Giving voice to the stories that bind us.
Writers Read creates and promotes performance opportunities for writers through curated live and digital programs.
We’re a high-quality platform for true, personal stories—650 words, five minutes long—read aloud before an audience by the writer in our highly popular live shows at City Winery New York and elsewhere.
The best of our live shows can be heard in the Writers Read Podcast, streaming on every major podcast outlet.
In the digital arena, people are drawn to spoken word programming more than ever before. In a publishing world with shrinking opportunities for new voices, Writers Read is a welcomed channel for aspiring and established writers alike.
We place a strong emphasis on the craft of writing—word choices, sentence structures, the arc of the narrative. If you love language and craft and enjoy a good story, you’ve come to the right place.
Advisory Council
Our Advisory Council brings together industry leaders and advocates who lend their expertise, networks, and guidance to advance our mission.
Jai Chakrabarti
Jai is an acclaimed author and trained computer scientist whose fiction explores the complexities of family, culture, and transformation. He burst onto the literary scene with his debut novel, A Play for the End of the World, which won the National Jewish Book Award for debut fiction and was long-listed for the PEN/Faulkner Award. Chakrabarti is also the author of the widely praised story collection A Small Sacrifice for an Enormous Happiness. His short stories have earned an O. Henry Award and a Pushcart Prize. Originally from Kolkata, India, he holds an MFA from Brooklyn College and splits his time between Brooklyn and the Hudson Valley.
Jeanine Cummins
Jeanine is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of five books, most notably the blockbusting and heavily debated 2020 novel American Dirt. An Oprah’s Book Club selection, the migrant thriller sold over four million copies worldwide and was translated into 37 languages. Cummins first touched the literary world with her 2004 true-crime memoir, A Rip in Heaven, which chronicled a devastating violent tragedy her family survived. She is also the author of the historically focused novels The Outside Boy and The Crooked Branch, as well as her latest multigenerational Puerto Rican-set novel, Speak to Me of Home.
Liza Donnelly
Liza is a celebrated American cartoonist and writer, best known for her decades of contribution to The New Yorker. Her sharp, witty, and minimalist line drawings frequently provide poignant social commentary on feminism, politics, and modern relationships. An influential voice in visual journalism, Donnelly has authored numerous books, including Very Funny Ladies, a history of women cartoonists. She pioneered live digital drawing, covering major global events like the Oscars and UN conferences in real time. Her work is recognized globally for using humor to champion gender equality and human rights.
Ato Essandoh
While Ato was studying chemical engineering at Cornell University, a dare from his college sweetheart led him to perform in a play, setting his artistic career in motion. Beyond his acting, Essandoh is a writer and playwright (Black Thang) and he co-founded The Defiant Ones, a writing and performance group. His screen credits include Garden State, Copper, Django Unchained, Blood Diamond, and his starring role as Stuart Heywood in the hit Netflix series The Diplomat. • Born on a Saturday in Schenectady, New York, to parents Ebow and Monica, Ato Essilfi Bracato Essandoh was named seven days later according to Ghanaian custom—his names honoring his Saturday birth, his grandfather, and his designation as a warrior.
John Kenney
John is a New York Times bestselling author and humorist celebrated for his witty, razor-sharp commentary on modern life. After a seventeen-year career as an advertising copywriter, he transitioned into literary fiction and satire, becoming a frequent contributor to The New Yorker’s "Shouts & Murmurs" section. Kenney won the prestigious Thurber Prize for American Humor for his debut novel, Truth in Advertising. His other notable fiction includes Talk to Me and the bestselling I See You’ve Called in Dead. He is also widely known for his bestselling, painfully relatable poetry collections, including Love Poems for Married People, Love Poems for People with Children, and Love Poems for Anxious People.
Jean Hanff Korelitz
Jean is a New York Times bestselling novelist, playwright, and essayist known for sharp psychological suspense and complex moral drama. Born in New York City, she studied at Dartmouth College and Clare College, Cambridge. Her widely acclaimed novels include The Plot, The Latecomer, Admission (adapted into the 2013 film starring Tina Fey), and You Should Have Known (adapted into HBO’s hit miniseries The Undoing). Also a poet and founder of the literary service BOOKTHEWRITER, Korelitz co-created the immersive theatrical production The Dead, 1904. She lives in New York City with her family.
Annabel Monaghan
Annabel is the New York Times bestselling and Library Reads Hall of Fame author of Dolly All The Time, Summer Romance, Same Time Next Summer, and Nora Goes Off Script. Published by G.P. Putnam’s Sons, her novels have been translated into 23 languages. Her diverse body of work also includes two young adult novels and the popular humor essay collection, Does This Volvo Make My Butt Look Big?. A former faculty member at Sarah Lawrence College’s Writing Institute, she now hosts the author series Friends with Words. She holds degrees from Duke University and The Wharton School and splits her time between Florida and Connecticut.
