Events

Wednesdays every week

Every Wednesday

No more procrastination! Bring your work in progress and join other writers for some dedicated time to get your words down.

Every Wednesday 5:00–5:30 Arrive, get comfortable, meet your fellow writers, and chat about your projects 5:30–6:30 Time to shut up and write!

Cohosted by BOLD Coffee & Books (

https://boldcoffeeandbooks.com

) and Indigo: Editing, Design, and More (

https://www.indigoediting.com

). 

Thursdays every week

Do you love paper crafts? We do too!

This group is for people seeking consistent time to practice paper arts and crafts in a small, low-pressure group setting.

***Space is limited. Please RSVP on Meetup here.***

Every Friday

Join us for a writing/discussion group. This is a co-working meeting. If you are looking for feedback or critique, there are other meetings for that. The format is social chat for 15 minutes, silent write for an hour, chat for 15 minutes, repeat.

Hosted by Rose City Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers at BOLD Coffee & Books.

BOLD is thrilled to host a reading with Julie Swendsen Young, author of Rules for Mothers: A Novel.

Rules for Mothers is a poignant depiction of the enduring complexities of gender roles, motherhood, and mental health. Elly Sparrow, mother of four, wife of an aspiring professional, yearns for something more. Her struggles and discoveries paint a picture of the importance of self-fulfillment and the battle women must wage to build a life that works for them—rather than one that is rooted in the needs of others.

“An emotionally incisive and beautifully restrained exploration of the quiet unraveling that can happen behind the polished surface of family life.” –Faith Williams, San Diego Book Review

Julie Swendsen Young grew up picking wildflowers and herding cows on the North Dakota prairie. After college she moved to Portland, Oregon, where she raised a family, earned a Master of Social Work (MSW), and became a clinical social worker. She is a citizen lobbyist for early childhood investments and maternal health. Her short fiction and creative nonfiction stories have been published in print and online magazines, including Surging Tide and The Timberline Review. Rules for Mothers is her first novel.

Arrive at 6:00 p.m. to grab a snack or drink. The event will start at 6:30 p.m.

*****

Event cohosted by BOLD Coffee & Books and Indigo: Editing, Design, and More.

BOLD is thrilled to host a special children’s storytime with Steph Littlebird, author of You Are the Land.

In her author debut, local Indigenous artist Steph Littlebird celebrates Oregon's unique tribal culture while encouraging readers to connect more deeply with the world around them. 

Author-Artist Steph Littlebird ​is a member of Oregon’s Grand Ronde Confederated Tribes. Her first illustrated children's book MY POWERFUL HAIR (2023) received the national Carter G. Woodson Social Studies Award (2024). Her author debut YOU ARE THE LAND, an ode to the Willamette Valley, was published by Penguin in 2026.

*****

Event cohosted by BOLD Coffee & Books and Indigo: Editing, Design, and More.

BOLD is thrilled to host a reading and Hawai‘i celebration with Tori Eldridge, author of Hawai’i Rage, in conversation with Frances Lu-Pai Ippolito.

Welina mai! (Welcome!) Join us for a special evening as local Native Hawaiian author Tori Eldridge immerses us in Hawai‘i as we have never experienced it before. Enjoy Hawaiian music, hula, flowers, and the fascinating background behind her exciting new mystery series, featuring a Native Hawaiian national park ranger moving home from Oregon to reconnect with her family, community, and the land.

ABOUT HAWAI‘I RAGE:

A suspicious death on a Kohala Mountain ranch draws ranger Makalani Pahukula into a tangled family tree in an emotional and suspenseful adventure by the bestselling author of the Lily Wong series and KAUA‘I STORM.

When Native Hawaiian ranger Makalani Pahukula is bored at her new position on the Big Island at Pu‘u Koholā National Historic Site, she agrees to help out on her cousin’s multigenerational cattle ranch. But as the tempers run hot between the paniolo (Hawaiian cowboys) in the Hiapo family, Makalani suspects the father’s gruesome ranching accident may be an ingenious murder to control the land.

 The closer she becomes to the Hiapo family and the traditional paniolo way of life, the harder it is to believe the worst of those she has come to respect. But at the same time, Detective Rona Kim is also closing in on the truth.

 Meanwhile, Makalani’s own family back on Kaua‘i worries about her safety and tries to protect and bolster her with their love. But when dangerous accidents happen to others, including herself, Makalani has no choice but to follow the clues and stop the culprit or culprits from murdering again.

