Check out this lit. conference this weekend in Portland!

Publisher and poet, Geoffrey Faber, once stated “The publisher is a middleman, he calls the tune to which the whole rest of the trade dances; and he does so because he pays the piper.”

For years writers have struggled with the task of not only dancing with, but first discovering what the publisher’s tune is. If only there was a way, a place, or a conference that could demystify the publishing process for writers. Thanks to the folks at Ooligan Press indeed there is now such a conference.

This Saturday, May 22, 2010, marks the first of what will hopefully become many Write to Publish conferences at Portland State University. Write to Publish is hosted by Ooligan Press—Portland State University’s publishing press affiliated with the Writing and Book Publishing program. This two-day event offers classes from industry professionals and speeches from local greats such as Chuck Palahniuk, Ursula K. Le Guin, and Shannon Wheeler—creator of Too Much Coffee Man.

Saturday, day one, is Workshop Day. Available workshops include The State of Publishing, Agent/Writer Relationships, The Dos and Don’ts of Publishing, and How to Find a Publisher. Classes are $32 each or five for $130. For a complete-list of workshops visit go here. An Author and Editor Luncheon will be held from noon to 1 pm, in the Smith Memorial Student Union, room 328. Participants include Hawthorne Books publisher Kate Sage and author Loretta Stinson. Stinson authored Hawthorne’s newest title Little Green and holds an MFA and an MS in Book Publishing from PSU. The pair will discuss the author/publisher relationship in small presses during this free event.

Sunday, day two, is Open House Day. Tickets are $10 or $8 for students and are only available at the door. Palahniuk, Le Guin, Wheeler, and others will speak.

If you’re a writer, a wannabe writer or publisher or know any of the above send them or yourself on down to PSU this weekend to see the dance in action, and of course say “hi” to Kate and Loretta.

A manifesto on YouTube by Ooligan for Write to Publish:

Portland State University’s Ooligan Press
Write to Publish Conference
www.ooligan.pdx.edu
May 22-23, 2010 @ PSU

Title Wave Used Bookstore has 20,000 used books, audio books, CDs, DVDs and more at bargain prices.

“Searching is half the fun; life is much more manageable when thought of as a scavenger hunt as opposed to a surprise party.”

Jimmy Buffet may have been talking about the meaning of life here, but this quote could be applied just as easily to the plight of the common book shopper. While sometimes, a bestseller at a good price is the mission of the buyer, quite often half the fun of purchasing a book is the quest—the search through stack and shelf to find the perfect paper companion. The effort makes the discovery that much more rewarding.

Every quest needs a starting point, a place to pair the hunter with the hunted. While Portland may be home to the largest bookstore in the country, it also houses some lesser-known gems of the used and or specialized variety.

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One such place and a recent personal discovery of mine is Title Wave Used Bookstore on 216 NE Knott St. It’s housed in the original Albina Branch Library which was designed in 1912 in Spanish Revival style. Fifty volunteers run the store and the books are cast offs from Multnomah County Library’s collection.

Title Wave opened in March 1988 and carries 20,000 used books, audio books, CDs, DVDs, videos, magazines and cassettes. I purchased a Beirut CD for a mere .75 cents which is the going rate for most of the CDs. The average price for a magazine is $1, the majority of the books ring in at $2, and the inventory changes daily. It’s the perfect landscape for the hunter to score a random and or rare book.

Title Wave Used Bookstore
216 NE Knott St.
Hours: Mon-Sat, 10am-4pm
www.multcolib.org/titlewave
503.988.5021

Cameron's Books is a Portland institution. Photo courtesy of Thomas Hawk.

Cameron’s Books and Magazines located at 336 S.W. 3rd Ave. and established in 1938 carries a wide array of books, and the largest selection of used magazines I’ve ever seen. Whether you’re looking to get a good deal on a past issue of Art on Paper or a vintage Life Magazine, Cameron’s is your best bet. The store may be small, but it is brimming with books. With such a vast selection, shoppers are guaranteed to walk away with things they never knew they needed. Cameron’s is also a good bet for those looking to sell, especially for those whose books didn’t make the cut at Powell’s.

Cameron’s Books and Magazines
336 SW 3rd Ave.
Hours: Monday-Saturday 10am-6pm, Sunday 11am-4pm.
www.cameronsbooks.com
503.228.2391

Ampersand is a great spot for art book lovers.

Both gallery and bookshop, Ampersand Vintage at 2916 NE Alberta St., Suite B offers a selection of new and used books and art with a focus on photography and art books. Their website describes the shop as “a project of sorts, an investigation into the colliding point between vintage visual material & contemporary works of art.” True to this description, the store stocks cameras–Diana Mini, Holga, Diana F+–to capture memories, books on artists and photographers from the past and present, broadsides, and old snapshots of unknown folks. Ampersand’s gallery exhibits change monthly. The last show that closed on April 25th was 52 Selects–an exhibition of photographs by world-renowned photojournalists. Below is a photo from the exhibit…

Ampersand
2916 NE Alberta St.
Hours: Tuesday-Saturday Noon-6pm, Sundays Noon-5pm
www.ampersandvintage.com
503.805.5458

From Ampersand's show 52 Selects.

Check out Frank Meeink on Fresh Air...

“And I remember looking up at God and saying, ‘God, maybe there’s something wrong. Maybe you’re right. Maybe on the black, Asian and Latino issue, maybe we are all equal.’”

The above quote is from Frank Meeink’s interview with Dave Davies on Fresh Air Wednesday, April 7th. The thirty-minute interview covered Meeink’s abusive upbringing, his transformation from skater to skinhead, his time in prison, his recovery, as well as his book Autobiography of a Recovering Skinhead written by Jody M. Roy, Ph.D.

We also want to let you know that Hawthorne Books senior editor, Adam O’Connor Rodriguez will be at AWP (The Association of Writers and Writing Programs) conference this week in Denver, Colorado, at the Colorado Convention Center, exhibit hall A, table P8, tabling for Hawthorne Books along with some of our authors. If you’re in the area, stop by and say hello.

Listen to Frank Meeink on Fresh Air