Do you want to find creative inspiration and overcome writer’s block in a supportive and peaceful community setting? Are you interested in writing professionally or for personal growth and healing but unsure where to begin?

Come join acclaimed author and writing instructor Francesca Lia Block for a brief intro and 40 minutes of free writing on any topic without judgement. Afterwards, you will be able to share a bit about your process and ask Francesca questions about your writing.

About the instructor:

Francesca Lia Block is the author of more than thirty books of fiction, non-fiction, short stories and poetry, and has written screenplay adaptations of her work. She received the Spectrum Award, the Phoenix Award, the ALA Rainbow Award and the 2005 Margaret A. Edwards Lifetime Achievement Award, as well as other citations from the American Library Association, and from the NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, and PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY. Currently she teaches creative writing at UCLA Extension, Antioch University, Pocket MFA, and numerous workshops across the country. Francesca also edits LIT ANGELS, a literary journal available on Substack. Her latest novel is House of Hearts now out in paperback. https://www.francescaliablock.com/

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Monday the 26^th

Time: 9 am – 10 am

Writing a book, poem, or screenplay? Need deadlines? Want constructive feedback? Then this is the place for you. Bring 5 – 10 double-spaced typed pages to read. Everyone will get a chance to read.

RSVP:

This group mostly meets in person, but email rbrtsn@lapl.org if you’d prefer to join via Zoom.

NOTE: See site for link and details.

Where: Robertson Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Monday the 26^th

Time: 11 am

Address: 1719 S. Robertson Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90035

Website: https://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/robertson-writers-group-2

Seniors Writering Group at Studio City Branch Library, LAPL – In-Person Event

Danny Stone, a Saved by a Story member, leads an ongoing writing group for seniors. New members are welcome at all or any sessions.

Write to prompts, share (if you want), connect with fellow seniors in the neighborhood, hone your writing skills, and find your story.

RSVP:

An RSVP to studio@lapl.org is recommended but not required. If you RSVP we will send you a welcome packet, guidelines, and a reminder the day before the meeting.

Where: Studio City Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Monday the 26^th

Time: 1 pm

Address: 12511 Moorpark St., Studio City, CA 91604

Website: https://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/seniors-writing-group

Author Talk: In Conversation With Eliana L. Levi at Jefferson – Vassie D. Wright Memorial Branch Library, LAPL – In-Person Event

Join us for a reading and Q&A session with Eliana L. Levi, a writer and published author based in Los Angeles. Eliana is the author of A Nobody College Student, a young adult neo-realist novel about personal growth, self-discovery, and grief. The story follows a young woman in her early twenties as she navigates the hardships of moving to a new state, grieving the loss of a classmate, wanting independence while also seeking approval from her family, and dealing with academic and social challenges that come with being diagnosed as neurodivergent. Best for Ages 16-25.

Where: Jefferson – Vassie D. Wright Memorial Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Monday the 26^th

Time: 4:30 pm

Address: 2211 W. Jefferson Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90018

Website: https://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/author-talk-conversation-eliana-l-levi

Book Talk: The Berry Pickers at Sherman Oaks Martin Pollard Branch Library, LAPL – Online Event

Join us to discuss The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters.

In July 1962, following in the tradition of Indigenous workers from Nova Scotia, a Mi’kmaq family arrives in Maine to pick blueberries for the summer. Weeks later, four-year-old Ruthie, the family’s youngest child, vanishes. She is last seen by her six-year-old brother, Joe, sitting on a favorite rock at the edge of a berry field. Joe will remain distraught by his sister’s disappearance for years to come.

In Maine, a young girl named Norma grows up as the only child of an affluent family. Her father is emotionally distant, her mother frustratingly overprotective. Norma is often troubled by recurring dreams and visions that seem more like memories than imagination. As she grows older, Norma slowly comes to realize there is something her parents aren’t telling her. Unwilling to abandon her intuition, she will spend decades trying to uncover this family secret.

“An unforgettable exploration of grief, love, and kin,” (The Boston Globe), this showstopping debut by a vibrant new voice in fiction is a riveting novel about the search for truth, the shadow of trauma, and the persistence of love across time.

Please email shrmno@lapl.org for the Zoom link.

Where: Sherman Oaks Martin Pollard Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Monday the 26^th

Time: 6 pm – 7 pm

Address: Online Event (see site)

Website: https://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/sherman-oaks-book-club-berry-pickers-amanda-peters

The Canyon Readers Collective Book Club: Holy Land at Topanga Library, LACL – In-Person Event

Join us to discuss Holy Land by D.J. Waldie, a quietly powerful memoir-in-fragments about life in postwar suburban Lakewood, CA, revealing the extraordinary within the ordinary. For adults.

This book explores community, faith, grief, and the meaning we make from the places we call home.

Where: Topanga Library, LACL

Date: Monday the 26^th

Time: 6 pm – 7:30 pm

Address: 122 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd., Topanga, CA 90290

Set in the gritty yet dazzling world of early 1900’s Coney Island, this lush historical fantasy follows Benny, a Puerto Rican blacksmith who builds a tank for Luna Park, only to discover its meant to imprison a merman as its main attraction. As Benny is drawn into the park’s eccentric sideshow community, he forms a deep bond with the merman named Rio, whose gentle wisdom and quiet rebellion challenge Benny’s sense of identity, freedom, and belonging. The lyrical prose is paired with gorgeous two-color illustrations, making this haunting and heartfelt debut perfect for fans of magical, character-driven storytelling.

Venessa Vida Kelley is a Nuyorican illustrator, sequential artist, and USA Today bestselling author of When the Tides Held the Moon, a Goodreads Choice Awards Finalist and Readers Digest Top 10 Books of the Year. Their work focuses on magical realism, fantasy, and romance in a culturally diverse world, and has been featured in The New York Times, Discovery Girls Magazine, Buzzfeed, and in board games and activism campaigns for Edgardo Miranda-Rodriguez, creator of the La Borinqueña comic series. They hold a BA and MA in English Literature with concentrations in film from the University of Delaware and George Washington University.​​ They live in Washington, DC with their spouse and two sons, and can be found online at VenessaKelley.com.

Where: Cellar Door Bookstore

Date: Monday the 26^th

Time: 6 pm – 8 pm

Address: 473 E. Alessandro Blvd., Suite B, Riverside, CA 92508

Website: https://cellardoorbookstore.com/event/2026-01-26/queer-book-club-when-tides-held-moon

Rupo Open Mic at Back to the Grind in Riverside – In-Person Event

RUPO Open Mic is every Monday Night at Back to the Grind in Riverside.

Every Monday from 7 pm to 9 pm. Sign-ups are at 6:30 pm and in person only, $4 cash admission. See you then!

NOTE: See site for link and details.

Where: Back to the Grind, Riverside

Date: Monday the 26^th

Time: 7 pm – 9 pm

Address: 3575 University Ave. Riverside, CA 92501

Illuminating and captivating, New York Times bestselling author of Tinseltown and Bogart offers the first definitive account of the Black Dahlia murder—the most famous unsolved true crime case in American history—which humanizes the victim and situates the notorious case within an anxious, postwar country grappling with new ideas, demographics, and technologies.

The brutal murder of Elizabeth Short—better known as the Black Dahlia—in 1947 has been in the public consciousness for nearly eighty years, yet no serious study of the crime has ever been published.

Short has been mischaracterized as a wayward sex worker or vagabond, and—like the seductive femme fatales of film noir—responsible for and perhaps deserving of her fate. William J. Mann, however, is interested in the truth. His extensive research reveals her as a young woman with curiosity and drive, who leveraged what little agency postwar society gave her to explore the world, defying draconian postwar gender expectations to settle down, marry, and have children. It’s time to reexamine the woman who became known as the Black Dahlia.

Mann deftly sifts through the sensationalized journalism, preconceived notions, myths, and misunderstandings surrounding the case to uncover the truth about Elizabeth Short like no book before. The Black Dahlia promises to be the definitive study about the most famous unsolved case in American history.

William J. Mann is a New York Times bestselling author of The Contender: The Story of Marlon Brando, for which he was granted access to Brando’s private estate archive, as well as Kate: The Woman Who Was Hepburn (named a Notable Book of the Year by the Times); Hello Gorgeous: Becoming Barbra Streisand (praised by USA Today for its “meticulous research and insightful analysis”); Edge of Midnight: The Life of John Schlesinger, for which he worked closely with the Oscar-winning director; and The Black Dahlia: Murder, Monsters, and Madness in Midcentury America. His book Tinseltown: Murder, Morphine and Madness at the Dawn of Hollywood won the Edgar Allan Poe Award. Mann is a professor of film and popular culture at Central Connecticut State University.

Where: Book Soup

Date: Monday the 26^th

Time: 7 pm – 9 pm

Address: 8818 W. Sunset Blvd. West Hollywood, CA 90069

Participants will discuss King of Ashes by S.A Cosby.

Where: Culture Brewing Co.

Date: Monday the 26^th

Time: 7 pm – 9 pm

Address: 327 Manhattan Beach Blvd., Manhattan Beach, CA 90266

Website: https://pagesabookstore.com/event/2026-01-26/books-and-brews-book-club

Monthly Writing Circle: Under the Tree We Dream with Alex Petunia at Holy Grounds Coffee – In-Person Event

Alex Petunia hosts this monthly writing circle on the last Monday of the month.

Where: Holy Grounds Coffee

Date: Monday the 26^th

Time: 7 pm – 8:30 pm

John Sayles will discuss and sign his historical novel Crucible, about Henry Ford—the Elon Musk of his day—and his attempt to rule not only an automotive empire but the rambunctious city of Detroit. It is an epic tale ranging from the 1920s through the second World War, featuring violent labor disputes, misbegotten jungle expeditions, a tragic race riot, and the gestapo tactics of Ford’s private army.

Already the gateway for illegal Canadian liquor during Prohibition, the Motor City becomes a crucible for American class conflict during the Great Depression, with an army of laid off Ford workers drifting into the ranks of the burgeoning union movement—Henry Ford’s worst nightmare. To keep the hundreds of thousands still employed by him in thrall, the man who was formerly ‘America’s favorite tycoon’ recruits black laborers migrating from the deep South to serve as ‘strike insurance’, and gives Harry Bennett, pugnacious as he is diminutive, free reign over the legion of barroom brawlers and ex-cons who make up the company’s ‘Security Department’.

The Model T mogul has also bought a sizable chunk of Brazil’s Amazonian rainforest, vowing to grow his own rubber for tires, but stubbornly refusing to include a botanist in his troop of would-be jungle tamers. As a series of biological plagues descend on the Fordlandia plantation, the racial melting pot he has created in Detroit begins to boil over, and not even the Sage of Dearborn can control the forces that have been unleashed.

The novel’s cast—Ford workers black and white and their families, young radicals, cynical newsmen, gangsters, Brazilian rubber tappers, cameos from boxer Joe Louis and muralist Diego Rivera—create the tapestry of differing points of view that John Sayles has become famous for, the events portrayed fundamental to the country we live in today.

John Sayles is an independent filmmaker, screenwriter, actor, and novelist. He has twice been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, and once for the National Book Award. He has written eight novels, including, most recently, Jamie MacGillivray and To Save the Man.

Where: Vroman’s

Date: Monday the 26^th

Time: 7 pm – 8 pm

Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101

Website: https://vromansbookstore.com/event/2026-01-26/john-sayles

Hannah Pachman is a poet, whose work is forthcoming in or has been published by Rattle, Catamaran, The MacGuffin, Maudlin House, and others. She currently hosts and curates a monthly poetry event, “Aftershock Dream” which has been running since 2018.

David Romero is a Mexican American spoken word artist from Diamond Bar, CA. He is the co-founder and editor-in-chief of El Martillo Press. Romero is the author of My Name Is Romero (FlowerSong Press, 2020) and Diamond Bars 2 (Moon Tide Press, 2024), and his debut novel is forthcoming in 2026. Romero has received honorariums from nearly a hundred colleges and universities in thirty-four different states in the USA and has also performed live in Mexico, Italy, and France. His poem, “You Were Born a Tree” was sent to the moon by NASA in 2025 as part of the Lunar Codex. Romero’s work has been published in literary magazines in the United States, Mexico, England, Scotland, Cuba, Canada, and Hungary. He has opened for Latin Grammy winning bands Ozomatli and La Santa Cecilia. Romero’s work has been published in anthologies alongside poets laureate Joy Harjo, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Luis J. Rodriguez, Jack Hirschman, Lynne Thompson, and Tongo Eisen-Martin. He has won the Uptown Slam at the historic Green Mill in Chicago; the birthplace of slam poetry. Romero’s poetry deals with family, identity, social justice issues, and Latine culture.

Joshua Jennifer Espinoza is a trans woman poet and the author of I Don’t Want to Be Understood (Alice James Books, 2024); There Should Be Flowers (Civil Coping Mechanisms, 2016); and i’m alive/it hurts/i love it (Boost House, 2014). A creative writing instructor, she lives in Riverside, California.

See site for directions and details.

Where: Bar Covell

Date: Monday the 26^th

Time: 7:30 pm – 10 pm

Address: 4628 Hollywood Boulevard., Los Angeles, CA 90027

Website: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/joy-frequencies-jan-26th-tickets-1979571290017

Monday Night Fiction Workshop via Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center – Online Zoom Event

This free Monday Night Community Writing Workshop led by Raquel Baker is a workshop in which participants are asked to bring copies of 2-3 pages of fiction to read, and to use for critique and discussion. Registration is required.

