Our events, classes, and seminars bring the community together to hear, learn, and discuss the most compelling issues and ideas of our day. We hope you will join us in our community space and bookstore at 716 SE Grand Avenue, Portland, OR, online, and at partnering venues across Portland and Oregon.
Join us for a celebration of National Poetry Month with local Fernwood Press poets Ayelet Amittay, Casey Killingsworth, Emmett Wheatfall, and Sherri Levine! The poets will share pieces from their recent work and discuss their creative process, followed by audience Q&A. Poet bios: Ayelet Amittay is a poet and psychiatric nurse practitioner in Eugene, Oregon.
Slamlandia is a poetry open mic and slam that meets every month at Literary Arts, on the third Thursday. This mic provides a creative, fun, and welcoming space for all literary communities in Portland. We encourage poets new and old to come share their work. We strive towards a safe space for poets to read
Join us on Saturday, April 19th at 10:30am in the Literary Arts Bookstore for a very special story time featuring a puppet presentation and tree treasures to explore, with local
The title of this workshop is a line from a Lucille Clifton poem. We’ll use this poem and a range of others as lenses to consider the ways our cultural and ecological moment is an invitation to widened wonder and love. This workshop is open to everyone. No prior experience with writing or reading poetry is needed or expected. We will talk, read, and write together
An evening with four of the Oregon Book Awards finalists for fiction at the Corvallis Museum, as part of the Oregon Book Awards Author Tour: Miriam Gershow Victor Lodato Kimberly King Parsons Charlie J. Stephens
Verselandia! is the annual youth poetry slam championship presented by Literary Arts. It is the Grand Slam for the winners from individual school slams hosted by public high school librarians across the Portland region. Finalist poets compete for five great prizes. Members of the public are invited to cheer on the youth poets as they
This Saturday, April 26, is Independent Bookstore Day! Come celebrate with us at 716 SE Grand Avenue from 10:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m for a day full of books, community,
In this 1-hour workshop, participants will review three different types of writing prompts and explore how each of these types of prompts can serve their writing. Participants will then choose the prompt that speaks to them and complete a short writing exercise, with room to share reflections at the end.
Join us for an evening honoring our state's most accomplished writers in the genres of poetry, fiction, nonfiction, young readers, and drama.
This 8-week class is focused on helping each writer push one story, essay or poem through the drafting and revision stages on over the finish line. We'll meet weekly to share accountability updates, read some work-in-progress with the group, set or revise goals for your weekly writing practice, and share successes and challenges with fellow writers.
Join local author Megan Woodward, for a hilarious interactive reading of her picture book This Book is Definitely Not Cursed which will be followed by a creative group activity, a
This class series focuses on developing a clear roadmap for memoirs, self-help books, or narrative nonfiction. Through hands-on exercises, participants will outline their projects, identify key themes, and learn techniques for organizing research and storytelling.
Marilynne Robinson’s 2004 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel Gilead appears as one long and intimate letter from an aging father, the Reverend John Ames, to his young son. The letter is an accounting for Ames’s one life, lived essentially always in one Midwestern place, and the letter opens doors onto lives and times often more dramatic than
Join the incomparable Jon Klassen at the Literary Arts Bookstore for a grown-up discussion about our youngest readers celebrating the release of 3 new original board books. Klassen will be in conversation with fellow illustrator Carson Ellis.
In this generative class, we’ll explore the form’s history, then follow the brush into the ecotone between prose poem and lyric essay. Along the way, we’ll push, stretch, and experiment with the form’s possibilities for internal reflection. Writers will leave class with first drafts of zuihitsu on topics of their choosing, which can be further refined at home.
This is a course for artists, writers, or any human wanting to better define their purpose in life. We will read historical manifestos as well as contemporary artist statements and look at those artist and writer's work in the context of their words. Participants will then write their own statements, leaving the class with a long version, a condensed version, and a sense of how their practice will change to follow their stated purpose.
Here is an opportunity to share or listen to one page of work in progress from talented writers from everywhere. Come with a single page of work and sign up
Masha Gessen joins Literary Arts' 40th anniversary season of Portland Arts & Lectures on Thursday, February 13, 2025.
In this seminar, we will tackle Melville’s whale of a book, exploring its philosophical insights, its debts to other writers (especially Shakespeare and Hawthorne), its commentary on US politics and culture, and (of course) its cetology, the chapters about whales and whaling. Across six weeks, we will take up Melville’s challenge—“Read it if you can”—and join the Pequod’s crew on their quests for knowledge, for friendship, and for revenge.
This weekend intensive is designed for writers who have written at least the first two chapters of a novel. Limited to 8 students, each participant will have their work discussed, with feedback from the class and the instructor. Discussions will be focused on character development and plot and how to chart the next steps with your novel.
