Mission Creek unveils its author lineup for April 4-9 festival

IOWA CITY - Mission Creek Festival organizers have released the full lineup of authors slated to attend the Iowa City festival of music, literature and culture this April 4 to 9.

Poet Saeed Jones, executive editor at BuzzFeed Books and author of the 2016 book 'Prelude to Bruise,” will headline the event with a readling alongside Alice Sola Kim and Isaac Fitzgerald April 8 at The Mill.

Other highlights include a festival kick-off at Hancher Auditorium April 4 featuring Kelly Link, a celebration of the release of Kristen Radtke's graphic memoir 'Imagine Only Wanting This” April 6 at Prairie Lights, the seventh annual Lit Crawl across Iowa City from April 7, featuring authors representing independent publishers and literary organizations from across the country, and the Literary Magazine & Small Press Book Fair April 8 at The Mill.

Other writers who will be featured include: Cornelius Eady, Cole Swenson, Garth Greenwell, Danielle Dutton, Janice Lee, Gabrielle Civil, Chiwan Choi, Janaka Stucky, Roger Bonair-Agard, Elisa Gabbert, Lina Maria Ferreira Cabeza-Vanegas, Azareen Van Der Vliet Oloomi, Shane McCrae, Matthew Guenette, Lyz Lenz, Jenny Johnson, Evan James, Frederick McKindra, Thea Brown, Jennifer Colville, Dan Poppick, Lauren Haldeman, Sara Denez Akant, musician-authors Laura Gibson and Nat Baldwin, area youth writers working with Young Chicago Authors, The Hook and the Iowa Youth Writing Project, and many more.

For a full lineup and list of locations, including updates and additions as the festival dates approach, and to find the music and comedy lineups, visit missioncreekfestival.com. All literary events are free and open to the public.

The full literary schedule for Mission Creek Festival is as follows:

Kelly Link, 6 p.m. April 4, Hancher Auditorium, Strauss Hall, 141 E. Park Rd., Iowa City. Link is author of the collections 'Get in Trouble,” 'Stranger Things Happen,” 'Magic for Beginners” and 'Pretty Monsters.”

Writers of Color Reading featuring Roger Bonair-Agard, Benjamin Krusling, Regina Porter, Yvonne Cha, Tameka Cage Conley, 7 p.m. April 5, Prairie Lights, 15 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City

Iowa Writers' Workshop Presents: Adam Haslett, 4 p.m. April 6, Frank Conroy Reading Room, Dey House, 507 N. Clinton St., Iowa City

Kristen Radtke & Lina Maria Ferreira Cabeza-Vanegas, 6 p.m. April 6, Prairie Lights, 15 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City

Lit Crawl, 5 to 8 p.m. April 7, downtown Iowa City

Literary Magazine & Small Press Book Fair, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. April 8, The Mill, 120 E. Burlington St., Iowa City

ICE CREAM: The Iowa City Expo for Comics and Real Eclectic Media, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. April 8, Public Space One, 120 N. Dubuque St., Iowa City

Kokoy F. Guevera's The Reddest Herring: Cole Swenson & Shane McCrae, noon April 8, Prairie Lights, 15 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City

Mission Boutique, 2 to 5 p.m. April 8, downtown Iowa City

Saeed Jones with Alice Sola Kim & Isaac Fitzgerald, 6 p.m. April 8, The Mill, 120 E. Burlington St., Iowa City

Earthwords Release Party, 7 p.m. April 9, Prairie Lights, 15 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City