Outreach report: The Not-So-Silent Planet [MN]

This month I had the chance to see the work of the folks at Word Sprout who organize The Not-So-Silent Planet.

As a regular event, The Not-So-Silent Planet currently holds the distinction of being the longest-running speculative literature slam in Minneapolis, Minnesota at the famed Kieran’s Pub. We’ll have to do some research to verify, but so far it seems like it may also well be the longest-running speculative literature slam in the country or even the cosmos. But then again, space is a very big place.

Typically held in the Poet’s Room at Kieran’s, it’s an evocative space with great energy and a supportive and enthusiastic audience. For an October reading they had almost a dozen readers and audience members including their special guest Kyle Dekker, organizer Phillip Andrew Bennett Low, and Riawa Thomas-Smith. There was a good mix of poetry, short stories, flash fiction, and experimental works.

Parking can be a little nerve-wracking given its downtown location, but not impossible. The food available is reasonably priced with your best bets being the burgers or their fish and chips.

In July they organized the first CONvergence Poetry Slam which drew a very large crowd with a good, energetic banter and audience engagement that was supportive of many different styles and techniques.

Overall, if you’re in the Minneapolis area and you want to either read some of your work or just listen to others, this is well worth checking out, and I hope it won’t be too long before we see other speculative literature slams emerge elsewhere across the country.