First Draft: A Literary Social with 5 Under 35 Honoree Jemimah Wei

Miami Book Fair presents First Draft, a series of free and informal writing events where community, craft, and rapid-fire creativity meet for monthly themed virtual salons where writers get social, share their work, and leave with great stories.

Presented in partnership with Books & Books and the National Book Foundation

Register for an Evening with the National Book Foundation 2025 5 Under 35 Honorees

Instructor: Jemimah Wei

Jemimah Wei was born and raised in Singapore; she is now based between Singapore and the United States. She was a Wallace Stegner Fellow at Stanford University and a Felipe P. De Alba Fellow at Columbia University, where she earned her MFA. A recipient of awards and fellowships from Singapore’s National Arts Council, Sewanee Writers’ Conference, Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, and Writers in Paradise, she was named one of the National Book Foundation’s 5 Under 35 honorees and Narrative’s “30 Below 30” writers and is a Francine Ringold Award for New Writers honoree. Her fiction has won the William Van Dyke Short Story Prize and appears in Guernica, Narrative, and Nimrod, among other publications. For close to a decade, Wei was a host for various broadcast and digital channels, and she has written and produced short films and travel guides for Laneige, Airbnb, and Nikon. Her first novel, The Original Daughter, was published in 2025.

8:00 p.m. │ Miami Book Fair and the National Book Foundation Present: An Evening with the 2025 5 Under 35 Honorees

Join us for a special Miami showcase with the 2025 5 Under 35 honorees, which features readings and conversation with exceptional debut fiction authors: Stacie Shannon Denetsosie (The Missing Morningstar and Other Stories), Megan Howell (Softie), Alexander Sammartino (Last Acts), and Jemimah Wei (The Original Daughter). Moderated by Natalie Green, Director of Programs & Partnerships at the National Book Foundation.