On November 18, Scott will speak at Face in a Book, exploring how prose, poetry and creativity will make or break the English language in the Digital Age. For more than a decade Scott’s worked as a crime, culture and travel journalist, writing in the center of a media metamorphosis that continues to alter how Americans share their everyday experiences. Appearing at El Dorado Hill's independent bookstore, he will discuss the danger of our youngest generations learning linguistic impulses through hyper-abbreviated platforms like Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram. He’ll also look at the future of the written word if today’s writers, poets, artists and teachers don’t recognize a threat against it. This free talk is open to the public and starts at 1 p.m.

On January 20, Scott will speak at the Manzanita Arts Emporium, exploring how prose, poetry and creativity will make or break the English language in the Digital Age. For more than a decade Scott’s worked as a crime, culture and travel journalist, writing in the center of a media metamorphosis that continues to alter how Americans share their everyday experiences. Appearing at the arts gallery on Angels Camp's historic main street, he will discuss the danger of our youngest generations learning linguistic impulses through hyper-abbreviated platforms like Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram. He’ll also look at the future of the written word if today’s writers, poets, artists and teachers don’t recognize a threat against it. This free talk is open to the public and starts at 6:30 p.m.  

On June 3, Scott will speak at Hein & Company Bookstore, exploring how prose, poetry and creativity will make or break the English language in the Digital Age. For more than a decade Scott’s worked as a crime, culture and travel journalist, writing in the center of a media metamorphosis that continues to alter how Americans share their everyday experiences. Appearing at Hein’s & Co.’s Baker Street West, he will discuss the danger of our youngest generations learning linguistic impulses through hyper-abbreviated platforms like Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram. He’ll also look at the future of the written word if today’s writers, poets, artists and teachers don’t recognize a threat against it. This free talk is open to the public and starts at 5 p.m. 

On Friday, November 18, Scott will be the featured reader at Sonora Joe's Coffee Shop in Tuolumne County, CA. This free event begins at 7 p.m. Scott will read from The Cutting Four-piece: Crime and Tragedy in an Era of Prison-Overcrowding. He'll also answer questions from the audience and sign books. A $10 donation is suggested for members of the public not participating in the Mark Twain Literary Festival.

In other news -- heads up: Scott’s new magazine travel series on Northern California, "Detour Before Dark," has been re-published on Medium.com, where it can be read for free with no paywalls or advertisements. Links to each installment are available on Scott's homepage at www.scottthomasanderson.com under 'Online Stories.'

On Sunday, Oct. 4, critically acclaimed songwriter Damon Wyckoff of Forever Goldrush and award-winning journalist Scott Thomas Anderson, author of Shadow People, will team-up for an acoustic performance/spoken-word event at Sutter Creek Provisions tap house. Wyckoff and Anderson both grew up in Amador County, and both are known for exploring the hard, hand-to-mouth life that defines rural communities in the West. Beginning at 4 p.m., the two will take turns sharing the stage as Wyckoff unveils songs from his upcoming solo album and Anderson reads passages from his new book, The Cutting Four-piece, and discusses working behind the scenes at the Angola Prison Rodeo. There is no cover charge for this event. Sutter Creek Provisions is owned by locals Darin and Casey Sexton. The tap house has been making a name for itself as having one of the best beer selections in the entire Mother Lode. Casey Sexton is also a noted aficionado of Roots-Americana music, hosting the weekly Highway 49 Radio Show on KVGC. The Shadows on the Range show is meant to feel like a party thrown by Cormac McCarthy, Neil Young and Townes Van Zandt's dying liver. Sutter Creek Provisions is located at 78 Main Street, Sutter Creek.

As part of the Tuolumne Writers' “Nuggets of Prose & Poetry Night”, Scott will be reading from The Cutting Four-piece. The event takes place inside Angelo's Hall in Columbia State Historic Park and is free to the public. It starts at 6:30 p.m. Columbia State Historic Park is a highly-preserved California Gold Rush town located at 11255 Jackson Street, Columbia in Tuolumne County. 

