Welcome to Malvern Books!
Malvern Books is now closed. Malvern Books was a bookstore and community space in Austin, Texas. We specialized in visionary literature and poetry from independent publishers, with a focus on lesser-known and emerging voices.
An Update from the Manager of Malvern Books
Dear Friends,
We’ve had a wonderful time sharing our favorite books with you over the past nine years, and it’s been an honor to celebrate the work of so many brilliant writers through our readings and events.
Malvern Books is the realization of Joe Bratcher’s vision—Joe dreamt of a bookstore that would carry the books he loved, mostly poetry and fiction from small, independent presses. He wanted to promote writers and translators of books from other countries, while also championing the work of local writers.
When Joe first talked to me about opening Malvern Books, I must admit I was skeptical. I didn’t think we’d find an audience. It was 2012 and everyone was saying that bookstores were dead, Kindle and online shopping were the future. I anticipated many quiet sales days, with Joe and I just sitting there, looking at each other. He told me if that’s how it ended up, well, at least we’d have a chance to chat—and since we always seemed to laugh a lot when we talked, it sounded like a good way to spend some time. And so from then on, whenever we’d have a really slow sales day, with just a few people coming in, we’d look at each other and say, “We’re living the dream!” and we’d laugh.
But back to opening… in early 2013, with the help of our amazing architect, contractor, and interior designer, we created the space that Joe had in mind. We started posting on social media thanks to Tracey, our wonderful digital media manager and first Malvern hire. And we were so grateful to the many enthusiastic writers and readers who expressed their excitement at the imminent arrival of Malvern Books. From the very beginning it felt like we were building a community.
We opened our doors in October 2013, and we were shocked by how many people came by. You showed up and you loved what we had to offer! You constantly surprised and humbled us with your kind words and helpful suggestions. People from out of town would visit the store because a local friend had told them they had to come by, and we received much appreciated shout-outs from the Austin Chronicle and numerous other newspapers and journals.
And then 2020 hit—but even with the pandemic, we had loyal customers who came by for curbside pick ups, signed up for individual shopping appointments, and participated in our Zoom book clubs and events. If we didn’t say it enough, THANK YOU!
All along the way, we were lucky enough to have truly wonderful staff members who loved the books we carried and who helped us build the store we have now. Their work has been invaluable and we could not have done this without them.
On July 28th of this year, we lost Joe. I can’t tell you how hard it has been to try and carry on in this space without him. Our little Malvern world has not been the same since, and, as much as we love this store and our amazing customers, Malvern Books simply cannot continue without our Joe.
Malvern Books will be closing on December 31st, 2022. It has been a wonderful nine years and we thank each and every one of our cherished customers, friends, staff, and suppliers for helping us along the way.
As we move forward, we’ll be sharing our plans with you for sales and specials. For now, we just wanted to let you know this was coming. We hope you all continue to seek out works in translation and books published by small presses—there is so much great stuff out there—and that you continue to support our local independent bookstores, like our dear friends at BookWoman, among others. But, most importantly, we hope to see you in the store sometime soon, to say goodbye and to thank you, both for being the readers that you are and because you have come with us on this incredibly fulfilling journey in Joe’s world.
With heartfelt thanks and wishing you all the best,
Becky Garcia,
Manager, Malvern Books
VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities) present an inclusive open mic afternoon for writers and musicians.
Come by Malvern Books for a fun, friendly, low-volume open mic suitable for performers of all ages and abilities!
March 29th is Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Awareness Day… come and show your support at Malvern Books with a fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities!
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians.
2014 marks the 100th anniversary of the original publication of Gertrude Stein’s modernist classic, Tender Buttons. To celebrate this groundbreaking work, poet Daniel Carter has created a puzzle zine based on Tender Buttons. Daniel will be hosting an evening of Tender Buttons fun at Malvern Books, using these puzzles to explore the wit and wisdom of Stein’s masterpiece.
We will also be celebrating the release of City Lights’ new edition of Tender Buttons. This centennial edition is the first version to incorporate Stein’s own handwritten corrections, as well as corrections discovered among her papers at the Beinecke Library at Yale University.
Daniel Carter is a writer, researcher, and designer, and is currently working on a PhD in Information Studies at the University of Texas at Austin. His poetry has appeared in numerous journals, including Barrelhouse, Nashville Review, and Salt Hill.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly afternoon suitable for performers of all ages and abilities!
