U.S. Poet Laureate Emeritus Juan Felipe Herrera says that Fresno is the "Capital of Poetry in the World." The Fresno State Master of Fine Arts Program in Creative Writing takes that literary legacy seriously. As part of Fresno's annual Rogue Festival, hear the latest poetry and prose from emerging #FresnoWriters in this storytelling and spoken word show, featuring voices from the Chicanx Writers and Artists Association (CWAA).

Time: 5 to 6 PM
Date: Sunday, March 3, 2024
Place: Hart's Haven Bookstore (950 N. Van Ness Ave.)
Admission: $10 + Rogue Fest wristband
Rated PG-13 • Latecomers OK • Seating is limited

Buy tickets: https://roguefestival.ticketleap.com/fresnostatecreativewriting/

Born and raised in Oxnard, California, Angelina Leaños is a Ventura County Youth Poet Laureate Emeritus and a first-year MFA student at Fresno State. Outside of school, Angelina serves as a Poetry Out Loud coach and a poet-teacher, mentoring youth in poetry recitation and creative writing. A second-generation Mexican American, she writes of her unique relationship to both aspects of her culture, as well as the intersectionality of ethnicity and sexuality.

Victoria Monsivaiz is a second-generation Mexican American born in Denver, Colorado, and raised in the Central Valley. She is pursuing her MFA in creative writing (poetry), with an emphasis in publishing and editing. She serves as president of the Chicanx Writers and Artists Association (CWAA), and works as an English teaching associate at Fresno State. Her writing focuses on her experiences growing up in a single-parent (and later on) multigenerational household, dissecting her current and former familial bonds.

Emily Peacock is a senior majoring in creative writing at Fresno State. She serves as co-editor of the literary journal Flies, Cockroaches and Poets. In the future, Emily hopes to make creative writing more accessible to incarcerated youth, and she's currently working with Poetic Justice, a nonprofit focused on healing through writing in the carceral system.

Leslie Kay Quintana (lkq) is a Hispanic poet and a senior creative writing major at Fresno State. She serves as the vice president of the Chicanx Writers and Artists Association (CWAA). Her work is centered around the human experience along with its relationships to nature, family, and identity.

Stella Luna Velez is a writer from the tiny town of Auberry, California. She is a creative writing major at Fresno State, with a minor in anthropology. On good days, Stella can be found outside looking at mushrooms in the garden or inside sitting way too close to the wood-burning stove. And on the best days, she likes to write about nature, queerness, and the wonderful complexities of being a person. She intends to pursue an MFA, but in the meantime there's a whole world to see.

All participants are welcome. For disability related accommodations or access information, please contact Jefferson Beavers at jbeavers@mail.fresnostate.edu or 559.278.1569. Requests should be made at least one week in advance of the event.