Upcoming Events

Loft Events

For In-person events: Advanced tickets guarantee a general admission seat and help cover the Loft's costs to host the event. We are committed to accessibility at our events. If the event cost is a barrier, please show up to the event and we will accommodate you at the door through pay-what-you-can admission.  

Date
Time
5pm-7pm
Friend Fête (October 2025)

Come together as one big friend group at our fall gathering for Friends of the Loft! Have a drink and a bite, make connections, and participate in the open mic at this free donor social.

Presenters
Julie Cohen
Price
$0.00
$0.00 (Friend)
Location
The Loft at Open Book
Friend Fete
Date
Time
5pm-9pm
Art in Words - The Loft@Mia: The Harlem Renaissance & Its Influences

Come, write about art in an immersive experience of exhibitions, lectures, and collections at the Minneapolis Art Institute. In this adventurous class, writer and Loft Executive & Artistic Director, Arleta Little, will invite participants to explore ekphrastic writing through discussion, exercises, and workshops while learning about visual art and artists from the 20th and 21st centuries.

Presenters
Arleta M. Little
Price
$0.00
$0.00 (Friend)
Location
Minneapolis Institute of Art
Open Seats
Sold Out
Art in Words at MIA
Date
Time
6pm-7:30pm
The 2026 Novel Writing, Poetry, Creative Nonfiction, Memoir, and Fiction Writing Project Information Session 1

If you're curious about the Loft's Year-Long Writing Project in Novel Writing with Peter Geye, Creative Nonfiction with Sun Yung Shin, Memoir with Kelly Sundberg, Poetry with Heid E. Erdrich, or Fiction with Junauda Petrus, and which is right for you, come to this informal information session to find out more!

Presenters
Peter Geye
신 선 영 Sun Yung Shin
Kelly Sundberg
Junauda Petrus
Heid E. Erdrich
Price
$0.00
$0.00 (Friend)
Location
Online—Zoom Classroom
Loft Year-Long Writing Project Info Session orange letterings against beige background with butterflies
Date
Time
7pm-9pm
Valeria Luiselli Author Talk: A Reading & Conversation with the 2025 McKnight Judge in Creative Prose

Please join us for a public reading by the 2025 McKnight Judge in Creative Prose, acclaimed writer of both fiction and nonfiction, Valeria Luiselli. Luiselli will be joined in conversation with the Loft's Executive and Artistic Director, Arleta Little.

Presenters
Valeria Luiselli
Arleta M. Little
Price
$10.00
$5.00 (Friend)
Location
The Loft at Open Book
Graphic with Valeria Luiselli and her book cover for Lost Children Archive. Features the logos of McKnight Foundation and the Loft Literary Center.
Date
Time
2pm-4pm
Revolutions Are Made of Love Book Launch

Celebrate the launch of Revolutions Are Made of Love: The Story of James Boggs and Grace Lee Boggs with authors Sun Yung Shin and Mélina Mangal. This is a family friendly event. Bring the kiddos!

Presenters
Melina Mangal
Mélina Mangal
신 선 영 Sun Yung Shin
Price
$0.00
$0.00 (Friend)
Graphic for Revolutions are Made of Love event featuring book cover by Grace Lee Boggs
Date
Time
6pm-8pm
The Loft's Young Writers Anthology Release Party

Celebrate the launch of the inaugural Loft Youth Anthology! Enjoy a reading by young writers from Loft classes (Sept 2024–Aug 2025), followed by a book signing and reception. Tickets include a copy of the anthology, with proceeds supporting the Loft's mission to inspire and nurture young writers. This event is open to family, friends, and the public—come celebrate the creativity of these emerging voices!

Presenters
Marianne Manzler
Price
$20.00
$18.00 (Friend)
Location
The Loft at Open Book
Anthology Release Youth Event
Date
Time
7pm-8:30pm
2025 Year-Long Poetry Writing Project Final Reading (Summer Online Cohort)

Please join us to celebrate the conclusion of the 2025 Year-Long Poetry Writing Project. Participants from the Year-Long 2025 Poetry Writing Project with Hieu Minh Nguyen will read from their completed manuscripts at this culminating event.

Presenters
Hieu Minh Nguyen
Price
$0.00
$0.00 (Friend)
Location
Online—Zoom Classroom
Graphic for the final reading of the 2026 poetry cohort in the year-long writing project led by Hieu Minh Nguyen
Date
Time
7pm-8:30pm
2025 Year-Long Fiction Writing Project Final Reading (Summer Online Cohort)

Please join us to celebrate the conclusion of the 2025 Year-Long Fiction Writing Project. Participants from the Year-Long 2025 Fiction Writing Project with Junauda Petrus will read from their completed manuscripts at this culminating event.

Presenters
Junauda Petrus
Price
$0.00
$0.00 (Friend)
Location
Online—Zoom Classroom
Graphic for the final reading of the 2025 Fiction Cohort led by Junauda Petrus
Date
Time
6pm-8pm
The Loft's Spring 2026 Student Reading

The Loft presents an evening of student readings! Come join us for a showcase of some of our talented students, as they read some of their own work.

Price
$0.00
$0.00 (Friend)
Location
The Loft at Open Book
Spring Student Reading