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Thursday, October 10
 

7:00pm PDT

Booksellers Ball
Thursday October 10, 2024 7:00pm - 10:00pm PDT

Thank you to our generous Opening Night sponsors!
Bestsellers - Center for the Art of Translation/Two Lines Press, Club Fugazi
Staff Favorites - Alta Journal
Sidelines - Arion Press, Chronicle Books, UC Press, She Writes Press, Ten Speed Press
Beverages sponsored by Lunar Hard Seltzer and Saintsbury Wines

Our 2024 festival will kick off with the Booksellers Ball, a big opening night bash at historic Club Fugazi in North Beach. Here, the Litquake community will come together to fête San Francisco’s independent bookstores at a catered event with abundant libations and a sizzling lineup of literature-themed drag performances hosted by Joe Wadlington of Happy Endings, a.k.a Jubilee! With festive grooves from Bff.fm DJ Lead Teddy and a reading nook curated by 17 of San Francisco’s best independent booksellers, we invite you to kick up your heels with local literati and celebrate 25 years of Litquake! $75 / $100 to sponsor a bookseller

Participating booksellers include:
Adobe Books
Bird and Beckett
Black Bird Books
Book Castle
Books Inc.
Book Passage
The Booksmith
City Lights
Comix Experience
Dog Eared Books
Et al.
Fabulosa Books
Green Apple Books
Isotope Comics
Medicine for Nightmares
Silver Sprocket
Telegraph Hill Books
Authors and Participants
avatar for Vera Hannush

Vera Hannush

VERA! is the Bay Area drag grandpa, the father of the House of Pack with 33 children and a dozen grandchildren and great grandchildren, and a proud Armenian American king and cohost of the Rebel Kings of Oakland, longest running drag king show on the West Coast. They are also Creative... Read More →
avatar for Elsa Touche

Elsa Touche

Beloved San Francisco drag queen Elsa Touche was the winner of the 2019 California Gold pageant and was voted Favorite Drag Queen by the readers of the "SF Weekly" in 2020. She is currently a co-hostess of "The Monster Show," the Castro District's longest-running drag show. In addition... Read More →
avatar for Lead Teddy

Lead Teddy

Lead Teddy is DJ, Radio Host of Yours, Teddy BFF.fm in the Mission neighborhood and recovering conceptual artist living and working in San Francisco.
avatar for Joe Wadlington

Joe Wadlington

Joe Wadlington is a San Francisco writer, events producer, and drag queen. His writing has been published in the New Yorker, Vox, The San Francisco Chronicle, and the recent collection The Dreams I Dream: Letters to San Francisco. As his drag persona, Jubilee, he hosts the monthly... Read More →
Thursday October 10, 2024 7:00pm - 10:00pm PDT
Club Fugazi Experiences
  Performance
  • Age Limit 21+
 
Friday, October 11
 

7:00pm PDT

Foglifter Issue Launch Party
Friday October 11, 2024 7:00pm - 8:30pm PDT

Foglifter—created by and for LGBTQ+ writers and readers—continues the San Francisco Bay Area’s tradition of groundbreaking queer and trans writing, with an emphasis on publishing those multi-marginalized (BIPOC, youth, elders, and people with disabilities). Join us for the launch of Foglifter’s Fall 2024 issue, celebrating our vibrant 9.2 edition with a dazzling night of literary readings. Explore new voices as our featured writers bring their work to life. Limited print copies of the issue will be available for purchase. Featuring Amal Amer, Amalee Beattie, sienna fereshteh, Eden Nobile, and more! Doors at 6:45PM. FREE, $10–15 suggested donation

Authors and Participants
avatar for sienna fereshteh

sienna fereshteh

sienna fereshteh (they/them) is a multiracial, Iranian-American artist based in the South Bay Area. They believe that their fundamental role as a poet is to RESIST the insidious violence of erasure, to pay witness to humanity in its struggle for collective liberation—such that our... Read More →
avatar for Amal Amer

