Get Your Free eBook: A Guide to Literary Los Angeles

So you’re lit-curious.

Maybe you’re a young writer thinking about signing up for your first poetry workshop.

Or maybe you’re already an established novelist planning to visit Southern California.

Or maybe you just love reading books, and want to meet other bibliophiles.

Or maybe you’re a writer simply looking for a sense of community. You want to connect with people with whom you can share publishing advice and contacts, share story drafts for constructive critique, and commiserate about rejections from literary journals.

Wherever you are in your writing journey, I hope this ebook helps you forge your own path forward.
Continue reading “Get Your Free eBook: A Guide to Literary Los Angeles”

Library Girl: A Santa Monica reading series with sugar and soul

Cupcakes at Library Girl event Ruskin Group Theatre

Feed your literary soul — and your sweet tooth too! One Sunday a month in Santa Monica, the Library Girl reading series treats you to cupcakes before entertaining you with a themed lineup of readers — all in the lovely, intimate Ruskin Group Theatre.

In fact, the first Library Girl event of the year earlier this month had not just cupcakes, but tacos and gorditas too. We all ate a full meal (there was a cash bar too) while mingling out front and in the lobby — then filled the little theater for the readings.

Who is the Library Girl? That would be Susan Hayden (below), who’s been organizing this series for half a decade now! Each month’s event has a theme, and January’s was Weird Scenes Inside The Goldmine — the subtitle for the recently-published anthology, Los Angeles In The 1970s.

Susan Hayden Library Girl

After an introduction by Susan — and a musical performance by her son, Mason Summit — a half dozen contributors read an eclectic mix of work from the anthology: Deanne Stillman’s hilarious musings on perfectly manicured gas station gardens, Jim Natal’s thought-provoking poetry, and much more.

The next Library Girl event, titled First Time Ever I Saw Your Face, will have a Valentine’s Day theme, featuring couples reading — and of course, sweet desserts. Go hear Jesse Welles Nathan and Stephen Nathan, Lin Benedek and Tom Benedek, Claire Holley and Chad Holley, Beth Ruscio and Leon Martell, Celeste Wesson and Robert Ward!

Tickets are $10 — all of which is donated to Ruskin Group Theater. I recommend buying them in advance through the Ruskin’s website, because the event can sell out.

Library Girl. Second Sunday of every month, 7 pm – 10 pm. Ruskin Group Theatre, 3000 Airport Ave., Santa Monica.

Earlier: 12 literary reading series in Los Angeles

West Hollywood Women’s Book Club: Women connect over books by women

West Hollywood Womens Book Club

It’s a well-known fact that women read more books than men. Go to any book club or author event, and chances are, women will far outnumber men. One public book club in the L.A.-area has wholly embraced this phenomenon — by going women-exclusive. The West Hollywood Women’s Book Club is dedicated to bringing women together — to discuss books by women!

Co-sponsored by the City of West Hollywood’s Women’s Advisory Board, this book club meets at the West Hollywood Library once a month to discuss books by both local and internationally renowned authors — while providing a space for women to connect with other women.

I went to my first book club meeting earlier this month, walking into the modern, spacious community meeting room right at start time. A couple dozen women already sat chatting at white desks — arranged into a large square for easy group discussion. Everyone had a handwritten table name card; the librarian in charge gave me a blank one to fill out. At side tables were coffee, cookies, and advance review copies of various novels, free for the taking!

West Hollywood Womens Book Club free books

January’s book pick was The Two-Family House by Lynda Cohen Loigman. Soon after 7 pm, the discussion began! One of the club members kicked off the discussion by asking what everyone thought about the book, and we actually went around the circle, each of us sharing our general impressions of the novel.

Then the real discussion started. A lot of people really seemed to have enjoyed the book. Others, like me, found it rather predictable and formulaic. But the talk was overall enthusiastic and lively, with many women sharing tidbits from their own lives as they related to the plot and characters. Basically, I found the discussion more riveting than the book!

I loved a lot of things about this library book club. While different club members take turns leading the discussion each month, the librarian in charge helps facilitate things by sending out the Meetup event announcements and taking suggestions and setting up polls to figure out future book club reads. The librarian also collects the name cards for reuse — and makes sure library copies of next month’s picks are available!

I also met some lovely women, and after the official meeting ended, had some nice conversations about coffee shops, walking in LA, and, well, book clubs. The crowd here skewed slightly older — There were a good number of well-read retirees — but the group really included women of all ages.

I’ll definitely be at the next book club meeting because the February book is Grace by L.A.’s own Natasha Deon. Even better, Natasha will be at the book club herself! I’m not sure how the author’s presence will affect the discussion of the book, but I’m looking forward to it.

Want to come to the next book club meeting? Join the Meetup group, and show up Feb. 7. See you there!

West Hollywood Women’s Book Club. West Hollywood Library Community Meeting Room, 625 N. San Vicente Blvd., West Hollywood. First Tuesday of every month at 7 pm.

