Conchas y Café at Baldwin Hills Branch Library, LAPL
Please join us for our weekly series as we create finished works of poetry and writing for “zines.” Coffee and sweet breads will be served.
Where: Baldwin Hills Branch Library, Meeting Room A
Date: Monday the 22nd
Time: 1 pm
Address: 904 Manhattan Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90016
Website: http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/conchas-y-café
Creative Writing Workshop at Vermont Square Branch Library, LAPL
Have you always wanted to write but never had the courage? Would you like to improve your writing? Whether you’re interested in fiction, poetry, memoir or journaling, come read great examples of these genres and then put pen to paper in a safe, positive environment. (Pens and notebooks provided.)
Where: Vermont Square Branch Library, LAPL
Date: Monday the 22nd
Time: 4 pm
Address: 1201 W. 48th St., Los Angeles, CA 90037
Website: http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/creative-writing-workshop-5
Author Chris Krause at Edendale Branch Library, LAPL
Author Chris Krause, with Bruce Hainley, describes the research process behind her new biography, After Kathy Acker, on the life, myth and influence of the avant-garde artist, writer, and counter-cultural heroine.
Chris Krause is a writer and critic, and the author of I Love Dick, Where Art Belongs, and Torpor, among others. She is co-editor of Hatred of Capitalism: A Semiotext Reader.
Bruce Hainley is a writer, contributing editor of Artforum, and associate chair of Graduate Art at ArtCenter College of Design.
Where: Edendale Branch Library, LAPL
Date: Monday the 22nd
Time: 6 pm – 8 pm
Address: 2011 West Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90026
Website: http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/evenchris-kraus-after-kathy-acker-bruce-hainley
Steve Dorff on Songwriting at Book Soup
Join us to hear author Steve Dorff, one of the most successful songwriters and composers of the last 25 years, discuss and sign his book, I Wrote That One, Too…: A Life in Songwriting from Willie to Whitney. In this book you will find the stories behind the songs, as well as wisdom and wit.
Where: Book Soup
Date: Monday the 22nd
Time: 7 pm
Address: 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Stewart Patrick & Sovereignty Wars at UCLA Bunche Hall
Please join us to hear CFR Governance Fellow Stewart Patrick discuss his new book, Sovereignty Wars: Reconciling America with the World. Trump’s America First policy raises questions about the future of U.S. global leadership and its role in international cooperation. But the nation’s fate is increasingly tied to that of other countries, whose cooperation is needed to shape our future in a global age. This book explores what is actually at stake in this debate.
Where: Bunche Hall, Room 4357, UCLA
Date: Tuesday the 23rd
Time: 12 pm Noon
Address: 4357 Bunche Hall, UCLA Campus, Los Angeles, CA 90095
Website: http://www.international.ucla.edu/burkle/event/12910
Luis Alfaro at Annenberg Beach House
Join us for an evening with playwright, native Angeleno and Writer-in-Residence Luis Alfaro, for a fascinating overview of twenty years of art-making, community-building, and national and international theatre work. Winner of The MacArthur “Genius Grant” and a current Ford Foundation “Art of Change” Fellow, Alfaro spent ten years at downtown’s Mark Taper Forum creating and producing new American plays. He will be working on a new commission for Center Theatre Group that explores the homelessness crisis in L.A. under the theme “Things We Share.”
Writer-in-Residence: January 9-March 13.
RSVP at website link for details and free parking instructions.
Where: Annenberg Beach House
Date: Tuesday the 23rd
Time: 6:30 pm
Address: 415 Pacific Coast Hwy., Santa Monica, CA 90401
Website: http://annenbergbeachhouse.com/activities/cultural-programs-events-and-tours.aspx#beachculture
Daniel Horowitz at Vroman’s Bookstore
Please join us to hear author Daniel Horowitz discuss and sign Happier?: the History of a Social Movement That Aspired to Transform America, which explores the mid-twentieth century cultural movement that began in the late 1990s which promoted the idea it is as important to improve one’s own sense of pleasure as it is to manage depression and anxiety. Ultimately this book illuminates how positive psychology infused American culture with captivating promises for a happier society.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Tuesday the 23rd
Time: 7 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Haiku in Zapotec, with Victor Teran, at ALOUD Reading Series, Central Library
Join us for a bilingual program to hear and meet Zapotec-language poet Victor Teran, in conversation with Jane Hirshfield (author of six collections of poetry), as he reads from his work, including translations of the Japanese masters of the Haiku form. They will discuss the way the natural world informs their own work and present Teran’s new work in a conversation moderated by David Shook of Phoneme Media.