Raquel Baker earned a PhD in English Literary Studies from the University of Iowa and an MFA in Creative Writing from Mills College. She is currently an Assistant Professor of Postcolonial and Transnational Literatures at California State University Channel Islands, teaching courses on creative writing and contemporary African literatures. Raquel has published poetry in Africology and The Arrow; fiction in Enculturation, The Daily Palette, The Womanist, and Crux; and non-fiction in Little Village; and has done readings with the Ventura County Poetry project. Raquel is passionate about discussing everything related to the craft and social significance of literature!

Where: Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center

Date: Monday the 26^th

Time: 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm

Do you want to find creative inspiration and overcome writer’s block in a supportive and peaceful community setting? Are you interested in writing professionally or for personal growth and healing but unsure where to begin?

Come join acclaimed author and writing instructor Francesca Lia Block for a brief intro and 40 minutes of free writing on any topic without judgement. Afterwards, you will be able to share a bit about your process and ask Francesca questions about your writing.

Francesca Lia Block is the author of more than thirty books of fiction, non-fiction, short stories and poetry, and has written screenplay adaptations of her work. She received the Spectrum Award, the Phoenix Award, the ALA Rainbow Award and the 2005 Margaret A. Edwards Lifetime Achievement Award, as well as other citations from the American Library Association, and from the NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, and PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY. Currently she teaches creative writing at UCLA Extension, Antioch University, Pocket MFA, and numerous workshops across the country. Francesca also edits LIT ANGELS, a literary journal available on Substack. Her latest novel is House of Hearts now out in paperback. https://www.francescaliablock.com/

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 10 am – 11 am

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Where: Fairview Branch Library, SMPL

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 10:30 am – 11 am

Address: 2101 Ocean Park Blvd., Santa Monica, CA 90405

Website: https://www.santamonica.gov/events

Virtual Book Club: Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall via La Crescenta Library, LACL – Online Event

Join us weekly on Zoom for the Virtual Book Club. In January we will be discussing Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall. For adults.

Please contact Marta Wiggins at mwiggins@library.lacounty.gov for your link to join.

Each week we read and discuss 1/4 of the book. Please see the weekly discussion breakdown below.

Week 4: January 27: Part 4 – Frank – Pages 235 to the end of the book

Beth and her gentle, kind husband Frank are happily married, but their relationship relies on the past staying buried. But when Beth’s brother-in-law shoots a dog going after their sheep, Beth doesn’t realize that the gunshot will alter the course of their lives. For the dog belonged to none other than Gabriel Wolfe, the man Beth loved as a teenager—the man who broke her heart years ago. Gabriel has returned to the village with his young son Leo, a boy who reminds Beth very much of her own son, who died in a tragic accident. As Beth is pulled back into Gabriel’s life, tensions around the village rise and dangerous secrets and jealousies from the past resurface, this time with deadly consequences. Beth is forced to make a choice between the woman she once was, and the woman she has become.

Where: La Crescenta Library, LACL

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 11 am – 12 pm

Address: Online Zoom Event (see site)

Where: Fairview Branch Library SMPL

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 11:30 am – 12 pm

Address: 2101 Ocean Park Blvd., Santa Monica, CA 90405

Website: https://www.santamonica.gov/events

Bestsellers Book Club: Lost and Found in Paris at Stevenson Ranch Library, LACL – In-Person Event

Join us and enjoy a lively book discussion on this Bestseller book selection: ‘Lost & Found in Paris’ By Lian Dolan. For adults.

Joan Blakely had an unconventional childhood: the daughter of a globe-trotting supermodel and a world-famous artist. Her artist father died on 9/11, and Joan—an art historian by training—has spent more than a decade maintaining his legacy. Life in the art world is beginning to wear on her—and then one fateful afternoon her husband drops a bombshell: he’s fathered twins with another woman.

Joan will follow the clues all over Paris—from its grand cathedrals to the romantic bistros to the twisty side streets of Montmartre—hoping to recover the lost art, and her own sense of adventure. What she finds is even better than she’d expected.

Where: Stevenson Ranch Library LACL

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 12 pm – 1 pm

Address: 25950 The Old Rd., Stevenson Ranch, CA 91381 

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/15364352

Writing the Fires: a Poetry Workshop for Teens with Nancy Lynee Woo at El Dorado Library, Long Beach – In-Person Teen Event (RESCHEDULED)

Explore your experiences, feelings, thoughts and questions about wildfires, climate change, and our changing world in a supportive, creative space. No poetry experience needed! We’ll read example poems, discuss, write, and share using provided writing prompts.

All teen poems written here are eligible for publication in the future California Poets in the Schools anthology on LA wildfires. Workshop Leader: Nancy Lynée Woo, Poetry Mentor for the Long Beach Youth Poet Laureate program. For ages 13-18. Registration encouraged.

RSVP at website.

Where: Burnett Neighborhood Library, Long Beach

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 4:30 pm – 6:30 pm

Address: 560 E. Hill St., Long Beach, CA 90806

Website: https://www.longbeach.gov/library/events

Zoom Book Club: Island of Sea Women at Venice – Abbot Kinney Memorial Branch Library, LAPL – Online Event

Join us on the last Tuesday of the month for a lively discussion of our current selection.

Time: 5 pm

Address: 601 S. Venice Blvd., Venice, CA 90291

Website: https://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/zoom-book-club-1

Lomita Book Club: The Buddha in the Attic at Lomita Library, LACL – In-Person Event

Book Club is back! This month we’ll explore The Buddha in the Attic, by Julie Otsuka. This historical fiction focuses on Japanese ‘picture brides’ who immigrated to America in the early 1900s to marry men they had only seen in pictures. For adults.

This novel follows the lives of these women from arranged marriages, becoming migrant workers, raising children, and their sentencing to the Japanese internment camps.

For adults 18+.

Where: Lomita Library, LACL

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 6 pm

Address: 24200 Narbonne Ave., Lomita, CA 90717

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/15224459

Lomita Book Club: The Buddha in the Attic at Lomita Library, LACL – In-Person Event

Book Club is back! This month we’ll explore The Buddha in the Attic, by Julie Otsuka. This historical fiction focuses on Japanese ‘picture brides’ who immigrated to America in the early 1900s to marry men they had only seen in pictures. For adults.

This novel follows the lives of these women from arranged marriages, becoming migrant workers, raising children, and their sentencing to the Japanese internment camps.

For adults 18+.

Where: Lomita Library, LACL

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 6 pm

Address: 24200 Narbonne Ave., Lomita, CA 90717

This title is also available in e-book and e-audio formats through Libby and Hoopla

Where: Iacobani Library, LACL

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 6 pm

Address: 4990 Clark Ave., Lakewood, CA 90712

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/15524244

LGBTQ+ Book Club: Brideshead Revisited at West Hollywood Library, LACL – In-Person & Online Hybrid Event

Join the LGBTQ+ Book Club for a hybrid (in-person and online) discussion of Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh. For adults.

This is a hybrid event and will be hosted in-person in the West Hollywood Library Community Meeting Room as well as on Zoom. Please register at the link below to receive the link to the meeting via email

https://library-lacounty-gov.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0pd-Goqz4uGNNbzVuW720zsRrGxTK1VeLG

West Hollywood Library’s LGBTQ+ Book Club meets on the last Tuesday of the month to discuss literary works of relevance and interest to the LGBTQ+ community.

Please contact the library to borrow a print copy of the book. eBook is available through Libby app/OverDrive.

Summary provided by the publisher:

The wellsprings of desire and the impediments to love come brilliantly into focus in Evelyn Waugh’s masterpiece—a novel that immerses us in the glittering and seductive world of English aristocracy in the waning days of the empire. Through the story of Charles Ryder’s entanglement with the Flytes, a great Catholic family, Evelyn Waugh charts the passing of the privileged world he knew in his own youth and vividly recalls the sensuous pleasures denied him by wartime austerities. At once romantic, sensuous, comic, and somber, Brideshead Revisited transcends Waugh’s early satiric explorations and reveals him to be an elegiac, lyrical novelist of the utmost feeling and lucidity.

Where: West Hollywood Library, LACL

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 6 pm – 7 pm

Address: 625 N. San Vicente Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/15062278

Hooked on Books Book Club: The God of the Woods at Quartz Hill Library, LACL – In-Person Event

Join us as we venture into The God of the Woods by Liz Moore. Copies are available at the Customer Service desk and newcomers are always welcome! For adults

When a teenager vanishes from her Adirondack summer camp, two worlds collide.

Barbara Van Laar has gone missing. And Barbara isn’t just any thirteen-year-old: she’s the daughter of the family that owns the summer camp. This isn’t the first time a Van Laar child has disappeared. Barbara’s older brother similarly vanished fourteen years ago, never to be found. As a panicked search begins, a thrilling drama unfolds.

Where: Quartz Hill Library, LACL

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 6 pm – 7 pm

Address: 5040 W. Ave. M 2., Quartz Hill, CA 93536

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/15364353

Blockbuster Book Club: Hidden Figures at Clifton M. Brakensiek Library, LACL – In-Person Event

Join us for a new, two-part book club for books that have made it to the screen! Ages 18.

This first session we will discuss the book Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly. The second session, Tuesday February 24th from 5 pm – 7 pm, we will celebrate Black History Month and watch the film adaptation. This program is generously sponsored by the Friends of the Clifton M. Brakensiek Library.

Check with the circulation desk for copies of the book or request a copy online at Catalog.LACountyLibrary.org/

Where: Clifton M. Brakensiek Library, LACL

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 6 pm – 7 pm

Address: 9945 Flower St., Bellflower, CA 90706

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/15332533

Phy-Sci Book Club: Best American Science and Nature Writing 2025 at Cellar Door Bookstore, Riverside – In-Person Event

Join us to discuss Best American Science and Nature Writing 2025 by editor Susan Orlean.

“The best science and nature writing—which these stories represent—reminds us of the wide world and our connection to it, and the multitude of ways we make our place in it,” writes Susan Orlean in her introduction. This year’s collection masterfully guides us through exotic locations and groundbreaking research, leading us to consider complex and utterly fascinating questions about the world. How does it feel to camp in one of the hottest places on Earth? Is the ability to recognize and remember faces a sign of intelligence? What does it mean for a species to be wild or invasive—are city pigeons and rats less deserving than the coyotes that recently wandered down from Westchester? Encompassing the strangeness and, at times, severity of our world, these stories are urgent, vital, and ultimately inspiring. As Orlean eloquently observes, “Science keeps unlocking mysteries, revealing secrets, helping us heal. And as imperiled as nature seems, it remains amply, gloriously gorgeous: The world is still full of beauty.”

Where: Cellar Door Bookstore

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 6 pm – 8 pm

Address: 473 E. Alessandro Blvd., Suite B, Riverside, CA 92508

Website: https://cellardoorbookstore.com/event/2026-01-27/phy-sci-book-club-best-american-science-and-nature-writing-2025

$150. Register today! https://tinyurl.com/Poet-TRY15

What can avant-garde poets from the past and present teach us about how to make work that feels exciting and fresh? Experience the FIFTEENTH iteration of this beloved class as we look for some new and old sources of inspiration in poets who think outside the box.

Join us for a generative, asynchronous workshop where we write together and give encouraging empowering feedback. Occasional online office hours, and this time, Stephanie will provide an occasional social hour space for students – also optional.

Stephanie Barbé Hammer is a seven-time Pushcart Prize nominee in fiction, nonfiction and poetry and is the author of two poetry collections (How Formal? City Slicker: Encounters with the Outside), three novels (The Puppet Turners of Narrow Interior; Pretend Plumber, Journey to Merveilleux City), a novelette (Rescue Plan), and a how to write magical realism craft book (Delicious Strangeness). Her collection of lyric magical realist flash comes out in March!

Originally from Manhattan, Stephanie moved to Southern California in 1986. She has lived on the West Coast ever since; she taught at the University of California, Riverside campus for 30 years and she now resides in Santa Barbara, California. A professor emerita of Comparative Literature, she teaches creative writing at Hugo House Seattle, the Santa Barbara Writers Conference and Inlandia Institute, Riverside. She sits on the advisory board of Writers Bloc Presents and helped judge the essay contest for Santa Barbara’s 2026 MLK celebration.

Where: Inlandia Online Event

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 6 pm

Address: Online Zoom Event

Website: https://inlandiainstitute.org/poet-try-15-old-and-new-bohemians-with-stephanie-barbe-hammer/

The Mystery Book Club: Blue Heaven at Playa Vista Branch Library, LAPL – In-Person Event

Join us to discuss Blue Heaven by C.J. Box. All are welcome.

Where: Playa Vista Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 6:30 pm – 8 pm

Address: 6400 Playa Vista Dr., Los Angeles, CA 90094

Website: https://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/mystery-book-club-24

Sci-Fi Fantasy Book Club: The Memory Police at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

The Village Well Book Club offshoot, the Sci-fi Fantasy Book Club! To the Tolkien nerds, SJM stans, and R.F. Kuang enjoyers, this group is for you! On the fourth Tuesday of every month, we will come together and discuss a story that falls within the realms of either science fiction or fantasy (or sometimes both!). To join our emailing list, reach out to events@villagewell.com. Hope to see ya there!

This month’s pick is The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa.

A haunting Orwellian novel about the terrors of state surveillance, from the acclaimed author of The Housekeeper and the Professor.

On an unnamed island, objects are disappearing: first hats, then ribbons, birds, roses. Most of the inhabitants are oblivious to these changes, while those few able to recall the lost objects live in fear of the draconian Memory Police, who are committed to ensuring that what has disappeared remains forgotten. When a young writer discovers that her editor is in danger, she concocts a plan to hide him beneath her floorboards, and together they cling to her writing as the last way of preserving the past. Powerful and provocative, The Memory Police is a stunning novel about the trauma of loss.

