The Sundress Academy for the Arts is pleased to announce the guests for our LGBTQ+ History Month reading event, writers [sarah] Cavar, Jasmine Flowers, and Ran Brady. Join us on Wednesday, October 22nd at Pretentious Beer Co. from 7:00-9:00 PM for a reading followed by an open mic hosted by Shelby Hansen.
[sarah] Cavar is the author of Failure to Comply (featherproof books, 2024) and Differential Diagnosis (Northwestern University Press, 2026), with writing in The Offing, The Rumpus, Electric Lit, and elsewhere. They hold a PhD in Cultural Studies with a concentration in Science & Technology Studies from the University of California: Davis, and are interested in the politics of queercrip & transMad knowledge production.
Jasmine Flowers is a well-watered poet from Birmingham, AL. Her chapbook, Horizon (Flower Press, 2021), was a finalist for the 2022 Perennial Press Chapbook Awards. She is a Best of the Net nominee, an MFA student at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and the host of UTK’s Chiasmus Reading Series. Her poems appear in Red Branch Review, Cola Literary Review, Middle House Review, and other publications.
Ran Brady (any pronouns) is a queer poet home-grown in the foothills of Appalachia, who spends most days puttering in a garden or consuming candied words at any chance. Previously published in Screen Door Review, Stone of Madness Press, and the anthology S/He Speaks 2: Voices of Women, Trans & Nonbinary Folx, Ran takes inspiration from southern pride and the experience that comes from taking root in that culture.
Each month we split donations with a community partner. Our community partner of the month is Knox Pride, whose mission is to uplift and celebrate LGBTQ+ people in Knoxville, Tennessee. Their work includes events for the queer community to provide opportunities for connection, celebration, and support. Knox Pride also engages in activism to support homeless and low-income LGBTQ+ folk, including a food pantry and community garden.
