DON'T
MISS
OUT

 

 

Writing-related events take place nearly every day of the year in Iowa City. Use this page to stay up to date on upcoming author readings, book signings, lectures, Q&As, and other unique opportunities scheduled around town. 

Upcoming

Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop promotional image

Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop

Sunday, August 23, 2026 2:30pm to 4:15pm
Stanley Museum of Art

Join us monthly to generate new creative writing inspired by works in the Stanley collection. Each session will be led by a different talented writer from our area, who will be offering a new prompt and a new approach to ekphrastic writing (writing inspired by visual art). Bring your own notebook and pencil or computer and leave with the beginning of a newly written piece.

Co-sponsored by Iowa City Poetry. Teen and adult writers in all genres are welcome.

Write at the Stanley meets every fourth...

Live from Prairie Lights | Matthew Neill Null - 'Floodgate' promotional image

Live from Prairie Lights | Matthew Neill Null - 'Floodgate'

Wednesday, August 26, 2026 7:00pm
Prairie Lights Books
Workshop fiction faculty member, Matthew Neill Null will read from his new novel, 'Floodgate'
Application Deadline: Fall 2026 Obermann Writing Collective promotional image

Application Deadline: Fall 2026 Obermann Writing Collective

Thursday, August 27, 2026 5:00pm
111 Church Street

This program offers accountability to artists, scholars, and researchers working on any kind of writing project (articles, essays, fellowship or grant applications, dissertations, book projects, edited volumes, etc.) who want dedicated time, a cozy space, and a community for the practice of writing. Each group meets once a week for 1.5 hours in the Writers' Attic at the Obermann Center for Advanced Studies (111 Church St.). Weekly writing sessions include brief check-ins, goal setting, and...

All Events

Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop promotional image

Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop

Sunday, August 23, 2026 2:30pm to 4:15pm
Stanley Museum of Art

Join us monthly to generate new creative writing inspired by works in the Stanley collection. Each session will be led by a different talented writer from our area, who will be offering a new prompt and a new approach to ekphrastic writing (writing inspired by visual art). Bring your own notebook and pencil or computer and leave with the beginning of a newly written piece.

Co-sponsored by Iowa City Poetry. Teen and adult writers in all genres are welcome.

Write at the Stanley meets every fourth...

Live from Prairie Lights | Matthew Neill Null - 'Floodgate' promotional image

Live from Prairie Lights | Matthew Neill Null - 'Floodgate'

Wednesday, August 26, 2026 7:00pm
Prairie Lights Books
Workshop fiction faculty member, Matthew Neill Null will read from his new novel, 'Floodgate'
Application Deadline: Fall 2026 Obermann Writing Collective promotional image

Application Deadline: Fall 2026 Obermann Writing Collective

Thursday, August 27, 2026 5:00pm
111 Church Street

This program offers accountability to artists, scholars, and researchers working on any kind of writing project (articles, essays, fellowship or grant applications, dissertations, book projects, edited volumes, etc.) who want dedicated time, a cozy space, and a community for the practice of writing. Each group meets once a week for 1.5 hours in the Writers' Attic at the Obermann Center for Advanced Studies (111 Church St.). Weekly writing sessions include brief check-ins, goal setting, and...

Porchlight Lit Arts Center | Rooftop Music & Reading Series : Jordan Sellergren, Elizabeth Willis, Mark Levine, Sarah Minor

Friday, August 28, 2026 7:00pm
Market House
Workshop fiction faculty members, Elizabeth Willis and Mark Levine, and Workshop grad Sarah Minor join Porchlight Lit Arts Center for an evening of music, poetry, and prose.

