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5 DECEMBER 2020 — saturday

• The 2020 PEN Oakland Book Awards honor and celebrate the achievement and diversity of America's literary community, featuring winners of the Josephine Miles Award: Nick Estes, Our History Is the Future: Standing Rock Versus the Dakota Access Pipeline, and the Long Tradition of Indigenous Resistance, Sigrun Susan Lane Salt, Poems based in a dream that mollusks and bi-valves can suddenly sing, Jericho Brown, The Tradition, Maya Khosla, All the Fires of Wind and Light, Jillian Weise, Cyborg Detective, Jia Tolentino, Trick Mirror, and Stephanie McCurry, Women's War; the Adelle Foley Award will be presented to Henry Dumas; the Gary Webb Anti-Censorship Award will be presented to Omarosa Manigault Newman; the Reginald Lockett Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to Thomas Sanchez and Robert Sward, free, online via Facebook Live, 2:00-5:00 pm PST (for more information: www.oaklandlibrary.org/events/online-program/31st-annual-pen-oakland-josephine-miles-literary-awards)
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• San Diego Writers, Ink, offers "Developing Great Characters," a workshop led by director and screenwriter David Raines, teaching how to write memorable characters with meaningful story arcs, how to include backstory, and how to get audiences to empathize with your characters, $30 members, $36 nonmembers, online via Zoom, Noon-2:00 pm PST (Enroll here: www.sandiegowriters.org/december-online-great-characters-david-raines)
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• San Francisco Creative Writing Institute presents "Write from the Gut! Virtual Reading," an evening of readings by students and faculty, celebrating the fall classes at the Institute taught by Tongo Eisen-Martin, Alexandra Kostoulas, Paul Corman-Roberts, and Hollie Hardy, open mic to follow (limited to current and former SFCWI students), free, online via Zoom, 6:00-8:00 pm PST (Register on Facebook: www.facebook.com/events/776824149549133)
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6 DECEMBER 2020 — sunday

• Sixteen Rivers Press's bimonthly reading series presents a reading by poets Faylita Hicks and James Cagney, free, online via Zoom, 3:00 pm PST (RSVP to attend: sixteenrivers.org/dec-6-sixteen-rivers-presents-faylita-hicks-and-james-cagney)
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• Book Passage presents their Conversations with Authors series, featuring Zeyn Joukhader and his new novel, The Thirty Names of Night, that follows three generations of Syrian Americans connected through a mysterious species of bird, in conversation with Catherine Hernandez, novelist and theatre practitioner, free, online, 4:00 pm PST (Register to attend: www.bookpassage.com/event/conversations-authors-zeyn-joukhadar-virtual-event)
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• The Library Foundation of Los Angeles presents theater actor and director André Gregory in conversation about his new autobiography, This is Not My Memoir, with Wallace Shawn, playwright, actor, and longtime collaborator of Gregory's, their most famous collaboration is the 1981 film My Dinner with André, free, online, 1:00 pm PST, signed copies of the book are available for $32 (Register to attend: lfla.org/event/this-is-not-my-memoir)
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• Skylight Books presents columnist Chelsea G. Summers reading from her debut novel, A Certain Hunger, in conversation with Laurie Penny, award-winning author and screenwriter, free, online, 4:00 pm PST (Register to attend: www.skylightbooks.com/event/live-crowdcast-chelsea-g-summers-reads-her-debut-novel-certain-hunger-laurie-penny)
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7 DECEMBER 2020 — monday

• Aqus presents their bimonthly Poetry Open Mic, hosted by poet and artist Sande Anfang, held the first and third Monday of each month, with three-minute slots per reader, free, online via Zoom, 6:15 pm PST (Sign up for the open mic/RSVP to attend: aqus.com/rivertownpoets/)
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• Odd Mondays Reading Series presents a reading of short stories, featuring Daniel Curzon, Vanessa Hua, and Valerie Miner, hosted by Folio Books, free, online via Zoom, 7:00 pm PST (RSVP on Facebook: www.facebook.com/OddMondays)
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8 DECEMBER 2020 — tuesday

