INDIANA — A total of 40 organizations will host Indiana authors in 2026 as part of a statewide Speaker Program and Writing Workshop Program offered through the Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana Authors Awards.
Category winners and shortlisted authors from the 2024 awards will visit communities virtually and in person for the speaker program events to provide readings and discussions. Interactive writing workshops led by Hoosier writers will also be hosted throughout the year by 10 nonprofit organizations.
Indiana Humanities, which powers the Indiana Authors Awards, selects the hosts and provides support for award-winning Indiana authors to travel the state to speak to public audiences. The programs, open to public libraries, schools, churches, museums, community centers, and other nonprofit organizations, are funded through the support of Glick Philanthropies.
“Providing communities with access to these talented authors is an important part of the work we do with the Indiana Authors Awards,” said Bronwen Carlisle, programs and special projects manager at Indiana Humanities. “Because of the generous support from Glick Philanthropies, we’re able to reach more parts of the state with this opportunity for Hoosiers to engage with the written word and become inspired by the literary landscape of our state.”
Organizations hosting author talks are:
- Allen County Public Library, Fort Wayne (Author: George Kalamaras)
- Arts Illiana, Terre Haute (Author: George Kalamaras)
- Bartholomew County Public Library, Columbus (Author: Jeff Darren Muse)
- Batesville Memorial Public Library, Batesville (Author: Helen Frost)
- Brown County Public Library, Nashville (Author: Gabrielle Balkan)
- Calumet College of St. Joseph, Whiting (Author: Curtis Crisler)
- Crown Point Community Library, Crown Point (Author: Kenneth Kraegel)
- Edgewood Primary School, Ellettsville (Author: Dori Graham)
- Eminence Jr/Sr High School, Eminence (Author: Donna Griffin)
- Flora Public Library, Flora (Author: Edward Fujawa)
- Franklin County Public Library District, Brookville (Author: Janna Matthies)
- Fulton County Public Library, Rochester Branch, Rochester (Author: Agata Izabela Brewer)
- Hanover College, Hanover (Author: Angela Jackson-Brown)
- Harrison County Public Library, Corydon (Author: Janna Matthies)
- Impact Academy, Indianapolis (Author: Katherine Higgs-Coulthard)
- Indiana University South Bend, South Bend (Author: Tess Gunty)
- Irvington Preparatory Academy, Indianapolis (Author: Jennifer Blackmer)
- Jackson County Public Library, Seymour (Author: Curtis Crisler)
- Jefferson County Public Library, Madison (Author: Lori Rader-Day)
- Johnson County Public Library, Whiteland (Author: Rebecca Mullin)
- Lawrenceburg Public Library District, Lawrenceburg (Author: Janis Thornton)
- Lebanon Public Library, Lebanon (Author: Dori Graham)
- Marian University, Indianapolis (Author: Brittany Means)
- Marion Public Library, Marion (Author: Janis Thornton)
- Pike County Public Library, Petersburg (Author: Troy Cummings)
- Purdue University, West Lafayette (Author: Rebecca McKanna)
- School Town of Munster, Munster (Author: Helen Frost)
- Saint Mary’s College, Notre Dame (Author: Sarah Layden)
- Thomas A. Edison Jr/Sr High, Lake Station (Author: Maurice Broaddus)
- Women Writing for (a) Change Bloomington, Bloomington (Author: Marabai Rose)
Groups hosting writing workshops are:
- Aurora Public Library District, Aurora (Workshop Leader: Samuel Love)
- Chautauqua in the Dunes, Valparaiso (Workshop Leader: David Griffith)
- Clinton Public Library, Clinton (Workshop Leader: Kaitlynn McShea)
- Franklin Central High School Creative Writing Club, Indianapolis (Workshop Leader: John F. Allen)
- Greensburg Public Library, Greensburg (Workshop Leader: Larry Sweazy)
- Huntington University, Huntington (Workshop Leader: Shari Wagner)
- KIPP Indy Unite, Indianapolis (Workshop Leader: Chantel Massey)
- Kokomo-Howard County Public Library, Kokomo (Workshop Leader: Kenneth Woods)
- Starke County Public Library, Knox (Workshop Leader: Alicia Rasley)
- St. Joe County Public Library, South Bend (Workshop Leader: Rosaleen Crowley)
In addition to paying the speaker fees, Indiana Humanities will provide participating organizations with resources such as a communications toolkit, press release template, and graphics for social media promotion.
Dates, times, and other details for the author talks and writing workshops will be announced later. Watch for more information at indianaauthorsawards.org.
