Litquake 2024

It’s time to take an art form that’s secretive by design (it’s right there in the name!) out from the shadows. A trio of professional ghosts—Felice Laverne, Hilary Swanson, and Annie Tucker—will share the challenges and rewards of their craft, as well as tips for breaking into the biz. Is the work glamorous, thankless, or both? What kinds of ethical questions do ghostwriters encounter? How can a ghostwriter park their ego—and preserve their composure—when assuming the voice of a public (and sometimes very famous) persona? This freewheeling yet practical conversation will be moderated by Brooke Warner, publisher of SheWrites Press. FREE, $10-15 suggested donation

A panel featuring Ellen Barry, Andrea Canaan, Lisa Clapper, Natalie Devora, Juli C. Lasselle, Jessica Millett and Suma Nagaraj will discuss and engage the audience in a brief writing exercise through the workshopping model Radical Creative Womanist Workshopping and Reflection in Community (RCWWRC). An antidote to competitive traditional workshopping models, the spirit of RCWWRC is for writers to bring a writing work to life with the support of a writing community. FREE, $10-15 suggested donation

Co-presented with Sistah Sci-fi

Co-moderated by Lyn Patterson and Vincente Perez, this session considers Black poetics as a world-building phenomenon. In the lineage of Black poets like Henry Dumas and June Jordan, panelists Ashia Ajani, Darius Simpson and Nefertiti Asanti write against the Human, write towards Black eco-poetics, and write as political education to form critical practices of viewing, listening, and being. Hear how they use poetry to dissect and analyze the worlds of white supremacy, settler colonialism, and heteropatriarchy, charting a path toward alternative worlds and possibilities. FREE, $10-15 suggested donation

"Music is a refuge for those who cannot find solace in the world around them." Join cultural critic and essayist Micheal Foulk (Queer Film Theory 101) for an evening of writers writing about music! Inspired by the music criticism and archival work of writer Hanif Abdurraqib, Irregular Feedback is a literary deep dive into our favorite albums, genres, and musical artists of the past 60 years. Featuring Hieu Minh Nguyen, Phoebe Cakes, Safia Elhillo, José Vadi, and Anna Held. Doors at 6:30PM. $12 adv / $15 door.
Book sales for this event coordinated by Dog Eared Books

Float away on a brand new Poetry Nap voyage—The Enchanting Secret of the Opalescent Moon—with poetry and music woven into an immersive tale of whimsy, curiosity, and adoration guided by Lady and Lord Dosis, time voyagers of the dream world. Delight in a cozy, celestial indoors “nap” under the visual marvels of the Chabot Space & Science Center’s full-dome Planetarium. Unlike other naps of the past, experience “Peek Moments” by opening your eyes on occasion to Chabot Planetarium’s visual wonders. We promise you are in for an otherworldly treat! If you like, bring a pillow, blanket, and dress in pajamas or robes. Poetry Nap is a WYALD.art. $30 early bird / $35 adv / $40 door ($5 off online w code: LITQUAKE)

The critically-acclaimed SF Neo-Futurists will perform a special one-night Litquake edition of their flagship show The Infinite Wrench, named one of “22 San Francisco things everyone must do” by the SF Chronicle! The show features 30 original short plays in 60 minutes written by a diverse ensemble of local Bay Area artists, featuring personal storytelling, poetry, dance, audience participation, and more. Doors at 8:45PM. $16 adv / $13 (+ roll of a die) door