Alaska Book Week
2026
Alaska Book Week is a statewide celebration, coordinated by the Alaska Center for the Book, that annually celebrates the multi-faceted ways that we appreciate books, from readings to panels, lectures, discussions, and youth activities. Alaska Book Week takes place around the first week in October. Literary events occurring before and after this time may also be included.
Visit the Archives in the top menu to see events from past Alaska Book Weeks.
Optional Intensive Workshops and First Page Roundtables
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18
2026 CONFERENCE
For Writers & Illustrators
All Day Conference, Keynotes, Panels, and Sessions
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 19
Alaska Writers Guild is again partnering with the Alaska Romance Writers (ARW) and the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWIAK) as well as the University of Alaska Anchorage’s Department of Writing. Together, we bring you agents, editors, and authors from across the country to service writers and illustrators at every stage of their careers and creative processes. |
Confluence is a collaboration between the late Alex Turner and his husband, Lucian Childs. Drawing on his sixty-year history with his beloved West Coast. Turner wrote much of this beautifully rendered novel before he passed away in 2019. Childs, an award-winning author himself, completed the work, a novel that is simultaneously poetic, humorous, and exuberantly down to earth.
David Stevenson Speaks from the Shadows
Event description: David Stevenson talks about his new memoir-in-essays Securing the Shadows with Andy Hall, author of Denali’s Howl: The Deadliest Climbing Disaster on America’s Wildest Peak.
This will be a recorded Zoom event. A link will be posted here when the event is scheduled.
Mystery, Landscape, and the North:
How Alaska Inspires Story
Sarah Birdsall, Naomi Klouda, and Rich Chiappone discuss Alaska fiction writers’ visions and artistic interpretations of Alaska and how this shapes their writing.
Click on authors’ names above for biographies.
This will be a recorded Zoom event. A link will be posted when it is available.
What do Writers Worry About?
Title Wave Books,
Sunday, October 4,
3:00 – 5:00 pm
Just so that you don’t mistakenly think published writers never doubt their own writing decisions, we invite you to join Stan Jones, Rich Chiappone, Chris Lundgren, and Simon Lisciecki in a lively discussion about what sometimes keeps them up awake at night.
Click on authors’ names above for biographies.
Exploring Shakespeare and Pop Culture
Why has interest in Shakespeare and his work survived and thrived over the past 400 years? Why does Shakespeare show up in video games, films, memes and other pop culture mediums? UAA professors Sharon Emmerichs and Toby Widdecome and UAA senior Ruby Malmquis discuss why, how and where Shakespeare endures and remains relevant today.
UAA, Consortium Library 307
Friday, October 2,
5:30 pm to 7:00 pm
Click on authors’ names above for biographies.
Poetry and Inspiration
Four Alaskan poets who’ve released new books in the last two years gather to share poetry and be interviewed about the writing and publication process. Join Susan Campbell, Jonas Lamb, Mistee St. Clair and Annie Wenstrup for poetry and inspiration. Erin Coughlin Hollowell moderates the discussion.
Click on authors’ names above for biographies.
