Columbus Metropolitan Library hosts engaging authors for talks, readings and discussions. This free virtual event is co-hosted by Ohioana Library.

Ask questions and live chat with the authors from your computer or mobile device. Can’t attend the live stream? Sign up and watch the recording afterwards.

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an Ohioana Book Festival virtual panel discussion

Four Black authors, writing in a variety of genres, share their experiences with poet Scott Woods, as they create art in this historic and unprecedented time. Hosted by Columbus Metropolitan Library and Ohioana.

Scott Woods is a longtime staff member at Columbus Metropolitan Library. He is also a poet, writer, event organizer and founder of Streetlight Guild, a performing arts nonprofit.

Affrilachian storyteller and award-winning author Lyn Ford is also a teaching artist and workshop facilitator with the Ohio Alliance for Arts Education and Thurber House's writing camps for young authors. For almost 30 years, Lyn has shared her work in festivals, storytelling and education conferences, interactive keynote events and other venues from Australia to Ireland. Check out Lyn at storytellerlynford.com.

Jason (J.L) Raynor is an instructor, actor, author, public speaker and a law enforcement officer. He is passionate about teaching trauma informed approaches to other law enforcement personnel as well as the general public. His goal is to make people more aware of the hatred that is portrayed on a regular basis in the main stream media.

Find more about Jason's book, I Used to Be Racist, at jlraynortheauthor.com.

Debbie Rigaud is the author of TRULY MADLY ROYALLY and co-author of the New York Times bestseller HOPE: PROJECT MIDDLE SCHOOL. She started her career writing for entertainment and teen magazines. She now lives with her husband and children in Columbus, Ohio. Find out more at www.debbierigaud.com.

Dr. jw Smith published a 2019 memoir charting his higher education journey as a black and totally blind individual. From the Back of the Bus to the Front of the Classroom: My Thirty-Year Journey as a Black and Blind Professor details his experiences in higher ed and how his race and differently-abled sight shed light on what might have been otherwise unremarkable encounters. Dr. Smith is a tenured professor at Ohio University’s Scripps School of Communication Studies.

Black Stories, Black Voices