What started as a way to practice public speaking has turned into a large gathering of literary lovers across the Tampa Bay area. Wordier Than Thou, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting writers and readers in the Tampa Bay, is in its 10th year of finding new ways to encourage people to embrace their wordier side. From drag shows to improv nights, the group is always up to something unique, literary, and fun.
What is Wordier Than Thou?
Founder Tiffany Razzano has been working in local journalism for over 16 years, but she never felt quite comfortable speaking in public. So, to better her speaking skills, she thought an open mic night among friends might be fun. This was the birth of Wordier Than Thou.
“When it started, it was just a prose-only, open mic series. Fiction and non-fiction story telling,” Razzano states.
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She was surprised by how many people showed up for those first events, and it has only grown from there. People were clearly looking for a literary community and this was it. Now there’s a Literary Open Mic hosted once a month at Studio@620 in St. Pete. Attendees are encouraged to bring their finest prose or true story to share. Each reader gets 10 minutes to speak, and the event is limited to 10 speakers. Speakers are chosen at random. Creativity is obviously encouraged.
“Book events don’t need to look a certain way. You don’t need that sort of stuffy, inaccessible type of thing,” Razzano says, “We could play with it a little bit more. We could encourage people to engage with books and words and stories in different ways.”
Beyond book readings
While open mic night is how the group started, they have expanded to many other creative endeavors. With the goal of getting people to engage with books, especially those written by local authors, here are just some events Wordier Than Thou has hosted recently:
- Camp Wordier — A murder mystery game inspired by ’80s summer camps and slasher movies. Participants had to work together to find the murderer before the camp reopened.
- Walk & Write (or Read) — Part writing workshop, part silent read-in, part walking tour of St. Pete, part pub crawl. This event combined all four and attendees got to see the waterfront of St. Pete.
- Read No More — A literary haunted house. An immersive theater project featuring short scary plays–each written by a local author–staged in a different room of a home.
- Drag Shows — Sometimes the theme is Harry Potter and burlesque. Sometimes it’s celebrating diversity in children’s books and it’s kid-friendly. All drag performances are full of fun.
This list goes on. If you check out there Facebook page you will find a new and interesting event just around the corner. One of their biggest events actually deals with the business/marketing side of book writing. It’s called the Tampa Bay Publishing Conference, and it helps writers learn the ins and outs of publishing from Florida authors and industry professionals. This event focuses on a different side of writing that not all authors think about.
“What I found over the years, after a lot of writers will get their books published, whether it’s with a small press or self-published, they don’t know really what to do after that,” Razzano explains. The Publishing Conference is a way for writers to learn about the business side of things. So much promotion for books falls on the shoulders of the author, and the Conference is there to help.
Creating community
Razzano isn’t sure if she’s a better public speaker, but she is proud of what Wordier Than Thou has become. She has created a community of literary lovers that help people from all walks of life engage with books. With the help of an excellent board/group of friends, she is able to put on these unique events. Razzano says Wordier couldn’t exist without them and the talented folks who read or perform at their events.
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Their next open mic is on June 14, at 8 p.m at The Studio@620 in St. Pete. Their next big event is Can’t Ban Pride: A Drag Showcase Celebrating Banned Books. In this event, 2 drag performers are going to embody a different banned work with some local authors expected to attend. It’s a free performance at Punky’s Bar and Grill in St. Pete. from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday, June 10. And Razzano and her group of Wordier friends are sure to think of something else exciting soon.
“Coming up with these concepts and pulling folks together to make cool things happen for the community is a lot of fun for me.”
