At the “Back to School” edition of this new creative nonfiction series in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, Bill will read “Words and Phrases You Must Never Use in Utah,” a personal essay about his time as a novice cusser at the Clarion Workshop. Also appearing are David Lawson, Rhonda Hansome, and David Rothman (a couple of whom you might have caught at Line Break).

Bill will be part of the second Taboo Tales show in New York City on Monday, October 10th. Taboo Tales is the long-running show from Los Angeles where people tell stories about their fucked-up lives. The other brave storytellers will include Allison Guerra, Tony Carnevale, Kent Koren, Karen Fratti, and Bobby Hankinson. Your hosts are Vanessa Golenia and Kejal Macdonald.

It all happens at the People's Improv Theater (The PIT) in Manhattan's Flatiron District at 7:00 pm. Advance tickets are only $10. Admission goes up to $13 at the door. Check out the Facebook event listing for more info.

Update: Watch video of Bill's reading below:

As part of the Queens Lit Fest, Bill will host a special edition of the Line Break Reading Series at LIC Landing in Long Island City, Queens. The lineup will include Kambri Crews, Sarah Riccio, and Bill himself. The festival is free, but it does require an RSVP.

On July 2, Bill hosts the second edition of Line Break, a new quarterly literary reading series in Queens. The reading takes place at Q.E.D.: A Place to Show & Tell in Astoria, Queens, near the Ditmars stop on the N/Q line. Lineup TBA. Admission is $5.

Bill's literary reading series, Line Break, will be hosting the Creative Writing stage at the Queens Literary Crawl in Forest Hills. The crawl benefits the Queens Book Festival and will feature more than a hundred writers at six different venues in Forest Hills over the course of the night.

Line Break itself will present more than a dozen different writers over the course of the evening, between 7:00 and 10:30 pm at Aged Restaurant. Bill will emcee the stage, which features Jacob Appel, Marleen S. Barr, Carey Bernstein, Jeremy Blutstein, Malcolm Chang, Keith R.A. DeCandido, Alex DiFrancesco, Nancy Hightower, Robert J. Howe, Rajan Khanna, Barbara Krasnoff, Ilana C. Myer, Richard Taylor Pearson, and Sarah Riccio.

Tickets start at $9.99 and can be purchased in advance. The Queens Literary Crawl includes an afterparty that will run into the wee hours of the morning.

Bill will read from his memoir, The Accidental Terrorist, at the monk, a Belgian beer emporium in Ridgewood, Queens. Joining him will be poet Emily Alta Hockaday.

the monk says: "Please join us for the first of our regular summer reading nights at the monk! We are proud to host local authors and do our part to highlight the borough's talent. Come expand your palate with one of our 40+ exquisite beers and leave with a new reading list."

More info.

Bill is rather stunned (and terrified) to be invited to appear with actual professional comedians (including Bengt Washburn, Abigail Harrison, Christian Pieper, and Spence Roper) in "Caffeinated Confessions of Mormon Comics" at the Throckmorton Theatre in Mill Valley, CA.

Tickets run from $21 to $36. Purchase here.

Bill appears on Episode 92 of the "Friendly Atheist Podcast" to discuss his new memoir, The Accidental Terrorist, with Hemant Mehta and Jessica Bluemke.

UPDATE: Listen to the full episode below:

Two speculative fiction writers join forces at Bluestockings Bookstore for a very different kind of reading event. "Rebel Pilgrimages" will feature stories and poetry about the price of faith—and the cost of shedding it.

William Shunn will read from his new memoir, The Accidental Terrorist, which describes his harrowing and at times hilarious escape from Mormonism, a journey that led from the oil fields of Alberta through a Canadian jail and ultimately to freedom from authority.

Nancy Hightower will read from her poetry collection, The Acolyte, which rewrites biblical narratives from a haunted, feminist perspective, effectively wrenching them out of politicized right wing rhetoric. Think Anne Lamott meets Stephen King.

The reading begins at 7:00 pm. Visit www.bluestockings.com for directions and more details.

In his new memoir, The Accidental Terrorist, Hugo and Nebula Award-nominated science fiction writer William Shunn tackles his strangest project yet—the true story of his arrest and conviction for hijacking as a young Mormon missionary. In addition to reading excerpts, in his Talks at Google appearance he'll discuss the ways in which changing technologies shaped the long process of writing and publishing this book.

