2006 Archive

2006 Authors

2006 Complete Schedule Below!

FRIDAY, October 6

Friday, October 6, 12:30 p.m.
Litquake at Lunch features National Book Award winner Barry Lopez, author of Arctic Dreams and editor of Home Ground: Language for an American Landscape. Book Passage (One Ferry Plaza). FREE

Friday, October 6, 8 p.m.
Between the Bridges is a special gala evening of musicians inspired by literature, with readings and performances from some of the Bay Area’s biggest stars. Sponsored by SPIN and 7�–7 magazines and produced in conjunction with Artists for Literacy. Regency Center Grand Ballroom (Van Ness at Sutter Street). $25 admission. 21 and over

Lineup includes: Dave Eggers and END OF SUFFERING, Mark Eitzel (American Music Club), Jay Farrar (Uncle Tupelo, Son Volt), Dan Hicks, Penelope Houston (The Avengers), Ray Manzarek (The Doors), Dan “The Automator” Nakamura (Gorillaz), Frank Portman (The Mr. T. Experience), Chuck Prophet, Samantha Stollenwerck, Jill Tracy, and Lars Ulrich.
Emcee: Ben Fong-Torres.

SATURDAY, October 7

Saturday, October 7, 11 a.m. –5 p.m.
Off the Richter Scale, a whirlwind tour through a vast array of Bay Area literary styles and genres, from fiction to poetry, journalism, memoir, spoken-word, and essays. The San Francisco Public Library’s Koret Auditorium (Main Branch, 100 Larkin Street). FREE

Lineup includes:

• Tantalizing True Tales: The Best Nonfiction”Eric Spitznagel, Tom McNichol, Joe Quirk, Jason Roberts, Michael Chorost, Linda Watanabe McFerrin, Keith and Kent Zimmerman
• Intellectual Property: Writers Who Make Us Think”Clark Blaise, Jonathon Keats, Judy Budnitz, Don Hanlon Johnson, Leslie Berlin, Adam Mansbach, Rebecca Solnit
• Poetry by the Bay: Conflicts of the Heart”devorah major, Jorge Argueta, Diane di Prima, Paul Hoover, Joseph Lease, Toni Mirosevich, Jack Hirschman
• That’s History: Stories From Other Places and Times”Thomas Sanchez, Kathleen de Azevedo, Lloyd Zimpel, Erika Mailman, Holly Payne, James Dalessandro, Janis Cooke Newman
• Visual Language: Authors in Words and Images”Lev, Erik Davis, Tricia O’Brien, Barbara Traub, Lisa Brown
• Noisy Lit: Writers Who Have Been There and Back”Bucky Sinister, Kate Braverman, Ben Fong-Torres, Michael Tolkin, Daphne Gottlieb, Kirk Read

Saturday, October 7, 9 p.m.
Sit ‘N Spin , the acclaimed reading series from Los Angeles presents Bay Area natives in a voyeuristic night of people telling the truth, but funny. Guaranteed to expose the underbellies of those who’ve sold their souls to the entertainment biz. Edinburgh Castle Literary Pub (950 Geary Street). $5-$10 sliding scale. 21 and over

Lineup includes: Andrea Abbate, Jimmy Doyle, Andersen Gabrych, Claudia Lonow, Marc Maron, Rick Overton, Maggie Rowe, Jonathan Schmock, and Ron Zimmerman. With music by Mark Nutter

SUNDAY, October 8

Sunday, October 8, 12:30″4:30 p.m.
Off the Richter Scale, a whirlwind tour through a vast array of Bay Area literary styles and genres, from fiction to poetry, journalism, memoir, spoken-word, and essays. The San Francisco Public Library’s Koret Auditorium (Main Branch, 100 Larkin Street). FREE

Lineup includes:

• Litquake Introduces …”Melodie Bowsher, Michael Layne Heath, Leslie Larson, Kemble Scott
• Fiction That Resonates: A Sense of Character”Elizabeth McKenzie, Marta Acosta, Graham Leggat, Gloria Kurian Broder, Joshua Braff, Ellen Sussman, Barry Gifford
• The Message Matters: Communal Voices”Adisa Banjoko, Kim Shuck, Persis Karim, Awele Makeba, Dennis Fritzinger, Clare Morris, Maxine Hong Kingston
• Insiders and Outsiders: A Singular Perspective”Albert Flynn DeSilver, Cara Black, Siddharth Dhanvant Shanghvi, Blag Dahlia, Robert Grudin, Truong Tran, Regina Louise, Tamim Ansary, Jeremy Larner, Lolly Winston, Brian Copeland

Sunday, October 8, 7″10 p.m.
Barely Published Writers features the best up-and-coming masters of prose in the Bay Area. Featuring scribblers from the San Francisco Writers Workshop, the Red Room Writer’s Society, the Black Point Writers Collective, and more. This year they’re Barely Published, next year they’re bestsellers. The Hemlock Tavern (1131 Polk Street). FREE.

