Open Secrets Live in NYC, May 2025 and 2026
November 2025 update: Stay tuned for details about Open Secrets Live 2026, to be held in NYC at Symphony Space’s Leonard Nimoy Thalia on May 2, 2026, featuring essayists, memoir authors, storytellers, and book, magazine, and newspaper editors. The full lineup will be announced by Febraury 2026 when tickets go on sale.
Note: We aren’t accepting speaker pitches for this event. For those interested in sponsoring Open Secrets Live 2026, email opensecretsmag at gmail.com with “Open Secrets Live sponsorship” in the subject line and we’ll respond ASAP.
Speaker Testimonials from Open Secrets Live 2025
Sari Botton, author of And You May Find Yourself… and editor of Memoir Land and Oldster magazines:
“I had a great time at the conference and came away inspired; it was the shot in the arm I needed to get going on planning some Oldster Magazine Live events for the fall.”
Karina Corrao, comedian
“Rachel brought her signature intellect, curiosity, and heart to the inaugural Open Secrets Live. It was a true honor to be a panelist alongside such remarkable talent and discussions. I left inspired, recharged, and sparked with ideas!”
Ella Dawson, author of But How Are You, Really
“I got so much out of this one-of-a-kind gathering of personal essayists and memoirists. I left the event with new motivation to write and a stack of new books to read ASAP. This event introduced me to brilliant and generous authors who have stayed in contact and become friends.”
Veena Dinavahi, author of The True Happiness Company
“Open Secrets Live introduced me to a wonderful writing community, opened doors to a myriad of writing and reading opportunities, and left me a little smarter and more hopeful than I started. Deeply, strongly, truly recommend. “
Kelli Dunham, comedian and host of Cared For podcast
“Participating in an Open Secrets panel was beyond delightful. Listening to the other writers painstakingly and thoughtfully choose their words and discuss their interaction with the creative process was a balm for my tiktoked brain and soul. I also met great interesting people!”
Estelle Erasmus, NYU professor, author of Writing That Gets Noticed, TEDx speaker, and host of the Freelance Writing Direct podcast
“Open Secrets Live was one of the most engaging and well-run conferences I’ve attended—a vibrant mix of insight, honesty, and community. As a speaker on the Relationships panel, I loved being part of an event that amplifies writers’ voices and celebrates meaningful storytelling.”
Edgar Gomez, author of Alligator Tears
“Open Secrets Live is so much fun, it’s like your book club on steroids. You get to hear and meet so many greats, all in one day, discover new writers, learn something surprising and cool during one of the many thoughtfully curated panels. I left with a bag full of books, a couple new friends, and an itch to go write!”
Rob Hart, author of Assassins Anonymous
“Rachel hosted a phenomenal event, featuring a wide range of speakers and topics that felt both big, and intimate. It was an honor to be a part of that, but frankly I felt lucky just being in the audience.”
Minda Honey, author of The Heartbreak Years
“Open Secrets Live won’t be a secret for long — open or otherwise. This is the conference to attend for anyone just stepping into the world of professional writing and any who needs a reminder for why they put their pen to paper in the first place. It’s a nourishing community where authors, editors and journalists can speak candidly about their experiences.”
Nasrin Jafari, fashion designer and founder of fashion brand Mixed
“Sitting beside the other writers, listening to them speak about how they tell stories, what stays private, how they land on the right words—I felt deep resonance. It was refreshing to be in community with people who asked similar questions. I was so grateful for the opportunity to show up as something other than “founder”—and to see myself a little differently too.”
Maris Kreizman, author of I Want to Burn This Place Down
“Telling your own story can be a lonely endeavor, so it was a joy to find community among all of the wonderful panelists and attendees at Open Secrets.”
Deesha Philyaw, author of The Secrets Lives of Church Ladies
“I left the Open Secrets Live Festival with a happily buzzing brain and a full heart. I got to reconnect with writer friends and meet some of my favorite writers for the first time. The panel discussions left me inspired and doubled my TBR list! An excellent experience all around, and I hope this event was the first of many from Rachel and Open Secrets.”
Jamia Wilson, author, podcaster, and executive editor at Random House
“Participating in the Open Secrets Conference was a transformative experience. The conversations were powerful, inspiring, timely, and deeply practical, uniting a dynamic group of brilliant minds. It was an opportunity to engage with bold ideas that will shape and impact the work ahead.”
Carmen Rita Wong, author of Why Didn’t You Tell Me?
“Writing personal stories can be such a solo-effort but with Open Secrets I found a community of writers and readers who were filled with support. I made such great new author-friends and look forward to next time!”
