Freda Epum

Copy of the book No Offense: A Memoir in Essays in front of the 2025 AWP sign

Five memoir authors holding copies of their books

Three nonfiction authors posing in front of Skylight Books sign

Display of various books and merch from the AWP conference

AWP recap in photos. 📸 Great readings, lovely writers. Completely exhausted, but good vibes overall. @zoebossiere.bsky.social @womanistbae.bsky.social @earthtokb.bsky.social @fredaepum.bsky.social @krysmalcolmbelc.bsky.social

📝 @fredaepum.bsky.social

Out now from @feministpress.bsky.social

Paperback: bookshop.org/a/90290/9781...

Ebook also available on Bookshop.org

sometimes it seems like people want to get published like it will Solve Their Problems and I just want to confirm that after you publish they don't give you a new childhood, you still have to live with yourself, it's just that some of that self is on display this month at a Review

Hey there! There's a GoFundMe campaign to help someone get a set of false teeth, as they’re on disability and can’t afford it on their own. Every donation, no matter how small, makes a real difference, so please consider clicking the link below to contribute or share it with others.

Federal government to remove gender dysphoria from protected disabilities list It’s unclear what the move means for a related lawsuit that could dismantle protections for all people with disabilities.

HHS plans to remove gender dysphoria from disability protections under Section 504—but 17 GOP AGs are still pushing a lawsuit that could gut all federal disability protections. Schools, hospitals, and workplaces could refuse accommodations. #DisabilityRights #TransRights
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Virtual Craft Chat with Memoirist Freda Epum - The Writer's Center The Writer’s Center presents a FREE virtual chat about the craft of memoir! We’re joined by Freda Epum to discuss her new book, The Gloomy Girl Variety Show, which mixes memoir, poetry, and criticism....

writer.org/event/freda-...

My live interview with The Writer's Center is tomorrow night at 7pm! Come listen to me talk about house tour reality shows and writing. 😛 Rsvp in the comments.

This image captures the joy of 155 strangers signing up to hear me to talk about my first book.

So honored to be included! Thank you so much @karlajstrand.com ❤️

Thanks for having me @debutiful.bsky.social!

Thank you for having me! 😀

Can't wait for this!!

Next stop on the Gloomy Girl tour! See you soon LA!

Thanks so much @ironhorselitrev.bsky.social! Gloomy Girl is also perfect for upcoming Mental Health Awareness month in May! 😉

Reposting for awareness.

Still glowing from my book launch last week!

"Epum’s debut will be one of the most important books published this year. Epum examines intersectional identities of being Black, disabled, female, and a first generation Nigerian American through an inventive and brilliant book structured as a search for [safety]."
— Rachel León, Managing Director

Our Most Anticipated 2025 Books - Chicago Review of Books 15 books you need to add to your 2025 reading list.

Guys Gloomy Girl is officially on shelves next week! And so is my book launch! I'll be sharing more press and good news throughout this month! First, another Most Anticipated List from the Chicago Review of Books!
chireviewofbooks.com/2025/01/06/o...

It's happening!!!

Feeling so fortunate to be alive at the same time as Nikki Giovanni. I started writing about home in 2015 and love seeing how Nikki Giovanni contemplated home in 1974. Writing helps us find belonging across time. #booksky #blacksky #writingcommunity #history #art #authors #poetry #artists #writing

Review: Merging memoir, poetry, and criticism, this radical literary revue traces a first-generation Nigerian American’s search for home.

I don’t cover a lot of memoirs, but when I do, I want it to push and challenge me. This promises to push what a memoir does in a new direction.

A grid of books from Debutiful's Most Anticipated Debut Books of 2025

From the publisher: Merging memoir, poetry, and criticism, this radical literary revue traces a first-generation Nigerian American’s search for home and belonging on her own terms. I don’t cover a lot of memoirs, but when I do, I want it to push and challenge me. This promises to push what a memoir does in a new direction.

A tweet reading "women shoot their shot by thinking about you smh" "first of all it's called manifesting"

Guys, I'm a Most Anticipated 😭. Thank you so much Debutiful, for naming Gloomy Girl one of the most anticipated debut books of 2025! Who knew my ruminating on hopefully making the list was ✨manifesting✨ Very happy the book's innovative structure is getting some shine. 😌

The Gloomy Girl Variety Show: A Memoir Merging memoir, poetry, and criticism, this radical lit…

www.goodreads.com/book/show/20...

www.amazon.com/Gloomy-Girl-...

Gloomy Girl's Amazon ranking shot up over the last week! Thank you to everyone who has pre-ordered! If you read the book and liked it (hopefully 🥹), I would love it if you could leave a review on Amazon or Goodreads. Or request it at your local library or book store. Linking both pages below. 🖤

The Intern Who Created Spotify Wrapped’s Story Format Never Got Her Due Meet artist Jewel Ham, who designed the Spotify Wrapped social format that we're all addicted to as an intern — and like so many other interns, she never truly got her due.

For those who aint aware Spotify Wrapped was brought to yall via the brilliance of a Black Woman’s mind. While yall enjoy the moment today here’s a reminder that Black American creatives are still making huge cultural impact with very little credit and pay. www.refinery29.com/en-us/2020/1...

One of the single best things you can do for us on #InternationalDayofPeoplewithDisabilities is to wear a mask.

Make public spaces safe for us again. Join us in demanding masks in healthcare. Refuse to leave us by the wayside.

Illinois Has Put an End to the Injustice of Cash Bail Amid a national backlash against criminal justice reform, Illinois has achieved something extraordinary. It’s working better than anyone expected.

Illinois has put an end to the injustice of cash bail. And it’s working better than anyone expected.

The Gloomy Girl Variety Show — Feminist Press Freda Epum Merging memoir, poetry, and criticism, this radical literary revue traces a first-generation Nigerian American’s search for home and belonging on her own terms.

Words are where the wounds breathe and begin to heal. I wrote my memoir as a way to process and transform my own pain. www.feministpress.org/books-overfl...

"I came to theory because I was hurting-the pain within me was so intense...I came to theory desperate, wanting to comprehend-to grasp what was happening around and within me. I saw in theory then a location for healing." - Toni Morrison.

Here’s me at the start of my book and me now. Out Jan 15!

A Black woman with box braids in a low ponytail and white sweater sits at a wooden desk writing in a journal.

So I've applied for some grants and fellowships that would allow me to be a full-time writer for a while if I got them! *Fingers crossed*