The Salem Athenaeum presents the Salem Lit Fest in September, and so much more all year! Tomorrow - free tours at 11 and 1. Quiet writing Tuesday at 9, and for four weekend nights in October at 5:30 and 7, parlor magic with Evan Northrup. salemathenaeum.net

Congrats to Lit Fest alums Halle Butler, @maddieday.bsky.social @missdahlelama.dahliaadler.com (editor) and @rajanilarocca.bsky.social on the recent publications!

Congrats to Lit Fest alum Piper CJ on publication of A FROZEN PYRE, @niclesperance.bsky.social on publication of A SPELL TO WAKE THE DEAD, @kyliu99.bsky.social on inclusion in DEEP MAGIC III, & @catherineyuwrites.bsky.social on publication of THE DEVIL’S IN THE DANCERS.

Congrats to @marjankamali.bsky.social on the PB publication of THE LION WOMEN OF TEHRAN (Aug) @tehlorkay.bsky.social on the publication of THE BETTER TO EAT YOU WITH (today) & the PB publication of IT HAPPENED TO ANNA (Aug) & to @aptshadow.bsky.social on the publication of THE HUNGRY GODS (Aug)

Thank you to everyone who supported Salem Lit Fest 2025, including these amazing donors!

Thanks to supporters & collaborators Salem Main Streets, building community in Salem; the Salem Five Foundation, supporting orgs making a positive impact; the Essex National Heritage Area, preserving cultural heritage; & the Peabody Essex Museum, celebrating creativity, collecting art & culture.

Thanks to sponsors & collaborators Theater in the Open, bringing free theater to Newburyport; @fiveminutelit.bsky.social, publishing micromemoirs; Molecule, publishing all genres 50 words or less; & Coffee Time Bakeshop, serving the North Shore for 30+ years. P.S. APPLE CIDER DOUGHNUTS ARE BACK.

Thanks 2025 sponsors & collaborators St. Peter's-San Pedro's, a welcoming, bilingual community of faith; Mass Center for the Book, promoting literacy & libraries; @northshorebank.bsky.social w/ locations in MA & NH; & Salem Maritime National Historical Park, with 12 structures & a visitors' center.

Thank you to sponsors & supporters Punto Urban Art Museum, a social justice art program in Salem's El Punto neighborhood; The House of the Seven Gables, offering house tours & programming; Recorded Books, audiobook publisher spanning fiction & nonfiction; & indie movie theater Cinema Salem!

Thanks to Lit Fest 2025 supporters & collaborators Salem Cultural Council, supporting creative orgs in Salem; the Salem YMCA, promoting healthy minds and bodies; @salemstate.bsky.social, preparing students to contribute to a global society; and @wickedgoodbooks.bsky.social, Salem's indie bookstore!

Thank you to @writerjalvarez.bsky.social for being 2025's ONE BOOK ONE SALEM author! Thanks to Keja Valens for interviewing Julia & to Keja & Ana Brea for leading book discussions! Look for Julia's poetry collection VISITATIONS, poems drawn from across her life, coming in April!

Thank you @dougmost.bsky.social and @michelleyoung.bsky.social for joining us for SAVING CIVILIZATION at Salem Lit Fest 2025! Catch Doug The James Library in Norwell October 5 at 2, and Michelle at the New Hampshire Book Festival in Concord October 4 at 3:45!

Thank you to Skyla Arndt, Rory Power and @shvetathakrar.com for joining us for FANTASY WITH TEETH at Salem Lit Fest 2025!

Thank you to Aashna Avachat, Adriana Mather, Ali Novak and @beccapodos.bsky.social for joining us for GET SWOONY IN SALEM!

Thank you Catherine Newman and Weike Wang for joining us for WRITE AWAY: Fiction on Vacation. Catch Catherine October 25 at Boston Book Fest. Find Weike's short story "Girl Talk" in the pages of Harper's September issue (available to read free online).

Thank you @juliettefay.bsky.social @healeyjane.bsky.social and Galina Vromen for being part of TOP SECRET. Catch Juliette Thu 9-18 at 7 p.m. Tufts Library/Weymouth. Find Jane Wed 10-1 at 7 Westwood Library. Keep an eye on Galina's website (link in image) for upcoming appearances.

Thanks @bdavis-author.bsky.social & Marilyn Simon Rothstein & Domenica Ruta & Patricia Santomasso & sarasounds.bsky.social for joining us for CONFLICT, CAMARADERIE & COMEDY: Mothers + Daughters in Contemporary Fiction. Miss them in Salem? Visit their socials&sites to learn where to catch them next!

Thank you @samara-cole-doyon.bsky.social Kalee Gwarjanski @painternik.bsky.social and Lesley Myers for being part of Children's Lit Fest 2025! And thanks to the Salem Public Library for bringing it all together!

