Author: RosemaryJ

RosemaryJAuthor of novels set in the Forgotten Realms and multiple superhero stories centered in Cobalt City.
RosemaryJ's avatar

Seattle Literary Events Calendar Launched

Seattle City of Literature started a calendar in February “to celebrate the people and organizations that make Seattle a UNESCO designated City of Literature.” Organizations are encouraged to contribute information on “all literary adjacent events open to the public — readings, workshops, open mics, comics classes, discussions, lectures, youth programs, book clubs, residency deadlines, festivals, talks, plays — anything you might dream up that’s “literary” in the loosest sense,” according to the announcement.

Seattle City of Literature aims to email a biweekly digest of all the literary events listed to their subscribers.

“The calendar will also serve as an important way to benchmark the health of our literary community and track all of the events that are happening every year,” said José L. Montero, President of the Board, Seattle City of Literature.

More information about the organization and its new calendar can be found at www.seattlecityoflit.org/community-calendar.

The UNESCO Cities of Literature network of 53 cities represents 6 continents and 39 countries, and a combined population of over 26 million. Seattle received its designation in 2017.

Map of the current Cities of Literature from the UNESCO press kit about the program.

2024 Portland Book Festival Looking For Authors

The Portland Book Festival selects featured books for the November event on a rolling basis from now through June. The 2024 festival is scheduled for Saturday, November 2, 2024. Organizers plan to feature a diverse group of contemporary authors in conversations, panels, and presentations.

Check the Literary Arts website for more details on how to submit your book for consideration at literary-arts.org/about/programs/portland-book-festival/book-submission-guidelines/.

Literary Arts must receive complete submissions by June 14 for consideration. All selected authors will be contacted by September.

Note that the consideration for self-published titles uses the same criteria as traditionally published books. For the 2024 festival, Literary Arts will not accept self-published titles that exist only in ebook format.

Screenshot of Festival’s submission page.

Humanities Montana Supports Storytelling

Humanities Montana is encouraging local historians, cultural knowledge keepers, scholars, and storytellers to submit proposals to expand knowledge and understanding of Montana’s diverse culture and history.

If interested, check the 2024 Mini-Grants and Community Project Grants webpages at humanitiesmontana.org. A recent letter about grant opportunities emphasized the organization is particularly interested in “projects that engage youth in living history experiences.”

Humanities Montana also announced the state’s oldest county library, Chouteau County Library — Fort Benton, received a $500 stipend to support “Community Conversations.” In April, the library will host an “Everyone Reads” book discussion to help community members get to know one another.

Cowboy photo by Yuri B at Pixabay.

Start 2024 With A Marketing Class

The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) Western Washington chapter is offering a free online class on marketing this month.

In his class, Northwest writer Will Taylor promises to explore: “How to optimize marketing efforts via language tricks, framing, and behavioral science. How to create simple systems that take the guesswork out of marketing and leave you reassured, relaxed, and ready to focus on your real work. Come learn to make your marketing process easier, more fun, and more effective!”

Taylor is a published author of stories for “current and former kids.” More about his books for Scholastic and Harper Collins can be found at willtaylorbooks.com. He also works as a copywriter for Fran’s Chocolates, the Museum of Pop Culture (MoPOP), and LAIKA Studios.

The Saturday, January 27, class takes place at 1pm PST on Zoom. Register for free at https://www.scbwi.org/events/make-marketing-work-for-you-with-will-taylor.

Bookstores On The Move in 2024

Where would indie writers and publishers be without indie bookstores? Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association recently announced the following moves and, sadly, one closure.

Tacoma will have a new bookstore in 2024: Grit City Books. Established online in 2023, the owners plan to open at 3116 Sixth Ave in the spring. Find out more about the owners and their plans in Shelf Awareness. PNBA also reported another new Tacoma member, the pop-up bookstore Lucky Duck Book Shop.

In Corvallis, Oregon, Grass Roots Books & Music will be moving to a new location in 2024. Established in 1971, the store offers a wide range of books and free shipping for online orders. Keep an eye on their website for updates at grassrootsbookstore.com.

Longtime Seattle bookstore East West Books & Gifts relocated to Edmonds at the end of 2023. Located at 110 Third Ave. N, East West continues to offer a full array of metaphysical books and related items. Once again, they are hosting a packed events calendar too. According to their website: “Edmonds is such a beautiful town with its welcoming people, making it a fantastic destination to visit. We are beyond grateful to be able to reopen East West in this amazing community!” Find out more at the website, still called eastwestseattle.org.

Also in Edmonds, the Neverending Bookshop closed with a party on December 17. Owner Annie Carl recently edited the anthology Soul Jar featuring 31 disabled authors exploring disability representation through horror, science fiction, and fantasy stories. Carl plans to focus on her writing career in 2024.

Meet Local Authors at Holiday Fairs

Local authors and indie publishers are showing up at holiday fairs throughout the month, because nothing makes a better gift than a book!

The Author Event Network, an association of local award-winning authors, will be signing books at the Mercer Island Holiday Market on December 2. Look for Peter Stockwell, Patrick Foley, Karen Eisenbrey, Susan Kemp, Guy Morris, and Mi Ae Lupe at the Mercer Island Community Center, 10am to 3pm.

Joyce Yarrow and 25 other Washington authors will be at Issaquah’s Historically Hip Author Fair on December 9 at the Issaquah Library, 11am to 4pm. The one-day event will have books for adults, teens and kids in a variety of genres, perfect for gift-giving or your own winter reading! Don’t forget to visit the Historically Hip Artisan Market at the Historic Issaquah Train Depot for locally crafted gifts.

