Category Archives: Interview

WORD’s Jenn Northington and Stephanie Anderson on Book Clubs

Posted on by

WORD BookstoreBrooklyn’s WORD bookstore is a vital part of the New York City literary landscape. Known for its innovative events and a carefully curated book collection that varies from children’s picture books to cookbooks to literary fiction, this store in the Greenpoint neighborhood is also home to several lively book clubs.

Upcoming book club meetings at WORD:

Music writing, Saturday, June 9th at 3pm
Wodehouse Sunday, June 24th at 3pm

We interviewed event coordinator Jenn Northington and former store manager Stephanie Anderson about the WORD book club experience.

What is the importance of book clubs?
We don’t always get time to gush (or rant) about books with other readers, so book clubs are a great way to carve some out.

Were you always a book club person?
Neither of us has ever been in a book group outside of the store, actually.

What made you start up a club at WORD?
It’s something Christine started when the store first opened, and we’ve been doing it ever since. It’s a cool opportunity to not only get the aforementioned rant/rave time, but to introduce customers to each other. It also helps us promote books that we love, that people might not pick up otherwise.

How many book clubs does WORD host?
Right now, there are four groups that meet at WORD. Two (our Book Group and Classics Book Group) are led by staff, and two (the Music Writing and Wodehouse book groups) are led by neighborhood folks/friends of the store.

What do you like best about hosting?
It’s really fun to hear everyone’s thoughts on a book — opinions often differ wildly, and both of us have been talking into loving a book more by club members. There are always surprises!

What can people expect when they come to your meetings?
Good conversation, well-read comrades, and often pastries!

Are there perks to joining your groups? (i.e. discounts?)
All our book group picks are 10% off the month leading up to their discussion.

What was the last book that went over well?
We had a great discussion about The Lifespan of a Fact; not everyone liked it, by a longshot, but there were so many different angles to examine it from, and everyone had a different take on the book’s message and intention.

Have any books not been a hit with the club? How do those conversations differ?
Actually, when people don’t like a book we have more to talk about it. There’s only so many different ways you can say “I loved it!,” but there are a million different ways to pick apart something you didn’t like.

How do you decide what to read next?
There is no method to our madness. Sometimes we literally walk around the bookstore looking at the shelves, asking each other “What about this one?” We do also have a list of things that are coming out in paperback, or things the groups have expressed interest in, but it’s often mere whim. Within the whims, we try to make sure we have an even distribution of genre, male vs. female authors, foreign authors, independent presses and big publishers, so that people get to pick up things they might otherwise overlook.

Book Stalker Julia Bartz on Literary Events in New York City

Posted on by

Julia BartzJulia Bartz is a vital facet of New York City’s literary event scene as both blogger and reader. For over a year she has shared reading recaps, interviews with authors and event coordinators, and weekly literary listings on Book Stalker, her blog. She is also a fiction writer, and can be found at several literary events each week, as well as on Twitter.

What is Book Stalker? When and why did you start it?
BookStalker’s my blog, though I’m delighted that it has also become my second moniker (“Julia the Bookstalker”) and a verb (“I’ve been bookstalked!”). Back in February 2011 I was wracking my brains to come up with an exciting, somewhat unique blog idea. I wanted it to relate to my love of writing, but I thought it’d be boring to write about myself (“Wrote 1500 words today. Good day.“). It finally hit me that I should be writing about all the readings I was already attending.

I find literary events fascinating, especially those involving authors I’ve already formed a picture of based on their writing. Plus, there’s always the potential for weird stuff to happen—awkward questions, public urination, etc. I thought that people who couldn’t make certain events (for scheduling and/or geographical reasons) might enjoy experiencing them second-hand.

What makes a literary event attractive to you?
A talented upcoming or established writer. A fun, interactive crowd. A reading or discussion that makes time fly by. And, uh, free beer and wine.

What has been your most memorable event?
In February I celebrated BookStalker’s one-year anniversary by sharing ten of my most memorable literary moments. It’s tough to pick one, but the event with Emma Straub shifted my perspective from seeing authors as distant, public figures to friendly people who might live in my neighborhood. Plus, Emma’s parents signed my book, so that was cool.

