Ford makes ‘Bedtime’ story available on Kindle ebook
Those who attended Humanities Washington’s Bedtime Stories at the Spokane Club on Oct. 17 heard new works from local writers Sharma Shields and Tod Marshall; the state’s poet laureate, Elizabeth Austen; and from Great Falls-by-way-of-Seattle writer Jamie Ford.
Ford, whose debut novel “Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet” sold well over a million copies, created a piece of historical fiction especially for the event. “Wish You Were Here at the Bottom of a Well” is set in December 1911 in the Spokane Club, and features real-life Spokane tycoon F. Lewis Clark and his wife, Winifred.
While in real life F. Lewis Clark mysteriously disappeared in 1914 in Santa Barbara, California (he may have walked off the pier), in Ford’s imagination, he met a much more interesting and creepy end in the bowels of the Spokane Club.
If you want to read more, Ford has made that possible. The short story is available through Amazon as a Kindle ebook, for just 99 cents. And Ford will donate the money back to Humanities Washington, which provides cultural programming across the state.
Spooky stories
Speaking of ghostly tales, Auntie’s Bookstore on Friday will mark Halloween with a special reading by historian Chet Caskey (“Haunted Spokane: Ghosts & Dark Places in the Lilac City”) and writer Kelly Milner Halls (“Ghostly Evidence: Exploring the Paranormal”).
While the event, set for 6:30 p.m., is intended for audiences ages 13 and older, the store will have trick-or-treating for the littler ones, and Beautiful Grounds espresso is planning on “spooky drink specials.”
The store is at 402 W. Main Ave. Call (509) 838-0206 for more information.
Literary ephemera
We’ll have more one these things later, but here are a couple events you might want to get on your calendar.
• Railtown Almanac, a collection of Spokane poetry, will launch next month with an event at Auntie’s at 7 p.m. Nov. 1.
• Nance Van Winckel has a new book, a novel, coming out Nov. 7 from Twisted Road Publications. “Ever Yrs” is what she calls a “scrapbook novel,” as it tells the story of a family through old photos, doctored advertisements and letters.
• Popular children’s author and illustrator Jan Brett will be in Spokane for a reading and signing at the Bing Crosby Theater, sponsored by Auntie’s. Brett, who has sold more than 39 million books, is the author of “The Wild Christmas Reindeer,” “Christmas Trolls,” “The Mitten” and “Town Mouse, Country Mouse,” among many others. Her latest is “The Animals’ Santa.” Brett’s event will be at 5 p.m. Dec. 14. Call Auntie’s for more information.