Mountain Words Festival Returns to Crested Butte With Workshops and Free Events

Devon O’Neil stood in the spotlight at the Crested Butte Center for the Arts in November 2025, holding his new book, "The Way Out." He wasn’t just posing for a photo. He was sharing his work with a town that has learned to value the written word as much as it values the snow.

Now, that same energy is returning for the Mountain Words Festival.

It starts Thursday, May 21. It ends Sunday, May 27. Four packed days of workshops, readings, movie screenings, panels, parties, and kid-friendly activities. You can buy tickets. You can walk in for free. The choice is yours, but the content is fixed.

The festival kicks off with a party and a screening of "Come See Me in the Good Light." It’s an award-winning documentary about former Colorado poet laureate Andrea Gibson. Poetry continues through the weekend. You’ll find themed workshops on nature and resistance. You’ll hear from heavy hitters like Terry Tempest Williams, Suzi Q. Smith, and Rajiv Mohabir.

This isn’t just about rhyming couplets. The lineup covers comics, memoir, comedy, nonfiction, and nature writing. For those trying to crack the publishing code, editors and agents are pulling back the curtain.

David Baron talks aliens — specifically Martians — with journalist Laura Krantz. Shane Mauss dives into comedy strategies. Steven Dunn teaches setting lessons gleaned from rap lyrics. Yes, rap. If you think this is a stiff, academic affair, read that again.

Full festival passes are gone. You can’t buy the all-access pass anymore. But individual writing workshops and events are still available online. There are also more than a dozen free events open to the public.

Look for a conversation between CPR’s Ryan Warner and Pulitzer Prize finalist Megan Kate Nelson. Catch a live recording of Mitzi Rapkin’s "First Draft" podcast. Watch for book signings with this year’s authors. The schedule is online. The access is real.

The venue is the Crested Butte Center for the Arts at 606 Sixth St. Prices vary. If you’re driving in from the valley, expect traffic. Expect the usual weekend congestion on Highway 13. But you’re paying for access to people who actually write the stories we read.

Other events are happening nearby, too. The Harmony Singers are playing the first free concert of the Tank Center for Sonic Arts’s summer season. Music by Renee Stahl, Lily Wilson, Shay, and Musiic Galloway. Free. 8 p.m., May 27. The Tank Center for Sonic Arts is at 233 County Road 46 in Rangely.

If you’re further west, the MountainFilm Festival is wrapping up in Telluride. It’s been bringing adventure stories to that town for nearly 50 years. It has a wild streak. Prices vary. Dates are May 21-25.

Closer to home, the Denver Community Film Festival is screening "Truth Be Told" on May 21. It’s a behind-the-scenes look at reporters at work, 9NEWS, KSUT Tribal Radio, Colorado Public Radio, the Ouray County Plaindealer, and The Colorado Sun. Brian Malone directed it. There’s a reception before the film. A discussion after. A suggested donation of $10. It’s at The Elitch Theatre at 5:30 p.m.

The short version: Words matter. They drive the local economy. They bring people to Crested Butte. They fill the arts center. They fill the tank in Rangely.

O’Neil’s book is out there. The festival is coming. The question isn’t whether you should go. It’s whether you can afford to miss it.

Tickets for individual events are still on sale. The free events are free. The schedule is set. The writers are ready.

Don’t wait until the pass is sold out. It already is.