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities!
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities!
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities!
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities!
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities!
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities) invite you to a Lion and Pirate Unplugged event. This month we are taking a break from our regular Open Mic to introduce a special guest: author Joyce Ann Tepley.
Joyce will be reading from and signing her new book Thriving Through It—How They Do It. Through personal stories, she shows how a group of people with physical disabilities transformed adversity into triumph and communicates what it takes to do well in life in the face of the difficulties small and large that vex you. Some of the people she interviewed for the book will also be in attendance and will share their story in person.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities!
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
Join us for readings and a discussion with Valerie Miles, editor of A Thousand Forests in One Acorn, a collection featuring twenty-eight of the greatest Spanish-language writers. And we’ll start the night in fine style with live Flamenco music from guitarist David Córdoba.
A Thousand Forests in One Acorn is perhaps the greatest cross-section of contemporary Spanish-language literature to be anthologized and translated into English. Composed over many years of conversations and literary adventures throughout the Spanish-speaking world, the book captures the voices of leading writers as they reflect on the particular work they consider closest to their heart, or that best expresses their driving creative obsession. Editor Valerie Miles will discuss her inspiration to assemble this formidable anthology and what it was like to interview some of the greatest authors of Spanish-language literature including: Nobel prize winning author Mario Vargas Llosa, Carlos Fuentes, Javier Marías, Ana María Matute, and Enrique Vila Matas, among many others.
Valerie Miles is a writer, editor and translator who was born in New York and grew up in Pennsylvania, though she’s been living in Spain for over twenty years. In 2003, she founded the Spanish-language version of Granta, together with Aurelio Major, which is now on its fourteenth issue. Her articles, essays, and reviews appear in the New York Times, Paris Review, La Nación, La Vanguardia, and Granta.
David Córdoba was born in San Fernando, Spain. He began playing the guitar at the age of ten, and started taking classical lessons at sixteen under the tutelage of Spanish guitarist Antonio Clavel. At eighteen he fell in love with Flamenco music after getting his first album from the great Flamenco master Paco de Lucía. Since then, he has had the opportunity to perform throughout Spain, and has continued studying Flamenco guitar with gypsy maestro Baldomero Amador. David moved to Austin from Spain seven years ago.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly afternoon suitable for performers of all ages and abilities!
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities!
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us in celebrating the first anniversary of our fun and friendly open mic!
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly afternoon suitable for performers of all ages and abilities!
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
An inclusive open mic presented by VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities). Join us for a unique open mic that is open to people with and without disabilities. We welcome writers, acoustic musicians, dancers, and performers of all kinds. Our focus this month is poetry as we are included in the Austin International Poetry Festival. So bring your own poetry to read, or choose a selection from our hosts at Malvern Books.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
Join us for an afternoon with cartoonist, artist, and activist Issa Nyaphaga. Issa will be discussing his latest collection of political cartoons, Art Stronger Than Hate (Alamo Bay Press). And we’ll get the afternoon off to a lively start with Mae Stoll and DrumForFun, a group of hand drummers who play and celebrate West African rhythms on traditional West African instruments.
Issa Nyaphaga is a renowned artist, activist, and educator who addressed the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva earlier this year on the subject of freedom of artistic expression. After exile from his native country of Cameroon, he lived in Paris for ten years, where he worked at Charlie Hebdo. He now lives in Santa Fe, teaching at the community college and the Tarnoff Art Center.
An inclusive open mic presented by VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities). Join us for a unique open mic that is open to people with and without disabilities. We welcome writers, acoustic musicians, dancers, and performers of all kinds.
This month we have a special guest, Jeff Moyer, a 21st-century renaissance man and songwriter who has created a range of music that entertains, educates, and inspires, with topics on general and disability history.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities!
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities!
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities!
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians of all ages and abilities. Join us for this special International Peace Day Edition and share and celebrate what peace means to you.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities. We’ll also be announcing the winners of the 2015 Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest!
