Read Write Austin: road trip reflections, classics reimagined, spelling glory, and an audiobook hike

Monday, 6.15 — Sunday, 6.21

Jun 14, 2026

Welcome to Read Write Austin – The Email.

Read Write Austin began on Instagram in 2022 as a means of highlighting the many pockets of Austin’s literary scene. From bookstore launches and author talks to open mics and reader meetups, there were (and still are) near-daily happenings for the lit-minded among us. In 2024, things moved in an offline direction toward producing live programming for writers and readers. The need, however, for a simple reference point for local literary activities remained.

Read Write Austin - The Email - offers the same edit of events as the original @readwriteaustin, but now the dates and details are in your inbox. Sent at the start of the week, it gives a snapshot of literary happenings in the days ahead.

David Hockney, A Bigger Splash (1967), Tate

READ…

On Monday night, NYC-based author (and UT graduate) Mary H.K. Choi returns to Austin to celebrate the release of her newest book, Pool House. Set in LA, it explores complex family relationships (read: mother/daughter) and the confusing world of celebrity. While Choi’s first three novels — Emergency Contact (2018), Permanent Record (2019), and Yolk (2021) — fall into the ‘young adult’ (YA) category, Pool House is her adult debut. She will be in conversation with Shea Serrano.

Monday, June 15 | 7pm at BookPeople

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Looking for some (possibly) spicy competition on a hot Austin Saturday afternoon? This one is for the word nerds. In tune with our collective yearning for nostalgia, spelling bees are having their moment and First Light is getting in on the action. The bookstore will be hosting their inaugural adult spelling bee featuring 36 spellers from the community vying for glory. Come early to snag a seat and a Bad Larry Burger at 3. Bee starts at 4.

Saturday, June 20 | 4pm at First Light Books

AUSTIN…

Texas Book Festival & Texas Monthly are teaming up this month for a special in-person edition of The Texas Book Club, their new(ish) book club celebrating Texas stories and Texas authors. The conversation brings together Bret Anthony Johnston, both an acclaimed author and current director of UT’s Michener Center for Writers, and Texas Monthly Editor-in-Chief Ross McCammon to discuss Johnston’s 2024 novel, We Burn Daylight.

Tuesday, June 16 | 6pm at The Frances Modern Inn

This week features a few opportunities to gather and get to know other curious readers (and writers) in town. From book clubs and an audiobook hike to summertime socials and a writing group at the library, check out a new pocket of community in the coming days. And if you’re in the mood to travel and looking for a conversation among friends, don’t miss Tuesday’s book launch for Monster of a Land, Lauren Hough’s new road trip-fueled look at America.

Aspiring writers: note the June 15 deadline for American Short Fiction’s Halifax Ranch Fiction Prize. Did you know the magazine is based in Austin?