BookSwell is proud to support the Los Feliz Writers Festival, a free, neighborhood-built celebration of local writers returning for its second year, August 19–23, 2026. Thirteen free events, twenty volunteers, and one clear idea: that a writing community can be inclusive, human, and rooted right where you live. We asked co-director Sammy Ginsberg a few questions about how it all comes together. (See the full schedule and RSVP →)
Is there a conversation you’re hoping the festival starts, or continues?
Ooooh this is a good question! The answer is yes!! I’m hoping to talk about how we can make the writing community inclusive, human, and grounded in the neighborhood! Many MFA programs and the writing industry are based in NYC or ask writers to leave their communities and either move or drive to institutions to teach writers, workshop their writing, and participate in the writing community.
This festival is asking:
- Who are the writers who live in your neighborhood?
- What do they write about?
- What can you learn from them?
- How can you be in community with them especially when they are different from you?
- What is the role of the neighborhood council and council district representative in this work given the role that writing plays in upholding democracy, teaching values, and accessing our education system — you can’t graduate high school without being able to write!
- What does it mean to be human in the 21st century (the humanities!!) and how can we design a culture and city around that as well as create and maintain policies that protect our humanity?
The festival grew out of a communal writing practice. How does that shape the mission and programming?
Writing every week together (now twice a week!) affects our programming deeply. Most of the writers who are performing or facilitating writing workshops at the festival I met and got to know because I host the Shut Up and Write every week! Our communal writing practice isn’t about giving feedback. It’s about meeting every week to eat dinner (if you want — which I always do!), focus on whatever you want to focus on for one hour, share community updates (by word of mouth! Like the old days!!), and hang out (if you want! You can also leave!)
Since this happens every week, there is no urgency to get someone’s number or you’ll never see them again! Just come back next week.
This has allowed our relationships to develop slowly, as well as to create a communal third space. We are working to move community organizing from individuals and private corporations that can disappear if you stop paying or a single person burns out — and to find out who are the people who need what you need and to create infrastructure that can be maintained for generations (we’re dreaming but also why not! Central Library just turned 100!).
This means we can get to know each other as humans who love writing rather than writers who are competing for attention, awards, and publishing opportunities!
My favorite thing about writing (unlike other artforms!) is that most writers peak in their 50s and onward! It takes decades of work and reflection to create something that can speak to generations for centuries!! One of my favorite writers Dr. Edith Eger published her first book The Choice at 89, and was a New York Times Bestseller!
In addition, we created a public planning committee meeting for the festival that has met twice after our Shut Up and Write where we share updates and ask for feedback.
This festival is for our community and led by our community. And anyone who lives, works, or plays in Los Feliz is welcome to be part of it! By showing up and becoming a regular!
What do you want Angelenos from other neighborhoods to know?
I want Angelenos from other neighborhoods to know that given the commuter culture of Los Angeles, they too are part of our neighborhood and we are so excited to write alongside them and learn about their writing! At the same time, I would be so excited if you left this festival inspired and empowered to set up your own festival, Poet Laureate, and weekly writing group in your neighborhood — and would love to attend your festival and learn about the writers who live in your neighborhood! When I lived in the UK (I was there for seven years!!) I spent my weekends volunteering at wee literary festivals all over the UK! From Bradford to Teignmouth to Tamworth, I was there and it was magical!! Teignmouth has 15,000 people living in it! Los Feliz has 40,000! What is the population of your neighborhood?!
What’s different this year, the second time around?
Last year, the festival was two volunteers (Dawn Socha and I!) and 6 events. This year is 20 volunteers and 13 events!!! We kept our Voices of Los Feliz Celebration (hosted by the Voice of Los Feliz Phil Leirness) and made it even more special by publishing a neighborhood zine with the theme Radically Human paid for by a grant from the Los Feliz Neighborhood Council and printed at our local print shop Copy Cat featuring 37 writers who live and commune in Los Feliz!!!! Check out our zine here! All the other events are new!!
About Sammy
Sammy Ginsberg is third-generation Angeleno and dual citizen with the UK who loves writing, believes in the transformational power of the word (a word after a word after a word is power — Margaret Atwood), and would love to write alongside you! Follow her at @literarypixie.
The Los Feliz Writers Festival runs August 19–23, 2026. All events are free. See the full schedule and RSVP → Follow @losfelizwriters.
