Our Response to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Outbreak

As a precaution to help limit the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) and care for our community, Just Buffalo Literary Center has postponed a number of events, and we will follow the guidance of Buffalo Public Schools in terms of Just Buffalo Writing Center programming.

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Literary Events in Buffalo

From Just Buffalo's acclaimed BABEL series, our summer SILO CITY READING SERIES, and our ongoing CIVIL WRITES PROJECT to other organizations and happenings around town, find your next literary event on our calendar.

Upcoming Literary Events in Buffalo

Check back regularly for more upcoming literary events throughout Buffalo and Western New York.

Thursday, April 23, 2026
7:30 pm
Kleinhans Music Hall
Babel - Imani Perry - April 23 2026 - Kleinhans Music Hall - Just Buffalo Literary Center

BABEL: Imani Perry

MacArthur genius and National Book Award winner Imani Perry unveils her new book, Black in Blues: How a Color Tells the Story of My People. Blending history, art, and personal reflection, Perry illuminates the forces that have shaped American life and the Black imagination through the color blue—from indigo cloth to blues music.

Join us for a revelatory evening with one of today’s most powerful thinkers and poetic voices.

3 Symphony Circle, Buffalo, NY 14201

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Saturday, April 25, 2026
11:00 am - 12:00 pm
Buffalo AKG Art Museum
akg babel tour credit Tricia Davis

BABEL-Inspired Tours at the AKG: Black In Blues by Imani Perry

In collaboration with Just Buffalo, the AKG is offering sixty-minute, docent-led public tours based on the themes in the acclaimed BABEL author series and the related books. Please note, the authors will not be present at the tours. Public tours based on the themes in the book Black In Blues by Imani Perry. No reservation necessary.

1285 Elmwood Avenue, Buffalo, New York 14222

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Wednesday, April 29, 2026
6:00 pm - 7:30 pm
Duende at Silo City
Reading & Discussion Group with Joshua Thermidor April 29, 2026

Reading & Discussion: Ross Gay’s Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude With Joshua Thermidor

Join us at the Just Buffalo Literary Center for an evening dedicated to "serious noticing." As part of our city-wide In Gratitude project, poet and teaching artist Joshua Thermidor will lead a discussion into Ross Gay’s National Book Critics Circle Award-winning collection, Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude.

85 Silo City Row Buffalo, NY 14203

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Sunday, May 3, 2026
1:30 pm - 3:00 pm
Fitz Books and Waffles
Robert Creeley - Creeley Society Planned Giving - Photo by Bruce Jackson - Just Buffalo Literary Center

Robert Creeley Reading Group

Register for free in advance to receive your poetry packet! Join us at Fitz Books on Sunday, April 12 and Sunday, May 3 for a special reading group dedicated to the poetry of Robert Creeley. This event is a featured part of Onward!, a centennial celebration honoring one of the most vital voices in American poetry and a cornerstone of Buffalo’s literary history.

1462 Main Street, Buffalo, NY 14209

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Wednesday, May 6, 2026
6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Just Buffalo Literary Center
In Gratitude Open Hours - Creative Writing Programs - Adult Writing Workshops - Writing Center - May 6, 2026 - Just Buffalo Literary Center

Open Hours: In Gratitude Session

OPEN HOURS is a cafe-style gathering that provides a dedicated time and place to focus on your writing, create new work, and take creative risks. This session is inspired by the "In Gratitude" project—a city-wide initiative rooted in the "serious noticing" of everyday delights.

468 Washington Street, 2nd Floor, Buffalo, NY 14203

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Wednesday, May 13, 2026
5:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Art's Cafe

Writing Club at Art’s Cafe

May 13th, 5-6pm, Art’s Cafe, Library Writers Group Bring printed copies of your work, or a copy to read from. Receive feedback on your writing, or complete a provided writing prompt, or discuss a project in-progress, or give feedback on other’s writing, or simply listen! This hour is for local writers to write, share, and build community. There is no wrong way to show up to writing group!

5 East Main Street, Springville, New York 14141

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Just Buffalo’s Literary Events

Over the years, Just Buffalo Literary Center has produced a number of acclaimed literary events. These are our current ongoing event series.

Tommy Orange at BABEL photo credit Pat Cray

BABEL: Buffalo Hosts World-Famous Authors

Just Buffalo Literary Center’s acclaimed BABEL series brings four of the world’s most important authors to Buffalo each year, engaging local audiences, attracting guests from across the country and Canada, and creating a global literary conversation right here at home.