Tori Eldridge is the bestselling author of KAUA‘I STORM, the first book in the Ranger Makalani Pahukula Mysteries, and the acclaimed Lily Wong thriller series—THE NINJA DAUGHTER, THE NINJA’S BLADE, THE NINJA BETRAYED, and THE NINJA’S OATH. She is a two-time Anthony Award nominee, a Lefty and Macavity Awards finalist, and the 2021 Crimson Scribe Award winner for Best Book of the Year. She also penned the Brazilian standalone DANCE AMONG THE FLAMES. Born and raised in Honolulu—of Hawaiian, Chinese, and Norwegian descent—Tori lived in New York and Los Angeles before settling in Portland, Oregon, where her mo‘opuna (grandchildren) live. Before writing, Tori performed on Broadway, television, and film; and holds a 5th degree black belt in To-Shin Do ninja martial arts. 

Frances Lu-Pai Ippolito is a Chinese American judge and publisher in Portland, Oregon. She is the founder of Demagogue Press and the award-winning nonprofit publisher, Qilin Press, which focuses on community stories. She has also co-edited three cozy horror anthologies with Underland Press. IG: @demagogue_press & @qilin_press @francespaippolito

Arrive at 6:30 p.m. to enjoy the music and "talk story" with Tori and Frances while you grab a delicious beverage or snack. The book event will start at 7:00 p.m. Book signing to follow.

*****

Event cohosted by BOLD Coffee & Books and Indigo: Editing, Design, and More.

Monthly on every last Tuesday

Come meet other writers and enjoy a drink in this fun and informal setting to bond over the written (or still unwritten!) word.

5:00–7:00 p.m.

Drop in at your convenience. We'll be happy to see you and hear about your writing!

Event cohosted by BOLD Coffee & Books and Indigo: Editing, Design, and More.

BOLD is thrilled to host a reading with poets Cindy Williams Gutierrez and Gemma Whelan. Cindy will be reading from her latest poetry collection, This Tender Geography, and Gemma Whelan will be reading from Lisa Dart’s collections, The Bird You Are and Even So, This Song, published by Gemma’s Shangana Press.

This Tender Geography by Cindy Williams Gutiérrez (2024, FlowerSong Press)

This poetry collection explores the tender geography of the primal forces in our lives: of both the power and frailty of familial bonds—“this is where I will find you/ a seemingly endless hole”—and of the body —“Tumors make no sound.” These poems trace the inner journey of a woman who stands on the threshold of elderhood reflecting on the broken and shimmering terrain she has traversed. It is the story of one life, and it is the story of many lives, of anyone who has loved and grieved, erred and forgiven, regretted and resumed, sickened and survived. In the words of National Book Award Winner Craig Santos Perez, “Every page feels like an ocean of emotions breaking open; at the same time, every page is ‘one wing opening.’”

The Bird You Are

“I'd like to be a painter,” writes Lisa Dart in these brief, stunning portraits. Each prose-poem is addressed, epistle-like, to her mother, as though the once strikingly beautiful red-head, now diminished by illness, loss, and age, into a white-haired rarely lucid woman, might explain the inexplicable truths of their entwined and tragic history. A train's evening-lit passing, sheepskin ankle boots with snow melting on their tread, the pulse of an emergency room heart monitor— this lyrical and searing language paints a moving picture of the painful but ultimately loving relationship at the fluttering heart of this collection.

Even So, This Song

Lisa Dart’s courageous and beautifully intense lyric collection gives us a candid and unflinching chronicle of her profound grief following the death of her life partner, the poet Peter Abbs; from the domestic minutiae that create the loved texture of a shared life, to the limits of what the psyche can endure. This is a grief that is evoked by everything around her—a pair of shoes, a dropped daffodil bulb, a headboard, falling snow. These are poems that howl, that long for rescue and the turning back of time. Yet in the end that all-pervasive mourning becomes the sign, and the music, of life continuing.

Cindy Williams Gutiérrez is a poet, playwright, producer and educator. She is the author of three poetry collections and five produced plays. Her awards include: a 2025 Washington Humanities Award for K-12 Education, 2018 Willow Books Editor’s Choice Poetry Selection, 2017 Oregon Book Award for Drama, 2016 Oregon Literary Fellowship, 2015 International Latino Book Award Finalist, and a Poets & Writers Magazine 2014 Notable Debut Poet. Her poems have appeared in Harvard’s Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion, UNAM’s (the National University of Mexico’s) Periódico de Poesía, Portland State University’s Portland Review, and Benedictine University’s Quiddity, among others. Cindy will be reading from her new collection, This Tender Geography, which explores family, mortality and forgiveness.