What event do you still kick yourself for missing?
I try to mentally block out all that I’ve missed, as I inevitably miss a lot. A week or two ago I missed Lauren Groff, Patti Smith, Sugar of The Rumpus and Cheryl Strayed, all in one week. I always tell myself I’ll see them the next time around.

Favorite venue(s) and reading series? Why?
I feel so lucky to have access to well-established indie bookstores that pull in big authors but also offer quirky panels and debut launch parties. I love them all, but a few that I can always rely on for good times are WORD, McNally Jackson, Housing Works Bookstore Cafe and Community Bookstore. There’s also 192 Books, Center for Fiction, Book Thug Nation and Bluestockings for cool and often specialized events.

I also appreciate reading series for their relaxed and convivial atmosphere. Some of my faves include Vol. 1 Brooklyn, Largehearted Lit, Mixer Music and Reading, Freerange Nonfiction, Pete’s Candy Store and InDigest.

Who do you wish would come around to read?
I adore A.S. Byatt. What a brilliant woman! I’m hoping she tours for her next book.

Why did you start interviewing authors?
In meeting local authors and other literary folk I’ve heard some hilarious behind-the-scenes tales, and I wanted to share them with my readers. I have an upcoming BookStalked post that involves an Estonian performance art group taking a chainsaw to a shrine of books (that incident happened at Book Thug Nation). It’s also just really fun for me—recently I interviewed a close friend, Phil Edwards, by pretending to be an obnoxious, possibly drunk audience member peppering him with questions.

Who would you love to interview but are afraid to approach?
Margaret Atwood springs to mind. I saw her read last fall (she also gave a Powerpoint presentation of her childhood), and she was really funny and sly. But when I got my book signed, she didn’t even look up at me. I felt I’d missed the chance to bond with one of my biggest heroes. I should probably just tweet at her.

You recently read at a Vol. 1 Brooklyn event. How was it being on the other side?
Every reading I’ve done this year has started with me worrying I’m going to pass out. It’s getting easier, but I still have great appreciation for authors who not only read, but who really kill it—Ann Patchett and Colson Whitehead come to mind.

What was the last great book you read?
Recently I’ve been alternating classic and current works. I became pretty obsessed with Sentimental Education, not least because angsty Frederic seemed like someone I could run into in modern-day Brooklyn. And as for new fiction, I just finished Leigh Stein’s The Fallback Plan, which had me chuckling on literally every page. She captures parent/adult child relationships perfectly.

Spying on CoverSpy

Posted on by

In October 2009, after the opening of Greenlight Books, the idea for CoverSpy was hatched. Soon “a team of publishing nerds” were running around New York, chronicling the city’s public reading habits.

For a little over 3 years now, everyday this group goes incognito onto subways, through streets, and in parks and bars to get a read on the our literary thermometer. Using Tumblr, Facebook, and Twitter, they deliver the results almost in real time.

Here Book Boroughing speaks with two of CoverSpy’s founders about the project’s origins, who’s reading what on which subway, and the best books they’ve ever spied.

How would you describe CoverSpy at a party?
A: CoverSpy is a project where we spy what people are reading on subways and around the city and report what we see on our website. Sometimes, especially at publishing events or hanging with fellow book nerds, we mention CoverSpy and people already know about us or maybe even follow us on Tumblr, which is an awesome feeling.

How did you come up with the idea?
T: We were at a bar with some colleagues from Slice magazine, talking about the number of ereaders and Kindle ads we were seeing on our commutes. This was in 2009 when e-readers weren’t yet as common as they are today. We talked about our fears of someday looking around a train car and only seeing cold ereader screens, not beautifully worn book covers, and not being able to tell what the person next to us was reading.

A: We wondered if there were something we could do to encourage people to keep reading books, so the idea to create a website where we posted what people were reading, sort of Missed Connections–style was born.

Has it grown since you started?
A: In the beginning, there were just two of us spying and we had a whole 8 followers for months before our friends started sharing the site with their friends and it got attention from GalleyCat and SwissMiss and then (boom!) we grew from there. We currently have about 15 secret agents spying for us and have over 12,000 followers on Tumblr, a few thousand more followers on Facebook and Twitter.

