Venturing Onto the Dread L Train

Last night I went out to Williamsburg and the Brooklyn Brewery, which has a large space up front just perfect for group author events. Akashic Books, The Brooklyn Rail, and Soapbox teamed up to bring six women writers together for a fast-paced evening of poetry and prose. First, Elana Greenfield brought Rail drama editor Emily Devoti up to the microphone for assistance on a duologue called "Possessed by a Demon." This devil comes down to Westchester story was somewhat slow, and they stood a bit too far from the microphone, so it took Wendy Shanker and The Fat Girl's Guide to Life to really get things jumping, after which Akashic author Louise Wareham read a scene from her debut novel, Since You Ask.

Then more poetry: Rail poetry editor Monica de la Torre read some pieces, followed by Dawn Lundy Martin of the Third Wave Foundation. Finally, Nicole Blackman came out to read a portion of "Dumped," her contribution to a new Akashic anthology called Brooklyn Noir...about which more later this week. Suffice to say that this story of two guys tied up in the back of a van, talking to each other about how they treated the same woman when they dated her, ended the show on a high note.