Bestselling author Nnedi Okorafor drew an overflow crowd for a public reading and book signing of her novel “Death of the Author” at Texas State University’s Katherine Anne Porter Literary Center. The event, held during Black History Month, featured passages from the book, audience questions, and autographs. Okorafor described the work as her most personal, inspired by her sister’s sudden death.
Nnedi Okorafor, a prominent figure in Afrofuturism, visited the Katherine Anne Porter Literary Center in Kyle, Texas, on March 10, 2026, for a reading and signing of her 2025 novel “Death of the Author.” The event attracted a large audience, spilling over the venue’s capacity, and was sponsored by the Burdine Johnson Foundation and Texas State University’s Department of English.
Okorafor introduced the book as her most personal project, dedicated to her sister, whose death was “sudden and unexpected.” She began writing it “about three days after she passed,” aiming to capture “our family and our Nigerian-American experience.” Born in the United States to Nigerian Igbo immigrant parents, Okorafor often incorporates African cultures into her speculative fiction. However, she noted that this novel differs from her previous works: “Whereas my other works were like me directing from off stage, this one is like me stepping on stage, front and center.”
During the reading, Okorafor shared the opening passage from the robot narrator in “Rusted Robots,” a book-within-a-book penned by the protagonist, a Nigerian American science fiction author. Responding to a question on her style, she called it “organized chaos,” explaining she is a “pantser,” meaning she writes without outlines: “I don’t know what I’m going to write until I sit down and do it.”
Okorafor’s career spans speculative fiction for adults, young adults, and children. Her 2025 all-ages graphic novel is “The Space Cat,” and she has authored Marvel titles including “Black Panther: Long Live the King, Shuri” and “Wakanda Forever.” Her accolades include the Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature, Nebula, World Fantasy, Locus, Eisner, and multiple Hugo and Lodestar awards. She holds a Ph.D. in literature and two master’s degrees in journalism and literature.
The Literary Center, at 508 W. Center St. in Kyle, will next host poet Naomi Shihab Nye on April 1, 2026.
