"Matinees, a furry guest, and two writers from a hot CBS TV Show."

That's how the National Writers Series describes some of the highlights of its new 2026 winter/spring season announced Friday. “We have an eclectic lineup coming up, from a book on the bitter political rural and urban divide and another written by a Palestinian and Israeli, both of whom lost family members in the Gaza conflict," says Executive Director Anne Stanton. "There’s also lighter fare...two screenwriters from Tracker, the beloved Catholic podcaster Father James Martin with a memoir, and the ever-popular novelists Anna Quindlen and Tom Perrotta. Throw in a miraculous dog tale, and you’ve got the season!”

Stanton tells The Ticker this season will experiment with weekend matinee shows to make it easier for attendees to travel to and from events before dark, as well as smaller venues that include both local high schools. The National Writers Series is expected to announce its summer guests later this spring.

Here is the 2026 winter/spring NWS Season. Tickets for all events are on sale now online.

Suzanne Mettler
Saturday, January 31, 2026
City Opera House + Livestreaming
Doors at 1:30pm, Show at 2pm
Dilys Tosteson and Lola Jackson “Community Building” Author Series Presents How Political Division Threatens Our Democracy

Description: Why are we so divided? Why do Americans living in the city and the country experience politics as a battle between “us” and “them”? In Rural Versus Urban: The Growing Divide That Threatens Democracy, co-authors Suzanne Mettler and Trevor Brown write that America’s deep political division now pervades every state in our country. The book gained national attention following a widely shared interview with The Ezra Klein Show, where Mettler discussed how decades of economic and political shifts hardened the rural–urban divide and what it means for the future of American
democracy.

Suzanne Mettler is a senior professor at Cornell University. In addition to co-authoring Rural Versus Urban, she wrote six award-winning books about politics with a focus on democracy, civic engagement, inequality, social welfare, and aid for college students. Trevor E. Brown (who will not be at the event) is a postdoctoral fellow in moral and political economy, focusing on American politics, public policy, and inequality. He earned his doctorate from Cornell University and will join the University of Oregon’s Department of Political Science as an assistant professor this coming fall.

Guest Host: To Be Announced

TJ Klune
Wednesday, February 4, 2026
City Opera House + livestreaming
Doors at 6pm, Show at 7pm
An Evening with #1 New York Times Bestselling Author T.J. Klune With Guest Host Brittany Cavallaro Ph.D.
Presented in Partnership with Interlochen Center for the Arts, the City Opera House, and the National Writers Series

Description: Three of Traverse City’s literary nonprofits have joined forces to bring TJ Klune to the City
Opera House stage to talk about his #1 New York Times and #1 USA Today breakout, contemporary fantasy The House in the Cerulean Sea. In this heartwarming fantasy, Linus Baker is a by-the-book case worker in the Department in Charge of Magical Youth. He's tasked with determining whether six dangerous magical children are likely to bring about the end of the world.

Born in Roseburg, Oregon, Travis John Klune was eight years old when he first began to write. His earliest published works included poetry and short stories. He has now emerged as one of the country’s most popular fantasy authors. The House in the Cerulean Sea topped the country’s major bestseller lists and won the Lambda Literary Award. Klune’s novels also include Under the Whispering Door, In the Lives of Puppets, the Green Creek Series for adults, the Extraordinaries Series for teens, and more. As a queer author himself, Klune believes it's important—now more than ever—to have accurate, positive queer representation in stories.

Guest host Brittany Cavallaro, Ph.D., teaches creative writing at Interlochen Arts Academy. She is the New York Times bestselling author of A Study in Charlotte, Muse, Sunrise Nights with Jeffrey Zentner, and two poetry collections. She also co-authored Hello Girls with bestselling author Emily Henry. She lives in Traverse City with her husband, cats, and golden retriever.

James Martin
Tuesday, February 10, 2026
Livestream Only
Show starts at 7pm
An Evening with Father James Martin With Guest Host John Dickerson

Description: Father James Martin, an author and Jesuit priest, is a familiar figure in national media and the podcast world, often speaking on complex Church issues and promoting a more welcoming and inclusive Catholicism. In his new memoir, Martin tells humorous stories of his career path as a busboy,
dishwasher, caddy, usher, factory worker, bank teller, corporate tool, and, finally, his life calling–a Jesuit priest. "My summer jobs, crazy and funny and varied as they were, had something to do with who I am. As we Jesuits would say, the lessons I learned helped to ‘form me,’” Martin said.

Martin is widely known as the host of The Spiritual Life podcast. With interviews ranging from faith journeys to finding spirituality in aging, he has interviewed notable guests, including Pete Buttigieg, Cardinal Timothy Radcliffe, Brené Brown, Jim Gaffigan, Whoopi Goldberg, and Adriana Trigiani. He has garnered more than 700,000 Facebook followers.

Guest Host John Dickerson is a prominent American journalist, author, and TV personality. He started his career as a Time magazine correspondent and is known for his extensive political reporting for CBS Evening News, for which he most recently served as co-anchor. He left CBS in late 2025 after the controversial appointment of Bari Weiss as editor-in-chief.

