Events, Classes, and Seminars

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.

Sunday

Oct 5

Bookstore   Free Events  

Banned Books Read-In

Kick off Banned Book Week with us on Sunday, October 5th , between 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.! We’ve teamed up with Libro.FM, Silent Bookclub, and over 400 bookstores nationwide to host a Read-In in protest of censorship. Bring your own book or try a recommendation from our shelves, grab a bite from our cafe, and come

Find out more
Sunday

Oct 5

Saturday

Oct 4

Friday

Oct 3

Bookstore   Free Events  

ad tendo: with Oregon Symphony Artist in Residence Simone Porter

Join us for a solo violin performance and talk by Oregon Symphony 2025/26 Artist-in-Residence, Simone Porter. Porter’s presentation is inspired by the works of philosopher Simone Weil, and Weil’s insight that “Attention, taken to its highest degree, is the same thing as prayer... Absolutely unmixed attention is prayer.”   The Latin root of the word

Find out more
Wednesday

Oct 1

Monday

Sep 29

Bookstore   Free Events  

Holding: Karleigh Frisbie Brogan in conversation with Jon Raymond

2024 Oregon Literary Fellow, Karleigh Frisbie Brogan, joins us to celebrate her new memoir, Holding with Jon Raymond. A stunning debut memoir about addiction, self-discovery, and the relationships between mothers and daughters, from an exciting new literary talent Brogan “ the world’s harshest truths into golden, beautiful sentences” reminiscent of the powerful writing in Wild and In the

Find out more
Saturday

Sep 27

Friday

Sep 26

Bookstore   Free Events   In-person  

come from: janan alexandra

Join us for an evening of poetry and conversation celebrating janan alexandra's debut poetry collection come from (BOA Editions). janan will be speaking in conversation with Jennifer (JP) Perrine, author of five books of poetry including the recently published Beautiful Outlaw (Winner of the Kelsey Street Press QTBIPOC Book Prize). This event is free to

Find out more
Wednesday

Sep 24

Bookstore   Free Events  

BIPOC Reading Series – September

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 reader

Find out more
Wednesday

Sep 24

In-person   Writing Classes  

Scene Writing for Memoir

This eight-week memoir workshop teaches writers how to transform personal experiences into compelling scenes that captivate readers. Students will learn to craft authentic moments from memory, weave reflection seamlessly into narrative, and build scenes that invite readers into their lived experiences while revealing deeper emotional truths.

Find out more
Thursday

Sep 18

Bookstore   Free Events   In-person  

Slamlandia

Slamlandia is a poetry open mic and slam that meets every month, 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 their own poetry,

Find out more
Tuesday

Sep 16

Bookstore   Free Events  

September Write-In

Don your vegetables and celebrate the harvest season with us! We're channeling Fall energy with an Over the Garden Wall themed write-in this month, complete with molasses latte to celebrate. If you haven't seen OTGW, don't worry—but prepare to be converted to the greatest autumnal media of the century. All you need is something to

Find out more
Sunday

Sep 14

Delve Readers Seminars  

Apuleius: The Golden Ass

The Golden Ass is an outsider’s portrait of life in the Roman Empire, which is both shockingly familiar and alsi truly strange. It is the only complete surviving novel from Greco-Roman antiquity,

A rich young Roman named Lucius goes to the annual Festival of Laughter in a town in Thessaly and meets a witch. She mistakenly turns him into a donkey. On his travels to find the plant with the magic antidote that will restore his humanity, he experiences his society from the animal's point of view.

Find out more
Wednesday

Sep 10

Bookstore   Free Events  

Incite: Queer Writers Read – September

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 communities. Hosted by Vinnie Kinsella and Jennifer (JP) Perrine. The featured readers for September are Elizabeth Weinberg, kim thompson, and Stacey Rice. The theme

Find out more
Wednesday

Sep 10

Delve Readers Seminars   In-person  

The Monstrous Feminine

In Western literature, scholars often reduce supernatural fiction to pulp, pop, or entertaining"fluff," which is somehow less noteworthy than other works of literature. Yet horror fiction often uses supernatural tropes of haunting and monstrosity to depict oppression, marginalized identities, gender, and "madness."
Through conversation and writing, we can consider how these modern and postmodern feminist authors expand Western literature and the gothic tradition through provocative first-person narratives.