John Pielmeier
John is an acclaimed American playwright, screenwriter, and novelist best known for his breakout thriller Agnes of God. The riveting drama won the Great American Play Contest, enjoyed a highly successful 599-performance run on Broadway, and was later adapted by Pielmeier into an Oscar-nominated 1985 film. An Edgar Award winner, Pielmeier has written extensively for the stage, including a prominent West End adaptation of The Exorcist. His prolific television screenwriting career features over 25 movies and miniseries, including the critically acclaimed adaptation of Ken Follett's The Pillars of the Earth. He is married to writer Irene O'Garden.
Brendan Slocumb
Brendan is a distinguished New York Times bestselling author, musician, and veteran music educator who has carved out a unique niche as a master of the musical mystery. Drawing heavily on his two decades of experience as an orchestra director, Slocumb’s propulsive fiction explores themes of art, institutional gatekeeping, and cultural appropriation. He burst onto the literary scene with his celebrated 2022 debut, The Violin Conspiracy, a Good Morning America Book Club pick. He followed this with the hit thrillers Symphony of Secrets (2023), which uncovers historical plagiarism, and The Dark Maestro (2025), a high-stakes crime thriller featuring a cello prodigy.
Board of Directors
Our Board of Directors provides strategic governance, financial oversight, and passionate leadership to ensure our mission flourishes with integrity and purpose.
Sara Marrone
Sara makes public health digital and accessible as Area Office Director for the New York State Department of Health. An accomplished health professional with over a decade of proven leadership, Sara also operates her own digital production company, Convey Media, and serves as Writers Read’s Chief Technology Officer, contributing her broad technical, organizational, and digital marketing skills to our day-to-day operations.
President
Deborah Francis
Deborah is president and owner of Integra Accounting and Bookkeeping Services, a firm specializing in services to nonprofits, small to medium sized businesses, and individuals. With more than 30 years of experience working in the private and public sectors as an accountant, consultant, and coach, Deborah helps nonprofit organizations build their capacity and strive for successful implementation of their mission (she volunteers to serve as treasurer for select nonprofits, and is an adjunct professor of accounting at SUNY Ulster).
Treasurer
Board SecretaryAnn Levin
Ann is a widely published writer and book reviewer who enjoyed a long journalistic career at the Associated Press, where she covered elections as well as every imaginable natural and human disaster. Originally from western Pennsylvania, Ann attended Smith College for her undergraduate studies and the University of Texas for her creative writing graduate degree; her writing appears regularly in many literary journals.
Kevin O’Connor
Production DirectorKevin, Senior Engineer for Digital Systems & Reliability for NBC / Universal, seeks to be on the cutting edge of internet video streaming and cloud-based broadcasting with an emphasis on top-quality service for clients such as Amazon, A&E Networks, Philo, and others. His interests include media production, data science, and library science, and he’s passionate about human rights, equality, and climate change. A graduate of the Digital Media Production program at the SUNY New Paltz, he also mentors Writers Read’s Digital Media Production interns.
Alison Gragnano
Co-chair, Marketing CommiteeAlison is Executive Creative Director at The New School / Parsons School of Design, a position she obtained by way of a brutal, yet thrilling 30-year career in advertising. After a decade split between agencies Saatchi and Saatchi and Ogilvy and Mather, Alison now leads an in-house agency in the development of all marketing and communications for the university, collaborating with a team of talented and passionate creatives to share the vision and mission of The New School, a place for fearless progress.
Greg Steinmetz
Finance Committee memberGreg is an American journalist, author, and retired securities analyst known for his deep-dive biographies of influential financial figures. He spent 15 years in journalism, notably serving as the Berlin and London Bureau Chief for The Wall Street Journal. After his career in news, Steinmetz became a partner at the New York money management firm Ruane, Cunniff & Goldfarb, where he analyzed securities for the Sequoia Fund. He has authored two acclaimed books: The Richest Man Who Ever Lived, a biography of Renaissance banker Jacob Fugger, and American Rascal, which explores the life of robber baron Jay Gould. He lives in Larchmont, New York.
Debra Fried
Co-chair, Marketing CommiteeDebra lives in Greenwich Village with her husband and just-post-college-twins, and is very happy when reading, baking or riding a bike on a boardwalk. She’s spent the past 25 years working in advertising as a creative director, and the work she’s most known for (and most proud of) is the launch of Dove’s award-winning Campaign For Real Beauty; in addition to widening the parameters of beauty, she’s done her part to widen America’s hips, and put baubles onto its wrists, with advertising for clients that run the gamut from Hellmann’s Mayonnaise to Tiffany & Co.
