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�鶹Լ��’s Celebration of Storytelling Conference promotes a diverse array of authors and experiences while providing students with interactive opportunities to learn about writing, publishing and literature. Through insightful lectures and hands-on craft workshops, this daylong event features access to �鶹Լ��’s English faculty as well as an array of published authors. Keynote Speakers for the 2025 conference are:

• Kim DeRose, author of “For Girls Who Walk Through Fire,” which won the 2024 �鶹Լ�� Medal Award
• E.M. Lacey, a Chicago-area author who has independently published dark fantasy short stories and novels for both YA and adult readers
• Sandra Brown, activist and author of the poetry-memoir, “Odyssey in Progress”
• LJ Pemberton, author of “Still Alive,” which was recently longlisted for the 2025 Dublin Literary Award
• Stephen Frech, author of "A Palace of Strangers Is No City"

�鶹Լ��’s Celebration of Storytelling coincides with National Library Week.

Learn more about our five keynote speakers:

Kim DeRose’s book, “For Girls Who Walk Through Fire,” won the 2024 �鶹Լ�� Medal Award. The book was chosen by a committee of �鶹Լ�� students and faculty for the author’s handling of sexual assault and rape recovery in authentic ways, in addition to crafting a narrative that uses magic to enhance character growth and world development. More information about Kim DeRose is available at her website: 

E.M. Lacey is an author from the Chicago area who has independently published short stories in a variety of anthologies, as well as full-length novels for both YA and adult readers. She has also collaborated with six other Black women to write a novel set in a shared universe. More information about E.M. Lacey is available on her website: 

Sandra Brown is the author of the poetry-memoir, “Odyssey in Progress.” A doctoral student at California Coast University, she also served 22 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections as an incarcerated survivor. Brown became the first incarcerated woman in Illinois to earn an academic master’s degree, as well as the first to be accepted into an academic doctoral program. Brown’s lived experience underscores her work as a student, educator, researcher, activist and creative writer.

LJ Pemberton is the author of “Still Alive,” recently longlisted for the 2025 Dublin Literary Award. This heady exploration of love and disillusionment in the contemporary age follows the misadventures of V as she contends with love, family dysfunction and the “crummy job market of the aughts” in “aching prose” (Publishers Weekly). Her essays, poetry and award-winning stories have been featured in numerous online and print publications. Learn more at

Stephen Frech is a poet and emeritus professor of English at �鶹Լ�� University. He has published numerous award-winning volumes of poetry, as well as "A Palace of Strangers Is No City," a sustained narrative of prose poetry/flash fiction. He is founder and editor of Oneiros Press. Dr. Frech is also the Educational Leader at Unity Christian School in Decatur. Learn more at