Amal Amer

Amal Amer (they/them) is a transdisciplinary artist, writer, and facilitator of SWANA descent currently based in California. Through visual media, performance, and collective storytelling, they explore the tension between rootedness and movement in diaspora. Amer’s work reinterprets... Read More →
avatar for Amalee Bea

Amalee Bea

Amalee Bea (she/they) is a Blackqueer writer, artist, and curator of warm communal spaces based in Oakland, California (Ohlone Land). Their written work spans experimental poetry, nonfiction, science fiction, and prose. Her practice also includes painting, installation, and conceptual... Read More →
avatar for Eden Nobile

Eden Nobile

Eden Nobile (he/they) is a trans writer originally from the Connecticut river valley, pursuing an MFA in poetry at St. Mary's College of California. Their writing life is highly influenced by ecology, possibly the long-term effects of watching Animal Planet as a youth. Nobile is a... Read More →
Friday October 11, 2024 7:00pm - 8:30pm PDT
Strut
 
Saturday, October 12
 

8:00pm PDT

Poetry Nap: The Enchanting Secret of the Opalescent Moon
Saturday October 12, 2024 8:00pm - 9:30pm PDT
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)
Authors and Participants
avatar for Robert and Jodie Wyald

Robert and Jodie Wyald

WYALD Arts and Ritual Theatre is a Bay Area multimedia theater and arts production company dedicated to pushing the boundaries of storytelling through innovative performances that combine elements of theater, music, and visual arts. Led by Robert and Jodie Wyald, the company seeks... Read More →
Saturday October 12, 2024 8:00pm - 9:30pm PDT
Chabot Space & Science Center Planetarium

9:00pm PDT

SF Neo-Futurists Present: The Infinite Wrench, Litquake Edition
Saturday October 12, 2024 9:00pm - 10:00pm PDT

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
Authors and Participants
avatar for Krys Seli

Krys Seli

Krys Seli is an artist and will continue to be.
avatar for Sam Bertken

Sam Bertken

Sam Bertken is a cartoonist and visual designer based in the Bay Area. He has performed with the San Francisco Neo-Futurists since 2019. You can find his comics, illustrations and other work at his website.
Saturday October 12, 2024 9:00pm - 10:00pm PDT
447 Minna St
 
Sunday, October 13
 

8:15pm PDT

Modern Magic with Michelle Tea
Sunday October 13, 2024 8:15pm - 10:00pm PDT
Sponsored by HarperOne
Co-presented with 48 Hills

The Lost Church is a fitting setting for an enchanting evening of stories and spells, featuring literary icon and self-described “DIY witch” Michelle Tea, whose new book Modern Magic is a companion to her classic Modern Tarot. Michelle will be joined in conversation by Diana Helmuth, author of The Witching Year, and during a special interactive intermission, we’ll also be treated to a glimpse of author Rana Tahir’s “Choose Your Own Adventure”–inspired tarot deck, as well as a taste of the bewitching beverages in Julia Halina Hadas’s WitchCraft Cocktails. The conversation will be guided by writer, educator, and multidisciplinary artist MK Chavez. Doors at 7:30PM. $18 / $15 early bird through 10/6

Book sales for this event coordinated by Telegraph Hill Books.
Moderators
avatar for MK Chavez

MK Chavez

MK Chavez is an art monster, siguanaba, writer, and educator. Chavez’s writing explores mixed-race identity, social justice, environmental resilience, horror cinema, magic, ritual, and the creative process. Chavez’s work has been recognized with the Pen Josephine Miles Award... Read More →
Authors and Participants
avatar for Julia Halina Hadas

Julia Halina Hadas

Bestselling author of WitchCraft Cocktails and Moon, Magic, Mixology, Julia Halina Hadas is the leading magical mixologist in the witchcraft and spiritual spheres. She combines her expert knowledge in witchcraft, mixology, and astrology with the power of herbs to conjure delicious... Read More →
avatar for Diana Helmuth

