by VINCENT TINGUELY

The performative side of the spoken word world is showing its oats this fall, with three series up and running. Coco Café has shows on the last Sunday of each month at Quartier Latin (318 Ontario E.), and, as usual, has a theme each month. September is Coco Café “community,” October is “politics,” and November is “annoyed,” the annual rant show. Host Mahalia Verna promises regulars like Lydia Lockett, General Zod, Buttafly and Mark Harris will make appearances, and she also expects some surprise out-of-town guests.

Bringing in talent from elsewhere is also on the mind of JahSun, co-organizer of the weekly Kalmunity jam, Tuesdays at Kafé Sablo (50 St-Zotique E.). “I’ve been talking to Ottawa poet Anthony Bansfield about how to tie it in and make it a little bigger, with acts from Toronto, Ottawa, Halifax and Toronto,” says JahSun. Referring to the recent packed-out Kalmunity showcase at Sala Rossa, he continues, “Maybe every two or three months we’ll also try to do a larger show.”

Over at Casa del Popolo (4873 St-Laurent), host and organizer Ian Ferrier has Lillian Allen on tap for the Sept. 21 edition of Words and Music at the Casa, along with Voix d’Ameriques slam winner Erin May. Ferrier is hoping to make the series, which runs the third Sunday every month, more eclectic this fall. “I’m looking to do some wild experiments,” Ferrier says. “Manchilde is one of the people we’ve invited for the season, along with Corey Frost, and Shane Koyczan, who’s a winner of the North American Slam championship.” Spoken word artist Mia Brooks, Irish storyteller Mike Burns and manic comedian Mike Paterson are also on the bill this fall.

Among other shows coming up this fall, the wildly popular Kiss My Cabaret starts up on Saturday, Sept. 20 at Sala Rossa (4848 St-Laurent). Norman Nawrocki will kick some humorous cabaret-style political rants on Sept. 21 as part of the Writers in the Community series, at the Tyndale St-Georges Community Centre (876 Carré Richmond). Local scribe Taras Grescoe is on deck with Writers Out Loud on Sept. 28 at Café Pi (4137 St-Laurent). And keep your eyes and ears peeled for a mega-cabaret event as organized by Alexis O’Hara at Sala Rossa on Oct. 17.

BOOKISH YET BOMBASTIC

Among the more “bookish” events of the season, one stand-out is the launch of the Career Suicide anthology of contemporary literary humour, edited by Jon Paul Fiorentino. Hosted by David McGimpsey (who also wrote the introduction), the show will feature local contributors Mark Paterson, Sarah Steinberg, Ryan Arnold and Victoria Stanton, along with Toronto celeb Hal Niedzviecki. Sept. 14 at Blizzarts (3956-A St-Laurent), Fiorentino promises an event that’ll be “really super-ass-bombastic—it’ll be the opposite of what one expects of a literary event!”

In October, Matrix magazine’s “public domain” issue hits the shelves, and Conundrum Press is launching two new books. According to publisher Andy Brown, “Another Book About Another Broken Heart, by Julia Tausch, is almost like a spoken word novel. Originally it was a monologue—it’s very fast, spontaneous, funny, very self-aware. Joey Dubuc’s Neither Either Nor Or is a pick-your-path book with beautiful childlike illustrations throughout.” And November will see the launch of Cumulus Press’s Rising to a Tension, the second in the Tendril anthology series of books by young writers under 25. Edited by Tom Abray and Neale McDevitt, it features 13 short stories and includes a chapbook short story by Elisabeth Harvor.

The local publishing world is also gearing up for Expozine, featuring everything printable under the sun, at Relais Mont Royal (500-A Mont-Royal E.) on Oct. 25. According to co-organizer David Widgington, “It’ll be one-and-a-half times the size of last year, and there’s gonna be out-of-town people. We’re also going to be trying to make it at least half francophone.” Everyone from bédéistes to Streeteaters to Fish Piss will be there with their wares, looking to bring the word to the world at large.