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 6:30 pm – 8 pm

CALLING ALL WRITERS! Every Tuesday we’ll be having Open Mic Readings open to the public! Read your poems, fiction, and spoken word at our open mic reading EVERY TUESDAY NIGHT from 7 pm – 10 pm!

Read your poetry, fiction, spoken word, or lyrics.

Free event. 21+

Note: Please RSVP at site.

Where: The Aftermath Bar

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 7 pm – 10 pm

Address: 14537 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks, CA 91403

Website: https://www.instagram.com

Ticketed Event: Jaydi Samuels-Kuba &Your Last First Date: Secrets from a Hollywood Matchmaker at Book Soup – In-Person Event

Jaydi Samuels-Kuba will discuss Your Last First Date: Secrets from a Hollywood Matchmaker.

The age-old art of matchmaking meets Hollywood as Jaydi Samuels Kuba, founder of LJMatchmaking, takes us behind the scenes of her work as a matchmaker and date coach for the entertainment industry’s most eligible singles. Even the glitziest picture-perfect set-up could flop due to bad dating habits, a frustration that Jaydi specializes in solving. Now, in Your Last First Date, she’s sharing her incredible stories, along with the exclusive practical wisdom we all need.

Where: Book Soup

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 7 pm – 8 pm

Address: 8818 Sunset Boulevard, West Hollywood, CA 90069

Facilitated by Mark Polak

Where: pages, a bookstore

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 7 pm

Address: 904 Manhattan Ave., Manhattan Beach, CA 90266

Steven Underwood digs into the current Black digital arts movement that has shaped popular culture for the last decade. He connects this current space to historical influences, speaking to a “legacy of audacity and daring that presented us with the opportunity to redirect the conversations on Blackness back on its center. Back to Black people.” Written as a collection of thought-provoking essays pulling in social commentary, interviews, popular culture, and deep research, Underwood taps into a topic that is incredibly relevant but often unknown.

Hailing from Columbus, Ohio, Steven Underwood is an award-winning writer with a penchant for unveiling magic in the hypercritical. Honest to his experiences, Underwood has published essays on Blackness and identity. Steven was a finalist for Le Maison Baldwin’s Writers-in-Residence Program. He has no dogs or cats, but two nieces and a nephew who swear they are smarter than him. His non-fiction work has been published in numerous outlets, including Oprah, NPR, Essence, MTV News, Blavity, NewNowNext, BET, GQ, Out Magazine, AfroPunk, Complex, Refinery29, Them, and many, many more. He currently resides in Los Angeles.

Tré Melvin is an American producer, actor, singer, writer, designer, activist, and entrepreneur. He is one of the most prominent names in digital media. Hailing from Dayton, Ohio, Tré began birthing a myriad of plays, poems, songs, books, and short films all before his tenth birthday. He began acting professionally at twelve, performing in a variety of plays, musicals, commercials, films, and radio spots. He studied theatre and creative writing between grades 7-12 at Stivers School for the Arts (Dayton, OH), and later at Bellarmine University (Louisville, KY), The University of Cincinnati (Cincinnati, OH), and The Juilliard School (New York City).

Where: Reparations Club

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 7 pm – 8 pm

Address: 3054 South Victoria Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90016

Joined by Alexandra Poer, the stylist for the book!

For those seeking connection and meaning in their everyday lives, an easy-to-follow, beautiful, and inspiring manual on performing ceremonies for all occasions and milestones, from life transitions and family gatherings to holidays and seasonal changes.

For as long as humans have existed, we have performed ceremonies to mark occasions and personal transitions to create meaning and connect with the world, ourselves, and each other. Though ceremony is still a cornerstone of many cultures around the globe, modern rituals are largely confined to just three events: birth, marriage, and death. Without our ancestors’ sense of frequent and intentional ceremony, we have lost the power to bring meaning to our everyday lives. The Book of Modern Ceremony is here to change that.

Written by sociologist and ceremonialist Shari Dunbar Boyer, this book shares more than 30 ceremonies that can be easily incorporated into contemporary life. There are rituals for life transitions, calendar changes, and personal growth. Some celebrate familiar events, like the Untraditional Birthday or Vow Renewal ceremonies, but others mark important milestones that we often neglect, such as moving to a new home or entering menopause. And of course, there are seasonal rituals for every solstice, equinox, and moon cycle.

Presented in easy-to-follow step-by-step instructions, The Book of Modern Ceremony encourages readers to leave behind the daily stressors of life and connect more deeply with themselves, their loved ones, and their own spirituality.

Where: Vroman’s

Date: Tuesday the 27^th

Time: 7 pm – 8 pm

Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101

Website: https://vromansbookstore.com/event/2026-01-27/shari-dunbar-boyer

The Virtual Cobalt Series & Open Mic: Rick Lupert & Erin Mizrahi – Online Zoom Event

Cobalt Poets Reading & Open Mic and host Rick Lupert welcomes featured poet Erin Mizrhi.

Erin Mizrahi is a writer, Pushcart nominee, scholar, teacher, curator, and editor-in-chief of the multimedia literary and arts journal, Cobra Milk. Raised in the San Fernando Valley with a conscientious detour in Santa Cruz, Erin now splits her time between Los Angeles and New York. She holds a Ph. D.

Where: Cobalt Poets – Online Zoom Event

Date: Tuesday, the 27^th

Time: 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm

The nation’s largest weekly spoken word Open Mic event is 26 years strong. DPL is a community space for every poet to be heard. They provide a platform to celebrate poetry while using it as the foundation for creativity, innovation, and expression across an array of media outlets.

$10 suggested donation. Pay what you can. Do NOT line up prior to 7:30 pm Free parking adjacent to the theater.

Masks are encouraged.

Where: COC – COMMUNITY OWNED CENTER, New Leimert Park Location

Date: Tuesday, the 27^th

Time: 9 pm – 11 pm (Doors at 8:15 pm)

Address: 4276 Crenshaw Blvd., Leimert Park, CA 90008

PARKING:

Street parking: Crenshaw and Degnan

Parking Lot: 3416 W 43rd St Leimert Park, Los Angeles, CA 90008

Website: https://www.instagram.com

Mystery Book Group: We Solve Murders at Once Upon a Time, Montrose – In-Person Event

Start your morning with a lively discussion of Richard Osman’s We Solve Murders: A Novel.

Whether you loved it, hated it, or haven’t finished it, we want to see you at our Mystery Book Group at America’s Oldest Children’s Bookstore!

We will be meeting to discuss the book outside of the shop in the circle in front of Star Cafe.

Steve Wheeler is enjoying retired life. He still does the odd bit of investigation work, but he prefers his familiar routines: the pub quiz, his favorite bench, his cat waiting for him at home. His days of adventure are over. Adrenaline is daughter-in-law Amy’s job now.

Amy Wheeler thinks adrenaline is good for the soul. Working in private security, every day is dangerous. She’s currently on a remote island protecting mega-bestselling author Rosie D’Antonio, until a dead body and a bag of money mean trouble in paradise. So she sends an SOS to the only person she trusts…

As a thrilling race around the world begins, can Amy and Steve outrun and outsmart a killer?

Solving murders. It’s a family business.

Where: Once Upon a Time, Montrose

Date: Wednesday the 28^th

Time: 9 am

Address: 2207 Honolulu Ave., Montrose, CA 91020

Website: https://www.shoponceuponatime.com/event/2026-01-28/mystery-book-group-we-solve-murders-richard-osman

Lit Angels: Morning Writing with Francesca Lia Block at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Come write with us!

Many people believe that a morning writing practice is key to finding your voice, your story and, in this case, your community! At the Village Well!

Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning at 8:30 AM come join acclaimed author and writing instructor Francesca Lia Block for a brief intro and 40 minutes of free writing on any topic without judgement. Afterwards, you will be able to share a bit about your process and ask Francesca questions about your writing.

About the instructor:

Francesca Lia Block is the author of more than thirty books of fiction, non-fiction, short stories and poetry, and has written screenplay adaptations of her work. She received the Spectrum Award, the Phoenix Award, the ALA Rainbow Award and the 2005 Margaret A. Edwards Lifetime Achievement Award, as well as other citations from the American Library Association, and from the NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, and PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY. Currently she teaches creative writing at UCLA Extension, Antioch University, Pocket MFA, and numerous workshops across the country. Francesca also edits LIT ANGELS, a literary journal available on Substack. Her latest novel is House of Hearts now out in paperback. https://www.francescaliablock.com/

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Wednesday the 28^tht

Time: 9 am – 10 am

Nancy Lynée Woo will lead a Cal Poets Write On Workshop for generative poetry writing.

RSVP: Free, donations welcome.

Where: Linktree/fancifulnance

Date: Wednesday the 28^th

Time: 9:30 am – 11 am

Join us for a lively discussion of the 1955 novel The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith

Where: Granada Hills Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Wednesday the 28^th

Time: 1:30 pm – 3 pm

Address: 10640 Petit Avenue, Granada Hills, CA 91344

Website: https://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/drag-queen-story-hour-1

Poets Café via KPFK 90.7 FM – Live On-Air Event

Poets Café celebrates Poetry. This program is a weekly half-hour literary arts discussion and reading program featuring guest authors and their works.

Poetry From Around the World is a segment of this series offered monthly on the 2^nd Monday of the month on KPFK Los Angeles 90.7 FM.

NOTE: See site for details.

Where: KPFK 90.7 FM

Date: Wednesday, the 28^th

Time: 2 pm – 2:30 pm

Address: On-air Event

Website: https://www.kpfk.org/on-air/poets-cafe/

Book Launch: Lachi & Nic Novicki & I Identify as Blind at Reparations Club – In-Person Event

Join Rep Club for a discussion on I Identify As Blind by author and artist Lachi in conversation with Nic Novicki.

Lachi is an award-winning singer and leader who awakens the world to this truth: Disability has long shaped our culture and is an identity worth brazenly celebrating. In this book, Lachi welcomes readers into the vibrant world of Disability Culture.

I Identify as Blind pulses with energy. Through magnetic storytelling, pop-culture deep dives, and historical insight, Lachi challenges mainstream views on disability with humor and heart. Because visionaries with disabilities have always driven progress.

The book features trailblazing figures like Senator Tammy Duckworth, Breaking Bad star RJ Mitte, Microsoft executive Jenny Lay-Flurrie, and so many more. Lachi even takes readers behind the scenes at Coldplay concerts, since after Chris Martin developed tinnitus, he transformed his concerts into some of the most accessible in the world. Each story reframes disability not as a deficit but as a wellspring of collective strength. And inventions created for people with disabilities benefit everyone—from audiobooks to curb cuts to the internet. (Vint Cerf helped develop the first commercial email service, because he had trouble communicating by phone.)

With punchy humor and radical honesty, Lachi dismantles stereotypes and builds a new narrative of Disability identity. I Identify as Blind is an invitation to a cultural movement—welcoming everyone to celebrate disabilities as a source of power and pride.

Come for the laughs, stay for the mic drops.

Lachi is an award-winning recording artist, public speaker, and the first openly disabled National Trustee of the Recording Academy. She is the CEO of RAMPD (Recording Artists and Music Professionals with Disabilities), which has partnered with Netflix and Live Nation. Named a USA Today Woman of the Year and a “dedicated foot soldier for disability pride” by Forbes, Lachi hosted the PBS American Masters series Renegades, has appeared on Good Morning America, and has spoken at The White House. She lives in New York City.

Nic Novicki is a comedian, actor, and producer who has performed on 6 continents, including several tours through Armed Forces Entertainment, performing for troops. His television credits include: Boardwalk Empire, Bad Thoughts, The Good Doctor, The Sopranos, Loudermilk, Alone Together, Gotham Comedy Live, Jack and Triumph, The Neighbors, Austin and Alley, Private Practice, Drop Dead Diva. He has appeared in several movies, including: Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, Marry Me, L!fe Happens, November Rule, The Last 5 Years, Boston Girls, Breaking Wind, Dead Ant, and the upcoming BitterSweet. He is the founder and director of the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge and is a board member of Easterseals Southern California.

Where: Rep Club

Date: Wednesday the 28^th

Time: 3 pm

Address: 3054 South Victoria Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90016

Website: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/book-launch-i-identify-as-blind-wlachi-nic-novicki-tickets-1977984350438?aff=oddtdtcreator

Author Talk: Liz Moore & The God of the Woods at San Dimas Library, LACL – In-Person & Online Hybrid Event

Join us for a discussion of The God of the Woods with author Liz Moore.

LA County Library hosts monthly virtual author talks through our website. Join us for a viewing party at San Dimas Library as we all gather to watch this virtual author talk together! For adults.

This is a watch party of a virtual event hosted on Zoom.

Where: San Dimas Library, LACL

Date: Wednesday the 28^th

Time: 4 pm – 5 pm

Address: 145 N. Walnut Ave., San Dimas, CA 91773

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/15595481

Sci-Fi Book Club: The God Emperor of Dune by Frank Herbert at Van Nuys Branch Library, LAPL – Event

Join our Science Fiction Book Club where author Frank Herbert’s The God Emperor of Dune will be discussed. Copies of this novel are available from the Library Cybernaught.

Synopsis: In the fourth book of the Dune Saga, Leto Atriedes the Second has ruled the universe for thousands of years. Part human, part sandworm, the God Emperor is revered as both deity and official. But what happens when a young woman and her allies revolt against Leto?

