Vol 3. No 8. August 1, 2013:

August is here, which means after months of planning and preparation the Bull Spec Summer Speculative Fiction Reading is just TWO days away! Award-winning authors and editors, from near (Durham and Asheville) and far (Florida and Barbados) will be coming together for a fantastic event this Saturday, August 3, at Quail Ridge Books, starting at 7 pm. Don’t miss it, or you’ll miss: Karen Lord, Ann and Jeff VanderMeer, Nathan Ballingrud, Robert V.S. Redick, Will Hindmarch, and Mur Lafferty! — and don’t miss the “meet the authors” reception hosted by the Raleigh Review at their Writers’ Loft after the readings and signings are done.

And speaking of Barbados author Karen Lord, we are definitely making the most of her time here. First up, today (Thursday, August 1) in the noon hour, she joins Frank Stasio on North Carolina Public Radio WUNC’s The State of Things. If you miss it, look for the re-broadcast (both statewide and online) in the evening, or catch the podcast which is usually available by mid-afternoon.

Then, on Sunday August 4, Karen will be at the Orange County Main Library in Hillsborough for a 3 pm “meet the author” event. And her Monday is jam-packed: at 10 AM she’ll be on the radio again for Carolina Book Beat on WCOM-FM. At 4 pm (refreshments start at 3:30 pm) she’ll be hosted by the Chapel Hill Library for a “Meet the Author Tea” in their Friends of the Chapel Hill Library series. And finally, at 7 pm, she’ll be reading and signing The Best of All Possible Worlds at Flyleaf Books.

Since the last newsletter, there are tons and tons of new events added: Richard Kadrey, Emily Croy Barker, Susan Cooper — the award-winning author of The Dark is Rising — and more. See you out and about!

-Sam

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UPCOMING EVENTS, AUGUST 2013

NEW: 3 (Saturday) 11 am to 5 pm — Ultimate Comics’ 10th anniversary “Ulti-versary Month” kicks-off with a signing event by Chris Giarrusso, creator of G-Man, Mini-Marvels, “and those lovable Image homage covers. Come in from 11am-5pm to meet Chris, get a sketch, and grab some FREE Food & Drinks!” More info: http://ultimatecomics.com/2013/07/ultimate-comics-10th-anniversary/

3 (Saturday) 3 pm — At the Durham County Library’s Main Branch (downtown, Roxboro St), children’s author, educator & musician, John Claude Bemis, the region’s 2013 Piedmont Laureate, will present a program celebrating the art of writing, including his traveling road show of fantasy for young readers, The Nine Pound Hammer, a magically folkloric retelling of the Legend of John Henry.

FEATURED: 3 (Saturday) 7 to 9 pm — Quail Ridge Books hosts the annual Bull Spec summer speculative fiction event. This year it is an absolutely fantastic lineup with Karen Lord, Nathan Ballingrud, Ann and Jeff VanderMeer, Robert V.S. Redick, and Will Hindmarch all coming up from the Shared Worlds Teen Writing Camp at Wofford College, being joined locally by Durham author Mur Lafferty. We had a blast hosting Ann and Jeff back in 2011 and it’s sure to be another great evening. And! From 9 pm to late, The Raleigh Review is hosting an after-reading “meet the authors” reception (also free and open to the public) at their Writers’ Loft. And! See below for more info on additional events with Karen Lord while she is in the Triangle area. More info: http://bullspec.com/2013/03/29/announcement-the-third-annual-bull-spec-summer-speculative-fiction-event/

4 (Sunday) 3 pm — The Orange County Library hosts Karen Lord for a meet the author event at its main branch in downtown Hillsborough. More info: http://engagedpatrons.org/EventsExtended.cfm?SiteID=6923&EventID=177489

5 (Monday) 4 pm — The newly renovated Chapel Hill Library hosts Karen Lord for a “meet the author tea” event. Refreshments served at 3:30 pm ahead of the event. More info: http://chapelhillpubliclibrary.org/txp/?s=News&id=896

5 (Monday) 7 pm — Chapel Hill’s Flyleaf Books hosts Karen Lord for a reading and signing of her deep future anthropological sf novel, The Best of All Possible Worlds. More info: http://www.flyleafbooks.com/event/karen-lord-caribbean-speculative-fiction-bull-spec

NEW: 10 (Saturday) 2 to 5 pm — Durham’s Atomic Empire hosts a launch party for card game Havok & Hijinks: “I am thrilled to announce that Atomic Empire in Durham, North Carolina, has kindly agreed to host the Havok & Hijinks Kickstarter Launch Party and, more importantly, you’re invited! Come out on Saturday, August the 10th to meet the Havok & Hijinks development team and spend some time at one of the most amazing gaming stores on the entire east coast. It’s big, well-stocked, and they even have local craft beer for those that like to drink. Festivities will begin right around 2 PM with a build-up to our launch at 5 PM!”

