Tristan Tzara knew something about the creative power of community and constraint. During a Dadaist rally in the 1920s, Tzara offered to create a work on the spot by pulling words at random from a hat. We applied this technique to writing flash fiction, pulling the five words that each of us contributed from a hat at timed intervals and thereupon their selection immediately incorporating them into the stories as we drafted them. Come hear the results!

Tzara’s Hat: Five Writers, Five New Works at the legendary Litcrawl. Phase One: 6 - 7:00 pm, Oct 13, 2012. Four Barrel Coffee. 375 Valencia St. SF.

Daniel Levin Becker is the youngest member of the Paris-based Oulipo collective. His essays, reviews, fiction, and translations have appeared in The Point, Monolith, The Believer, American Book Review, Formes Poétiques Contemporaines, The Wall Street Journal, The Quarterly Conversation, Drunken Boat, Berfrois, and others, and anthologized in Avery, Sudden Flash Youth, and the forthcoming second volume of The &Now Awards. His first book, Many Subtle Channels: In Praise of Potential Literature, was published in April 2012 by Harvard University Press. Kirkus called it "more palatable than expected."

Ethel Rohan is the author of the story collections Goodnight Nobody (forthcoming 2013) and Cut Through the Bone, the latter longlisted for The Story Prize. She is also the author of the chapbook, Hard to Say. Her work has or will appear in World Literature Today, Tin House Online, The Irish Times, The Rumpus, Post Road Magazine, and The Los Angeles Review, among many others. She earned her MFA in fiction from Mills College, CA. Raised in Ireland, Ethel Rohan now lives in San Francisco where she is a member of the Writers Grotto.

Janey Smith is the writer of Animals (2011, Plain Wrap) and The Snow Poems (2012, NAP). She is fiction editor at Metazen. If you want to hang out, 415.202.4378.

Olga Zilberbourg was born in St. Petersburg, Russia and moved to the United States at the age of seventeen. Her first two books of fiction were published in St. Petersburg, where her parents still reside. "Where Does the Sea Flow," a short film based on one of Olga’s stories, was recently selected as a finalist in the Manhattan Short Film Festival. Olga’s English-language writing has appeared in Narrative Magazine, Santa Monica Review, J Journal, Mad Hatters’ Review, Prick of the Spindle, HTMLGiant,
and other print and online publications. Olga is a senior associate editor at Narrative Magazine.

Peg Alford Pursell. Me. Who you already know all about, or can by going to the home page (click on my name).

I had such a great time yesterday talking about flash fiction at the California Writers Club Peninsula Branch. What a lively group of people, engaged and engaging. President Chris Wachlin surely sets the tone. Many thanks to Max Tomlinson, who heads up the programs, for asking me and giving me such a lovely introduction. I enjoyed questions about the differences between vignettes and flash fiction, and what exactly is a "telling moment," for example -- I really love the opportunity to rethink what I think I know.

I'll give another flash fiction presentation at the San Francisco Writers Conference in February. Check out the website -- scholarship and contest opportunities.

Thrilled and full of gratitude that Why There Are Words has been voted Best of the Bay for literary events. Thank you!

You might want to read Music, Language, and the Brain, by neuroscientist Aniruddh D. Pate. I do. I will. Meanwhile, here's a science video on how music enchants the brain.

I'm very excited about the upcoming Classical Revolution Musical Festival coming next month. How to choose what to go to?

Then there's this. I'm loving Literary Jukebox. A daily quote from a favorite book, thematically matched with a song.

Save the date:
Thursday, August 16th. 7pm
for the O'Hanlon Center for the Arts' Local Women Writers Series: Readings and Conversations. Wine and appetizers served -- nice!

I'll read with the very talented Eve Pell, Ruth Gendler, and Rebecca Wilson. This will be a fun night in Mill Valley, and I hope you'll come out and enjoy the evening. I'll love to see you there!

The East Bay's letting it loose! Over 100 readers, every venue in downtown Oakland, BART-friendly, words all over the place - Saturday, July 7.

I'll be there, reading during Leg 3. With readers Ben Loory, Peg Alford Pursell, Jesus Angel Garcia, Ryan Sloan, Maw Shein Win, and Missy Church. Read all about us at the link!

Hosted by Lauren Becker at The Layover
    •    Saturday, July 7, 2012

    •    
8:00pm until 9:00pm


Embrace the Beast. It's a big pussycat.

At Why There Are Words (Lit Reading Series), my assistant and I have been gathering data and trying to whys and hows behind authors' book sales at the events. We've come up with no discernible rhyme and reason yet. Some people sell a couple, or none (especially if they don't bring books!), yet report an uptick in sales on Amazon immediately after. Some people sell quite a few. The emphasis from WTAW's perspective is on community, part of which is readership for the authors, of course, and not on sales. We think that's what sets WTAW apart and makes it a favorite of readers. Authors regularly report it's been one of their best events ever, and that makes our ears glow red with pleasure!

