A Letter From Our Executive Director
It’s been a good year. Our season started with the Poetry Foundation celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the Powerlines anthology. This was an important book at the time, celebrating the […]
Announcing the 2025 GBOMA Finalists
We are excited to announce the 2025 finalists for the Gwendolyn Brooks Open Mic Awards (GBOMA), selected by guest judge Dan “Sully” Sullivan: Barbara BarrowsChirskira CaillouetMars April CaultonSylvia EwingLisa FarverRocio […]
Submissions Now Open for the 2025 Gwendolyn Brooks Open Mic Awards (GBOMA)
We’re excited to announce that submissions are now open for the 2025 Gwendolyn Brooks Open Mic Awards (GBOMA)! This annual poetry competition celebrates the legacy of Illinois’ former Poet Laureate, […]
Guild Literary Complex Awarded Sustainable Futures Grant from the Poetry Foundation
We are honored to share that the Guild Literary Complex has been selected as one of 12 organizations nationwide to receive a Sustainable Futures Grant from the Poetry Foundation. This […]
“Power Lines” Named Top Literary Event in Chicago for May 2025 by Newcity Lit
Newcity Lit has named our upcoming event, Power Lines Twenty-Fifth Anniversary Celebration, the top literary event in Chicago for May 2025! Presented in partnership with the Poetry Foundation and the […]
Congratulations to Guild Complex Board President, Faylita Hicks, for Being Named a 2025 Writing Freedom Fellow!
We are proud to announce that our very own Board President, Faylita Hicks, has been named one of the 2025 Writing Freedom Fellows by Haymarket Books and the Mellon Foundation. This prestigious […]
Poetry Foundation Spring Event Season Celebrates Lineages, Collective Power, and the Midwest
CHICAGO, February 5, 2025—The Poetry Foundation announces its roster of free public events for the spring 2025 season under the theme “Power Lines,” inspired by the landmark anthology of the same […]
Deadline Extended: Call for Proposals for SAY THEIR NAMES
In partnership with Guild Literary Complex and with the support of Healing Illinois, NON:op announces a call for proposals for commissioned responses to SAY THEIR NAMES. The commission is for two to three […]
The Guild Literary Complex Announces Faylita Hicks As New Board Chair + Programming Hiatus
New Board Chair The Guild Literary Complex announced Tuesday that critically-acclaimed author and Art for Justice Grantee Faylita Hicks has been elected Chair of the Guild Literary Complex’s Board of […]
Nikki Patin Nominated for 2024 Pushcart Award
Congratulations to Nikki Patin for her 2024 Pushcart nomination for Working on Me. The Guild was honored to host her book launch in April, and she was one of our 2019 Writers to Watch.
Guild Complex Celebrates Recent Grant Awards
The Guild Complex is excited to announce the recent award of several grants, including those from DCASE, the Field Foundation’s ART (A Road Together) program, the Illinois Arts Council, Illinois Humanities, the Crossroads Fund, and the Poetry Foundation.
Guild Complex Nominated for Best Poetry Organization in Chicago Reader!
The Guild Complex has been nominated (again!) for Best Poetry Organization under Arts and Culture in The Chicago Reader’s Best of Chicago 2024.
25 Writers to Watch (2014)
Learn more about Writers to Watch here.
Guild Complex @ Printers Row Lit Fest | 2023
Join us at Printers Row Lit Fest from September 9-10! The Guild Complex is excited to host and participate in a suite of events, including: Exhibit B @ Printers Row […]
BrooksDay 2023
June 7, 2023 marked the 10th anniversary of BrooksDay, the Guild Literary Complex’s annual celebration of Gwendolyn Brooks. This year, we joined forces with the Poetry Foundation to additionally celebrate […]
PARTNER SPOTLIGHT: One Poem, One Chicago
June 2023 One Poem, One Chicago, an opportunity to engage Chicagoans in poetry and foster a sense of community through reading, will launch with a reissue of Gwendolyn Brooks’s landmark […]
2023 Programming Intern
The Programming Intern will assist the Guild Literary Complex in planning, outreach, and administration related to its core annual programs. This internship will be project-based, and the intern will gain […]
4.8.23 | “From the Mississippi Delta” Sneak Peek
Part of Lifeline’s season programming, join the actors, director and a member of the production team discussing the process with an excerpt from the play From the Mississippi Delta. A Q+A will follow with guest co-facilitator: Andrea Change, executive director, Guild Literary Complex.