Lisa Dart is a poet and prose writer. A finalist for the Grolier Poetry Prize (USA, 2004), The Aesthetica Poetry Competition (UK, 2013), and The Troubadour International Poetry Prize (UK, 2022), she has a doctorate in creative writing from the University of Sussex (UK). Her poetry has appeared in many journals, including Eastern Iowa Review, Tears in The Fence, and The London Magazine. She is the author of The Linguistics of Light (poems, Salt, 2008); Fathom (prose memoir, Free Association Press, 2019); This Thing of Darkness (IPBooks, 2024), a highly experimental illustrated book using multiple texts, which won a British Arts Council Award; and The Bird You Are (Shangana Press, 2025).

Gemma Whelan is a director, novelist, screenwriter and educator. She was the founding Artistic Director of Wilde Irish Productions in the San Francisco Bay Area, and of Corrib Theatre in Portland, Oregon. In Portland, she has also directed at Artists Repertory Theatre, Profile Theatre, Milagro, CoHo Theatre, Boom Arts, and Portland Center Stage’s JAW Festival. She has been directing, and teaching at universities and conservatories in the U.S, Ireland, and Asia for 4 decades and leads an annual Theatre Tour to Ireland. Her novels are Fiona: Stolen Child and Painting Through the Dark. Gemma has a BA (English, French) from Trinity College, Dublin, an MA (Theatre) from UC Berkeley, and an MFA (Cinema) from S.F. State University.

Arrive at 6:30 p.m. to grab a snack or drink. The event will start at 7:00 p.m.

*****

Event cohosted by BOLD Coffee & Books and Indigo: Editing, Design, and More.

Do you love stories about kids or animals who save the day? Do you love to dance and color and play? We do too!

Come join Ali Shaw of Bold Coffee & Books for a fun storytime. Hear some stories, make some friends, and leave with art. What an amazing way to spend a Saturday!

Plus, 20% off children's books and $1 off hot chocolate on Saturday mornings.

*****

Event cohosted by BOLD Coffee & Books and Indigo: Editing, Design, and More.

BOLD is thrilled to host Translating "Real Life" into a Comic Strip: Bridgett Spicer, Auntie Beeswax: Beehives and Cat Puke, in Conversation with Teagan Gaviola of the Oregon Cartoon Project.

Auntie Beeswax cartoonist Bridgett Spicer chats with Teagan Gaviola of The Oregon Cartoon Project on just how a cartoonist translates real life into a comic strip. This casual conversation delves into the new book Auntie Beeswax: Beehives and Cat Puke and looks at the inspiration behind the cartoons. Book signing to follow.

Bridgett Spicer is a Portland cartoonist person. When not drawing comics, she's making zines, slurping coffee, scribbling in her sketchbook, listening to jazz, learning French, observing bees in beautiful garden settings, watching old movies, reading Peanuts comics, and cleaning up cat puke.

Teagan Gaviola (she/they) is the current Event Intern for the Oregon Cartoon Project, a non-profit striving to connect cartoonists, comic-artists, animators, and artists alike in Oregon and the PNW. Born and raised in Portland, Teagan aspires to nurture the local art scene alongside OCP through the power of community.

Arrive at 6:30 p.m. to grab a snack or drink. The event will start at 7:00 p.m.

*****

Event cohosted by BOLD Coffee & Books and Indigo: Editing, Design, and More.

Monthly on every first Tuesday

We want your BOLD stories!

Come to our monthly open mic to share your latest work in progress or previously published piece. We welcome short stories, personal essays, poetry, slam, and other spoken word art forms.

10% off for performers!

Arrive at 5:00 to sign up and get your beverage. The mic goes on at 5:30 p.m. 7-minute time limit. No theme. 

BOLD is a safe place. We strive to uplift stories by and about people from underrepresented and diverse communities. We do not tolerate hate speech of any kind.

See you there!

BOLD is honored to host a Coffee Talk Honoring Steve Arndt.

Let's be together as writers/friends of Steve share pieces in memory of our beloved and missed friend, aka the ambassador of Portland's Lit community.

These phenomenal humans will be at the mic: Adam Strong, Amy Baskin, Anne Richardson, Gigi Little, Laura Stanfill, Mary Mandeville, Nancy Townsley, Nikki Darling, and Stephanie Shilling.

Arrive at 6:30 p.m. to grab a snack or drink. The event will start at 7:00 p.m.

*****

Event cohosted by BOLD Coffee & Books and Indigo: Editing, Design, and More.

BOLD is thrilled to host a special children’s storytime and Go Spellfish Play Day with Eye Write It!

