Three of Traverse City’s literary nonprofits have joined forces to bring TJ Klune to the City Opera House stage to talk about his #1 New York Times and #1 USA Today breakout, contemporary fantasy, The House in the Cerulean Sea.

T.J. Klune has a new book coming out on April 28, 2026, called We Burned So Bright. The story follows an older queer couple on a poignant end‑of‑the‑world road trip as they seek to finish unfinished business before a black hole destroys the planet. Born in Roseburg, Oregon, Travis John Klune was eight years old when he first began to write. His earliest published works included poetry and short stories.

He has now emerged as one of the country’s most popular fantasy authors. The House in the Cerulean Sea topped the country’s major bestseller lists and won the Lambda Literary Award. Klune’s novels also include Under the Whispering Door, In the Lives of Puppets, the Green Creek Series for adults, the Extraordinaries Series for teens, and more. As a queer author himself, Klune believes it’s important—now more than ever—to have accurate, positive queer representation in stories.

Event Details
Doors open at 6:00 p.m. with live music, and the conversation begins at 7:00 p.m. This event includes a Q&A session and a photo line immediately following in the lobby.