Diana Helmuth

Diana Helmuth writes about urges: to travel, to be in nature, and to feel understood. Her first book, How to Suffer Outside, was a National Outdoor Book Award winner. Her most recent book The Witching Year was released in 2023. Helmuth’s freelance work can be found in various anthologies... Read More →
avatar for Rana Tahir

Rana Tahir

Rana Tahir is a poet and author. She is a member of RAWI (Radius of Arab American Writers). Tahir’s Choose Your Own Adventure Tarot Deck was released in August. In addition to her Choose Your Own Adventure novels, her work can be found in BAHR Magazine, Quarterly West, and Salt... Read More →
avatar for Michelle Tea

Michelle Tea

Michelle Tea is the author of over a dozen books, including the cult-classic Valencia, the essay collection Against Memoir, and the speculative memoir Black Wave. She is the recipient of awards from the Guggenheim, Lambda Literary, and Rona Jaffe Foundations, PEN/America, and other... Read More →
Sunday October 13, 2024 8:15pm - 10:00pm PDT
The Lost Church
 
Wednesday, October 16
 

7:00pm PDT

KQED Forum presents I Heard There Was a Secret Chord: Music as Medicine
Wednesday October 16, 2024 7:00pm - 8:45pm PDT
Co-presented with KQED Live! and KQED's Forum

Music is one of humanity’s oldest medicines. From ancient East Asia to the Ottoman Empire, from Europe to Africa and the pre-colonial Americas, many cultures have developed their own rich traditions for using sound and rhythm to ease suffering, promote healing, and calm the mind. In his latest work, not-so-typical neuroscientist and New York Times bestselling author Daniel J. Levitin (This Is Your Brain on Music) explores music’s curative powers through lively interviews with some of today’s most celebrated musicians, from Sting to Kent Nagano and Mari Kodama, interweaved with scientific case studies, music theory, and music history. Moderated by KQED Forum’s Alexis Madrigal and featuring a special live musical guest. Doors at 6:30PM. $25 (book bundle avail.)
Moderators
avatar for Alexis Madrigal

Alexis Madrigal

Alexis Madrigal is the co-host of Forum on KQED and a contributing writer at The Atlantic. He is the author of the forthcoming book, The Pacific Circuit, and the proprietor of the Oakland Garden Club.
Authors and Participants
avatar for Daniel J. Levitin

Daniel J. Levitin

Daniel J. Levitin is an award-winning neuroscientist, musician, and best-selling author. His research encompasses music, the brain, health, productivity and creativity.Levitin has published more than 300 articles, in journals including Science, Nature, PNAS, The New Yorker, The Atlantic... Read More →
Wednesday October 16, 2024 7:00pm - 8:45pm PDT
KQED
 
Thursday, October 17
 

6:30pm PDT

Read for Filth: Queer Erotica
Thursday October 17, 2024 6:30pm - 10:30pm PDT
Read for Filth: Queer Erotica is a celebration of - yes - queer erotica. The event will feature the reading of queer erotic passages and drag performances to queer sexy songs. There will be cocktails! There will be snacks! There will be a DJ to help get your mood on! And don't forget all your fellow cute bookish queers (and people who love cute queers). Featuring the talents of Baruch Porras-Hernandez, DJ Lead Teddy, Polly Amber Ross and other drag superstars. FREE, $20-40 suggested donation 
Book sales for this event coordinated by Fabulosa Books.
Authors and Participants
avatar for Lead Teddy

Lead Teddy

Lead Teddy is DJ, Radio Host of Yours, Teddy BFF.fm in the Mission neighborhood and recovering conceptual artist living and working in San Francisco.
avatar for Baruch Porras Hernandez

Baruch Porras Hernandez

Baruch Porras Hernandez has been called a Flan come to life, and is a writer-stand up comedian originally from Toluca, Mexico who came here to steal all your jobs and make out with all of the hot dads. He is the author of Lovers of the Deep Fried Circle, I Miss You Delicate, Sluts... Read More →
avatar for Polly Amber Ross

