#ArtLitPhx: Spillers Podcast now available

Spillers logoLocal Phoenix’s premiere reading event Spillers has announced their new podcast series. The new series will have a short story read by the featured author, followed by an interview with the author. You can find out more and listen here. Their full press release is below:

Spillers, Phoenix’s premier short fiction ensemble reading event since 2015, is now also a podcast, produced and hosted by local award-winning writer and podcaster Robert Hoekman Jr.

While Spillers After Show has earned a stellar reputation as winner of Best Podcast 2016 by the Phoenix New Times, the now-live Spillers podcast brings new and exciting depth and intimacy, and will juxtapose national writers with locals, and award-winners with up-andcomers, to build an audience that extends well beyond Arizona’s borders.

Episodes each feature one short fiction story and an exclusive interview on the story of the story as told by the writer who wrote it. Every episode is 30 minutes or less so that it fits comfortably into a listener’s life, and has a Song Exploder-esque format and style.

With several interviews in the bag, Hoekman says, “These interviews are intimate and revealing. The writers so far have all been ready and willing to get personal and to talk about the circumstances and struggles that compel them to create the art they give us.”

Episodes are even recorded on-location—in places relevant either to the writer or to the story. One interview took place during a drive to a uranium mine south of the Grand Canyon. Another was held inside of a planetarium while staring up at a black hole. A third found the host and guest discussing bipolar disorder while sitting in a Circle K parking lot. These settings add dimension to the interviews that no reading event could otherwise achieve.

Venita Blackburn recording for the podcast
Venita Blackburn recording for Spillers podcast

The debut episode features ASU alum Venita Blackburn. On the show, she discusses the lifelong challenges for writers of color following her workshop on the subject, and reads her story, “Chew,” which appears in her upcoming collection Black Jesus and Other Superhero Stories (University of Nebraska Press).

Spillers has previously presented seven live events, held quarterly at the Crescent Ballroom. While autobiographical storytelling events abound, Spillers was the first and is still the only event to offer a night of Arizona’s best fiction in a setting designed to turn writers into rock stars and make literature worthy of date night. Spillers events have featured major novelists, Hudson Prize and GQ Book of the Year winners, Pushcart Prize winners, and contributors to Best American Short Stories, Best American Mystery Stories, Ploughshares, and McSweeney’s Quarterly, among other prestigious publications.

More live Spillers events will follow as the podcast develops its audience. For podcast subscription options and to apply to become a “spiller,” visit www.Spillers.net.

#ArtLitPhx: Cactus Well

Cactus Well is an event promoting the local literary community in the greater Phoenix area. The panel, consisting of local poets, teachers, and series founders, will discuss the workings of the literary community in Phoenix.

The event will take place on Saturday April 22nd, 2017 at 3 p.m. on ASU Tempe’s campus in COOR L1-88.

Panel members include Spillers host Robert Hoekman Jr., Jake Friedman of Four Chambers Press, Spoken-Word Poet Megan Atencia, and Superstition Review’s own Patricia Colleen Murphy. The event will start with a short Q&A concerning literary citizenship, technology and literature, and how to create a successful journal, reading series, or event. There will be refreshments and networking opportunities after.

See the Facebook Event page for more information.

#ArtLitPhx: Spillers No. 7

spillers no. 7

Spillers is Phoenix’s premier short fiction storytelling event. Spillers makes its Valley Bar debut with installment No. 7.

Spillers is the voice of Phoenix fiction. Every season, cohosts Robert Hoekman Jr. and Brian Dunn handpick 5 incredible writers, put them on a stage, feature them in 2 episodes of the award-winning Spillers After Show podcast and publish their stories in a collectible book.

The event takes place Tuesday, March 14th, 2017 @ 7:30 PM at Valley Bar. Tickets are $5 general admission or  $12 general admission with theSpillers No.7 book. Attendees must be 21 years or older. Books are available for purchase for $10 at the event.

Check out the Facebook event page for more event information.

All Spillers events feature walk-on music, take-home programs, and a custom cocktail crafted just for you by Valley Bar’s fabulous bartenders. This is a seated event, so get there early to save your spot. For more information, visit Spiller’s webpage.

 

#ArtLitPhx: Spillers No. 4

spillers4

Spillers is Phoenix’s premier short fiction storytelling event. Spillers organizers pick 6 of Phoenix’s best writers, put them on a stage, feature them in 2 episodes of the Spillers After Show podcast, and publish their stories in a collectible book available the night of the event.

The event takes place Monday, May 2nd, 2016 @ 7:30 PM in the Crescent Ballroom.

The Spillers are:

1. Joel Salcido: Joel translates the poetry of the barrio pigeons into surrealist prophecies. He is an MFA candidate in poetry at Arizona State University, and a member of the Gutta Collective, ARTRATs, and Chronic Illness.

2. Michael Holladay: Michael was born and raised in Kentucky. He is an MFA candidate at Arizona State University. His fiction has appeared or is forthcoming in The Saint Ann’s Review, Paper Darts, Fiction Southeast, and elsewhere.

3. David Waid: David has two published short stories available on Amazon: Wicked and Loving Lies and Festival of Rogues. His debut novel, The Conjurers, is currently available for pre-order and publishes on June 1st.

4. Tara Ison: Tara is the author of the novels, A Child out of Alcatraz, The List, and Rockaway, the award-winning essay collection, Reeling Through Life: How I Learned to Live, Love, and Die at the Movies, and the short story collection Ball. She is an Associate Professor of Fiction at ASU.

5. Paul Mosier: Paul’s fourth novel was acquired by HarperCollins as part of a two-book deal. The middle-grade Train I Ride will appear everywhere on January 10, 2017, and an even more depressing novel will come a year after that.

6. Matt Bell: Matt is the author of the novels Scrapper and In the House upon the Dirt between the Lake and the Woods, as well as several other books. His next story collection, A Tree or a Person or a Wall, will be published in Fall 2016. A native of Michigan, he now teaches creative writing at Arizona State University.

Crescent Ballroom is a 21+ venue, so review the entrance policies on their website. The event is ticketed.

All ticket sale proceeds go to the Harmony Mosier GoFundMe campaign.

Spillers Website | Facebook Event | Tickets

#ArtLitPhx: Spillers No. 3

ssOriginal Short Fiction by Phoenix’s Best Writers: Six local writers perform their best short stories for fiction fans. The Spillers are:

1. Keith Rawson, reading “Temporary Man of the House” Keith is the author of the short story collection “The Chaos We Know” (SnubNose Press) and coeditor of the anthology “Crime Factory: The First Shift.”

2. Troy Farah, reading “A Curious Animal” Troy is a regular contributor to the Phoenix New Times and Vice Magazine.

3. Ed Tankersley, reading “Until This Is Over” Ed is working on a novel and his work has previously appeared in Four Chambers Issue 2.

4. Leah Newsom, reading “On Walking Downhill” Leah is a recent graduate of ASU’s Creative Writing program and cofounder of the online journal Spilled Milk.

5. James David Nicol, reading “Wings” David has written two novels and is working on the third in the series.

6. Patrick Michael Finn, reading “The War in the Rack” Patrick’s short story collection From the Darkness Right Under Our Feet won the 2009 Hudson Prize and was named Best Book of 2011 by GQ Magazine Prize.

In the meantime, check out the Spillers After Show podcast, featuring exclusive interviews with the writers at www.spillersaftershow.com.

Crescent Ballroom is a 21+ venue, so review the entrance policies on their website. The event is free and will take place in the ballroom. You can join the facebook event via our events page. Spillers is cohosted by Robert Hoekman Jr and Brian Dunn.
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