Past Events

Our new Chicago Literary Hall of Fame class of Hamlin Garland, Eunice Tietjens, and E. Donald-Two Rivers was inducted at a ceremony featuring a lineup that included William J. Bowe, Melissa Bradshaw, Naomi Athena, Carlos Cumpián, Arica Hilton, Jesse Raber, and Dorene Wiese. Two-Rivers’s daughter, Annabelle Broeffle, Garland’s great grandson, Christopher Harper, and the Poetry Foundation were on hand to accept the CLHOF statues. Richard Guzman emceed the ceremony. A reception in the CHM's Guild Gallery followed the ceremony. The event was free and open to the public.…

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A nice crowd celebrated a brand new season of baseball and the betting that attends it at the second annual Opening Day themefest last Friday night, March 29, upstairs at Mrs. Murphy & Sons Irish Bistro. This free themefest featured live music and spoken word presentations on the themes of baseball and betting, along with comic relief and a raffle of prizes. Peanuts and Cracker Jacks were on the house. 

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Join literary organizations from around the city to discuss what it means to build literary community in Chicago. Panelists include DL Moore (Semicolon Bookstore), Carey Cranston (American Writers Museum, Chris Aldana (Luya Poetry), and Mike Zapata (MAKE Literary Productions). Audrey Niffenegger (Artists Book House) will moderate the conversation.

Meet representatives from:

826CHI | American Writers Museum | Big Shoulders Books | Chicago Literary Hall of Fame | Guild Literary Complex | Luya Poetry | MAKE Literary Magazine | Off Campus Writers Workshop |

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Chicago writer, educator, and abolitionist Diego Báez will launch his debut poetry collection, Yaguareté White, with a reading that includes fellow poets Jacob Saenz and Pablo E. Ramirez. In Yaguareté White (University of Arizona Press), English, Spanish, and Guaraní encounter each other with humor and insight through the elusive yet potent figure of the jaguar.

Báez was a finalist for The Georgia Poetry Prize and a semi-finalist for the Berkshire Prize for Poetry. A recipient of fellowships from CantoMundo, the Surge Institute, the Poetry Foundation Incubator for Community-Engaged Poets, and DreamYard’s Rad(ical) Poetry Consortium,…

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Rana Segal has been filming Chicago Literary Hall of Fame events for nearly a decade, and in that time her substantial body of work has increased steadily. Her latest project is a documentary called Light of Truth: Richard Hunt's Monument for Ida B. Wells. The film weaves together the stories of Richard Hunt’s life, his fabrication of the Light of Truth monument, and Ida B. Wells’ heroic fight for justice, as told by her great-granddaughter, Michelle Duster. On Tuesday, Feb. 27, Dominican University hosted a screening of Rana's 60-minute documentary, as well as a panel presentation…

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For the fourth straight year, the Chicago Literary Hall of Fame hosted a literary cocktail party. This year the fabulous Colvin House welcomed about 60 guests for The Great Gimlet. Proceeds helped CLHOF fund upcoming programs, such as our induction ceremony and two Fuller Award ceremonies. Mixologist Ryan Prindle made drinks based on Chicago's connection to The Great Gatsby. Scholar Michelle Moore told us how Chicago socialite Ginevra King became the model for F. Scott Fitzgerald's character, Daisy Buchanan. Rita Dragonette helped host; Mike Burke and Robert Charles again served as…

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The Chicago Literary Hall of Fame will again host its end-of-the-year Fundraiser Party on Saturday, December 2, from 1:30-3:30 p.m., at Roscoe Village’s Beat Kitchen, “home to every genre of music, hosting some of the biggest names in live music & comedy.” Registration is NOW OPEN.

The Fundraiser Party is a perfect opportunity to celebrate the season while supporting an organization that organizes events and programming to honor, preserve, and celebrate Chicago's great literary heritage, as well as to help foster new voices.

There will be light appetizers, a cash bar, lots of mingling and throughout the…

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Scott Turow, the acclaimed author of 15 books, received CLHOF's highest honor for living writers, the Fuller Award. The ceremony took place at the Cindy Pritzker Auditorium, and was a signature event in the Chicago Public Library's 150th Anniversary Celebration. A reception at the Plymouth Restaurant & Rooftop Bar followed the ceremony. The event was free and open to the public.

The Chicago born and bred bestselling author rocketed onto the literary scene with his debut novel, the New York Times #1 Best Seller Presumed Innocent (1986) and has sustained his early, volcanic success these past…

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Printers Row Lit Fest returns for its 38th year. The Chicago Literary Hall of Fame will again be active throughout the weekend under our tent and as part of the programming. More details to come.

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The Chicago Literary Hall of Fame survives and thrives because of our wonderful army of supporters, including volunteers, board members, associate board members, our advisory council, and donors. Throughout the year, speakers and writers and educators and administrators lend their time to our various programs. Our regular independent contractors, such as printers and designers, go above and beyond the call of duty. We are only here because of the enormous generosity and talent of these people. Least we could do was throw them a party. We gathered in an Oak Park backyard in a few gracious hours between one rainstorm…

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