On Saturday, May 23, Scott will be at the Calaveras County Historic Courthouse Museum in San Andreas to discuss his new book,  The Cutting Four-piece: crime and tragedy in an era of prison overcrowding. He’ll review his findings on the local, state and national levels and talk about Calavera’s ongoing challenges with methamphetamine, and how they related to new laws like AB 109 and Prop. 47.  He’ll also sign books. The talk begins at 3 p.m. sharp. The Calaveras County Historic Courthouse Museum is located at 30 North Main Street in San Andreas.  

Scott will be at The Monk’s Cellar in Roseville to talk about his new book, The Cutting Four-piece: Crime and Tragedy in an Era of Prison Overcrowding. He’ll discuss his findings, answer questions from the audience and sign books, all within the confines of one of his favorite breweries in the greater Sacramento area. The talk begins at 6:30 p.m. The Monks Cellar is an all-age venue and is located at 240 Vernon Street in Roseville’s downtown district. Ample free parking is available nearby in Vernon Street’s downtown parking structure next to the Tower Theatre.

Clarks Corner in Ione will host a special hometown book release for Scott’s new offering, The Cutting Four-piece: Crime and Tragedy in an Era of Prison Overcrowding. Scott will speak about his journey from completing Shadow People to immediately starting The Cutting Four-piece. He’ll also answer questions from the audience and sign books. The event begins at 6 p.m. Clark’s Corner is located at 12 West Main Street in Ione.

A SPECIAL THANKS

Similar to Shadow People, the publishing of The Cutting Four-piece was made possible by assistance and support of a number of organizations and individuals. In addition to Manzanita Writers Press, Small Press Distribution and the Robert Novak Journalism Fellowship, the author would like to thank the following individuals for following and funding the Arts: Carolyn Grable, Kelly Trottier, Jasmin May, Julie Gianni, Allison Breland Crotwell, Gretchen Kingsbury, Russ and Nancy Lindgren, David and Jo Ann Daugherty, Karen Karam, Jay and MunDen Michel, Janis and Randy Jones, Cliff Edson and Tom Anderson. Such backers are an antidote to the poor priorities and schizophrenic timidity of the corporate media landscape, which funds less and less investigative reporting every year.

Scott will be a guest speaker on June 8 at 3 p.m. at the San Mateo Fair's Writers Series. Appearing on the Gallieria Stage, he'll discuss Shadow People, crime, methamphetamine, heroin and the role of Literary Journalism in the public sphere. The presentation is free with admission into the county fair.

Scott returns as a guest speakers for American River College's second annual Summer Words Festival. The event runs from Friday, May 31 to Sunday, June 2. Headline speakers are PEN/Faulkner award-winning novelist T.C. Boyle and critically acclaimed writer Anthony Swofford. On Saturday at 11:30 p.m., Scott will teach a workshop entitled, "Reality with a Pulse: Literary Journalism and Audacious Creative Nonfiction." This class is open to writers of all levels. For a full three-day schedule of events at Summer Words, click here.

Scott will be a speaker at the Stockton Meth & Crime Townhall meeting, held Thursday, Jan. 31 at 6:30 p.m. at the San Joaquin County Behavioral Heath Services building, conference rooms A & B. Scott will discuss the impact of methamphetamine addiction and meth-driven crime on San Joaquin County, as well as Stockton's regional connection to the Mexican meth pipeline. He'll also answer questions about the 18 months he spent as an embedded reporter with northern California law enforcement agencies. Stockton Mayor Anthony Silva will also be a guest speaker at the event. The San Joaquin County Behavioral Health Services building is located at 1212 N. California Street, Stockton, CA.

Scott will be at the Oakdale Public Library Saturday, Sept. 29 from 2 to 4 p.m. to talk about the relationship between methamphetamine addiction and crime in northern California, as well as drug trafficking trends that connect Stanislaus County to the meth pipeline in Mexico. He’ll also sign copies of  Shadow People. Former methamphetamine cook Matthew Learned will be on-hand to talk to the crowd and engage in a question-and-answer session. The Oakdale Public Library is at 151 South First Avenue.  