Update: Watch video of Bill's talk below:

Bill appears on Episode 328 of "The Stuph File Program" to discuss his new memoir, The Accidental Terrorist, with Canadian broadcaster Peter Anthony Holder.

UPDATE: Listen to the full episode, or to Bill's segment below:

Bill appears on "Atheists Talk" on Minnesota's AM 950 KTNF to discuss his new memoir, The Accidental Terrorist, with host Dave Pacheco. Listen live starting at 9:00 am Central.

UPDATE: Listen to the full interview on the "Atheists Talk" podcast:

Bill appears on Episode 176 of WIRED.com's "Geek's Guide to the Galaxy" podcast to discuss his new memoir, The Accidental Terrorist, with host David Barr Kirtley.

UPDATE: Listen to the full interview on WIRED.com's "Geek's Guide to the Galaxy" podcast:

Bill will be the guest of a Reddit AMA (Ask Me Anything) in the r/mormon subreddit, where he'll field questions about his forthcoming memoir The Accidental Terrorist and more.

Please note that the posted time, 7:00 to 9:00 pm, is for the Mountain time zone, to accommodate that region's strong interest in the subject matter. But you can, of course, participate from anywhere!

UPDATE: Read the full content of the AMA here.

Bill will read from his forthcoming memoir, The Accidental Terrorist, as part of the November edition of Tuesday Funk at Hopleaf in Chicago. (He is a former co-host and co-producer of the series.) Stay tuned for news of the rest of the evening's lineup.

Update: Watch video of Bill's reading below:

With musical backing by Daniel Geoghegan on drums and Jon Pope on bass, Bill will perform a spoken-word set featuring poetry, short shorts, and excerpts from his forthcoming memoir, The Accidental Terrorist. It's all part of The Sunday Sessions at HiFi Bar in Manhattan's East Village. The evening will also feature Sunday Sessions house band #poorcolin.

Update: Watch video of the full performance below:

Bill will read a personal essay as part of the November edition of Boundless Tales at The Astoria Bookshop in Astoria, Queens. The lineup for the evening also includes Jennifer Baker, Susana H. Case, Aida Zilelian, and Aaron Poochigian.

Bill will read a personal essay as part of the April edition of Boundless Tales at Waltz-Astoria in Astoria, Queens. The theme for the evening is I Was Dominated/I Dominated, and the lineup also includes Michelle Augello-Page, Sarah Bonifacio, Danny Herrera and Joan Willette.

On Wednesday, April 17th, Bill will be part of CHIRP Radio's THE FIRST TIME at Second City's new UP Comedy Club. This monthly series assembles seven or so writers to reminisce about an important "first" from their lives, backed with specially chosen songs by The First Time Three. For April the topic will be "First Crime." Tickets are $10, and buying in advance is strongly recommended. (And get preferred seating with a dinner reservation!)

Update: We don't have video of Bill's essay, but we do have video of his chosen song, The Dismemberment Plan's "Time Bomb," as performed by the First Time Three, both in live performance and in pre-show rehearsal on the Up Comedy Club stage:

Bill will be appearing at WRITE CLUB on Tuesday, April 16th, at The Hideout in Chicago. In this bare-knuckle series, three pairs of writers square off with essays on opposing topics. The audience decides who wins, with all proceeds going to charities of the winners' choice. Bill will be defending GOD over DEVIL, for the One Tail at a Time dog rescue organization. Tickets are $10 cash at the door. Arrive early!

Update: Watch video of Bill's essay below:

Bill will be one of several writers reading in the Essay Fiesta series at The Book Cellar in Lincoln Square on Monday, December 19. Essay Fiesta features writers reading humorous personal essays, and is hosted by Keith Ecker and Alyson Lyon. The event itself is free, but raffle proceeds go to benefit various charities.

The reading starts at 7:00 pm, but since seating is limited please arrive by 6:30. Besides its great selection of books (including a small but smart SF section), The Book Cellar offers coffee, wine, beer, cheese, sandwiches, and other goodies. They're also great about special-ordering anything you can't find in the store. The Book Cellar is near the Western stop on the Brown Line.

