Writers’ Workshop alum Bret Anthony Johnston will read from his new novel, We Burn Daylight. “Symphonic and suspenseful, We Burn Daylight reimagines events at the Branch Davidian compound in Waco. In an epic act of empathy, Bret Anthony Johnston inhabits every point of view, from doomed devotees to perplexed law enforcement, and even manages to infuse the tragedy with moments of poignant, very human, humor.” –Geraldine Brooks

Bret Anthony Johnston is the author of the internationally bestselling novel Remember Me Like This and the award-winning Corpus Christi: Stories. He was the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellowship, a 5 Under 35 honor from the National Book Foundation, and The Sunday Times EFG Short Story Award. He wrote the documentary film Waiting for Lightning and is the editor of Naming the World and Other Exercises for the Creative Writer. His writing has appeared in The Atlantic, Esquire, The Paris Review, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Virginia Quarterly Review, Best American Short Stories, and elsewhere. Born and raised in Texas, Johnston is the director of the Michener Center for Writers at the University of Texas in Austin.

Ethan Canin is the author of seven books, including the story collections Emperor of the Air and The Palace Thief and the novels For Kings and Planets, Carry Me Across the Water, America America, and The Doubter’s Almanac. He is on the faculty of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and divides his time between Iowa City and northern Michigan.