You’re on all three major social media platforms, I’m interested in how you use these.
A: CoverSpy began with a Twitter account where we tweeted the title, author, and a brief description of the reader. At some point we began adding photos of the covers and then expanded to Tumblr, which was the perfect platform to showcase the range of covers we spy each week.

CoverSpy and Tumblr seem like a natural fit. What have been some of the format’s benefits?
T: Tumblr is great because of the ease with which people can reblog and comment. Watching people get excited about the books we post is one of the coolest things about this project. People talk about whether they loved or hated that book. They recall reading it. They comment that they’re in love with the person we’ve described reading it. It’s hilarious.

What about Twitter and Facebook?
A: With Twitter we have the ability to engage in conversations by @replying to authors whose books we’ve spied and communicating with people who want to begin a CoverSpy outpost in their city. But the nature of Twitter is that tweets show up in a stream and then disappear rather quickly, limiting the amount of interaction people have with our posts. We started a Facebook page to keep people informed about our events, like I Like Your Glasses and other literary happenings they might be interested in.

Since Book Boroughing people like to go to literary events, can you explain “I Like Your Glasses” for those who aren’t familiar. It’s a great idea.
T: Last year we teamed up with Alikewise (dating site that matches people by their book tastes) and threw a series of informal soirees at Housing Works Bookstore called “I Like Your Glasses.” The idea was inspired by people’s comments on some of our CoverSpy posts–their comments along with our posts read like Missed Connections, and we thought it’d be fun to throw a party to get people mixing and mingling! It seemed like that’s what they wanted to do.

“I Like Your Glasses” isn’t just for singles looking for relationships. People show up who are looking to connect with other readers, listen to the readings, or drink the three-dollar Sixpoint beer. All proceeds go to Housing Works Bookstore, by the way, so it’s also a benefit.

You’ve been doing this for a few years now, you must see trends. What are a few you’ve noticed?
A: When a book is on the NY Times Best Seller’s List we often see it being read around the city for months following. From Colum McCann’s Let the Great World Spin to Stieg Larsson’s novels, they are very popular for a time and then are read less and less, replaced by the next big hit. People on the Q train love Malcolm Gladwell, people on the F train love Jonathan Lethem and are usually carrying either an NPR or Strand tote bag. There are more self-help books on the L train.

T: People love it when we post a children’s book. They love it even more when it’s an adult reading one–like Sweet Valley Twins. That got a lot of comments.

Do you have a favorite train for cover spying?
T: Everyone’s reading on the F train, so that makes it easy.

A: The covers on the L train tend to be the prettiest, most highly designed which I appreciate. But I think the G train is my favorite because of the range of books read on it. I’m often introduced to authors I never knew existed on that line more than others.

I’ve always wondered, you also feature ebooks, how do you know what people are reading? Do you ever ask?
T: Oftentimes when we spy an ereader we don’t say what they’re reading, because we don’t know. If anyone ever does post what book is on someone’s ereader, I think they’ve leaned over and read the running head on their screen. We don’t typically ask people what they’re reading, because that would compromise the agent’s cover.

Are there any thoughts to growing CoverSpy? I hear people in other cities are starting to create their own local sites.
A: In the past we’ve made connections with people in other cities and helped them start sites in Washington, DC, Buenos Aires, and London. It is such a fun thing to share this project with people all over the world, connecting over a shared love of books. Sometimes people begin their own versions of the project without being in touch with us; we’ve seen them pop up in Denver, Kiev, and in Japan. Although we prefer if people contacted us before using our name, that feels outside of our control. In the end, it’s cool that people are inspired by what we started.

Best book you’ve ever spied?
T: It was some steamy romance novel being read by an off-duty MTA worker—can’t remember the title.Or maybe the guy who was holding one sunflower and ten pink balloons. Again, I don’t remember which book it was. Sometimes it’s the people that stand out.

A: I get a lot of joy out of spying kids reading on the subway, so pretty much put a kid in front of me with Beverly Cleary or Harry Potter and that’s my favorite.

What was the last great book you read?
A: Not many books in the world can top Simon Van Booy’s The Secret Lives of People in Love, although Nicole Krauss’s The History of Love comes close.

