“Words are the only bread we can really share.”
Luis Alberto Urrea, best-selling author and Pulitzer-Prize finalist, to give keynote address at the Collins Writers’ Conference on Thurs., June 22
What: An Evening with Luis Alberto Urrea
When: Thursday, June 22, 2017
Private Reception at 5:30pm (for Conference participants only)
Public Reception at 6:30pm
Program at 7:30pm
Where: Figge Art Museum (Community Gallery & John Deere Auditorium), 225 W. 2nd St., Davenport, IA 52801
The Midwest Writing Center (MWC) is thrilled to announce the annual David R. Collins Writers’ Conference will return to St. Ambrose University on June 22-24. The David R. Collins Writers’ Conference offers high quality, generative writing instruction at affordable prices with Midwest hospitality.
This year, we’re thrilled to add a new event to the Conference: a keynote address, free and open to the public, to be given by Pulitzer-Prize finalist Luis Alberto Urrea. A Member of the Latino Literature Hall of Fame, Urrea is the critically acclaimed and best-selling author of 16 books, winning numerous awards for his poetry, fiction, and essays. Born in Tijuana to a Mexican father and American mother, Urrea is most recognized as a border writer, though he says, “I am more interested in bridges, not borders.”
His most recent book, The Water Museum, a collection of short stories, was a finalist for the 2015 PEN-Faulkner Award and was named a best book of the year by The Washington Post and Kirkus Reviews, among others. Into the Beautiful North, his 2009 novel, is a Big Read selection by the National Endowment of the Arts, and has been selected by more than 30 different cities and colleges as a community read. The Devil’s Highway, his 2004 non-fiction account of a group of Mexican immigrants lost in the Arizona desert, won the Lannan Literary Award and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and the Pacific Rim Kiriyama Prize.
Urrea will give the Conference keynote address at the Figge Art Museum (225 W. 2nd St., Davenport) on Thursday, June 22 at 7:30pm. The event will start with a private reception for Conference participants at 5:30 p.m., which will be followed by a public reception beginning at 6:30pm and the keynote address, which will start at 7:30 p.m.
Also, in advance of his appearance at Collins Writers’ Conference, the Bettendorf Public Library will be hosting a discussion of Urrea’s award-winning novel INTO THE BEAUTIFUL NORTH on Wednesday, June 21, from 1:00-2:30 p.m., led by Gwen Pokora. BPL has additional copies of the book to check out to those interested in participating available on a first come, first serve basis.
For more information about this special event, and the David R. Collins Writers’ Conference, please contact MWC, check out the Facebook event page, or visit the Conference page: www.mwcqc.org/events-opportunities/david-r-collins-writers-conference/
The David R. Collins Writers’ Conference is made possible thanks to the generous support of our sponsors: Modern Woodman of America, founding sponsor; the Riverboat Development Authority; the St. Ambrose University English Department; the Figge Art Museum; WVIK 90.3 FM, Quad Cities NPR; and the Illinois Arts Council Agency. 