Zachary Zane, author of Boyslut: A Memoir and Manifesto
“Being able to hear the stories of other authors, activists, and storytellers from all walks of life wasn’t just informative, it was also inspiring—necessary for anyone looking to hone their own craft as a writer.”
Attendee Testimonials and Media Coverage for Open Secrets Live
CJ Clouse, creative nonfiction author
“What a fantastic event! Excellent panels as good as anything you find at a large conference, but with an intimacy that made it easy to connect with the panelists and other attendees.”
2025 details:
Join us for our first in-person event, Open Secrets Live, on Saturday, May 3, 2025 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m on New York’s Upper East Side (76th and York). Hosted by Open Secrets Magazine editor Rachel Kramer Bussel, this 1-day personal storytelling event will feature contributors to Open Secrets Magazine along with essayists, memoir authors, and storytellers from various fields sharing their life stories and the power of baring their souls to the public. Topics will include relationships, family, identity, LGBTQIA life, mental health, and work.
Editor Jane Pratt, formerly of Sassy, Jane, and xoJane, and currently editor of Another Jane Pratt Thing, will be our opening keynote speaker in conversation with Rachel Kramer Bussel on Why Readers Care About What Happened to You, about the popularity of first-person essays and how she approaches publishing them. Our closing keynote conversation will be between Minda Honey, essayist, author of memoir The Heartbreak Years, and editor of the Black Joy newsletter and Instagram, and Deesha Philyaw, author of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies and co-host of podcast Reckon True Stories, on Relinquishing Your Secret Desires to the Page. Follow Minda and Deesha on Substack by clicking on their names above.
There will also be an editors panel where editors from publications including Narratively and Another Jane Pratt Thing and others, along with an editors from HarperCollins and Random House, reveal what types of essays and manuscripts they’re looking for. This panel will be geared toward essay writers and there will be time for Q&A.
We released a few final tickets via Eventbrite on April 29. If the event sells out and you’d like to be on the waiting list, email opensecretsmag@gmail.com with “Waiting list” in the subject line and your name and email address in the body and if there are any cancellations and spots open up we will reply in the order in which requests were received.
The event will be held in an ADA compliant space.
Attendees will receive a discount on online classes at WritingWorkshops.com, a credit for a free audiobook from sponsor Libro.fm and the opportunity to receive a free month’s subscription to Narratively.
There will be a paid raffle for prizes including an Open Secrets Magazine t shirt, writing classes, signed books by speakers, and more. Proceeds from the raffle will be split between Open Secrets Magazine and Trans Lifeline.
Confirmed speakers include (* = Open Secrets Magazine contributor):
Rachel Kramer Bussel, editor and founder, Open Secrets Magazine *
Sari Botton, author of memoir in essays And You May Find Yourself...: Confessions of a Late-Blooming Gen-X Weirdo, editor of Oldster Magazine, Memoir Land, andAdventures In "Journalism" by Sari Botton
Charlie Connell, deputy editor, Another Jane Pratt Thing
Katina Corrao, comedian, actress, and author *
Ella Dawson, sex and culture critic, author of But How Are You, Really
John DeVore, author of memoir Theatre Kids: A True Tale of Off-Off Broadway * (Substack: John DeVore)
Veena Dinavahi, author of memoir The True Happiness Company: How a Girl Like Me Falls for a Cult Like That
Dirty Lola, sex edutainor
Kelli Dunham, writer and comedian *
Estelle Erasmus, author of Writing That Gets Noticed and host of the podcast Freelance Writing Direct (Substack: Estelle Erasmus)
Kari Ferrell, author of memoir You'll Never Believe Me: A Life of Lies, Second Tries, and Things I Should Only Tell My Therapist (Substack Kari Ferrell)
Michele Filgate, editor of anthologies What My Father and Don’t Talk About and What My Mother and I Don’t Talk About
Dionne Ford, author of memoir Go Back and Get It: A Memoir of Race, Inheritance, and Intergenerational Healing
Ellen Friedrichs, author of Good Sexual Citizenship *
Edgar Gomez, author of memoirs High-Risk Homosexual and Alligator Tears
Nikkya Hargrove, author of Mama: A Queer Black Woman’s Story of a Family Lost and Found
Rob Hart, author of Assassins Anonymous *
Minda Honey, essayist, author of memoir The Heartbreak Years, and editor of the Black Joy newsletter and Instagram
Nasrin Jafari, founder and designer of fashion company Mixed by Nasrin
Maris Kreizman, essayist, critic, and author of essay collection I Want to Burn This Place Down
Janine Kwoh, author of Welcome to the Grief Club and founder of stationery brand Kwohtations (Substack: What if it all works out?)