Live from Prairie Lights | IWP Sunday Afternoon Reading Series | Sarah Gilmartin, Iván Hochman, and Lauren Haldeman

Sunday, August 30, 2026 4:00pm to 5:00pm
Prairie Lights Books
Please join us for our annual IWP Sunday Afternoon Reading Series! This week’s event features IWP Residents Sarah Gilmartin (Ireland) and Iván Hochman (Argentina). They will be accompanied by local author and IWP Senior Editor Lauren Haldeman and a current Iowa Writers' Workshop student (to be announced soon).
Live from Prairie Lights | Will Boast - The Submerged promotional image

Live from Prairie Lights | Will Boast - The Submerged

Thursday, September 3, 2026 7:00pm to 8:00pm
Prairie Lights Books
Will Boast will read from his new short story collection, The Submerged, which was named the 2026 Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction by the University of Georgia Press.
Art & Write Night promotional image

Art & Write Night

Friday, September 4, 2026 6:00pm to 8:00pm
University of Iowa Museum of Natural History

Join the long, rich, historical tradition of artists creating in our spaces.

Professional, aspiring, and amateur artists alike, make our museum your muse. The return of this popular program series welcomes guests into the Museum of Natural History's magical gallery spaces after-hours to work on sketching or writing projects with other campus and community artists.

Tell a friend, grab a notebook, and join us on the first Friday of each month. We'll provide a new inspo prompt for each session and...

Live from Prairie Lights | Giano Cromley - American Mythology promotional image

Live from Prairie Lights | Giano Cromley - American Mythology

Friday, September 4, 2026 7:00pm to 8:00pm
Prairie Lights Books
Giano Cromley will read from his debut novel, American Mythology. Described as a "charming and comic debut novel about a quirky ensemble embarking on an epic quest to find Bigfoot," American Mythology is praised by Erin A. Craig, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Thirteenth Child, as a book that has " has completely stolen my heart," and Ron Rash, author of The Caretaker, says: "American Mythology is a riveting, big-hearted novel about a group of pilgrims who encounter both the mysteries of nature and ultimately those of the human heart. Giano Cromley has given us a much-needed reminder that, if sought, wonder may yet be found in our world."
Live from Prairie Lights | Chris Vinsonhaler - Beowulf: An Epic Enigma promotional image

Live from Prairie Lights | Chris Vinsonhaler - Beowulf: An Epic Enigma

Tuesday, September 8, 2026 7:00pm to 8:00pm
Prairie Lights Books
University of Iowa PhD graduate Chris Vinsonhaler will read from her translation of Beowulf: An Epic Enigma. Descibred as a "radical reappraisal of the Old English epic" (beowulf.live), Beowulf: An Epic Enigma (Book I) is praised by Robert E. Bjork, Editor of Klaeber’s Beowulf and A Beowulf Handbook as "a riddling maze never seen before, a murder mystery of smoke and mirrors that will intrigue and entertain new readers and aficionados alike," while Ophelia Eryn Hostetter, Professor of Old English, Rutgers University, Camden and Editor of Teaching Beowulf: Practical Approaches, says: "Chris Vinsonhaler leverages her work in performance and scholarship to reveal major elements obscured in Beowulf’s long critical history: how repetition sparks subtle yet essential impacts; how the poem’s riddling design leaves insinuation hanging; how the sonic landscape of each line draws us into the folds of enigma; and most intriguing of all, how the poem mobilizes irony to flesh out its shockingly honest invocation of heroic criminality. This is absolutely not a Beowulf of epic praise but a scathing exposé of avarice, cultural nostalgia, and the perennial allure of violence."

Live from Prairie Lights | Tabatha Leggett in conv with Jan Steyn - Enchantment promotional image

Live from Prairie Lights | Tabatha Leggett in conv with Jan Steyn - Enchantment

Wednesday, September 9, 2026 7:00pm to 8:00pm
Prairie Lights Books
University of Iowa Literary Translation MFA candidate Tabatha Leggett will read from her translation of Riikka Pulkkinen's novel, Enchantment, and will be joined in conversation with Jan Steyn. Described as "a spellbinding literary mystery that explores the uneasy terrain of girlhood, where one is always being watched, shaped, and judged by others" (scribepublications.com), Enchantment is praised by Shelf Awareness as "a striking novel about girlhood, perception, and death," while Catherine Airey, author of Confessions, says: "An intricate tapestry of a novel by a masterful writer. Enchantment’s real triumph is its investigation into what we mean to one another as imperfect people."
Live From Prairie Lights | Tabatha Leggett in conv with Jan Steyn - Enchantment promotional image

