On Sept. 10, local young adult fiction writer Lara Zielin and short story writer Alex Kourvo are joined by U-M Press marketing director Renee Tambeau and Michigan & Great lakes acquiring editor Scott Ham to discuss what their editors are looking for and offer tips on how best to market and promote your book. For adult and teen (grade 6 & up) fiction and nonfiction writers. Also, Zielin and Kourvo host an open house for writers to connect with each other and/or work on their projects at 7 p.m. on Sept. 24.
Aunt Agatha’s co-owner (and BookFest president) Robin Agnew discusses the 13th annual BookFest (September 13) and introduces The Art of the Book, a new AADL exhibit organized in conjunction with the BookFest that showcases entries in its 8th annual Book Cover design contest for high school students, who were asked this year to design a cover for Bethany Beal’s young adult novel My Last Kiss. Agnew also announces the contest winners. Also, live music by harpist Deborah Gabrion and refreshments. AADL multipurpose room (lower level).
Started in 2003, the Kerrytown BookFest is an event celebrating those who create books and those who read them. The primary goal is to highlight the area’s rich heritage in the book and printing arts while showcasing local and regional individuals, businesses, and organizations. Since 2003 we have been growing, sharing, and discovering more and more about the rich book culture in our region.
The BookFest features authors, storytellers, publishers bookbinders, book artists, book illustrators, poets, letterpress printers, wood engravers, calligraphers, papermakers, librarians, teachers, publishers, new, used, and antiquarian booksellers and many others associated with books and their diverse forms, structure, and content.
More information at kerrytownbookfest.org
All poets invited to compete in a poetry slam judged by a randomly chosen panel from the audience. The program begins with a poetry open mike and (occasionally) a short set by a featured poet.
8-11 p.m. (sign-up begins at 7:30 p.m.), $5 suggested donation. A2poetry.com.
Literati welcomes Matt Bell in support of his latest novel, Scrapper.
Matt Bell’s last novel, The House Upon the Dirt Between the Lake and the Woods, was a finalist for the Young Lions Fiction Award, a Michigan Notable Book, and an Indies Choice Adult Debut Book of the Year recipient. He is also the author of two previous books of fiction, How They Were Found and Cataclysm Baby, and a nonfiction book about the classic video game Baldur’s Gate II, published in 2015 by Boss Fight Books. Born in Michigan, he now teaches creative writing at Arizona State University.
Literati welcomes Professor Caryl Flinn (BFI Film Classics: The Sound of Music), Professor Markus Nornes (Staging Memories: Hou Hsiao-hsien’s A City of Sadness), Professor Yeidy Rivero (Broadcasting Modernity: Cuban Commercial Television 1950-106), Associate Professor Matthew Solomon (BFI Film Classics: The Gold Rush) and Assistant Professor Colin Gunckel (Mexico on Main Street: Transnational Film Culture in Los Angeles Before World War II), to celebrate the release of, and sign, their recent scholarly publications.
Literati welcomes Patrick Wensink in support of his latest novel, Fake Fruit Factory (September 2015, Curbside Splendor). Reading with Patrick will be friend of the store Aaron Burch, the editor of Hobart: Another Literary Journal and author of the story collection Backswing (Queen’s Ferry Press, 2014)
Patrick Wensink is the author of three works of fiction, including the bestselling Broken Piano for President, and a forthcoming essay collection. He frequently contributes to publications like New York Times, Oxford American, Salon, and Huffington Post. He once sold his own line of BBQ Sauce, was married in a doughnut shop, and got punched in the mouth so hard he lost a tooth. (Not all at the same time.) He lives in Louisville, KY with his wife and son.
Nicola’s Books will join other bookstores across the country to celebrate ‘Curiosity Day,’ an annual event that promotes the joy of reading and learning with everyone’s favorite monkey, Curious George. For two hours it will be everything Curious George – books, games, art and activities. Costume contest at 11:00 am (for both kids and adults); come as your favorite character in a Curious George book. Beverages and snacks will also be served throughout the event.
All poets invited to compete in a poetry slam judged by a randomly chosen panel from the audience. The program begins with a poetry open mike and (occasionally) a short set by a featured poet.
8-11 p.m. (sign-up begins at 7:30 p.m.), $5 suggested donation. A2poetry.com.
Monthly open mike storytelling competition sponsored by The Moth, the NYC-based nonprofit storytelling organization that also produces a weekly public radio show. Each month 10 storytellers are selected at random from among those who sign up to tell a 3-5 minute story on the monthly theme. The 3 judges are recruited from the audience. Monthly winners compete in a semiannual Grand Slam. Space limited, so it’s smart to arrive early. September theme: Nerds and Geeks. $8. Doors open, and sign up start at 6.
