IN PERSON and LIVESTREAMED - An afternoon in conversation: Music in Fiction
Philbrick Hall at Parkway Central Library
Cost: FREE
Montgomery Auditorium
The relationship between music and fiction has always been a strong one. Four authors come together to chat about the role music has had in their works and in their writing life.
Xio Axelrod [she/her] is a USA Today bestselling author. She writes different flavors of contemporary fiction, romance, and what she likes to call, “strange, twisted tales.” Xio grew up in the recording industry and began performing at a very young age. When she isn’t working on the next story, Xio can be found behind a microphone in a studio, writing songs in her bedroom-turned-recording-booth, or occasionally performing under a different, not-so-secret name. She lives in South Philadelphia with one very patient, full-time, indoor husband, and several part-time, supremely pampered, outdoor cats. Her rock and roll fairytale, The Girl with Stars in Her Eyes, was a May 2021 Book of the Month add-on, a Target Diverse Book Club Pick, and garnered praise from Entertainment Weekly, Popsugar, Essence Magazine, Vulture, E!, Buzzfeed, and more.
USA TODAY bestselling author Susan Scott Shelley writes stories with heat and heart where love always wins. Her romances give readers lighthearted escapes into happily ever after and celebrate the fact that love is love. In addition to crafting stories, she is a professional voiceover artist and enjoys lending her voice to a wide range of projects. She lives in Philadelphia with her husband and loves sports, running, and reading. Her novel, Falling Faster, explores the unlikely relationship between a rock musician and a comic book enthusiast.
Priscilla Oliveras is a USA Today bestselling author and 2018 RWA® RITA® double finalist who writes contemporary romance with a Latinx flavor. Proud of her Puerto Rican–Mexican heritage, she strives to bring authenticity to her novels by sharing her culture with readers. Her books have earned starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, and Booklist along with praise from O, The Oprah Magazine, the Washington Post, the New York Times, Entertainment Weekly, Frolic, and more. She earned her MFA in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University, where she currently serves as adjunct faculty while also teaching the online class “Romance Writing” for ed2go. A longtime romance-genre enthusiast, Priscilla is also a sports fan, beach lover, and Zumba aficionado who often practices the art of napping in her backyard hammock. Her new release, West Side Love Story, is an Amazon Editors’ Pick for Best Romance in May 2022.
Eric Smith is a literary agent and Young Adult author living here in Philadelphia. As an agent with P.S. Literary, he’s worked on New York Times bestselling and award-winning books. His recent novels include the YALSA Best Books for Young Readers selection Don’t Read the Comments (Inkyard Press, 2020), You Can Go Your Own Way (Inkyard Press, 2021), and the anthology Battle of the Bands (Candlewick, 2021), co-edited with award-winning author Lauren Gibaldi. His latest book, Jagged Little Pill: The Novel, written with Alanis Morissette, Academy award-winner Diablo Cody, and Glen Ballard, was published with Abrams in April 2022. It’s an adaptation of the Grammy and Tony award winning musical.
This event will be livestreamed at https://youtu.be/-rRYSmK88Bc
Philbrick Hall
Room 103
215-686-5320
Parkway Central Library
1901 Vine Street (between 19th and 20th Streets on the Parkway)
Philadelphia, PA 19103
215-567-4341