NEW-NEW: 23 (Friday) 7:30 pm — Quail Ridge Books hosts NCSU Professor Wilton Barnhardt Debuts ‘Lookaway, Lookaway’.

23-35 (Friday to Sunday) — Atomic Empire hosts an “epic weekend of role-playing” at its first “AtomiCon”. More info: http://z6.invisionfree.com/Scifi_Genre_Forums/index.php?showtopic=9297

24 (Saturday) 2 pm to 3 pm — Flyleaf Books hosts Marisha Pessl reads and signs her new novel Night Film. “An inventive–if brooding, strange and creepy–adventure in literary terror. Think Edgar Allan Poe and Stephen King meet Guillermo del Toro as channeled by Klaus Kinski.” (Kirkus) More info: http://www.flyleafbooks.com/event/marisha-pessl-reads-and-signs-her-new-novel-night-film

NEW: 24 (Saturday) — Ultimate Comics hosts comics writer Jeff Parker: “Meet Jeff Parker, writer of Batman ’66, Hulk, Red She Hulk, Agents of Atlas, Fall of the Hulks, X-Men First Class, Thunderbolts, Dark Avengers and many more titles. Get him to sign your comics, and maybe talk him into doing a sketch (he’s a great artist as well)!” More info: http://ultimatecomics.com/2013/07/ultimate-comics-10th-anniversary/

NEW: 24 (Saturday) 9 pm til late — Pittsboro’s Davenport & Winkleperry hosts the last (for now!) Clockwork Ball: A Steampunk Party to close their old location, ahead of an October 1 planned re-opening in a new location. More info: https://www.facebook.com/events/614650678550166/

NEW-NEW: 25 (Sunday) 2 pm — Quail Ridge Books hosts NYT Bestseller Marisha Pessl – ‘Night Film’.

27 (Tuesday) 7 pm — The Regulator Bookshop hosts NCSU professor Wilton Barnhardt for his forthcoming historical fiction satire novel Lookaway, Lookaway (St. Martin’s and Macmillan Audio, August 20). And check your local listings, as Barnhardt has several additional readings in the local and regional area.

NEW-NEW: 27 (Tuesday) 7 pm — North Carolina author Jason Mott launches his new novel The Returned at Flyleaf Books. “In this sparely written first novel, poet Mott posits intriguing questions about our uneasy relationship with death. Harold and Lucille Hargrave are stunned to find their eight-year-old son, Jacob decades after the boy’s death by drowning standing on their front porch, along with Martin Bellamy, a government agent for the International Bureau of the Returned.” (Booklist starred review) Update: As part of the event, Durham author Nathan Kotecki (The Suburban Strange) will interview Mott.

NEW: 29 (Thursday) 7 pm — Flyleaf Books hosts Richard Kadrey for Kill City Blues, the latest in his Sandman Slim series of dark urban fantasy. More info: http://www.flyleafbooks.com/event/fantasy-writer-richard-kadrey-discusses-kill-city-blues-his-latest-sandman-slim-novel

NEW: 31 (Saturday) 6 pm to 9 pm — Chapel Hill Comics hosts Signing with LISA HANAWALT & BRIAN RALPH! “Chapel Hill Comics is proud to announce that as part of our 10th/35th Anniversary Festivities, we will host Lisa Hanawalt and Brian Ralph on Saturday, August 31, from 6pm until 9pm! Lisa will sign her newest book, My Dirty Dumb Eyes (out now), and Brian will sign his newest book, Reggie-12 (Drawn & Quarterly is getting us copies early for the signing)!”

SEPTEMBER 2013

NEW-NEW: 3 (Tuesday) 7 pm — Barnes & Noble of Cary hosts David Drake for a discussion/signing of his new book Monsters of the Earth (Books of the Elements, #3) on Tuesday, September 3 at 7:00 pm.