3.3.23 | Slam Diáspora ¡EN VIVO!
When: Friday, March 3, 2023 | 7pm Where: 18th Street Casa de Cultura, 2057 W. 18th St. Register: http://tiny.cc/slamdiaspora (Facebook) ¡Abierto a poetas de todos estilos y edades! Desde quien […]
2017 Author’s Challenge Grant is here!
Dear Friends of the Guild, The 2017 Author’s Challenge Grant is here! For us, our camaraderie with authors here in Chicago is one of the brightest and most powerful reasons […]
Each Other’s Harvest, Annual Summit on Homelessness
Each Other’s Harvest, Annual Summit on Homelessness A 2017 Guild Literary Complex Applied Words Program Wilson Abbey 935 West Wilson Avenue, Uptown, Chicago, IL 60640 This event is free and […]
Arts & Environment at Chopin Theatre with Lisa Wagner, and many others
Lisa Wagner of the Guild Literary Complex will be presenting on Public Art and Gwendolyn Brooks in conjunction with the Chopin Theatre and a whole host of amazing artists and […]
Transnational Poetics, Reading and Conversation | Chopin Theatre | Nov. 5, 2017 | 6:00 PM
THE GUILD PRESENTS A CONVERSATION ON TRANSNATIONAL POETICS Sunday November 5th 2017, 6:00 PM- 7:30 PM Chopin Theatre, 1543 W Division St, Chicago, IL 60642 STUART COOKE | NATANIA ROSENFELD | […]
Arts in the Dark Chicago with the Guild | October 21st
Arts in the Dark with the Guild and Partners — we are looking for marchers! Here is an opportunity to celebrate the literary arts! The Guild Literary Complex is looking […]
Brooks In Translation | Wednesday, October 18, 2017
Brooks In Translation | Wednesday, October 18, 2017 Come for a night of bilingual Brooks with poetry, music, conversation, and more! Join the Guild Literary Complex in partnership with Our […]
GBOMA Semi-Finalists Announced
The 24th Annual Gwendolyn Brooks Open Mic Awards Semi-Finalists Are Announced! They are in alphabetical order by last name: Bianca Lisa Araujo | The Fusion of Fault Lines Jocelyn Ajami […]
CHICAGO CITY OF REFUGE INITIATIVE Readings and Remembrance, Oct 15th
CHICAGO CITY OF REFUGE INITIATIVE Readings and Remembrance: Writing and Witness with WENDY PEARLMAN | LUCINA KATHMANN interviewed by Unoma Azuah and Riad Ismat Please join the Chicago City of […]
GBOMA Semi-Finalists — Announcement Coming Soon!
We have heard from the judges that the competition is just so close they are having a hard time making a final decision on the semi-finalists. We hope to be […]
Wicker Park Lit Fest Community Book Swap! Sunday, September 17
We’re baaaaaack. Your friendly Wicker Park Lit partners are back at the Farmers’ Market. Sunday, September 17th | 9:00–13:00 Wicker Park – Chicago Park District 1425 N. Damen Avenue, Chicago, […]
Community in Place – Audrey Petty & Vida Cross, Sunday Sept 17th
Sunday Sept 17th, 6:30 PM- 8:00 PM Volumes Bookscafe | 1474 N Milwaukee Ave, Chicago, Illinois 60622 Join The Guild Literary Complex and Partner Volumes Bookcafe during Wicker Park Lit […]