• Join host and poet Jack Foley, along with Nina Serrano, Jovelyn Richards, and Jennifer Stone, for "Cover to Cover," a radio show celebrating poetry and prose of all sorts, Tuesdays on KPFA in Berkeley, free, online, 2:00 pm PST (kpfa.org/program/cover-to-cover)
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• The Rattle Reading Series presents Rattlecast, a weekly livestream poetry event on YouTube and Facebook Live Tuesday evenings, with a combination of interviews and poetry readings from featured poets, hosted by Rattle editor Timothy Green, prompt-based open mic to follow, free, online, 6:00 pm PST (For more information: www.rattle.com/rattlecast)
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• Cobalt Poets presents a poetry reading by Ken Scott, open mic to follow, free, online via Zoom, 7:30 pm PST (Zoom link here: www.poetrysuperhighway.com/cobalt/calendar.html)
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• Westwood Branch Library in Los Angeles hosts this virtual poetry open mic, emceed by Wyatt Underwood, free, online via Zoom, 6:00 pm PST (email wwood@lapl.org to receive an invitation; for more information: www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/poetry-open-mic-0)
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• Coastside Poetry presents a reading featuring Maw Shein Win, who served as the first Poet Laureate of El Cerrito, reading from her new collection, Storage Unit for the Spirit House, open mic to follow, three-minutes per reader, free, online via Zoom, 6:00-8:00 pm PST (email Diane Lee Moomey: dianeleemoomey@coastsidepoetry.org or Steve Long: stevelong@coastsidepoetry.org for the Zoom link and to sign up for the open mic, for more information, visit coastsidepoetry.org)
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9 DECEMBER 2020 — wednesday

• San Diego Writers, Ink, offers "Writing the Micro Memoir, Life in a Flash," a two-session workshop led by Judy Reeves, co-founder of San Diego Writers, Ink; Part I of the workshop explores the Flash Memoir genre, where participants will read published examples and write their own, Part II (on December 16) will be an opportunity to bring these edited memoirs for critique and reader response, $60 for members, $72 for nonmembers, online via Zoom, 6:30-8:30 pm PST (Enroll here: www.sandiegowriters.org/december-online-micro-memoir-life-flash-judy-reeves)
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• City Lights Books presents a discussion of William Site's Sun Ra's Chicago: Afrofuturism and the City, examining the visionary musician Sun Ra and how his philosophy and performance style engaged with late twentieth-century Afrofuturism and the City of Chicago, in conversation with art gallerist John Corbett, free, online, 6:00 pm PST (Register to attend: www.citylights.com/bookstore/?fa=event&event_id=3705)
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10 DECEMBER 2020 — thursday

• Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center presents Part III of The Poetry Stage Redux, a series of readings from the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books Poetry Stage, featuring poets Kazim Ali, Jubi Arrioloa-Headley, Reginald Dwayne Betts, Travis Denton, Katie Ford, Sally Wen Mao, Sandra Meek, Deborah Paredez, Eleni Sikelianos, David St. John, and Chad Sweeney, free, online, 6:00 pm PST (Register to attend: www.eventbrite.com/e/the-poetry-stage-redux-part-iii-tickets-129624126251)
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• San Francisco Public Library presents their monthly Poem Jam reading series, featuring poet and editor Molly Fisk, reading with the writers of her new book, California Fire & Water: A Climate Crisis Anthology, introduced by Kim Shuck, Poet Laureate of San Francisco, free, online via Zoom, 6:00-7:00 pm PST (Register to attend: sfpl.org/events/2020/12/10/performance-poem-jam)
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• The Ventura County Poetry Project presents a reading by featured poet Scott Struman, hosted by Phil Taggart, open mic to follow, free, online via Zoom, 7:30 pm PST (Zoom link here: vcpoetryproject.org/ventura-county-poetry-project-events-calendar)
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11 DECEMBER 2020 — friday

• Community of Writers presents Poem First Aid, quick ten-minute consultations where you can bring a poem-in-progress, ask questions, and receive feedback, featuring Community of Writers staff poets Camille T. Dungy, Gregory Pardlo, and Matthew Zapruder, available only to alums of the Poetry Workshop of the Community of Writers, $18, online, 10:00 am–2:30 pm PST (Register here: communityofwriters.org/events/event/poem-first-aid)
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• The Mechanics' Institute presents David Landau discussing his book Brothers From Time to Time, a history of the Cuban Revolution with a focus on one Cuban family and the relationship between brothers Adolfo and Emi Rivero, free, online, Noon-1:30 pm PST (Register to attend: www.milibrary.org/events/brothers-time-time-david-landau-dec-11-2020)
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• Vroman's Bookstore presents Alice Quinn, poet and former director of the Poetry Society of America, reading from Together in a Sudden Strangeness: America's Poets Respond to the Pandemic, a collection of poems gathered by Quinn when she reached out to see what poets all across America were writing during quarantine; the resulting collection is darkly humorous, brave, and resilient, free, online, 6:00 pm PST (Register to attend: www.vromansbookstore.com/event/alice-quinn)
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12 DECEMBER 2020 — saturday