This extra-special storytime will feature a game called Go Spellfish. Dive into a sea of letters and fun with Go Spellfish. Perfect for the little wordsmiths. This traditional 52-card deck of playing cards also plays ANY card game. Promotes spelling and cognitive skills through engaging play. Transform family game night with Go Spellfish, where learning meets laughter. Watch your kids excel and enjoy every spelling triumph. Go Spellfish is published by Eye Write It, and Bold will be joined by cofounders Layne Maheu and Chris Satterlund for some awesome activities. It will be fun for all ages.

Layne Maheu is the author of two literary novels, Song of the Crow, 2006, Unbridled Books and Man of the World, 2021, Chatwin Books. After decades of working as a carpenter, he’s turned his love of books into a love of teaching and now works in education.

Chris Satterlund has been in the bookselling and publishing business for forty years, twenty-six spent as an independent bookseller and owner in two stores and fifteen years with Scholastic as a field rep. Her passion has always been children’s books. It’s where a person learns who they are in the world by reading.

*****

Event cohosted by BOLD Coffee & Books and Indigo: Editing, Design, and More.

Monthly on every second Tuesday

Remember how great silent reading time was in elementary school? The melting away of distractions while you lost yourself in a great book? Now you can get that as an adult too!

Join us at BOLD for a silent reading party. Bring your book or buy one here. Grab a drink or pastry, and lose yourself in those pages.

Arrive around 5:00 if you want to meet other readers and share about the book you’re reading. The background music switches to classical and the reading begins at 5:30 p.m. More book talk afterwards, at 6:30.

Event cohosted by BOLD Coffee & Books and Indigo: Editing, Design, and More.

BOLD is thrilled to host a reading with H.E. Wallace and Roi Qualls, authors of Points of Failure, Vol. 1: INTERWOVEN.

Join authors H.E. Wallace and Roi Qualls for an evening of dialogue regarding their debut novel, Points of Failure, Vol. 1: INTERWOVEN in which they explore themes of collective trauma and healing, spirituality, and how humanity can’t move forward without addressing its past.

Points of Failure, Vol. 1: INTERWOVEN

INTERWOVEN, the first volume in the Points of Failure series by H.E. Wallace and Roi Qualls, plunges us into a post-conflict world 250 years into the future when humanity faces its starkest choice: escape or perish. With only 85 years remaining before Earth can no longer support human life, the Umoja-19 mission to the center of the galaxy in search of a new home planet cannot fail. When things do not go as planned, Chief Scientist Dr. Tah Morant must figure out why. His investigation takes an unforeseen turn, but is complicated by personal tensions, childhood trauma, fickle friendships, and brittle intimacies of marriage. To make matters worse, he must steer clear of danger and political intrigue while navigating with a moral compass clouded by willful ignorance and personal revenge.

This isn't merely science fiction; it's a journey into social and personal transformation, the relentless pursuit of truth, and the deep spiritual strength required for our survival. It explores the complexities of human nature and the intricate cultural structures that persist even after war has been abolished.

INTERWOVEN reflects on our complicity, our courage, and the choices we face in shaping what comes next for planet Earth. This isn’t a dystopian warning or a utopian escape, but a vital call to self-examination and transformation, particularly in the face of the calamities– physical, cultural, spiritual, political– shaping our current reality.

Compelling stories have always captured H.E. Wallace’sattention. INTERWOVEN, her debut novel co-authored with Roi Qualls, ties together her love for a good story and the dream of writing one. She currently lives in a seaside Washington town near her mother who was the first to encourage her to write.

Roi Qualls first imagined INTERWOVEN in 2013, and the story stayed with him until he teamed up a decade later with co-author H.E. Wallace to bring it to life. He studied philosophy and education at Earlham College and built a career as a database architect. Roi lives in beautiful Yellow Springs, Ohio, with Linden, his wife of 45 years.

Arrive at 6:30 p.m. to grab a snack or drink. The event will start at 7:00 p.m.

*****

Event cohosted by BOLD Coffee & Books and Indigo: Editing, Design, and More.

Monthly on every third Tuesday

Join us for a monthly Q&A about all things publishing and books!

Join Ali Shaw—co-owner of BOLD Coffee & Books and owner of Indigo: Editing, Design, and More—for an in-person Q&A about the publishing process, the business of writing, and the book world in general. If you have questions about how to start your publishing journey, bring them! If you’ve always wondered about something more obscure, like how to tell if an antique book is a first edition or what librarians do at trade shows, bring those too!

Free and open to the public.

Event cohosted by BOLD Coffee & Books and Indigo: Editing, Design, and More.

