In her guide to creativity, Big Magic, Elizabeth Gilbert’s positivity is infectious not just because she’s funny, irreverent, and frank about her foibles, but because steely discipline and determination have been the mainstays of her creative life. The 2017 Nashville Public Library Literary Award honoree, Gilbert will give a free public lecture at Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville on November 11 at 10 a.m.

Shakespeare’s “Scottish play” has played an important role in America’s cultural confrontation with racial issues, according to Weyward Macbeth, a collection of essays that survey the play’s complex intersection with the color line. Ayanna Thompson, co-editor of the book, will speak on “Shakespeare, Race, and Performance: What We Still Don’t Know” in Hardie Auditorium at Rhodes College in Memphis on November 2 at 7 p.m.