Polly Amber Ross

Polly Amber Ross (she/they) is a transfemme fatale, mother of the House of Ross, horror movie fanatic, and host of multiple monthly shows in San Francisco. She’s a garment designer, producer, activist, and comedienne whose work usually focuses on subverting toxic pop-culture with... Read More →
Thursday October 17, 2024 6:30pm - 10:30pm PDT
Fabulosa Books
 
Monday, October 21
 

7:00pm PDT

Word for Word Off the Page: Lauren Groff’s “Annunciation”
Monday October 21, 2024 7:00pm - 8:30pm PDT
Co-presented with Word for Word

Word for Word is a theater company that brings short stories to life, honoring the author’s intent by using every word of a text. Off the Page staged readings are the first step in the development of pieces they are considering for upcoming productions. Word for Word invites audiences to see their process of bringing a work from the page to the stage in the unique Word for Word style. In this Off the Page reading, award-winning author Lauren Groff brings us a tale of a young woman who moves from New England to Palo Alto, taking her first steps into post-college adulthood. As she tries to discover who she will become, the “god and animal within” fight to define her. Groff was named one of the 100 most influential people by TIME in 2024. FREE; $10–15 suggested donation
Authors and Participants
avatar for Word for Word

Word for Word

Word for Word is a theater company that brings short stories to life, honoring the author’s intent by using every word of a text. Off the Page staged readings are the first step in the development of pieces we are considering for upcoming productions. We invite audiences to see... Read More →
Monday October 21, 2024 7:00pm - 8:30pm PDT
Z Below

7:00pm PDT

SWOLE: The Meaning of Muscle Panel + Party
Monday October 21, 2024 7:00pm - 10:30pm PDT

Co-presented by KEXP

Literature, drag, and dancing at the legendary San Francisco LGBTQ+ venue THE STUD?! Oh my! Writer and cultural critic Michael Brodeur joins personal trainers MetalBob and Katherine Bickford (Bay Strength) for a conversation about his new book SWOLE: The Making of Men and the Meaning of Muscle. Featuring a special "SWOLE-themed" drag show curated by Bay Area favorite HANDS, featuring Vivvyanne ForeverMORE, God's Lil Princess, Piss E. Sissy, and more! Doors at 6:00PM, panel at 7:00PM with drag and dance party to follow. $17 adv / $20 door
Book sales for this event coordinated by Fabulosa Books. 
Authors and Participants
avatar for Gods Lil Princess

Gods Lil Princess

Gods Lil Princess is a cross dressing pinko commie antifa snowflake with a penchant for absurdity and a passion for fashion.  
avatar for Michael Brodeur

Michael Brodeur

Michael Andor Brodeur has been the classical music critic at the Washington Post since 2020. Previously, he held editorial and staff-writer positions at the Boston Globe and Boston’s Weekly Dig. His book Swole: The Making of Men and the Meaning of Muscle was released in May. His... Read More →
avatar for Hands

Hands

Hands is an Oakland born Drag King, first of his name, self-made man.
avatar for Piss E. Sissy

Piss E. Sissy

He’s a limp wristed sissy who will make you drippy. Piss E. is a proud Indigenous performer, māhū, & drag regent. They’ll bring high energy, campy, slutty, slimy, and perversely political to a stage near you. 
avatar for Katherine Bickford

Katherine Bickford

Katherine Bickford is co-owner of Bay Strength, an innovative and inclusive strength training gym in Berkeley, California. Along with her three co-owners, their team of eight coaches help people of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities discover their strength and physical potential... Read More →
avatar for VivvyAnne ForeverMORE

VivvyAnne ForeverMORE

VivvyAnne ForeverMORE is a tornado in a dress who’s awkwardness is surpassed only by her desire to be liked. Daughter of the legendary Glamamore she hosted and co-produced Club SOME THING weekly for 8 years at the legendary Stud Bar. She was described by the New York Times as “…and... Read More →
Monday October 21, 2024 7:00pm - 10:30pm PDT
The Stud
  Performance
  • Age Limit 21+
 