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly afternoon suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities) invite you to a very special edition of the Lion and Pirate Unplugged Open Mic. As well as our regular Open Mic event for performers of all ages and abilities, this month we are delighted to have a special guest, Maria R. Palacios. A poet, author, spoken word performer, motivational speaker, and disability rights activist, Maria will share her work with us in the second half of this two-hour Open Mic event. (For those of you considering bringing younger children to the Open Mic, please note that Maria’s work sometimes deals with more adult themes like sex and sexuality.)
Featured on numerous local radio shows and podcasts, nationally syndicated programs, and in many international publications, Maria Palacios’ impact on the rights of children, women, people with disabilities, and the Hispanic community is as immeasurable as her artistry is undeniable.
Some of Maria’s most cherished accomplishments and positions include her participation in efforts that led to the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990; being inducted into the Hispanic Women in Leadership Hall of Fame in 1996 and receiving the Hispanic Excellence Award in 1997; being a member of the International Guild of Disabled Artists and Performers since 2009; exploring her personal connection to Frida Kahlo through live performances of her poetry at Houston’s annual Frida Fest celebration for seven straight years; participating in the Gulf Coast Poetry Tour (2009); and creating a publishing company (Atahualpa Press) that has brought six of her titles to life, as well as two by other artists with disabilities. Of particular passion to Maria is Sins Invalid, a performance project of artists with disabilities. With this group she has performed since 2007, co-facilitated their Tongue Rhythm Multi-Disciplinary Poetry Workshop in 2008, and is featured in the 2013 documentary, Sins Invalid: An Unashamed Claim to Beauty in the Face of Invisibility. In the artistic world, Maria is known as “The Goddess on Wheels.”
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
On June 26th Malvern Books will join the world in observation of International Day in Support of Victims of Torture with presentations and discussion. Come join Celia VanDeGraaf, Joe Bratcher, Christopher Brown, Taylor Pate, and Matthew Hodges as we celebrate the survival of victims of torture and wonder in dismay that this practice continues. A significant portion of the event will center on discussion of the Senate Intelligence Committee Report on Torture.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly afternoon suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
For this special Halloween Edition, ghost stories, costumes, and candy to share are encouraged! Plus, we’ll be announcing the winners of this year’s Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for this fun and friendly afternoon suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
On January 15th poets across the country will gather to voice their fears and concerns about a Trump Presidency. Join us at Malvern Books for the Austin event, organized by Justin Booth in association with the Chicon Street Poets. Nationwide, Poets Protest Against Trump is organized by Alan Kaufman, editor of The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry, and Michael Rothernberg, co-founder of 100 Thousand Poets For Change.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians.
This month we’re proud to be welcoming our Veteran Writers as featured guests in this special edition of our Lion & Pirate Open Mic! Join us for this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us in celebrating the third birthday of this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for a fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for a fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
This month, as well as our Open Mic, we have a special guest, Austin artist and author David Borden. We’ll be celebrating the release of And Yet We Rise, David’s graphic novel on life as a caregiver to a significantly disabled child. Meditative, humorous, and raw, And Yet We Rise dares to dive into the hidden world of parenting a medically fragile child with significant, multiple disabilities. This graphic novel explores the beauty and heartbreak with frankness and humanity.
David Borden is an artist and award winning writer living in Austin, Texas with his wife and daughter. He’s held various jobs in education: director of art programming at a non-profit for persons with disabilities, ESL and GED instructor, and college administrator. Once, long ago, he even sold everything and moved to Morocco for five years. He is often described as unconventional, irreverent, and indomitable. His daughter Savannah taught him to laugh loudly, face every day with courage, and dare to dream.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
After 100 days the poets of Austin stand up and resist unjust practices and policies. The format will be fast, as we’d love to hear from many perspectives in this safe place reading. Outlaw Poet Justin Booth will host some of Austin’s best including W. Joe Hoppe, Joe Brundidge, Richard Acevado, Favian Harper, David Julian, Nikki Bruns, Rebecca Raphael, Stephany Morrissey, Brett Reeves, and Lyman Grant.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for a fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
This month, as well as our Open Mic, we have a special guest, author and brain injury survivor Joseph Huerta.
Born and raised in Corpus Christi, Joseph Huerta is a graduate of the Plan II Program and the School of Law at the University of Texas, Austin. His memoir, Broken Brain: Surviving a Traumatic Brain Injury, was published in 2014 and chronicled his firsthand experience of his near-fatal brain injury and subsequent recovery. La Roja is Huerta’s debut novel.
