Fall Break

Okay, I know. Fall break was, like, more than a week ago. But I just wanted to take a minute to say that I'm sure I'm not the only one who's starting to sink into that feeling like there was so much I aimed to do this semester, and now the thing is half-over so before I know it, it'll be over and I haven't even done anything of what it was I set out to do.

As for the Candid Yak, and I can't speak for my other co-coordinators, I feel enthusiasm dwindling. Audience turnout has not been ideal. Even for the open mic, although we did have some spectacular readers. It was casual and fun, and we went out for a drink after. So that's another reason to come to the Yaks, it's a chance to go out afterward and hang out with fellow creative and wacky writer-types.

Anyway, with Halloween festivities this weekend, there is no yak, but get ready for November, baby! We've got some great writers on tap for these upcoming readings, that's for sure. Go see the schedule at candidyak.gmu.edu for details, bios, and photos.

Listen

Last night's reading went well. Grace Kwon, overcoming her fear of reading out loud, was amazing. Her writing was precise and beautiful in a simple and endearing way. And her voice was so clear and focused that if she hadn't stated at the start of her reading how she was doing this to overcome her fears, we as an audience never would have guessed at her nervousness.

I was nervous, probably most because my parents were in the audience. I was extremely grateful to Tammy for her heartfelt introduction, and even though all the complimentary things she said were probably true, it was also intimidating to have to live up to my own reputation. I was nervous, my throat was dry, but the audience, though small, was filled with admiring ears, and I did my best to keep focus through the cafe noises of blending and the crushing of ice.

Collin gave a nice overview of what we hope will happen for the Storytelling night in December, and it's too bad that so many of our Yak supporters missed his little spiel. I'm not the one to really ask about it, being more poet-y and less story-y, but if you're interested in participating, email us or talk to Collin or Alexis.

If you're sorry you missed me, I know I will be signing up for the Open Mic Yak on October 14, and everyone who hasn't had a chance to freak out about reading their work in front of people should bring a short piece to share and take five minutes to expose themselves. It's scary and thrilling and a lot of fun. And five minutes is a lot less freaky than 15-20, I'll tell you that.

Last Minutes

Thanks to Laura and Collin, who will hopefully be helping me pull my shit together tonight, filling in for Khloe and Alexis.

There's been a change in lineup for tonight's reading. It will be Grace Kwon reading Fiction and Sara Deacon reading Poetry, with a short break between. Unfortunately, our nonfiction reader had to cancel at the last minute, so we'll have some time to mess around with, if our audience so desires.

There is always an open mic to end the Yaks, and if there was ever a time to sign up to read for a few minutes, tonight's the night. It should be a fantabulous reading, even if you're too chicken to share, so come on out if you're in town.

Jazzman's Cafe, 7:30, tonight.

Sunday's Yak

A little recap:

We were originally scheduled to be in the Grand Tier part of the Center for the Arts. Well, Sunday morning, we all got an email saying how that spot had been reserved for a reception for the afternoon's recital. We were moved to a wing of the lobby, where chairs and a podium were provided. No microphone.

Turned out that the lobby is loud. Voices carry. We started the reading trying to have our readers shout, project, or otherwise individually attempt to enhance their volume. It didn't work. So, Bill Miller was kind enough to convince the CFA staff to let us into the big concert hall. Then, we had ourselves a reading.

It was kind of an intimidating space to occupy, but the sound was excellent, although I personally do prefer the intimacy of locations like Jazzman's, the Bistro, or other cafe-type venues.

Pictures should be going up on the website within the next day or so. And I apologize for the quality, my little Coolpix doesn't quite have the zoom capacity a space like the Concert hall requires.

Yak @ Fall for the Book--TODAY

Please join us at 5:00pm in the wing of the lobby of Center for the Arts for another spectacular Candid Yak performance.

Our readers will be:

Kevin "Jive Talkin" Stoy reading Poetry
Kati "Night Fever" Fargo reading Fiction
and Art "Boogie Child" Taylor reading Nonfiction

Come for the Candid Yak, stay for Tim O'Brien at 7:00--you don't even have to leave the building!

You can keep up with the Candid Yak and all our shennanigans at http://candidyak.gmu.edu./ Please email candidyak@gmail.com with any questions/concerns/compliments. Thanks.

One Yak Down

Well, the first Yak went very well for a first anything. The amplification system was a little bit late in its arrival to the venue, but overall, we had few hitches in the excitement. Here are some photos:


Brian Heston


Sara Henning


Wendy Bilen


Alexis Santi--the lone open mic reader

From this point forward, there will be a reader rotation, which means that each genre will take turns in each time position. Therefore, the order of readers listed on the main website schedule will not necessarily be the order in which they appear. When I'm doing the flyers, however, I am putting the readers down in the order that they will read. So, the flyer is right, and the website might not always be.

That is all.

The First Yak

To kick off the Candid Yak readings this year, we will have with us at Jazzman's Cafe in the basement of the Johnson Center:

• Brian Heston reading Fiction
• Sara Henning reading Poetry
• Wendy Bilen reading Nonfiction

Brian is a 3rd year MFA Fiction writer in the program. Sara Henning is a 2nd year poet, who has been published in several well-known journals. And Wendy is a 3rd year Nonfiction student and also teaches at NOVA.

We still have spots open for the Fall for the Book festival reading, which will be an excellent opportunity to reach an enthusiastic audience. Email us if you're interested!

We also still have room for Fiction and Nonfiction readers throughout the fall semester. If you don't feel up for doing a fifteen minute reading, come by the event and sign up for our open mic. There's one with every Yak.