T: Ha. That’s funny because I was going to say that I just finished Simon Van Booy’s Everything Beautiful Began After. And it was pretty great.

Event Coordinator and Literary Publicist Lauren Cerand on Upstairs at the Square and Author Events

Posted on by

Lauren Cerand is a literary publicist extraordinaire and the event coordinator behind one of New York City’s most talked about reading series, Upstairs at the Square, held monthly at Barnes & Noble’s Union Square store.

She can be found at her website, blog, and on Twitter.

At the next Upstairs at the Square event on Wednesday, February 15th, author Edward St. Aubyn will read from his new novel At Last and singer-songwriter Joseph Arthur will perform, and both will be interviewed by Katherine Lanpher.

What makes the Upstairs at the Square event special?

I always describe it, for people who haven’t been to one, or done one before, as a live talk show in a perfect world where the most talented people in society appear on television in prime-time. Like France. Also, we have room for you and your friends, and it’s free. If you miss a show, you can watch them a few days later when they’re posted at www.bn.com/upstairs or get the podcast at iTunes.

What qualities do you look for in authors and musicians for this event?

Katherine has an illustrious background in radio and impressed upon me the importance of being a “good talker.” It’s more than a mini-concert or a very well-curated reading, or an interview, although it is all of those things. People game to try out the concept, even if it’s a new format for them. No divas, ever. The staff work too hard to deal with that after a long day.

What can we expect from Edward St. Aubyn & Joseph Arthur on Wednesday?

I’ll be a surprised as you, honestly. It’s a live show! I did tell my boss at B&N today [Brenda Marsh, head of author relations] that when Joseph sings, she’ll totally get it as a fan of Edward. That confluence of creativity is always the goal.

You are both a publicist who books authors for reading events as well as a literary event coordinator. What advice would you give publicists who are adding events to their authors’ calendars? Advice for event coordinators?

Be exclusive. Book the biggest show you can. Nobody enjoys doing ten appearances with ten people at each one –– not the stores, not the organizers, and especially not the talent. For event coordinators, be clear and concise about what you expect, and understand that anxiety is a natural part of life, even when it manifests itself in confounding ways. Be nice.

photo courtesy of laurencerand.com

Brooklyn Author Myke Cole on Social Media, Publicity, and Local Writing Spots

Posted on by

In their review, the popular science fiction website SF Signal called Myke Cole’s debut novel, Shadow Ops: Control Point, “A promising start with a new take on fantasy and military fiction.” Mixing his military experience with science fiction and fantasy, Myke gives protagonist Oscar Britton, an army officer in Vermont, a talent for opening portals — a development that takes him from member of the military to fugitive.

Myke is a local author living in Brooklyn and a prolific writer. Since the publication of his book earlier this month anyone who follows science fiction sites has probably found it hard to ignore him. He answered a few of our questions on social media, publicity, and his favorite places to write.

On Tuesday, March 7th Myke will be in conversation with authors Bob Howe and Saladin Ahmed at The SoHo Gallery for Digital Art (138 Sullivan Street, NYC). Doors open at 6:30, discussion at 7pm.

Your bio is fascinating. You’ve done three tours in Iraq , worked in Counterterrorism, Cyber Warfare, Federal Law Enforcement, and went to the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 during the BP oil spill. You book, Shadow Ops, is military science fiction infused with paranormal elements. How does your background relate to your writing?

I greatly appreciate the sentiment, but I don’t know how fascinating it is. There are literally thousands of men and women with a hell of a lot more experience in crisis-response than I have. I’ve had the pleasure of serving alongside them, and that experience has shaped every aspect of my writing. There’s the obvious creative influences: each of my characters is created based on elements (good and bad) I witnessed first hand in the people around me in Iraq and at home during domestic disaster response. Much of the creative elements in CONTROL POINT are a natural outgrowth of my nerd interests (fantasy and SF novels, comic books, video games, etc . . .) blended with what I’ve seen in my military/disaster response work.

But the military has also shaped me personally, instilling a sense of discipline and urgency that has been critical to my success as a writer. I did a recent 2-part series on this for tor.com. You can read the first part here.