Anna Quindlen
Saturday, March 7, 2026
Traverse City Central High School + Livestreaming
Doors open at 1:30pm, Show starts at 2pm
An Evening with Anna Quindlen, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author With Guest Host Doug Stanton

Description: We are thrilled to welcome back Anna Quindlen to the National Writers Series for the third time. She will talk about her new book, More Than Enough, written with her trademark warmth, humor, and insight. We meet high school English teacher Polly Goodman, who can talk about everything and anything with the women in her book club, which is why they’ve become her closest friends and, along with her veterinarian husband, the bedrock of her life. Her students, her fraught relationship with her mother, her struggles with IVF—Polly’s book club friends have heard it all.

Anna Quindlen gained early fame and garnered a Pulitzer Prize, working as a reporter and columnist for the New York Times before transitioning to writing books–more than 20 to date. A remarkably versatile writer, she was among the first authors to appear on the New York Times bestsellers list for multiple genres: fiction, nonfiction, and self-help. Her memoir, Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake was a #1 bestseller. A Short Guide to a Happy Life, a memoir, sold over a million copies, and novels One True Thing, Black and Blue, and Blessings were all New York Times bestsellers.

Guest host Doug Stanton is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of In Harm’s Way and 12 Strong, made into a major motion picture by Jerry Bruckheimer, and The Odyssey of Echo Company. He received the Steven Ambrose Oral History award in 2021. He co-founded the National Writers Series of Traverse City in 2009 with his wife, Anne, and attorney Grant Parsons.

Dion & Lucja Leonard
Monday, April 13, 2026
Traverse City Central High School + Livestreaming
Doors open at 6:30pm, Show starts at 7pm
The Longest Race of All: How Two Ultra-Marathon Runners Searched for Their Ultra-Loved Stray

Description: Runners, dog lovers, truly anyone who loves a miraculous story, are invited to hear ultra-marathon runners Lucja and Dion Leonard talk about the New York Times bestseller Finding Gobi. It’s an amazing account of how Dion crossed paths with a small, stray dog during a 155-mile race across the Gobi Desert in China. The lovable pup, who would later earn the name Gobi, went step for step with Dion over the Tian Shan Mountains and across massive dunes, keeping pace with her new friend for 77 miles. As Dion witnessed the incredible determination and heart of the tiny dog, he found a sea
change in his own heart, which had been repeatedly broken during a rough childhood. By the end of the race, he decided to bring Gobi home to Scotland to live with him and his wife, Lucja, who also competes in ultra-marathon races.

Dion Leonard is an endurance athlete and ultramarathon runner, motivational speaker, and co-author of Finding Gobi. He grew up in Queensland, Australia, before moving to Scotland. He began running in 2013 and quickly moved up to some of the world’s most extreme and demanding ultramarathon races. He has achieved numerous top ten finishes and has won races such as the 250 km Kalahari Augrabies Extreme Marathon. In 2019, he became the first male to complete the Grand Slam of 100s and the Leadman series in a single year.

Lucja Leonard is Dutch-born and a renowned Aussie-British ultra-runner, speaker, coach, and adventurer known for completing grueling multi-day and 200+ mile nonstop races like the Bigfoot 200 and Moab 240. She didn’t start out as a runner — after being overweight and unhappy in her early 20s, she began running to improve her health and completed her first marathon in Amsterdam in 2010. As an online coach for distances from 50k to 200+ miles, she specializes in pushing personal boundaries with advice to incorporate strength, mobility, and nutrition into training plans.

Craig Borlase (who won’t be at the event), co-author of Finding Gobi, is an award-winning, New York Times, Sunday Times, and international bestselling ghostwriter, collaborating with others to create dramatic, engaging memoirs. He has written with a wide range of authors, from global celebrities to refugees, as well as leaders in business and sports.

Guest host: To Be Announced
Community Sponsor: The Traverse City Track Club

Aziz Abu Sarah & Maoz Inon
Sunday, April 19, 2026
Traverse City West High School + Livestreaming
Doors open at 6:30pm, Show starts at 7pm
The Robert Giles “Truth Matters” Author Series Presents A Conversation with a Palestinian and Israeli Who Both Lost Family to War And Why They Believe Peace is the Only Answer
Presented in Partnership with the International Affairs Forum

Description: Aziz Abu Sarah is Palestinian. Maoz Inon is an Israeli. Both have lost family to the conflict
and have known the bitterness of righteous anger. The world expected them to be enemies, yet they chose a different path. They forged a bond of brotherhood. In The Future Is Peace, co-authors Aziz and Maoz take readers on a transformative weeklong journey across a sacred and bloodstained land. Together, they discover the mythic, political, and personal history that divides but also binds them. Facing competing narratives, these two peace activists explore how compassion and unity can pull humanity back from the precipice of blind hatred. Throughout their travels, they are constantly asked: In the face of so much loss, how can we ever find hope? Their answer is always the same. One cannot find hope. We must create it.

