litquake: meet the greenhouse effect

For the past two months, Quiet Lightning has presented, in conjunction with and on location at the San Francisco Conservatory of Flowers, The Greenhouse Effect: a summer reading series in three distinct shows. This has marked the first-ever series for both organizations and culminates on Monday, October 10 as part of the Litquake literary festival. Catch up (or relive the experience) with videos, thoughts, and photos of each reading: here for August, and here for September.

We have a show in store for you so fabulous and so enchanting that we refuse to strangle it into a pithy paragraph! Check it:

• We are thrilled to announce the winner of our Golden Ticket: Chris Peck outpecked the compecktition—and steep it was! We received over 50 submissions for this one remaining spot in our show, and it was extremely difficult choosing one out of a dozen serious contenders. In the end, though, Peck’s submission went best with the rest of our show. We can’t wait for you to see how. See the whole roster—and find out more about each author—here.
• You can pre-order a beautiful perfectbound copy of the 20th issue of sparkle & blink (!)—the entire show, with original artwork by Zack INK Bowen. Let’s pause to appreciate the cover of this book:

• The Conservatory of Flowers is located at 100 John F. Kennedy Drive in Golden Gate Park. This show will be a suggested $5, but absolutely no one will be turned away for lack of funds. [Click here for directions]
• Doors will open at 6pm so you can tour and hang out in the Conservatory. If you haven’t been, this is a great opportunity to smell what it’s like to be part of a symbiotic community of flourishing organisms. And how! The show will begin promptly at 7:30 pm and will run until 9pm.
• Comrades Brewery will return with their wonderful microbrews—each of which has its own story!
• Sign up for a mini-photo shoot with photographer Julie Michelle inside the breathtaking COF before the readings begin! There will be four 15-minute windows, with 5 3-minute shoots each. If you’d like to sign up, email Julie [iliveheresf@gmail.com]. She has graciously volunteered that all donations be accepted to support Quiet Lightning, and if you’re not yet familiar with Julie or her work, you should know that this is an opportunity not to be missed.*
• To help with decorations, we’ve enlisted Jonathan Siegel to set up a micro-version of Viracocha in the Conservatory’s event tent!
• Finally, we would like to ask for your help! If you’ve had a good experience with Quiet Lightning in the past, or have a favorite story—personal or otherwise—regarding an experience with QL, we would very much appreciate you nominating us for your favorite San Francisco charity. The deadline is, coincidentally, the date of our show: October 10, and with your help we think we have a good shot at some money to help us further our mission of establishing the widest and strongest possible literary community in the SF/Bay Area. We’re also building our case statement now, so should you choose to nominate us with any additional words and care to share them we would be much obliged! [Send here]

*Julie is the creator of the ongoing portrait + storytelling project I Live Here: SF (iliveheresf.com), an open invitation to all San Francisco residents to tell their respective stories against the backdrop of their city. A curated selection of I Live Here: SF is currently on view in San Francisco City Hall (!), and Julie’s work has been seen in the San Francisco Chronicle, SF Weekly, San Francisco Magazine, the San Francisco Bay Guardian, SHOTS Magazine, The Urbanist, SFist.com, and 7×7.com, and has appeared in juried shows in Los Angeles, Vermont, Minneapolis, and New Orleans. View her photography portfolio at juliemichellephotography.com, shoot us a comment below, and Julie will shoot you!

Thank you all very much for your continued support. We cannot wait to see you on Oct 10!