The department’s Visiting Writing Series brings esteemed poets, fiction writers and non-fiction authors to our campus and community for engaging literary events. These events include public readings and provide an opportunity for students and the community to engage with contemporary literature and the creative process.
The series features a diverse lineup of nationally and internationally recognized authors who contribute significantly to the literary landscape. Previous visiting writers have included award-winning poets and such authors as Ada Limón, Ann Beattie, Silas House, Roxane Gay, Viet Thanh Nquyen, Li-Young Lee, Nicole Chung and Tayari Jones. This program enriches the academic environment and provides aspiring writers with inspiration and practical knowledge from leading figures in the literary world. All events are free and open to the public. Support for the Visiting Writers Series is provided by generous donors. We welcome contributions to the English MFA Visiting Writers Fund.
Fall 2025 Events
A reading by UKY Alumni
Erika J. Simpson is a Southern girl living in Denver with her partner and their black cat. She holds an MFA in creative writing from the University of Kentucky and is the recipient of the 2021 MFA Award in Nonfiction. Her essay “If You Ever Find Yourself” was published in Roxane Gay’s "The Audacity" and featured in Best American Essays 2022, edited by Alexander Chee. This Is Your Mother is her debut memoir, and she also writes fiction for the page and screen.
Allegra Solomon is a fiction writer from Columbus, Ohio. She got her MFA from the University of Kentucky and her B.A. in Creative Writing from Ohio University. Her debut short story collection won the Kimbilio National Fiction prize and was a finalist for the Iron Horse Literary Review/TTU First Book Prize. Her work has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, Best of the Net, and has appeared in, The Georgia Review, TriQuarterly, American Literary Review, New Ohio Review, Lolwe, and more. She was the 2022 recipient of University of Kentucky's graduate fiction prize. Her debut short story collection There's Nothing Left For You Here is out now with Four Way Books. She lives in Lexington, Kentucky.
Alfonso Zapata is a poet living in Lexington. He received his MFA in poetry at The University of Kentucky and has attended The University of Toledo and The University of Southern Mississippi, where he received his MA in English. He has previously received the 2022 & 2023 University of Kentucky MFA Poetry Awards, and his poetry collection won the 2024 TRP Southern Poetry Breakthrough Prize. His chapbook, Together Now, was released in 2024 by Belle Point Press, and his debut poetry collection To Pay for Our Next Breath is available now.
Oct, 29th @ 6 p.m. in the UKFCU Esports Theater
401 S Limestone St.
Lexington, KY, 40506
Kiese Laymon
Born and raised in Jackson, Mississippi, Kiese Laymon is the Libbie Shearn Moody Professor of English and Creative Writing at Rice University and author of the novel Long Division, the memoir Heavy, and the essay collection How to Slowly Kill Yourself and Others in America. He was named a 2022 MacArthur Fellow.
Singletary Center for the Arts
SEPTEMBER 9th, 7PM
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For more information about the Visiting Writers Series contact Julia Johnson or Robin Rahija.