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poems projected July 2025 photo credit Noah Falck 500x500

Silo City Reading Series

Since 2013, the SILO CITY READING SERIES has brought together poetry, music, and art for immersive, multidisciplinary, and transcendent cultural events at Silo City–a complex of historic grain silos along the Buffalo River.

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Toni Morrison BABEL Just Buffalo Literary Center

The Civil Writes Project

Each Spring, Just Buffalo presents THE CIVIL WRITES PROJECT with a series of interconnected community events that open conversations, encourage reading and writing, and invite widespread community participation around BABEL visits from the world’s foremost Black and African-American writers.

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Meditations in Blue 2026 - Imani Perry - Back in Blues book cover square - Just Buffalo Literary Center

Meditations In Blue

In Black in Blues: How a Color Tells the Story of My People, Imani Perry traces the color blue across centuries—through indigo fields, the labor of enslaved hands, spiritual resistance, sorrow, freedom songs, blues music, and pride. Inspired by Perry’s moving book, Just Buffalo invites you to tell your “blue story.”

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In Gratitude - Events - Just Buffalo Literary Center

In Gratitude

How can we nurture hope during these trying times? Sustain courage? Connect and uplift one another? In Gratitude is a six-month, citywide initiative that aims to nurture hope and spread joy through reading, writing, and personal reflection, inspired by renowned poet + essayist Ross Gay.

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Event Space Rental - Just Buffalo Literary Center

Event Space Rental

Just Buffalo Literary Center is located in the heart of downtown Buffalo along the literary corridor. Our beautifully renovated space is available for private rental to host writing workshops, author events, poetry readings, professional development retreats, book launches, and more.

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The Latest JB Literary Events News

Stay up-to-date on the latest news about literary events.

What Does “Blue” Mean to You? Share Your Story.
Thursday, April 16, 2026
What Does “Blue” Mean to You? Share Your Story.
Inspired by Imani Perry’s moving work, Just Buffalo invites you to pause and reflect on your own “blue story.” In the world of literature, art, and life, blue is never just a color. It is a mood, a melody, a memory, and a landscape. It represents our struggles and the heights of our beauty. As part of our Civil Writes Project, we are seeking meditations on the many shades of this experience.
BABEL with Tara Westover
Friday, March 27, 2026
BABEL with Tara Westover
Last night, the 2025-26 BABEL season continued as we welcomed Tara Westover, the acclaimed author of the global phenomenon Educated, to the Kleinhans stage.
Finding Your Way to the Balcony: How to Secure Your Tickets for BABEL
Thursday, March 19, 2026
Finding Your Way to the Balcony: How to Secure Your Tickets for BABEL
Not sure how to find balcony tickets for BABEL? Here are step by step instructions on how to secure yours.
All Literary Events News

Past Events

Take a look at our rich event history to date.

Apr 21, 2026
Just Buffalo Writing Center
BABEL Imani Perry Student Reading Group

BABEL Student Reading Group

BABEL Student Reading Groups invite curious young readers into the living heart of literature. Led by an English teacher with over 30 years of experience and designed specifically for high school readers, this enrichment program draws inspiration from the books featured in the BABEL Author Series.

468 Washington Street, 2nd Floor, Buffalo, NY 14203

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Apr 18, 2026
Buffalo AKG Art Museum
akg babel tour credit Tricia Davis

BABEL-Inspired Tours at the AKG: Black In Blues by Imani Perry

In collaboration with Just Buffalo, the AKG is offering sixty-minute, docent-led public tours based on the themes in the acclaimed BABEL author series and the related books. Please note, the authors will not be present at the tours. Public tours based on the themes in the book Black In Blues by Imani Perry. No reservation necessary.

1285 Elmwood Avenue, Buffalo, New York 14222

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Apr 16, 2026
Torn Space Theater

Meditations in Blue

Join us for Meditations in Blue, a multimedia event inspired by Imani Perry’s latest book, Black in Blues: How a Color Tells the Story of My People. Curated by Drea d’Nur Featuring Blue Stories in poetry, spoken word, dance, music & visual art. Free & open to the public Pre-registration encouraged Hosted by Just Buffalo Literary Center & the UB Writing Collective

612 Fillmore Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14212

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Apr 15, 2026
Duende at Silo City
Reading & Discussion Group with Joshua Thermidor April 15, 2026

Reading & Discussion: Ross Gay’s Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude With Joshua Thermidor

Join us at the Just Buffalo Literary Center for an evening dedicated to "serious noticing." As part of our city-wide In Gratitude project, poet and teaching artist Joshua Thermidor will lead a discussion into Ross Gay’s National Book Critics Circle Award-winning collection, Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude.

