Get Lit! Turns 25
For its silver anniversary, Eastern’s annual literary fest brought the star power.
U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón was among the luminaries that appeared before packed venues at the 25th anniversary of EWU’s Get Lit! Festival, Washington state’s longest running literary gathering and the university’s premier literary event.
Limón, one of the nation’s most acclaimed poets — and the first writer of Mexican descent to be honored as poet laureate — appeared alongside a diverse lineup of celebrated national, regional and local authors during the four-day festival.
Audiences were treated to readings, writing workshops, craft classes, poetry slams, panel discussions, literary happy hours and more — all offered free or at a low cost.
“Get Lit helped me to see how lucky Spokane is in terms of its literary community,” says Jordan Brown, a master’s of fine arts student from Oshkosh, Wisconsin. “I hope we can keep it going for future generations… It is not something to take for granted.”
There was certainly no sign of diminished enthusiasm at this year’s fest. Limón’s master class, for example, sold out in just two days. “It really shows that people are as excited as we are for the opportunity to learn from Ada,” said author and Get Lit! Director Kate Peterson ’14, in advance of Limón’s appearance. “Clearly, lots of folks know what a rare chance they have to sit down in an intimate setting with the U.S. Poet Laureate to learn how to start a poem.”
“Get Lit helped me to see how lucky Spokane is in terms of its literary community,” says Jordan Brown, a master’s of fine arts student from Oshkosh, Wisconsin. “I hope we can keep it going for future generations… It is not something to take for granted.”
In all, some 80 authors participated in 40 Get Lit! events. As an added bonus, this year, for the first time, Eastern students were able to attend any ticketed event for free.
“I had a fabulous time,” said Liina Koivula, an EWU creative writing graduate student from Olympia. “The energy was fantastic. Everyone seemed so happy to be there. Spokane has such a vibrant literary community, and EWU is an essential part of it.”