Did your background help when it came to pitching your book to agents and publishing houses? How about with your publicity campaign so far?

I’d actually say that my military background worked against me in the publicity arena. The military is an OPSEC (operational security) culture. Unless you are designated public affairs personnel, the less you are saying in public, the better. My networking with agents and publishers, and my publicity campaign has been far more a function of a naturally gregarious personality. I also honestly think something is wrong with my nervous system. I sleep very, very little. The hamster will. not. stop. running.

I don’t doubt it, I’ve seen you everywhere. You’ve contributed original essays to popular science fiction sites such as Ink Punks and to John Scalzi’s Whatever blog. I’ve also seen you on other authors’ websites. Can you talk about contributions both as a promotional tool and as a way to forge relationships with fellow writers and authors?

I am cautiously optimistic/pleased with how strong the signal has been in the month of January (the month leading up to the book’s release). I have joked with friends that it has been “Myke Month” and that even *I* am getting sick of hearing about myself. I *think* it has had a positive impact on people hearing about the book and first week’s sales. But the truth is that I don’t know. The impact of social media is still evolving and I was just discussing with my agent that we have no way to tell if I am getting a “big” Twitter reception or not. This is because we have no idea what “big” means in this arena. With more and more users flocking to the system every day (and the rate at which it’s diversifying – Google + anyone? Death of MySpace?), there’s just no relative standard by which to judge. I’ve gotten a lot of reviews, but with new review sites going up every day, how do you tell if it’s really “a lot” or not?

But the process has been really, really simple and it’s absolutely repeatable by other writers: I did the following -

  • I quit my day job to give myself the time necessary to really go after this.
  • I said yes to EVERYTHING. Every request for interview, guest post, podcast appearance, convention programming slot. EVERYTHING. YES. I WILL DO IT.
  • I accept the fact that ALL of this is on my dime. I spend freely on it.
  • For those sites/shows/cons that don’t invite me, I go to them and ask (nicely) if they will have me on. If it’s a big venue that doesn’t know me, I send my publicist or agent after them.

Easy-peasy. You just have to want it really badly.
And I do.
Really.
Badly.

Do you find that science fiction and fantasy authors have a leg up in this department — a large, supportive fan and media base that is Internet and social media savvy?

Not at all. We like to *think* that we do, but go on Twitter and compare the number of followers that Snooki or Lil’ Wayne has to the number of followers Neil Gaiman (often thought of as the Twitter beacon of the SF/F community). I love Neil to death, but the numbers say everything. Now, that said, SF/F fandom is the basis for everything writers do in this community. Most of us came up from fandom (I know I did), and without fans, I wouldn’t have a career. Social media is a fantastic way to stay in touch with them (both for my own social reasons and to promote my work), but it’s the same way rock stars and TV celebrities are keeping in touch with their MUCH larger pool of fans as well.

I do see you on Twitter a lot. What’s been your experience with it as an author?

Twitter has been an undeniable boon for my career. But the truth is that I spend most of my life alone hunkered over my computer (except when I’m on duty with the guard), so Twitter is also my main social outlet. I’m happy to have Twitter for work purposes, but I NEED it to stay in touch with other nerds and keep from sliding into the maudlin pit of loneliness that awaits all writers.

Any tips for other authors?
My Twitter “tips” are pretty straightforward:

  • I try to tweet around 10 times a day (usually less) throughout the day, spaced out.
  • I don’t just tweet career related promotional stuff. I am sure to tweet about things I like and am interested in that have nothing to do with me as a writer.
  • I respond to as many @’s and DMs as I possibly can.
  • I *never* tweet about politics or religion. I want people focusing on my writing, not being distracted by my personal positions.
  • I make sure that all my tweets automatically populate my Facebook and Google+ status. If (as often happens) that doesn’t work, I do it manually.

Do you have a set writing schedule or an effective habit?

I DID have a schedule, but it has absolutely gone to hell as CONTROL POINT came out and the work of marketing/promoting it has spun up. I’m at the point where I write whenever I possibly can, which is a rapidly shrinking window. You can refer to the tor.com article I mentioned earlier for a discussion of discipline, self-denial and embracing misery.

