The American Writers Festival is right around the corner!
We are so very excited for the 2026 American Writers Festival, happening this weekend! This year, we expanded it to two days over two locations: June 6 at the American Writers Museum and June 7 at the Harold Washington Library Center. Both located in downtown Chicago, this is an entirely free literary event featuring more than 90 writers and artists from across the country. The Festival takes place 10:00 am to 5:00 pm both days with multiple programs throughout.
To share our excitement, AWM staff highlighted just a few of the 40+ programs we are looking forward to this weekend. We’re talking memoirs and mystery, horror and humor, suspense and spirituality. Not to mention cartography! See what we’re excited for below, and check out the full schedule here.
A Nation Wrestles with God
featuring:
Reza Aslan, Ilan Stavans, and Emily D. Crews
I am excited for this program and new anthology! The book is A Nation Wrestles with God: American Prophets, Philosophers, and Firebrands, edited by Ilan Stavans. Ilan has worked with the AWM as a content advisor on numerous projects, and this latest is a continuation of that partnership. The collection spans more than 400 years and includes works that “awoke new generations to free religious thought, from the pre-colonial to the present day.”
This program and book are presented in conjunction with our current exhibit American Prophets: Writers, Religion, and Culture, of which both Ilan and Emily D. Crews advised on. Adding scholar and author Reza Aslan to the mix is just the cherry on top! Whether you consider yourself religious or not, this program will interest anyone who wants to understand how religion and spirituality impact American writers and their works. —Nate, Content & Exhibits Manager
Horror Writing: Books & Podcasts
featuring:
Quan Barry, Jeffrey Cranor, Joseph Fink, Scott Hawkins, and A.V. Bach
I’m looking forward to the Horror Writing: Books & Podcasts panel. I’ve recently been diving into the genre (and it’s keeping me up at night!) and I can’t wait to hear more about these writers craft such terrifying stories for their readers. I’m particularly excited to hear from the folks at Welcome to Night Vale and see what it’s like taking these scary stories to the world of podcasting. It’s sure to be a…frightfully fun program! —Matt, Community Engagement Manager
Religion, Memoir, and Influence
featuring:
Jen Hatmaker and Carey Cranston
I am really excited about Jen Hatmaker. I heard her on a podcast in 2020, was fascinated with her story, read her memoir Awake, and started following her on social media. Her journey with her faith is so relatable to so many Christians who might be struggling to reconcile their beliefs with the message they grew up with in church. The way she spoke openly about that journey really impressed me. I think she really walks the talk in a way that’s both brave and admirable. Plus, I very much relate to her as a Gen-X mom. —Annie, Administrative Associate
The Spiritual Essence of Storytelling
featuring:
Catherine-Esther Cowie, Tom Montgomery Fate, Runako Jahi, and Aviya Kushner
I’m looking forward to spending Sunday on the Third Floor Stage which has thoughtful, provocative programming all day long, and I’m most excited about The Spiritual Essence of Storytelling panel that kicks off the day. Because I love travel and travel writing, I’m excited to hear Chicagoland-based Tom Montgomery Fate speak about The Long Way Home: Detours and Discoveries. This description really grabbed me and made me want to dive into the book: “Whether he is bobbing in a canoe in the freezing rain with his son on a Canadian lake, praying with Lakota elders in a sweat lodge in South Dakota, or teaching English in a remote Filipino village, these are not stories of arrival. They are detours of discovery, a spiritual wayfinding through the wilderness of time and memory.”
Suspense & Humor
featuring:
Nicolas DiDomizio, Stephen Fishbach, Tiffany Hanssen, and Erica Floyd
In preparation for the 2026 American Writers Festival, my current read is Stephen Fishbach’s novel, Escape! As an unapologetic reality television enjoyer, I knew of Stephen from his two-time appearance on Survivor. So far, reading this propulsive story has felt a lot like watching one of my favorite reality competition shows—I am captivated by quirky characters and eager to see what will happen next. What makes Escape! stand out from other thrillers, though, is its organic humor. I am so excited and honored to be the stage manager for the Suspense & Humor panel featuring Fisbach, Nicolas DiDomizio, Tiffany Hanssen, and moderated by Erica Floyd. This group of authors will discuss mystery writing tactics like building tension—and how humor can serve to both raise the stakes and provide comic relief. We hope to see you there!
Writing Baseball: The First All-Star Game
featuring:
Randall Sullivan and Joe Kilgallon
I’m looking forward to the Writing Baseball: The First All-Star Game program. As a baseball fan and history enthusiast, anything that combines the two is right up my alley. Also, this panel will be held at the American Writers Museum on Saturday 6/6, which will be free admission that day! How much fun will it be to attend awesome programming such as Writing Baseball and explore the museum exhibits for free all in one day?!
Also, for the record, I am very excited about the CPL owl mascot during the Festival on Sunday 6/7 as I have a strong pro-mascot policy. —Courtney, Assistant Director of Education
Writing Maps
featuring:
Stentor Danielson, Andy Woodruff, and David Weimer
Part of our mission at the AWM is to promote writing in all of its forms. Yes, that includes fiction, journalism, poetry, and screenwriting. But the American Writers Festival is a chance to spotlight even more forms of writing. Writing Maps promises to be an fascinating look at the art form of cartography and map writing. Google Maps may have shrunk the whole world into a black box that fits in our pockets, but maps provide more than just a way to get around. They are the entrance way to how we read (and sometimes misread) the world, even places that may seem familiar to us. —Andrew, Institutional Giving Manager
Visit our Reading Recommendations page for more book lists.