85 Silo City Row Buffalo, NY 14203

View Event
Apr 14, 2026
Just Buffalo Writing Center
BABEL Imani Perry Student Reading Group

BABEL Student Reading Group

BABEL Student Reading Groups invite curious young readers into the living heart of literature. Led by an English teacher with over 30 years of experience and designed specifically for high school readers, this enrichment program draws inspiration from the books featured in the BABEL Author Series.

468 Washington Street, 2nd Floor, Buffalo, NY 14203

View Event
Apr 12, 2026
Fitz Books and Waffles
Robert Creeley - Creeley Society Planned Giving - Photo by Bruce Jackson - Just Buffalo Literary Center

Robert Creeley Reading Group

Register for free in advance to receive your poetry packet! Join us at Fitz Books on Sunday, April 12 and Sunday, May 3 for a special reading group dedicated to the poetry of Robert Creeley. This event is a featured part of Onward!, a centennial celebration honoring one of the most vital voices in American poetry and a cornerstone of Buffalo’s literary history.

1462 Main Street, Buffalo, NY 14209

View Event
Apr 11, 2026
Buffalo AKG Art Museum
akg babel tour credit Tricia Davis

BABEL-Inspired Tours at the AKG: Black In Blues by Imani Perry

In collaboration with Just Buffalo, the AKG is offering sixty-minute, docent-led public tours based on the themes in the acclaimed BABEL author series and the related books. Please note, the authors will not be present at the tours. Public tours based on the themes in the book Black In Blues by Imani Perry. No reservation necessary.

1285 Elmwood Avenue, Buffalo, New York 14222

View Event
Apr 8, 2026
Just Buffalo Literary Center
In Gratitude Open Hours - Creative Writing Programs - Adult Writing Workshops - Writing Center - April 8, 2026 - Just Buffalo Literary Center

Open Hours: In Gratitude Session

OPEN HOURS is a cafe-style gathering that provides a dedicated time and place to focus on your writing, create new work, and take creative risks. This session is inspired by the "In Gratitude" project—a city-wide initiative rooted in the "serious noticing" of everyday delights.

468 Washington Street, 2nd Floor, Buffalo, NY 14203

View Event
Apr 4, 2026
Buffalo AKG Art Museum
akg babel tour credit Tricia Davis

BABEL-Inspired Tours at the AKG: Black In Blues by Imani Perry

In collaboration with Just Buffalo, the AKG is offering sixty-minute, docent-led public tours based on the themes in the acclaimed BABEL author series and the related books. Please note, the authors will not be present at the tours. Public tours based on the themes in the book Black In Blues by Imani Perry. No reservation necessary.

1285 Elmwood Avenue, Buffalo, New York 14222

View Event
Mar 31, 2026
Just Buffalo Writing Center
BABEL Imani Perry Student Reading Group

BABEL Student Reading Group

BABEL Student Reading Groups invite curious young readers into the living heart of literature. Led by an English teacher with over 30 years of experience and designed specifically for high school readers, this enrichment program draws inspiration from the books featured in the BABEL Author Series.

468 Washington Street, 2nd Floor, Buffalo, NY 14203

View Event
Mar 26, 2026
Kleinhans Music Hall
Babel - Tara Westover - March 26 2026 - Kleinhans Music Hall - Just Buffalo Literary Center

BABEL: Tara Westover

Tara Westover’s memoir Educated—a #1 New York Times bestseller for over two years—has transfixed readers with its unforgettable story of self-invention. Born to survivalists in rural Idaho, Westover didn’t set foot in a classroom until she was 17 but went on to earn a PhD from Cambridge University and wow the world.

Come be inspired by her story of resilience and the power of learning to rewrite your own script.

3 Symphony Circle, Buffalo, NY 14201

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Mar 24, 2026
Just Buffalo Writing Center
BABEL Imani Perry Student Reading Group

BABEL Student Reading Group

BABEL Student Reading Groups invite curious young readers into the living heart of literature. Led by an English teacher with over 30 years of experience and designed specifically for high school readers, this enrichment program draws inspiration from the books featured in the BABEL Author Series.

468 Washington Street, 2nd Floor, Buffalo, NY 14203

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