Where: Mark Taper Auditorium, Central Library, LAPL
Date: Tuesday the 23rd
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 630 West 5th St., Los Angeles, CA 90071
Website: http://lfla.org/event/common-verse-many-languages-haiku/
Raymond Caballero at the Last Bookstore
Please join us to hear author Raymond Caballero discuss and sing his book, Orozco: The Life and Death of a Mexican Revolutionary. This book on Pascual Orozco, the most important military leader in the Mexican Revolution, is a long-overdue biography of his meteoric rise and ignominious descent, including the purposely obscured circumstances of his death at the hands of a lone, murderous lawman.
Where: The Last Bookstore
Date: Tuesday the 23rd
Time: 8 pm
Address: 453 S. Spring St., Los Angeles, CA 90013
Website: http://lastbookstorela.com/#events
Spineless Memoir at Chevalier’s Bookstore
Please join us to hear science writer and author Julie Berwald discuss and sign Spineless: The Science of Jellyfish and the Art of Growing a Backbone, which explores a world both rarely and often neglected—the ocean and its ecosystem. After researching her subject for five years, Berwald discovered: there are immortal jellyfish that have the ability to age forwards and backwards; giant jellyfish that weigh over 500 pounds; transparent beasts made of 95% water that produce the world’s deadliest toxins. She also learned jellyfish populations have exploded in the last decade, which has caused profound damage, and she explores why this might be happening.
Where: Chevalier’s Bookstore
Date: Wednesday the 24th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 126 N. Larchmont Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90004
Website: http://www.chevaliersbooks.com/juli-berwald
Richard Blade at Book Soup
We invite you to join us to hear Richard Blade, discuss and sign World in My Eyes: The Autobiography. This is more than a spotlight on any one decade, but is a jaw-dropping, uncensored look into the world of music, movies, and television and its biggest stars.
Where: Book Soup
Date: Wednesday the 24th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Website: http://booksoup.com/event/richard-blade-discusses-and-signs-world-my-eyes-autobiography
Kitchen Creativity with Karen Page at Vroman’s Bookstore
Please join us to hear Karen Page discuss and sign her book, Kitchen Creativity: Unlocking Culinary Genius—With Wisdom, Inspiration, and Ideas from the World’s Most Creative Chefs. The author illuminates the method and occasional madness of culinary invention to spur your own creativity.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Wednesday the 17th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Website: http://www.vromansbookstore.com/event/karen-page-discusses-and-signs-kitchen-creativity-unlocking-cu
Wendy C. Ortiz at Otis College of Art and Design
Please join us to hear writer Wendy C. Ortiz read and discuss her work as part of our Visiting Writers Series. Ortiz is a Los Angeles native and author of Excavation: A Memoir, Hollywood Notebook, and the “dreamoir” Bruja. Her work has been profiled in The Los Angeles Times, The Rumpus, The National Book Critics Small Press Spotlight Blog, and LARB. She is co-editor and co-publisher of Lounge Lit: An Anthology of Poetry and Fiction.
Where: The Forum, Goldsmith Campus, Otis College
Date: Wednesday the 24th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 9045 Lincoln Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90045
Website: http://www.otis.edu/mfa-writing/visiting-writers-series
William C. Rempel at Vroman’s Bookstore
Please join us to hear author William C. Remple discuss and sign The Gambler: How Penniless Dropout Kirk Kerkorian Became the Greatest Deal Maker in Capitalist History, which is the rag-to-riches story of one of the America’s wealthiest and least-known financial giants, who transformed Las Vegas and Hollywood to become one of the leading financiers in American Business.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Thursday the 25th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Andrea Brandt at Pages Bookstore
Join us to hear author and physician Andrea Brandt discuss and sign Mindful Aging, which explores how we can age well, live to our happiest and highest potential, and make the greatest difference up to our dying days. The book’s strategies build physical and emotional resilience, and offer opportunities for change.