Join local writers Callum Angus, Cavar, and Miranda Schmidt for a celebration of the art of trans nature writing. Bios: Callum Angus is a writer, editor, and publisher of
Have you ever wondered how to turn your brilliant idea into a captivating picture book? In this 8-week course, you’ll learn the art of crafting picture books that leave a lasting impression. We'll explore the world of children's literature, studying beloved classics and contemporary favorites, to inspire your creativity. Through engaging lessons and hands-on workshops, you'll develop a picture book manuscript from concept to completion.
Slamlandia is a poetry open mic and slam that meets every month at Literary Arts, on the third Thursday. This mic provides a creative, fun, and welcoming space for all literary
Join novelist Emily Chenoweth for an afternoon of writing and community. Participants will spend time writing to a variety of prompts, sharing their work with classmates, and learning tips and tricks for creating and maintaining their writing practice. Writers of fiction, memoir, and poetry are all welcome for this fun, focused afternoon. Access Program We
Join local author and illustrator Rowan Kingsbury to celebrate her debut graphic novel, Avery and the Fairy Circle, the story of a girl and her fairy friend exploring the local
In this six-week, workshop-meets-craft class, we'll dissect three different short stories and figure out: How did the writer do that? We’ll then apply some of those same literary tools to your own stories. This class for writers with some experience includes a workshop component.
Join us in welcoming Sarah Aziza and Omar El Akkad for a conversation on Sarah's new memoir, The Hollow Half. About the book: A brush with death. An ancestral haunting.
From crystals to cults, Leah Sottile's Blazing Eye Sees All is an investigation into American New Age spirituality and the ways it helps and hurts people. Exploring themes of extremism,
Yallah! Muslims Write is a monthly workshop with the expressed intent to foster a joyful, supportive, and courageous space for self-identifying Muslim artists.
Incite: Queer Writers Read is a curated, bimonthly reading series for Queer writers. Incite’s hope is to create conversation, connection, and greater understanding both within the Queer community and with other
Literary Arts and The Dougy Center present Susan Lieu, a Vietnamese-American author, playwright, and performer. Her works include her solo show "140 LBS: How Beauty Killed My Mother” and memoir The Manicurist’s Daughter.
Bring the whole family for a magical Story Time at the Literary Arts Bookstore! Sing, play, and dive into the world of Spanish storytelling hosted by Adventures in Spanish. Join us for a fun and engaging way to enhance your child’s Spanish skills through lively stories and interactive activities! Every fourth Saturday of the month.
A talk with Jaclyn Moyer, author of On Gold Hill: A Personal History of Wheat, Farming, and Family, from Punjab to California at the Monmouth Public Library. On Gold Hill
This monthly reading series is intended to prioritize the safety, creativity, and stories of Black people, Indigenous people, and People of Color. Come listen to our featured readers, or sign up to share your work in our open mic. Readings will be followed by a short community discussion. Hosted by Kyle Yoshioka and Jessica Meza-Torres. The featured readers
Literary Arts and APANO are so excited to invite four incredible writers to read from their work and celebrate community during AAPI Heritage Month. Light refreshments will be served, and
Registration for the event opens on Friday, May 23 at 9:00 a.m. Tickets are free but capacity is limited. Register here. Agenda 🎶 Music from Joe Kye 💜 Janice Lee
Families are invited to join us weekly on Saturday mornings from 10:30-11:00 a.m. at the Literary Arts Bookstore for story time! Each week our booksellers will read from picture books we love and enthusiastically share our love of reading and play with our youngest community members. Every fourth Saturday of the month we're teaming up
Join us for a very special story time reading and illustration demo with visiting author/illustrator Tom Toro to celebrate his newest book, Crocodiles Need Friends, Too! Tom Toro is
Join us in celebrating Jonny Garza Villa's latest, Futbolista! A classmates-to-friends-to-lovers romp that is equal parts raunchy and heartfelt. About the book: A classmates-to-friends-to-lovers romance that's equal parts raunchy, heartfelt,
Join us for a night of music and literary conversation with Gabriel Kahane and Ross Barkan, celebrating Glass Century. About the book: It's 1973 and Mona Glass is a 24-year-old
Here is an opportunity to share or listen to one page of work in progress from talented writers from everywhere. Come with a single page of work and sign up
Literary Arts is thrilled to be a part of Portland Book Week 2025! Come on down to the store, buy a Portland Book Week tote bag, and check some items
Lyrical writing prioritizes music, rhythm, and emotion over the narrative arc. In this course, we will find entry into writing through reading, conversation, and various prompts and exercises to catalyze memory and insight.
Poetry can be found anywhere and be created from anything. To create found poetry, we rely on a preexisting text like news articles, published poems, or excerpts from legal and government documents, to rediscover ways in which we as writers rely on language to create art.
Join us at Literary Arts for a social event to meet local children's authors and learn about their work! It's the middle of Portland Book Week AND The American Booksellers Association's Children's Institute will be in town—what better time to celebrate the amazing Portland-area authors creating books for children. (Not a story time but kids
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