• The Poetry Center presents their annual George Oppen Memorial Lecture, featuring poet and essayist Erica Hunt, Veronica: A Suite in X Parts, emceed by poet Tonya M. Foster, free, online, 6:00 pm PST (Register to attend: poetry.sfsu.edu/events/29182-george-oppen-memorial-lecture-erica-hunt)
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• Book Passage presents novelist Jane Smiley reading from her new novel, Perestroika in Paris, a glittering fairy tale for adults, in conversation, free, online, 4:00 pm PST (Register to attend: www.bookpassage.com/event/conversations-authors-jane-smiley-virtual-event)
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13 DECEMBER 2020 — sunday

• "Hope in Deep December," poetry reading and celebration of the end of the year with a (virtual) gathering of friends and loved ones, featuring Poet Laureate of Benicia Mary Susan Gast, with D.L. Lang and Genea Brice, Vallejo Poets Laureate Emeritae, open mic follows, free, online, 2:00-4:00 pm PST (email: poetlaureatebenicia@gmail.com to sign up for the open mic; for more information: groups.google.com/g/poetry-notes/c/TNi3_f8BmGQ/m/fLdgaHAxBQAJ?pli=1)
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• Book Passage's Conversations with Authors series presents reporter David Harris reading from and discussing his latest book, My Country 'Tis of Thee: Reporting, Sallies, and Other Confessions, a collection of writings ranging from Harris's prominent resistance to the Vietnam War (Harris was imprisoned for two years for refusing to comply with the draft) to the present day, in conversation with actor and writer Peter Coyote, free, online, 4:00 pm PST (Register to attend: www.bookpassage.com/event/conversations-authors-david-harris-virtual-event)
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• Poetry Flash presents a virtual poetry reading by Omnidawn Publishers's Spring 2020 poets, featuring Desirée Alvarez, Raft of Flame, Anthony Cody, Borderland Apocrypha, Jennifer Hasegawa, La Chica's Field Guide to Bazai Living, David Koehn, Scatterplot, Craig Santos Perez, Habitat Threshold, and LM Rivera, Against Heidegger, online via Zoom, free, 3:00 pm PST (Register to attend: please click here; you will receive an email with a link and information on how to join the reading)
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14 DECEMBER 2020 — monday

• Vroman's Bookstore presents newspaper reporter and novelist William Loving reading from his first novel, City of Angles, the story of one man's fall from success into the gritty underbelly of Los Angeles, in conversation with Chip Jacobs, Los Angeles-area journalist and author, free, online, 6:00 pm PST (Register to attend: www.vromansbookstore.com/event/William-Loving)
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15 DECEMBER 2020 — tuesday

• Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center presents journalist and essayist Lynell George discussing her book A Handful of Earth, A Handful of Sky: The World of Octavia E. Butler, on the award-winning science fiction writer and the creative, stunning worlds she built, in conversation with Rex Weiner, investigative journalist and screenwriter, free, online, 6:00-7:00 pm PST (Register to attend: www.eventbrite.com/e/iryba-presents-lynell-george-in-conversation-with-rex-weiner-tickets-128902955209)
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• The Rattle Reading Series presents Rattlecast, a weekly livestream poetry event on YouTube and Facebook Live Tuesday evenings, with a combination of interviews and poetry readings from featured poets, hosted by Rattle editor Timothy Green, prompt-based open mic to follow, free, online, 6:00 pm PST (For information: www.rattle.com/rattlecast)
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• Cobalt Poets presents a poetry reading by Amy Uyematsu, open mic to follow, free, online via Zoom, 7:30 pm PST (Zoom link here: www.poetrysuperhighway.com/cobalt/calendar.html)
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• Skylight Books presents Karla Cornejo Villavicencio, The Undocumented Americans, and Marcelo Hernandez Castillo, Children of the Land, in a reading and conversation on immigration , for who endure hardship and trauma to come to America in search of a better life, joined by Los Angeles Times editor Steve Padilla, free, online, 7:00 pm PST (More info here: www.skylightbooks.com/event/la-times-book-club-karla-cornejo-villavicencio-and-marcelo-hernandez-castillo-times-editor)
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16 DECEMBER 2020 — wednesday

