Nicole Sullivan, owner of BookBar in Denver, Colorado, was honored in New York this month as part of Publishers Weekly Star Watch.

"It is vital to become a community space, an experience, rather than just a retail space."

During the seven years that Sullivan was home with her children after a corporate career as a website analyst, she had a lot of time to think. When the owners of the local bookstore reached out to the community to search for ways to save the store, Sullivan thought about how she could help. She wrote a proposal for them with various options, but in the end the store went out of business.

"I was too far down the road at that point," Sullivan says. She bought the building where the old bookstore was located, hired an architect, and opened three years ago with just retail space. Now BookBar features a garden patio, a reading room, and an eight-top community table. And, of course, the wine bar-"a place to go and sit, have a glass of wine, read a book, and have it not be weird," Sullivan says. "We truly are a community bookstore," she says, crediting that with year-over-year growth of 20%.

Publishers Weekly, in association with The Frankfurt Book Fair (October 19-23), created Star Watch to identify and celebrate talented emerging leaders in the U.S. publishing community, bring recognition to them on a global stage and provide them with additional mentoring and an expanded network. The goal of PW Star Watch is to invest in the advancement and innovation of the next generation of publishing leaders, retaining talent and rewarding creativity.

Congratulations, Nicole!

Literary Sojourn welcomed six critically acclaimed authors to Steamboat Springs who offered inspirational insights into their creative process to a sold-out crowd of readers.

"If you wake up every day with a commitment to your art and practice that art on a daily basis, it will get you through the hard times," Groff advised. "Have an art monster inside of you, and feed it and let it live."

"Let that art monster stomp around the house," Groff added. "It's about knowing how good you are on the inside and having that faith."

FATES AND FURIES, which was a 2015 finalist for the National Book Award, came about as Groff was writing ARCADIA, a novel that focused on the life of a boy named Bit growing up on a commune in upstate New York. To write

Arcadia, Groff researched The Farm, a hippie commune in Tennessee, and Oneida, a utopian community in upstate New York that existed in the 19th century, and she said she became transfixed by the idea of community.

Other members of Saturday's line-up of literary all stars included: Jessie Burton, author of two international bestsellers THE MINIATURIST and THE MUSE; Patrick deWitt, author of THE SISTERS BROTHERS, which was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize; Ethan Canin, bestselling author of five novels, including his latest A DOUBTER'S ALMANAC; Anthony Marra, author of the indie bestseller, THE TSAR OF LOVE AND TECHNO; and master of ceremonies Jess Walter, author of BEAUTIFUL RUINS, and a featured author at the 2013 event.

At the end of Saturday's event, the audience gave the authors a standing ovation, and Walter, whose quick wit was on display throughout the afternoon, said,

Two of the screen's most beloved characters will be reunited in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on October 18 when Bob Odenkirk joins Bryan Cranston for an on-stage interview at Cranston's book tour stop for his new memoir,A LIFE IN PARTS.

Cranston's tour stop is part of the semi-annual fundraiser, A Word With Writers, produced and hosted by Bookworks as a fundraiser for the Albuquerque Public Library Foundation at the KiMo Theater.

In addition to many other award-winning roles on TV, film, and on Broadway, Cranston played Walter White to Odenkirk's Saul Goodman in

Breaking Bad. In addition to starring in his Emmy and Golden Globe nominated title role in Better Call Saul, Odenkirk is also the author of A LOAD OF HOOEY, and is best known for his writing on Saturday Night Live and Mr. Show, in which he also starred.

Click here to learn more about the upcoming event.

On Saturday, October 1st, Blue Willow Bookshop in Houston, Texas will celebrate the store's 20th birthday.

Congratulations to Valerie Koehler, owner, and the entire team at Blue Willow Bookshop!