Live From Prairie Lights | Tabatha Leggett in conv with Jan Steyn - Enchantment

Wednesday, September 9, 2026 7:00pm to 8:00pm
Prairie Lights Books
University of Iowa Literary Translation MFA candidate Tabatha Leggett will read from her translation of Riikka Pulkkinen's novel, Enchantment, and will be joined in conversation with Jan Steyn. Described as "a spellbinding literary mystery that explores the uneasy terrain of girlhood, where one is always being watched, shaped, and judged by others" (scribepublications.com), Enchantment is praised by Shelf Awareness as "a striking novel about girlhood, perception, and death," while Catherine Airey, author of Confessions, says: "An intricate tapestry of a novel by a masterful writer. Enchantment’s real triumph is its investigation into what we mean to one another as imperfect people."
Live From Prairie Lights | Patricia Albers in conv with Garth Greenwell - Everything Is Photograph: A Life of André Kertész promotional image

Live From Prairie Lights | Patricia Albers in conv with Garth Greenwell - Everything Is Photograph: A Life of André Kertész

Thursday, September 10, 2026 7:00pm to 8:00pm
Prairie Lights Books
Patricia Albers will read from her new biography, Everything Is Photograph: A Life of André Kertész, and will be joined in conversation with Garth Greenwell. Described as "The first full biography of the innovative 'father of modern photography' [which] vividly depicts his life and works, from Hungary to France and America, across the 20th century," Everything Is Photograph is praised by the New York Times, which says: "Everything Is Photograph is filled with [Albers’s] gorgeous descriptions of Kertész’s pictures, tempting you to interrupt your reading to Google every photo she writes about with such acuity and care. But the life she recounts is fascinating, too."
Read on the Rug promotional image

Read on the Rug

Friday, September 11, 2026 10:30am to 11:00am
University of Iowa Museum of Natural History

Read on the Rug is back with monthly offerings but we're moving to FRIDAYS!

Join us on the second Friday of each month in Iowa Hall at the UI Museum of Natural History for Read on the Rug. Ideal for families or caregivers with kiddos aged 2-5, all are welcome to this free educational program. This program series was designed with our youngest museum lovers in mind. Come along as we build community and inspire a sense of wonder, curiosity, and respect for our natural and cultural worlds with...

Live From Prairie Lights | Lizzie Buehler in conv with Julia Conrad - The Obsessed promotional image

Live From Prairie Lights | Lizzie Buehler in conv with Julia Conrad - The Obsessed

Friday, September 11, 2026 7:00pm to 8:00pm
Prairie Lights Books
Iowa graduate Lizzie Buehler will read from her debut novel, The Obsessed, and will be joined in conversation by Julia Conrad. Described as "A bighearted portrait of the anxieties of desire [that] explores the trials of modern dating, the strange ennui of academia, and the question of how to create a world for yourself within and without the confines of your influences," The Obsessed is praised by Forbes.com as "[A] delectable novel about obsession and dating in the modern age," while Debutiful says: "You will obsess over The Obsessed...It’s sad. It’s weird. It’s horny. You’ll yearn while reading Buehler’s brilliant writing."

Live from Prairie Lights | Luis Muñoz, Garth Greenwell, & Idra Novey - 'One Moment: Poems'

Wednesday, September 16, 2026 7:00pm
Prairie Lights Books
Spanish poet Luis Muñoz will read from poetry collection, 'One Moment', joined by his English translators, Garth Greenwell and Idra Novey
Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop promotional image

Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop

Sunday, September 27, 2026 2:30pm to 4:15pm
Stanley Museum of Art

Join us monthly to generate new creative writing inspired by works in the Stanley collection. Each session will be led by a different talented writer from our area, who will be offering a new prompt and a new approach to ekphrastic writing (writing inspired by visual art). Bring your own notebook and pencil or computer and leave with the beginning of a newly written piece.

Co-sponsored by Iowa City Poetry. Teen and adult writers in all genres are welcome.

Write at the Stanley meets every fourth...