La Roja is a suspenseful, coming-of-age narrative set in McAllen, South Texas, along the Mexican border. This captivating novel explores the complexity of this distinct landscape—both its culture, religion, and illicit drug activity—through the unexpected romance of two high school students, Paco and Nancy. The author tells the whimsical story of the couple’s first meeting and subsequent courtship, and later the challenging collision of their beliefs. A recent immigrant who has fled the dangerous drug-trade activities of her extended family in Laredo, Texas, Nancy is a loyal follower of Santa Muerta, the Catholic folk saint. Paco is a dedicated altar server at the Catholic Church and is being groomed by his mentors to enter the seminary after graduation. No surprisingly, these plans take a turn after he meets Nancy.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for a fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for a fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
Join us for a reading and discussion about women writing hard science Sci-Fi and Fantasy, featuring Nancy Smith and Christy Esmahan, facilitated by Patrice Sarath.
Nancy Smith is a writer of two published novels, eighteen screenplays, and twenty-two short stories. She is a filmmaker, script analyst, script supervisor as well as owner of First Look Script Analysis, operating since December 2005 and First Look Publishing operating since 2016.
Christy Esmahan is an award-winning novelist who is passionate about the environment. Her novels are primarily about climate change, the problem of plastic pollution in the oceans and social justice. Esmahan began her career as a scientist, earning her BA in Microbiology at Miami University and her Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from the Universidad de Leon, Spain. She lived in Houston for sixteen years and moved to Austin about two years ago. When she’s not writing, she works as a professional translator and she loves to go birding with her husband.
Patrice Sarath is the author of the Gordath Wood fantasy series (Gordath Wood, Red Gold Bridge, and The Crow God’s Girl), the historical romance The Unexpected Miss Bennet, and several science fiction short stories published in a variety of magazines and anthologies.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for a fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for a fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
This month, as well as our Open Mic, we have a special guest, author Susan R. Nelson.
Susan R. Nelson is a published author and sought-after speaker. In her memoir, The Only Light I Saw Was in Galveston, she shares her story of survival and recovery after being shot point blank in the back of the head.
By all accounts, the gunshot to the back of her head should have been fatal. But with the bullet still lodged in her brain, Susan, age 29, would start her life over again. In her memoir, Susan shares her journey from death including the moment, while still comatose, she saw the light in the distance, and though NOT the “white light” so many speak of, still a glimmer of the possibility of help and hope. During the coming years, she would not only have to relearn the most basic of physical tasks of walking and talking and reading and writing, she would have to learn to find that light of hope again in order to rebuild her life; a life which at times appeared to be a volatile and emotional roller-coaster ride.
After a six-year struggle to find her place in the world, the native Texan returned to her home state where she now lives as a wife and mother. Susan has served on the board of various non-profit support groups and is an outspoken advocate, fundraiser, and champion for women and children who are dealing with trauma and crisis in their lives. As a survivor, Susan is involved with multiple organizations which focus on brain injury awareness, gun violence and safety, political policies, and women’s issues.
Do you want to join other poets, musicians, and artists around the world in a demonstration and celebration to promote peace, sustainability and justice, and to call for serious social, environmental and political change? On September 30, 2017, a global healing celebration will be happening through a multitude of events involving poets, artists, and musicians! Join host Joe Brundidge for this 100 Thousand Poets for Change event at Malvern Books.
Visit 100 Thousand Poets for Change to learn more about the movement.
Everyone is welcome to attend the Austin Community College Creative Writing Department’s Literary Coffeehouse, hosted by John Herndon.
October’s featured reader ANNAR VEROLD is a Honduran-American poet and screenwriter. A former Creative Writing student at ACC and a graduate of St. Edward’s University, her work has appeared in the Spoon River Poetry Review and is forthcoming in the second Aural Literature anthology. She works for Host Publications, and is co-curator of the I Scream Social reading series.
An open mic follows, so bring poems, stories, scripts, rants, raves or midnight confessions to share, or just come to listen and enjoy.
Join us for an evening with acclaimed writer and artist Eduardo Lalo, hosted by César A. Salgado.