Tuesday, October 22
 

7:00pm PDT

Literary Speakeasy Presents: Dragging Celebrity Autobiographies
Tuesday October 22, 2024 7:00pm - 9:00pm PDT

Literary Speakeasy returns to the OASIS stage for another hysterical evening of “Dragging Celebrity Autobiographies.” A stellar cast of Bay Area drag superstars will be putting on their reading glasses to celebrate the most scandalous, most outrageous, and most ridiculous celebrity memoirs and autobiographies! From “Real Housewives” to Hollywood legends, no book or celebrity is off limits. Come join your hosts James J. Siegel and Elsa Touché for an evening of laughs, queer camp, and prizes! $25 general / $30 premium runway seating 
Moderators
avatar for James Siegel

James Siegel

James J. Siegel is a Pushcart-nominated poet and author of the poetry collections The God of San Francisco and How Ghosts Travel, which was a finalist for an Ohioana Library Award. He is the host and curator of the monthly Literary Speakeasy show at Martuni’s piano bar in San Francisco... Read More →
avatar for Elsa Touche

Elsa Touche

Beloved San Francisco drag queen Elsa Touche was the winner of the 2019 California Gold pageant and was voted Favorite Drag Queen by the readers of the "SF Weekly" in 2020. She is currently a co-hostess of "The Monster Show," the Castro District's longest-running drag show. In addition... Read More →
Authors and Participants
avatar for Vanilla Meringue

Vanilla Meringue

Vanilla Meringue is a fabulously voluptuous drag queen from San Francisco, CA
avatar for Polly Amber Ross

Polly Amber Ross

Polly Amber Ross (she/they) is a transfemme fatale, mother of the House of Ross, horror movie fanatic, and host of multiple monthly shows in San Francisco. She’s a garment designer, producer, activist, and comedienne whose work usually focuses on subverting toxic pop-culture with... Read More →
avatar for SNJV

SNJV

SNJV is a dynamic artist blending dance, drag, and drama to celebrate humanity. Performing since age four, he fuses cultures to create performances for the stage and screen. As the first South-Asian Mr. GAPA, SNJV illuminates spaces of AAPI excellence. Serving as a co-founder, SNJV... Read More →
avatar for Lucinda Puss

Lucinda Puss

Lucinda Puss is a Bay Area drag queen and crazy cat lady, with a penchant for puns and the darker side of life...also cheese. Like, really really loves cheese. 
avatar for Bebe Sweetbriar

Bebe Sweetbriar

San Francisco-based drag star, 2016 Drag Entertainer of the Year & NITEY Awards Most Notable Drag Queen, BeBe Sweetbriar has graced many stages around the World including Hong Kong, China. As award winning performer, Top 10 USA Dance Radio and Top 25 Billboard charting recording artist... Read More →
avatar for J. A. Valentine

J. A. Valentine

J. A. Valentine is an actor/ess and singer who’s sashayed on Bay Area stages for three decades, most recently in “The Legend of Georgia McBride” at Center Rep and in such satirical drag comedies as “BitchSlap”, “Star Trek Live” and “Harry Poofter” at SF Oasis. Other... Read More →
Tuesday October 22, 2024 7:00pm - 9:00pm PDT
OASIS
  Performance
  • Age Limit 21+

7:00pm PDT

Saint The Terrifying: Joshua Mohr with Peter Maravelis
Tuesday October 22, 2024 7:00pm - 9:00pm PDT