Lineup includes: Andrew Foster Altschul, Bethany Browning, Yanina Gotsulsky, Carrie Hall, Paula Hendricks, Tara Jepsen, Brent Foster Jones, Ivory Madison, Ethel Mays, Frederick Mead, Sara Seinberg, Ed Waingortin, and James Warner.

Monday, October 9, 3″5 p.m.
Many writers struggle with the challenges of creating a career path. Your Career as a Writer, a workshop led by literary experts including a literary agent, a published author with fellowship experience, a book review editor, and grantmakers who support the creation of new literary works, will serve to demystify how writers can carve out careers in an increasingly complex and competitive marketplace. Co-sponsored with The Foundation Center. The Foundation Center (312 Sutter Street, Suite 606). FREE.

Lineup includes: Brad Erickson, executive director, Theatre Bay Area; Tom Kealey, author and lecturer at Stanford University’s creative writing program; Sarah Lenoue, program associate, Cultural Equity Grants Program, San Francisco Arts Commission; Elise Proulx, literary agent, Frederick Hill Bonnie Nadell; and Oscar Villalon, book review editor, San Francisco Chronicle.

Monday, October 9, 8 p.m.
Litquake and the Porchlight storytelling team up for the third straight year for Writers, Muses, Flacks, and Escorts, publishing-related tales of frustration, woe, relief, and comic humiliation. The Swedish American Hall (2174 Market Street). $12 admission. 21 and over

Lineup includes: Jack Boulware, Arielle Eckstut, Mark Ewert, Kathi Kamen Goldmark, Joyce Maynard, Pat Montandon, Eddie Muller, and Sean Wilsey.

Monday, October 9, 7 p.m.
A special Litquake edition of Stephen Elliott’s monthly Progressive Reading Series to support progressive political candidates, with all proceeds to benefit LitPAC. The Make-Out Room (3225 22nd Street). $10-20 sliding scale. 21 and over

Lineup includes: Kaui Hart Hemmings, Keith Knight, Eric B. Martin, Nora Pierce, and Mary Roach.

Tuesday, October 10, 6:30 p.m. check-in, 7 p.m. program
The Politics of Food looks at what we eat and why it matters. Food is rapidly becoming one of the most politicized commodities in America. From toxic agribusiness to genetically modified foods to Wal-Mart’s push into organics, the subject of what we put in our mouths and how it affects not only our bodies, but the earth, is a red-button issue in the 21st century. This panel of journalists, food activists, and scientists will discuss the politics of food from every angle. The Commonwealth Club (595 Market Street, Second Floor). $12 for Commonwealth and Litquake e-newsletter subscribers (bring a newsletter with you); $20 otherwise

Lineup includes: Ignacio Chapela, Christopher D. Cook, Michele Simon, and Bryant Terry. Moderator: Julie Cummins.

Tuesday, October 10, 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. (two separate performances)
An evening with Word for Word and Andrew Sean Greer. The acclaimed theatrical company performs a staged reading of Greer’s short story, “The Islanders,” directed by Shelia Balter. The author will be present for a discussion following both performances.

Intersection Theatre, Intersection for the Arts (446 Valencia Street). Suggested donation $10-$15.

WEDNESDAY, October 11

Wednesday, October 11, 10 a.m. –12:15 p.m.
It’s time for Kidquake! Join nine Bay Area children’s authors and illustrators for a day of readings and special workshops designed to help fuel the imaginations of kids aged 5″10. The San Francisco Public Library’s Koret Auditorium and Latino Room (Main Branch, 100 Larkin Street). FREE.

Lineup includes: Grades K”2: Elissa Hayden Guest, Anthony D. Robles, Dashka Slater, and Ashley Wolff. Grades 3″5: Terri Farley, Milly Lee, Claire & Monte Montgomery, and Rachel Rodriguez. Also, Gwen Bowers doing a workshop.

