The Wahkiakum County Eagle - Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891

On Tuesday, Liz Prato will speak at WordFest in her different roles as short story writer, essayist and editor whose work has been published in numerous literary journals, and as an influential figure in the Portland literary community. She will be reading from her short story collection, Baby’s on Fire, and talk about her interest in short form fiction.

Prato also reviews manuscript submissions for Forest Avenue Press in Portland. She will discuss what she looks for in submissions and take questions from the audience about submitting one’s work for publication.

Prato was featured in a recent Book Chat interview, currently airing on KLTV. You can also see the interview here: http://alan-rose.com/bookchat/april-2016-a-chat-with-short-story-writer-and-editor-liz-prato/

Retired Lower Columbia College instructor Yvette O’Neill Raynham will read from Forty Years on the Road: My Life as a Safari Driver in Kenya, by Peter Mbulo. She and her husband Michael Raynham met Mbulo in Nairobi in 2012, visiting cultural sites and going on safari with him, and then again in 2014.

“Peter has been a safari driver for 40 years and is a great story teller,” she said. “We encouraged him to write his memoirs which, in addition to accounts of adventures in the bush, reflect the history of Kenya from the last days of British rule and the struggle for Independence up to the present.”

Mbulo also writes of the effects of climate change and development on Kenya’s animal populations, the problems and benefits of globalization, and the efforts to maintain the cultural heritage of the country.

Susan Taylor will read from a novel she is writing entitled Heads Do Roll, a “light-hearted murder mystery” based on her experience as a federal whistle-blower. Susan worked with Erin Brockovich when organizing protests in six southern California cities where Susan exposed flood control projects as payback for congressional donations and related contamination of local wells.

There will be an open mic period following the presentations.

A monthly gathering of readers and writers, WordFest meets the second Tuesday of each month, 6-8 p.m., at Cassava, 1333 Broadway in Longview. The events are free and open to the public.