Bill will be reading an excerpt from his memoir on Tuesday, April 5, 2011, as part of Chicago's monthly Tuesday Funk reading series, of which he is also co-producer. The reading, which additionally will feature Robert K. Elder, Ian Belknap, Jessica Palmer, and Lisa Chalem, takes place at 7:30 pm in the upstairs lounge at Hopleaf Bar and Restaurant, 5148 N. Clark St. (just south of Foster). The upstairs lounge opens at 7:00 pm and is cash only. You must be 21 or over to be admitted. For further details, please visit https://www.tuesdayfunk.org.

On Thursday, June 24, Bill will participate in a panel discussion on the interactions between science fiction and actual science. Titled "Science + Fantasy = Science Fiction," the panel at The Wine Loft in Flagstaff, Arizona, brings together scientists and writers together to talk about how science inspires science fiction and vice versa. Other participants include geologist and writer Sarah K. Castle, writer Bradley P. Beaulieu, writer and futurist Brenda Cooper, biologist and computer scientist Dan Greenspan, biologist and physiologist Stan "Bud" Lindstedt, and science historian David S.F. Portree. The discussion begins promptly at 5:30 pm. Admission is free.

Bill will be one of several writers reading in the new Essay Fiesta series at The Book Cellar in Lincoln Square. Essay Fiesta features writers reading humorous personal essays, and is hosted by Keith Ecker and Alyson Lyon. The event itself is free, but proceeds from a raffle afterward go to benefit the Howard Brown Health Center.

The reading starts at 7:00 pm, but since seating is limited please arrive by 6:30. Besides its great selection of books (including a small but smart SF section), The Book Cellar offers coffee, wine, beer, cheese, sandwiches, and other goodies. They're also great about special-ordering anything you can't find in the store. The Book Cellar is near the Western stop on the Brown Line.

Bill will be one of several writers reading in the new Essay Fiesta series at The Book Cellar in Lincoln Square.

Essay Fiesta features writers reading humorous personal essays, and is hosted by Keith Ecker and Alyson Lyon. The event itself is free, but proceeds from a raffle afterward go to benefit the Howard Brown Health Center. Besides me, tonight's readers include Cameron Esposito, Mike O'Connell, John Loos, and John Newton.

The reading starts at 7:00 pm, but since seating is limited please arrive by 6:30. Besides its great selection of books (including a small but smart SF section), The Book Cellar offers coffee, wine, beer, cheese, sandwiches, and other goodies. They're also great about special-ordering anything you can't find in the store.

The Book Cellar is near the Western stop on the Brown Line.

Bill will be reading a third installment from his memoir The Accidental Terrorist on Tuesday, November 3, 2009, as part of Chicago's Tuesday Funk Reading Series. The reading, which will also feature Robert Duffer, Lynn Suh and Chris Sweet, takes place at 7:00 pm sharp in the upstairs bar at Hopleaf Bar and Restaurant, 5148 N. Clark St. (just south of Foster). For further details, please visit https://tuesdayfunk.blogspot.com.

Bill will be reading from his memoir The Accidental Terrorist on Tuesday, September 1, 2009, as part of Chicago's Tuesday Funk Reading Series. The reading, which will also feature Robyn Detterline, Billy Lombardo, and Dancing Girl Press poets Stephanie Anderson, Kristen Orser, and Susan Slavier, takes place at 7:00 pm sharp at the Flourish Bakery Cafe, 1138 W. Bryn Mawr Ave. (east of Broadway, west of the Bryn Mawr red line stop). Copies of Bill's chapbook An Alternate History of the 21st Century will be available for purchase. For further details, please visit https://tuesdayfunk.blogspot.com.

Bill will be reading from his memoir The Accidental Terrorist on Tuesday, April 7, 2009, as part of Chicago's Tuesday Funk Reading Series in Chicago. The reading, which will also feature Elisabeth Blair and Gina DiPonio, takes place at 7:00 pm sharp at the Flourish Bakery Cafe, 1138 W. Bryn Mawr Ave. (east of Broadway, west of the Bryn Mawr red line stop). Copies of Bill's chapbook An Alternate History of the 21st Century will be available for purchase.