It’s time for the rest of us late-rising birds (I guess that would be owls, then?) to get our shot at buying tickets for the upcoming Bookworm International Literary Festival. Here, we list the events most likely to sell out fast, as well as some of our own recommendations. Get ‘em while they’re … not sold out!

We’re still waiting for things to get back into full swing around here, but that means you have some time to: 1) take some photos to try and win a month or two’s rent money, 2) catch up on web news like the accusations of Han Han not being a real writer and China getting snubbed at the Oscars, and 3) sleep. If you don’t like those ideas, you can get your fill of more movie screenings, and aspiring thespians: don’t miss a workshop teaching you how to audition for the stage.

All, it’s that time of year again: The Bookworm International Literary Festival (BLF) is drawing near, bringing authors of great acclaim to our humble town. We hear some people mark their calendars for this event and, even though they’ve left Beijing years ago, plan two-week vacations to come back and attend the festival. (!!) It’s quite the shindig, and each year the authors and events just keep getting better.

China’s first literary magazine was born – like so many other things in this country – in 1949. Now, People’s Literature is welcoming its English offspring, Pathlight. Those who’ve relished the few drops of good Chinese literature that have hit our thirsty throats in the last decades will be pleased at this publication’s promise of new literary wellsprings. Managing editor Alice Xin Liu shares her insights:

It’s awards season in the movie world, and apparently that means everyone’s in the mood to get a tan – from (cinema, TV and computer) screens, that is. At least, the sudden upsurge in film screenings in Beijing would support this notion. Also this week: crazy Koreans making you laugh with high-strung family drama played out with martial arts and bodies flying around, and of course the annual Burns Supper at The Bookworm.

Have you all heard, Hu Jintao's declared a culture war on the West? There's a signed essay circulating that cites the invasion of cultural exports like Harry Potter and Lady Gaga, and the Chinese have to fight back – with "the advanced culture of socialism" guiding the way. Um, good luck going viral on Youtube with that one.

Unfortunately, even Uncle Hu can't do anything about the black hole of sorts we experience in Beijing at this point in the year, especially where new art exhibits are concerned. (All the workers they need to help install the crazy contraptions are getting ready to blow dodge for chunjie.) There is one exception to the rule, and quite an exciting one at that. Luckily, you've got a great set of choices for film screenings coming up, including the next in Krzysztof Kieślowski's "Three Colors Trilogy", a couple gems at the UCCA's Indie Film Forum Series, and a campy 1960s "Secret Agents Series" kicking off at new hipster joint Modernista (quick, here's your chance to be an early adopter). Read on for the details.

We know 2011 was the year of Weibo, the year of more debt crisis all over the world, the year of campus scandals, more natural disasters and Occupying everything possible. So how frivolous does it seem to talk about the biggest news in Beijing’s arts landscape? Not as frivolous as you might think.

The books on my shelf with the most sentimental value are New Mutants #1-100, The Neverending Story, The Stand, The Coming of the King by Nikolai Tolstoy, Marya Morevna (English translation, with all the illustrations), A Primer On Robotics, and the Big Book of Bible Stories for Kids. Also some awful Star Trek novels, especially the ones by Diane Duane.

If you haven’t caught the Great Dane at LAN Club yet, this weekend’s your last chance. On a (just slightly) more wholesome note, the Cinderella Panto starts up downtown this weekend, produced by Beijing Playhouse. Then, it’s a time for books galore, with great author events and a book bazaar.

Even more exciting, the battle for the hearts of Beijing’s bookish continues as The Bookworm International Literary Festival (BLF) gets ready to recruit volunteers, and Capital M starts rolling out book talks/discussions that are no doubt meant as stepping stones toward their own more nascent literary festival. Dear readers, come next March, how will you choose?

It’s a good weekend for theater, with an NPR-approved drama about the NY Times and Washington Post facing off against the US Supreme Court over the Pentagon Papers, a liquor-lacquered take on Shakespeare’s Hamlet and then (oh, the extremes) a proper production of Handel’s Messiah by Beijing's International Festival Chorus.

There’s also a talk on Beijing’s crippled soul and the debut of independent filmmaker Lu Sheng’s stunning three-part film that explores life and longing in Paris, Shanghai and … a mysterious forest. Read on for the deets.