Where: Van Nuys Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Wednesday the 28^th

Time: 5 pm – 6 pm

Address: 6250 Sylmar Ave., Van Nuys, CA 91401

Website: https://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/sci-fi-book-club-god-emperor-dune-frank-herbert

Sci Fi Story Club: “Six Thought Experiments Concerning Computation” by Rudy Ruckert via Edendale Library, LAPL – Online Event

Join us on Zoom for the next gathering of the Sci Fi Story Club! We’ll be discussing Rudy Rucker’s “Six Thought Experiments Concerning the Nature of Computation” from his collection Mad Professor: The Uncollected Short Stories.

A shy Berkeley chemical engineer invents sentient paint that becomes a hit with East Bay hot rodders, a videogame designer accidentally unlocks the code to the cosmos while landscaping a virtual golf course, a yoga teacher discovers infinite chakras that become helpful extra selves. Vivid and uncanny in their own right, these six mini-stories were originally written as chapter intros for Rudy Rucker’s book on computation to illustrate different aspects of the topic. Rucker is a widely published computer scientist and mathematician who has taught at several universities, and along with William Gibson and Bruce Sterling, was one of the originators of cyberpunk – a sci-fi subgenre with an aesthetic of “high-tech/low-life”. He is best known for the novels in his Ware Tetralogy, the first two of which (Software and Wetware) won the Philip K. Dick Award for best science fiction novel in 1983 and 1988.

Email eden@lapl.org for the link to read the story online, the Zoom link to attend and to get on our mailing list for this monthly gathering.

Where: Edendale Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Wednesday, the 28^th

Time: 5 pm – 6 pm

Address: Online Event (see site)

Our Book Club meets on the last Wednesday of every month, unless otherwise stated.

January’s Book Pick is The Lion Women of Tehran by Marjan Kamali.

A young Iranian American woman discovers hints of her mother’s hidden past and is drawn into the story of a courageous group of women in pre-revolution Tehran, prompting her to rethink identity, family, and the power of women’s resilience.

A small number of copies will be available for checkout on December 30, 2025.

Where: El Monte Library, LACL

Date: Wednesday the 28^th

Time: 5 pm – 6 pm

Address: 3224 Tyler Ave., El Monte, CA 91731

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/15491545

Writers Block: Creative Writing & Meaningful Connection at Octavia’s Bookshelf, Pasadena – In-Person Event

Calling all creative writers!

If you would like to connect with other writers and have dedicated time for creative writing (poetry, short stories, novels, songs, screenplays, etc.), this is for you! We are holding space for writers to free-write, share and receive positive feedback, and make meaningful connections. All levels are welcome. This space is offered freely!

ZAHIDA is a proud Seattle native and poet who made her way to Southern California by way of everywhere. Her previous writing has centered on culture, belonging, and wellness for Bustle, Healthline, Well and Good, Afropunk, and Blavity, among others.

Where: Octavia’s Bookshelf

Date: Wednesday the 28^th

Time: 6 pm – 8 pm

Address: 1353 North Hill Ave., Pasadena, CA 91104

Over the course of 23,083 miles, Kate Santoro has circled the Earth on foot-through marathons, misadventures, and moments that nearly broke her. But this isn’t a book about how to run a marathon. It’s about what happens when life becomes one.

Truth on the Run is a raw, funny, gut-punch of a memoir that chases down truth through heartbreak, motherhood, wildfires, near-death accidents, and the finish line of the Boston Marathon bombing. From East Coast roots to West Coast upheaval, Kate’s journey is laced with grit, grief, resilience, and unexpected grace.

With sharp humor and searing honesty, she invites you into a story not about winning-but about enduring. About showing up breathless, blistered, and stripped to the core-and still choosing to move forward.

Whether you’re navigating loss, rebuilding after disaster, or just trying to remember where you left your joy, Truth on the Run will remind you that the run doesn’t save you. You save yourself. One gritty, grace-filled step at a time.

Kate Santoro is a lifelong Bostonian who now calls Manhattan Beach home. A wildfire evacuee from the Pacific Palisades, Kate is a mother of five, a health coach, and a 30-time marathoner and coach. Her writing weaves running, resilience, family, and loss into stories of perseverance and hope. Pages Bookstore played a quiet but meaningful role in inspiring her to write this book—serving as a place of refuge, reflection, and community during a season of transition.

Date: Wednesday the 28^th

Time: 6 pm – 7 pm

Address: 904 Manhattan Ave., Manhattan Beach, CA 90266

Website: https://pagesabookstore.com/event/2026-01-28/special-author-event-kate-santoro

Local Authors Meetup at Underdog Books, Monrovia – In-Person Event

At Underdog Bookstore we love supporting local authors on the shelves and at our signings and panels, but sometimes you just want to turn off the book selling brain and enjoy each other’s company instead.

We hope that these meetups will provide an opportunity to connect, collaborate, and spend time in community. Whether you’re self-published and new to the industry or have trade tales to share from your experience in indie or major publishing–all writers are welcome here.

Our space is food, drink, and pet friendly, so feel free to bring your favorite refreshments and animal companions!

RSVP.

Where: Underdog Bookstore

Date: Wednesday the 28^th

Time: 6 pm – 8 pm

Address: 312 S. Myrtle Ave., Monrovia, CA 91016

Website: https://www.underdogbookstore.org/events/local-authors-meetup-segb8-sfzbl-mrthn-sghhl-cm4gp-2npwb-pm982-gfgbh

Romantasy Book Club for Adults: Arcana Academy at Agoura Hills Library, LACL – In-Person Event

Join us to discuss Arcana Academy by Elise Kova. Copies available at Customer Service. For adults.

Clara Graysword has survived the underworld of Eclipse City through thievery, luck, and a whole lot of illegal magic. After a job gone awry, Clara is sentenced to a lifetime in prison for inking tarot cards-a rare power reserved for practitioners at the elite Arcana Academy. Just when it seems her luck has run dry, the academy’s enigmatic headmaster, Prince Kaelis, offers her an escape-for a price. Kaelis believes that Clara is the perfect tool to help him steal a tarot card from the king and use it to re-create an all-powerful card long lost to time. In order to conceal her identity and keep her close, Kaelis brings Clara to Arcana Academy, introducing her as the newest first-year student and his bride-to-be.

Where: Agoura Hills Library, LACL

Date: Wednesday the 28^th

Time: 6:30 pm – 7:30 pm

Address: 29901 Ladyface Ct., Agoura Hills, CA 91301

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/15248882

Mystery & Thriller Book Club: With a Vengeance at Studio City Branch Library, LAPL – In-Person Event

Join us on the last Wednesday of the month for a book discussion.

This month’s selection is With a Vengeance by Riley Sager.

Where: Studio City Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Wednesday the 28^th

Time: 6:30 pm

Address: 12511 Moorpark St., Studio City, CA 91604

The ultimate guide to recognizing untapped potential by celebrating imperfection. Learn to take the path less travelled with direction from misfit guides like Tony Hawk, Mark Mothersbaugh, Michelle “Estrojen” Steilen, Shepard Fairey, and many more.

“You’re weird.” “Sorry.” “No, that was a compliment.” —Donnie Darko

When the whole world appears designed to make you just fit in, Misfit urges you to listen to your oddball self and seek out an original path.

Will it be easy? Predictable? Understood and supported by the masses? No.

But will it be dynamic, full of wild expression, and fill you with a joyful sense of discovery? Yes.

Sean Mortimer—a celebrated writer who started as a skateboarder alongside Tony Hawk—collaborates with internationally acclaimed misfits whose unconventional heat has warped how the world perceives music, sports and art. These iconic nonconformists did not start out as the celebrated renegades we see today. Each pushed through the initial pain and isolation of social rejection, overcoming self-doubt with erratic experimentation to reach a destination overflowing with conviction, gratitude, and their own version of success.

Where: Book Soup

Date: Wednesday the 28^th

Time: 7 pm – 8 pm

Address: 8818 Sunset Boulevard, West Hollywood, CA 90069

Website: https://booksoup.com/event/2026-01-28/sean-mortimer-michelle-steilen

RECESS Open Mic at SIPA HQ, Palms Up Academy – In-Person Event

RECESS Open Mic is at SIPA HQ on Wednesdays.

Standard mic RSVP, rules and entry apply.

This dynamic open mic is the most accessible public program in the Palms Up Academy curriculum and manifests their mission statement in a physical (and digital) space.

Host: Lady Basco

NOTE: Only self-sign-ups are allowed.

20 slots available; 15 slots for dinner served; remaining slots for faculty.

See site for further details,

NOTE: See site for RSVP, cost, guidelines, and details.

Where: SIPA HQ

Date: Wednesday, the 28^th

Time: 7 pm – 9:30 pm (Doors at 6:30 pm; Open Mic at 8 pm)

Address: 3200 W. Temple St., Ste. 100, Los Angeles, CA 90026

Website: https://www.instagram.com

Fiction Reading Group: The Master and Margarita at Vroman’s – In-Person Event

Participants will read and discuss The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov.

The Vroman’s Fiction Reading Group meets the 4th Wednesday of every month at 7 pm.

The Vroman’s Fiction Reading Group explores contemporary fiction—long and short—from a diverse selection of writers. Enjoy lively discussions at our one-hour meetings. Our Fiction Reading Group is free and inclusive—there are no requirements nor criteria to join. We announce upcoming titles 3-6 months in advance and choose titles that are available in paperback. Drop by our next meeting!

Where: Vroman’s

Date: Wednesday the 28^th

Time: 7 pm – 8 pm

Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101

Website: https://vromansbookstore.com/event/2026-01-28/vromans-fiction-reading-group

Ticketed Event: The How to Academy Presents: Jeanette McCurdy & Half His Age Off-site at The Wilshire Ebell Theater – In-Person Event

Jennette McCurdy, the #1 New York Times bestselling author, joins How to Academy to discuss her debut novel Half His Age and reflect on the creative journey that has shaped her evolution as a storyteller.

Join Jennette McCurdy for an unmissable evening of sharp insight and candid storytelling as she reflects on her creative process, her forthcoming Apple TV+ adaptation of I’m Glad My Mom Died, and her fearless evolution from performer to writer, producer, and one of the most original narrative voices of her generation.

All seats include a pre-signed copy of Half His Age.

Presented by How to Academy, with Chevalier’s Books.

Where: Wilshire Ebell Theater

Date: Wednesday the 28^th

Time: 7 pm – 9 pm

Address: 4401 W. 8^th St., Los Angeles, CA 90005

Website: https://chevaliersbooks.com/event/2026-01-28/jennette-mccurdy

Anansi Writers Workshop at The World Stage – In-Person Event

The Anansi Writers Workshop was founded in 1990 by Kamau Daáood, Akilah Oliver, Nafis Nabawi and Anthony Lyons. In 1993, Michael Datcher initiated the development of a three-part format for the workshop. Our tradition of a community workshop began in the late 1960s at the Watts Writers’ Workshop, where World Stage co-founder Kamau Daáood started his writing career. Hosted by Jessica Gallion aka “Yellawoman.”

Tommy Domino is a spoken blues poet from Northwest Pasadena now residing in Long Beach area. He started performing at open mics starting with the Griot Café out of Long Beach in 2003. In 2012, he joined the Still Waters Writers Collective at Vibrations in Inglewood. There, his work was first published in 2013 in the poetry anthology Sounds From the Waters. In 2015, his work was published in the anthology Poets and Allies for Resistance. His new poetry collection is Closer in the Rearview (Big Six).

• 7:30 pm – 8:30 pm — Formal workshop;
• 8:30 pm – 9:00 pm — Tommy Domino;
• 9:05 pm – 10:00 pm — Open mic.

Suggested: $10.00 Donation via PayPal: The World Stage Gallery.

NOTE: See site for further details and any change in the schedule. Contact on Instagram @ _yellawoman.

Where: The World Stage (use left rear entrance)

Date: Wednesday, the 28^th

Time: 7:30 pm – 10 pm

Address: 4321 Degnan Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90008

Website: https://www.instagram.com

Story Salon at Art Parlor: California in Valley Village – In-Person & Virtual Hybrid Event (Check to Verify)

Los Angeles’s longest running storytelling venue is now a hybrid event!

An alternative to stand-up clubs + self-conscious performance spaces

Story Salon challenges you all to tell stories in 90 seconds! Can you do it? If you can, join us!

Tickets can be purchased early with the link in bio or at storysalon.com.

Theme: California: “other places only make me love you best”

This event will be a benefit to help the Altadena and Eaton communities recover from the fires of last year.

Come support by purchasing your tickets early with the link in bio or at storysalon.com.

Where: Art Parlor

Date: Wednesday the 28^th

Time: 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm (Doors at 7 pm)

Address: 5302 Laurel Canyon Blvd., Valley Village, CA 91607 

Website: https://www.instagram.com

Wednesday Night Poetry Workshop with Martin Jago via Beyond Baroque – Online Event

The West Coast’s longest-running free poetry workshop is offered by Beyond Baroque on Zoom and welcomes new and seasoned poets to share their work and provide feedback. Please be prepared to share one poem. This workshop will be hosted via the Zoom video-conferencing platform. Please be prepared to share one poem.

Please spend some time before the workshop learning how to share documents via Zoom. It will keep the session moving if you’re able to make your poem viewable quickly and easily. An instructive video is available on the site.

The workshop can sometimes reach high levels of attendance, which means not everyone will get a chance to read every session.

Martin Jago is a British American poet based in Los Angeles. Author of Photofit (Pindrop Press, 2023) and a forthcoming chapbook, Black Plastic Blues (Finishing Line, 2026), his writing has appeared widely in literary magazines like Agenda, Acumen, The Moth, LIT Magazine, Presence, The Penn Review, The High Window, The Indianapolis Review, Tupelo Quarterly, and Sierra Nevada Review, among others. He holds a Master’s in Creative Writing from the University of Oxford where he was an F.H. Pasby Prize finalist.

NOTE: See site for further details, tickets, and information. 

