Fairfax, Ep. 1

October 13, 2018 — For the first time ever, Literary Death Match headed to Virginia to team with the glorious Fall for the Book Festival, for an early-evening show that saw an astonishing Arithme-Lit finale in which Angelique Palmer defeated Alexandra Petri in sudden death to win the Fairfax, Ep. 1 crown, and literary immortality to go with it.

What is Literary Death Match? Part literary event, part comedy show, part game show, Literary Death Match brings together four of today’s finest writers to compete in an edge-of-your-seat read-off critiqued by three celebrity judges, and concluded by a slapstick showdown to decide the ultimate champion.

JUDGES: 
Literary Merit: Bethanne Patrick, editor of The Books that Changed My Life: Reflections by 100 Authors, Actors, Musicians, and Other Remarkable People

Performance: Laura Lee Gulledge, artist, author, educator, and the Eisner and Harvey Award-nominated writer of Page by Paige

Intangibles: Michael D. Leinbach, winner of the prestigious Presidential Rank Award, and the last launch director in the space shuttle program at NASA's John F. Kennedy Space Center

READERS: 
Round 1: 
* Alexandra Petri, blogger and columnist for the Washington Post and author of A Field Guide to Awkward Silences
* Joseph Cassara, author of the debut novel The House of Impossible Beauties, chosen by Barnes & Noble as a Discover Great New Writers selection

Round 2:
* Angelique Palmer, competitive performance poet, a finalist in the 2015 Women of the World Poetry Slam and a member of The Beltway Poetry Slam Team in 2017
* Benjamin Percy, author of four novels, including The Dark Net, and the ten-episode podcast audio drama Wolverine: The Long Night

Hosted by LDM creator Adrian Todd Zuniga (check out his debut novel Collision Theory today!)
Produced by Suzy Rigdon

Where: Harris Theater, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA (map)

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