The event will feature a bilingual reading from Lalo’s most recent book, Uselessness; a reading from a work-in-progress, Intemperie, a collection of Cioran- and Wittgenstein-like philosophical vignettes (with Sean Manning reading the English parts of these works); a conversation between Lalo, Salgado, and Manning about what the translation into English of Lalo’s past and recent work entails and implies, and a signing of some of Lalo’s recent books.
An award-winning Puerto Rican writer, essayist, photographer, and visual artist, Eduardo Lalo is known for cross-genre books that express his passion for both words and images. Among his titles are La Isla Silente (2002), Los Pies De San Juan (2002), La Inutilidad (2004), Donde (2005), Los Países Invisibles (2008), El Deseo Del Lápiz (2010), Necrópolis (2014), and Intemperie (2016). In 2013 he won the Rómulo Gallegos International Novel Prize for Simone (2011), now available in English from The University of Chicago Press. His visual work has been featured in numerous exhibitions. He was LLILAS Visiting Professor at the University of Texas at Austin in Fall 2016. Known for razor sharp columns in the island’s press, Lalo is today among the most outspoken and resolute critics of recurring colonialism in Puerto Rico and the world.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for a fun and friendly afternoon suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
This month we have a special Halloween Edition—ghost stories, costumes, and candy to share are encouraged!
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
Everyone is welcome to attend the Austin Community College Creative Writing Department’s Literary Coffeehouse, hosted by John Herndon.
Featured reader W. Joe Hoppe is a poet, mechanic, and professor of English and Creative Writing at Austin Community College. He is the author of two collections of poetry, Galvanized (Dalton Publishing) and Diamond Plate (Obsolete Press). His poems have appeared in Borderlands, Di*Verse*Cities, Nerve Cowboy and Utter, and the Blanton Museum of Art’s Poetry Project. He was named Austin’s Best Mopar Poet for 2016 by the Austin Chronicle.
An open mic follows, so bring poems, stories, scripts, rants, raves or midnight confessions to share, or just come to listen and enjoy.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for a fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
Everyone is welcome to attend the Austin Community College Creative Writing Department’s Literary Coffeehouse, hosted by John Herndon.
Featured reader John T. David, an Austin journalist and author, and Brent Douglass, an international businessman from Austin, collaborate with James R. Dennis, a former attorney turned Dominican friar who lives in San Antonio, under the name Miles Arceneaux; they have recently published Hidden Sea, the fifth in a series of thrillers set on the Gulf Coast.
An open mic follows, so bring poems, stories, scripts, rants, raves or midnight confessions to share, or just come to listen and enjoy.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Join us for a fun and friendly afternoon suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
In the interview series Borderless: Conversations on Art, Action, and Justice, emerging and established writers talk with host Chaitali Sen about the power of words and the role of art in reflecting and changing our world.
This month’s guest is poet, playwright, and activist Nikki Luellen.
Nikki Luellen is a poet, playwright, and activist from Houston, Texas. In the past year, she has been writing and performing poems inspired by her active involvement with families who have lost their loved ones to police brutality and by her work with the group Refuse Fascism.
Chaitali Sen is a writer and educator based in Austin, Texas. She is the author of the novel The Pathless Sky, and numerous stories and essays which have appeared or are forthcoming in Catapult, Colorado Review, Ecotone, LitHub, Los Angeles Review of Books, New England Review, New Ohio Review, and other journals. She is the founder of the interview series Borderless: Conversations on Art, Action, and Justice.
WHAT: An Open Mic Night to celebrate “We Are ALL America!”
This event is open to the public! We invite the Austin community to tell their stories, read poems, make a brief statement or share their ideas on our theme of “We Are All America.” This is an opportunity to speak to our experiences and challenges, especially in response to the last year of events.
We only ask that our speakers and attendees be kind and respectful to one another. For many people, this was a particularly challenging year and we want to ensure that everyone feels welcome and supported. Our Open Mic Night is intended to bring people together in solidarity as an inclusive and welcoming community.
WHY: On January 27, 2018 the Austin Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations will host a Open Mic Night to support the National Day of Action one year after the date the first Executive Orders were issued banning refugees and individuals from several Muslim-majority countries from traveling to the United States.