Live from Prairie Lights | Kyle McCarthy in conversation with Kevin Brockmeier - 'Immersions'

Wednesday, September 30, 2026 7:00pm
Prairie Lights Books
Workshop alumnus Kyle McCarthy will read from her new novel, 'Immersions', joined in conversation by Workshop faculty member, Kevin Brockmeier
Art & Write Night promotional image

Art & Write Night

Friday, October 2, 2026 6:00pm to 8:00pm
University of Iowa Museum of Natural History

Join the long, rich, historical tradition of artists creating in our spaces.

Professional, aspiring, and amateur artists alike, make our museum your muse. The return of this popular program series welcomes guests into the Museum of Natural History's magical gallery spaces after-hours to work on sketching or writing projects with other campus and community artists.

Tell a friend, grab a notebook, and join us on the first Friday of each month. We'll provide a new inspo prompt for each session and...

Global Express promotional image

Global Express

Thursday, October 8, 2026 7:30pm
Theatre Building

Students from the UI Department of Theatre Arts bring the page to life in an evening of staged readings of work by the International Writing Program Fall Residents.

Global Express is a unique opportunity for writers from around the world and performers at Iowa to meet, work together, and present their work live on stage. Global Express, now, in its 25th year, help us to recognize our common humanity while celebrating our differences. The Express, part dramatic reading, part solo-turn, part poetry...

Read on the Rug promotional image

Read on the Rug

Friday, October 9, 2026 10:30am to 11:00am
University of Iowa Museum of Natural History

Read on the Rug is back with monthly offerings but we're moving to FRIDAYS!

Join us on the second Friday of each month in Iowa Hall at the UI Museum of Natural History for Read on the Rug. Ideal for families or caregivers with kiddos aged 2-5, all are welcome to this free educational program. This program series was designed with our youngest museum lovers in mind. Come along as we build community and inspire a sense of wonder, curiosity, and respect for our natural and cultural worlds with...

Save the Date: 2026 Literary Legends Featuring Pulitzer Prize winner Yiyun Li (00MS, 05MFA) promotional image

Save the Date: 2026 Literary Legends Featuring Pulitzer Prize winner Yiyun Li (00MS, 05MFA)

Friday, October 23, 2026 7:30pm
The University of Iowa -Location TBD
Save the Date: 2026 Literary Legends Featuring Pulitzer Prize winner Yiyun Li (00MS, 05MFA)
Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop promotional image

Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop

Sunday, October 25, 2026 2:30pm to 4:15pm
Stanley Museum of Art

Join us monthly to generate new creative writing inspired by works in the Stanley collection. Each session will be led by a different talented writer from our area, who will be offering a new prompt and a new approach to ekphrastic writing (writing inspired by visual art). Bring your own notebook and pencil or computer and leave with the beginning of a newly written piece.

Co-sponsored by Iowa City Poetry. Teen and adult writers in all genres are welcome.

Write at the Stanley meets every fourth...

Read on the Rug promotional image

Read on the Rug

Friday, November 13, 2026 10:30am to 11:00am
University of Iowa Museum of Natural History

Read on the Rug is back with monthly offerings but we're moving to FRIDAYS!

Join us on the second Friday of each month in Iowa Hall at the UI Museum of Natural History for Read on the Rug. Ideal for families or caregivers with kiddos aged 2-5, all are welcome to this free educational program. This program series was designed with our youngest museum lovers in mind. Come along as we build community and inspire a sense of wonder, curiosity, and respect for our natural and cultural worlds with...

Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop promotional image

Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop

Sunday, November 29, 2026 2:00pm to 3:45pm
Stanley Museum of Art

Join us monthly to generate new creative writing inspired by works in the Stanley collection. Each session will be led by a different talented writer from our area, who will be offering a new prompt and a new approach to ekphrastic writing (writing inspired by visual art). Bring your own notebook and pencil or computer and leave with the beginning of a newly written piece.

Co-sponsored by Iowa City Poetry. Teen and adult writers in all genres are welcome.

Write at the Stanley meets every fourth...

Art & Write Night promotional image

Art & Write Night

Friday, December 4, 2026 6:00pm to 8:00pm
University of Iowa Museum of Natural History

Join the long, rich, historical tradition of artists creating in our spaces.

