Get Lit! 2020 will be held April 16th-19th!
The Get Lit! Festival began in 1998 as a one-day marathon of literary readings sponsored by Eastern Washington University Press and EWU’s Department of Creative Writing. Then The Spokesman-Review lovingly called it “the little literary festival that could,” and they were right. By 2004, the audience had swelled to 10,000 people from Spokane and the surrounding region. More recently, The Spokesman-Review referred to the festival as the literary equivalent to Spokane’s nationally recognized sporting events, Hoopfest and Bloomsday.
Our four-day celebration of reading and writing offers events for literature lovers of all ages, including:
- readings and lectures
- interviews
- workshops
- panel discussions
- poetry slams for children, teens, and college students
- writing contests
- book signings
- visits by festival authors to local K-12 schools and colleges
Our definition of storytelling also allows us to include:
- graphic novels, playwriting, screenwriting, songwriting, blogging, and spoken-word poetry
- events combined with radio, music, film, and theater performances
- community readings and storytelling events by writers of all ages
Housed within Eastern Washington University’s College of Arts, Letters, and Education, and partially supported by the English Language Institute at EWU, the Get Lit! Festival continues to grow. Each year, we partner with local institutions such as Gonzaga University, Spokane Community College, Spokane Falls Community College, North Idaho College, and Whitworth University; as well as community organizations and businesses to bring over 40 authors to each festival.
Past festivals have featured authors such as Kurt Vonnegut, Jane Smiley, Richard Russo, Salman Rushdie, Rita Dove, and Sarah Vowell. We also spotlight regional talent from Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana such as Sherman Alexie, Dorianne Laux, Tim Egan, Sallie Tisdale, and Jess Walter. Over the past decade, the Get Lit! Festival has been praised consistently as “one of the best festivals I’ve ever been to” by authors and audiences alike.
The Get Lit! Festival seeks above all to foster a love of reading and writing, and to celebrate the world of literature among all people in our community. We hope that each year more will join with us to embrace the power and magic of words.