Author appearances, poetry and spoken word events in London this week
Thursday 18 July
Christopher Fowler is at Foyles chatting about his new thriller Plastic with Chocolat author Joanne Harris (6.30pm, £5 / £3).
Hear readings from Arachne books Stations, London Lies, Lovers’ Lies and new titles Weird Lies and Mosaic of Air at Clapham Books (7pm, free).
One of Granta’s Best Young British novelists, Naomi Alderman, and Viv Groksop join Scott Pack and Marie Phillips for the Firestation Book Swap (7.45pm, £5 or free with homemade cake).
Colin Babb reads from his book about West Indies Cricket at Herne Hill Books (7pm, free).
Woolfson & Tay has a day of writers in residence (from 2pm) plus an evening reading, with Femi Martin, Spread the Word and MAP Poetry (6.30pm, £5).
Anjan Saha and Jason Barnett host London Literature Lounge at the Poetry Cafe with guests Miriam Nash, Sundra Lawrence and Phil Lawder (8pm, £6 / £5).
Chris McCabe, Chrissy Williams and Pascal O’Loughlin read at the Enemies project at the Hardy Tree Gallery (7.30pm, free).
James Heneage talks about the last years of the Byzantine Empire at Waterstones Kings Road (7pm, £5 / £3).
Friday 19 July
John Hegley and Isy Suttie are among the guests at Invisible Dot’s spoken word night Stories (7.45pm, £8).
There’s performance poetry from Paul Chandler at the Poetry Cafe (8pm).
Saturday 20 July
Help create a poetic map of London in the Clore Ballroom at the Southbank Centre all weekend.
Nihat Tsolak hosts a night of Sufi poetry and music at the Poetry Cafe (7.30pm, £10 / £8).
Waterstones Trafalgar Square has an all-day relaunch party with Pimms and cake (from 11am).
The Enemies project at the Hardy Tree Gallery closes with a night of performance, poetry and artworks from Tom Jenks, Claire Potter, Patrick Coyle, Tamarin Norwood and others (7.30pm, free).
Enjoy a night of jazz poetry with Tony Rhone, Carol Grimes, Dorian Ford, Tim Cumming and Colin Russell at the MAP Studio Cafe (8pm, £7).
David Charnick is reading from his self-published book of stories, Death and the City, at the Sun Inn, Bethnal Green Road (2.30pm).
Monday 22 July
Santa Montefiore launches her novel The Secrets of the Lighthouse at Waterstones Kensington (7pm).
Head to the Poetry Cafe for The Lanes Also Remember with Tris Cooke (7.30pm).
Tuesday 23 July
Witz author Joshua Cohen is talking about attention with Brian Dillion at the London Review Bookshop (7pm, £7).
Hear Tom Vater reading from The Cambodian Book of the Dead at the Big Green Bookshop (6pm, free).
Judith Mackrell is talking about six ‘flapper’ women, including Zelda Fitzgerald and Josephine Baker, at Waterstones Kensington (7pm, £5).
Viv Groksop talks about doing 100 comedy gigs in 100 nights, at Stoke Newington Bookshop (6.30pm, £2.50).
Charlie Brotherstone of agents AM Heath is at London Writers’ Club Live (7pm, £15 / £20).
Niall O’Sullivan hosts the Poetry Cafe‘s open mic night Poetry Unplugged (7.30pm, £5 / £4).
Wednesday 24 July
If you missed her at Kensington, Judith Mackrell discusses flappers with Sarah Churchwell at Daunt Books Marylebone (7pm, £8).
Joelle Taylor hosts get-up-and-do-it spoken word night Jawdance at Rich Mix, with Rik the Most, Hannah Chutzpah and Yvonne Eba (7.30pm, free).
Frog Morris, Paul Taylor, Sophia Buchuck, Yolanda Mercy, Mizz Lee and Mars Willis spend an evening of poetry, performance and book swapping at Woolfson & Tay (7pm, £3).
Poetry Review launches its new issue at Keats House with guest editor Patrick McGuinness, Gilles Ortlieb, David Wheatley, Kathryn Simmonds, Sam Willetts and Jimmy Symonds (7pm, free).
The Poetry Cafe hosts a mash-up of Hitchcock clips and poetry (6.30pm).
Book ahead
The one and only Margaret Atwood is coming to the Southbank Centre on 27 August and there are a few tickets left last time we checked (£12 / £10).
Follow @LondonistLit for our pick of that day’s literary events.