Scott will at the Lodi Public Library on July 1 from 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. to sign copies of Shadow People. He’ll also speak to the crowd about the relationship between meth addiction and spiking crime rates, as well as answer questions about his time as an embedded reporter with law enforcement and drug trafficking trends connecting San Joaquin County to California’s meth pipeline from Mexico. Shadow People will be for sale at the event. The Lodi Public Library is located at 201 W. Locust Street.

Scott will be a guest speaker at American River College’s literature and writing colloquium, Summer Words, on June 2 at 10:30 a.m. to discuss the intersection between Shadow People and Literary Journalism. American River College describes the event by noting, “Creative nonfiction begins from the premise that life can speak for itself if we can only find the structures to contain it and the words to celebrate.  Join moderator Lois Ann Abraham, writer and poet Traci Gourdine, and special guest investigative reporter Scott Thomas Anderson for a reading and discussion.” The three-day Summer Words festival will be held on the campus at Raef Hall, Davies Hall and the college theater. Shadow People will be on sale at the event. For more information, call the American River College box office at 916-484-8234.

Scott will be at The Placerville News Company on Main Street, Placerville from 5:30 to 7 p.m. to sign copies of Shadow People. He'll also talk about several meth-related cases that he witnessed as an embedded reporter with the El Dorado County Sheriff's Office which did not make it into Shadow People, followed by a Q & A session with the public. The Placerville News Company is located at 409 Main Street, across from Centro.

Scott will be at Sonora Joe's in the historic district of Sonora from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. to sign copies of Shadow People. He'll also speak to the crowd about the connection between rural poverty and meth addiction, as well as answer questions from the public about his time as an embedded reporter with enforcement and drug trafficking trends connecting Tuolumne County to the Central Valley. Shadow People will be for sale at the event. Sonora Joe's is located at 140 South Washington Street.

Scott will be at the Center for Creativity and Community from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. to sign copies of Shadow People. He'll also share meth-related crime stories from Calaveras County that didn't make it into the book. The event will close with Scott taking questions from the public about his time as an embedded reporter with Gold Country law enforcement. Shadow People will be for sale at the event by the Calaveras County Arts Council. The Center for Creativity and Community is located at 23 West Charles Street, a section of Highway 49, in San Andreas.

Scott will be the featured speaker for “Wolfe at the Door,” a writers’ workshop teaching the concepts and techniques of Literary Journalism. The event starts with an overview of how Literary Journalism was pioneered in the 1960s by reporters like Tom Wolfe, Truman Capote and Hunter S. Thompson. Attendees will learn about the genre’s ups and downs in the 1970s, and its storming resurgence in the late 1980s with writers like Jon Franklin, David Simon and Jon Krakauer. Writers will be encouraged to try their hand at Literary Journalism and apply facets of it to their own creative non-fiction projects during a hands-on session. Scott will also offer advice on pitching creative non-fiction and Literary Journalism to newspapers and magazine editors. The event runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuition is $75, and includes refreshments, lunch, a copy of Scott's book, Shadow People as well as a copy of Wild Edges by Manzanita Writers Press. This event will be held at the Calaveras County Arts Council Gallery on 22 Main Street, San Andreas, CA. Make reservations by mailing a $75 check to Manzanita Writers Press, CCAC, PO Box 632, San Andreas, CA 95249 – Attention: Anderson Workshop. Deadline for early reservation: March 1, 2012. Tuition after this date is $85.

Clark's Corner in Ione will host a public awareness night around methamphetamine abuse in the California Gold Country, as well as launch event for Scott's new book, Shadow People: How Meth-Driven Crime is Eating at the Heart of Rural America. This book is a work of journalism that resulted from Scott spending more than 18 months as an embedded reporter with rural county law enforcement agencies and traveling to small towns across the United States. Scott, along with Amador County Sheriff Martin Ryan, Calaveras County Sheriff's detective Josh Crabtree and former meth cook, Matthew Learned, will speak about the impacts of meth addiction and meth-inspired violence in the California foothills. Shadow People will be for sale at the event, and Operation Care and Friday Night Live will have information about victims' advocacy and youth prevention initiatives. Meet and greet and book-signing runs from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. Speakers from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. Clark's Corner is located at 12 Main Street, Ione, CA .