Where: Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center

Date: Wednesday, the 28^th

Time: 8 pm – 10 pm

Host Ben Trigg welcomes guests for a reading and open mic.

CHECK TO VERIFY FEATURE

$5 cover fee, cash only

Where: The Ugly Mug, Orange

Date: Wednesday, the 28^th

Time: 8 pm – 10 pm

Address: 261 N. Glassell St., Orange, CA 92866

Website: https://www.facebook.com/events

Lit Angels: Morning Writing with Francesca Lia Block at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Come write with us!

Many people believe that a morning writing practice is key to finding your voice, your story and, in this case, your community! At the Village Well!

Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning at 8:30 AM come join acclaimed author and writing instructor Francesca Lia Block for a brief intro and 40 minutes of free writing on any topic without judgement. Afterwards, you will be able to share a bit about your process and ask Francesca questions about your writing.

Francesca Lia Block is the author of more than thirty books of fiction, non-fiction, short stories and poetry, and has written screenplay adaptations of her work. She received the Spectrum Award, the Phoenix Award, the ALA Rainbow Award and the 2005 Margaret A. Edwards Lifetime Achievement Award, as well as other citations from the American Library Association, and from the NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, and PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY. Currently she teaches creative writing at UCLA Extension, Antioch University, Pocket MFA, and numerous workshops across the country. Francesca also edits LIT ANGELS, a literary journal available on Substack. Her latest novel is House of Hearts now out in paperback. https://www.francescaliablock.com/

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Thursday the 29^th

Time: 10 am – 11 am

Join participants to discuss The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray. For adults.

The story follows Belle da Costa Greene hired by J. Pierpont Morgan to curate a collection of rare manuscripts, books, and artwork. For adults.

Hired by J. Pierpont Morgan, Belle quickly becomes a fixture on the New York society scene and one of the most powerful people in the art and book world, known for her impeccable taste and shrewd negotiating for critical works as she helps build a world-class collection. But Belle has a secret, one she must protect at all costs.

Where: Lloyd Taber Marina del Rey Library, LACL

Date: Thursday the 29^th

Time: 2 pm – 3 pm

Address: 4533 Admiralty Way, Marina del Rey, CA 90292

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/15384968

Eagle Rock Book Club: The Cat Who Saved Books at Eagle Rock Branch Library, LAPL – In-Person Event

The Eagle Rock Book Club explores both acclaimed newer books and rediscovered classics of the past.



The selection for January is The Cat Who Saved Books by Sosuke Natsukawa. Rintaro Natsuki is a reclusive teenager who inherits his grandfather’s used bookstore and plans to close it. When a talking cat appears asking for help saving books from neglectful owners, the two go on an amazing adventure through magical labyrinths to set the books free. 



The library will have copies to check out or check our e-media page for electronic access on Libby and hoopla.

Please bring book suggestions for future meetings.

Where: Eagle Rock Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Thursday the 29^th

Time: 3 pm

Address: 6027 Caspar Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90041

Dive into a compelling new book each month and join us for a lively discussion and social chat about the plot, themes, and characters. While we talk, we’ll complete a fun, themed art or craft project inspired by the book. No experience necessary—just come ready to chat and create! All materials will be provided.

Check out your copy of The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho at the Customer Service Desk.

Where: South Whittier Library, LACL

Date: Thursday the 29^th

Time: 6 pm – 7 pm

Address: 11543 Colima Rd., Whittier, CA 90604

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/15284546

Cookies & Comics Graphic Novel Book Club: Destroyer at Westwood Branch Library, LAPL – Online Teen Event

Do you love graphic novels? Then this is the club for you!

This month’s title is Destroyer by Victor LaValle and Dietrich Smith, an intense, unflinching story exploring the legacies of love, loss, and vengeance placed firmly in the tense atmosphere and current events of the modern-day United States. When the last descendant of the Frankenstein family loses her only son to a police shooting, she turns to science for her own justice… putting her on a crash course with her family’s original monster and his quest to eliminate humanity. You can grab this title on hoopla with your library card.

The intended audience for this monthly Zoom event is teens aged 16+ and adults.

Where: Westwood Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Thursday the 29^th

Time: 6:30 pm – 7:30 pm

Address: 7771 Foothill Blvd., Tujunga, CA 91042

Website: https://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/mini-zine-lab-zine-making-young-writers

Eco-Horror Book Launch: Allison Mick & Humboldt Cut at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Join us for the launch of the brand new horror novel Humboldt Cut by Allison Mick, in conversation with Madison Shepard.

Jasmine Bay is a nurse for an Oakland mental health facility, battling her own demons, caught in a spiral of suicidal despair. Estranged from her brother James and his wife Tilly, who was once her best friend, Jas has chosen self-isolation to protect herself—even if it means denying herself a hopeful future with co-worker and potential love interest Henry Lewis.

When her godmother dies, Jas returns to Redceder for the funeral, a logging town where her grandfather William Whipple made a living deforesting the countryside, ripping and raping apart nature’s very foundations for corporate profits. As trees fell to axes and chainsaws, so did dozens of lumberjacks, falling prey to the dangers of their job—and to the ecoterrorism of Jas’s grandfather who was lynched for his crimes. And buried in the haunted woods are even more dark secrets perpetrated by Jas’s family. Unnatural acts giving birth to entities made of human flesh and petrified bark, seeking to avenge the devastation that ravaged their land. It is an inheritance that threatens to consume the remnants of Jas’s family, and her very sanity…

Celebrated comedy writer Allison Mick’s Humboldt Cut exposes the traumatic costs of environmental destruction in an energetic, darkly humorous horror adventure that combines the botanical terrors of VanderMeer’s Annihilation and the psychological horror of The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones with a dash of Jordan Peele.

Allison Mick is the author of Humboldt Cut. Mick is a Los Angeles-based writer, comedian, visual artist, voice actor, and mixed-race supremacist. She trained in the San Francisco/Oakland comedy scene and is originally from the Great Lakes.

Madison Shepard is a Los Angeles based writer, actor, producer, and stand-up comedian.

Mick will be joined by writer and comedian Madison Shepard for a short reading, a Q&A, and more in celebration of her debut novel. Drop by for a cozy, funny, and spooky evening!

Get your tickets on EVENTBRITE!

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Thursday the 29^th

Time: 6:30 pm – 8 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: https://shop.villagewell.com

2025 Golden Poppy Awards Ceremony: Hosted by California Independent Booksellers Alliance via Once Upon a Time, Montrose – Online Zoom Event

California indie booksellers select the best books by California creators!

The California Independent Booksellers Alliance (CALIBA) presents the 2025 Golden Poppy Awards in recognition of the most distinguished books written and illustrated by creators who have made California their home.

Committees for each category are made up of booksellers throughout the state (like our Jessica!) tasked with developing a final ballot that will be voted upon by CALIBA’s bookstore membership and their employees.

Our goal is to elevate California voices and recognize the unique and diverse talents within our state as voted upon by the booksellers who know them best.

Winners are announced during the virtual ceremony on Thursday, January 29th at 7 pm PT.

The children’s finalists are listed at website.

Where: Once Upon a Time, Montrose

Date: Thursday the 29^th

Time: 7 pm

Address: Online Zoom Event

Website: https://www.shoponceuponatime.com/event/2026-01-29/golden-poppy-awards-ceremony-2025

A Grammar Built with Rocks / Black Bach Artsakh: Reading & Screening at Poetic Research Bureau – In-Person Event

The Poetic Research Bureau and Wendy’s Subway present a book launch for A Grammar Built with Rocks, edited by Shoghig Halajian and Suzy Halajian. The evening will include readings, a film screening of Ayreen Anastas and Rene Gabri’s Black Bach Artsakh, and a discussion with filmmaker Gabri and writer and artist Mashinka Firunts Hakopian.

Featuring writing and artistic practices that trace the racialized and gendered relationships between bodies and land, A Grammar Built with Rocks explores artists’ engagements with sites of physical dispossession and socio-ecological crisis. The publication highlights how creative research methodologies can function as radically new place-making practices. Bringing together a range of feminist-decolonial texts and visual contributions, the book examines how movement, transience, and improvisation offer alternative ways of being-together while being-in-place.

Where: Poetic Research Bureau

Date: Thursday the 29^th

Time: 7 pm

Address: 2220 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90057

Website: https://www.poeticresearch.com/events/a-grammar-built-with-rocks

At Skylight: Rachel Taff, with Ruth Madievsky, & Papercut at Skylight – In-Person Event

A page-turning suspense debut about a woman infamous for escaping a cult as a teenager, who finds her future threatened when dangerous secrets come back to haunt her—perfect for fans of Jessica Knoll and The Girls.

Everybody knows the story. Nobody knows the truth.

Lucy Golden is a true-crime icon, infamous for the murder she committed while escaping a California cult twenty years ago. But as everyone in Los Angeles knows, fame is fleeting, and Lucy and her story are always just one news cycle away from obscurity. Not to mention, she’s fending off a stalker and moderating an icy feud between her acclaimed photographer mother and her scandalous rock star sister. Worst of all, online trolls are asking increasingly threatening questions about the legendary crime. Questions that could tear her life apart.

So, when a hotshot documentarian makes her case the subject of his next film, Lucy sees a chance to silence any doubters once and for all. But as filming begins, she must return to the California desert and come face-to-face with a cast of players from her torrid history. Of course, the past is never what it seems, and long-buried secrets soon collide with present-day threats. Can Lucy stop her critics from digging up the truth before it’s too late? And how far will she go to protect the story she’s been telling—and selling—all along?

Told in a narrative split between the present day and Lucy’s hit memoir about her fated summer in the cult, Paper Cut combines psychological suspense with coming-of-age Californian cult noir and a sharp examination of the true-crime phenomenon. As incisive as it is propulsive, this mesmerizing debut will keep readers hooked until the last page.

Rachel Taff is an author and television producer. Most recently, Rachel was the Director of Development at Dynamic Television, known for Ginny and Georgia, where she sold projects toAmazon and Hallmark. Previously, Rachel worked for Emmy-winning director Thomas Schlamme’s Shoe Money Productions, where she developed projects for FX and managed a production slate including Snowfall and The Plot Against America. Additional credits include SMILF, American Dad, and Fresh Off the Boat. Rachel earned a Media Arts & Entertainment degree at Elon University. After a decade in Los Angeles, she now lives in Atlanta with her husband and their Portuguese water dog. Paper Cut is her first novel.

Ruth Madievsky is the author of the national bestselling novel, All-Night Pharmacy. Her work appears in The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Cut, and elsewhere.

Where: Skylight

Date: Thursday the 29^th

Time: 7 pm – 8 pm

Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027

Website: https://www.skylightbooks.com/event/skylight-rachel-taff-presents-papercut-w-ruth-madievsky

Kaira Rouda, with Lian Dolan, & We Were Never Friends at Vroman’s – In-Person Event

Kaira Rouda, in conversation with Lian Dolan, will discuss We Were Never Friends.

Sisters? Forever. Friends? NEVER. Who knew a reunion weekend could be so deadly?

Meet the sorority sisters of Theta Gamma Mu:

Roxy Callahan Gentry, the ruthless former sorority president and current hostess who has painstakingly choreographed every detail of this weekend—even matching the cocktails to her couture—to prove that she remains their undisputed queen.

Amelia Dell, the widow drenched in old money and alcohol, with her big pot-stirring spoon and uninvited boy-toy in tow.

Jamie Vale, the double-legacy pledge, straight-A student with no sparkle, now a top cardiologist with a picture-perfect family—and a well-guarded bad habit

Beth Harrison, the scholarship student who never quite fit in and was only admitted because her best friend Sunny insisted that the two were a package deal.

Sunny Spencer, the carefree and beloved friend to all, or so it seemed—until she wasn’t.

They’ve been summoned to Roxy’s luxurious Palm Springs vacation home to celebrate the engagement of her son to Beth’s daughter. But the refurbished 1920s estate is eerily reminiscent of the hotel where tragedy struck during Spring Break twenty-five years ago. Long-simmering tensions and shocking secrets begin bubbling to the surface like bodies—because while the weekend was supposed to be about celebrating the future, it’s not so easy to bury the past.

Where: Vroman’s

Date: Thursday the 29^th

Time: 7 pm – 8 pm

Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101

Website: https://vromansbookstore.com/event/2026-01-29/kaira-rouda

The Pushcart Prize Reading: SoCal Prize Winners at Beyond Baroque – In-Person & Online Hybrid Event

Celebrating various Pushcart Prize winners from Southern California

Join us in the Wanda Coleman Theater to celebrate various Pushcart Prize winners from Southern California. The 50th anniversary edition of the Pushcart Prize anthology features new work from second-time winner Lou Mathews. Reading alongside him are fiction writers Tommy Moore and Kim Samek, as well as poets Michael Mark and Melissa Mc Kinstry. Reception and book signings to follow.

Lou Mathews is the author of the novels L.A. Breakdown, an L.A. Times Best Book, and Shaky Town, long-listed for 2022 Tournament-of-books, both from Tiger Van Books. He has received two Pushcart Prizes, A Katherine Anne Porter Prize and California Arts Commission and NEA Fellowships in Fiction. His new novel Hollywoodski, has just received a starred review from Kirkus. His short stories have been published in ZYZZYVA, New England Review, Short Story, Black Clock and more than 40- other literary magazines. He has taught in the UCLA Writer’s Program since 1989.

Tommy Moore was born in Santa Monica, California. He works as a producer and director, creating entertainment, documentary, and commercial content. In 2013, Tommy was one of six writers selected for the PEN Emerging Voices Fellowship. His writing has been published in Akashic Books’ Noir Series: Santa Cruz Noir and in Chicago Quarterly Review. In 2026, he won a Pushcart Prize for his short story “This Is You.”

