New Year, New Opportunities: Join Us for a Spoken Word Event on January 20th! ❄️
Discover January's fresh new releases in fiction and updated winter hours. □
Upcoming Spoken Word Event, Updated Winter Hours, & a Peak at January 2025's Most Anticipated New Releases in Fiction
Dear Friends of Imprint Bookshop,
Well, 2025 is here and well underway...rife with uncertainty and opportunities no doubt. We’re honored to be on this journey with you and trust that we are all going to look out for one another in all the ways we can. We wish to take this moment to share news of our first event of the year as well as update you with some general bookshop housekeeping. So here we go!
As a new chapter begins on the national stage, Imprint Bookshop invites you to a spoken word event offering our community a thoughtful alternative to the day’s political discourse.
Instead of focusing outward, let us turn inward and toward one another as we confront the challenges of our time with courage, creativity, and a renewed sense of our interconnection. Through poetry and prose, we will reflect on and celebrate the ties that unite us—the sense of purpose, solidarity, and resilience that can be found in our shared humanity.
Together, we’ll create a space to:
Bear witness to what's in our hearts and minds and inspire action
Foster understanding and compassion while dissolving any notions of "other"
Reaffirm our commitment to one another and the values that sustain us
We’ve called on local authors, poets, and storytellers to speak to the theme of “Solidarity and Resilience in Our Togetherness.” If you’re interested in participating as a speaker, there may still be opportunities to join—contact us soon for details. Whether these words challenge, uplift, or call us to act, we welcome all voices.
Local Voices Confirmed So Far...
Alice Derry
Alice Derry’s latest collection of poems is Asking from MoonPath Press (2022). She has five further volumes of poetry and three chapbooks. She directed the Foothills Writers Series at Peninsula College for thirty years before retirement in 2009. She currently teaches a Zoom workshop for Indigenous writers with colleague Kate Reavey. She has lived in Port Angeles since 1980.
Anna Odessa Linzer
Anna Odessa Linzer lives along the Salish Sea. Her deep connection with the Pacific Northwest is reflected in her writing. Her novel Ghost Dancing (Picador/St. Martin’s) received an American Book Award in 1999. A River Story was performed as a two-person play. Linzer received a Pacific Northwest Booksellers Award for Excellence in 1975. Her poems have been featured in galleries and museums. She has been a copyeditor for PARIS, LA; a fiction editor of Raven Chronicles; and a chair of the PEN West Literary Awards. She works on environmental issues, having founded one of the first land trusts in Washington State.
Anna Quinn
Anna Quinn is the author of two novels, The Night Child (Blackstone, 2018) listed as #1 Best Real Psychological Fiction on Goodreads, and Angeline (Blackstone 2023), a Foreword Review Winner. Quinn’s writing has appeared in Psychology Today, Brevity, New York Times Book Review, Medium, Writer’s Digest, and the Alone Together Anthology— winner of a 2021 Washington State Book Award. She lives in Port Townsend with her charming husband Peter and their delightful dog, Indie.
Faith Pray
Faith Pray (yes, that’s her name, by marriage) is an award-winning author-illustrator from Port Townsend, Washington. After a stroke left her struggling to find her writing self again, Faith set out to tell stories through art as a form of therapy, and rediscovered picture books. Faith has since written and/or illustrated seven books for children, with more in the works. Her books have earned starred reviews, award nominations, and found their way into Indie Next Picks, the New York Times, and King County Library’s Best Books of 2024. When not writing, illustrating, or wrangling four kids (twins plus two), a curious cat, and a rambunctious puppy, Faith loves to sketch at the beach, explore the woods, and of course, read all the books.
Gary Copeland Lilley
Gary Copeland Lilley is the author of eight books of poetry, the most recent being The Bushman’s Medicine Show (Lost Horse Press, 2017), and a chapbook, The Hog Killing (Blue Horse Press, 2018). He is originally from North Carolina and now lives in the Pacific Northwest. He has received the DC Commission on the Arts Fellowship for Poetry and is published in numerous anthologies and journals, including The Best American Poetry 2014, Willow Springs, The Swamp, Waxwing, Taos Journal of Poetry and Art, and African American Review. He is a Cave Canem Fellow and his new book of poems, Raven on the Moaner's Bench, will be published by Four Way Books in Fall 2025.