Wednesday, October 11, 7 p.m.
Litquake presents a special conversation on America at War: Al-Qaeda, Iraq, and the Politics of Terror with New Yorker contributors Lawrence Wright (author of the best-selling The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11) and Mark Danner (author of The Secret Way to War: The Downing Street Memo and the Iraq War’s Buried History, and professor of journalism at U.C. Berkeley), with audience Q&A following.

Swedish American Hall (2174 Market Street). $10 admission.

THURSDAY, October 12

Thursday, October 12, 6 p.m.
Not Your Mother’s Book Club and Litquake present Y.A. author Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez and her new book Haters. Haters is like Mean Girls with magic, or OC with ESP. In other words, it’s funny, sexy, and great fun to read. Not Your Mother’s Bookclub’s monthly author seriespresents the freshest voices in Young Adult literature. Books Inc. in Opera Plaza (601 Van Ness Avenue). FREE

Thursday, October 12, 9 p.m.
At Sports and Circuses: The nasty, brutish, and shorts of it, local scribes describe the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat. Edinburgh Castle Literary Pub (950 Geary Street). $5-$10 sliding scale. 21 and over.

Lineup includes: Alan Black, Bob Calhoun, Mickey Disend, Gary Kamiya, Katherine McWilliams, David Henry Sterry, and Lance Williams.

Thursday, October 12, 7 p.m.
Secrets: Told and Untold asks writers to conjure, write, and then read selections about secrets, both public and private. All stories were written especially for the evening, so will be read in public for the first time. Varnish Fine Art (77 Natoma Street, at 2nd Street). FREE; 21 and over

Lineup includes: Jodi Angel, Adam Johnson, Peter Orner, Eric Puchner, Karl Soehnlein, and Ann Joslin Williams.

FRIDAY, October 13

Friday, October 13, 12:30 p.m.
Litquake at Lunch features NPR Commentator Geoffrey Nunberg, author of Talking Right: How Conservatives Turned Liberalism into a Tax-Raising, Latte-Drinking, Sushi-Eating, Volvo-Driving, New York Times”Reading, Body-Piercing, Hollywood-Loving, Left-Wing Freak Show. Stacey’s (581 Market Street). FREEFriday, October 13, 5:30 p.m.
Generations: Writing Women’s Lives features women scribes from every decade of life ” from the 20s through the 70s ” reading from work that speak to the highs and lows of the female experience. Bubble Lounge (714 Montgomery Street). FREE

Lineup includes: Sera Beak, Jane Ganahl, Jane Juska, Kim Wong Keltner, Beth Lisick, Meredith Maran, Bharati Mukherjee, April Sinclair, Autumn Stephens, and Dawn Yun.

Friday, October 13, 6:30 p.m.
Crime and Consequences is an evening of writers reading from various perspectives on crime. Told from the point of view of an ex”police chief, ex”bank robber, crime victim’s child, criminal’s child, and an historic reformed crook recounting his glory days, this event will be an intelligent look at malfeasance and its results. The Hemlock Tavern (1131 Polk Street). FREE.

Lineup includes: Robert Mailer Anderson, Bennett Cohen, Rachel Howard, Joe Loya, Margo Perin, and SFPD Chief Prentice Earl Sanders (Ret.).

SATURDAY, October 14

Saturday, October 14, 12 p.m.
Litquake at Lunch features Jamie Lee Curtis reading from Is There Really a Human Race?, her children’s book on relishing the journey and making good choices along the way”because how we live and how we love is how we learn to make the world a better place, one small step at a time. Books Inc. in Opera Plaza (601 Van Ness Avenue). FREE

Saturday, October 14, 6″9:30 p.m.
The infamous Lit Crawl back and better than ever. Designed for those of who prefer their literature neat, on the rocks or with a water back, the Crawl is a four-hour free progressive reading that includes Latino, San Francisco Stories, mommy lit, travel, spirituality, erotica, and other writing as is wends its way through 27 venues down and around Valencia Street in the Mission, Saturday.

All Lit Crawl events are FREE; see specific venue for any age restrictions.

PHASE I, 6″7 p.m.

Intersection for the Arts
446 Valencia Street
The Anxiety Chronicles: How Fear Shapes Politics, Sex, and Language
Lineup includes: Susie Bright, Mark Hertsgaard, and Geoffrey Nunberg. Emcee: Jack Boulware.

Ti Couz
3108 16th Street
Mommy Lit: The Pleasures, Perils, and Politics of Motherhood
Lineup includes: Joan Blades, Katherine Ellison, Kate Hodson, Ericka Lutz, Polly Pagenhart, and Rachel Sarah. Emcee: Peter Hartlaub.