Emily McCombs, deputy editor, HuffPost Personal
Judy McGuire, author of How Not to Date
Debbie Millman, author of Love Letter to a Garden and host of the Design Matters podcast
Gabrielle Alexa Noel, content creator and author of How to Live With the Internet and Not Let It Run Your Life
Denne Michele Norris, editor-in-chief of Electric Literature, author of novel When the Harvest Comes and editor of nonfiction anthology Both/And: Essays by Trans and Gender-Nonconforming Women of Color
Tracy O’Neill, author of memoir Woman of Interest
Deesha Philyaw, author of short story collection The Secret Lives of Church Ladies and cohost of podcast Reckon True Stories
Jane Pratt, editor, Another Jane Pratt Thing
Arianna Rebolini, author of memoir Better: A Memoir About Wanting to Die
Rakesh Satyal, executive editor, HarperCollins, and author of novel No One Can Pronounce My Name
Alex Segura, author of Alter Ego *
Linda Simpson, Nightlife promoter, game show host, and author of PAGES and The Drag Explosion
Hyeseung Song, author of memoir Docile: Memoirs of a Not-So-Perfect Asian Girl
Jesse Sposato, Executive Editor, Narratively
Nichelle Stephens, Comedian and writer
Tourmaline, artist, filmmaker, and author of biography Marsha (about Marsha P. Johnson)
Jamia Wilson, vice president/executive editor, Random House, author of Make Good Trouble: Discover Movements That Sparked Change
Molly Roden Winter, author of More: A Memoir of Open Marriage
Carmen Rita Wong, author of memoir Why Didn’t You Tell Me?
Zachary Zane, author of memoir Boyslut
Sponsored by The Phluid Project, WritingWorkshops.com, Narratively, Libro.fm, Jenny Magazine and The Queer Love Project.
Kew & Willow Books will be our onsite bookseller. You can also buy copies of our Open Secrets Live speakers’ books from their online store.
Raffle prizes include:
ITEMS
Copy of Seven Secrets to the Perfect Personal Essay by Nancy Slonim Aronie ($18.95 value)
Autographed copy of memoir in essays And You May Find Yourself… by Sari Botton ($18.50 value)
5 copies of children’s book Katina von Silly by Katina Corrao ($8.98 value each)
Copy of memoir I Shouldn’t Be Telling You This (But I’m Going to Anyway) by Chelsea Devantez ($29.99 value)
Autographed copy of Self Portrait as Your Traitor by Debbie Millman ($24 value)
Copy of Best American Essays 2024 edited by Wesley Morris ($18.99 value)
Copy of Holler: A Graphic Memoir of Rural Resistance by Denali Sai Nalamalapu ($21.99 value)
Copy of memoir Nobody Needs to Know by Pigeon Pagonis ($16.99 value)
Autographed copy of short story collection The Secret Lives of Church Ladies by Deesha Philyaw ($18.99 value)
Copy of How to Submit by Dennis James Sweeney ($18.95 value)
Copy of Marsha (biography of Marsha P. Johnson) by Tourmaline ($30 value)
Autographed copy of novel The Final Revival Opal & Nev by Dawnie Walton ($17.99 value)
Dirty Lola’s pleasure pack ($250 value)
Kew & Willow t shirt
Kwohtations care package ($51 value)
Libro.fm book-themed 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzle
Issue of The Memoirist magazine ($25 value)
Open Secrets Magazine t shirt
6 Phenomenal t shirts and 1 sweatshirt
$100 The Phluid Project gift card
Woman of Interest (by Tracy O’Neill) promotional hat
SERVICES
One free class of winner's choosing from Narratively Academy ($95-$395 value)
Free admission to Writing for Women on the Verge Writing Co-Lab class by Amy Shearn held weekly from May 16-June 27 ($375 value)
Essay writing consultation session with Rachel Kramer Bussel ($100 value)
Coffee and writing consultation session with author Rob Hart ($150 value)
30 Minute tarot reading with Grey Strega ($80 value) - Delve into a deeper understanding of your life path and higher purpose by entering to win a personal reading with Cyn Grace, founder of TAROT CHURCH. To find out more or to book a private reading, visit greystrega.substack.com
Ursa 5-year membership and free membership to any live Ursa events within 5 years ($250 value)
$250 WritingWorkshops.com gift card
COVID policy: Masks are not required at Open Secrets Live, but you're welcome to wear one. To protect the health of attendees, if you are feeling sick, please do not attend. You're encouraged to wear a mask if you've tested positive for COVID or been exposed to someone who's tested positive in the last 7 days.
Want to sponsor Open Secrets Live, cover the event as a member of the press, or have questions about the event? Email opensecretsmag at gmail dot com with “Open Secrets Live” in the subject line.