Earlier:
6 Book Clubs in Los Angeles to join in 2017
7 Best public libraries in Los Angeles for writers

Best coffee shops for writers in Los Angeles: The Valley

Romancing the Bean in Burbank

I like to write at home in the mornings, but find I get more done in the afternoons if I’m close to espresso machines. This is true despite the fact that after noon, I drink only decaf. Basically, it’s the smell of caffeine that keeps me productive —

Picky writers can’t just go to any coffee shop though. We need good working spaces with comfy chairs and tables. We need decent wifi and electric outlets for our laptops. We (or at least I) need good reading light. And we like to be able to hang for a few hours without feeling like we’re overstaying our welcome.

Which is to say — I’m really putting together this best coffee shops list for me. I often find myself stuck in a part of town I don’t know very well — usually before or after some event — because I don’t want to drive home until after rush hour ends. Now (or more accurately, soon, when I finish this 5-part guide covering most L.A. neighborhoods), whatever area of Los Angeles I happen to be in, I know where I can stop to read or get some writing done while I wait for traffic to clear.

More:
Best coffee shops for writers in Los Angeles: Central LA
Best coffee shops for writers in Los Angeles: Westside
Best coffee shops for writers in Los Angeles: Northeast LA

Burbank: Romancing the Bean

Romancing the Bean in Burbank

This coffee shop has a lovely, light-filled interior with lots of tables for two as well as a bigger communal table that invites friendly conversations with fellow coffee drinkers. The coffee’s organic, the staff very friendly, the slices of cake gigantic.

Romancing the Bean in Burbank Cold Nicoise Salad

Do arrive with your laptop fully charged, because while the wifi is strong the outlets are not plentiful. In addition to coffee, tea, and pastries, Romancing the Bean offers a local, organic sandwiches-and-salads menu. I recommend the cold nicoise salad!

North Hollywood: TeaPop

TeaPop in North Hollywood

Tea lovers will especially like this place, which offers a whole bunch of different loose leaf teas as well as tea lattes and milk teas (as far as I can tell, the milk teas are basically tea lattes on ice). If you’re as picky about your lattes as I am though, you might want to ask some questions before you order. I asked for the Soy Matcha — a matcha-soy milk-honey combo — sans the honey, only to discover that their matcha itself was super-sweetened.

The staff here is also sweet though — and made me a Buck Roo instead. Enjoy the little piece of fake lawn on each of the wooden communal tables, the sunlight streaming in from the windows, and the spacious outside courtyard. Don’t miss the mural on the north wall, with its many crazy tea pots! Thanks to Rachael Warecki for introducing me to this place.

Sherman Oaks: M Street Coffee

M Street Cafe in Sherman Oaks

This coffee shop is one of those places that gives you a unique wifi code when you make a purchase; the code’s good for two hours. Despite that time limit, M Street is a nice writing spot that packs a lot of people into its smallish space! Last time I stopped by, all the tables were taken — but I found a friendly latte drinker willing to share hers. We balanced our laptops and lattes precariously on the tiny table — and luckily nothing spilled —

A couple things to keep in mind: M Street closes rather early — at 6 pm on weekdays. And about the picture above: I found out the hard way that they can’t do latte art for tea lattes! If you want a heart on your drink, get a real latte — They’re yummier too. Thanks to Zach Behrens for introducing me to this place.

Earlier:
* 7 Best public libraries in Los Angeles for writers
* 3 Los Angeles writing meetups where you can write in company

7 Best public libraries in Los Angeles for writers

I want a lot from my library. A good library for writers, in my view, should have comfortable chairs and desks, wifi and outlets, a decent selection of books, relatively easy parking, and a generally pleasant atmosphere to hang out in for a few hours. A bookstore and coffee shop are, of course, nice bonuses.

If you’re looking for a quieter — and free-er — space than your local coffee shop to finally finish writing that novel of yours in the new year, here are seven lovely libraries to check out. These places are your tax dollars at work. Enjoy them!

west-hollywood-library

West Hollywood Library. 625 N. San Vicente Blvd. West Hollywood.

This library is the only one I know of that has a designated Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Area, complete with a row of bookshelves dedicated to LGBT issues! This area is the best place in this library, since it’s a sunny spot surrounded by windows with great tables and chairs and lamps and outlets.

west-hollywood-library-2

The modern building is decorated with contemporary art and hosts everything from writing workshops to a women’s book club (earlier: 6 Book Clubs in Los Angeles). Stop by the Friends of the Library Bookstore, career development center, or across the parking lot, Longshot Coffee. Since this is a L.A. county library, you’ll need a county library card to access the wifi. There’s three hours free parking with validation.

los-angeles-central-library

Central Library. 630 W. 5th St. Los Angeles.

If you’re looking for a specific book, this is the library where you have the biggest chance of finding it. Central Library is the largest public research library west of the Mississippi, with eight levels of books arranged by subject matter!

This library boasts gorgeous architecture with a rotunda and atrium, beautiful public arts projects, and an art gallery. Take it all in via a guided tour! Come on a day when there’s an Aloud Lecture Series event (earlier: 12 literary reading series in Los Angeles) and kill two birds with one stone.

