Literary season in full swing with Heather McHugh, John Irving and others

We're more than halfway through Seattle's fall literary season, and it's been as rich as any in recent memory. Annie Proulx and Margaret Atwood were in town on the same October night. Last week, Whole Earth Catalogue founder Stewart Brand speculated on our future. Tracy Kidder, Jonathan Lethem, Nick Hornby and Michael Chabon have passed through.

Ready for a breather? Sorry, no can do. Here's what's coming up this week:

Heather McHugh: Seattle's own MacArthur genius-grant-award-winning poet reads tonight from her new collection of works, "Upgraded to Serious." 7 p.m., Elliott Bay Book Co. (206-624-6600 or www.elliottbaybook.com).

John Irving: The author (above) of "The World According to Garp" and "The Cider House Rules" discusses his new novel, "Last Night in Twisted River," with yours truly. 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Third Place Books in Lake Forest Park. If you get there early (5 p.m.), you can see Hulk Hogan sign his book "My Life Outside the Ring." I did not make this up. (206-366-3333 or www.thirdplacebooks.com)

Lydia Davis: A writer who takes established literary forms and turns them inside out, Davis is in town to discuss her latest work "The Collected Stories of Lydia Davis" as part of the Seattle Arts and Lectures series. Her talk is titled "A Beloved Duck Gets Cooked: The Influence of Innovative Forms" 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Benaroya Hall, Seattle. Tickets are $25-$70 (206-621-2230 or www.lectures.org).

The current financial troubles of Elliott Bay and the Seattle Public Library are a reminder that Seattle's literary culture is a singular but fragile thing; it won't survive without support. And if you're watching your own pocketbook ... most bookstore events are free.

Out from under e-mail

Last week I followed my own advice and went down to Elliott Bay to see John Freeman read from his new book, "The Tyranny of E-Mail" (Scribner). Freeman, a colleague from our service on the board of the National Book Critics Circle, is a literary enthusiast/provocateur who is now editor of GRANTA, the respected literary magazine based in England.

He divides his time between New York and London, and is layering an American book tour on top of that. In Seattle he talked to students in University of Washington professor David Shields' creative writing class; visited with the book folks at Amazon; and read at Elliott Bay.

Despite looking like he could use about five consecutive naps, Freeman gave a spirited reading. His best line: e-mail is "the longest employee leash ever invented." His best suggestion: don't do e-mail in the morning — save the most productive hours of the day for the most important work. Like reading, writing and thinking.

GRANTA's next publication, "Are We Related? A New GRANTA Book of the Family," will feature selections from Jayne Anne Phillips, Hilary Mantel, Raymond Carver and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, to name a few. On newsstands Jan. 15.

Mary Ann Gwinn: 206-464-2357 or mgwinn@ seattletimes.com.