Have an event to share? Send us a note at bpnwnews at aol.com.

Eugene’s Bookstore And Small Press Tsunami

Eugene’s Tsunami Books operates Tsunami Press, which rounds off 2023 with Bookstore Clerks and Significant Others featuring the work of 14 former and current Tsunami booksellers and others. Pre-orders are available now for the 2,000 book print run.

As Tsunami puts it so aptly on their website: “We want to sell them, get the rent paid, and get a seond printing going. This, for us, is the essence of Crowdfunding.”

The bookstore also supports the local writing, arts, and publishing community by offering author events, ongoing writers’ workshops, poetry slams, and other festivities, including “a wedding where both people changed their name to Whitman.” The store stocks more than 30,000 quality used and new books, cards and postcards, a great little collection of vinyl LPs, and a rotating selection of fine art and crafts from members of the local community.

As the holiday shopping season descends, look to this store/press and other members of Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association for great ways to shop local and support indie writers and publishers.

Folio Celebrates Indie Authors in November

On November 13, Folio: The Seattle Athenaeum invites local self-published authors, poets, bloggers, storytellers, and all wordsmiths to participate in their inaugural open mic night. Writers will be invited to share a piece from their self-published work in a supportive literary setting while enjoying a complimentary beer and wine reception. Arrive by 6:30pm to sign up for a spot on the stage.

Authors can bring their self-published books to the event to sell. Reservations are recommended and tickets are a “donate what you want.” More information about the event can be found at folioseattle.org.

National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) write-ins also return to Folio in November on Saturday afternoons.

Writers are welcome to write in sprints with the group or go at their own pace while enjoying the company of fellow writers from 1pm to 4pm. They can also add to their NaNoWriMo duck collection or win other prizes such as a pocket notebook, free books, pens or Folio passes. More details on the website.

About Folio: The Seattle Athenaeum
Folio: The Seattle Athenaeum is a nonprofit library and cultural center located in the Pike Place Market. Folio offers a circulating book collection, provides workspaces for writers, and presents numerous public programs, author readings, civic discussions and musical evenings.  It is located at 93 Pike St. #307.

More information and details about currents can be found at folioseattle.org

Folio is located in the Seattle’s famed Pike Place Market in the Economy Building at First Avenue and Pike Street. They provide rental space for other literary events and meet-ups as well as hosting their own events.

Photo of NaNoWriMo 2019 courtesy of Folio.

New England Weird from Northwest Authors

Why does the Northeast corner of the country attract monsters, magic, and superheroes? Find out from Northwest writers reading fantastic, strange, and even cozy horror fiction set in New England. Enjoy an evening at Distant Worlds Coffeehouse in Seattle on November 28, 6pm to 8pm, as six local authors give a sampling of their recent and upcoming novels.

The event is free. The authors are providing treats for the audience and asking people support this geek-friendly establishment by ordering a caffeinated or non- caffeinated drink of choice.

* Amanda Cherry and Erik Scott de Bie read from Bad Intentions as a super-powered love affair gets messy with magic and revenge.

* Rosemary Jones presents Arkham Horror’s first Christmas novel The Bootlegger’s Dance where time travel goes awry in a town haunted by monsters past and present.

*Jeremy Zimmerman reads from Kensei 3, the continuing adventures of Kensei as she navigates life as a superhero and young adult.

* Dawn Vogel reads from Brother’s Keeper, where a team of superheroes stops a threat far bigger than any of them alone.

* The founder of the Cobalt City series, Nathan Crowder, will read from a new release Warlock Rising.

Learn more about upcoming fiction from local publisher DefCon One and find out how a Seattle author ended up writing for Aconyte Books in Nottingham, England. Distant Worlds Coffeehouse is located at 6401 Roosevelt Way NE in Seattle. They offer a variety of events including a spoken word open mike night every first Saturday of the month and will be hosting “Come Write In” every Wednesday in November for NaNoWriMo. To find out more about all events at Distant Worlds, see their website at distantworldscoffee.com.

Portland Filled With Book Events

Portland Book Festival returns to the Portland Art Museum and neighboring venues in downtown Portland on Saturday, November 4, 2023.

Starting October 30, PBF Cover to Cover events will be held throughout the city. From storytime singalongs to poetry karaoke, these events create a literary week which embraces the entire city and involves many of the city’s small press and independent publishers.

Linda Letra Bilingual Books and Portland Mercado have created a Day of the Dead celebration on November 2, 4:30pm, at Mercado. Nelda Reyes will be reading “Huesos” by Luis San Vicente and sharing a wise story from her own book “Huehuetlatolli, The Wise Stories of My People.”

Independent press Propeller Books will celebrate recent and forthcoming releases at Up Up Books, bookstore and community workshop space in the Buckman neighborhood of Portland, Oregon. Expect to hear samples from the work of Propeller authors including Dan DeWeese, Evan P. Scheider, Mary Rechner, and Miriam Gershow on November 2, 4:30pm to 6:30pm.

Northwestern University Press imprint Curbstone Books and online literary magazine The Rumpus will host a evening of readings at Rose City Pub on November 2. Featuring performances from Omar El Akkad, Jennifer Fliss, Elisa Gonzalez, Perry Janes, Sebastián Páramo, and Jane Wong. Hosted by Marisa Siegel and Marissa Korbel. This free event begins at 6:30pm.

For these and information on more Cover to Cover events, see pdxbookfest.org/cover-to-cover-schedule.