Wordstock
Portland’s Book Festival
Presented by
2017 Program Report
Ta-Nehisi Coates’s onstage event drew a crowd of more than 2,500.
Festival attendees explored the expanded book fair, featuring 90 exhibitors.
Wordstock featured dedicated stages for Children’s, Middle Grade and YA literature.
Wordstock: Portland’s Book Festival
brings writers and readers of all ages together to celebrate a shared passion for books. On November 11, 2017, downtown Portland, Oregon filled with thousands of readers and writers for a daylong celebration of literature. Wordstock: Portland’s Book Festival 2017 featured a mix of local and national authors, including Ta-Nehisi
Coates, Carson Ellis, Jeffrey Eugenides, David Grann, Jenny Han, Claire Messud, Tom Perrotta, Danez Smith, Lemony Snicket, and Lidia Yuknavitch. 2017 Festival In Numbers: More than 10,000 people attended the festival, including 1,550 students who received free admission.
SUMMER The festival featured more than 126 authors:
25% writers of color
62% women writers
36% local 64% national
SPRING
Programming included
More than 60% of attendees cashed in the book voucher they received with their ticket purchase.
FALL
48 on-stage events and 62 pop-up readings.
90 exhibitors
and three bookstore partners were featured in an extensive book fair.
The festival was made possible with the help of more than 350 volunteers.
WINTER
“
Wordstock finds one wandering around a beautiful city listening to the endlessly fascinating conversations between a sharp lineup of wondrously talented writers. —Daniel Handler/ Lemony Snicket
”
Local and National Partnerships: Six partner venues hosted nine festival stages, including dedicated stages for YA, picture book, and middle grade authors.
In collabroation with Oregon Public Broadcasting, 33 live events were recorded for broadcast on The Archive Project radio show and podcast. Each episode reaches approximately 15,000 listeners statewide.
Award-winning artist, designer, and illustrator Javaka Steptoe signed books for young fans.
New York Times writers Gilbert Cruz, Jazmine Hughes, and Jenna Wortham moderated onstage events through a new media partnership.
The Poetry Foundation helped bring 12 poets, including Morgan Parker, Danez Smith, Kaveh Akbar, Melissa Febos, and Nicole Sealey, to engage with the local community.
Claire Messud and Maile Meloy in conversation, moderated by John Freeman.
Portland’s second annual Lit Crawl® event featured more than 30 free literary events.
Literary Arts collaborated with the
Northwest Film Center, Live Wire Radio, Back Fence PDX, and other local organizations to create programming featuring festival authors.
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Danez Smith, Morgan Parker, and Dawn Lundy Martin appeared on a poetry panel.
Wordstock was fantastic and truly a highlight of my year. Looking forward to doing it all again next year.
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—Marisa Siegel, The Rumpus
Elena Passarello read from her most recent essay collection, Animals Strike Curious Poses.
Wordstock: Portland’s Book Festival 2017 was made possible with the support of the following partners: PRESENTING SPONSOR
VISIONARY PARTNERS
COMMUNITY PARTNERS
LEAD SUPPORTERS
MEDIA SUPPORTERS
FESTIVAL IN-KIND SUPPORTERS
FESTIVAL SUPPORTERS
A to Z Wineworks, DENNIS Uniform, Elephants Delicatessen, First Congregational United Church of Christ, Northwest Film Center, The Old Church, Oregon Historical Society, Portland Monthly, Poster Garden, Provenance Hotels, Triumph Expo and Events Inc., Whiting Foundation
KinderCare Education, Pomegranate, Sasquatch Books, TooFar Media, Wieden + Kennedy
Interested in supporting the 2018 festival? Contact our Development Manager, Cheslea Querner, at 503-227-2583 x118 or chelsea@literary-arts.org for more information.
SAVE THE DATE!
10
Wordstock: Portland’s Book Festival returns November 10, 2018.
Wordstock is a program of Literary Arts, a communitybased nonprofit located in downtown Portland with a 34year history of serving Oregon’s readers and writers. Our mission is to engage readers, support writers, and inspire the next generation with great literature.
Literary Arts Staff Andrew Proctor, Executive Director Maggie Allen Amanda Bullock Lydah DeBin Alanna Faelan James Gendron Megan Gex Jennifer Gurney India Hamilton Hunt Holman Ramiza Koya Susan Moore Denver Olmstead Liz Olufson Chelsea Querner Joanna Rose Dao Strom Mel Wells Kyle White
Board of Directors Jacqueline Willingham, Chair Jill Abere Mike Barr Amy Carlsen Kohnstamm Ginnie Cooper Alice Cuprill-Comas Rebecca DeCesaro Amy Donohue Theo Downes-Le Guin Marie Eckert Betsy Henning Karen Karbo Deidra Miner Katherine O’Neil Ramón Pagán Amy Prosenjak Jon Raymond Bob Speltz Amy Wayson Thomas Wood
literary-arts.org | 925 SW Washington St., Portland, Oregon 97205 | 503.227.2583
Wordstock Advisory Council Karen Karbo, Chair Neil Aitken Sarah Carlberg Liz Crain Rachel Fershleiser Jennifer Abel Kovitz B. Frayn Masters J.S. May Susan Moore Olivia Olivia Steph Opitz Sarah Rothenfluch Heidi Schulz Rob Spillman Dao Strom Alicia Tate