WORD UP
SCENE TAKES OVER ATLANTA LITERARY WRITER Caroline Huftalen PHOTOGRAPHERS Sean Gemmel As the writing department grows at SCAD, so does the literary scene in Atlanta. With events like Carapace, WRITE CLUB and Solar Anus it is once again cool to be wordy. Atlanta’s cultural influence has often been underestimated and unrecognized, but it is hard to ignore the power of language that is pulsing from the readings, events and spoken word series popping up from Decatur to Midtown. As students here at SCAD Atlanta, it is more than necessary to immerse ourselves in the field of our choice to make contacts, build our communities and find our own place in the realm of working artists. If you attend one of these mainstays, and you will realize that all of that networking comes in an fun-packed-package that holds more than just business card exchanges and cold handshakes.
and Jay Bowman
WRITE CLUB Yes, you are right to think of “Fight Club,” except instead of fists and blood, think brilliant writers bringing their best for nights of showmanship and wit. Founded by Ian Belknap in Chicago in 2010, WRITE CLUB Atlanta, headed by Nick Tecosky and co-produced by Myke Johns, held its first show in June of 2011 at Push Push Theatre in Decatur. Each month three pairs of writers are pitted against one another with assigned opposing topics. Each gets seven minutes to read their piece and the audience chooses the winner
at the end of each bout by applause. It is all in the name of good deeds and good times though. The funds raised during the night go the each winner’s chosen charity. WRITE CLUB has since launched two new events: Syllabus and Naked City. Syllabus, occurring the fourth Wednesday of every month at 9 p.m., is set up like WRITE CLUB except the battles are based off of lectures that revolve around a certain “major” ( The Apocalypse, Science etc.). Naked City is held the first Monday of every month at 9 p.m. and is an open mic night for writers to bring it. There are prizes and consequences to not pleasing the crowd. As with the other events, there is a chosen topic for the night. “The WRITE CLUB Atlanta family shows one not your typical reverent coffee housestyle poetry readings. There’s a bar, there’s loud music, and the audience is expected to make a lot of noise. The exciting and perhaps intimidating nature of the shows are healthy writing challenges. Because the prompts change every month, it makes sense for writers to craft new material specifically for the show (and make no mistake, it is a show),” Myke Johns, co-producer and WRITE CLUB Consigliere said, “And because of the raucous nature of the events, they tend to attract diverse audiences outside of those who might typically attend a literary event” (www.WriteCubAtlanta.com).
Naked City, photographer: Jay Bowman
Naked City, photographer: Jay Bowman