Writing Memoir: Isaac Fitzgerald, Ashley C. Ford, and Leslie Jamison with Chloé Cooper Jones

The superstar panel of writers discusses the intimate process of writing at the intersection of memory and story.

To join in-person | Please be sure to register for an In-Person Ticket. Doors will open around 6:15 PM. For free events, we generally overbook to ensure a full house. Priority will be given to those who have registered in advance, but registration does not guarantee admission. All registered seats are released shortly before start time, and seats may become available at that time. A standby line will form 30 minutes before the program.

To join the livestream | A livestream of this event will be available on the NYPL event page. To receive an email reminder shortly in advance of the event, please be sure to register!

COVID PROTOCOLS FOR IN-PERSON LIVE FROM NYPL PROGRAMS

The New York Public Library no longer mandates proof of vaccination at indoor public programs.

Patrons are strongly encouraged to wear a mask at LIVE from NYPL events.

If you have symptoms consistent with COVID-19 or suspect you have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive, please stay home.

ACCESSIBILITY

In-Person | Assistive listening devices and/or hearing loops are available at the venue. You can request a free ASL (American Sign Language) interpretation or CART (Communication Access Real-Time Translation) captioning service by emailing your request at least two weeks in advance of the event: email accessibility@nypl.org or use this Gmail template. This venue is fully accessible to wheelchairs. A visual navigation guide is available here.

Livestream | Captions and a transcript will be provided. Media used over the course of the conversation will be accompanied by alt text and/or audio description. You can request a free ASL (American Sign Language) interpretation by emailing your request at least two weeks in advance of the event: email accessibility@nypl.org or use this Gmail template.

GET THE BOOKS

• Dirtbag, Massachusetts, by Isaac Fitzgerald


• Somebody's Daughter, by Ashley C. Ford


• Make it Scream, Make it Burn, by Leslie Jamison


• Easy Beauty by Chloé Cooper Jones


• E-Book app: SimplyE, available on iOS and Android


• Purchase: The Library Shop — proceeds benefit the New York Public Library

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ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Isaac Fitzgerald appears frequently on The Today Show and is the author of the bestselling children’s book How to Be a Pirate as well as the co-author of Pen & Ink: Tattoos and the Stories Behind Them and Knives & Ink: Chefs and the Stories Behind Their Tattoos (winner of an IACP Award). His writing has appeared in the New York Times, the Guardian, The Best American Nonrequired Reading, the Boston Globe, and numerous other publications. His debut memoir, Dirtbag, Massachusetts was published in July 2022. He lives in Brooklyn.

Ashley C. Ford's New York Times best-selling memoir, Somebody’s Daughter, was published by Flatiron Books in June 2021. Ford is the former host of The Chronicles of Now podcast, co-host of The HBO companion podcast Lovecraft Country Radio. She currently lives in Indianapolis, Indiana with her husband, poet and fiction writer Kelly Stacy, and their chocolate lab Astro Renegade Ford-Stacy. Ford has written or guest-edited for ELLE Magazine, Slate, Teen Vogue, New York Magazine, The New York Times, Domino, Cup of Jo, and various other web and print publications.

Leslie Jamison was born in Washington DC and grew up in Los Angeles. She has worked as a baker, an office temp, an innkeeper, a tutor, and a medical actor. She currently teaches at the Columbia University MFA program, where she directs the nonfiction concentration. Her most recent book, a collection of essays called Make It Scream, Make It Burn, was published in 2019. Her other books include the novel, The Gin Closet, a collection of essays, The Empathy Exams, and a critical memoir, The Recovering. Her work has appeared in places including The New York Times Magazine, Harper's, Oxford American, A Public Space, Virginia Quarterly Review, and The Believer.

Chloé Cooper Jones is the author of Easy Beauty. She is a Whiting Award winner and was a finalist for the 2020 Pulitzer Prize in Feature Writing. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.

CONNECT

Please submit all press inquiries to Sara Beth Joren at least 48 hours before the event: email sarabethjoren@nypl.org or use this Gmail template.

For all other questions and inquiries, please email publicprograms@nypl.org or use this Gmail template.

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LIVE from NYPL is made possible by the continuing generosity of Celeste Bartos, Mahnaz Ispahani Bartos and Adam Bartos, the Margaret and Herman Sokol Public Education Endowment Fund, and the support of Library patrons and friends.

This program is made possible by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF). 

Isaac Fitzgerald  ©Remi Morawski

Ashley C. Ford ©Sylvie Rosokoff