Find out more
Monday

Sep 8

Delve Readers Seminars   In-person  

Henry James: The Bostonians

The Bostonians is Henry James’s most explicitly American novel—and not only because the characters spend their time arguing about politics and gender. Set in the wake of the U.S. Civil War, the book explores loyalty and love, fanaticism and friendship, family feuds and Boston marriages.

Find out more
Saturday

Sep 6

Saturday

Sep 6

Thursday

Sep 4

Bookstore   Free Events  

The Ghostkeeper: Johanna Taylor

Calling all graphic novel readers! Join us in welcoming Johanna Taylor to discuss her latest, The Ghostkeeper. About the book: Dorian Leith can see ghosts. Not only that, he listens to their problems and tries to help them move on to the afterlife. It’s a gift that’s made him an outcast to everyone in town.

Find out more
Wednesday

Sep 3

Free Events   In-person  

One Page Wednesday – September

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 to read—or come to listen and prepare to be inspired. Our host is the one and only, Emme Lund. The featured reader for September is Genevieve

Find out more
Tuesday

Sep 2

Chris La Tray: Becoming Little Shell

Join us in welcoming Montana Poet Laureate Chris La Tray for the paperback release of his bestselling memoir, Becoming Little Shell. “Nothing less than the history of a people in the form of an absorbing and emotionally searing memoir.”—David Treuer, author of The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee “I’m committed to uncovering the culture of my people.

Find out more
Tuesday

Sep 2

In-person   Writing Classes  

Get Writing

Each week we’ll use new prompts and guided activities to inspire new creation. We’ll look at the work of writers we admire and ask: how’d they do that? As they say, writing is a muscle, and no matter what your experience level, you have to continually exercise that muscle and practice new tools to keep your writing nimble and moving.

Find out more
Thursday

Aug 28

Thursday

Aug 28

Delve Readers Seminars   In-person  

LEONORA CARRINGTON: SURREAL TRANSFORMATIONS

While better known for her extraordinarily imaginative paintings, the British-born Mexican artist Leonora Carrington was also a dazzling writer, conjuring stories that alchemically transform the banal and infuse the imagination with a smorgasbord of dreamlike images. Brandishing a surrealism that outflanks even the most worthy of her male counterparts, Carrington creates worlds in which the

Find out more
Wednesday

Aug 27

For BIPOC Writers   Free Events   In-person  

BIPOC Reading Series – August

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 reader

Find out more
Monday

Aug 25

Bookstore   Free Events  

Holly Capelle: Preserving the Seasons

Join us for a very special interactive event with local author Holly Capelle for her new cook book, Preserving the Seasons.Capelle will be joined in conversation by Liz Crain. About the book:  Clear instructions for preserving the seasons’ bounty, with 100+ recipes for using what you’ve preserved. Preserving the Seasons is a straightforward and beautifully photographed

Find out more
Thursday

Aug 21

Free Events   In-person  

Slamlandia

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 their

Find out more
Wednesday

Aug 20

Sunday

Aug 17

Bookstore   Free Events  

Denali Sai Nalamalapu: Holler: A Graphic Memoir of Rural Resistance

Join us in welcoming Denali Sai Nalamalapu and the IPRC for a celebration of Holler: A Graphic Memoir of Rural Resistance. About the IPRC: The mission of the Independent Publishing Resource Center (IPRC) is to provide affordable access to space, tools, and resources for creating independently published media and artwork, and to build community and

Find out more
Saturday

Aug 16

Friday

Aug 8

Bookstore   Free Events  

Crafting Stories: Mark Roberts and Jon Raymond

Join two accomplished storytellers, Mark Roberts, whose work spans the stage to screen with credits including Mike and Molly, Two and a Half Men, as well as his acclaimed plays, and Jon Raymond, known for his novels, teleplays and screenplays including Mildred Pierce, Meek’s Cutoff and Wendy and Lucy, for an in-depth conversation on the art of crafting stories for both screen and stage.

