The premiere “Wait ‘til Next Year” tribute event, honoring two writers’ conferences that were postponed this year, will take place Friday, Sept. 25, at the Faulkner Gallery at the Santa Barbara Central Library.

The event pays tribute to the Santa Barbara Writers Conference and the Santa Barbara Book & Authors Festival, since both organizations’ major annual events are on hiatus this year. The evening will celebrate both groups’ importance to the community and pay tribute to their years of accomplishments.

The event will be held from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., is free and open to the public, and refreshments will be provided. The Central Library is located at 40 E. Anapamu St.

The evening will feature a panel discussion with many local authors with current books. A highlight of the event will be readings from the winners of the Writers Conference National Writing contest and the appearance of the Santa Barbara Poet Laureate, as well as a surprise guest appearance from a local celebrity author.

The Santa Barbara Book & Author Festival, an event celebrating books, authors, booksellers, publishers, and readers, was founded in 1999 by a dedicated group of area authors and volunteers and has held 10 annual events each September in downtown Santa Barbara. Past information is available at www.sbbookfestival.org.

The 37-year-old Santa Barbara Writers Conference is the nation’s preeminent conference for writers interested in improving their craft, primarily through workshops that focus on the reading and critiquing of each writer’s work. The largest and most comprehensive gathering is traditionally in June and will return in 2010, when several hundred writers gather for six days to learn from each other, hear from other successful authors and interact with publishing world professionals. More information is available at www.sbwriters.com.

For more information on the Sept. 25 tribute event, contact organizer Fred Klein at 805.962.9500.

— Fred Klein is the co-founder of the Santa Barbara Book & Author Festival.