Professional, aspiring, and amateur artists alike, make our museum your muse. The return of this popular program series welcomes guests into the Museum of Natural History's magical gallery spaces after-hours to work on sketching or writing projects with other campus and community artists.

Tell a friend, grab a notebook, and join us on the first Friday of each month. We'll provide a new inspo prompt for each session and...

Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop promotional image

Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop

Sunday, January 24, 2027 2:30pm to 4:15pm
Stanley Museum of Art

Join us monthly to generate new creative writing inspired by works in the Stanley collection. Each session will be led by a different talented writer from our area, who will be offering a new prompt and a new approach to ekphrastic writing (writing inspired by visual art). Bring your own notebook and pencil or computer and leave with the beginning of a newly written piece.

Co-sponsored by Iowa City Poetry. Teen and adult writers in all genres are welcome.

Write at the Stanley meets every fourth...

Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop promotional image

Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop

Sunday, February 28, 2027 2:30pm to 4:15pm
Stanley Museum of Art

Join us monthly to generate new creative writing inspired by works in the Stanley collection. Each session will be led by a different talented writer from our area, who will be offering a new prompt and a new approach to ekphrastic writing (writing inspired by visual art). Bring your own notebook and pencil or computer and leave with the beginning of a newly written piece.

Co-sponsored by Iowa City Poetry. Teen and adult writers in all genres are welcome.

Write at the Stanley meets every fourth...

Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop promotional image

Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop

Sunday, April 25, 2027 2:30pm to 4:15pm
Stanley Museum of Art

Join us monthly to generate new creative writing inspired by works in the Stanley collection. Each session will be led by a different talented writer from our area, who will be offering a new prompt and a new approach to ekphrastic writing (writing inspired by visual art). Bring your own notebook and pencil or computer and leave with the beginning of a newly written piece.

Co-sponsored by Iowa City Poetry. Teen and adult writers in all genres are welcome.

Write at the Stanley meets every fourth...

Iowa New Play Festival promotional image

Iowa New Play Festival

Monday, May 3 to Friday, May 7, 2027 (all day)
Theatre Building
We are thrilled to present our annual Iowa New Play Festival in the Theatre Building, featuring full productions written by MFA playwrights. Plus, there are readings daily from new, full plays written by MFA and undergraduate playwrights.
Iowa New Play Festival promotional image

Iowa New Play Festival

Tuesday, May 4 to Friday, May 7, 2027 (all day)
Theatre Building
We are thrilled to present our annual Iowa New Play Festival in the Theatre Building, featuring full productions written by MFA playwrights. Plus, there are readings daily from new, full plays written by MFA and undergraduate playwrights.
Iowa New Play Festival promotional image

Iowa New Play Festival

Wednesday, May 5 to Friday, May 7, 2027 (all day)
Theatre Building
We are thrilled to present our annual Iowa New Play Festival in the Theatre Building, featuring full productions written by MFA playwrights. Plus, there are readings daily from new, full plays written by MFA and undergraduate playwrights.
Iowa New Play Festival promotional image

Iowa New Play Festival

Thursday, May 6 to Friday, May 7, 2027 (all day)
Theatre Building
We are thrilled to present our annual Iowa New Play Festival in the Theatre Building, featuring full productions written by MFA playwrights. Plus, there are readings daily from new, full plays written by MFA and undergraduate playwrights.
Iowa New Play Festival promotional image

Iowa New Play Festival

Friday, May 7, 2027 (all day)
Theatre Building
We are thrilled to present our annual Iowa New Play Festival in the Theatre Building, featuring full productions written by MFA playwrights. Plus, there are readings daily from new, full plays written by MFA and undergraduate playwrights.
Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop promotional image

Write at the Stanley: A Generative Writing Workshop

Sunday, May 23, 2027 2:30pm to 4:15pm
Stanley Museum of Art

Join us monthly to generate new creative writing inspired by works in the Stanley collection. Each session will be led by a different talented writer from our area, who will be offering a new prompt and a new approach to ekphrastic writing (writing inspired by visual art). Bring your own notebook and pencil or computer and leave with the beginning of a newly written piece.

Co-sponsored by Iowa City Poetry. Teen and adult writers in all genres are welcome.

Write at the Stanley meets every fourth...

View more events