Kim Samek is an Emmy-nominated writer who studied German Literature and creative writing at Stanford University. Her debut story collection I AM THE GHOST HERE will be published by Dial Press on February 24 and has been named a most anticipated 2026 book by Debutiful, The Seattle Times, and LitHub. Her fiction can be found in Guernica, Ecotone, Southern Humanities Review, Gulf Coast, Electric Literature, North American Review, Chicago Quarterly Review, The Threepenny Review, Story Magazine, ZYZZYVA, the Pushcart Prize Anthology, and others, and it has also received special mention in the Best American Short Stories. A native of Seattle, she lives in Los Angeles.

Michael Mark is the author of Visiting Her in Queens is More Enlightening than a Month in a Monastery in Tibet which won the 2022 Rattle Chapbook Prize. Some recent poems appear in Alaska Quarterly Review, Birmingham Poetry Review, Copper Nickel, New Ohio Review, Ploughshares, The Southern Review, 32 Poems and The Sun. His work appears in The Best New Poets, 2024. He received a Pushcart Prize in 2026. michaeljmark.com

Melissa McKinstry hosts quarterly poetry and jazz evenings and curates a community Poet Tree in San Diego. Her poetry appears or is forthcoming in many journals including Beloit, Adroit, Narrative, and Best New Poets 2023 and 2025, and was selected for the 2025 New Ohio Review Literary Prize and a 2026 Pushcart Prize. An Adroit Djanikian Scholar and the inaugural writer-in-residence at the Millay House Rockland, she currently serves on the Alumni Council for Pacific University’s MFA program and the Board of the Millay House Rockland. You can also visit her at MelissaMcKinstry.com.

Where: Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center

Date: Thursday, the 29^th

Time: 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm

Address: 681 Venice Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90291

Website: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-pushcart-prize-reading-tickets-1980130584883

Lit Angels: Morning Writing with Francesca Lia Block at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Come write with us!

Many people believe that a morning writing practice is key to finding your voice, your story and, in this case, your community! At the Village Well!

Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning at 8:30 AM come join acclaimed author and writing instructor Francesca Lia Block for a brief intro and 40 minutes of free writing on any topic without judgement. Afterwards, you will be able to share a bit about your process and ask Francesca questions about your writing.

Francesca Lia Block is the author of more than thirty books of fiction, non-fiction, short stories and poetry, and has written screenplay adaptations of her work. She received the Spectrum Award, the Phoenix Award, the ALA Rainbow Award and the 2005 Margaret A. Edwards Lifetime Achievement Award, as well as other citations from the American Library Association, and from the NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, and PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY. Currently she teaches creative writing at UCLA Extension, Antioch University, Pocket MFA, and numerous workshops across the country. Francesca also edits LIT ANGELS, a literary journal available on Substack. Her latest novel is House of Hearts now out in paperback. https://www.francescaliablock.com/

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Friday the 30^th

Time: 9 am – 10 am

Our most popular story time is ready to delight and dazzle! This is also the prime time to see Pippi Longstocking, our bookstore cat in action.

There is a large FREE parking lot off Florencita Dr. as well as metered parking along Honolulu Ave. and Montrose Ave.

Free to attend.

NOTE: Free to attend.

Where: Once Upon a Time

Date: Friday, the 30^th

Time: 9:30 am

Address: 2207 Honolulu Ave., Montrose, CA 91020

¡Hora de cuentos bilingüe! Exponer a tus hjijos a varios idiomas es de gran beneficio para su aprendizaje y desarrollo, y qué mejor que hacerlo en esta divertida actividad en donde leeremos un maravilloso cuento en inglés y en español.

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Friday the 30^th

Time: 11 am – 12 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Nonfiction Book Club: The Accidental President: Harry S. Truman and the Four Months That Changed the World at West Hollywood Library, LACL – In-Person Event

Join participants to discuss The Accidental President: Harry S. Truman and the Four Months That Changed the World by A.J. Baime.

For adults.

Please contact the library to get a print copy of the book. No registration required.

Where: West Hollywood Library, LACL

Date: Friday the 30^th

Time: 4 pm – 5 pm

Address: 625 N. San Vicente Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069

Are you a teen between the ages of 13-18, love to read, and are looking to hang out and talk about your new favorite book? Join us for our first meeting of the year with Never Seen the Stars by Kate Korsh. Please email shaina.cain@lapl.org or call the Porter Ranch library to RSVP.

Where: Porter Ranch Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Friday the 30^th

Time: 4 pm – 5 pm

Address: 11371 Tampa Ave., Porter Ranch, CA 91326

Website: https://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/teen-book-club-5

Memoir Launch: Emily Goodson, with Gretchen Schreiber, & Dating Disabilityat Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Join author Emily Goodson, in conversation with Gretchen Schreiber, to discuss her memoir Dating Disability: 15 Stories of Dating with the BS and Building Confidence.

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Friday the 30^th

Time: 6 pm – 7 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: https://shop.villagewell.com

Local Authors Panel: Andrew Rubin, Christopher Farnsworth, Ken Pisani, Ryan Elizabeth Penske, Stefanie Leder & Susan Walter at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Join us for a local authors panel!

Six authors with wildly different books gather to talk about what unites their stories: compelling characters, rich themes, and busting out of conventions. A wide-ranging discussion on craft and why the lines between genres are blurrier than we think.

Ken Pisani is an Emmy-nominated producer and screenwriter, novelist, playwright, and comic book creator. (Ken needs to learn how to focus.) His debut novel, Amp’d, published by St. Martin’s Press, was a Los Angeles Times bestseller and runner-up to Trevor Noah’s Born a Crime for the Thurber Prize for American Humor, and optioned for television. He’s also the writer-creator of the Geekie Award-winning sci-fi graphic novel Colonus, published by Dark Horse Comics, and the quirky murder mystery novella 4 Corners, also optioned for TV. Ken has sold network pilots and feature screenplays, events that expired with little fanfare. His credits include a screenplay co-written with David Seidler, Oscar-winner for The King’s Speech, and a PBS documentary on the early career of US Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens that he hopes to develop as a feature. His fiction was short-listed for the 2025 HG Wells Prize and he’s also contributed to The Saturday Evening Post, The Louisville Review, Salon, Publishers Weekly, Huffington Post, Literary Hub, Carve, American Writers Review, and other publications, as well as the anthology More Tonto Short Stories, published in the US and UK. Ken has a new novel, The Defection and Subsequent Resurrection of Nikolai Pushkin (no pub date) and is currently working on a short story collection and a variety of film and TV projects. He lives in Los Angeles with his beautiful wife, Amanda.

Ryan Elizabeth Penske is a mix of a Midwest and Southern California upbringing, where she discovered her love for snowy Halloweens in Michigan and the everlasting California sun, but most importantly her love for reading in her early teens. Now, after writing her debut YA novel The Dreamers, she completed her MA in English Literature from Chapman University where she also received her BA in English Literature, Rhetoric, and Cultural Studies Between moments of writing and her academic pursuits, Ryan spends her days with her best buddy Indy, her Australian Shepherd. Together they enjoy hiking, going to bookstores, traveling, spending exuberant amounts of time of “BookTok,” and of course dreaming.

Stefanie Leder is author and TV showrunner and writer whose credits include the MTV teen dramedy Faking It, TBS comedy Men at Work, Netflix’s Boo, Bitch, and ABC Family comedy Melissa & Joey. She is also a frequent guest lecturer on television writing at the Low Residency MFA at UCR. Bilingual in English and Spanish, she spent a year abroad in Costa Rica, and has worked for a nonprofit on Fair Trade Coffee and anti-sweatshop campaigns. Love, Coffee, and Revolution is her first novel. You can also read her award-nominated short story, “Not a Dinner Party Person” in Eight Very Bad Nights; A Collection of Hanukkah Noir, or in The Best American Mystery and Suspense 2025.

Susan Walter is a recovering screenwriter and film director who started writing books to kill people because it was frowned upon in real life. Her first two novels, Good as Dead and Over Her Dead Body are set in the movie business, but then she discovered there are places that are even more dangerous. She is now murdering people on airplanes, on ski hills, and in safehouses while on the run from organized crime. Her Netflix movie All I Wish, which she also wrote, stars Sharon Stone and Tony Goldwyn and won a screenwriting award that you have never heard of, but that she is proud of nonetheless. You can learn more about Susan at http://www.susanwalterwriter.com.

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Friday the 30^th

Time: 6:30 pm – 8 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: https://shop.villagewell.com

Sasha Abramsky & American Carnage: How Trump, Musk and Doge Butchered the U.S. Government at Book Soup – In-Person Event

 Author Sasha Abramsky presents aripping narrative of federal workers caught in Trump’s second-term purge, and the devastating consequences for American democracy.

American Carnage follows eleven federal workers, in eight government agencies, from the time they were told they were fired in the early weeks of Donald Trump’s second presidential administration through to the summer of 2025. With Trump having empowered the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, and his Department of Government Efficiency, to make dramatic cuts to many of the country’s most important agencies, what unfolded in these months was a cascading tragedy of historic proportions.

Their stories, which show a country in a profound moment of crisis and dislocation, are America’s stories. What happened to them—the bullying, the intimidation, the deliberate removal of financial stability—also happened to hundreds of thousands of other employees. A fierce reckoning with the intimate and far-reaching effects of these layoffs, both on the individuals who lost their jobs and on the millions of Americans who found their access to basic government services curtailed, American Carnage is the first book-length account of how these cuts dulled and denuded our city on the hill, leaving a morally impoverished landscape in their wake.

Where: Book Soup

Date: Friday the 30^th

Time: 7 pm – 8 pm

Address: 8818 W. Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069

Website: https://booksoup.com/event/2026-01-30/sasha-abramsky-discusses-signs-american-carnage-how-trump-musk-and-doge-butchered

At Skylight: Feminist Book Club Launch: Reading as a Political Act at Skylight – In-Person Event

Our Feminist Book Club is a space to read boldly, think critically, and build community through stories that challenge power and expand possibility. We’re kicking off the year with Reservoir Bitches by Dahlia de la Cerda, a raw and unflinching collection of short stories centered on women navigating survival, violence, and resistance under failed systems.

Set in Mexico and told through sharp, unapologetic voices, Reservoir Bitches confronts class inequality, patriarchy, and state violence while centering women who are constantly pushed to the margins. Together, we’ll discuss how feminist literature helps us better understand the world we’re living in and imagine the one we’re fighting to create.

If you haven’t read the book, you are more than welcome to still join and learn about our goals and mission for the Feminist Book Club for 2026!

Join our book club and read books that are being censored and support the incredible Feminist Press publishing.

This book club is in collaboration with Repro uncensored and Feminist Press.

Where: Skylight

Date: Friday the 30^th

Time: 7 pm – 9 pm

Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027

Website: https://www.skylightbooks.com/event/skylight-feminist-book-club-launch-reading-political-act

An Evening of Poetry: Heidi Seaorn, Erin Marie Lynch, Matthew Gellman and Nick Martino & tic, tic, tic at Beyond Baroque – In-Person & Online Hybrid Event

Join us for an evening of poetry in celebration of Heidi Seaborn’s poetry collection tic tic tic.

Join us for a celebratory reading featuring new and selected work by poets Heidi Seaborn, Erin Marie Lynch, Matthew Gellman, & Nick Martino.

Both “memoir and protest”, tic tic tic elevates the tension between the urgency of the moment and history’s expanse, between an individual’s response and the inevitable legacy of collective generations. tic tic tic is a clear-eyed lyric take on the chaos of our times, and an affirmation of the human spirit. In a special format, tic tic tic offers poetry for the soul and 23 beautiful and stunning black and white photographs that tell their own story. This is a poetry collection to read, to share and display.

Heidi Seaborn is the author of Marilyn: Essays & Poems (Collector’s Edition of An Insomniac’s Slumber Party with Marilyn Monroe) (2022) and Give a Girl Chaos (See What She Can Do) (2019). She is the winner of The Missouri Review’s Jeffrey E. Smith Editor’s Prize and has won or been shortlisted for over sixty literary awards or recognitions. She holds degrees from Stanford University and New York University and serves as executive editor of The Adroit Journal. Author photo © Kelsey Chance.

Erin Marie Lynch is the author of Removal Acts (Graywolf Press, October 2023). Her poems appear in POETRY, New England Review, DIAGRAM, Narrative, Poetry Daily, Best New Poets, and other publications. She has received awards and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, MacDowell, the Wurlitzer Foundation, Indigenous Nations Poets, and the Hugo House. She was born and raised in Oregon; she is a direct descendant of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. Currently, she is a PhD candidate in Creative Writing and Literature at the University of Southern California. She lives in Los Angeles.

Matthew Gellman’s first book, Beforelight, was selected by Tina Chang as the winner of BOA Editions, Ltd.’s A. Poulin, Jr. Poetry Prize. His second book, The Understudy, is forthcoming from Four Way Books in 2027. Matthew has received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, Brooklyn Poets, Adroit’s Djanikian Scholars Program, the Saltonstall Foundation for the Arts, Virginia Center for Creative Arts, Bread Loaf Writers Conference, and elsewhere. His poems have appeared in Bennington Review, Gulf Coast, Prairie Schooner, Poetry Northwest, Indiana Review, The Common, Lambda Literary’s Poetry Spotlight, and other publications. He is currently a PhD candidate in literature and creative writing at the University of Southern California.