Kathryn Hunt
Kathryn Hunt is a poet and writer and makes her home in Port Townsend, Washington, on the coast of the Salish Sea. She is author of two poetry collections, Long Way Through Ruin and Seed Wheel and two chapbooks, The Country I Come From and She Who Walks the Earth. Her poems have appeared in the Orion, Radar, Poetry Northwest, Missouri Review, and Narrative. She’s recently completed a memoir, Nocturne, a mother-daughter tale. Kathryn has translated the work Catalan poet Maria-Mercè Marçal and is the recipient of residencies and awards from Ucross, Willapa Bay AIR, Hedgebrook, Artists Trust, and Joya AIR (Spain). She was a filmmaker earlier in her creative life. Her first film No Place Like Home premiered at the Venice Film Festival, in Italy. Take this Heart, her second film, was awarded the Anna Quindlen Award for Broadcast Journalism. She is the cofounder and curator of Poetry on the Salish Sea, a poetry series that brings poets from around the Pacific NW and beyond to the Olympic Peninsula.
Lilah Clay
Lilah Clay is a writer, editor, and poet. Her poetry has been published in nineteen literary journals including World Literature Today, Chicago Quarterly Review, with work forthcoming from Amsterdam Review and North of Oxford. She lives in the miracle, evening beach walks toward the lighthouse, and kindly tears a hole in the page for meadowlarks to rush out.
Nicole J. Persun
Nicole J. Persun is an award-winning and internationally bestselling novelist with a master’s degree in creative writing and instruction. She writes in many genres, most notably book club fiction under the pen name Jennifer Gold. She’s the author of The Ingredients of Us, Keep Me Afloat, Halfway to You, and Polite Calamities.
Robert Komishane
After nearly a half century in struggle, off & on, with severe mental-emotional disorders, [Robert] emerged into a full recovery in 2008 at the age of 63. Since then, as [he] says, [he is] “ecstatisfied with [his] life. With lots of help from many sources, and [his] own indomitable willpower, [he] fought [his] way to a life of self-determination, freedom and liberation. [His] work is to demonstrate—through [his] poetry, a memoir-in-progress, and community involvement—for others who trudge through the same mine-filled countryside as [he] did, the possibility of a triumphant denouement. To show that [his] life is proof that despite all appearances, against all odds, there is Hope.
Tess Gallagher
Tess Gallagher, the author of eleven books of poetry, lives and writes in her hometown of Port Angeles, Washington, and in her cottage in Co. Sligo, Ireland. In 2023 she received a Life Time Achievement Award for her poetry from the Foundation of Rome. She is the only American to have been so honored. Her most recent poetry collection is "Is, Is Not" which won the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Award. Gallagher participated in BIRDMAN and SHORT CUTS, films centered on the work of her late husband Raymond Carver’s stories. Her own story collection, The Man from Kinvara: Selected Stories, published in 2009, is the basis for film episodes under development. In July 2024 she was invited to read her poems at the Sligo Yeats Centre in Ireland.
Velda Thomas
Velda Thomas was born in England, UK with family ancestry sourced from Africa, the Caribbean and the America's. Velda is the founder/ owner of Stardust Press. Love of creative expression has been a constant thread running through Velda’s life. Visual, written or performance she has dabbled in it all. Blending genres to expose distinct hybrid forms of personal expression through printmaking, poetry and personal narrative.
January 20, 2025, marks only the beginning of what lies ahead. In the coming years, our collective efforts will be vital in safeguarding democratic institutions, strengthening social safety nets, and supporting the most vulnerable among us. To that end, we invite you to use the Google Form linked below to help us create a list of local civic organizations and resources dedicated to social justice and mutual aid. If we receive enough responses in time, the list will be shared at the January 20th event and/or distributed to attendees in follow-up messages.
And here's a peak at January 2025’s most anticipated new fiction...
