RICHARD WALTER

The Hollywood dream provides fast fodder for satire in UCLA Graduate Film Chair Walter's first novel, Escape from Film School, in which a naive young screenwriter finds himself catapulted to lightheaded celebrity. University Book Store, 4326 University Way NE, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.

TAD WILLIAMS

The children are being stolen and the culprits must be stopped in Williams' futuristic fantasy, Otherland Volume Three: Mountain of Black Glass. Kane Hall 210, UW Campus, 634-3400, 7 pm, free (tickets).

*CHANGE RAE LEE

See Book Review Revue, page 32. Elliott Bay, 101 S Main St, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free.

SUSAN DRAKE

A first-hand account of the field work of Cesar Chavez, Drake's Fields of Courage gives a rare glimpse into the life of this well known activist in affecting, poetic prose. Co-presented by Elliott Bay. El Centro de la Raza, 2524 16th S, 329-9442, 7:30 pm, free.

TESS GERRISTEN

Stephen King loves Tess Gerristen's Gravity, a stay-up-all-night thriller set in the confines of a space station. Third Place Books, 17171 Bothell Way NE, 366-3300, 5 pm, free.

PAUL LOWE

Return to the simple truth with Lowe's therapeutic In Each Moment. Or, buy a kitten. Third Place Books, 17171 Bothell Way NE, 366-3300, 7 pm, free.

DANIEL BOTKIN

From the riverbanks of St. Louis to the headwaters in Montana, Botkin's biology reveals the Missouri River's history in Passage to Discovery. Third Place Books, 17171 Bothell Way NE, 366-3300, 8 pm, free.

IRENE DRENNAN & FRANCIA RECALDE

The south-end's Passion for Poetry program continues to show- case area poets with Drennan and Recalde. Open mic follows all readings; get to know your community, southies! Barnes & Noble, 31325 Pacific Hwy S,253-839-7541, 7 pm, free.

AMY THOMSON, KAY KENYON

Two Northwest writers cast nets to the skies in sci-fi with a message. Thomson's Through Alien Eyes conjures up fantastic characters who are concerned with many of the issues that face us today, and Kenyon's Rift follows a man trying to save his home planet. University Book Store, 4326 University Way NE, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.

MICHAEL BLAINE

Already an accomplished suspense writer with his debut work, Blaine reads from The Desperate Season, in which a mentally ill child holds his family in the grip of desperation. Elliott Bay, 101 S Main St, 624-6600, 5:30 pm, free.

PAM HOUSTON

For all those who want to know a little more about cowboy-irony fiction writer Pam Houston, she presents a real life narrative, A Little More About Me. Elliott Bay, 101 S Main St, 624-6600, 7 pm, free.

LAURA KALPAKIAN

Bellingham writer Kalpakian packs the soul of the '60s in her exploration of family mores, the changing roles of women, and island existence in her new novel, Steps and Exes. Elliott Bay, 101 S Main St, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free.

PAM HOUSTON

See listing above. Third Place Books, 17171 Bothell Way NE, 366-3300, 4 pm, free.

ROBERT E. HORN

Horn promises to make the incomprehensible not merely comprehensible but entertaining in his complex manifesto, Visual Language: Global Communication for the 21 st Century. Elliott Bay, 101 S Main St, 624-6600, 3 pm, free.

DAVE BARRY

Dave Barry scraps real life in favor of fiction in his debut novel, Big Trouble. But it's still Dave Barry. University Temple Methodist Church, 1415 NE 43rd St, 634-3400, 2 pm, free (tickets).

*CHUCK PALAHNIUK

Corruption by Hollywood never did anyone so admirably as Portland's Chuck Palahniuk, whose language hustling has produced such psychological wire-trippers as Fight Club, Survivor, and now Invisible Monsters. Elliott Bay, 101 S Main St, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free. See Stranger Suggests.

JOHN BRANDI & REN:E GREGORIO

Good haiku is like the perfect martini, and Brandi (is the libation name a coincidence? I think not) promises a visionary pour with his collection, No Other Business Here: A Correspondence in Poetry. He reads with poet Gregorio, who brings the spirit of the southwest up north with her second collection, The Storm That Tames Us. Wessel & Lieberman Booksellers, First Ave S & S Washington St, 682-3545, 7:30 pm, free.

GIOIA TIMPANELLI

Gorgeous stories in the fairy tale vein comprise Timpanelli's Sometimes the Soul, a book that doesn't leave the psychological underpinnings alone, which is perhaps its heavy let-down. Lee Auditorium, Seattle Public Library, 1000 Fourth Ave, 624-6600, 7 pm, free.

*DAN SAVAGE

Tales of two-dad adoption: The Kid: What Happened After My Boyfriend and I Decided to Go Get Pregnant. Bailey/Coy Books, 414 Broadway E, 323-8842, 7 pm, free.

RON HANSEN

Hansen's previous novel, Mariette in Ecstasy, won him a wide audience; his newest, Hitler's Niece, has not gotten such critical raves. A fictional exploration of Hitler's relationship with his niece Geli, the combination of historical fact and psychological insight is outrageously ambitious. Elliott Bay, 101 S Main St, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free.

ERIK LARSON

You think our millennium is stormy: In riveting historical detail Larson explores the 1900 hurricane in Galveston, Texas that killed 8,000 people in Isaac's Storm: A Man, A Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History. Kane Hall 120, UW Campus, 634-3400, 7 pm, free (tickets).

SARA PARETSKY

The impenetrable V.I. Warshawski returns in Paretsky's new Chicago-set noir-boiler, Hard Time. After a near-miss hitting a woman in the street, V.I. finds herself on the road to a womans prison. Third Place Books, 17171 Bothell Way NE, Lake Forest Park, 366-3300, 4:30 pm, free.

CAMERON WOODWORTH

What a marvelous name for a vegetarian: Woodworth. The aptly-named author reads from his guide to veggie and vegan restaurants in the Puget Sound area, Green Cuisine. Barnes & Noble, Pacific Place, 600 Pine St, 264-0156, 7 pm, free.

WEDNESDAY 9/22

*KURT VONNEGUT

See Books Lead, page 31. Town Hall Seattle, Eighth & Seneca, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, $5 (at Elliott Bay Books).

*PETE FROMM

See Bio Box, page 73. Elliott Bay, 101 S Main St, 624-6600, 8 pm, free.

OPEN MIC

Note to regularly programmed open mics: The Stranger will list events only if we receive an announcement -- regular listings will be dropped unless we are notified that the events are in fact ongoing.

*RED SKY POETRY THEATER

Seattle's longest running reading series turns 19 this season. Celebrate by hearing Seattle writer, Jack Straw winner, and Stranger writer Paula Gilovich share new work. Globe Cafe, 1531 14th off Pine, 633-5647, 7:30 pm, free.