This event is intended to increase awareness of the challenges faced by our neighbors, our community and our nation. The “We Are All America” movement works to uphold and strengthen our community’s commitment to welcome and protect all those seeking freedom, safety and refuge. Joining us in supporting this cause will strengthen the message that we belong to an inclusive and diverse community where all belong, no matter their differences.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Come and celebrate our 4th birthday with this fun and friendly evening suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
Everyone is welcome to attend the Austin Community College Creative Writing Department’s Literary Coffeehouse, hosted by John Herndon. An open mic follows the featured reader, so bring poems, stories, scripts, rants, raves or midnight confessions to share, or just come to listen and enjoy.
This month’s featured reader is Emilee Araujo, an aspiring screenwriter and Creative Writing major at ACC. She has served as an editor of the Rio Review, and has been published there.
Join us for an evening with acclaimed poet Carl Phillips. We’ll be celebrating the recent release of his new collection, Wild Is the Wind. This event is sponsored by the Michener Center for Writers.
In Wild Is the Wind, Carl Phillips reflects on love as depicted in the jazz standard for which the book is named—love at once restless, reckless, and yet desired for its potential to bring stability. In the process, he pitches estrangement against communion, examines the past as history versus the past as memory, and reflects on the past’s capacity both to teach and to mislead us—also to make us hesitate in the face of love, given the loss and damage that are, often enough, love’s fallout. How “to say no to despair”? How to take perhaps that greatest risk, the risk of believing in what offers no guarantee? These poems that, in their wedding of the philosophical, meditative, and lyric modes, mark a new stage in Phillips’s remarkable work, stand as further proof that “if Carl Phillips had not come onto the scene, we would have needed to invent him. His idiosyncratic style, his innovative method, and his unique voice are essential steps in the evolution of the craft.” —Judith Kitchen, The Georgia Review
Carl Phillips is the author of numerous books of poetry, including Wild Is the Wind (FSG, 2018). His collection The Rest of Love (FSG, 2004) won the Theodore Roethke Memorial Foundation Poetry Prize and the Thom Gunn Award for Gay Male Poetry, and was a finalist for the National Book Award. His other books include Rock Harbor (FSG, 2002); The Tether (FSG, 2001), winner of the Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award; and Pastoral (Graywolf Press, 2000), winner of the Lambda Literary Award. Carl Phillips is a visiting poet at the Michener Center for a one week residency this semester.
In association with VSA Texas (The State Organization on Arts and Disability) and the Pen2Paper Creative Writing Contest (a project of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities), we’re delighted to present an inclusive (mic-less) open mic for writers and musicians. Everyone is welcome to join us for this fun and friendly free afternoon suitable for performers of all ages and abilities.
Footage from previous Lion & Pirate open mic events can be seen here: http://bit.ly/1m7v4L8.
Everyone is welcome to attend the Austin Community College Creative Writing Department’s Literary Coffeehouse, hosted by John Herndon. An open mic follows the featured reader, so bring poems, stories, scripts, rants, raves or midnight confessions to share, or just come to listen and enjoy.
This month’s featured reader is David Thornberry.
David Thornberry is a painter and poet, alternating between the two art forms. He continues to make, publish and show art, both literary and visual, in the Austin area. His 30th chapbook, Too Soon, is scheduled to be published in March.
In the interview series Borderless: Conversations on Art, Action, and Justice, emerging and established writers talk with host Chaitali Sen about the power of words and the role of art in reflecting and changing our world.
This month’s guest is scientist and author Juli Berwald.
Marine invertebrates stole Juli Berwald’s heart on her first snorkel in the Red Sea during college. Hoping to study the ocean forever, she spent seven years building mathematical algorithms to interpret satellite imagery of the ocean, receiving her Ph.D. in ocean science. Her husband stole her heart next, and she drifted away from the ocean to Austin, Texas to be with him. Landlocked, she wrote textbooks and popular science articles for National Geographic, the New York Times, Nature, and Redbook before the story of jellyfish led her back to the sea. Her science memoir, Spineless: The Science of Jellyfish and the Art of Growing a Backbone, is “a heartfelt plea for humans to fulfill their responsibilities toward nature” (The New Yorker).
Chaitali Sen is a writer and educator based in Austin, Texas. She is the author of the novel The Pathless Sky, and numerous stories and essays which have appeared or are forthcoming in Catapult, Colorado Review, Ecotone, LitHub, Los Angeles Review of Books, New England Review, New Ohio Review, and other journals. She is the founder of the interview series Borderless: Conversations on Art, Action, and Justice.