­­Each week during the workshop, we present one of our current instructors reading her or his best new work from recent books, unpublished stories, or novels-in-progress. The featured reader also answers questions about writing, teaching, editing, and other topics.

Over 1400 people attended the six readings we held in conjunction with the Summer 2012 Clarion West Writers Workshop.

Two of our 2012 readings were held at Town Hall Seattle. These were ticketed events; tickets cost $10 and were available at brownpapertickets.com. Admission to the four 2012 readings held at the University Book Store's main location was once again be free.

All readings took place at 7 p.m. on Tuesdays. Copies of the readers' works were available onsite for purchase.

2012 Readers

The readers for the 2012 Clarion West Summer Reading Series were:

Mary Rosenblum

June 19, 7 p.m., University Book Store

Mary Rosenblum explores climate change, biotechnology, and class inequity in stories based on her profound knowledge of science and technology and her passion for sustainable living. Her first novel, The Drylands, won the 1994 Compton Crook Award, and in 2009 she received the Sidewise Award for Alternate History for her story “Sacrifice.”

Stephen Graham Jones

June 26, 7 p.m., University Book Store

Stephen Graham Jones has published eleven novels and over 140 finely-honed stories about innocents, unfairness, and scary truths. A Blackfoot Indian from Texas, a Professor of English at the University of Colorado, an NEA Fellow, and a Bram Stoker Award finalist, Jones can warm an audience to laughter or chill it with icily observed inevitabilities.

George R.R. Martin

July 3, 7 p.m., Town Hall Seattle

George R. R. Martin is the author of the fantasy series A Song of Ice and Fire, basis for HBO’s 'Game of Thrones.' He has received four Hugos, two Nebulas, and many other major awards over his four-decade career. Martin was named by Time magazine as one of the most influential people of 2011. Note: Tickets for this reading are $10; they're available at Brown Paper Tickets.

Connie Willis

July 10, 7 p.m., University Book Store

Connie Willis peppers her live appearances with humorous insights on everything from the Oscars to current elections. Willis has won more major awards than any other author, including most recently her eleventh Hugo for Blackout/All Clear, a time-travel novel about World War II London. She explores comic and tragic aspects of the human condition through characters that run the gamut from desperately likable to sweetly infuriating.

Kelly Link & Gavin Grant

July 17, 7 p.m., University Book Store

Kelly Link and Gavin Grant founded Small Beer Press, arguably today's most important independent publisher of avant-garde fantasy. Link’s award-winning fiction was described as “an alchemical mix of Borges, Raymond Chandler and 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer'” by Salon.com. Grant’s work has appeared in Strange Horizons and The Christian Science Monitor. The pair’s editorial projects include the literary zine Lady Churchill’s Rosebud Wristlet, several volumes of The Years’ Best Fantasy and Horror (with Ellen Datlow), and 2011’s Steampunk! An Anthology of Fantastically Rich and Strange Stories.

Chuck Palahniuk

July 24, 7 p.m., Town Hall Seattle

Chuck Palahniuk is known for his reclusive nature and his skillful hand with disturbing modern fables. His most recent book, Damned, references the young adult novels of Judy Blume as it follows a thirteen-year-old girl through Hell. Palahniuk's novel Fight Club won critical acclaim and cult status before being turned into a major motion picture. Note: Tickets for this reading are $10; they're available at Brown Paper Tickets.

More University Book Store Readings

In addition to the Clarion West Summer Reading Series, every year the University Book Store hosts dozens of other readings of interest to fans of SF. Check out their events calendar for further information.

Photograph of Mary Rosenblum © 2011 by Leslie Howle; used with permission. Photograph of Stephen Graham Jones © 2008 Becky Philips; used with permission. Photograph of George R.R. Martin © 2011 by Leslie Howle; used with permission. Photograph of Connie Willis © 2011 bt Leslie Howle; used with permission. Photographs of Kelly Link and Gavin Grant © 2011 by Kelly Link and Gavin Grant; used with permission. Photograph of Chuck Palahniuk © 2011 by Leslie Howle; used with permission.

The 2012 Clarion West Summer Reading Series is being presented by Clarion West and University Book Store. It is sponsored by Amazon.com; Renovation, the 69th World Science Fiction Convention; Norwescon; Potlatch; the Seattle Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs; King County 4Culture; the Susan C. Petrey Foundation; and Arisia.