roberts in The Vagina Monologues, with Berniece Johnson Reagan (Sweet Honey in the Rock) and recently with Def Poet Jon Goode in their joint production of Wish You Were Here at 7 Stages Theater in Atlanta. www.theresa-davis.com

Sonia Tetlow Set from AQLF Eddie's Benefit Now on Youtube

Hey gang, if you couldn't make it to the Eddie's benefit, we have the entire Sonia Tetlow set now uploaded on our YouTube channel. We were so fortunate to have the talents of this uber talented singer/songwriter at the show.

Check out the whole set here: http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=A89D39A8E2A75C12

There's a great performance with local slam master Karen G. performing "Incessant"

Sonia does everything from soulful ballads like "Trading Water."

To rocking out with "Free to Rock 'n Roll."

As well as the fun "I've Been Trying to Tell Ya."

Check out Sonia on MySpace.

If you couldn't make the benefit, you can also still make contributions via this website.

Tonight's the Night! AQLF Benefit Eddie's Attic: Featuring Bucky Motter and Sonia Tetlow

Tonight's the big night, doors open at 5, show at 6. Come early for a bite to eat.

Show your support for AQLF's fifth anniversary season by catching this great show by the talented singer/songwriters Bucky Motter and Sonia Tetlow.

For more info and  to buy tickets, check out the Eddie's website.

Wishing All Our AQLF Peeps - Happy National Poetry Month!

AQLF fundraiser with Eileen Myles, Feb. 23

Eileen Myles (photo by Leopoldine Core)

AQLF will hold a special fundraiser featuring Eileen Myles with Megan Volpert at Charis Books (1189 Euclid Ave. in Little Five Points) on Wednesday,  Feb. 23, 7:30pm A $5 to $10 donation is suggested.

The Atlanta Queer Literary Festival, now in its 5th year, provides a long weekend full of readings, workshops, panels and other literary events that focus on celebrating and connecting the LGBTQ community's literary achievements and aspirations. This year the festival is moving from October to Stonewall Weekend in late June, and as always, it is free and open to all.

Eileen Myles' Inferno (a poet's novel), out now from OR books, chronicles the adventures of a female writer in hell very much like Eileen Myles. Inferno is actually a kunstlerroman. Myles first became known to many people for her openly female write-in campaign for President of the United States in 1991-92. A widely published and anthologized writer, her books include The Importance of Being Iceland/travel essays in art (2009) for which she received a Warhol/Creative Capital art writing grant, Sorry, Tree (poetry) 2007, Tow w/ artist Larry C. Collins (2005), Skies (2001), on my way (2001), Cool for You (novel, 2000), School of Fish (1997), Maxfield Parrish (1995), Not Me (1991), and Chelsea Girls (stories, 1994). She is currently Fannie Hurst Professor at Washington University in St. Louis. She contributes to a wide number of publications including Art Forum, Parkett, The Believer, Vice, Cabinet, The Nation, TimeOut, Book Forum and AnOther Magazine.  The Poetry Society of American awarded her the Shelley Prize in 2010. Find out more at www.eileenmyles.com.

Megan Volpert's fourth book is Sonics in Warholia (Slack Buddha Press, 2011). She is Co-Director of the Atlanta Queer Literary Festival, and a high school English teacher with an MFA from Louisiana State University. Predictably, www.meganvolpert.com is her website.

AQLF, Celebrating Our 5th Anniversary in 2011, Thanks for Your Support

We hope everyone is having a great holiday season and want to extend our best to all our families of all makes and models throughout the community. May the New Year bring you and yours happiness, prosperity, creativity, and fulfillment.

We'd like to thank all our supporters over the years and especially this past year for making AQLF 2010 so successful. We look forward to our big 5th anniversary in 2011.

We're moving AQLF back to the summer so we're on a shortened planning/budgeting schedule. We'd appreciate your continued support. If you have any charity spending left in your budget before the end of the year, please keep us in mind.