Constellation #5: Ajose-Fisher, Mayer, Minto

April’s event was a stunner, and we’re thrilled to announce a stellar local lineup for our fifth Constellation on May18th, along with some exciting changes.

Changes first: the reading space has been transformed into a beautiful independent bookstore! Bishop & Wilde will be open before the event. Feel free to arrive early and shop.

And now, this month’s readers:

Kesha Ajose-Fisher (she/her) is the author of the award-winning collection of stories, No God Like the Mother, which focuses on the lives and realities of women who have been tasked with holding up the sky, all while the world whispers “you’re doing it wrong.” She has also earned a number of prestigious awards for other essays and stories she has written over the years, including The Phoenix Literary Magazine’s Editor’s Choice Award for Short Fiction in both 2011 and 2012. Her writing has been published in several online and print collections, and in such publications as Multicultural Familia magazine, the Alchemy literary magazine, and twice in Beyond Black & White magazine.

Ray Abrahams Mayer (she/they) is a poet and writer all the way from Cape Town, South Africa. She grew up speaking English at school and Afrikaans at home, surrounded by family. Ray was born into the apartheid system, which shaped everything from the hospital where she was born, to the cemetery where her mother, Valerie, who first encouraged Ray to keep writing, was laid to rest in 2013. After high school Ray studied journalism and landed a dream job writing in Afrikaans for a women’s magazine. In Portland, she has worked a mosaic of roles in creative and activism spaces as an organizer and advocate. She has studied English, Afrikaans, Mandarin, French and Dutch, and has started learning American Sign Language.

Recently, Ray has focused on rest and creativity. Her writing maps her origin story as a queer girl growing up in The Church, deals with the grief of losing her mother, and marvels about love and other bright things.

Nastashia Minto (all pronouns) is a local Portland writer and author of Naked: The Rhythm and Groove of It. The Depth and Length to It, a poetic memoir. Born in South Georgia and raised by their grandparents, Nastashia’s experiences led them to obtain an associate degree in occupational therapy and a bachelor’s degree in psychology. Nastashia, an eccentric, spiritual dream tender, has been writing since she was nine years old and has found that her writing offers her a way to not only help herself, but others as well. Nastashia is a 2021 recipient of the Tanne Foundation Award. She has performed and worked with middle and high school teachers and students throughout Portland and Gresham. Her work has appeared in Nailed, Gobshite Quarterly, Portland Metrozine, SUSAN The Journal, the Unchaste Anthology, Survivorlit and Heron Clan 8. She is featured on podcasts such as feminist book club, Literary speaking, and Beyond Well with Sheila Hamilton. She is a popular featured reader in Portland and Seattle reading series readings including Powell’s bookstore and Seattle Folklife.

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