NEWS BRIEFS: Black Ink Festival set to be online this week – Charleston Currents

Staff reports | Black Ink: A Charleston African American Book Festival will feature author Kwame Mbalia as keynote speaker during the three-day online event that amplifies voices of black authors.

Mbalia

Mbalia told the Charleston City Paper he is honored to be involved in the festival, where his keynote speech will be titled, Be a Sapper, Not a Gatekeeper.

I absolutely love the premise of Black Ink, he said. Talking about Black authors, Black books, writing about Black culture this festival is exactly what I needed to start off 2021.

Other panelists in the 5th year of the festival include Charleston poet laureate Marcus Amaker, Southern Review of Books editor-at-large Shani Raine Gilchrist and Turning Page Bookshop owner VaLinda Miller.

The programs for authors and readers include panels and workshops featuring authors, publishing professionals, librarians and more. Topics include marketing your writing project, a self-publishing workshop and a discussion on advocating for black voices, a panel on influencer marketing featuring Instagram Influencer Jeanell Marvin. Learn more.

Also in recent news:

COVID-19 cases rage: South Carolina health officials reported 3,667 new cases of the coronavirus on Sunday, with 48 additional confirmed deaths. The state surpassed 4 million total tests administered on Sunday. Some 28.6 percent of the 12,821 new tests reported Sunday were positive. In the tri-county area, there were 183 new positive cases of the 3,667 reported. More.

In-person court suspended. The S.C. Supreme Court has announced that all in-person court proceedings across the state are suspended starting today until further notice due to COVID-19. There are limited exceptions. Hearings and non-jury trials will be conducted virtually, whenever possible, according to a press release.

Belated congratulations. Charleston architecture firm LS3P won a Merit Design Award in November from the American Institute of Architects South Carolina (AIASC) for its design of the Wando Mount Pleasant Library. We were super-excited about the award and wanted to make sure that you all knew about it, architect David Burt told us. Hats off!

New rehab unit. East Cooper Medical Center in Mount Pleasant has a new Inpatient Rehabilitation Unit that features 10 rooms, a rehabilitation guy, a speech therapy room, recreation space and more. Rehabilitation treatment for the following conditions: stroke, brain injury, myopathy, spinal cord injury, hip fracture, joint replacement, amputation, polyarthritis, multiple sclerosis, degenerative or progressive neurological disorders and Parkinsons Disease, according to a press release.

Soul-searching. The Republican Party may be searching for its soul following last weeks attack on the U.S. Capitol, but things seem to be business as usual in South Carolina. More: Statehouse Report.

McMaster to release budget. Gov. Henry McMaster was to release a 2021-22 budget today that includes $400 million in new education spending, kindergarten through college. More.

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NEWS BRIEFS: Black Ink Festival set to be online this week - Charleston Currents