LitPDX seeks to amplify marginalized voices, and welcomes all, their ideas, their events, and their words.

For details regarding specific events please contact the organizers or venues. If you are an organizer or venue and would like to reach out to us please feel free to contact us or submit an event using our submission form. We’d love to hear from you!

John U. Bacon “Overtime” Book Tour

Broadway Grill and Brewery 1700 NE Broadway Street, Portland, OR, United States

John U. Bacon, bestselling author and Michigan alumnus, is coming to Portland! Join us in welcoming him on his book tour for Overtime: Jim Harbaugh and the Michigan Wolverines at the Crossroads of College Football. John will be giving a talk about the book and answering questions, as well as signing copies. Admission includes a copy of the book. More on Overtime: For the past year, John U. Bacon has received rare access to Jim Harbaugh’s University of Michigan football team: coaches, players, and staffers, in closed-door meetings, locker rooms, meals, and classes. Overtime captures this storied program at the crossroads, as the sport’s winningest team battles to reclaim its former glory. But what if the price of success today comes at the cost of…

$10 – $25

Art & Power: Centering the Voices of Black Artists

Louiza 2808 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd, Portland, OR, United States

Black and African American communities have always created and contributed to thriving arts and culture landscapes. Despite racist laws and oppressive systems’ attempt to erase and co-opt these contributions, the resiliency, advocacy, and creativity of Black artists continues to challenge the paradigm. Black artists are bringing art to life across the region, redefining art spaces, creating new systems, and reimagining new futures. Join us for the last Art & Power of 2019 and listen, learn and reflect with local artists Bethlehem Daniel, Carlos the Rollerblader, Christine Miller, and Mic Crenshaw as they discuss their experience as Black artists in Portland’s arts ecosystem, with moderation by S. Renee Mitchell. We strive to host inclusive and accessible events that enable all individuals to engage fully. There will…

Free

John Arcudi, From Hell’s Heart

Broadway Books 1714 NE Broadway, Portland, OR, United States

To mark the occasion of the bicentennial of Herman Melville’s birth (August 1st, 1819), John Arcudi has brought together fifty-seven world renowned artists and their gorgeous, brand new illustrations for Moby Dick, Bartleby, Pierre, The Confidence Man, Typee, Billy Budd, and White Jacket, as well as excerpts from Melville’s letters. A short passage from Melville’s writing accompanies each illustration, giving context to the story. Artists include Matt Kish, Dave Malan, Hunt Emerson, Evan Cagle, Brahm Revel, Ryan Sook, and Cosimo Miorelli. John Arcudi is a Portland comic book writer, best known for his work on The Mask and B.P.R.D. and for his series Major Bummer; his most recent work, Rumble, is illustrated by David Rubin and published by Portland-based Image Comics. The son of a…

Free

Unsolicited Press Drop-In Submission Pitch

Elephants Delicatessen on Corbett 5221 SW Corbett Avenue, Portland, OR, United States

Unsolicited Press will hold an informal drop-in submissions period in which local writers can pitch their manuscripts to one of the editors on the team. The pitches should be 1-3 minutes in length and authors should bring with them a query letter to leave with the author (if the author wants to furnish a sample of the work, 10 pages max). Think of it like speed dating for books. Writers can identify the editor by looking for the table with a copy of Who Killed Buster Sparkle?

Free

7th Annual Portland Cookbook & Artisan Marketplace

The Heathman Hotel 1001 SW Broadway, Portland, OR, United States

Join your favorite local cookbook and culinary guidebook authors for a holiday book signing at Headwaters at The Heathman Hotel. (Hint, hint: a signed book makes a great holiday gift.) Authors will be on hand to sign and sell their latest and greatest titles as well as offer small bites and beverages for the crowd. Local makers will be selling their artisan treats and we'll have exciting raffle prizes. Free to attend! Before the marketplace, Join Portlanders John Becker and Megan Scott, authors of the new Joy of Cooking, in conversation with cookbook author and PCA President Diane Morgan. Morgan will lead a Q&A with Becker, the great-grandson of the original author, Irma Rombauer, and his wife, Megan Scott. Tickets for the Joy of Cooking author talk from 11-noon…

Free

MUTANT COMICS X-POSITION AND TRUNK SHOW

Books with Pictures 1401 SE Division Street, Portland, OR, United States

X-Party! X-Music! X-Cake! X-Costumes! X-Travaganza! We’re feeling unprecedented levels of X-citement lately here at Books with Pictures, so we’re throwing an evening of X-treme frivoloty. Break out your Jubilee crossplay and come celebrate with us! In time for the release of the House of X/Powers of X hardcover, Eisner-winning critic Douglas Wolk will present a Quicksilver-speed history of all of the X-Men-related series and miniseries Marvel has published since 1963, and sing a song that names 150 of them. And we'll have sets of the best ones for sale!

Free

Fandom PDX 2020

Sheraton Portland Airport Hotel 8235 Northeast Airport Way, Portland, OR, United States

Fandom PDX® (formerly Newcon PDX/Anime PDX) is Portland, Oregon's hotel based pop culture convention celebrating cosplay, video games, anime, tabletop gaming, comics, and "all things geek". Our twelfth event will take place at the Sheraton Portland Airport Hotel on Saturday and Sunday: January 4-5, 2020. The event features an Exhibitor's Hall, Artist Alley, celebrity guests, video game rooms, CCG/RPG/tabletop gaming, panels, workshops, and much more. Details coming soon!

$20 – $35

Are Girls Turning into Killer Cats?

Multnomah County Library - US Bank Room 801 SW 10th St, Portland, OR, United States

Listen to the creative team of the Eisner Award–nominated comic book Man-Eaters talk comics, felines, and feminist agendas. Featuring NYT bestselling writer Chelsea Cain (Man-Eaters, Mockingbird), Lia Miternique (Man-Eaters co-creator), and 14-year-old contributors Eliza Fantastic Mohan (writer), Stella Greenvoss (artist), and Emily Powell (Haiku-writer-in-residence).

Free

Write to Publish Conference

PSU - Smith Memorial Student Union 1825 SW Broadway, Portland, OR, United States

Write to Publish is an annual publishing conference hosted by Portland State University’s graduate program in Book Publishing. It is the largest fundraising event for both the program and the student-run general trade publisher, Ooligan Press. This event serves as an open house for people interested in the publishing program, while also being a great networking event for local publishers and writers. Every year, we hold panels, workshops, and seminars about the latest trends in publishing, making it a great conference for writers and industry professionals alike.

$20 – $65

Longreads Club: Who was Qassem Suleimani?

Rose City Book Pub 1329 NE Fremont, Portland, OR, United States

READ THE ARTICLE: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2013/09/30/the-shadow-commander If you are paywalled, here is a cached version: http://archive.is/lJuYA In 2013, the New Yorker published a lengthy profile on Qassem Suleimani, the Iranian commander who was killed last week by an American drone, during his involvement in Syria's civil war. Although older than articles that we typically read, this piece has suddenly become very timely and useful for understanding what's going to happen in the months ahead. 10,580 words, about 45 minutes If you prefer to listen to the article, you can create a Text-To-Speech mp3 for free here: http://www.fromtexttospeech.com. The TTS is a robotic voice, but many people get used to it fairly quickly. The Longreads Club gets together every other week to discuss a long-form article focused on…

Free