In New York, literary events are the most popular in the city

Literary events in New York these days can require tickets and be just as difficult to get into as the trendiest restaurant.

When writer and professor Amitava Kumar invited book scout Erin Edmison to his reading at the Seaport at McNally Jackson Books in February, Ms. Edmison penciled him into her schedule and “didn’t think twice about it.” ", she said, "because I'm old and things used to work that way. "

The night of the reading, she arrived at the bookstore to find she needed a $5 ticket for the event, which was sold out "It didn't even occur to me," said Ms. Edmison, 48.

She eventually went in. After a brief wait near From the register with the other walk-ins, Ms. Edmison was able to stand at the back of the room. “It wasn't a big deal,” she said. She was happy to see that Mr. Kumar , who is a friend, had a packed house.

In the New York of the recent past, readings were walk-around events. -be as a recent college graduate aspiring to become a published writer or just looking for something to do. But these days, McNally Jackson and a handful of other independent bookstores in town have started requiring people to purchase tickets or an R.S.V.P. to attend readings. Tickets can cost anywhere from a few dollars to $30, depending on whether you also buy the book or not, sometimes included in the price.

ImageAuthor Michael Cunningham spoke to a sold-out crowd at McNally Jackson's Seaport in November.Credit... Yvonne Brooks

New Yorkers may have become accustomed to the idea that nothing in the city is ever truly free and that everything is difficult to access. However, some have started to wonder: what has changed?

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