The Bi Writers Association (BWA) organizes the Bisexual Book Awards (BBA), and its annual multi-arts reading and awards ceremony. We are the foremost voice promoting bisexual books, bi writers, bisexual writing and bi-themed arts and culture in America. BWA works to dispel myths and stereotypes about bisexuality and promotes bi visibility. BWA has organized readings, panels, a summit, film programs, educational workshops and in-service trainings. We provide networking email lists for bi writers and readers, book lists, educational handouts and a media guide. BWA has the most extensive library of bisexual books of anywhere in the world.

BWA membership includes bi writers in all genres: journalism, fiction, non-fiction, poetry, erotica, songwriting, plays, TV and movie scripts.

Staff

Director: Sheela Lambert is the director of the Bi Writers Association and its programs such as the Bisexual Book Awards, the Bisexual Speakers Bureau and previous ongoing programs such as the Bi Visibility Open Mic and the Bi Book Club. Lambert founded BWA in 2006.

Lambert's groundbreaking anthology, Best Bi Short Stories, was the first bisexual literary fiction anthology ever published (2014.) She has a chapter in Bisexuality in Education: Erasure, Exclusion and the Absence of Intersectionality edited by Maria Pallotta-Chiarolli, Routledge. Her national bisexual column on Examiner.com informed readers from 2009 to 2016 and she is also published by LGBTQ America Today Encyclopedia, Huffington Post, Advocate.com, Curve Magazine, Lambda Literary Review, Journal of Bisexuality, Gay & Lesbian Review, AfterEllen, AfterElton, GO Magazine, Bisexual.com, and Hakomi Forum. 

She spearheaded the successful campaign to add a bisexual award category to the Lambda Literary Awards in 2006 and served as a “Lammy” judge for six years. Her one-act play, Lavender Heights,

was performed as a staged reading at the 1994 International Bisexual
Conference in NYC. She produced and hosted the first weekly bi TV series on the planet, Bisexual Network, on NYC public access cable in 1993 and was a correspondent and producer on Out in the 90’s, a GLBT public access cable show, from 1992-93. 

She was the lead activist who, together with transgender activist Pauline Park, spearheaded the successful inclusion campaigns convincing several important New York City organizations to change their names from “Lesbian and Gay” to “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender” including The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Community Center; Heritage of Pride’s Annual New York City Pride March, Pride Rally, and Pride Festival; and The NewFest LGBT Film Festival. 

Lambert has organized bi and LGBT readings, open mics, film programs, concerts, conferences, forums, workshops (including: the Safer Sex Series for Bi Women and Lesbians; Community, Inclusion, Unity: The 4th Tri-State Bisexual Conference; The National Summit on Putting the ‘B’ in LGBT) and other cultural programs in NYC for over 30 years. Lambert has been invited to the White House several times because of her activism and long history of service to the bi and LGBT community. She was able to travel to Washington DC and attended twice. 

Judges

Every year we recruit a roster of 30-44 judges; a combination of returning and new judges. Our judges are authors & editors, librarians, teachers & professors/academics, book reviewers & bloggers, and voracious readers; many with multiple college/university degrees. 

Chairs/Advisory Panel

There is a core group of experienced judges who supervise the judging categories and who advise the director in running the programs of BWA, especially the Bisexual Book Awards. These advisors are writers, university professors, librarians and business professionals who are intimately familiar with the workings of BWA and its programs.

Book Hunter: Val Gryphin hunts down books with bi+/pan/fluid characters and bisexual/pansexual subject matter. She creates a master list with all our categories and book candidates for outreach assigned to them. BBA10 already has 230 books for outreach as of Oct 18, 2021.

Bi Writers Conference Committee: Sheela Lambert, Samantha Pious, Tony Johnson. More members are very welcome to join--no experience necessary. Just shoot us an email. 

Internships and Volunteer positions are available.