"The Heart of Winter" by Jonathan Evison is a poignant novel that chronicles the 70-year marriage of Abe Winter and Ruth Warneke, who began as an unlikely couple brought together by a catastrophic blind date in college. Set on their farm on Bainbridge Island, Washington, the narrative oscillates between their past challenges—including personal losses and secrets—and present struggles, notably Ruth's health crisis that threatens their hard-won stability. Through this intimate portrayal, Evison explores themes of enduring love, resilience, and the intricate dynamics of a lifelong partnership.BookBrowse.com
"The Unbecoming of Margaret Wolf" by Isa Arsén is a historical novel set in the 1950s theater scene, following Margaret Wolf, a rising Shakespearean actress, and her unconventional marriage to fellow actor Wesley Shoard. Their relationship, initially a marriage of convenience to shield Wesley's sexuality during the McCarthy era, evolves amidst personal and professional challenges. The novel delves into themes of identity, mental health, and the complexities of love within the backdrop of mid-century theater culture.BookBrowse.com
"Homeseeking" by Karissa Chen is an epic historical novel that traces the lives of Suchi and Haiwen, childhood friends from Japanese-occupied Shanghai whose deep bond is severed when Haiwen enlists in the Nationalist army in 1947. Over six decades, as war, famine, and opportunity shape their separate paths through Hong Kong, Taiwan, New York, and California, they grapple with the enduring pull of home and each other. The novel explores themes of love, sacrifice, and the search for belonging within the Chinese diaspora. ABC News
"The Life of Herod the Great" is a posthumously published novel by Zora Neale Hurston that reexamines the historical figure of Herod, portraying him not as the villain depicted in the New Testament but as a complex leader who brought prosperity to Judea. Written in the 1950s as a continuation of her 1939 work "Moses, Man of the Mountain," the manuscript remained unpublished until [now]. Hurston's narrative delves into Herod's relationships with contemporaries like Cleopatra and Julius Caesar, offering a nuanced perspective on his reign and legacy. Zora Neale Hurston
"The Life Cycle of the Common Octopus" by Emma Knight is a coming-of-age novel that follows Penelope "Pen" Winters, a Canadian student at the University of Edinburgh, as she uncovers family secrets while navigating complex relationships with the enigmatic Lennox family. The narrative delves into themes of friendship, motherhood, first love, and self-discovery, set against the atmospheric backdrop of Scotland. Knight's debut has been praised for its wit, depth, and compelling portrayal of womanhood. Transatlantic Agency
"Playworld" by Adam Ross is a coming-of-age novel set in early 1980s Manhattan, following 14-year-old Griffin Hurt, a child actor on the hit TV show "The Nuclear Family." As he navigates the pressures of fame, elite high school life, and a predatory relationship with an older family friend, Griffin grapples with the complexities of adolescence amid a backdrop of familial disintegration and societal excess. Ross immerses readers in a richly detailed narrative that explores themes of identity, exploitation, and the blurred lines between youth and adulthood. BookBrowse.com
"Mother of Rome" by Lauren J.A. Bear is a reimagined tale of Rhea Silvia, mother of Romulus and Remus, the legendary founders of Rome. After a coup dethrones her father, Rhea is forced into the Vestal Virgins to prevent her from bearing heirs but becomes pregnant by the god Mars. Facing societal condemnation, she makes a perilous pact with the divine to protect her sons and reclaim their rightful legacy. Lauren J.A. Bear
"All the Water in the World" by Eiren Caffall is a post-apocalyptic novel set in a flooded future where 13-year-old Nonie and her family reside atop New York's American Museum of Natural History. After a catastrophic hypercane forces them to flee, they journey north along the Hudson River, encountering diverse and often perilous communities adapting to the new reality. The narrative explores themes of survival, family bonds, and the preservation of knowledge in a world transformed by climate change. BookBrowse.com
"I'll Come to You" by Rebecca Kauffman is a novel that chronicles the intersecting lives of an extended family over the course of 1995, anchored by the anticipation and arrival of a child. The narrative explores overlapping stories, including a couple struggling with infertility, a woman whose husband of forty years has left her, and a family in denial about a looming health crisis. Kauffman delves into themes of intimacy, memory, loss, and reconciliation, offering a poignant portrayal of family dynamics and personal challenges. BookBrowse.com
"Mothers and Sons" by Adam Haslett is a novel that delves into the strained relationship between Peter Fischer, a 40-year-old asylum lawyer in New York City, and his estranged mother, Ann, who runs a women's retreat center in Vermont. As Peter takes on the asylum case of a young gay man, he is compelled to confront a traumatic event from his past that has kept him and his mother apart for decades. The narrative explores themes of family, forgiveness, and the enduring impact of unresolved secrets. BookBrowse.com
"A Sea of Unspoken Things" by Adrienne Young follows James Golden as she returns to her secluded hometown of Six Rivers, California, after the sudden death of her twin brother, Johnny. Possessing an almost supernatural bond, James could feel Johnny's emotions, a connection that persists even after his passing. As she delves into the mysteries surrounding his death, James confronts buried secrets and rekindles relationships, notably with Micah, the only man she ever loved, ultimately deciding which truths should come to light and which are better left hidden. PenguinRandomhouse.com
"Onyx Storm" is the third installment in Rebecca Yarros's Empyrean series, following Violet Sorrengail's journey after nearly eighteen months at Basgiath War College. With the onset of war, Violet must venture beyond the protective wards of Aretia to seek alliances, confronting external adversaries and internal betrayals. As she uncovers hidden truths, Violet faces challenges that test her resolve, relationships, and the very future of her homeland. Goodreads
Thank you for being part of the Imprint Bookshop community and for welcoming us so warmly into your lives onto your book shelves. As we step into a year that holds its share of unknowns, we are reminded of the strength and resilience we may find in sharing stories and spaces with each other. We look forward to gathering with (some of) you on January 20th (and throughout the years ahead) as we aspire to foster connection and community within our sweet little gem of a bookshop.