In this snappy writing contest, we give the writers four writing prompts and set the timer for 30 minutes. When the time is up, they read their stories and the judges select a winner—all right there on the spot. There’s no time to hesitate, second-guess, or hold back. Then the winner takes home prizes! All writers are welcome, from published professionals to newborn novelists. 

 *****

 Event cohosted by BOLD Coffee & Books and Indigo: Editing, Design, and More.

BOLD is thrilled to host a reading with Elayne Shapiro, author of My Grandfather’s Trunk, Susan Storer Clark, author of An Uncharted World, and Maureen Hartman, author of Perception.

My Grandfather’s Trunk

Growing up in Tzfat at the turn of the twentieth century, Esther does not know what to expect when she marries Moshe, a trunk-maker with dreams of following his brothers to start a new life in America. Tzfat may not be perfect . . . but what about the challenges of the new world, so strange and so far from everything Esther and Moshe have ever known?

Those challenges, after all, are considerable—from the constant economic struggle of feeding and housing a growing family; to the pull of the modernity that threatens to unravel Esther and Moshe’s Jewish traditions; to the global crises of war and pandemic; and finally, to the terrible toll taken by mental illness.

Of course, there is joy and endurance, too—more than enough for Esther and Moshe’s story to be richly retold many years later. And the retelling in this book begins when a granddaughter finds a trunk that Moshe made, and is intrigued by its meticulous, old-world craftsmanship.

An Uncharted World

An Uncharted World is a novel of historical fiction, set in the sixteenth century, against the backdrop of the worldwide trade of enslaved people. It is set in West Africa, Brazil, Peru, Macau, and on the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans. In 1574, a Yorùbá girl, Morayo, is captured near her home in what is now Nigeria. It is the beginning of a terrifying journey: slavery in Brazil, servitude in Peru, and capture by privateer Francis Drake on his way around the world.

Can Morayo regain her freedom? Is there any way she can get back to her home?

Meticulously researched and inspired by the true story of a real African woman, An Uncharted World is a tale of resilience is told through Morayo’s eyes, and through those of a wide range of characters: priests and pirates, aristocrats, freed slaves and the divine trickster Èṣù. It takes the reader around the world and into the uncharted depths of the human heart.

Perception

Mia Ellis returns to her hometown after her father suffers a debilitating stroke. If it weren't for her half-brother, TJ, she wouldn't have returned, for she has no love for her father. He'd gone to Haiti as a social scientist with an American NGO, then left after learning he'd be a father. But when Mia confronts him in his hospital bed, unable to express himself clearly, he motions clumsily to the table beside him and says what she thinks is "All There."

This leads her to a cache of his personal journals, which take Mia on an unexpected journey that unravels the complexities of love and redemption. As she delves into his private thoughts, Mia uncovers a father she never knew, shaped by his own secrets and regrets.

PERCEPTION, the second book in the SPIRIT series, is a poignant exploration of family, forgiveness, and the untold stories that bind us together.

Elayne Shapiro is a graduate of the University of Illinois, served as a Peace Corps Volunteer, and has an MA and PhD in Communication from the University of Minnesota. She taught in the Department of Communication Studies at the University of Portland for thirty years. In addition to academic articles and a text, Reading the Bible; Transforming Conflict, Shapiro gave workshops in conflict management and family communication. She mediated in Small Claims Court for thirteen years and has volunteered as a CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) for eleven years.

My Grandfather’s Trunk is historical fiction. Based on a family secret Shapiro observed in her own extended family, it explores issues of class, ethnicity, and mental health in a twentieth-century Jewish immigrant community.

Susan Storer Clark reads history and asks questions. She started when she was a child and continued to do so while she was working on her advanced degree in sixteenth-century history from King’s College London. She asked questions for a living as a broadcast journalist for about 25 years, working at such places as WRC-TV in Washington, DC, and the Voice of America. She and her husband Rich currently live in the Seattle area, where she tends her garden and sings in three different musical groups.

Susan writes about resilient women facing powerful social and cultural obstacles. An Uncharted World is her second novel of historical fiction.

Maureen Hartman was born and raised in Wisconsin but has been an Oregonian for four decades (plus or minus) and enjoys all the advantages of living in the Pacific Northwest. She loves to hike, kayak, cross-country ski, garden, and, of course, write. She is currently working on the third novel in her SPIRIT series, about a small Midwestern town wrestling with the rise of a right-wing movement.

Arrive at 6:30 p.m. to grab a snack or drink. The event will start at 7:00 p.m.

*****

Event cohosted by BOLD Coffee & Books and Indigo: Editing, Design, and More.