Deaf Lit Fest 2026
Fri, Oct 9 at 6pm
This is a festival that aims to spotlight Deaf authors of various backgrounds, provide some workshops related to writing and the literary world, and give opportunities for people to meet other like-minded people.
SCHEDULE
Questions? Check out our FAQ!
AUTHOR LINEUP
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Brittany Castle, Author & Illustrator, Visual Stories in Sign Language
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Rachel Kolb, Author, Articulate
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Sydney Langford, Author, Someone to Dream About
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Youmee Lee, Author & Illustrator, The Chang Family Series
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Raymond Luczak, Author, Poet & Publisher, I’ll Tell You Later
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Carlisle Robinson, Author & Illustrator, The Journey: Deaf Ontarians’ Stories of Resilence
EXPERIENCE OPTIONS
- Friday Ticket (Oct 9th from 7 pm to 9 pm) featuring a Fireside Chat & Book Signing with Rachel Kolb
- General Admission | $20 + fees
- Youth | $10 + fees
- Saturday Day Pass (Oct 10th from 9 am to 5 pm) featuring ASL Storytime, Workshops, Illustrators Panel, Vendors, and Poetry Readings
- Inclusive Sat Pass | $30 + fees
- Supporter Sat Pass | $40 + fees
- Patron Sat Pass | $50 + fees
- Youth Sat Pass (age 11-18) | $20 + fees
- Youth Sat Pass (age 0-10) | free
- Sunday Day Pass (Oct 11th from 9 am to 5 pm) featuring Publishers Panel, Writing Group Panel and Fireside Chat & Book Signing with Brittany Castle
- Inclusive Sun Pass | $30 + fees
- Supporter Sun Pass | $40 + fees
- Patron Sun Pass | $50 + fees
- Youth Sun Pass (age 11-18) | $20 + fees
- Youth Sun Pass (age 0-10) | free
- Weekend Pass for 3 days (Friday-Sunday) includes a DLF swag bag with surprises and a book of your choice: Articulate by Rachel Kolb, Visual Stories in Sign Language by Brittany Castle, or True Biz by Sara Nović.
- Inclusive | $120 + fees
- Supporter | $140 + fees
- Patron | $160 + fees
ADD ON OPTIONS:
- Saturday Workshop (Oct 10th from 10 am to 11:30 am) ASL Literacy for Children-Parents | $20 + fees (This is not a part of Saturday Day Pass)
- Saturday Workshop (Oct 10th from 10 am to 11:30 am) Youth Writing | $20 + fees This is not a part of Saturday Day Pass)
- Book: Articulate by Rachel Kolb | $20 + fees
- Book: Visual Stories in Sign Language by Brittany Castle | $20 + fees
- Book: True Biz by Sara Nović | $20 + fees
- DLF swag bag (I Heart Deaf Lit) | $20 + fees
- DLF swag bag (Deaf Lit Fest) | $20 + fees
CEUs available! More details here.
RADICAL HOSPITALITY
Inspired by Sound Theatre Company and other organizations, we are using the Radical Hospitality Ticket Program to make our event more inclusive and welcoming for all.
What does that mean for our tickets? We’re excited to offer different experiences at different price levels to make Deaf Lit Fest accessible to everyone. No matter which ticket you choose, you’ll get the same great experience. Please choose the price that works for you.
There are no assigned seatings at the Deaf Lit Fest. We will prioritize seating for disabled community members.
HOW TO PREPARE FOR THE FESTIVAL?
- The Deaf Lit Fest will be at the Hugo House, Capitol Hill.
- If you have purchased your pass or ticket in advance, please go to the WILL CALL booth in the lobby area to check in on the day of.
- We will sell in-person passes and tickets at the door.
- Please show up a bit earlier due to parking.
- No filming/photography during interview sessions.
- No late admissions.
- All tickets / passes are nonrefundable.
Deaf Spotlight inspires and showcases Deaf Culture and Sign Languages through the arts.
Deaf Spotlight is a nationally recognized leader in Deaf arts. We emerged from the first Seattle Deaf Film Festival in 2012. Our programming has since expanded to include theater productions / festivals, curated visual art exhibitions, and workshops for Deaf, DeafBlind, DeafDisabled and Hard of Hearing artists.
Many thanks to our festival sponsors: 4Culture, ArtsFund, ArtsWA, City of Seattle Office of Arts & Culture, Elliot Bay Book Company, Seattle People Fund, Silver Cloud Hotel and Stoup Brewing.
Poster ID: Deaf Lit Fest Poster 2026.
10.9 | Friday Evening
Fri, Oct 9 from 6pm - 9pm
Kick off the festival by joining a conversation with Rachel Kolb, the author of Articulate: A Deaf Memoir of Voice.
Rachel Kolb is a writer whose work explores communication, language, and disability as central components of human experience. Her work has been published in The New York Times and The Atlantic, among other venues, and she is the author of the memoir Articulate (Ecco, 2025).
Follow her work: Instagram | Website
A Q&A and book signing opportunity to follow.
Moderator: Rogan Shannon
10.10 | Saturday
Sat, Oct 10 from 9am - 5pm
For educators, parents and caretakers who want to learn praticial strategices to incorporate ASL, body language and facial expressions through storytelling!
This workshop is for youths: 7-14 years old
The youth will learn and build character, setting and story arcs, use the writing style that they enjoy the most, and figure out where their interest lies in storytelling.
Saturday Schedule:
8:30 am | Doors Open
9 am to 5 pm | Vendors
9 am- 10:30 am | ASL Storytime with Sam Sanders
10 am - 11:30 am | Workshop 1: ASL Literacy for Children-Parents with Anna Bracilano & Kai Winchester (optional)
10 am - 11:30 am | Workshop 2: Youth Writing Workshop with Rhonda Cochran (optional)
12 pm - 1 pm | Lunch Break
1:30 pm - 3 pm | Illustrators Panel featuring Brittany Castle, Youmee Lee and Carlisle Robinson
3:30 pm - 4 pm | Poetry Readings featuring Felicia Kohls, Raymond Luczak, and Irvine Stewart
7 pm - whenever | Emerging Authors and Night Out Social @ Stoup Brewing
*** Workshop options are not included for Saturday day pass holders. If you want to take a workshop, please add the option to your cart. ****
10.11 | Sunday
Sun, Oct 11 from 9am - 5pm
Sunday Schedule:
8:30 am | Doors Open
9 am-10:30 am | Publishers Panel + Q&A: Publishing Your Work
11 am - 1 pm | Panel Community Grounded Writing Group
1 pm - 2 pm | Lunch Break
2 pm - 4:30 pm | Interview and Book Signing with Brittany Castle of 58 Creativity
5 pm | Festival concludes
Fireside Chat with Brittany Castle
Moderator: Carlisle Robinson
Join us as we close out the festival with Brittany Castle, founder of 58 Creativity, talking about her journey as an artist and self-publishing her work.
Brittany Castle is a Deaf artist and founder of 58 Creativity, a brand known for celebrating American Sign Language through visual art. A Gallaudet University graduate, she creates ASL-inspired books, prints, and products that promote Deaf culture, education, and representation in creative and accessible ways.
Follow her work: Instagram | Facebook | Website
A Q &A and book signing opportunity to follow aftewards.











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