NEW: 4 (Wednesday) 7 pm — Quail Ridge Books hosts Susan Cooper, the Newbury Medal winning author of The Dark is Rising, for her new historical fiction novel for young readers, Ghost Hawk. More info: http://www.quailridgebooks.com/event/newbery-medalist-susan-cooper-ghost-hawk

NEW-NEW: 7 (Saturday) — The annual Bookmarks Literary Festival in Winston-Salem, with a long list of participating authors including Jason Mott, Robin Hobb, Deborah Harkness, Megan Shepherd, Leigh Bardugo, and more. More info: http://bookmarksnc.org/

NEW-NEW: 7 (Saturday) — McIntyre’s Books hosts Wilton Barnhardt – Lookaway, Lookaway: A Novel.

NEW-NEW: 8 (Sunday) 3 pm to 5 pm — Book launch party for local author Jon Batson’s latest sf novel, MARS QUAKE. “Tasty treats, wine, cool prizes and give-aways. When astronomer Dana Wright thinks she has seen writing on Mars, she needs to look through a larger telescope. Senate aide Tom Matthews is willing to investigate it with her, but knows it is not writing but buildings, made by intelligent beings. How does he know? ADDRESS: Bosetti Art Tile – 1201 W Lenoir St, Raleigh, NC 27603.” More info: http://mars-quake-book-launch-party.eventbrite.com/

NEW-NEW: 8 (Sunday) 3-4 pm — Flyleaf Books hosts Sarah J Maas discusses her new young adult fantasy novel Crown of Midnight.

NEW-NEW: 9 (Monday) 6:30 pm — The Barnes & Noble of Cary hosts Teen Fantasy author Sarah Maas, who has written a series Throne of Glass about a young female assassin. Her new book in the series is Crown of Midnight which she will introduce to her readers.

NEW: 17 (Tuesday) 7 pm — Author John Claude Bemis, who is serving this year as the Piedmont Laureate for Children’s Literature, is leading a series of roundtable discussions with local children’s and YA authors about writing craft, creativity, and the magic of children’s literature. The series includes events at the Regulator Bookshop in Durham on Tuesday, September 17 at 7 pm, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill on October 5 at 2 pm, and Quail Ridge Books on Tuesday, October 15 at 7 pm. For more information, visit John’s website at www.johnclaudebemis.com or the Piedmont Laureate website at www.piedmontlaureate.com. From John: “I’m still working on the line-up, but once I know I’ll let you know who will be speaking at each event. Should be lots of fun!”

NEW-NEW: 17 (Tuesday) 7 pm — Quail Ridge Books hosts Ursula Vernon – New ‘Dragonbreath’.

NEW: 18 (Wednesday) 7 pm — The Regulator Bookshop hosts Greensboro native Emily Croy Barker for her new novel The Thinking Woman’s Guide to Real Magic.

NEW-NEW: 19 (Thursday) 7 pm — Quail Ridge Books hosts Jasper Fforde – ‘The Song of the Quarkbeast’.

NEW-NEW: 21 (Saturday) — McIntyre’s Books hosts Daniel Wallace – The Kings and Queens of Roam.

NEW-NEW: 23 (Monday) 7 pm — Quail Ridge Books hosts D.J. MacHale – ‘SYLO’.

27 (Friday) Flyleaf Books hosts Robin Sloan for the paperback edition of Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore. 7 pm.



OCTOBER 2013

NEW: 1 (Monday) 7 pm — Quail Ridge Books hosts Maile Meloy for The Apprentices, sequel to her YA/YR debut The Apothecary. More info: http://www.quailridgebooks.com/event/maile-meloy-apprentices

4-6 (Friday to Sunday) — Second Escapist Expo at the Durham Convention Center. More info: http://www.escapistexpo.com/

NEW-NEW: 5 (Saturday) 11 am — McIntyre’s Books hosts Allan Gurganus – Local Souls.

NEW: 5 (Saturday) 2 pm — Author John Claude Bemis, who is serving this year as the Piedmont Laureate for Children’s Literature, is leading a series of roundtable discussions with local children’s and YA authors about writing craft, creativity, and the magic of children’s literature. The series includes events at the Regulator Bookshop in Durham on Tuesday, September 17 at 7 pm, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill on October 5 at 2 pm, and Quail Ridge Books on Tuesday, October 15 at 7 pm. For more information, visit John’s website at www.johnclaudebemis.com or the Piedmont Laureate website at www.piedmontlaureate.com. From John: “I’m still working on the line-up, but once I know I’ll let you know who will be speaking at each event. Should be lots of fun.”