Nick Martino is a poet and teacher from Milwaukee. His debut poetry collection Scrap Book (Alice James Books) won the 2024 Alice James Editors’ Choice Award and will be published in 2026. His poems are published or forthcoming from Ploughshares, Best New Poets, Gulf Coast, Poetry Daily, Ninth Letter, The Boston Review, and The Southern Review, among others. A finalist for the 2024 Sewanee Review Poetry Prize, he holds an MFA from the University of California, Irvine where he received the 2022 Excellence in Poetry Prize. He lives in LA.

NOTE: See site for further details, tickets, and information. 

Where: Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center

Date: Friday, the 30^th

Time: 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm (Doors at 7 pm)

Address: 681 Venice Blvd., Venice Beach, Los Angeles, CA 90291

3 rounds: 10 poets; 1 epic stage; cash prizes

Tickets at website: $15 or $19.

Where: Hub 101

Date: Friday the 30^th

Time: 7:30 pm – 10 pm

Address: 31416 Agoura Rd., Westlake Village, CA 91361

Book Club for Middle Grade Readers: The Frindle Files at Palisades Branch Library, LAPL – Online MG Event

Middle-grade readers (grades 4-7) are invited to participate in our fun monthly book discussions. This month, we will be reading The Frindle Files by Andrew Clements.

Please email gkim@lapl.org for the Zoom login information.

Where: Palisades Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Saturday the 31^st

Time: 10 am

Address: Online Event (see site)

Website: https://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/book-club-middle-grade-readers-0

Book Tour: Diosa X & MeXicana: poemas y mas poemas at La Habra Boxing Club – In-Person Event

This reading will also include poems from West of the Santa Ana and Other Sacred Places.

Where: La Habra Boxing Club

Date: Saturday the 31^st

Time: 11 am

Address: 343 Hillcrest St., La Habra, CA

Storytime with Dan McCauley & Thank You, Snow at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Kids Event

Join us for a storytime with Dan McCauley, who will read and discuss Thank You, Snow.

Dan McCauley is a writer and educator who grew up in New York City. Raised by Little League coaches, a caring community, and his family’s love, Dan pursued his passion for teaching and storytelling at New York University. After working as a teacher in the Bronx, he moved to Los Angeles, where he works with middle and high school students as a learning specialist. Dan is the author of the Thank You, World series. He writes and teaches with the same sense of awe, wonder, and gratitude he feels toward the world.

When we say yes to exploring nature, we discover so many reasons to smile and say, “Thank You.”

Thank You, Snow follows a young girl as she enjoys the magic of a snowy day. Overcoming her hesitation to leave the cozy warmth of home, she ventures with her family into the neighborhood. They notice how the snow sounds crunchy under their feet, how it feels cold and wet on their faces, and how it looks like glitter falling through the air. They share their gratitude for nature’s gifts—the sparkling snowflakes, the scent of evergreen trees, and even their breath forming clouds in the crisp air. Through mindfulness, togetherness, and play, the girl feels a deepening sense of gratitude.

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Saturday the 31^st

Time: 11 am – 12 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: https://shop.villagewell.com

Romaine Washington Poetry Workshop: Exhale Grief, Inhale Growth at Campo de Cahuenga Museum, Studio City – In-Person Event

Join a poetry workshop led by Pushcart nominated poet, editor, and educator Romaine Washington.

Exhale Grief – Inhale Growth

Breathing poetry into the fierce beauty of a new era, this workshop will focus on writing about a kaleidoscope of transitions. The workshop will ask the poets to meditate on Black history, its enduring legacy, and breathe into the future a vision for tomorrow. Come on out and flex your mind, heart, and pen in an engaging workshop with Romaine Washington.

Romaine Washington’s poetry is grounded in the personal experience of place and relationships; she has been nominated for Best of the Net and she is a twice-nominated Pushcart Prize poet. She is the editor of These Black Bodies Are…A Blacklandia Anthology, and two poetry books, Purgatory Has an Address and Sirens in Her Belly. She has presented her poetry in many programs, including Inside SoCal CBS2/KCSL9, NPR, and KPFK. An educator for over 22 years, she is a writing coach and workshop facilitator for Inlandia. To find out more, visit her website at: http://www.romainewashington.com.

This workshop is brought to you by the Los Angeles Park Foundation and community members like you!

*Please reserve a spot. Registration is required for workshops to ensure we get a head count and have all the necessary materials. If you hit the cap at Eventbrite, please email us at rap-campodecahuenga@lacity.org*

NOTE: May be sold out.

Where: Campo de Cahuenga Museum

Date: Saturday the 31^st

Time: 12 pm

Address: 3919 Lankershim Blvd., Studio City, CA 91604

Website: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/exhale-grief-inhale-growth-a-poetry-workshop-with-romaine-washington-tickets-1978197301380

Open Mic Poetry at Eagle Rock Branch Library, LAPL – In-Person Event

Share your original poems, lyrics, spoken word, or just enjoy listening. Each poet will have five minutes to read an original work. If you wish to read, sign up when you arrive.

Our featured speaker will be Nancy Murphy, a Los Angeles-based poet and author of the chapbook The Space Carved by the Sharpness of Your Absence. The poems in this book were described by Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Robert Olen Butler as “pitch perfect and brave in their wisdom.” Nancy was a winner in the Aurora Poetry contest in Winter 2020. 



Previous poetry publications include SWWIM, Sheila-Na-Gig, glassworks, The Ekphrastic Review, The Baltimore Review, Anacapa Review, Jackdaw Review, and others. A longtime volunteer with WriteGirl, Nancy has mentored teens through writing workshops and in the juvenile detention system.

Where: Eagle Rock Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Saturday the 31^st

Time: 1 pm

Address: 5027 Caspar Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90041

January 31, 2026, 2pm – 8pm, featuring LGBTQIA+ authors, vendors, Drag Queen Storytime and more!

Where: Precinct DTLA

Date: Saturday the 31^st

Time: 2 pm – 8 pm

Address: 357 South Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90013

Reserve your seats on EVENTBRITE!

Meeta Panesar is the founder of Panesar Studio and Bobbety Magazine. With more than a decade of experience, she loves partnering with brands to create illustration-driven designs that inspire and engage audiences of all ages.

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Saturday the 31^st

Time: 2 pm – 3 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: https://shop.villagewell.com

L.A. Book Launch: Catching Fire, The Los Angeles Wildfires at Beyond Baroque – In-Person & Online Hybrid Event

Join us for the launch of an anthology edited by S.A. Griffin and Richard Modiano. Readings by several contributors.

Catching Fire, The Los Angeles Wildfires chronicles the devastating fires that erupted in January, 2025. The anthology is a heartfelt commemoration of the 1-year anniversary following the events that caused irreversible damage in the communities of Northeast Los Angeles as well as areas like Malibu and the Pacific Palisades. Join us for an afternoon in community, marked by resilience and healing through the written word.

Featuring: Susan Auerbach, Michelle Bitting, Brendan Constantine, Land Flowers, Laurel Ann Bogen, Lynne Bronstein, Mona Jean Cedar, Jeanette Clough, Spencer Griffin, Rick Lupert, Teresa Mei Chuc, Richard Modiano, Bill Mohr, Majid Naficy, Harry Northup, Kennon B. Raines, Marilyn N. Robertson, Cathie Sandstrom, Dan Saucedo, A.K. Toney, jimmy vega, Dig Wayne, & Z.

NOTE: See site for further details, tickets, and information. 

Where: Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center

Date: Saturday, the 31^st

Time: 3 pm – 5 pm (Doors at 2:30 pm)

Address: 681 Venice Blvd., Venice Beach, Los Angeles, CA 90291

Website: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/la-book-launch-catching-fire-the-los-angeles-wildfires-tickets-1977747794894

Saturday Afternoon Poetry: 2026 Print Poetry Awards – Online Zoom Event

The 2026 Southern California Print Poetry Awards will be presented by Four Feather Press.

Don Kingfisher Campbell hosts and curates these events.

Where: Saturday Afternoon Poetry Online

Date: Saturday, the 31^st

Time: 3 pm – 4:30 pm

Address: Online Zoom Event

Website: https://saturdayafternoonpoetry.blogspot.com/

Open Mic Event at Arvida Books, Tustin – In-Person Event

It’s time for Arvida’s FIRST open mic of the year! We have something special planned for the community and a few special announcements.

First, the Open Mic has officially moved to be on the LAST Saturday of the month. We’ll see you on January 31st for an incredible event!

Second, to celebrate the wonderful growth of the literary community at Arvida & to help uplift local artists in building up their creative portfolio, we are having another candid photoshoot featuring the wonderful LA-based photographer @tinajunemalek.

Tina will be capturing 5-10 candid photos of each performer. We hope this alleviates obstacles that may come with getting your work out there. We hope that you use the photos for your portfolio or socials and use them to promote your work as an artist. You are all incredible & we are excited to see where your creative endeavors take you. These photos are on us!

Do note that we’ll prioritize artists that didn’t get a chance to get their photos taken last year and then go off the waitlist.

Thank you for being a part of this community & for choosing Arvida as a space of creativity 💐

A few logistics available at site.

With much love and admiration,

Lizeth De La Luz

Where: Arvida Books

Date: Saturday the 31^st

Time: 4 pm – 5:30 pm

Rebekah Faubion, in conversation with Veronica Bane, will discuss Lost Girls of Hollow Lake.

After a group of teens visit a dangerous island where three are left behind, the surviving girls realize they must return to confront the sinister force hunting them. This dark YA thriller is perfect for fans of Yellowjackets.

Eight were lost. Five were found. None will ever be free.

For Evie Williams, life is about to get a lot more complicated. Haunted by the events of a school trip to Hollow Lake National Park that went disastrously wrong, Evie and her friends returned changed, their lives forever marked by the mysterious Island they encountered—and the three girls they left behind.

Now, someone is picking off those who were involved, one by one. Their families, friends, and even online investigators are all caught in a deadly game. The stakes are raised when Evie receives a chilling message: to save her loved ones, she must return to the Island.

As Evie and the other “Lost Girls” navigate the treacherous terrain of the Island once more, they must confront the secrets they’ve buried, the horrors they witnessed, and the person—or thing—that’s hunting them. But some secrets refuse to stay hidden, and the Island demands a price for freedom.

Where: Vroman’s

Date: Saturday the 31^st

Time: 4 pm

Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101

Website: https://vromansbookstore.com/event/2026-01-31/rebekah-faubion

Friends of Fantasy Day: Author Panel at Underdog Bookstore, Monrovia – In-Person Event

Join us in celebrating the first Friends of Fantasy Day at Underdog Bookstore with local authors Phoenix Mendoza, K. Andrew Turner, Sierra J. Meril, and A. Jordan Lambert.

Plus, don’t miss the Friends of Fantasy audiobook sale on LibroFM. Remember to choose Underdog as your affiliate bookstore so that each purchase supports our nonprofit mission!

Where: Underdog Bookstore

Date: Saturday the 31^st

Time: 5 pm – 7 pm

Address: 312 South Myrtle Ave., Monrovia, CA 91016

Website: https://www.underdogbookstore.org/events/friends-of-fantasy-day-author-panel

Heartbeats Circle: Open Mic at The Libros, Lincoln Heights – In-Person Event

Join Los Angeles Poet Society for the Heartbeat Circle Open Mic in January 31, at The Libros Lincoln Heights.

Hosted by Mariana Franco.

Rosemarine is Puerto Rican American musician from New Jersey. She moved to Los Ángeles in 2019, where she began to record music that would be included in her demo album Island Life.

Lady Leila N/A

Terry McCarty is a poet that often reflects on Southern California and his experiences in the film industry. His work spans various themes, including humor, politics and personal anecdotes. His work has been featured in numerous anthologies and collections.

Candice Margarita is a spoken word poet, storyteller, art maker, multihyphenate performance artist from NY, wandering the world looking to be felt, heard and understood. @apocketfulofpoesies

Plus, an open mic for all creatives. 5 min each. No cover, but donations of $5-$10 are welcome to support the space and help our independent bookstore thrive.

Where: The Libros, Lincoln Heights

Date: Saturday the 31^st

Time: 6 pm – 8 pm

Join Nervous Ghost Press for a Monthly Arts Night held every last Saturday of the month, which begins at 5 pm, with the Open Mic at 6;30 pm.

Where: Nervous Ghost Press

Date: Saturday the 31^st

Time: 5 pm & 6:30 pm – 8 pm

Address: Live YouTube Online

Website: https://www.nervousghostpress.org/artsnight

Daxon Publishing Group Reading by Authors at Page Against the Machine, Long Beach – In-Person Event

Join us on Saturday 31^st at 7 pm for a group poetry reading by seven SoCal authors represented by Daxon Publishing, an LA-based publishing house dedicated to amplifying the voices and publishing the work of marginalized artists.

The evening will feature readings by Hope Cerna, Samantha Herrera, Peter Lechuga, Ely Lupe, Jake Teranl, Clara Ximena, and Diosa Xochiquetzalcoatl, joined by the publisher, Erica Castro.

Hope Cerna is a writer and poet and the author of Sentimental Garden.

Samantha Herrera is the author of How to Stay Afloat: the art of drowning poems.

Peter Lechuga is a writer, poet, and musician who writes about nature, beauty, and social injustice. He rhymes under the pseudonym 4Tell as a member of the Pilgrimms art collective, which collaborates with artists to create visual art while making conscious, avant-garde hip-hop.He is the author of Myth Opportunities and co-author of Billionaires for Breakfast.

Ely Lupe is the first-born daughter of two Mexican immigrants. She was born and raised in Southeast LA, attended New York University, and acquired a Dual Master’s degree in Educational Theatre and English Education.She is the author of Chillona Chingona (Daxson Publishing).

