The Great Lakes Black Authors Expo and Writers Conference will become a preeminent literary event fostering literary education and publishing industry networking. Friday, we will host a reception. Saturday serves as an all-day conference and simultaneous expo.

Friday, September 28th will kick-off the event with a closed reception and awards ceremony for sponsors and special guests, sponsored and co-hosted by Case Western Reserve University’s Office for Inclusion, Diversity, & Equal Opportunity. At this ceremony we will be honoring Poet Laureate and Akron native, Rita Dove with the Alice Dunbar Nelson Award for Literary Achievements. Rita Dove was the youngest and first African American to be appointed Poet Laureate Consultant by the Library of Congress. She is a nationally recognized poet and essayist and won the Pulitzer Prize for her book Thomas and Beulah, the 2nd African American to win that honor.

Organized by Melanated Literary Heritage, Ltd., which is a collaboration between Robyn C. Hill (Robyn C. Hill Counseling & Professional Development Services) and Leah Lewis (Three Butterflies Entertainment & Press, LLC). Both Robyn Hill and Leah Lewis are published authors with a desire to see African American writers showcased as well as highlighting the rich history embedded in the Greater Cleveland area.