Romance leaps off the page during pop-up weddings at Seattle LGBTQ+ bookstore

Under an archway between new releases and the young adult section of a local bookstore, Brooke and Megan got hitched the Sunday leading up to Valentine’s Day.

The couple, who requested that KUOW only use their first names due to privacy concerns, had their happily ever after ending practically ripped straight from the pages of a romance novel on the shelf of their wedding venue, Charlie’s Queer Books in Seattle’s Fremont neighborhood.

Since opening in 2023, the bookstore has hosted authors, book clubs, and craft events geared toward Seattle’s LGBTQ+ community. But on a chilly February morning, Charlie’s transformed into a pop-up wedding venue.

“When we were planning the store, we always hoped that [weddings] might happen one day, and to see it realized is just the most lovely feeling in the world,” Charlie Hunts, the co-owner of Charlie’s Queer Books said. “I cannot convey how humbling it is to have folks who want to share that moment with us.”

The pop-ups were created in the weeks following the 2024 presidential election. Many members of the queer community were feeling anxious and uncertain about the future legality and foundation of their marriages, Hunts said.

Washington state legalized same-sex marriage in 2012, but two sitting U.S. Supreme Court justices have signaled that they’d like to revisit the 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges decision, which established federal marriage rights for same-sex couples.

“I reached out to Charlie and asked if he’d be willing to host some weddings here, and we wanted to turn it into a form of advocacy as well for our community,” said Hannah Duff, a queer wedding officiant.

“It felt like hosting weddings was a way that we could share joy and center ourselves, ground ourselves a little bit, and find ways to be hopeful and strong together,” Hunts said.

Rather than make couples pay a venue or officiant fee, Charlie’s asks couples to donate to Lambda Legal, a nonprofit focused on defending LGBTQ+ rights in court.

Brooke and Megan got engaged in the fall, prior to the presidential election. They said they originally planned to have a long engagement, and use that time to figure out the kind of ceremony they’d like to have. But Trump’s election left the couple wanting to get married sooner rather than later.

“We’re building our lives together,” Brooke said. “We recently purchased a home together, and I think a big part was just making sure that we have rights and protection in case anything were to happen.”

Getting married at Charlie’s felt like a “perfect” choice, Megan said.

“We come here a lot, we both love books. It’s a way to still have it be special and very community centered, which we also really like,” she said. “Right now, community is so important.”

About a dozen of the couple’s relatives and friends attended the wedding ceremony. Some flew in with a few days' notice from California and Connecticut to attend.

And while the couple said they look forward to planning another ceremony in the future, their wedding at Charlie’s felt “so special.”

“This was a big, small, queer wedding,” Megan said with a laugh. “And that made it feel like kind of a warm hug in the uncertainty.”

As for future weddings at Charlie’s, Hunts said the two wedding ceremonies the bookstore has hosted so far won’t be the last. He’s looking forward to hosting outside ceremonies — with DJs — on the bookstore’s lawn once warmer weather arrives.

“Joy helps us sustain the fight,” he said.