Aziz Abu Sarah is Co-CEO of InterAct International, a nonprofit dedicated to Middle East peace. He is a peacebuilder, entrepreneur, National Geographic Explorer, TED Fellow, and renowned speaker and trainer on conflict resolution and responsible travel. Aziz is the co-founder of MEJDI Tours, a travel company seeking to transform tourism into a global force of citizen diplomacy. He has won numerous awards, including from the United Nations, the Institute of International Education, and The Explorers Club. Aziz is consistently named one of the world’s 500 most influential Muslims by the Royal Islamic
Strategic Studies Centre in Jordan. He has written opinion pieces for the New York Times, The Washington Post, Al-Quds, and Haaretz.

Maoz Inon is Co-CEO of InterAct International, a nonprofit dedicated to Middle East peace. He is an Israeli peace activist and entrepreneur. He was honored with the prestigious Franco-German Human Rights Prize and the Shared Living Award from Abraham Initiatives. He has spoken on Capitol Hill, at U.S. universities, and the European Parliament. He has written pieces for The Washington Post, Al Jazeera, Haaretz, and more. He has founded several peace-focused initiatives within Israel and the Middle East, including the Jesus Trail, Fauzi Azar Inn, and Abraham Hostel & Tour brands.

Guest Host Ed Ronco is the news director at Interlochen Public Radio, a post he’s held since June of 2022. He moved back to his home state of Michigan after nine years in Seattle, where he was the local host of All Things Considered for public radio station KNKX. Before that, he worked as a reporter in Sitka, Alaska, where he covered everything from whales to the school board, and South Bend, Indiana, where he covered politics and business. Ed and his partner, David, live just outside Traverse City.

Tom Perrotta
Tuesday, May 5, 2026
City Opera House + Livestreaming
Doors open at 6pm, Show starts at 7pm
An Evening with New York Times Bestselling Author Tom Perrotta With Guest Host Doug Stanton

Description: From the New York Times bestselling author of The Leftovers and Mrs. Fletcher, author
Tom Perrotta is returning to the City Opera House stage to talk about Ghost Town, a gripping story about a tumultuous summer in 1970s suburban New Jersey, reminiscent of Perrotta’s own hometown. This nostalgic story is told from the perspective of a middle-aged writer looking back on a series of events that changed his life—and the story he finally has the courage to tell. Jimmy Perrini lives just a few miles from Manhattan, but a world apart. At the end of eighth grade, tragedy strikes and Jimmy finds himself lost in a fog of grief that alienates him from friends and family, drifting instead into troubling friendships with two older teenagers: one a notorious local burnout with a fast car, an endless supply of weed, and a shaky grasp of reality; the other a smart, eccentric girl, whom Jimmy finds himself drawn to as they become entranced by her Ouija board, which may just offer the only salve to their grief.

Tom Perrotta is the bestselling author of eleven novels, including Election and Little Children, both of which were made into Oscar-nominated films, and The Leftovers, which was adapted into a critically acclaimed, Peabody Award-winning HBO series. His other books include Bad Haircut, The Wishbones, Joe College, The Abstinence Teacher, Nine Inches, Mrs. Fletcher, and Tracy Flick Can’t Win. He lives outside of Boston.

Guest host Doug Stanton is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of In Harm’s Way and 12 Strong, made into a major motion picture by Jerry Bruckheimer, and The Odyssey of Echo Company. He received the Steven Ambrose Oral History award in 2021. He co-founded the National Writers Series of Traverse City in 2009 with his wife, Anne, and attorney Grant Parsons.

Tracker’s Elwood Reid & Jai Franklin Sarki
Thursday, May 21, 2026
City Opera House + Livestreaming
Doors open at 6 p.m. Show starts at 7:00 p.m.
Tracker! Meet Two Writers of the CBS’s Hit Series: Elwood Reid Jai Franklin Sarki
With Guest Host Doug Stanton

Description: The National Writers Series explores all storytelling of all kinds, including writing for movies and television. We are thrilled to welcome two talents from the CBS hit action drama Tracker, who will talk about their writing lives, the endless hours spent in the writers’ room, and how a brainstormed idea goes from script to screen.

Elwood Reid transitioned early on from novel writing to becoming one of TV’s most successful writers. He is the executive producer and showrunner of Tracker and was also producer and showrunner for hits like The Chi, The Bridge, Cold Case, Big Sky, and story writer for The Old Man. Reid grew up in Ohio and played football at the University of Michigan, which inspired his novel If I Don't Six, loosely based on his own experience. He lives in Los Angeles and Livingston, Montana.

Jai Franklin Sarki is a writer for Season Three of Tracker and previously worked on NBC’s New Amsterdam. She will talk about the resilience it takes to succeed in the ultra-competitive world of screenwriting. Prior to becoming a TV writer, she held a variety of jobs–barista, cocktail waitress, assistant, commercial actor, handyman, Pilates instructor, and model...the list is long. Jai is a 2024 mentee of the Paramount Writers’ program and has completed the three-year UCLA Extension Novel Writing Program.

Guest host Doug Stanton is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of In Harm’s Way and 12 Strong, made into a major motion picture by Jerry Bruckheimer, and The Odyssey of Echo Company. He received the Steven Ambrose Oral History award in 2021. He co-founded the National Writers Series of Traverse City in 2009 with his wife, Anne, and attorney Grant Parsons.