But I'm getting off-track. What I want to discuss, or rather let my compatriots discuss, here is another issue that's difficult to figure in when it comes to the book sales at the events. Two different people confessed to me after last reading that they'd wanted to buy certain books but didn't because they didn't want to do so in front of the authors whose books they weren't going to buy. In some ways, I understand this. Isn't it much like a street arts & crafts fair or even the farmers market? Today I want red radishes rather than white or easter-egg, so I buy the red radishes, while right beside us as we transact, the white radish vendor has no customers. I can feel & have felt sensitive to that farmer's plight.

I put out an inquiry on Facebook, asking authors to weigh in, figuring this might give prospective buyers insight. Thoughtful responses, from many who have read at WTAWs themselves. In recognition that not everyone is on Facebook (and, in fact, since I know one of the original two who professed to skipping the purchase is not), and with permission from the responders, I give you these authors' thoughts.

Ken Weaver: One would hope that authors (particularly ones with published books) would have thicker skin than that... While polite and a cute sentiment, just buy the book. :)

Lori Ostlund: I think that authors understand that given the great range of work that you provide, people will be interested in one book and maybe less so another. Still, one thought is to go the route that some series go: have a table with all of the books, with a person who is a series volunteer, overseeing sales. People can buy the books without feeling bad and then can track down the authors for a signature if they like. Of course, this means more work for you.

Mary Paynter Sherwin: (Oh, she is a wise one! I will add emphasis with colored font to some of my favorite words on the matter.) Readers buy what they want (or have money for). It's not like someone's buying one author's book and then marching to the other end of the table and shouting, "I'dve bought -your- book, but your work sucks!"

There's no way that an author can tell what those buyers are thinking. Nor should one try. A reader might already have your book. They might want to buy at their bookstore so they can have it giftwrapped. They might want it in French. They might be out of cash and are only able to buy one book. Who knows?

When you handsell your own book, you're given the amazing opportunity to connect with a single reader. Those sales are worth so much more than money. They trump everything else. Who is to say that if you only sell a single book (while that other dude sells fifteen), you're not richer in experience for it? Or that if you don't sell a damned thing, you aren't wiser for the people you met while you were there? *see note below

Plus...As readers and audience members (sorry about this rant-this just came up last night!), we are not responsible for the emotional lives of writers. We're just not. We don't need to be jerks, true, but buying out of sympathy hurts everyone.

Leda Sanford: That's silly! Grow up!

Robert Thomas: I wouldn't worry about it but realistically I do think it's a bit awkward. Ideally (but impractically) if you had four authors reading, they'd sign their books in the four corners of the room far from one another so buyers wouldn't be avoiding eye contact with the author next to the one whose book they're buying.

Marcia Simmons: A published writer has gone through far worse rejection than seeing someone buy another book. I'm just happy when I see people buying books!

Lori Ostlund: It seems, though, that the question is whether there are those in the audience who might not buy the books, which is different from wondering how authors feel. These people seemed to be saying to you that they did not buy because they felt bad (which, in a sense, has nothing to do with how the authors might or might not feel). I think maybe authors are not the ones to ask then?

Cathy Shea: That doesn't make sense to me. Many of us just dont' have the money to buy everything we want and we have to make tough choices.

Leslie Larson: Authors are used to having their feelings hurt. Buy!

Paul Allen: That happened to me. I noticed, and I don't know whether my feelings were hurt. Mainly I was hoping that THE PURCHASER wasn't worried about my feelings.

Stefanie Freele: I was there and one of those authors. I would not in the least bit feel hurt if someone bought another author's book right next to me. I'm happy someone is buying books :) I don't think we are that thin skinned.

Frances Lefkowitz: I have had those awkward feelings as I've purchased one book but not another, with both authors having just read, or trotted out their wares, so to speak. I did not let my awkward feelings stop me from making my purchase, but I can relate to the two people who brought this up.

Joan Frank: You just have to swallow it. I've sat at tables idle, trying to look nonchalant beside authors who were selling and signing as fast as their hands could go.

Paul Allen: Even if someone hurts your feelings innocently, in any situation, it's selfish and mean to let them know it, by word or look. Just realize it's your problem, and your problem shouldn't be made someone else's. Their life is hard enough without having to feel bad because they hurt you.

Mary Paynter Sherwin: As someone who's done the whole tabling thing, I think that segregating authors (by adding more tables or whathaveyou) just makes the problem worse. Then you've got authors wondering why they're here and not over there, by the door, by the bathroom, not enough foot traffic, and why did that woman get a better table...far too much drama.

So, on that ending note, let's reserve the drama for the writing, and let's not be afraid to buy the books! Thanks very much to you all who let me recreate the conversation here. Much appreciated, even by my fingers wearied from all the cutting-and-pasting.

*note: pretty much the point of WTAW and lit community.

The awesome Kate Milliken will be representing WTAW in the SF Literary Death Match April 25. Elbow Room, 647 Valencia St. Doors open at 6:30; show starts at 7:15 sharp. Tickets are $7 pre-ordered or $10 at the door.

Come out and join me and cheer her on! If you’ve never been to a LDM, now is your chance to experience this mad cap lit event all while supporting WTAW. Tickets and more info at the link above.