Bottom line: Don’t play video games.

Do you have a favorite place to write in the area or a place to hang out when you’re done writing?

  • My apartment in Flatbush. If you want to stalk me there, wear body armor. It’s not a nice neighborhood.
  • The *awesome* coffee shop Qathra on Cortelyou Road further south. HIGHLY recommend this place as a writer’s retreat. They are super friendly to writers, even if you want to sit all day. The wifi is reliable, the prices are reasonable and the coffee is fantastic.
  • The Rose Reading Room at the New York Public Library. What an amazing space for any quiet endeavor. Please consider volunteering or donating!

::[Further Reading]::
Buy Myke’s book, Shadow Ops: Control Point, at IndieBound or find it at your local indie
Read an excerpt at Tor.com
Read Myke’s blog post on his site about how he makes writing full-time work financially
Myke’s Big Idea post at John Scalzi’s site
Listen to Myke on the Functional Nerds podcast
Read Myke’s interview with Chuck Wendig at Terrible Minds

Talking with Shalom Auslander, author of “Hope: A Tragedy”

Posted on by

Having come onto the literary scene with his darkly funny short story collection, “Beware of God,” and then later publishing the much-praised memoir “Foreskin’s Lament,” Shalom Auslander is now a novelist as well. “Hope: A Tragedy,” published early January, has garnered critical acclaim.

Janet Maslin, in her review for The New York Times called it “staggeringly nervy,” a suitable description for a story that imagines Anne Frank still alive and voluntarily living in an attic in the rural town of Stockton, New York.

David Ulin, in his review for the Los Angeles Times, said that Auslander is “onto something.” To find out what the is, you’ll have to come out to McNally Jackson on Thursday, February 2nd where he’ll be in conversation with Bookslut’s founder and editor, Jessa Crispin.

Shalom took some time out of his busy tour schedule to answer a few questions.

You mention in your interview with Leonard Lopate that you got into reading as a kid when you found a bookstore near your bus stop. Can you talk about what books you found there, why they appealed to you, and how they’ve influenced your own writing?
Well, I only went in because it was better than standing outside at the bus stop with the Chassidim heading back to my community. But books had always been a window for me to the outside world, and so it was almost as “wrong” to be in there as it had been to be in the porno stores I had just been visiting. The first book I bought there was “I Would Have Saved Them If I Could,” by Leonard Michaels, and I remember reading this story about a bunch of kids who go on the roof of their apartment building to spy on their rabbi having sex with his wife. He spots them, and in their panic, one slips and falls and dies. And I thought, “Holy shit. I like this.”

You’ve been touring around a bit for this book, any tips for fellow authors? Travel or otherwise?
They know what you’re doing with the body lotion.

You’ll be in conversation with Jessa Crispin from Bookslut at McNally Jackson on February 2nd. Do you two know each other? 
I think you mean “BookSkank.” We go way back.

I know sometimes authors prefer events where they’re in conversation with someone rather than going at it solo. Do you have any opinions on the different formats?
I like the format where the writer on stage is someone who isn’t me.

Hope: A Tragedy features Anne Frank having escaped the Holocaust and living in a farmhouse’s attic. Has there been any backlash from readers or the press about fictionally changing her fate?
No. Because they’re all anti-Semitic Holocaust deniers.

SMITH Magazine Brings Their Moments to Greenlight This Thursday

Posted on by

Although best known for their Six-Word-Memoir series, SMITH Magazine started out as a space for longer-form storytelling. Recently, they’ve published a collection of personal essays, “The Moment: Wild, Poignant, Life-Changing Stories from 125 Writers and Artists, Famous & Obscure”.

On Thursday, January 26, founder and Editor-in-Chief, Larry Smith, will host a reading at Greenlight with just a few of the outstanding contributors. The launch at McNally Jackson earlier this month was great, we suggest you don’t miss this one.

Larry spoke with Book Boroughing about the project and mentioned an upcoming Six-Word-Memoir reading at 92Y Tribeca on February 14th that we suggest you go to as well.

