Five acclaimed Los Angeles-based writers gather for a panel discussion on mothers (and a dad) who write.

Gayle Brandeis is the author of Fruitflesh: Seeds of Inspiration for
Women Who Write, The Book of Dead Birds, which won the Bellwether Prize
for Fiction of Social Engagement, Self Storage, Delta Girls, and My Life
with the Lincolns. Her kids are 21, 18 and 2.

Samantha Dunn is the author of several books, including the novel Failing Paris and the memoir Not By Accident: Reconstructing a Careless Life. Her essays and short stories have been widely anthologized, including the collection she co-edited, Women on the Edge: Writing from Los Angeles. She teaches in the UCLA Writers
Program and is the adviser for PEN Center's The Mark, a program to help new writers complete finished books. She lives in Southern California with her husband and their son, Benen.

Leslie Schwartz is the author of two award-winning novels, the second of
which, Angels Crest, debuted as a film nationwide in January. She has
published essays, articles and short stories in many newspapers and
magazines. She is the founder of Charlotte: a Journal of Literature and
Art and lives in Los Angeles with her family, a 9-year old daughter and a
17-year old stepson.

Susan Straight's latest novel is Take One Candle Light a Room, which
begins in the neighborhood right around Skylight and features an LA
travel writer who doesn't want to help raise her orphaned godson.  Her
previous novels include A Million Nightingales and Highwire Moon.  She's
published essays and stories in Harpers, The Nation, McSweeney's, The
Believer, and Zoetrope, among others.  She lives in Riverside with her
family.

Antoine Wilson (moderator) wrote the novels Panorama City (forthcoming
from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Fall 2012) and The Interloper (Other
Press, 2007). He is a contributing editor of A Public Space and Los
Angeles Review of Books. He lives and surfs in Los Angeles. His son is 4
1/2 years old.

Poetry Through the Eyes of Poets: A free workshop facilitated by Terry Wolverton

In honor of National Poetry Month, Los Angeles poets Ramón Garcia, Eloise Klein Healy, Sarah Maclay, A.K. Toney and poet and instructor Terry Wolverton will reveal a variety of poetic techniques, strategies and styles through their own poems.  Participants will learn to get more from their reading of poetry, as well as new methods of writing poetry.  In addition, they'll have the opportunity to dialogue with notable poets about their practice.  Please reserve your spot by emailing wtrsatwork@aol.com.

Poets At Work Celebrate National Poetry Month

Poems can make you laugh, cry, and think about your world in a completely new way.  Poets At Work members Kim Dower, Yvonne M. Estrada, Steven Fleet, Dylan C. Gailey, Brett Guitar Hofer, Eric Howard, Ronna Perrin, Sharon Venezio and Terry Wolverton will read poems that do all that and then some!

Mystery Writers of America's Southern California chapter presents a pre-Los Angeles Times Festival of Books party here at Skylight Books!  It's a great opportunity to mingle with mystery authors and mystery fans before the hustle and bustle of the country's largest book fair begins the next day. Light refreshments will be provided.

The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books is back!  It's a huge, jam-packed, two-day event at USC celebrating the written word.  There are hundreds of authors speaking on panels, and we're proud to have several of the most high-profile names signing in our booth.

Saturday, April 21:
11:00 to 11:30 a.m. - Alice LaPlante (Turn of Mind)
11:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. - Eric Erlandson (Letters to Kurt)
12:30 to 1:00 p.m. - T.M. Wolf (Sound)
1:00 to 1:30 p.m. - Adam Levin (Hot Pink)
2:30 to 3:00 p.m. - Denise Hamilton (Damage Control) and Cara Black (Murder at the Lanterne Rouge)
3:30 to 4:00 p.m. - T.C. Boyle (When the Killing's Done)

Sunday, April 22:
11:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. - Ismet Prcic (Shards)
12:00 to 12:30 p.m. - Aimee Bender (The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake)
12:30 to 1:00 p.m. - Hector Tobar (The Barbarian Nurseries)
1:30 to 2:00 p.m. - Michael Ian Black (You're Not Doing It Right)
2:00 to 2:30 p.m. - Etgar Keret (Suddenly, a Knock on the Door: Stories)

Check out the Festival's official website for more info on attending the Festival, public transit, parking, author panels, and so on.  We (and all the author signings listed above) will be in Booth 84, near the Tommy Trojan statue and USC Stage.

