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Seattle Arts and Lectures presents Connie Chung at Town Hall Seattle in Seattle, Washington, on Tuesday, September 24, 2024.

It’s the 30th anniversary of Writers in the Schools (WITS)!

For the past 30 years, WITS has matched professional local writers with K-12 public schools to support young people as they discover and develop their authentic writing voices. Since our founding in 1994, WITS has inspired over 150,000 students. This year, we will serve 6,000 students at 39 sites in six school districts!

What’s next?  We’re centering students who have the least access to arts engagement opportunities through our WITS Rewritten initiative. Learn more about how you can get involved.

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Upcoming SAL Events

A Conversation with R.F. Kuang Image

A Conversation with R.F. Kuang

Friday, September 12, 2025

SAL Presents

Dante’s Inferno meets Susanna Clarke’s Piranesi in this all-new dark academia fantasy from R. F.

Bill McKibben Image

Bill McKibben

Tuesday, September 16, 2025

SAL Presents

From the acclaimed environmentalist comes a call to harness solar power and rewrite our scientific, economic, and political future.

A Conversation with Arundhati Roy Image

A Conversation with Arundhati Roy

Thursday, September 18, 2025

Literary Arts

A raw and deeply moving memoir from the legendary author of The God of Small Things and The Ministry of Utmost Happiness, Mother Mary Comes to Me traces the complex relationship between Arundhati Roy and her mother, Mary, a fierce and formidable force who shaped Roy’s life both as a woman and a writer. Tickets with “& Book” include a copy of Mother Mary Comes to Me, shipped to your door by our bookstore partner Elliott Bay Book Company. Q&A with Shahina Piyarali.

Jill Lepore Image

Jill Lepore

Friday, September 26, 2025

Encore

From the best-selling author of These Truths comes We the People, a stunning new history of the U.S. Constitution, for a troubling new era.

WITS Back-to-School Luncheon Image

WITS Back-to-School Luncheon

Friday, October 17, 2025

Fundraisers

Come hear firsthand from and be inspired by students, educators, and WITS writers-in-residence as they speak to the importance of youth arts education. Funds raised from the luncheon supports SAL’s Writers in the Schools (WITS) program as well as SAL’s mission of cultivating spaces of creative expression for the next generation of writers and readers. WITS is a youth program of Seattle Arts & Lectures that connects professional, Seattle-based writers with K-12 public school classrooms to elevate and amplify the voices of over 6,000 students throughout the region. *

A Conversation with Elizabeth Gilbert Image

A Conversation with Elizabeth Gilbert

Monday, October 20, 2025

Colleen Echohawk Presents

In her first nonfiction book in a decade, #1 bestselling writer Elizabeth Gilbert who taught millions of readers to live authentically (Eat Pray Love) and creatively (Big Magic) shows how to break free, joining Community Curated Series director Colleen Echohawk in conversation.

Seattle Arts & Lectures cultivates transformative experiences through story and language with readers and writers of all generations.

Community

Summer Book Bingo

Summer Book Bingo 2025 has launched! Every summer, we partner with The Seattle Public Library and King County Library System to create a Summer Book Bingo card as part of our free summer reading program. Adults, teens, and kids play along from May – September to be entered in a chance to win fabulous prizes.

Gift Cards

Give the gift of SAL! If you’re looking for a literary-themed gift for loved ones near and far, SAL’s digital gift cards are on sale now for in-person and streaming events.