An all-day literary festival will be held on the last day of February at The Allies Pub in downtown Chico.
The Allies Lit Fest, beginning at 11 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 28, will be a celebration of “local writers, readers and the power of words,” said pub proprietor Steve Kay.
Kay emphasized that the festival, which is free and public, is not an academic conference, but rather “an approachable, social, multi-generational, pub-friendly, rooted-in-lived-experience” affair.
“It’s a literary festival in a pub — where stories are shared as they always have been,” he said.
The Allies Pub, located next to Stoble Coffee in the 400 block of Broadway Street, has indoor and outdoor shaded seating.
Kay said he envisions the Allies Lit Fest becoming an annual event and serving as a catalyst for much bigger things culturally for Chico.
“This isn’t just a festival,” Kay said. “It’s the birth of a literary ecosystem anchored at The Allies Pub. Few venues do this well. Even fewer can sustain it. We absolutely can.”
The literary festival’s program includes:
- Inspire High School students reading original poetry;
- A “Short Story Showcase” that encourages participation from first-time readers;
- A book-signing booth for local authors;
- A “Life in Literature” panel that explores reading and writing;
- A journalism segment featuring The Guardian reporter Dani Anguiano, who co-authored the book “Fire in Paradise: An American Tragedy.”
- A live “Battle of the Bards” that includes a human poets vs. AI component;
- Open-mic poetry hosted by Ezaz Ahamad;
- Poetry set to music.
Among the festival’s organizers and participants are:
- Nancy Wiegman, the host “Nancy’s Bookshelf” on North State Public Radio;
- Steve Metzger, a longtime writing teacher, freelance writer and author of numerous books, including the soon-to-be published “Getting it Write: Unpublished Writing 1974-2025”;
- Rob Davidson, the author of six books, including “Welcome Back to the World: A Novella and Stories,” winner of the 2025 National Indie Excellence Award for Short Fiction. He teaches creative writing at Chico State;
- Michael Bertsch, a longtime writing teacher “who finds flow in revising” and will lead the “Battle of the Bards” session;
- Jason Cassidy, the former arts and entertainment editor at the Chico News & Review who performs modern poems set to music with his group J.T. Woodhouse & The Leaves of Grass.
More information about the Allies Lit Fest may be obtained from Kay at 530-570-9526 or steve@britishbulldogbrewery.com.
Freelance journalist Dave Waddell is a festival participant.