Write It Out!: Second Annual Workshop for HIV+ Playwrights

Playwright Donja R. Love has announced the second annual Write It Out! program, a free workshop for  playwrights living with HIV.

The workshop’s creator, Love, took up playwriting after his HIV diagnosis in 2008. His work dives into the intersection and absurdity of life for those who identify as Black, queer, and living with HIV, challenging the white supremacist, heteronormative structures that exist in American culture. Wanting to cultivate a community and help other creatives living with HIV/AIDS find their unique voices, his brainchild, Write It Out!, was born—and Love is ecstatic to be hosting the workshop for its second year now.

“After being diagnosed with HIV, writing is what got me through some of my darkest moments. Though there was such solace that came with writing, something was still missing. Eventually, I realized what I was yearning for was community. Writing, in addition to holding space with other people living with HIV, has liberated me. Write It Out! was designed to bring writing and community together as a way of assisting people living with HIV in their liberation,” Love shares.

The 10-week program will convene virtually twice a week. Playwrights will finish out the program with an optional experience to share their work with professional actors and directors from The Lark, an international theatre laboratory based in New York City.

Writers 18 years of age and older living with HIV can apply to the program at letswriteitout.com. Applicants must answer several questions and submit a writing sample, and finalists will have a one-on-one session with Love in September. Applications will be accepted through Aug. 15.

The program begins Sept. 28 and comes to a close on World AIDS Day, Dec. 1. Write It Out! has partnered with National Queer Theater, Mobilizing Our Brothers Initiative (MOBI), The Lark, and The Each-Other Project, and will be sponsored by Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.

“With so few opportunities to create and share diverse stories, Write It Out! continues to hold a much-needed space and network that fosters emerging writers living with HIV to tell their own stories. After last year’s successful cohort of incredible writers, GLAAD and MOBI are beyond thrilled to support the next generation of writers to WIO!,” says MOBI’s founder and Executive Director DaShawn Usher.

Write It Out! prioritizes the confidentiality of all applicants and participants. Individuals accepted into the program may withhold their identity from being published. Requesting confidentiality will not influence the selection process.