From Tulsa to West Seattle: Book-scene magician Jeff Martin settles into new home here
By Macey Wurm
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
Tulsa, Oklahoma’s best-known literary connoisseur and community connector has taken a leap across the U.S. and landed right here in West Seattle.
Jeff Martin, co-founder of Magic City Books, was recently profiled by the New York Times for his “Literary King” status, with his then-impending move to Seattle making the article’s headline. Excited West Seattle readers sent us the link, so we sat down with Martin – who recently moved into a home near Fauntleroy Park – to find out more about his motivation and potential plans. (Books, after all, are huge here, with two indie bookstores in West Seattle and numerous book clubs.)
Martin has built a name for himself over the past decade operating the Tulsa book store as a nonprofit, and creating a nationally recognized event space visited by countless best-selling authors.
But it took years to develop – at 23, Martin was introduced to the industry by working on the program team for a bookstore by happenstance. An opportunity opened after the then-manager went on extended leave, after which Martin offered to jump in.
And jump he did. He started reaching out to authors and publishers, hoping to get more and more people coming through the store, and began to build relationships within the literary community.
“I liked the idea of bringing people together for these kinds of shared experiences,” he explained.
A few years later, in 2009, Martin went out to do his own thing. This manifested in some different forms, at one point a book-centered social hour cleverly named “Beer Pub,” and later Booksmart, with the intention of bringing in one author per month.
The last indie bookstore in Tulsa that sold new books closed in 2013, which ultimately convinced Martin to open up one of his own, and Magic City was born. Stephen King headlined the first official event, a year and a half after the store’s opening.
When Martin’s work with Magic City Books was featured in The New York Times earlier this spring, the Times described it as having “helped transform his midsize city into a dynamic cultural hub.”
“I’ve done projects that have kind of been highlighted in there, but it’s a totally different thing when it’s about you personally… not to mention the intensity of the interviews.” Martin said “But I really lucked out. The reporter they sent was so amazing, and so engaged with what we were doing.”
Initially, Martin recalled, the reporter thought the NYT article to read as an obituary. That is, until its publishing was postponed, and ended up coinciding with Martin’s decision to move. It then read as an ode to everything Martin has already achieved, and his move worked to establish a potential continuum of his dedication to the community.
“This kind of gives it a sense of what the next step is, what’s coming, and it feels a little bit more open ended.”
Martin is going to work here for a museum (more on that in a moment), but he hasn’t completely closed the door on the literary community he worked to build, or Magic City Books, with which he expects to remain involved. “I’m so invested in that city. We have an amazing staff and a crew where I just found myself not needed day to day. And I’ll still provide a lot of oversight and creative energy from afar… And I’ll go back.” (Conveniently, Alaska Airlines just launched a daily, year-round direct flight from Seattle to Tulsa.) “I kind of ran out of excuses not to try it. I don’t like the idea of regret, so we took a shot.”
The move first came about as he and his wife Molly had lost three of their four parents over the past two and half years. “Those are shocks to your system.” Martin explained, and they ultimately led the pair to want to build a relationship closer to remaining family members living just across the Idaho border.
For the past 17 years, Martin also held the position of director of communications at a Tulsa museum, Philbrook Art & Gardens, which led to a new job that also played a big factor in the ultimate decision to move to West Seattle – Martin started work last month at the Seattle Art Museum, as Chief of Creative Strategy and Storytelling.
His goals mirror those at the Philbrook, drawing the distinction between “respected” and “beloved” for the Seattle Art Museum, and helping Seattleites begin to identify SAM with the latter. He wants to give voice and personality to the institution, leaning into an air of fun. “Part of my job is to try to create some kind of unified theory of the museum and make people understand what it is and kind of bring the tone back.”
So, why live in West Seattle? Martin spoke fondly of his new home bordering Fauntleroy Park. He liked the idea of being close to Puget Sound, and experiencing the small-town energy that he felt this part of Seattle exudes. “Downtown, obviously it’s so crazy and hectic. So when you come over here, it’s kind of like: exhale. We may not stay in this part of the city forever, but it felt to me like a good starting point.”
Since his move, Martin has been exploring the local scene in West Seattle, and trying to find some spots that stick. He specifically mentioned visiting Paper Boat Booksellers (WSB sponsor), and was excited by their curated selections. He also went to Admiral Theater, and noticed its status as the peninsula’s only movie theater.
“There’s not a lot of movie theaters in West Seattle. So that’s something that maybe we need to figure that out.” Martin was first interested in filmmaking as a teenager, wanting to write scripts before he moved to explore the book world.
As for bringing something similar to Magic City Books to the Seattle scene, Martin has no immediate plans, though he did mention a warm Seattle welcome from book-fanatics as a result of the New York Times article.
“It was an amazing way to kind of get introduced to everybody really fast. So I’ve had all these meetings. But it’s just been a really nice thing to have this entry to the city,” Martin said.
(Photo courtesy Jeff Martin)