THANK YOU to @fiveminutelit.bsky.social and Molecule for bringing so many amazing writers and words to Lit Fest! Check them out at fiveminutelit.com and moleculetinylitmag.art.blog/

THANK YOU to the many people who made Enduring Hawthorne 2025 another amazing event, including Salem Maritime NPS, Ben Wickey, Theater in the Open, Dan Blakeslee, Essex Heritage, and The House of The Seven Gables.

Thank you to @levgrossman.com for joining us for a virtual fireside chat about THE BRIGHT SWORD, an epic retelling of the story of King Arthur featuring a gifted young knight and a fellowship of oddballs.

Thank you Allegra Goodman for bringing Isola, an historical epic about a young French noblewoman and her lover marooned on an island, to Salem Lit Fest and the North Shore CDC! If you missed Alexa in Salem, you can catch her at the Boston Book Festival on October 25!

Auction ends tonight at 11:55! Author appearances, original wall hanging, Punto tour, Salem art & gifts, and books + books + books! Support the festival: Bid early and often. Help keep our festival free! Head to link in image! www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/salem-literary-festival-2025-online-auction

This hand-quilted wall hanging was created by fabric artist Diane Smith Sheckells and inspired by the gothic tone of Edgar Allen Poe’s work. Bid now and help keep Salem Lit Fest free! www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/salem-literary-festival-2025-online-auction

Instagram sensation Pie Lady Books will design pie based on your favorite book, literary theme, or special occasion. The pie will be professionally photographed and featured on the Instagram account. Bid now! Ends tomorrow. www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/salem-literary-festival-2025-online-auction

Bring a 2025 author to your book club! Bid on virtual author visits with Juliette Fay (THE HARVEY GIRLS), Marilyn Simon Rothstein (WHO LOVES YOU BEST), Domenica Ruta (ALL THE MOTHERS) & Galina Vromen (HILL OF SECRETS)! www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/salem-literary-festival-2025-online-auction

FREE TODAY at Salem State! Join @writerjalvarez.bsky.social & Keja Valens in conversation about Julia’s THE CEMETERY OF UNTOLD STORIES. Spanish-English presentation. Sunday, September 7, 3 p.m., Sophia Gordon Center, Salem State, 352 Lafayette Street. Register free at salemlitfest.org

Today at 1! Join @dougmost.bsky.social (LAUNCHING LIBERTY) and @michelleyoung.bsky.social (THE ART SPY) for SAVING CIVILIZATION: True World War II Stories, Sophia Gordon Center @salemstate 352 Lafayette St. Info & FREE registration at salemlitfest.org

TOMORROW! Join us for Lit Fest’s fastest-moving event: Micro Marvels! @fiveminutelit.bsky.social and Molecule team up to bring you 30 super-short super-excellent pieces of literary art! Saturday, September 6, 10 a.m., Ames Hall, 290 Essex St. For more info, see link in bio.

TOMORROW! Children's Lit Fest with @samara-cole-doyon.bsky.social & and Kalee Gwarjanski & @painternik.bsky.social & crafts & snacks! Sept. 6 10-noon (+sensory-friendly storytime at 9) Community Life Center 401 Bridge St. Sept. 4-7, stop by the Ropes Mansion Garden for a Story Walk! salemlitfest.org

A lucky attendee at our first Saturday adult event (Micro Marvels at 10) will win a bag full of books & journals featuring our Micro Marvels & a lucky attendee at our last Saturday adult event (Write Away at 4) will win a $50 gift card to bookselling partner Wicked Good Books!

TOMORROW! Get crafty with art teacher & artist Lesley Myers at Children's Lit Fest! Plus storytime with @samara-cole-doyon.bsky.social & and Kalee Gwarjanski & @painternik.bsky.social & snacks! Sept. 6 10-noon (+sensory-friendly storytime at 9) Community Life Center 401 Bridge St. salemlitfest.org

Enduring Hawthorne! Ekphrastic writing + open mic + music—a performance of Hawthorne’s “The Gray Champion” adapted to folksong by Dan Blakeslee and accompanied by a crankie by Ben Wickey. Friday, Sept. 5, 6-8 p.m. The House of the Seven Gables. More info. at salemlitfest.org.

Help keep Lit Fest free! Here are 5 of MANY auction items, including a Poe-inspired wall hanging, books from our historical fiction panel + virtual author visits, Hawthorne-inspired sets, & a pie from Pie Lady Books! See link in image for EVERYTHING & get bidding!

Elena Eimert is an urban planner by trade. Jack Giaour is a queer kinky pisces who lives in an attic in Winthrop. Arthur Neong hails from Malaysia & taught for 11 years before doing his MA. Join Elena & Jack & hear work by Arthur Sat. Sept. 6 at 10 290 Essex St. Link in bio.

