Wow! We are two days away from the third annual Gay Romance Northwest Meet-Up at the Seattle Public Library on September 26!

We want to provide some up-front info for attendees wondering about the event, especially if it’s their first time. Below is some frequently asked questions (and also please feel free to share your own questions in the comments!)

Can I buy tickets online still? Yes. You can purchase a conference pass for $25 at Brown Paper Tickets.

For all tickets purchased before Friday at 9am, we’ll have a name tag printed for you at registration. Tickets purchased after that, we will have a blank name tag to fill in.

Heads-up: Online sales end Friday morning. Brown Paper Ticket sales end at 9am on Friday. You can purchase a pass after that at the Hugo House events on Friday night. (At the Old Growth table) or you can purchase at the registration desk on Saturday morning.

Can I buy a ticket at registration? Yes, you can purchase a ticket for $25 at registration. Cash, check, or credit cards are accepted.

When does the library open? For GRNW attendees, you can enter the library at starting at 9am. The library does not officially open until 10am, but since we have to start at 9am for registration, attendees can come in early.

What is the dress code? Seattle is suuuuuuuuper casual, so it’s wear what you want. Most of the conference is in the Seattle Public Library, which is also a pretty casual place.

Are there activities before Saturday? Yes! As listed in our program schedule, we have a couple free reading events the night before on Friday, September 25.

• 6:30pm – Doors open at Hugo House (1634 11th Ave, Seattle, WA 98122)
• 7pm – 8:30pm: #LoveWins Reading and Q&A at Hugo House with Edmond Manning, Alex Powell, Radclyffe, Anne Tenino, and Yolanda Wallace.
• 8:45 – 10pm: 5 Minutes in Heaven reading at Hugo House with authors Vicktor Alexander, Ralph Josiah Bardsley, Heidi Belleau, Austin Chant, Ethan Day, R.G. Emanuelle, Daisy Harris, Andi Marquette, Rick R. Reed, and  Karelia Stetz-Waters, and MC-ed by local author Evan J. Peterson.

We hope you can join us for these Friday events! They are a great way to kick-off the weekend and to begin meeting attendees.

What times do things start on Saturday?

It depends on what you’re planning on doing:

Registration: This is from 9am – 10am, and is the best time to come, grab your name tag, swag bag, and look over the free book table to grab what you want. (First come, first serve at the free book table.)

Conference Programming: This will run from 10am – 3:15pm, with an break between 1-2pm. Come back to the auditorium around 1:50pm to see how the free book table has been refreshed. 😀

Reader Meet-Up: This will run from 3:15 – 4pm, so after the formal conference programming. This is a fun meet-up to play some games and chat with readers, and also it gives the authors time to set-up their spots at the book fest. For those who remember last year, YES, we will be playing Character Type Love Match. 😀

Book Festival: 4pm – 6pm at the Hotel Monaco (across the street from the library at 1101 4^th Ave. The festival is downstairs in the Paris Ballroom.

The festival is FREE to enter, so come and enjoy!

1^st Bus going to After Party: 5:30pm in front of the Hotel Monaco

2^nd Bus going to the After Party: 6:15pm in front of the Hotel Monaco

After Party: 6:30pm – 9:00pm – Neighbours Night Club (1509 Broadway, Seattle, WA 98122) Come celebrate Banned! Books in Drag, a free multi-performer drag performance, hosted by The Seattle Public Library. It will be a wonderful celebration of drag and literature!

Bus back to Hotel Monaco: 9:15pm

After-After Party: 10am – Midnight (Trace Bar, 1112 4th Ave, Seattle, WA, across the street from the Hotel Monaco.) Come relax and enjoy a low-key time to chat over the day.

What should I expect at the free book festival after the conference?

The book fest will feature:

• 50 LGBTQ romance authors to meet and chat with (See author list)
• Both the authors and the publishers Bold Strokes Books, Dreamspinner Press, and Wilde City Press will be selling books.
• Loads of free author swag!
• Free appetizers
• A cash bar (For real- it’s cash only.)

What can I expect at the After Party and the After-After Party?

Both the after party at Neighbours and the After-After Party at Trace will be a very casual setting. Neighbours is open to the public (although 21+), so there will be more than GRNW attendees there to enjoy the Banned! Books in Drag programming. Trace is the bar in the W Hotel, and will overall be very chill and relaxed.

Where do I pick up my swag bag? You can pick it up at registration.

I hear there will be free books at the conference? Yep! We have loads of free books that you can just grab and take with you. Enjoy!

Is there still a book drive for Gay City going on? Yep! We are also gathering book donations for the Gay City LGBTQ library. Every book donated will get a raffle ticket, and a chance to win some prizes! Books can be donated at the Gay City table at the conference and book festival.

Where can I park? The Seattle Library has parking all day for $8, but it ends at 7pm. Downtown also has some nearby lots. Street parking becomes free after 8pm.

What other questions could we answer? Let us know! 😀