Unplug from the outside world and JOIN us at The Big Texas Read (TBTR) brought to you by Writing Workshops Dallas and Gemini Ink. As featured in Poets&Writers, Forbes, The Dallas Morning News, San Antonio Express-News, U.S. News & World Report, San Francisco Chronicle, Fort Worth Star Telegram, Houston Chronicle, and Texas Highways, we’ll be reading ONE work of prose or poetry written by a Texas author every month! We’ll be with you all the way from page one to “THE END” with our Zoom author chats and Q&A’s, scheduled every two weeks. It’s a big virtual book club, and we’d love for you to join in the fun!

Keep a lookout for giveaways that come with being a book lover and taking part in The Big Texas Read, from free online WWD and Gemini Ink workshops to manuscript consultations. Help us celebrate the diverse literary voices of our state, and we’ll keep you company with great Texas authors and like-minded fellow readers. In these unsettling times, what could be better than a good book, a dynamic discussion, and meeting new friends?

We’re excited to partner with Interabang Books in Dallas and The Twig Book Shop in San Antonio for The Big Texas Read. You can order your book directly from either bookstore and have it delivered to your front door!

We’re reading and discussing Andrea Vocab Sanderson’s brilliant collection She Lives in Music.

“I am such a fan of Vocab’s powerful voice and visions.” -Naomi Shihab Nye, Poetry Foundation’s Young People’s Poet Laureate

“When you enter this temple of rhythm Vocab has so masterfully constructed, you best bring your dancing shoes. She has perfected a style of free-verse that tours through the senses like a band: beating like a drum, wailing like a trumpet, thumping like a bass, casting a spell only the truest jazz artists can conjure.”  -Charles “EasyLee” Peters

“Andrea “Vocab” Sanderson is the “remix” and the mystery; the “edible melody” and the bass thump; the original and the new version of her own profound song. Rhythm and sound, “4 beats to a measure,” read these poems for they will answer you in music.” -Octavio Quintanilla, San Antonio Poet Laureate, 2018-2020

Andrea Vocab Sanderson, San Antonio, TX. Poet Laureate 2020-2023, performs as “Vocab” in her hometown of San Antonio, Texas where she teaches poetry workshops, mentors, and encourages artists to pursue their art, and gives them platforms to showcase their talent. Her poetry is published in, The Texas Observer, Pariah Anthology SFA Press, Sycorax’s Daughters, and more. Her debut book entitled: She Lives In Music, published by FlowerSong Press, was released on Valentine’s Day 2020. Her album She Tastes Like Music, is available on all music streaming platforms. Sanderson is the winner of the 2019 People’s Choice Award, awarded by Luminaria Artist Foundation, and was awarded Best Live Entertainment/Band Musician of the Year by the SEA Awards.