LaToya Watkins has appeared in A Public Space, The Sun magazine, McSweeney’s, Kweli, Kenyon Review,  and elsewhere. She has received grants, scholarships, and fellowships from MacDowell, Yaddo, Hedgebrook, and other organizations. She holds a PhD from the University of Texas at Dallas. 

Her debut novel, Perish, (Tiny Reparations Books, August 23, 2022) was named A Most Anticipated Book of 2022 by *Essence* *Esquire* and *The Millions

Set in vividly drawn Texas and tackling themes like trauma, legacy, faith, home, class, race, and more, this beautiful yet heart heart-wrenching novel will appeal to anyone who is interested in the intricacies of family and the ways bonds can be made, maintained, or irrevocably broken.

Laura Pegram is the founding editor and publisher of Kweli Journal. Author, educator, and a jazz vocalist whose cabaret performance teamed her with jazz pianist, Donald Smith, Ms. Pegram is also a painter. Her richly hued vibrant murals are part of several private collections. She has worked as a Development Associate at Scholastic Productions, Inc., as an Instructor at the Frederick Douglass Creative Arts Center and as an Acting Director / Instructor at the John Oliver Killens Young Writers Program.

Latoya Watkins on Perish