Café La Onda
3159 16th Street
Streetside Stories: Real Life Tales From San Francisco Youth
True stories written and read by local students participating in Streetside Stories, a program designed to cultivate young people’s voices, foster educational equity, and build community, literacy, and arts skills.

Adobe Books
3166 16th Street
Literature from the “Axis of Evil”: Reading Forbidden Fare from “Enemy Nations”
Lineup includes: Kareem James Abu-Zeid, Lea Aschkenas, Targol Mesbah, and Christine Lee Zilka. Emcee: Li Miao Lovett.

Kilowatt Bar (21 and over)
3160 16th Street
Stranger Than Fiction: Left Coast Writers Tell Tales from the Fringe
Lineup includes: Pamela Alma Bass, Bradley Charbonneau, Christine Comaford-Lynch, Kunal Mukherjee, Ransom Stephens, and Ann Kathleen Ure.

Forest Books
3080 16th Street
Going Deep: The Search for Spirituality in a Hectic World
Lineup includes: Carol Lee Flinders, David Kundtz, David Ian Miller, Starhawk, and Chief Luisah Teish. Emcee: Paula Hendricks.

Casanova Lounge (21 and over)
527 Valencia Street
Travel Writers Roam the Globe: Lonely Planet and Travelers’ Tales
Lineup includes: Lonely Planet: Bill Fink, Don George, and Judy Tierney. Travelers’ Tales: Phil Cousineau, Larry Habegger, Constance Hale, and Bonnie Smetts..

Dalva (21 and over)
3121 16th Street
Poetry Mission: Spoken Word Poets Take the Stage
Lineup includes: Rupert Estanislao, Leticia Hernández-Linares, Ise Lyfe, Phillip T. Nails, Dan O., Aimee Suzara, and Kirya Traber. Emcee: Elz Cuya.

Abandoned Planet Bookstore
518 Valencia Street
One World, Many Languages: Literature in Translation
Lineup includes: Chana Bloch, Hamida Banu Chopra, Zack Rogow, John Oliver Simon, and Niloufar Talebi.

Good Vibrations (18 and over)
603 Valencia Street
Getting Hot: Erotica Writers from Cleis Press and Good Vibes
Lineup includes: Charlie Anders, Violet Blue, Jen Cross, Paul Festa, Carol Queen , Simon Sheppard, and Mollena Williams.

PHASE II, 7:15″8:15 p.m.

Downstairs @ The Elbo Room (21 and over)
647 Valencia Street
The School Books: Literary Journals from Local M.F.A. Programs
Lineup includes: Fourteen Hills (San Francisco State University): Paul Gacioch, David Lau, and Anne-E. Wood. Switchback (University of San Francisco): Mysti Berry, Jesus Quintero, and Carly Anne West.

Upstairs @ The Elbo Room (21 and over)
647 Valencia Street
Gender/Queer: Beyond the Binary with Suspect Thoughts and Others
Lineup includes: Blake C. Aarens, Meliza Banales, Stephen Beachy, Alicia E. Goranson, Mattilda, a.k.a. Matt Bernstein Sycamore, and Katia Noyes. Emcee: Tara Jepsen.

New College Theater
777 Valencia Street
The Asian-Pacific Experience: In Conjunction with the Kearny Street Workshop and the Vietnamese Artists Collective
Lineup includes: Tony Cuong Tuan Luong, Mako Matsuda, Anh-Hoa Thi Nguyen, Shailja Patel, Barbara Jane Reyes, and Rene Yung. Emcee: Marilyn Yu-Li

826 Valencia Street
All Thumbs: Readings and Thumb Wrestling at 826 Valencia
Lineup includes: Tom Kealey and Oscar Villalon.

City Art Gallery
828 Valencia Street
Emperor Norton Lives: Only in S.F. Authors
Lineup includes: Warren Hinckle, Merle Kessler, Josh Kornbluth, Mark Morford, R.U. Sirius, and Pam Tent

Borderlands Books
866 Valencia Street
Exploring the Outer Limits: Fantasy & Sci-Fi Authors
Lineup includes: Peter S. Beagle, Pat Murphy, Loren Rhoads, and Scott Sigler. Emcee: Alan Beatts.

Amnesia (21 and over)
853 Valencia Street
Rockin’ the Page: Music Writers Take the Mic
Lineup includes: Peter Ellenby, Blair Jackson, Tamara Palmer, Denise Sullivan, and Richie Unterberger. Emcee: Renee Richardson.

