Join us for a virtual discussion about the true monsters of Lovecraft Country on October 30 at 7PM ET. Over the course of October, we have covered themes regarding the hit novel and HBO series by Matt Ruff. It is only proper that we close out the series with a well-rounded conversation.

This virtual roundtable will cap off of our Twitter series #LJReads presents Lovecraft Fridays, during which we explored different horror literary themes in both the show and novel.

Some of those themes included resurrection, unsettled spirits, assimilation, racism, and magic. These themes were also accompanied by recommended books for further discourse. This roundtable will highlight more literary works and premises that can be linked to Lovecraft Country. It will also serve as a critical lens to view both the novel and the show through.

In this free, two-hour Zoom event, we will not only go in-depth over the themes discussed during the Lovecraft Friday’s series, but new ones such as:

• The true monsters of Lovecraft Country and what makes them scary.
• What it means to be “Othered” and the ramifications of being labeled as such.
• The importance of telling a Black American story both in literature and on screen in a genre they were largely ignored in.
• Generational trauma and it’s lasting impact on a person’s character and decision making.
• HP Lovecraft’s legacy, from his racist views to the creation of a whole new sub-genre Cosmic Horror.
• Modern adaptations of Lovecraft’s work, reimaging his stories to critique him.

Featured speakers include:

• Matt Ruff is the author of the critically acclaimed and award-winning novels 88 Names, Lovecraft Country, Bad Monkeys, The Mirage, Set This House in Order, Fool on the Hill, and Sewer, and Gas & Electric: The Public Works Trilogy.
• Mary SanGiovanni is an award-winning American horror and thriller writer of over a dozen novels, including The Hollower trilogy, Thrall, Chaos, The Kathy Ryan series, and others, as well as numerous novellas, short stories, and non-fiction.  
• Becky Spratford is a readers’ advisory (RA) specialist in northern Illinois and the author ofThe Readers’ Advisory Guide to Horror (2d ed., ALA). She runs the popular blogs raforall.blogspot.com and raforallhorror.blogspot.com
• Alexandria Brown is a queer Black librarian, local historian, writer, and author. She writes about speculative fiction and young adult literature for Tor.com, as well as on her blog. Diversity, equity, inclusion, and access set the foundation of everything she does.
• Stephan Triplett is nonfiction writer and has been published in Longreads, Vulture, Essay Daily, Electric Literature,  Brut, Slate, and is anthologized in the forthcoming Sweeter Voices Still: An LGTBQ Anthology from Middle America (Belt 2020).