In 2012, Lost in the Letters launched as a live reading to connect Atlanta-area writers and authors. It expanded to include programs like workshops and the Letters Festival, which launched in 2013. Now, the nonprofit organization is opening its first brick-and-mortar bookstore in the Candler Park neighborhood at 1655 McLendon Ave NE.
Co-founder Stephanie Dowda DeMer told What Now Atlanta that the concept for a permanent location has been on the minds of her and founder and executive director Scott Daughtridge DeMer since they reinvigorated the program in 2021. As they rolled out programs like writing studio hours, they noticed there was a need for a writer-dedicated space in the community.
“The feedback from that was really overwhelming,” Stephanie said. “People were really excited having this dedicated desk and time and space away from their daily lives and daily pressures. So we actually started working on having a physical space about three years ago.”
The space is about 800-900 square feet and will serve as a writing studio and bookstore, with the chief goal of providing the community with access to a space to engage with writing and personal writing projects. The space will be warm and welcoming, but with a minimalist feel. Books will be on display as art.
“We’re definitely giving it its own Atlanta twist. We want it to feel cozy enough, but also not too loud,” Stephanie said. “We really want people to be able to focus there.”
The storefront will offer dedicated working tables for writers, and it will feature books for purchase from authors who have gone through the Lost in the Letters program — nearly 200 authors. The space will also be home to reading and writing events and workshops.
“Our entire goal is to empower the community through effective and artistic amplification of stories and experiences with writing,” Stephanie said. “What this does is gives us almost daily access to our community, and it gives us a permanent spot so that Atlantans and beyond know where to find us and where to find other people who want to engage in writing, who want to engage in reading and want to be creative on that level.”
Stephanie said their goal is to keep the space writing-centric, placing the spotlight on the work of local writers. They are aiming for a September opening.
“It’s very clear that our personal creative practices are the most enlivening to us and give us a sense of ourselves, a way to understand the world, a way to tell a story so that our community and our world gets new perspectives, and good things happen from that,” Stephanie said. “So it feels really exciting to present to Atlanta a space where their writing and their stories are the center. This just feels so important and necessary for our community, for Atlanta, for writing and the arts, and also just for people.”