Jake Teran is the author of The Calling, a compelling coming-of-age story that follows Guillermo Tierra, a young Chicano man determined to join the Marine Corps after dropping out of high school and spending time in a juvenile detention center.

Clara Ximena is a multimedia artist and writer who grew up in the Bay Area. Though she enjoys spending her free time working on creative projects, she has always had a passion for writing. Clara received a B.A in Creative Writing from San Francisco State University in 2021. She is the author of The Day the Flowers Bloomed.

Diosa Xochiquetzalcoatl is a bilingual Chicana poet, educator, and author of seven poetry collections focused on identity, culture, and social justice, most recently MeXicana. Based in the U.S.-Mexico border region, she is a 2022 Slam Diáspora champion and a 2023 Pushcart Prize nominee. She holds a Master’s in Cross-Cultural Education and is a Kundalini Yoga instructor.

The event was organized and will be introduced and hosted by poet Brian Dunlap, Editor-in-Chief of Los Angeles Literature, an independent online magazine covering the Greater Los Angeles literary community. It can be found at 𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘀𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲.𝗰𝗼𝗺

The event is free and open to the public.

Where: Page Against the Machine, Long Beach

Date: Saturday the 31^st

Time: 7 pm

Address: 2714 E. 4^th St., Long Beach, CA 90814

#jamesbecerra #becerra4mayor #whittier #whittierartgallery #poetry #spokenword #hammerandlaurel #hammertime #builderofbridges #destroyerofwalls #elmartillopress

Where: Whittier Art Gallery

Date: Saturday the 31^st

Time: 7 pm

The Melrose Trading Post is a pioneering arts-based marketplace held every Sunday at Fairfax High School in Los Angeles, CA with 275 local creative small business vendors, delicious food booths, and local live music.

MTP was founded in 1997 with a mission to champion small businesses, art, and community. The market funds Greenway Arts Alliance’s arts education programming and provides employment and leadership development opportunities for students at Fairfax High School.

JOIN us for Poetry on Demand in space R18 each Sunday, from 11 am – 5 pm.

All poems are donation-based, so you name your price.

NOTE: Check every Sunday for story time and reading events

Where: Melrose Trading Post, Greenway Main Stage at Fairfax HS

Date: Sunday, the 1^st

Time: 10 am – 5 pm (market); 12 pm – 5 pm (poets on demand)

Address: 7850 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90046

Website: https://www.instagram.com

Culver City High School Academy of Visual and Performing Arts (AVPA) Student Zine Gallery at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

CCHS AVPA students will showcase zines created in the fall semester! Come enjoy the work of young local artists as they showcase original works in the Studio. There will be students present to talk to guests and discuss their work.

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Sunday the 1^st

Time: 10:30 am – 1:30 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: https://shop.villagewell.com

Book Release Reading & Reception: Gustavo Hernandez & Bachelor at The Fullerton Museum Center – In-Person Event

Join us for an afternoon of poetry & toasts for Orange County’s Poet Laureate Gustavo Hernandez to celebrate his new collection Bachelor at the Fullerton Museum Center! FREE EVENT!

RSVP

Where: Fullerton Museum Center (In the Wilshire Room)

Date: Sunday, the 1^st

Time: 2 pm – 4 pm

Address: 301 N. Pomona Ave., Fullerton, CA 92832

Once a month, we’ll meet and explore some of the best middle-grade books out there. We’ll chat about the characters, themes, favorite scenes, and whatever else happens to interest us about the chosen title. There’s never pressure to participate in the discussion. All meetings conclude with either a writing activity or craft. We’d like you to read the book before the meeting, but if you didn’t get to finish, please still come by (although we’re gonna spoil the ending!).

Our inaugural book choice is The Sherlock Society by James Ponti.

Local author Heather Alexander has written more than 90 books for kids. Her nonfiction has been recognized as Amazon Best Book, National Science Teachers Association Best STEM Book, Parent’s Choice Award selections and the winner of the June Franklin Naylor Award. She was the editor of R.L. Stine’s mega-popular, bestselling Goosebumps and Fear Street series, among many, many others.

In The Sherlock Society, Brother and sister, Alex and Zoe Sherlock, decide that starting a detective agency is better than babysitting (boring), lawn mowing (sweaty), or cleaning out the attic (boring and sweaty). Their friends Lina, an avid bookworm, and Yadi, an aspiring cinematographer, join in, and Alex and Zoe’s retired reporter grandfather offers up his sweet aquamarine Cadillac convertible and storage unit full of cold cases. The group’s first target is the long-lost treasure supposedly hidden near their hometown Miami. Their investigation into the local doings of famed gangster Al Capone leads them to a remote island in the middle of the Everglades, where they find alarming evidence hinting at corporate corruption. With Grandpa’s know-how and some really slick gadgets, can the Sherlock Society root out the conspiracy?

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Sunday the 1^st

Time: 2 pm – 3 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: https://shop.villagewell.com

A random accident at home and botched surgery resulted in a dead Achilles tendon and left her at a decisive moment—would she no longer enjoy the outdoors as before, or would she battle to find her footing? When you enjoy hiking as much as Giese, the solution is obvious. The way ahead, however, less so.

By all accounts, Giese should still not be walking, let alone leaping from helicopters and seeking out some of the most stunning and remote waterfalls around the world. With significant help from loved ones and medical staff, and relying on her own toughness and positive outlook, she beat the odds and relearned how to walk and pursue the outdoors and her beloved waterfalls as before. Giese was called “a medical miracle” and realized that, indeed, we never walk alone. Giese’s story chronicles her joy, and how she responded when that joy was taken from her. This memoir is certain to have readers sobbing and celebrating, unwilling to come up short with anything less than their best lives.

You’ll Never Walk Alone will have uncertain hikers getting off the couch, seasoned hikers reaching for their poles, and everybody seeking to express their gratitude no matter what challenges life tosses at them.

Jo Giese is the author of several books, including the recent bestseller Never Sit If You Can Dance. As a hiker and author, she was featured on the cover of Argonaut Magazine, November 2021, and May 2024 she was honored as a Local Hero by the Oboz hiking shoe company.

She is also an award-winning radio journalist, author, teacher, community activist, and former TV reporter. As a special correspondent she was part of the Peabody Award-winning team at Marketplace, the most popular business program in America. At Marketplace, she did 33 stories in the Breaking the Mold series about women succeeding in male-dominated career fields. These stories were a direct outgrowth of her book A Woman’s Path. For these radio stories she won an EMMA for Exceptional Radio Story from the National Political Women’s Caucus and a GRACIE from the Foundation of Women in Radio.

She’s currently active with the Union Rescue Mission, which services and houses homeless people in L.A. She’s also been active with the Los Angeles Review of Books, hosting events for major authors like Jane Smiley. As founder and president of the MalibuGreenMachine she spearheaded a million-dollar highway safety project on the Pacific Coast Highway. For this work she was honored by The Malibu Times as Citizen of the Year and received the Malibu Way of Life Award.

Her work has been featured in other books, including Dogs and Their Women, Female Nomad and Friends, Travelers’Tales FRANCE, and Travelers’ Tales A WOMAN’S WORLD. She has written for many publications, including The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, Vogue, the LA Weekly, European Travel & Life, BARK, Montana Outdoors, and The Malibu Times. She has also contributed to Ira Glass’ This American Life.

Jo lives in Southern California and Bozeman, Montana, with her husband Ed Warren.

Alex Vaughan is a filmmaker, actor, and teaching artist with over 20 years of experience in theatre, film, television, animation, commercials, and comedy working with Netflix, Hulu, FX, FOX, ABC, Freeform, and many more. He is a resident teaching artist and coach at Gary Spatz’s Playground, Unity Acting School, and The Screen Acting Studio. He enjoys good stories, a nice steak, and competing in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

Where: Diesel, A Bookstore

Date: Sunday the 1^st

Time: 3 pm

Address: 225 26th St., Suite 33, Santa Monica, CA 90402

Website: https://dieselbookstore.com/event/2026-02-01/jo-giese-alex-vaughan-youll-never-walk-alone

It’s 1933, and though the country is stuck in the Great Depression, movies are the ultimate escape. But Hollywood is skilled at selling lies, and nothing is as it seems.

Frankie Donnelly is scrappy, smart, and ambitious. Her knack for spinning any story into stellar publicity has made her an invaluable “fixer” at RCO Studios, where she works under the tutelage of powerful Nico Marconi. Frankie’s latest fix is the upcoming marriage of Hollywood royals Jack Sawyer and June Finney, and millions of fans can’t wait to see their favorite silver-screen lovers tie the knot. But Frankie knows the truth: The marriage is an artful cover for Jack and June’s darkest secrets.

When a shocking murder occurs, allegiances fracture, the tabloids go wild, and a devastated public is left reeling. Frankie uncovers new layers of scandal and deception and is forced to choose which Hollywood player to protect and who to destroy. Now, more than ever, the country needs a happy ending—but at what cost?

Where: Vroman’s

Date: Sunday the 1^st

Time: 4 pm

Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101

Website: https://vromansbookstore.com/event/2026-02-01/gian-sardar-conversation-janelle-brown-discusses-signs-land-dreams

Book Launch: Tomorrow Brings Joy: On Love, Memory, & Becoming by Mahyar and Mahbod Amouzegar at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person MG Event

Mahyar and Mahbod Amouzegar will present and sign Tomorrow Brings Joy: On Love, Memory, & Becoming: A Novel.

Set centuries in the future, Elysium is less concerned with technology than with tenderness—how people love, question, and grow within the worlds they inherit. This event features a brief reading followed by reflections on the novel’s themes and audience questions.

Mahyar and Mahbod Amouzegar, brothers born in Tehran, immigrated to the United States as teenagers amidst the upheaval of the Iranian Revolution. Both grew up in San Francisco, where the city’s literary culture and the rise of the tech industry shaped their creative and intellectual paths. Mahyar, former president of New Mexico Tech and the author of four novels, explores themes of identity, resilience, and the human condition. Mahbod, inspired by his parents’ literary legacy, has edited and published his mother’s works and is compiling his father’s memoir. This novel represents the culmination of a lifelong journey to reconnect with their heritage. By weaving together elements of their past and present, the Amouzegar brothers have crafted a story that bridges imagination, memory, and the enduring ties of family.

In Tomorrow Brings Joy: Elysium, the Amouzegar brothers weave a compelling narrative of hope and discovery in a society where humans and androids coexist in fragile harmony.

Elysium was designed to abolish traditional hierarchies and achieve perfect harmony. Yet beneath its utopian surface lies a hidden history of sacrifice and control. Dolores, a perceptive and spirited human, and her enigmatic android companion, KR, begin unraveling the mysteries of their seemingly ideal world. Their search for answers leads them to the Walled City-a parallel social experiment-and the unsettling truths behind Elysium’s founding.

As Dolores and her friends, known as Pod, delve deeper into this web of intrigue, they must confront the ideals of their society and their own roles within it.

Rich with philosophical depth, compelling characters, and emotional resonance, Tomorrow Brings Joy: Elysium explores the boundaries of humanity, the weight of history, and the courage it takes to imagine a better world.

Reserve your tickets on EVENTBRITE!

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Sunday the 1^st

Time: 5 pm – 6:30 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Jamie Loftus is a comedian, Emmy-nominated TV writer, author, and podcaster in Los Angeles if that’s okay, but from Boston originally, with your permission of course. Her book Raw Dog: The Naked Truth About Hot Dogs was published in 2023 and became an NYT and indie bestseller. She is also the host of two weekly podcasts, The Bechdel Cast (since 2016) and Sixteenth Minute (since 2024). She has also written, researched, produced, and hosted a number of limited-run shows.

CK Kiechel is a playwright and theater maker living in New York. Her plays include: Pilgrims (developed at the Millay Colony; Pipeline Theatre Company reading; Lark Roundtable Reading; finalist for the Leah Ryan Fund for Emerging Women Writers); Lulu Is Hungry (Cincinnati Playhouse workshop; Fresh Ground Pepper workshop presentation); Some Dark Places of the Earth (semi-finalist for the Princess Grace Award and the O’Neill Theatre Conference).

Tini Howard is a prominent American comic book writer, known for her work on titles like Excalibur, Catwoman, and Assassinistas. A 2014 Top Cow Talent Hunt winner, she crafts stories often featuring strong, complex characters, frequently writing for Marvel, DC, and Image Comics.

Alix Bloom is a writer, director, occasional animator, and failed child actor who was raised in LA. She moved to Chicago in 2013, where she fell in love with hot dogs and crafted her comedic voice at iO, Second City, and The Annoyance.

Helen Donahue has worked as a columnist at both Vice and Playboy. Her writing has additionally been featured in Art in America, Input, Billboard, Notion Magazine, and more. She is working on a forthcoming essay with Epic Magazine and a memoir with Janklow & Nesbitt.

Audrey Kaufman is an author of short stories.

Jonathan Mills N/A

Where: Stories Books & Café

Date: Sunday the 1^st

Time: 7 pm – 9 pm

Address: 1716 W. Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90026 

Website: https://storiesla.com/events

Revealed Storytelling at The Glendale Room – In-Person Event

Revealed storytelling is hosted by Erica Blumfield and held every first Sunday of the month.

Seven storytellers (as heard on the Moth, NPT, and more) & one lottery spot will tell a true 5-7 minute story.

$10

Where: The Glendale Room

Date: Sunday the 1^st

Time: 7 pm (Doors 6:30 pm)

Address: 127 N. Artsakh Ave., Glendale, CA 91206

Participants will discuss Outdrawn by Deanna Grey.

Everyone is welcome.

Where: The Ripped Bodice

Date: Sunday the 1^st

Time: 7:15 pm – 8:30 pm

Address: 3806 Main St., Culver City, CA 90232