Raymond Carver Writing Festival comes to Clatskanie May 3

Clatskanie son, author and poet Raymond Carver once described a signal moment in his development when a stranger offered him a lens to a broader world. “I was just a pup then, but nothing can explain, or explain away, such a moment: the moment when the very thing I needed most in my life—call it a polestar—was casually, generously given to me,” wrote Carver.

“Call it a Polestar” is the theme of the 2025 Raymond Carver Writing Festival, which will be held on May 3, 2025 in multiple locations around Clatskanie. The Festival runs from 10 a.m. – 8:30 p.m. and is free to the public. The opening reception, featuring Laura Moulton (founder of Portland’s Street Books and 2025 winner of Literary Arts’ The Steward H. Holbrook Literary Legacy Award) and Martha Gies (author of the essay collection Broken Open, a finalist for the 2024 INDIES Book of the Year), will begin at 10 a.m. at the Clatskanie Cultural Center on 75 S. Nehalem St.

Daytime events include a Publishers and Writers Fair in the Clatskanie Cultural Center ballroom, a writing workshop with Gies, poetry and prose readings at various locations, and prompted, self-guided “Steal Time to Write” opportunities. Evening events include the “Call it a Polestar” poetry contest awards ceremonies and a farm-to-table festival dinner followed by an open mic poetry jam, hosted by Longview poet and retired Lower Columbia College professor Joseph Green. Festival goers are encouraged to sign up for the poetry jam.

Gies, the festival’s featured presenter, began writing as “a source of discovery and a remedy for loneliness.” She credits reading and studying with Raymond Carver with moving her to publishing stories and essays. Her work appears in many literary quarterlies, including Gettysburg Review, The MacGuffin, Notre Dame Review, Orion, The Sun, Zyzzyva, and in various anthologies. Gies has received grants and awards from PEN, Regional Arts & Culture Council, Oregon Literary Arts, Seattle Weekly and Sundance Institute. She has contributed to regional newspapers and magazines, produced the annual Traveler’s Mind workshop, and taught at Marylhurst University, Lewis and Clark, and in Antioch’s Individualized MFA program.

The Raymond Carver Writing Festival is a celebration of the immense writing talent in our region. Writers who will be reading at a variety of venues around town include Moe Bowstern (Portland, OR), Allen Braden (Tacoma, WA), Mandy Ellen (Clatskanie, OR), Holly Hughes (Chimacum, WA), Dayle Olsen (Cathlamet, WA), Armin Tolentino (Vancouver, WA), and others to be announced.

Reservations for dinner at the Clatskanie Food Hub are required and the cost is $20 per person. The dinner will include seasonal, farm-to-table food, locally-grown savory delights handcrafted by Bluebell Bakeshop and non-alcoholic beverages by The Wild Locals. Beer and wine will be available for purchase. For reservations, visit http://www.clatskaniearts.org/shop/rcwf-dinner.

Raymond Carver was born on May 25, 1938 in the brick building on Clatskanie’s North Nehalem Street which, at the time, served as Dr. James Wooden’s hospital. A mural has been created on that building in his honor. Carver died of lung cancer in 1988 at the age of 50.

The 2025 Raymond Carver Writing Festival is sponsored by the Clatskanie Arts Commission, Clatskanie Library, Clatskanie Foundation, Astoria’s The Writers Guild, Clatskanie Senior Citizens - The Castle, C.C. Stern Type Foundry, and Craft Printing House.