Where: Pages Bookstore
Date: Thursday the 25th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 904 Manhattan Ave., Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
Website: http://www.pagesabookstore.com/event/andrea-brandt-author-event
Thelma Reyna’s Book Launch at Pasadena Central Library
Please join us to welcome local poet and former Altadena Poet Laureate Thelma T. Reyna to present and launch her new book Reading Tea Leaves After Trump, in a reading and author conversation.
Where: Pasadena Central Library Auditorium
Date: Thursday the 25th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 285 E. Walnut St., Pasadena, CA 91101
Website: http://ww5.cityofpasadena.net/library/library-events/#/?i=2
Outside In at Chevalier’s Bookstore
Please join us to welcome Raun Thorp and M. Brian Tichenor to present Outside In: The Gardens and Houses of Tichenor & Thorp. This book illustrates the integration of houses and landscapes as one complete expression for a given site and particular individual. Illustrated in a masterly way, with a forward by Pilar Viladas, this is a multifaceted book of design.
Where: Chevalier’s Bookstore
Date: Thursday the 25th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 126 N. Larchmont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90004
Website: http://www.chevaliersbooks.com/tichenor-thorpe
Krista Suh at Vroman’s Bookstore
Join us to hear author and creator of the Pussyhat Project Krista Suh discuss and sign DIY Rules for a WTF World: How to Speak Up, Get Creative, and Change the World. This is a manifesto for every woman to create her own distinct and original path to joy, success and impact.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Friday the 26th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Dan Vining at Book Soup
Join us to hear author Dan Vining discuss and sign his book, NightSun. Los Angeles, 2025. A brutal drought throughout the west has plunged Los Angeles into a permanent state of crisis. Nate Cole, an up-all-night air cop, works to bust a human trafficking operation, while Ava Monica, a west-side PI, chases a runaway bride who’s fallen in with a cultish group led by a pop star. Although their paths cross repeatedly, they just can’t seem to merge. A dystopian future that feels too close to home, this book grapples with what it means to search for connection, solace, and home within a chaotic new world.
Where: Book Soup
Date: Friday the 26th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Website: http://www.booksoup.com/event/dan-vining-discusses-and-signs-nightsun
Kristian Williams at Other Books
Join us to hear author Kristian Williams discuss and sign her book, Between the Bullet and the Lie: Essays on Orwell. From the intellect of a man, who 67 years after his death, still has much to offer readers, Williams highlights the relationship Orwell saw between aesthetics, ethics and politics, and applies his thought to political and literary questions that trouble us today.
Where: Other Books
Date: Friday the 26th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 2006 East Caesar E. Chavez Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90033
Jennifer Allen at Pages Bookstore
Join us to hear author/photographer Jennifer Allen discuss and sign her book, Malama Honua. From the launch in Hawaii in May 2014, around the world 60,000 miles to 23 different countries, this book chronicles Hokule’a’s epic mission to raise awareness of and nurture worldwide sustainability. Hokule’a is a canoe sailed without modern instruments, using only the sun, moon, stars, sells, and sea life as guides. This book captures the many ways indigenous cultures are committed to living in ecological balance.
Where: Pages Bookstore
Date: Friday the 26th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 904 Manhattan Ave., Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
Website: http://www.pagesabookstore.com/event/jennifer-allen-author-event
Viet Thanh Nguyen, Mimi Pond, Jonathan Santlofer at Skylight Bookstore
Join us to hear authors Viet Hanh Nguyen, Mimi Pond and Jonathan Santofler discuss, read and support, It Occurs to Me That I Am America: New Stories and Art which features more than 35 of today’s most celebrated authors, writing about the American experience and the fundamental ideals of a free, just, passionate democracy. With an introduction by Nguyen, and edited by Santofler, this anthology/collection will be published in support of the ACLU upon the one-year anniversary of the Inauguration of Trump and the Women’s March on Washington.