NEW: 5-6 (Saturday and Sunday) — The annual family festival “Autumn at Oz” at Beech Mountain, NC. More info: http://www.autumnatoz.com/

8 (Tuesday) 8 pm — Durham’s Carolina Theatre welcomes Chris Hardwick (The Nerdist, AMC’s Talking Dead) for a standup comedy show. Tickets in person at the Carolina Theatre or via Ticketmaster.

8 — Local book release day for Pull Down the Night (The Suburban Strange) by Durham’s Nathan Kotecki (Oct 8, 2013).

NEW-NEW: 11 (Friday) 7 pm — Flyleaf Books hosts Wilton Barnhardt reads and signs his novel Lookaway, Lookaway.

NEW: 15 (Tuesday) 7 pm — Author John Claude Bemis, who is serving this year as the Piedmont Laureate for Children’s Literature, is leading a series of roundtable discussions with local children’s and YA authors about writing craft, creativity, and the magic of children’s literature. The series includes events at the Regulator Bookshop in Durham on Tuesday, September 17 at 7 pm, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill on October 5 at 2 pm, and Quail Ridge Books on Tuesday, October 15 at 7 pm. For more information, visit John’s website at www.johnclaudebemis.com or the Piedmont Laureate website at www.piedmontlaureate.com. From John: “I’m still working on the line-up, but once I know I’ll let you know who will be speaking at each event. Should be lots of fun!”

NEW: 16 (Wednesday) 6 pm — Quail Ridge Books hosts Adam Gidwitz for The Grimm Conclusion, a third volume of Grimm-inspired fairytales for ages 9+ after A Tale Dark and Grimm, then In a Glass Grimmly. More info: http://www.quailridgebooks.com/event/adam-gidwitz-chills-grimm-conclusion

NEW-NEW: 23 (Wednesday) 7 pm — Quail Ridge Books hosts Lemony Snicket – ‘When Did You See Her Last?’.

NEW-NEW: 24 (Thursday) 4:30 pm — An event for younger readers, Quail Ridge Books hosts Mark Tatulli – ‘Desmond Pucket Makes Monster Magic’.

NOVEMBER 2013

NEW-NEW: 4 (Monday) 7 pm — Flyleaf Books hosts Allan Gurganus reads and discusses his book Local Souls.

NEW: 6 (Wednesday) 7 pm — Quail Ridge Books hosts YA dystopian author James Dashner (The Maze Runner series) for his new novel The Eye of Minds, the first book in his new series The Mortality Doctrines. More info: http://www.quailridgebooks.com/event/james-dashner-eye-minds

9-10 (Saturday and Sunday) — NC Comicon will be returning to the Durham Convention Center. “Twice the space, four times the fun. It’s exponential.”

NEW-NEW: 13 (Wednesday) 7 pm — The Regulator Bookshop hosts Allan Gurganus for his book Local Souls, a 3-novella return to his mythological Falls, North Carolina.

NEW-NEW: 24 (Sunday) — Quail Ridge Books hosts Elizabeth Langston – ‘Whisper Falls’.

JANUARY 2014

10-12 (Friday to Sunday) — illogiCon iii: The Search for Schrödington’s Gold at the Embassy Suites Raleigh-Durham/Research Triangle, with author guests of honor Mary Robinette Kowal and Lawrence M. Shoen. More info: http://www.illogicon.com/

MARCH 2014

4 — Local book release day for Ghost Train to New Orleans (The Shambling Guides) by Durham’s Mur Lafferty (Mar 4, 2014).

APRIL 2014

5-6 (Saturday and Sunday) — 2014 North Carolina Literary Festival hosted by the NCSU Libraries at NC State University; the primary venue for the Festival will be the James B. Hunt Jr. Library on Centennial Campus. “This free public event is presented on a rotating basis by the Duke University Libraries, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Libraries, the NCSU Libraries, and North Carolina Central University. The Festival is designed to attract people of all ages, from our surrounding communities and across the state. The program will be varied and will include author readings and discussions, book signings, activities, bookstore sales and more.”

JUNE 2014

(May 30) to June 1 (Friday to Sunday) — ConCarolinas in Charlotte, with guest of honor George R.R. Martin.

JULY 2014

11-13 (Friday to Sunday) — ConGregate in downtown Winston-Salem. More info: http://www.con-gregate.com/

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