The Center for Fiction Presents Daphne Palasi Andreades on Lucid Dreams with Jessica Hagedorn

Join us for the launch of Lucid Dreams with Daphne Palasi Andreades, author of The Center for Fiction 2022 First Novel Prize finalist Brown Girls.
Lucid Dreams follows a novelist searching for inspiration after a successful debut and struggling with feelings of disillusionment and despair. Amidst this turmoil (and a looming deadline for their next book), the author tries and fails to create; instead, they begin to experience strange hallucinatory visions: enigmatic letters and sketches appear, written in handwriting that isn’t their own, followed by sightings of a mysterious figure, which blur the line between the narrator’s fiction and lived reality. These challenges—psychological, artistic, spiritual—and the secrets the writer harbors alienate them from their loved ones, their art, and themself, until a fateful event draws the writer and the mysterious figure together.
Andreades will be joined in conversation by Jessica Hagedorn, award-winning author of Dogeaters. They will discuss the book’s daring exploration of the surreal, the elusive boundary between perception and reality, and the ways that artists can navigate and manipulate that line. A book signing will follow.
We offer two in-person ticket options: the $10 Standard Ticket and the $40+ Supporter Ticket. Both provide the same access, but if you’re able, we kindly suggest registering for the Supporter Ticket to help sustain our programs. Please note that tickets do not include books; we encourage you to order in advance online or purchase copies at the event.
 
Lucid Dreams
By Daphne Palasi Andreades
Published by Random House Publishing Group

Fresh off the success of their first novel, a writer—intense, ambitious, and embittered by the purpose of art—struggles with feelings of despair. Despite achieving a long-held dream, they find themself doubtful and despondent in a post-pandemic world that feels violent and unstable.

Amidst this turmoil, and a looming deadline for their next book, the writer tries and fails to create. Instead, they begin to experience strange hallucinatory visions. Enigmatic letters and sketches appear, written in handwriting that isn’t their own, followed by sightings of a mysterious figure, which blur the line between the narrator’s fiction and lived reality.
These challenges—psychological, artistic, spiritual—and the secrets the writer harbors, alienate them from their loved ones, their art, and themself. Despite forays into learning a heritage language, Tagalog, traveling abroad, and changing their look, the visions persist—until one fateful event, which draws the writer and the mysterious figure together.
With her signature daring approach and evocative prose, Daphne Palasi Andreades explores immigration, modern womanhood, and the tension between art and commerce, in this wholly original novel. Lucid Dreams examines how we find purpose, the nature of change, and the courage it takes to be fully alive today.