Find out more
Wednesday

Aug 6

Monday

Aug 4

In-person   Summer 2025   Writing Classes  

The Art of the Gut Renovation: Revising as Rebuilding

This class is designed for nonfiction writers. Essayists, memoirists, and writers of literary reportage are all welcome. Please come with a complete early draft of a project — maybe it’s something fresh, or maybe it’s simply a piece on which you feel a bit stalled. By the end of the month, writers will emerge with a new set of revision strategies, and a clear path forward for revising their work-in-progress.

Find out more
Wednesday

Jul 30

Bookstore   For BIPOC Writers   Free Events  

BIPOC Reading Series – July

Hosted by Kyle Yoshioka and Jessica Meza-Torres, this monthly reading series is intended to prioritize the safety, creativity, and stories of Black people, Indigenous people, and People of Color. The featured readers for July are Jzl Jmz and Adolfo Cantú-Villarreal. This event is open to everyone, but only people who identify as Black, Indigenous, and/or People of Color

Find out more
Wednesday

Jul 30

Thursday

Jul 24

Bookstore   Free Events  

Stafford Challenge Anthology Reading

Join us for a night of readings from this year's Stafford Challenge Anthology! About The Stafford Challenge The Stafford Challenge is a yearlong international poetry project inspired by the daily writing practice of poet William Stafford. Launched on January 17, 2024—Stafford’s birthday—by poet and storyteller Brian Rohr, the challenge invites participants to write a poem

Find out more
Wednesday

Jul 23

Bookstore   Free Events  

Queer Community Write-In

Write, mingle, and be merry - The Literary Arts Bookstore and Cafe are excited to welcome local authors from the LGBTQ+ community for an evening of co-writing and and delicious drinks! Come with your laptop or journal and a story to tell. We've got outlets, caffeine, and plenty of great books for inspiration. About write-ins:

Find out more
Tuesday

Jul 22

Bookstore   Free Events  

Orion Magazine’s Summer 2025 Issue Launch

Join Orion's deputy editor Tara Rae Miner with Erica Berry, Oregon Book Award–winning author of Wolfish; Julie Beeler, artist and author of The Mushroom Color Atlas; and Elan Hangens, mushroom forager, educator, and owner of Temptress Truffles. We'll host a short panel about Orion's summer issue featuring writing on all things fungi, paint with mushroom

Find out more
Monday

Jul 21

Thursday

Jul 17

Free Events   In-person  

Slamlandia – July

Slamlandia

Slamlandia is a poetry open mic and slam that meets every month, 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 their own poetry,

Find out more
Tuesday

Jul 15

Bookstore   Free Events  

A Physical Education: Casey Johnston in conversation with Rebecca Grant

A Physical Education traces Casey Johnston’s journey of calorie restriction and obsessive cardio—making herself small in almost every way—to finding healing through the (unexpected) practice of lifting weights. As she progresses, carrying groceries and closing heavy doors become easier. As she diligently practices checking in with how she feels, she begins to question not only

Find out more
Saturday

Jul 12

Saturday

Jul 12

Friday

Jul 11

Bookstore   Free Events  

Drag Story Time with Starri Merryweather!

The Literary Arts bookstore is excited to welcome Starri Merryweather for a very special drag storytime! From the imagination of multi-hyphenate performance artist Sonnei Verbena, Starri Merryweather brings whimsy, heart & JOY to a world in great need of these attributes. Starri has taught creative workshops with teens and has been a camp counselor for

Find out more
Thursday

Jul 10

In-person   Summer 2025   Writing Classes  

Leading with Suspense: writing the unputdownable story

In this eight-week workshop, we will focus on leading with suspense to evoke curiosity and engagement. In our first class, we’ll discuss the craft of making big and little promises to the reader and fulfilling them in fresh but satisfying ways. Sterling examples of engaging openings from the canon will provide fodder for our discussion of how to captivate a reader. In our subsequent classes, we’ll workshop two student submissions per each class.

Find out more