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'Precious' Writer Sapphire to Headline Literary Fest in Fort Greene Park

By Janet Upadhye | August 22, 2014 11:48am | Updated on August 22, 2014 5:00pm
 Sapphire, author of the book "Push" which was later made into the Academy Award winning film "Precious" is set to headline this year's Fort Greene Park Summer Literary Festival.
Sapphire, author of the book "Push" which was later made into the Academy Award winning film "Precious" is set to headline this year's Fort Greene Park Summer Literary Festival.
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Blue Flower Arts

FORT GREENE — Sapphire, author of the book "Push" which was later made into the Academy Award winning film "Precious,‎" is set to headline this Saturday's Fort Greene Park Summer Literary Festival.

The event — which starts at starts at 2 p.m. Saturday — is the culmination of six weeks of creative writing workshops hosted by the NY Writers Coalition featuring the works of 35 local youth ages 6-18 from neighborhoods all over Brooklyn.

This event will give the young writers a chance to read their work on stage alongside seasoned authors and poets — on topics including family, their experiences growing up in the borough, trends and bullying.

“The festival feels like a part of summer and a part of this Brooklyn neighborhood, though its talent is world class and its aims are universal,” Jessica Stockton-Bagnulo, co-owner of Fort Greene's Greenlight Bookstore, said in a statement.

Other high-profile writers and journalists set to participate are “Def Poetry Jam” co-creator Danny Simmons, Five Quarterly founder Vanessa Gabb, award-winning spoken word artist Angel Nafis and poet Willie Perdomo. Music journalist Gaylord Fields, who has written for Rolling Stone and Spin and hosts a radio show on WFMU, will serve as the Master of Ceremonies.

The festival, located near the Prison Ship Martyrs’ Monument in Fort Greene Park and is free to the public.

Greenlight Bookstore, located at 686 Fulton Street, will host an after-party at 4:30 p.m.