Dean Wick’s Gallery of Mortality is open nightly through Saturday, Oct. 25, 7 to 9:30 p.m., at Gulfport’s City of Imagination. This visual exploration of Edgar Allen Poe’s fascination with the macabre is a collection of three-dimensional illustrations based on his stories. Wick also includes commentary on Poe’s timeless, bone-chilling tales, and readers will share several of his most memorable stories and poems. Cost is $9 per person.
Deborah Frethem, author of Haunted Ybor City, will share some of the area’s spookiest true stories at the Tricycle Studios space Thursday, Oct. 23, 7 p.m. Tickets are $30 per duo, which includes one copy of the book and one signature cocktail per person. Festive attire – flappers and fedoras – are encouraged.
Tampa Writers Alliance’s Poetry Group meets Thursday, Oct. 23, 7 p.m. at Barnes & Noble in Carrollwood.
Café Hey’sweekly open mic takes place Thursday, Oct. 23, 7 p.m. This mixed-genre open mic welcomes, comedians, storytellers, spoken word artists and more.
The Saint Petersburg Writers Daylight Hours Meetup Group will meet at the Hollander Hotel, Friday, Oct. 24, 2 p.m. The group’s goal is to generate creative energy, provide mutual support and dole positive feedback in a positive setting. All writers, both published and beginners, are welcome.
Are you ready to be Scared to Death? Experience some of literature’s greatest horror stories told by their ghostly writers in a candlelit mansion in Lakeland Friday, Oct. 24, and Saturday, Oct. 25, 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Guests rotate through the rooms of Kingscliff as costumed actors masterfully recreate stories from the Victorian period. Introduced by Frankenstein author Mary Shelley and Dracula creator Bram Stoker, this event will present stories by authors like Edgar Allen Poe, A.M. Barrage and W.W. Jacobs. This event is a fundraiser for Geneva Classical Academy. Cost is $10 for adults and $5 for students.
Community Café hosts a SpookEasy, a spooky storytelling open mic, Friday, Oct. 24, 8 p.m. Each reader has up to 10 minutes at this horror-themed open mic. There will also be $1 off beer and wine, as well as $3 Blood Red Sangria. Storytelling, poetry, spoken word, prose and more are welcome.
Meet Carl Hiaasen, R.L. Stine, Lawrence Matsuda, Rick Wilber, Cassandra King, Aasif Mandvi, Ben Montgomery and more at the Tampa Bay Times’2014 Festival of Reading. This free festival, held this Saturday, Oct. 25, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., at Bayboro Harbor, Seventh Avenue South, in St. Petersburg, offers a full day of authors, booksellers and exhibitors. Find a complete schedule here.
Tampa's Dale Mabry Barnes & Noble will host several authors on Saturday, Oct. 25. Meet author Nancy Mercurio and illustrator Leah Lopez, who are behind the heartwarming book Tails of Fluffy McDuffy: Lessons of Love. They’ll read their story at 10:30 a.m., followed by a signing. Then Barbara Post-Askin, the author of Reflections of Liberty, will sign copies of her memoir from noon until 2 p.m. Frethem will speak about the invisible revelers that still linger in Ybor and will sign copies of her book Haunted Ybor City at 2 p.m. Sarah Beth Lindberg, author of Life’s Compass for Eternal Treasure, will also sign copies of her book at 2 p.m.
Certified Jungian Depth-psychotherapist Velva Lee Heraty AKA Dream Momma will sign copies of her new bookThe Dream Belongs to the Dreamer Saturday, Oct. 25, 6 p.m., at the Craftsman House Gallery in St. Petersburg. The book offers readers a step-by-step guide to understanding one’s dreams and is written for a mainstream audience.
Wordier Than Thou, CL Storytime and Barley Mow Brewing Company are teaming up to present Ghost Stories & Spooky Tales, a Halloween storytelling event, on Saturday, Oct. 25, 7 p.m., at the Largo-based brewery. Enjoy some delicious beer from Barley Mow while local storytellers and writers get you in the mood for the spookiest day of the year. Storytellers include Ross Tarr, Deborah Frethem, Billie Noakes, Richard and Mary Ellen DiPietra, and Nicholas Richard Wilde. Actor Chris Holcom (Maxwell, Titus Andronicus and March of the Kitefliers) will read from the work of his friend and local author Christopher Buehlman. There will also be candy, a raffle and a costume contest. Cost is $5. This event is sponsored by Creative Loafing.