Co-presented with City Lights Booksellers & Publishers


Bay Area author Joshua Mohr taps the troubled vein of class warfare and gentrification in Oakland with his latest book Saint The Terrifying, an ambitious tale of love and retribution. An ex-con, Saint was raised in the wilds of Norway, where his father brought him up in the old traditions and taught him the way of the Viking. Now Saint finds himself immersed in the Oakland music scene and, off stage, hunting down criminals no one else cares to find. Saint’s role as hardboiled detective is informed by Mohr’s deft interweaving of recent history, including Oakland’s Ghost Ship warehouse fire—a tragedy that Mohr revisits in a bold act of reclamation. Join the author in conversation with Peter Maravelis of City Lights, followed by a performance from Mohr’s band, Slummy. Doors at 6:30PM. $12 adv / $15 door
Book sales for this event coordinated by City Lights Bookstore.
Authors and Participants
avatar for Joshua Mohr

Joshua Mohr

Joshua Mohr is the author of several novels, including Damascus, which The New York Times called “Beat-poet cool.” He’s also written Some Things That Meant the World to Me, one of O Magazine’s 10 Terrific reads of 2009, and All This Life, winner of the Northern California... Read More →
avatar for ​​​​Peter Maravelis

​​​​Peter Maravelis

​​​​Peter Maravelis is the Event Director at City Lights Booksellers & Publishers. He is a native San Franciscan with a life-long involvement in the art and literary scenes and is the editor of San Francisco Noir and San Francisco Noir 2: The Classics. He produces the noir... Read More →
Tuesday October 22, 2024 7:00pm - 9:00pm PDT
Make-Out Room
  Performance
  • Age Limit 21+
 
Friday, October 25
 

7:30pm PDT

RAWdance: Escape
Friday October 25, 2024 7:30pm - 9:15pm PDT
Join RAWdance and Litquake for "Escape," an evocative ensemble work inspired by culturally-rooted vacation enclaves such as the Borscht Belt and Provincetown. Set in a world of vintage beachwear, "Escape" offers a cheeky dance romp into resort culture, while also inviting reflection on the power of belonging. Lighting for all works is by long-time collaborator and Bay Area design powerhouse, Del Medoff. The theater lobby will feature storytelling recordings from Litquake’s Elder Project, a community-building writing program in Bay Area senior centers. "Escape" is one of four world premieres as part of RAWdance's, landmark 20th anniversary home season at ODC Theater from October 24-27, 2024. Visit RAWdance.org for more info. Doors at 6:30PM. $30 general / $25 students/teachers/seniors/artists
Friday October 25, 2024 7:30pm - 9:15pm PDT
ODC Theater
 
Saturday, October 26
 

5:00pm PDT

Lit Crawl San Francisco
Saturday October 26, 2024 5:00pm - 11:00pm PDT
Sponsored by California Humanities

One of the most anticipated literary nights of the year, Lit Crawl SF brings together authors and fans for the world’s largest free pop-up literary event! Our 2024 Lit Crawl San Francisco will see 60+ events sprout up all over the Mission District. Our biggest in 5 years! FREE

FULL LIT CRAWL SF SCHEDULE NOW AVAILABLE! 

Saturday October 26, 2024 5:00pm - 11:00pm PDT
 
Sunday, October 27
 

7:30pm PDT

Lifeform: Jenny Slate
Sunday October 27, 2024 7:30pm - 9:00pm PDT
Spend an evening of nearly impossible-to-describe strangeness, whimsy, and hilarity with the one and only, Jenny Slate. As she reads you pieces from Lifeform—her brand-new book of essays—join Jenny on a journey through all of the relatable phases of life from heartbreak to true love to pregnancy, parenthood, not to mention all of the tiny, odd details that make up a life. The actor, comedian, co-creator of Marcel the Shell, and New York Times bestselling author will host an evening complete with a live reading, a moderated conversation, and an audience Q&A. Tickets include a signed copy of Lifeform. $82-$92
Authors and Participants
avatar for Jenny Slate

Jenny Slate

Jenny Slate is an actor and stand-up comedian, and the author of the essay collection Little Weirds (an instant New York Times best seller), as well as the New York Times best selling children's book Marcel The Shell with Shoes On. Her feature film Marcel The Shell With Shoes On (which... Read More →
Sunday October 27, 2024 7:30pm - 9:00pm PDT
Palace of Fine Arts
 
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