St. Helens Public Library Seeks Submissions for Local Authors Collection

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 5, 2025

St. Helens, Ore. – The St. Helens Public Library is opening submissions for a new special collection featuring Columbia County authors. The Columbia County Authors Special Collection will be housed in the St. Helens Public Library, and most items will be available for check out. The collection will support local authors and make their work more accessible to the Columbia County community.

The special collection is part of a broader effort by the St. Helens Public Library and Lower Columbia County Anthology organizers to support Columbia County writers through multiple efforts that will culminate in a month-long series of workshops and events beginning February 14, 2026.

Submissions for the Columbia County Authors Special Collection will be accepted from November 10 through November 21, 2025. Anyone who lives or works in Columbia County or is a member of a Columbia County writing group is eligible to submit an entry. Any published book available to the general public either for sale or free is eligible. A book must be an original work and does not have to be produced by a traditional publisher or distributed through a retailer to qualify. Authors must hold the publication rights for all content in the book, including text and images.

To submit an entry, complete the submission form on the library website at www.sthelensoregon.gov/library on or after November 10.

After the November 21 deadline, submissions will be reviewed, and authors will be notified of the review decisions by December 3. If an author’s work is accepted into the collection, they need to drop off their book to the St. Helens Public Library by December 12.

The Columbia County Authors Special Collection will debut to the community on February 14, 2026.

Additional information about the collection and submission rules will be available on the library website once the submission period is live.

###

For further information regarding the St. Helens Public Library’s Columbia County Authors Special Collection, please contact St. Helens Library Director Suzanne Bishop at sbishop@sthelensoregon.gov or 503-397-4544.