Where: Skylight Bookstore
Date: Friday the 26th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 1818 N, Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027
2018 PEN Emerging Voices Welcome Party at LACE
Please join us to congratulate the 2018 PEN Emerging Voices Fellows at the Welcome Party, and listen to short readings by these honorees:
Jubi Arriola-Headley; Ron L, Dowell; Natalie Mislang Mann; Angela M. Sanchez; Francisco Uribe
Followed by drinks and tacos!
Where: Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions (LACE)
Date: Friday the 26th
Time: 8 pm – 10 pm
Address: 6522 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90028
Website: http://www.facebook.com/events/1996493810597785/
Carter Higgins at Children’s Book World–Kids Event
Please join us to welcome local author Carter Higgins and join in a fun early Valentine’s celebration with her delightful new book, This Is NOT a Valentine. This is a testament to handmade, wacky, bashful, honest love—and will win over the hearts of readers.
Where: Children’s Book World
Date: Saturday the 27th
Time: 10:30 am
Address: 10580 1/2 West Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90064
Website: http://www.childrensbookworld.com/author-events/
Conchas y Café at Benjamin Franklin Library, LAPL
Join us for an adult creative writing workshop, offered weekly to adults, senior, Spanish speakers, in partnership with DSTL Arts, where you may practice and learn from local writers and artists: poetry and poetic devices; short stories and creative non-fiction story telling; self-publishing and making zines.
Participants will have the opportunity to publish their work in our quarterly zine.
Where: Benjamin Franklin Library, LAPL
Date: Saturday the 27th
Time: 11 am – 12:30 pm
Address: 2200 E. 1st St., Los Angeles, CA 90033
Website: http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/conchas-y-café
Nebraska Girl Open Reading at Beyond Baroque
Join us for our Nebraska Girl Open Reading, hosted by Wyatt Underwood. Reader sign-ups begin at 1:30 pm.
Where: Beyond Baroque
Date: Saturday the 27th
Time: 2 pm
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd., Venice, CA 90291
Website: http://beyondbaroque.org/calendar.html
Print & Publishing Workshop at Santa Catalina Library, Pasadena
Join us at Saturday Afternoon Poetry for a Print and Internet Publishing Workshop led by R.D. Armstrong, publisher of Lummox Press poetry books. Featured readers include: Gil Hill, Linda Neal, & Linda Singer.
Curated and hosted by Don Kingfisher Campbell
Where: Santa Catalina Library, Pasadena
Date: Saturday the 27th
Time: 3 pm – 5 pm
Address: 999 E. Washington Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91104
Website: http://saturdayafternoonpoetry.blogspot.com/
Tara Jepsen, with Michelle Tea, at Vroman’s Bookstore
Join us to hear Tara Jepsen, with Michelle Tea, discuss and sign her book, Like a Dog, the story of a skateboarder in her early thirties who is aimlessly winging it through life. Paloma has many struggles, and her own delusions about the nature of addiction help to keep her fears at bay, for her brother and for herself.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Saturday the 27th
Time: 3 pm – 4:30 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Website: http://www.vromansbookstore.com/event/tara-jepsen-michelle-tea-discusses-and-signs-dog
Object Lessons Series at Skylight Bookstore
Join us to hear Evan Kindley (Questionnaire), Rebecca Tuhus-Dubrow (Personal Stereo), and Anna Leahy (Tumor) discuss their books in the Object Lessons Series. Bloomsbury’s Object Lessons is a series of concise, collectable, beautifully designed book about the hidden lives of ordinary things. Each starts from a specific inspiration, and from that point explores the object of the title, gleaning a singular lesson from simple lessons along the way.
Where: Skylight Bookstore
Date: Saturday the 27th
Time: 5 pm
Address: 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Poetry & Prose & Open Mic at Gatsby’s Bookstore
Join us to hear author Wendy Rainey and Suzanne O’Connell discuss and read from their work, presented by Vanguard Press.
We will also feature an Open Mic, so bring your best!
