FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                             CONTACT: ROBYN WHEELER
October 23, 2006                                                                                                   773-995-2388
                                                                                                                                   773-308-5306, cell

THE NATION’S MOST PROLIFIC WRITERS OF
AFRICAN AMERICAN LITERATURE ATTEND CHICAGO STATE’S
16th ANNUAL GWENDOLYN BROOKS WRITERS’ CONFERENCE

CHICAGO – Chicago State University (CSU) will host some of the nation’s most prolific writers and poets during the 16th Annual Gwendolyn Brooks Writers’ Conference. This Conference examines, promotes and celebrates the literary works of the African Diaspora. It will take place on Wednesday, October 25 through Saturday, October 28, 2006 from 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m. at Chicago State University, 9501 S. King Drive, Chicago.

Over the last 15 years, the four-day event has become a destination conference for renowned writers. This year’s special guests include literary giant Walter Mosley, best known for the novel Devil In A Blue Dress (later adapted to film); award-wining children’s book authors, Patricia and Fred McKissack; and the pioneering vocal soul group, The Last Poets.

Conference programming includes workshops, panel discussions and performances centered around the theme “Alive in the Ice & Fire,” which speaks to the perseverance of African Americans, in spite of their historic and present-day challenges. The theme harkens back to a celebratory poem of human intimacy written by Gwendolyn Brooks entitled, “An Aspect of Love, Alive in the Ice and Fire.”

Highlights of the Conference include:

• Special performance by The Last Poets
  Thursday, October 26, 2006 at 7:00 p.m.
  CSU’s Breakey Theater
• Induction Ceremony
  The International Literary Hall of Fame for Writers of African Descent
  Cliff Kelley, host of WVON’s Cliff Kelley Show is one of the honorees.
  Friday, October 27, 2006 at 7:00 p.m.
  CSU’s Breakey Theater
• Giant’s Day
  A daylong celebration of the life and works of Walter Mosley
  Saturday, October 28, 2006, beginning at 9:00 a.m.
  Cordell Reed Student Union Rotunda

Other special guests include award-winning poets Patricia Smith, Marilyn Nelson, Quincy Troupe and Askia Toure and critically-acclaimed writers Lorene Cary, Lamont Steptoe, Patricia Spears Jones, Frank Jackson and Dawn Turner Trice of the Chicago Tribune.

This year’s Conference is sponsored by The Chicago Defender and The Gwendolyn Brooks Center for Black Literature and Creative Writing.

For more information on the Conference, please call 773-995-4440 or visit our website, www.csu.edu/gwendolynbrooks/.