A nonfiction reading celebrating Jill Christman's new title, If This Were Fiction, with special guest Kate Hopper.

If This Were Fiction is a love story—for Jill Christman’s long-ago fiancé, who died young in a car accident; for her children; for her husband, Mark; and ultimately, for herself. In this collection, Christman takes on the wide range of situations and landscapes she encountered on her journey from wild child through wounded teen to mother, teacher, writer, and wife. In these pages there are fatal accidents and miraculous births; a grief pilgrimage that takes Christman to jungles, volcanoes, and caves in Central America; and meditations on everything from sexual trauma and the more benign accidents of childhood to gun violence, indoor cycling, unlikely romance, and even a ghost or two.

Playing like a lively mixtape in both subject and style, If This Were Fiction focuses an open-hearted, frequently funny, clear-eyed feminist lens on Christman’s first fifty years and sends out a message of love, power, and hope.

Jill Christman is the author of two memoirs, Darkroom: A Family Exposure and Borrowed Babies: Apprenticing for Motherhood, and a new collection, If This Were Fiction: A Love Story in Essays (University of Nebraska Press, 2022). A 2020 NEA Fellow, she is a professor in the Creative Writing Program at Ball State University, a senior editor of River Teeth: A Journal of Nonfiction Narrative, and executive producer for the podcast Indelible: Campus Sexual Violence. Visit her at jillchristman.com and on Twitter @jill_christman.

Kate Hopper is an editor and writing coach and the author of Use Your Words: A Writing Guide for Mothers, Ready for Air: A Journey Through Premature Motherhood, winner of a Midwest Independent Publishing Award, and co-author of Silent Running. Her writing has appeared in a number of journals, including Brevity, True Story, Longreads, Los Angeles Review of Books, Poets & Writers and River Teeth. She teaches online and in Ashland University’s Low-residency MFA program.

A note about in person events:

We are very excited to bring authors and readers back together in our space, and we know you are too!

As we all navigate the transition back to congregating in person, we ask that you use honesty, care, and understanding in interacting with fellow event-goers, staff, and authors.

Please note that Magers & Quinn will always comply with current city and state regulations, and reserves the right to change the below policies at any time. These are guidelines only, and if you have questions about the most up to date information, you can always call us at 612-822-4611.

For information about how our in-person events will work over the coming months, please read on:

Q: Are masks required?

A: Masks are not required to browse in the store. However, we strongly encourage masking while seated in the event area and waiting in the signing line.

For the health and safety of others, we strongly encourage you to wear a mask or face covering.

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A: Yes, Magers & Quinn events are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted.

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As we navigate this step back to in-person events, we will be limiting event capacity to ensure a safe and comfortable experience for all attendees and authors. By requiring pre-registration, we can easily communicate event updates and policies with those who plan to attend, and can contact attendees after the event with follow-up information.

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