Hunter Klein
Marketing Committee memberHunter is a Brooklyn-based writer, producer, teacher, improviser, former little league umpire, and hopelessly romantic New York Jets supporter. After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in economics, Hunter pursued his other passions -- teaching, writing, and comedy. With compatriots at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater and the People’s Improv Theater, he’s performed throughout New York City and recently wrote, directed, and acted in a musical fiction podcast series entitled “The Story of Heidelberg,” which earned him a Silver Award at the National Audio Theater Festival.
Richard Kollath
Richard is a nationally recognized designer and craftsman and the author of several design books who appeared regularly for several years on the Discovery, Lifetime, QVC, and NBC networks. The president of design firm Kollath-McCann Creative Services, he was educated in fine arts and art history at the Rochester Institute of Technology, the University of Hawaii, and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, his painting and photography were exhibited during a university teaching and lecturing career around the United States
Executive ProducerProfessional Staff
Our dedicated staff team brings talent, passion, and creative expertise to the day-to-day operations that bring our mission to life.
Edward McCann
Ed is a writer, producer, and project manager who produces Writers Read’s live shows and popular podcast and edits the published anthology series. Educated in Business Administration and Communications with a focus on radio and television, Ed won national awards for his work in TV, where he originated a weekly magazine show and collaborated on a series of documentaries and special news reports. Since 1995, he and partner Richard Kollath have operated the design firm Kollath-McCann Creative Services, with a roster of national print and hospitality clients. His writing has appeared in many magazines and anthologies.
Founder & Executive Director
Carol Wood
Carol is president of Woodstock Weavers guild, and manages the art collection of photographer/mixed media artist John Wood (1922-2012). In addition to providing administrative support to Writers Read, she’s taught weaving, knitting, and dye workshops for many years, and is an award winning weaver and knitter. She retired from administrative work in 2017, which ranged from university posts (museum business manager at University of Vermont, administrative dean & associate dean of students at Alfred University), to a non-profit program director. She holds a bachelor’s degree in metals from SUNY New Paltz, and Master of Professional Studies in Community Services Administration and MBA from Alfred University.
Operations Analyst
Vicky is an award-winning director, influencer, and proud NYU graduate. Born in Argentina and based in New York City, she’s a fashionista-filmmaker with a BFA in Film & TV and a minor in the Business of Entertainment, Media & Tech. She’s directed festival-winning work, interned at Luminoustudios and Pampa Films, and managed social media for the haircare brand NOLÉ. She launched her career as a content creator in 2021 and has since built an online community of 350K+ followers by being authentic and unapologetically herself, stepping out of her comfort zone, and showing what’s possible when you mix grit with glitter.
Social Media Marketing ManagerVictoria Mezquita
Featured Committee Members
Steven Lewis
Senior Editor / Editorial CommiteeSteve is a husband, father, grandfather, mentor, and longtime freelance writer and editor. A former faculty member at SUNY Empire State College and The Writing Institute at Sarah Lawrence College, his work has appeared everywhere from The New York Times and The Washington Post to Road Apple Review, along with a biblically long list of parenting publications (7 kids and 17 grandkids). His recent books include the novel The Lights Around the Shore and the poetry collection Fire in Paradise, co-authored with his daughter, Elizabeth Bayou-Funk. His newest collection of poems is Peering Into Infinity Mirrors of Love and Grief. Steve lives with his wife, Patti, in the shadow of Bonticou Crag in New Paltz, New Yor
Minnette Coleman
Minnette, a member of the prestigious Harlem Writers Guild, is a retired grants administrator for the New World Foundation. She grew up in Atlanta, Georgia where, as a teen, she wrote entertainment reviews for the Atlanta Daily World. While majoring in Drama at Guilford College in Greensboro, NC, she appeared in several productions and was a frequent contributor to the college newspaper. Minnette is the author of three historical novels and has been published on several websites and in the Quaker Higher Education Journal and the Killens Review of Arts and Letters.
Finance Committee Member
Tamara’s somewhat checkered career recently culminated in checkered pants as the chef/owner of The Forsyth B&B in Kingston, NY. The Forsyth’s three-course breakfasts and contemporary lodging were praised in Vogue, The Huffington Post and Hudson Valley Magazine, among others. With the sale of the B&B in early 2024, she has had the time to explore less fattening and more soulful pursuits including writing, learning French, traveling and volunteering. Tamara’s professional life includes more than 35 years in fundraising and communications. Her personal life includes one husband, two grown kids and a chihuahua who idolizes her. Tamara is at work on a memoir with recipes tentatively titled Donald Sutherland Loved My Scones.
Finance Committee Member