As “San Francisco’s literary festival,” Litquake’s diverse live programs aim to inspire critical engagement with the key issues of the day, celebrate literature’s shared humanity by connecting readers from all walks of life, and foster a sense of literary community by providing a vibrant forum for Bay Area writing. Because we believe in literature as a public good, we work to produce events that are accessible to all, with the majority of our programs offered at low or no cost.

Originally hatched over beers at the Edinburgh Castle pub in 1999, Litstock debuted as a free one-day reading series in a fog-bound Golden Gate Park. In 2002, the festival was rechristened Litquake, and began expanding its programming to include all elements of the Bay Area literary scene. Now the largest independent literary festival on the West Coast, Litquake continues its mission as a two-week literary spectacle for book lovers, complete with cutting-edge conversations, unique cross-media events, and hundreds of live readings. 

Whether it’s poets reciting in a cathedral, authors discussing science vs. religion in a library, or novelists reading in a beekeeping supply store, the goal remains the same: whet a broad range of literary appetites, present thought-provoking fare across both traditional and unlikely venues, and always keep it vivid, real, and entertaining.

You can learn more about Litquake’s history, annual October festival, and other year-round programming at litquake.org.