If you made it through another Monday, celebrate! At Austin Java! Tonight at 7PM, ACC Literary Coffeehouse is presenting the author Amelia Gray followed by an open mic session for anyone willing to share their poetry, prose, monologues, etc. If you're not yet familiar with Amelia Gray, where have you been? Go to BookPeople right now and pick up a copy of her book AM/PM, a collection of work that is short, sharp and funny with some unforgettable characters. If you need lessons on cutting out the fluff (like Tuesday thru Thursday), visit the Dzanc Books website and sign up for her one day writing workshop on Saturday, March 20th. Ms. Gray's next book, Museum of the Wierd, is forthcoming from Fiction Collective 2 in October 2010 and she is currently the cohost of Five Things! Austin. more ›

There are so many great upcoming and ongoing art events taking place this weekend, here's a rundown of the highlights: Tonight the Blanton is celebrating all things art with yet another B scene party. This month will focus on "art in motion"and will feature the Cohen New Works Festival, a biennial exhibit organized by the UT Department of Theatre and Dance. more ›

• NPR: "More Americans lost jobs in January than in any month in the past 34 years."
• Austin a location contender for possible car battery manufacturing plant.
• ACC breaks ground on Round Rock campus.

Guitarist for The Golden Boys, writer, illustrator, all-purpose Renaissance dude...between these lofty pursuits and the more menial tasks of working two jobs to pay rent, John Wesley Coleman manages to keep a lot of balls in the air. In partnership with local start-up Monofonus Press, he's releasing a poetry collections/CD compilation under the title American Trashcan. more ›