The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books is back!  It's a huge, jam-packed, two-day event at USC celebrating the written word.  There are hundreds of authors speaking on panels, and we're proud to have several of the most high-profile names signing in our booth.

Saturday, April 21:
11:00 to 11:30 a.m. - Alice LaPlante (Turn of Mind)
11:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. - Eric Erlandson (Letters to Kurt)
12:30 to 1:00 p.m. - T.M. Wolf (Sound)
1:00 to 1:30 p.m. - Adam Levin (Hot Pink)
2:30 to 3:00 p.m. - Denise Hamilton (Damage Control) and Cara Black (Murder at the Lanterne Rouge)
3:30 to 4:00 p.m. - T.C. Boyle (When the Killing's Done)

Sunday, April 22:
11:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. - Ismet Prcic (Shards)
12:00 to 12:30 p.m. - Aimee Bender (The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake)
12:30 to 1:00 p.m. - Hector Tobar (The Barbarian Nurseries)
1:30 to 2:00 p.m. - Michael Ian Black (You're Not Doing It Right)
2:00 to 2:30 p.m. - Etgar Keret (Suddenly, a Knock on the Door: Stories)

Check out the Festival's official website for more info on attending the Festival, public transit, parking, author panels, and so on.  We (and all the author signings listed above) will be in Booth 84, near the Tommy Trojan statue and USC Stage.

MAY 1ST
AT SKYLIGHT BOOKS

In recognition of the importance of International Workers’ Day,
Skylight Books will be participating in the calls for action put out by
the Occupy movement and others, through a full day of activities. This
is what you’ll find if you stop by on May 1st:

10AM: 1818 opens! 1814 will be closed all day in recognition of the call for a general boycott.

12PM: Occupy Meetup - Gather at noon, leave at 12:30pm.
OccupyLA is sponsoring caravans that are weaving their way from the far
reaches of the city to converge on downtown. All those interested in
joining with others to show their support for workers’ rights and a fair
economy are encouraged to meet up at the store at noon. Skylight staff
and local artists affiliated with Occupy will lead a group on public
transit to meet up with one of the caravans at MacArthur Park, from
where we will all march together to the downtown Occupy May Day Hub and
the 2:30 May Day Rally.
(Note: The train costs $1.50 a ride, so have that on you!)

2-5PM: SKYLIGHT STRIKES! Both 1814 and 1818 will be CLOSED from 2-5pm
to provide time for all its staff to participate in the downtown
convergence at 2:30 and the May 1st Rally for Immigrants Rights at 4:00.

5:00PM: Our 1818 storefront reopens.

7:30PM: Labor Troubadour Ross Altman Performs
Come by to enjoy light refreshments, learn the history of May Day, and
hear and learn some classic labor songs. Ross is a member of Local 47 of
the Professional Musicians’ Union and writes for FolkWorks. He recently
performed in the Grammy Museum tribute to the legendary Ash Grove folk
music club.

ALL DAY: Skylight is your labor hall for the day.
Need a place to rest? We invite you to bring a lunch and a friend and
stop by to check out our displays on labor history. We’ll also have a
full roster of events that are happening throughout the city, so come
find out how you can participate.

Questions? Email Meg at megan@skylightbooks.com

Students in the University of California, Irvine Master of Fine Arts writing program will read from their work.  The reading features selections by poets Warren Fong and Abbie Leavens and fiction writers John Kim and Aaron Peters.