I find the Central Library more a great place to roam around than a place for sitting down to write, though if there’s a good undiscovered nook for doing just that, do let me know and I’ll give it a try next time. Parking is $1 for the first hour — but can quickly go up to the $35 max rate — so know the rates and don’t forget to get your ticket validated.

santa-monica-main-library

Santa Monica Main Library. 601 Santa Monica Blvd. Santa Monica.

This two-floor library is a clean and modern sunlit space with lots of magazines, study rooms, a friends of the library bookstore, somewhat spotty city wifi, and a significant homeless population dozing in the comfier couches.

My favorite part of this library is the outdoor courtyard, with its garden and Bookmark Cafe. On a mild sunny day, which is most days, you’ll feel like you’re writing in paradise. Paradise with lattes.

One odd quirk of this place is that the bathrooms don’t have paper towels — for environmental and financial reasons, according to the signs. Instead there are hand dryers — the really old, ineffective kind that don’t actually dry your hands. Underground parking is free for the first 30 minutes, after which the cost slowly climbs to $10. There are bike racks aplenty!

beverly-hills-library

Beverly Hills Public Library. 444 N. Rexford Dr. Beverly Hills.

This is where I studied back when I was in high school! It’s a quiet, well-maintained place with great city wifi and lots of comfortable working areas. On the first floor, there’s a friends of the library bookstore, and next to it, Kelly’s Coffee & Fudge Factory.

The second floor has more study areas, lots of books — and green shopping baskets, the easier to haul your book picks around in! A city lot offers two hours free parking.

los-feliz-library

Los Feliz Branch Library. 1874 Hillhurst Ave., Los Angeles.

This library offers the perfect creative distraction: a community puzzle on a big central table where you can stop by to put in a few pieces during your writing breaks.

This simple library has both a children and teen section, both a Spanish and Armenian bookcase in the stack, and an inviting feel. Also, as writer friend Tony DuShane put it on Facebook, “They have a cool little area outside to hang out and the aesthetic is cool.” A small parking lot always seems to have spaces.

Pasadena Central Library. 285 E. Walnut St. Pasadena.

I rarely make it to Pasadena, but the city’s main library is beautiful enough that it makes me want to return just to visit it. The big place has four levels — three of them book stacks, the main level a series of gorgeous rooms perfect for studying, working and loafing.

The quietest — and coolest — spot is the Centennial Room, where archival materials related to Pasadena history are kept in a temperature-controlled space. A coffee shop called Espress Yourself is in the open courtyard, and near it is a rather crammed bookstore. Enjoy three hours of free parking in the lot.

culver-city-library

Culver City Julian Dixon Library. 4975 Overland Ave., Culver City.

Though the other libraries on this list are in the center of bustling areas full of lunch spots and shops and theaters and other distractions, the Culver City library is in a bit of a dead zone and doesn’t even have a coffee shop — which could be a plus if your aim is to stay focused on writing.

This L.A. County library still has a lot to offer — and is probably the cutest library on this list. Little plants on study desks! Cute seats with pillows that say “I love this place”! There’s even a weekly knitting club — materials provided!

And the library makes giving easy: At the edge of the spacious parking lot, a donation box for the Friends of the Library bookstore sits right next to the book returns box.
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All that said, the library I visit most often is West Los Angeles Library, simply because I can walk there from my place. It’s not a particularly pleasant place to work though; I’m only there a few minutes at a time, returning books and picking up holds. Still, I have a lot of love for it — It’s great to be able to get most any book I want delivered here for free —

Are there other libraries you know of that should be added to this list?

Photo of Central Library by Sheila Thompson

Tongue & Groove: A Monthly literary variety show at Hotel Cafe

tongue-groove-orange

Literary readings often happen in makeshift spaces: classrooms, coffee shops, someone’s tiny studio apartment. But one Los Angeles reading series — Tongue & Groove — puts writers on a famous spot: The main stage at Hotel Cafe.

Hotel Cafe’s known as an intimate performance space for musicians in Hollywood — but Tongue & Groove takes over the venue one Sunday a month, each evening event featuring a handful of writers reading fiction, poetry, personal essays, and spoken word.

Organized by Conrad Romo, this reading series is now in its 13 year. Attendees queue up at Hollywood and Cahuenga, pay the $7 cover, then enter the darkened space to buy drinks and chat before sitting down at one of the tables or couches to take in the show. In keeping with the spirit of the place, a musical act also performs.

The next Tongue & Groove event happens this Sunday, Dec. 18 at 6:30 — and I hope you can make it because I’ll be reading — alongside Bonnie Johnson and Samantha Emily Evans. See you there —

Tongue & Groove. One Sunday a month, 6 pm at Hotel Cafe, 1623 N Cahuenga Blvd., Los Angeles. Cost: $7.

Earlier: Roar Shack: A Monthly Echo Park reading series with music and a Livewrite