• San Diego Writers, Ink, offers Part II of this two-session workshop, "Writing the Micro Memoir, Life in a Flash," led by Judy Reeves, nonfiction author and co-founder of San Diego Writers, Ink, participants will bring their edited memoirs from the previous week for critique and reader response, $60 for members, $72 for nonmembers, online via Zoom, 6:30-8:30 pm PST (Enroll here: www.sandiegowriters.org/december-online-micro-memoir-life-flash-judy-reeves)
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17 DECEMBER 2020 — thursday

• Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center presents Part IV of "The Poetry Stage Redux," a series of readings that were planned for the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books Poetry Stage 2020, featuring poets Joshua Bennett, Gillian Conoley, Heid E. Erdrich, Forrest Gander, Carmen Giménez Smith, Mark Irwin, Didi Jackson, Elizabeth Jacobson, Patricia Smith, Page Starzinger, and Tess Taylor, free, online, 6:00-7:00 pm PST (Register to attend: www.eventbrite.com/e/the-poetry-stage-redux-part-iv-tickets-129624210503)
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• The San Francisco Public Library presents an evening of poetry, storytelling, and song in honor of renowned Samoan poet, novelist, and playwright Albert Wendt, hosted by Tongan scholar and poet Dr. Fuifuilupe Niumeitolu, assisted by poet activists Kevin Aipopo Henderson and Lisiate Vuna, featuring presenters Dr. Caroline Sinavaiana Gabbard, Dr. Craig Santos Perez, Herman Wainggai, Kathy Jentil-Kijiner, Dr. Ngahuia te Awekotuku, Terisa Siagatonu, Dr. Lee Kava, Dr. No'u Revilla, Tigilau Ness, Commissioner Faauunga Molinga, and Commissioner Manufou Liaiga-Anoa'l, free, online via Zoom and YouTube Live, 6:00-7:15 pm PST (RSVP to attend: sfpl.org/events/2020/12/17/performance-our-moana-nui-we-are-pacific-islander-studies)
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• The Ventura County Poetry Project presents a reading by featured poet Kim Young, hosted by Phil Taggart, open mic to follow, free, online via Zoom, 7:30 pm PST (Zoom link here: vcpoetryproject.org/ventura-county-poetry-project-events-calendar)
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18 DECEMBER 2020 — friday

• Small Press Traffic presents the High Dawn Reading Series, featuring readings by bookseller and poet Noah Ross and artist-poet S*an D. Henry-Smith, introduced by poet and editor Jamie Townsend, with a musical performance by Topazu, free, online via Zoom, 6:00-7:00 pm PST (RSVP to attend: www.smallpresstraffic.org/upcomingevents/noah-ross-sean-d-henry-smith)
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19 DECEMBER 2020 — saturday

• City Lights Books presents acclaimed novelist Elif Shafak, reading from and discussing 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World, free, online via Zoom, Noon PST (Register to attend: www.citylights.com/bookstore/?fa=event&event_id=3732)
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20 DECEMBER 2020 — sunday

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21 DECEMBER 2020 — monday

• Aqus presents their bimonthly Poetry Open Mic, hosted by poet and artist Sande Anfang, held the first and third Monday of each month, with three-minute slots per reader, free, online via Zoom, 6:15 pm PST (Sign up for the open mic/RSVP to attend: aqus.com/rivertownpoets/)
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22 DECEMBER 2020 — tuesday

• Cobalt Poets presents a poetry reading by Ben Pagliaro, open mic to follow, free, online via Zoom, 7:30 pm PST (Zoom link here: www.poetrysuperhighway.com/cobalt/calendar.html)
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23 DECEMBER 2020 — wednesday

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24 DECEMBER 2020 — thursday

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25 DECEMBER 2020 — friday

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26 DECEMBER 2020 — saturday

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27 DECEMBER 2020 — sunday

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28 DECEMBER 2020 — monday

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29 DECEMBER 2020 — tuesday

• Cobalt Poets presents a poetry reading by Lynne Bronstein, open mic to follow, free, online via Zoom, 7:30 pm PST (Zoom link here: www.poetrysuperhighway.com/cobalt/calendar.html)
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30 DECEMBER 2020 — wednesday

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31 DECEMBER 2020 — thursday

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