SMITH Magazine is best known for its Six-Word Memoir series, what made you expand into the essay?
The longer essay form was a return to the roots of SMITH. When I launched the site in January 2006, the idea was to create a place for personal storytelling in words, first and foremost, but also in photos, comics and video. We had an unexpected success with our graphic novels (such as A.D.: New Orleans After the Deluge, which recounted the true story of even people who survived Hurricane Katrina), but words were always the soul of the site. It wasn’t like we thought we were creating some monster site like YouTube here—and I never had funding or money for marketing—but people found SMITH and liked it and we grew day by day. At the end of 2006 we launched the Six-Word Memoir project, which became a bestselling book series. Its success gave me the opportunity to post “What’s your Moment” as a new prompt, with a pretty good sense we’d make a book.

This new book, “The Moment: Wild, Poignant, Life-Changing Stories from 125 Writers and Artists, Famous & Obscure,” is a collection of personal essays from writers and artists about the moment that changed their lives. You mention that it started as a writing prompt, how did the initial idea come about?
The idea came about mainly by just listening to the kinds of stories I loved telling and hearing. I got the chance to meet people from all part of the country when we toured for the Six-Word Memoir book series and I heard one refrain again and again: “I have the most amazing story to tell you.” These stories often revolved around a very specific event that had made a very big impact on the teller’s life and led to conversations — “That’s my moment, what’s yours?” It made sense to carve out space on smithmag.net for what we called “The Moment,” which was really getting back to the original notion of SMITH being a place for longer storytelling. The stories started coming in, and they were weird and wonderful, and like six words, some version of self-expression with a touch of therapy tossed in.

What were you expecting from people and how did your assumptions compare with what was submitted?
Having done SMITH for a while, especially reading hundreds of thousands of Six-Word Memoirs, I had a pretty good sense that people would dig deep and write honest, intense, weird, surprising stories in a public space. With six words, teens tend to write very much in “the moment,” some post hundreds of six-worders on SMITHTeens.com a day, like a daily diary, and of course there’s tons of angst and drama.

I knew that the adults, especially the older set, tend to look back more wistfully at their lives revealing lessons learned, with more comfort in their skin. That largely true generalization carried over to The Moment. What I mean is that many of the stories are by adults thinking about a time in their young lives—under the age of 20, let’s say—when they understand that life is hard, unfair, full of disappointments. In a comic-drawn Moment about watching the Red Sox lose the World Series with her dad, Molly Lawless writes, “I realized there was no connection between how badly you wanted something and whether you got it.” Adults, by and large, see that imperfections in ourselves and the universe make us better. In a story about her husband Paul West’s stroke, Diane Ackerman offer this lovely passage:

“Life changed dramatically, and we changed along with it. But that’s always the secret to a long marriage, isn’t it? It’s not really one marriage but several. People change, events change them, and their life as a couple evolves. To stay together and thrive, one has to make space for those changes, including both sun and shadow.”

You mentioned you had a few guidelines, what were they?
We didn’t post any restrictions as to what constitutes a person’s “moment,” but when people asked me for guidance, I gently suggested, “No births, Bar Mitzvahs or weddings.” A few birth stories slipped in there, both, as it turns out by fathers. The opening of this NPR segment includes a clip of John Carnett reading his moment about the birth of his first son. It’s short and mesmerizing, as so many Moments are.

You put on an annual reading at the 92Y Tribeca for your Six-Word Memoirs, what do you like best about live readings?
We did four shows at 92YTribeca last year. Our next one is the annual February 14 “Six-Words on Love & Heartbreak” story show. Hearing stories come out of people, in a room full of folks who could choose to do almost anything in the world but decided to spend their night hearing strangers tell true stories about their lives, is a total high. It’s a totally different experience than reading the words on a page, hearing them on a podcast or watching them on YouTube. When live storytelling is really humming, there’s nothing like it.

What can people expect at Greenlight on January 26th?
At McNally Jackson we had an intensely packed line-up of storytellers offering their moments, or excerpts of them, in words, images and video. On paper it looked like too much content, too long a reading. And what we saw was that no one moved. The audience wasn’t just receptive, but rapt. We have an almost completely different line-up for Greenlight, and I’m expecting a similar kind of evening: powerful, personal storytelling in front of a crowd that loves it. And then we’re going to go down the street and have a party.