The 39th season of Writing Out Loud, our annual author series, returns in Fall 2023. The Friends of the Michigan City Public Library will host a reception following each program.
Writing Out Loud was created in 1984 with a grant from Indiana Humanities. Since then, more than 140 authors have appeared at the library. Programs are supported with funds by the Patrons of Writing Out Loud, Michigan City Public Library Endowment Fund, and The Friends of the Library.
Lee Bey
Saturday, September 9
7:30pm
Lee Bey is architecture critic for the Chicago Sun-Times.
He is also a member of the Sun-Times editorial board, where he writes editorials on city governance, neighborhood development, politics and urban planning.
Bey is the author of the much-praised book Southern Exposure: The Overlooked Architecture of Chicago’s South Side (Northwestern University Press, 2019), which showcases his architectural photography and social commentary.
He was also the host of the public television special, Building Blocks: The Architecture of Chicago’s South Side, which aired on WTTW in 2023.
He is also the main photographer of the book, Who is the City For? Architecture, Equity and the Public Realm in Chicago (University of Chicago Press, 2022), written by Blair Kamin.
Bey is currently working on a book about the architecture of Chicago’s West Side.
Bey’s photography of the built environment has appeared in magazines and periodicals such as the NewYork Times, Architectural Digest, Chicago Architect, Architect, CITE, and in international design publications such as Bauwelt, and Modulør.
He is also an in-demand speaker and media commentator on the subjects of architecture, urban planning, Chicago history and late 20th century Black history and culture.
Bey’s previous positions include stints as director of media and government affairs for the Chicago office of SOM, executive director of the Chicago Central Area Committee, and deputy chief of staff for architecture and urban planning under Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley.
Bey is also an adjunct professor at the Illinois Institute of Technology College of Architecture.
He is the recipient of the 2021 Julius Shulman Institute Excellence in Photography Award, and the 2019 Distinguished Service Award by the Chicago chapter of the American Institute of Architects.
Bey lives in an 1893 rowhouse in Chicago’s historic Pullman community.
Purdue Professor Emeritus Matt Kubik will be the interviewer.
Jonas Friddle
Saturday, September 23
7:30pm
Jonas Friddle is a singer, songwriter and Old-Time banjo player whose songs have received The John Lennon Songwriting Award, First Place in the Great American Song Contest and a nomination for Album of the Year in the Independent Music Awards. His tunes bear the marks of a musician who has done his time in pub sessions and square dance halls, and his writing is full of imagery, honesty and humor. Jonas’ partner, Anna, will perform and act as interviewer for the program.
Chris Cecil, Jr. and Julia Whitehead
Saturday, September 30
7:30pm
Chris Cecil Jr. currently serves at Visit Indy, where he builds key relationships to bring events to Indianapolis. In addition, Chris is actively involved in various community initiatives and is a Board Member for the prestigious Kurt Vonnegut Museum & Library. Born and raised in Indianapolis, Chris actively contributes to its enrichment. With his interpersonal skills, education, and diverse range of community involvements, he will present a program as Indiana writer Kurt Vonnegut. His professional partner, Julia Whitehead will act as moderator of the program. She is a writer and editor. She founded the Kurt Vonnegut Museum and Library to create a community center dedicated to free speech and common decency. She is the author of Breaking Down Vonnegut. She also wrote, produced and directed the documentary, My Friend Mickey: Common Decency and the American Dream, runner-up for best feature length documentary at California’s Love International Film Festival in 2019.
Sarah Layden
Saturday, October 14
7:30pm
Sarah Layden is the author of Imagine Your Life Like This, stories; Trip Through Your Wires, a novel; and The Story I Tell Myself About Myself, winner of the Sonder Press Chapbook Competition. Her short fiction appears in Boston Review, Blackbird, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, Best Microfiction 2020, and elsewhere. She is co-author with Bryan Furuness of The Invisible Art of Literary Editing. Her recent essays, interviews and articles have appeared in The Washington Post, Poets & Writers, Salon, The Millions, and River Teeth. She is an Assistant Professor of English at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.