Visit the Ropes Mansion Garden (behind the house at 318 Essex St.) from Sept. 4-7 & take a story walk with Kalee Gwarjanski’s MISS MACDONALD HAS A FARM! Visit Miss MacDonald on her vegetable farm & see the work that goes into growing veggies. Garden open dawn to dusk. salemlitfest.org

TONIGHT! Join @levgrossman.com for a virtual fireside chat about his latest bestseller THE BRIGHT SWORD, an epic retelling of the story of King Arthur featuring a gifted young knight and a fellowship of oddballs. Join from anywhere! Thursday, September 4, 7 p.m. Register at link in bio.

Salem Lit Fest @salemlitfest.bsky.social is THIS WEEK, September 3-7. Here’s a tiny sample of the hundreds of amazing books featured at the festival. They’re for sale in the store and during the fest at several locations, where you can meet the authors and get your books signed. www.salemlitfest.org

Set in Paris during WWII, @michelleyoung.bsky.social’s THE ART SPY uncovers how an unlikely heroine infiltrated Nazi leadership to save treasured masterpieces. Join Michelle Sun Sept 7 at 1 p.m., Sophia Gordon Center @salemstate, 352 Lafayette St. Free registration at salemlitfest.org

TONIGHT! Kick off Salem Lit Fest 2025 with Allegra Goodman! Join Allegra to talk about Reese's Book Club Pick ISOLA, an historical epic about a noblewoman marooned on an island. FREE! Wed Sept. 3 7 pm 2nd Floor North Shore CDC 97 Lafayette St. Register (FREE! not required) at salemlitfest.org.

Authors Catherine Newman (SANDWICH) and Weike Wang (RENTAL HOUSE) are getting together for a conversation at Salem Lit Fest, and you’re invited. Join them Saturday, September 6 at 4 p.m., Ames Hall, 290 Essex Street. Free registration and details at salemlitfest.org

TOP-SECRET! Authors Juliette Fay (THE HARVEY GIRLS), @healeyjane.bsky.social (THE WOMEN OF ARLINGTON HALL), and Galina Vromen (HILL OF SECRETS) talk mid-century historical fiction Saturday, September 6 at 2:30 p.m., Ames Hall, 290 Essex Street. Free registration and details at salemlitfest.org

CONFLICT! CAMARADERIE! COMEDY! Talk mothers & daughters in fiction w/ @bdavis-author.bsky.social (EVERY PRECIOUS AND FRAGILE THING) Marilyn Simon Rothstein (WHO LOVES YOU BEST) Domenica Ruta (ALL THE MOTHERS) & narrators Patricia Santomasso & @sarasounds.bsky.social. Sat Sept. 6 1pm salemlitfest.org

Jill Pabich is an artist, sometimes painter & writer. John Owen’s been a record-industry hack, academic historian, journalist & more. Jacquie Valatka is business manager at The House of the Seven Gables & enjoys teaching, reading & more. Join them at MICRO MARVELS Sat Sept. 6 at 10. salemlitfest.org

We're COOKING THE BOOKS! @newenglandtammy.bsky.social (NEW ENGLAND BRUNCH) Dan Pashman (ANYTHING’S PASTABLE) Maggie Mulvena Pearson (THE FEAST AND FETTLE COOKBOOK) & Adam Kowit, Editor Books, America’s Test Kitchen, share how cookbooks get made! Sept 6 @ 11:30 Ames Hall/290 Essex St salemlitfest.org

Come one, come all to Lit Fest’s fastest-moving event, the Micro Marvels! @fiveminutelit and @moleculetinylitmag team up to bring you 30 super-short super-excellent pieces of literary art! Saturday, September 6, 10 a.m., Ames Hall, 290 Essex St. For more info, visit salemlitfest.org.

SATURDAY! Children's Lit Fest with @samara-cole-doyon.bsky.social & and Kalee Gwarjanski & @painternik.bsky.social & crafts & snacks! Sept. 6 10-noon (+sensory-friendly storytime at 9) Community Life Center 401 Bridge St. Sept. 4-7, stop by the Ropes Mansion Garden for a Story Walk! salemlitfest.org

Enduring Hawthorne! Ekphrastic writing + open mic + music—a performance of Hawthorne’s “The Gray Champion” adapted to folksong by Dan Blakeslee and accompanied by a crankie by Ben Wickey. Friday, Sept. 5, 6-8 p.m. The House of the Seven Gables. More info. at salemlitfest.org.

THURSDAY! Join @levgrossman.com for a virtual fireside chat about his latest bestseller THE BRIGHT SWORD, an epic retelling of the story of King Arthur featuring a gifted young knight and a fellowship of oddballs. Join from anywhere! Thursday, September 4, 7 p.m. Register at link in bio.

WEDNESDAY! Kick off Salem Lit Fest 2025 with Allegra Goodman! Join Allegra to talk about Reese's Book Club Pick ISOLA, an historical epic about a noblewoman marooned on an island. FREE! Wed Sept. 3 7 pm 2nd Floor North Shore CDC 97 Lafayette St. Register at salemlitfest.org.