Literary delight: Susi Q’s Evening with an Author offers opportunity to hear from top-ranked writers in intimate conversations
By THERESA KEEGAN
This story is a part of our Arts section. For more arts stories as well as our arts calendars, visit www.stunewslaguna.com/arts.
For the past three years, on selected nights, the main room at the Susi Q has been transformed into a modern-day literary salon as the popular Evening with an Author event offers a community conversation with a distinguished writer. The magic continues on October 15, when best-selling author Bruce Holsinger comes to town.
“We have nationally recognized, top-draw authors from Southern California,” said Marrie Stone, who moderates the evenings, as well as sits on the committee to select the authors. The invited guests have impressive credentials. They include a Guggenheim Fellow, a Kirkus Prize winner, an Edgar Award recipient, New York Times bestselling authors, and numerous authors who have had their work selected for coveted book club recognitions, including Read with Jenna, Barnes & Noble and Oprah.
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Photos by Jeff Rovner
The popular Evening with an Author program moderated by Marrie Stone (right) often sells out. The inaugural event with author Susan Straight (left) offered insights into the author’s experiences in Southern California, the setting for much of her writing.
The series started in 2023, manifesting a concept envisioned by Nadia Babayi, executive director of the Susi Q and Lynette Brasfield, who was then marketing director at the Susi Q.
“Literary gatherings provide a platform for dialogue and opportunities for thoughtful conversations,” said Babayi. “The Evening with an Author series has created a social space for people to connect over shared interests.”
To get the program running, Babayi and Brasfield tapped into the expertise of writer Amy Dechary, who is very active with local literary endeavors and former president of Third Street Writers, and Stone, who has a long history in the literary world. She has been producing the weekly Writers on Writing show with Barbara DeMarco-Barrett for the past 18 years.
“Books are my life,” said Stone. “I always wanted to be a writer.” When the economic viability of that profession became evident, she detoured into law school and pursued corporate law for a few torturous years. The appeal of the written word proved more powerful, and she started taking writing courses. Along the way she crossed paths with DeMarco-Barrett who ultimately suggested Stone may be interested in co-hosting the Writers on Writing program, which was then a radio show broadcast from UCI.
“I immediately fell in love with that,” said Stone. “I would be having these intimate conversations on the radio with authors and people would open up in private ways.”
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The Evening with an Author committee works diligently behind the scenes to schedule writers who have broad appeal. Some members of the committee are seen with guest speaker Susan Straight (center). (L-R) Amy Dechary, Marrie Stone, Strait, Lynette Brasfield and Nadia Babayi.
Stone’s sophisticated interview technique came to the attention of many, including Literary Orange organizers, where she became a coveted moderator for the day-long event. (The popular annual program shuttered during COVID.)
Her podcast connections have proven valuable for Evening with an Author, which hosts three writers a year. Authors are more receptive to attending public events knowing they’ll be talking with an understanding and wise moderator.
“Fiction is a wormhole into other people’s experiences. It’s impossible to read a novel and not come away changed,” said Stone. “I’m very curious and I feel I’m not judgmental of people. I’m hungry to hear their stories and I’m not shocked by anything. These authors are well-known and they’re ready for any audience questions and where the conversation goes.”
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Best-selling author Lisa See (right) came to Laguna Beach as a speaker for the Evening with an Author program in its inaugural year, 2023. Marrie Stone (left) moderates the events.
The result is the Evening with an Author events are like listening to two friends sharing a private talk with the public.
“Marrie does an amazing job throughout each program,” said Dechary. “The authors reveal not just their processes, but also what motivates them, their goals and sometimes even their fears.”
Stone is thrilled to offer such a program in Laguna Beach, her hometown. To accommodate people’s preferences there is tiered ticketing, for people who want to buy the book, or those who just want to hear the author speak. Each event begins with robust appetizers and beverages before the talk begins.
“Laguna is such an arts colony,” Stone said. “But the big missing element is the literary arts.” Organizers at the Susi Q are determined to fill that void.
“By hosting literary events, we at the Susi Q are broadening our cultural offerings,” said Babayi. “Sponsoring cultural programs has positioned the Susi Q as a leader committed to the educational and social well-being of Laguna Beach residents.”
Holsinger will be the last author for the 2025 program, and plans are underway for 2026. Lin Beers, from Laguna Beach Books recently joined organizers. When she discovered Holsinger would be attending talks in Los Angeles and San Diego, she realized he’d be driving past Laguna Beach, and the group was able to secure him for the October event.
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The Evening with an Author program strives to offer a variety of writers. Steven Rowley (right) author of the funny Guncle books has had his work selected as a Reading with Jenna pick. He was the most recent guest writer at the Susi Q program.
His latest book, Culpability, is a thought-provoking novel that deals with implications from the use of Artificial Intelligence.
“It’s about culpability and responsibility in the age of machines,” said Stone. “About how AI can transform our ethical code.”
Not all authors in the program address important societal problems, others are humorous and some reflective, but all have one thing in common – they are talented writers who make people think.
“I hope the scope and range of the writers we bring in broadens the perspective of the audience,” said Stone. “That’s what the novel can do. People are hungry for that experience.”
For more information and tickets to the Evening with an Author event on October 15, go here to visit the Susi Q website.
Featured speakers in the Evening with an Author program include:
2023:
Susan Straight, Mecca
Janelle Brown, I’ll Be You
Lisa See, Lady Tan’s Circle of Women
2024:
Hector Tobar, Our Migrant Souls
Michelle Huneven, Search
Jonathen Lethem, Brooklyn Crime Novel
2025:
Naomi Hirahara, Clark & Division
Steven Rowley, Guncle
Bruce Holsinger, Culpability
This story is a part of our Arts section. For more arts stories as well as our arts calendars, visit www.stunewslaguna.com/arts.