Where: Gatsby’s Bookstore
Date: Saturday the 27th
Time: 5 pm
Address: 5535 E. Spring St., Long Beach, CA 90808
Website: gatsbybooks.com/artists/#/charlotte-stowe/
One Mic Collective & Open Mic at Corazon Contento Studio
Join us for One Mic Collective: San Gabriel Valley poetry, music and Open Mic night, featuring artists in support of art, education and community building. This event includes an Open Mic in which you may read for 5 minutes or 2 pieces of writing. This month you will hear featured writers: Ari Robles, Lana LosAngeles, Roxana Preciado, and Cynthia Guardado.
Where: Corazon Contento Fitness Studio (on Baldwin Park Blvd., and Francisquito Ave., in the parking lot behind Basin Robbins Ice Cream)
Date: Saturday the 27th
Time: 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm
Address: 3523 Francisquito Ave., Baldwin Park, CA 91706
Website: http://www.facebook.com/onemiccollectiveofficial
Alivio Open Mic 4th Anniversary Event
Join us to celebrate the longest running Open Mic in southeast LA, giving people from all walks of life the platform (from a family’s garage) to share their stories and talents with their community.
Tonight’s program will feature: King Q, Astrid, Free from Envy, Annette Torres, and others TBA.
Where: Alivio Open Mic
Date: Saturday the 27th
Time: 8 pm – 11 pm
Address: 6328 Orchard Ave., Bell, CA 90201
Website: http://www.facebook.com/events/2092500134316989/
Jerry Garcia & Mary Torregrossa at Claremont Public Library
Join us for Fourth Sundays Poetry at the Claremont Library, featuring readings by Jerry Garcia (former president of Valley Contemporary Poets and past president of Beyond Baroque’s Board of Direcotrs) and Mary Torregrossa (Poetry in the Windows). Light refreshments will be served and books will be available for purchase.
Where: Claremont Public Library
Date: Sunday the 28th
Time: 2 pm – 3:30 pm
Address: 208 Harvard Ave., Claremont, CA 91711
Website: https://www.facebook.com/fourthsundayspoetry
Kathryn Atkins Book Launch at Gatsby’s Bookstore
Join us for Kathryn Atkins book launch of Giving My Self to the Wind, a collection of stories, essays and more. The author discusses the topics of adoption, aging, a convertible, peanut butter, and writing, of course.
Where: Gatsby’s Bookstore
Date: Sunday the 28th
Time: 3 pm
Address: 5535 E. Spring St, Long Beach, CA 90808
Website: http://gatsbybooks.com/artists/#/candice-whitman/
How to Be Single and Happy at Diesel’s Bookstore
Join us for Dr. Jennifer L. Taltz’s presentation of her book, How to Be Single and Happy: Science-Based Strategies for Keeping Your Sanity While Looking for a Soul Mate, an inspiring guide for women on how to navigate the modern dating scene.
Where: Diesel’s Bookstore, Brentwood, lower outdoor courtyard
Date: Sunday the 28th
Time: 3 pm
Address: 225 26th St, Santa Monica, CA 90402
Website: http://www.dieselbookstore.com/event/dr-jenny-taitz-discusses-and-signs-how-be-single-and-happy
Local Author Day at Vroman’s Bookstore
Please join us for another local author day, introducing: Wayne Avrashow (Roll the Dice, a Kirkus-award winning novel) Brenda Hunter (Sacred Mothering) and Aura E. Martinez (Creating a Lifetime of Wellness) who will read and discuss their books.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Sunday the 28th
Time: 4 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Website: http://www.vromansbookstore.com/event/vroman’s-bookstore-local-author-day-introduces-wayne-avrasho
Paul Briggs and Benson Shum at Skylight Bookstore–Kids Event
Please join us to hear Paul Briggs, discuss and sign Catch My Breath, and Benson Shum discuss and sign Holly’s Day at the Pool, as they read from their respective picture books. Readers will also be treated to drawing activities by these two talented artists. Both authors have worked as animators at Disney and contributed to Frozen, Big Hero 6 and other films.
Where: Skylight Bookstore
Date: Sunday the 28th
Time: 5 pm
Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027
Los Angeles Literature 