Terri Daniel, author of "A Swan in Heaven: Conversations Between Two Worlds," a book about channeling messages from her deceased son, will give a reading on October 8, from 7 to 9 p.m., at Salem's newest bookshop located at 420 Ferry Street in downtown. There is no fee to attend the reading; books will be available for purchase and autographs. Tea Party Bookshop offers readers a variety of genres, including bestsellers, mysteries, children's books, and books about spirituality. Meeting space is also available. Book clubs, writing groups, yoga instructors, and others interested in renting meeting space should call the bookshop at (503) 990-6471, or e-mail Joanne@teapartybookshop.com.

Third Thursday poets celebrate October with two wicked writers

Third Thursday Poets, a group that meets on the third Thursday of each month for poetry readings, will feature poets Carola Dunn and Matt Schumacher on October 16, 2008 from 5:30 to 7 p.m. in the Alumni Lounge at the Putnam University Center at Willamette University. The theme for the reading is "Something Wicked This Way Comes."

Although known for her Daisy Dalrymple mystery series (the seventeenth, "Black Ship," just released), Carola Dunn also writes occasional poetry, including a haiku which was posted on 25 Eugene buses. Like her amateur sleuth Daisy, she frequently finds unidentified snippets of verse floating through her head. Some of them turn out to be her own work in progress.

Matt Schumacher's first book, "Spilling the Moon," was published in 2008. A recent contributor to ZYZZYVA and Green Mountains Review, he was nominated for a 2006 Pushcart Prize and won the 2007 Willamette Writers Kay Snow Poetry Award. Schumacher has taught writing, literature, and humanities at a cornucopia of collegiate institutions and correctional facilities in California, Iowa, Illinois, Maine, and Washington. Educated at the University of Maine and Iowa Writer's Workshop, he currently teaches at Eastern Oregon University.
For more information, contact Maureen Clifford at maureen@thirdthursdaypoets.org.

OSU's visiting writer series welcomes author Jason Brown
Oregon State University's Visiting Writer Series welcomes author Jason Brown on Friday, October 17th, starting at 7:30 p.m. in Oregon State University's Valley Library Rotunda in Corvallis.

There is no fee, and book sales and autographs will be available. Brown's fiction has been published in Best American Short Stories, Harper's, and The Atlantic. His new book, titled "Why the Devil Chose New England for His Work: Stories," contains 11 loosely linked stories.

According to OSU's Keith Scribner, head of OSU's MFA program, Brown's stories are similar to those of Russell Banks. Scribner notes there are "moments of humor and brightness and hardcore realism. These are stories that look at our darker side and are tremendously honest and moving." For more information on the Visiting Writer Series, call the OSU English Department at (541) 737-3244.

Clown Girl author Monica Drake comes to Salem

The author of the much-celebrated novel "Clown Girl," Monica Drake, will present a day-long writer's workshop at Chemeketa Community College on November 7 in Building 9 in the Writing Center, located in the library. The topic of the workshop is "Stolen Truth: Bringing your Life into Fiction." The fee is $125. To register for the workshop, and for exact meeting times, call Chemeketa Community College at (503) 365-4728 and reference CRN 38712. In addition to the workshop, Drake will also give a reading the evening of November 7 at the Blue Pepper Café on Commercial Street in downtown Salem starting at 7:30 p.m.

If you have an event that would be of interest to mid-Willamette Valley writers and readers, please contact Shannon Riggs at shannon.riggs@yahoo.com.Writer Shannon Riggs lives in Salem. Her picture book, Not in Room 204, won the 2007 Oregon Book Award for Children's Literature. Visit Shannon on the web at www.shannonriggs.com.