I’m excited to be participating as an author and speaker at this fabulous event, along with several of my author cohorts. Registration starts today, and one ticket includes 7 hours of comprehensive workshops and presentations with highly qualified professionals (like me and my cohorts!😊) and includes breakfast and lunch. They’re encouraging students to attend by offering discounts for those with active student ID’s. (check the FAQ page). This ticket also helps to support their non-profit community art center and its continued literary arts programming, so a good cause is also in the mix.

Please check out the information below and make a plan to be there!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 01/16/26

Books at the Source: North Bay Literary Arts Summit Sebastopol Center for the Arts

Saturday, March 14, 2026; 10AM – 6PM | Registrations are Open!

282 S. High Street, Sebastopol, CA, 95472 https://www.sebarts.org/literary-arts

Contact: Luna Sorrenti, Program Director at LunaS@sebarts.org or 707-829-4797 x1004

Sebastopol Center for the Arts is excited to share our newest offering to the Literary Arts community. On Saturday, March 14th, 10AM – 6PM, Books at the Source: Literary Arts Summit will feature panel presentations and workshops by authors and teachers of fiction, memoir, nonfiction & poetry at our 17,000 sq ft facility in the heart of downtown Sebastopol. A co-presentation with LitQuake San Francisco, this is a special opportunity to connect with Bay Area talent and go to the source with authors who share their inspiration and purpose.

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The Summit will start with check-in from 9AM – 10AM and special access to a private viewing of our Paper & Book Arts Exhibition, combining works of book makers, pulp wranglers, paper-makers and print-makers. Paper is one of the oldest forms of artistic medium- from parchment to books to vellum to wood products. Humans print on every surface and make inks from everything on earth. Come early to view these marvelous works of art! Afterwards, grab coffee, tea, and breakfast foods provided by SebArts in the Main Auditorium to fuel up for the following activities!

At 10AM, we kick off the summit addressing questions of purpose and endeavor: “What fuels your passion? How do you persist in your creative intentions when faced with difficulties?” Five writers, all with multi-faceted careers, reveal the powerful summons for their books featuring characters in the creative arts who speak across generations, cultures, and politics. The authors explore how the primary relationship of an artist—dancer, painter, poet, singer—to an art form propels choices in life, as well as in fiction. They discuss how artistic impulse, desire, barriers, and destiny empower expression and resilience. Sharing how the crafting of their characters’ stories informed their own intentions, they address ways to fulfill writing projects, develop skills, and sustain rewarding practices and pursuits in the arts, while always in the process of becoming. [NOTE: I’m one of the participating authors in this opening panel… it will be a good one!]

For the next two hours, 11AM – 1PM, attendees can choose from several breakout rooms to explore panel presentations and workshops of their own particular interest. For example, “Word Palettes:Painting Poetry & Prose with Visual Language” where you will explore how writing needs a tone, a voice, a rhythm that feels consistent. Registrants will learn exercises with word play to develop prose and poetry we can see. We will parallel composition, shape, and color palettes in fine art to the same elements in writing with words. Another option is “Writing Forward from the Past- Inspired by Family Artifacts, Others’ Words, Truths of Character,” a panel presentation that asks: how does the trace of a life manifest into a literary work that illuminates the past and brings it forward with meaning and relevance? The authors will discuss joys and challenges of working with archival material, fictionalizing or representing real lives, and seeking truths—of character and through character. These are just a few of the options to choose from during this time frame, there’s more!

Check out the full schedule here.

From 1PM – 2PM, SebArts will provide lunch and time for attendees to meet the featured authors, purchase their books and get them signed. This hour will also be an ample opportunity to network with local literary lovers from various walks of life.

After lunch, we will continue from 2PM – 5PM with more breakout sessions, including an option such as “Community Matters in Writing Craft & Career” (at 3PM) where six authors share their experiences with participating in and building communities. They will discuss personal trials and triumphs in writing and publishing, and also speak broadly to what a lifestyle can be when writers combine their goodwill.

[NOTE: I’m one of the participating authors during this time slot in a in a breakout session titled, “Connecting through Content & Causes: The Long Life of Your Writing Career.” It will run from 3PM to 3:50 and I hope you’ll come join us in that one!]

Or you can explore “Writing on Purpose- Poetry & Prose for Social Justice” an interactive workshop, practicing techniques of poetic storytelling that foster an “inside-out” understanding of the issues, perspectives, and desires of writers affected by incarceration as participants work toward their own personal restoration and social justice. A discussion on the importance of personal stories in social justice and fostering social change will be included, during which participants will be invited to write about and share their experiences through poetry and prose.

In the last hour, 5PM – 6PM, we close the event with an Open Mic- Speaking Out: Homegrown Poetry & Prose. This is an opportunity for attendees to share their writing themed by sense of place, nature, and community, whether in a small town, big city, or rural California. Let’s celebrate how we live and work in our diverse state, among people of varied backgrounds and interests, and with a dedication to the arts, culture, and the environment.

Registration is open now! Learn more & purchase your ticket at

https://sebartsbooksatthesource2026.sched.com/

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That’s the official information … please avail yourself of the provided links and jump in! If you have any questions, reach out to Program Director, Luna Sorrenti, whose contact information is at the top.

I’m delighted to be participating as an author in this really thoughtful and comprehensive dive into books, the “writers’ life,” and the many and various aspects of literary creativity.

For those interested, we will have our books there to be sold, and it would be wonderful to meet many of the people who I’ve been in touch via social media, this blog, or my Substack in real life and in person!

Please feel free to share this information with others in your circles who might be interested … we’d love to get a big crowd there in support the the organization. Look forward to seeing you there!