April 5, 2025 - 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM

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07

Hour(s)

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14

Minute(s)

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43

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Coronado Public Library

 

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Keynote Speakers

TEMBI LOCKE is a New York Times best-selling author, TV producer, actor, and screenwriter. Tembi served as co-creator and executive producer for the adaptation of her Reese’s Book Club pick memoir, From Scratch, for Netflix.

ED BEGLEY JR. The multiple Emmy-nominated actor with hundreds of screen and stage credits talks about finding his way, lessons learned, and taking public transit to the Academy Awards.

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN Winner of 34 Emmys and 14 Edward R. Murrow awards for investigative reporting, Hank has also written sixteen psychological thrillers and won prestigious mystery awards, including Agathas, Anthonys, Macavitys, and a Mary Higgins Clark.

Johnathan Maberry

Willie Parker

Matthew Quirk

Rachel Howzell Hall

Matt de la Peña

Vanessa Walters

Dawn Tripp

Laura Cathcart Robbins

photo by: Scott Slaughter

Joe Ide

photo by: Kaori Suzuki

Johnathan Maberry

Willie Parker

Matthew Quirk

Rachel Howzell Hall

Matt de la Peña

Vanessa Walters

2025 Festival Sponsors

What You Will Find at the Festival and Easter Egg

Dear book lover, storyteller, creator, writer, or secret dreamer, What will you find at this year’s festival?  You may have seen the phrase—over 100 speakers, 50 stellar events, one day—or heard about inspiring entertainment, including The Naruwan Taiko Drummers, DJ...
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Hope, Humor, and the Power of Words: a Conversation with 2024 Poetry Collection of the Year winner, Jane Muschenetz

Interview by Diane Gottlieb   Diane: ​Congratulations on your wonderful book “All the Bad Girls Wear Russian Accents” and on your winning the 2024 San Diego Writer’s Festival Poetry Collection of the Year! You’re a woman of several countries and languages. In the...
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The Five Steps of Writing-With-Nature Julie Brams, LMFT

As an Earth-centered psychotherapist, writer, and Nature lover, I’m often asked about writing in nature. It occurred to me that this question is another perfect opportunity to shift our thinking about our relationship with the other beings we refer to as nature. Many...
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CREATING A DIGITAL AUTHOR PRESS KIT: Five Things To Know by Laura Segal Stegman

We authors have it tough, don’t we? Challenges range from writers block to rejections, and there’s always something to, well, write. So when some “expert” recommends putting together a digital author press kit, many of us tune out. That’s a mistake. The media is drawn...
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Experience All the San Diego Writers Festival Offers!

This year's San Diego Writers Festival has more performances and experiential events than ever! You’ll find inspiration at every turn, from electrifying performances to interactive workshops. The opening ceremony kicks off with festival favorites—an exhilarating...
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Listen to The Premise Podcast

Tommy Orange – Beyond the Pages: Exploring Identity and Inheritance

In this episode, Jeniffer sits down at Warwick's Books with Pulitzer Prize Finalist, Tommy Orange. He is the author of There There, and most recently, Wandering Stars. Tommy is an enrolled member of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma and writes about the...
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Belo Cipriani – Oleb Books – Digital Inclusion Strategist, Author, and Teacher

In this first episode of the fifth season Jeniffer and Chad welcome Belo Cipriani for his second interview with them. This episode was timed to air on Global Accessibility Awareness Day because Belo is not only an author and advocate but a digital inclusion...
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Alice Hoffman – Author – The Invisible Hour

Jeniffer is joined via Warwick’s Books by prolific writer Alice Hoffman. Hoffman is most known for her book, Practical Magic, which was made into a film of the same name. The Invisible Hour is her latest novel and she talks about how it came about. You’ll learn how...
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Smith Publicity

The guests so nice, we had them twice! Because their last episode was one of our most listened to, Dan and Sandy from Smith Publicity are back. They share inside information on the publishing world and discuss the new tools and processes that have come about in the...
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Sophie Mackintosh – Author – Cursed Bread

Sophie Mackintosh’s debut novel, The Water Cure, was nominated for the 2018 Man Booker Prize. Now, her latest novel, Cursed Bread, inspired by a mass poisoning that actually happened, has been nominated for the Women’s Prize for Fiction. She’s a writer who uses...
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Shelby Stanger – Journalist, Speaker, Podcaster, Adventurer TEDxSanDiego Speaker

Shelby Stanger is another podcaster, author, and big adventurer. Truly. She adventures for a living pretty much. And she inspires others to find their own adventure through her journalism, podcasting, and now her book! Will to Wild was just released on June 6th and...
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KishaLynn Moore Elliott – Author – TEDx speaker

Words are KishaLynn Elliot’s superpower. She uses that superpower to tell stories, educate, and inspire. She’s an author, speaker and Vice President of Operations and Evaluation at The Monarch School. She’s also a 2023 TEDx San Diego speaker on Education. She talks...
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Jesse Leon – Author TEDx Speaker

Jesse Leon is a San Diegan, TED X speaker, Harvard graduate, consultant and survivor. Jeniffer speaks to him about his memoir, I’m Not Broken, and the story of his past that it covers. Jesse is the embodiment of resilience and living proof that you can come out on the...
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Gina Simmons Schneider, Ph.D. – Author – Frazzlebrain

Gina Simmons Schneider, PhD, is a Psychotherapist and expert in coping skills. And she used this expertise to write a book about dealing with the common anxieties and stressors we all face in the modern world. Listen to her speak with Jeniffer and Chad...
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Cecile Pin – Author – Wandering Souls

This episode comes to you via Warwick’s Books. Jeniffer speaks with the author of Wandering Souls, Cecile Pin. Her much praised debut novel was longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction 2023, and she’s been compared to Joan Didion by Kirkus Review. Wandering Souls...
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Words. Stories. Community.

San Diego Celebrates Storytelling 

Thank you San Diego!

We are so proud of what we have built together. We could not have accomplished all that we have without you! In 2019, our inaugural year brought out more than 1,200 people (live and in person); 2020 marked our first virtual event and was a huge success with more then 6,000 people checking in to join the fun across all four days! 2021, also virtual, brought in more than 10,000 viewers. On October 08, 2022 we were back in person at the Coronado Public Library and we are pleased to announce that more than 2,500 people came out to enjoy the festivities. 

Storytelling matters! Your story matters, which is why all of our events are FREE and open to the public. If you have joined us in previous years, you are now part of our storytelling family.

Be sure to get on our mailing list too—scroll up to sign up for future events, giveaways, and updates! 

The San Diego Writers Festival Uniting San Diego—One Story at A Time