Modern Times Bookstore
888 Valencia Street
The G Spot with Seal Press: Gender, Geeks, Grooms, Grief, and Getting It On
Lineup includes: Linda Blachman, Gloria Lenhart, Annalee Newitz, Joan Price, Lisa Taggart, and Max Wolf Valerio.

Dog Eared Books
900 Valencia Street
Literary Magazines: Defenestration and On The Page
Lineup includes: Defenestration: Robin Demers, Lisa Crovo Dion, and Micah Pilkington. On the Page: Andrea Coombes, Jacob Kornbluth, and Samantha Schoech. Emcee:
Nada Von Tress.

Encantada Gallery
908 Valencia Street
Flor Y Canto: Chicano/Latino Writers in English
Lineup includes: Ruben A. Barron, Ananda Esteva, Melissa Lozano, Alejandro Murguia, Milta Ortiz, and Luis Alberto Urrea.

PHASE III, 8:30″9:30 p.m.

La Casa Del Libro
973 Valencia Street
Diversidad de las Voces Latinos: Spanish Language Writers
Lineup includes: Daniel Alarcón, Camincha, Adela Castillo, Jose Antonio Galloso, and Willy Lizárraga.

Mission Laundromat
3282 22nd Street
Dirty Laundry, Loads of Prose: Laundromat Lit Comes to S.F.
Lineup includes: Rob Brezsny, J. Brooks Dann, Susanne Pari, Jennifer Traig, and Cameron Tuttle. Music by: Sam Barry and Kathi Kamen Goldmark. Emcee: Emily Rubin and Gregory Rossi.

Lone Palm (21 and over)
3394 22nd Street
Murder and Mayhem: An Evening of Mystery, Crime, and Noir
Lineup includes: James Calder, David Corbett, Gillian Roberts, Sheldon Siegel, and Jacqueline Winspear. Emcee: Paula Hendricks.

Revolution Café
3248 22nd Street
Literary Magazines: Watchword and Instant City
Lineup includes: Watchword: Chaim Bertman, Tavia Stewart, and Maw Shein Win. Emcee: Liz Lisle. Instant City: Raina Bird, Jon Chester, and Aaron Nielsen. Emcee: Gravity Goldberg.

Latin American Club (21 and over)
3286 22nd Street
Getting Boozy: Writers With Drinks and Manic D Press
Writers With Drinks: Claire Light, Lauren Wheeler, and Alvin Orloff. Emcee: Charlie Anders. Manic D Press: Jennifer Blowdryer, Justin Chin, and Jon Longhi. Emcee: Jennifer Joseph

Laszlo Bar (21 and over)
2526 Mission Street
The Tasting Course: Writers on Food and Wine
Lineup includes: Georgeanne Brennan, Sara Deseran, Michele Anna Jordan, Scott Keneally, Andy Raskin, and Beau Timken. Emcee: Shuna Lydon.

The Marsh Café
1070 Valencia Street
Short Stories for the Underdog: Hard-Hitting Authors With a Soft Spot
Lineup includes: David Beisly-Guiotto, Noria Jablonski, Jason Morris, Mimi Lok, Evan Rehill, and Sarah Fran Wisby.

Upstairs at The Marsh
1062 Valencia Street
San Francisco Stories: Our City in Black and White
Lineup includes: Juvenal Acosta, Karen Joy Fowler, Joshua Gamson, Peter Plate, Domenic Stansberry, and Elizabeth Stark. Emcee: Elise Proulx.

Ritual Roasters
1026 Valencia Street
Going Grotto: Authors from S.F.’s Famed Writers Collective
Lineup includes: Tom Barbash, Elizabeth Bernstein, Po Bronson, Xandra Castleton,
David Ewing Duncan, Rodes Fishburne, Melanie Gideon, Gerard Jones, Julia Scheeres, and Ethan Watters. Emcee: Caroline Paul

The Make-Out Room (21 and over)
3225 22nd Street
The Brat Pack: Local Fiction from MacAdam/Cage
Lineup includes: Craig Clevenger, Stephen Elliott, Michelle Richmond, and Michelle Tea.

12 Galaxies (21 and over)
2565 Mission Street
McSweeney’s and The Believer: Contributors and Authors Hold Forth
Lineup includes: McSweeney’s: Chris Adrian. The Believer: Susan Steinberg, Joe Wenderoth, and Dean Young. Vendela Vida hosts and reads.