Stories & Queer, founded by writer Brian Kornell and poet Ruben Quesada, is a traveling reading series based in Urbana-Champaign that aims to provide a space for local & national readers/listeners to connect with queer & queer-friendly writers in underrepresented areas of the country. Each reading features two local and one live streamed writer with consideration given to a represent culture, gender, and language. Additionally, the event will also be broadcast live and archived to the web. The virtual components of this series are unique and allow us to reach beyond the local borders of the event.

Queer poets and writers need to be given a space to share their work just as much as their straight counterparts. This is an issue of visibility. Queer voices should not be marginalized nor hidden away. Even though the LGBTQ community is on the brink of historic advancements in equal rights, bullying and anti-LGBTQ speech is still pervasive. The Stories & Queer reading series steps in to embrace queer and queer-friendly poets and writers who express themselves, the issues/ideas most important to them. This series makes a positive contribution to the literary and LGBTQ community by encouraging all people to tell their stories without shame or fear. Air Max 270 Men