It’s Monday night and I’m walking towards Literati bookstore. It’s been raining and the night is bizarrely warm and humid. I’m reminded of the name of the book tour: Marry, F*ck, Kill, (Cuddle) Tour. The night feels like it is in the cuddling mood.
The basement of the Literati bookstore is small but filled. Books surround rows and rows of people. It feels like the ceiling is too low and the space too narrow to fit the excitement held for these authors. Or perhaps it’s perfect and cozy this way.
There are four young published authors who will be reading tonight. Each has been published by local press, Short Flight/Long Drive Books:
SHORT FLIGHT/LONG DRIVE BOOKS is an independent, non-profit small press specializing in the publication of fiction. A division of Hobart, Short Flight/Long Drive Book was founded in 2006 with Elizabeth Ellen as editor. SF/LD has published Chelsea Martin’s Even Though I Don’t Miss You (2013), Chloe Caldwell’s Women (2014) and working on Mira Gonzalez’s forthcoming untitled book w/ Tao Lin.
The first author to step up is Chelsea Martin. She has written Even Though I Don’t Miss You (SF/LD 2013) and today she read a short story about meeting her father for the first time. She detailed the pleasant experiences of a colonic and how a father’s seemingly good intentions at starting a relationship with his teenage daughter could cause unspoken stress and physical pain. While the father lacked in communication with his daughter, the story did not lack in visceral detail. Chelsea is also creative director of Universal Error art collective and has received a BFA in illustration and writing from California College of the Arts and currently lives in Oakland, California. More about Chelsea can be found at her website.
The experience of the second author, Mira Gonzales, is noticeably different. In her poem, dick pics first are announced first and foremost as extremely relevant for contemporary culture as large amounts of snickering and agreement is made by audience members during her reading. She has a lot to say about the prevalence of dick pics in her life and it’s hard to come away with any other interpretation of the experience except to conclude that she was fed up with it. Mira will be publishing a yet untitled book through SF/LD in March 2015. She is from Los Angeles, California and her first collection, I will never be beautiful enough to make us beautiful together, was published by Spencer Madsen of Sorry House press in January 2013. Mira’s blog.
The third author, Elizabeth Ellen, tells a story pertinent to the season. She read two shorts on Halloween, haunting and filled with sexual tensions. She has published a collection, Fast Machine (SF/LD Books). She also won the Pushcart Prize for her story “Teen Culture”. She is based in Ann Arbor and co-edits the web journal, Hobart. Elizabeth’s website.
The fourth author was Chloe Caldwell, author of Women (SF/LD, 2014). Her reading was by far the longest as she reads from her recently published novella, Women. She tells the story of falling in love with an older woman, and begins by admitting to the destined failure of the relationship. The reading is only an introduction to the book but already is an expression of raw feelings of love and the rotten things that can result. Her excitement while reading her book complemented the no-nonsense style of her writing, the scenes of fucking and pining and resulting heartache. It is one of those reads that makes you say ‘goodbye drama, I’ve had more than my fill. maybe next year.’ You can check out Chloe’s website here.
The four authors were all smiles and by the end of it, the audience was pushing to get to the front of the room to have a word with them. Overall, it was a really great atmosphere and exchange of stories, and what I found most interesting was the camaraderie between the four authors. They were all genuinely joking around, poking fun at each other, and game for karaoke afterwards. I hope you check out these great ladies!
