During my time at CSUN, I had the opportunity to meet a plethora of talented and vivacious writers, all of whom had a profound effect on my development as a writer. I was fortunate enough to able to celebrate our wonderful literary family's achievements last year at Lit Crawl LA: North Hollywood, where I played host to CSUN's showcase event "Voices from the Valley." In addition to emcee-ing the event, the CSUN College of Humanities also asked me to write an article on the event, a publication that I only managed to discover now. Well, better late than never! Here is the article.
You can view the original article here http://www.csun.edu/humanities/humanities-newsletter-volume-9-issue-1/lit-crawl-la-noho.
CSUN Writers Make Their Voices Heard at Lit Crawl LA: NoHo
Submitted by Justin La Torre
“All you voices of the valley, let’s hear you roar!”
With those words, English professor Martin Pousson kicked off one of the opening events of Lit Crawl LA: NoHo to the clamorous chorus congregated in Gallery 800 at the historic Lankershim Arts Center. Though the Los Angeles–based word-centric extravaganza was only in its second year of celebration, support and attendance for Lit Crawl LA was already proving to be formidable, as a crowded house filled up to standing room only to lend an ear to a selection of California State University, Northridge’s elite writers in a reading session titled “Voices from the Valley.”
Focusing exclusively on established and emerging creative writers from CSUN’s undergraduate and graduate programs, Voices from the Valley boasted an impressive cast of wordsmiths. As a graduate of CSUN and emcee for the night, I was certainly no slouch myself, having been recently published in Westwind at UCLA and the last two issues of The Northridge Review. That being said, the presenters have had their work featured in publications such as Cargoes literary journal, Glimmer Train, and Los Angeles Review, and their crafts spanned the gamut from poetry to short story and even semi-biographical long fiction. In short, Voices from the Valley wasn’t just going to commence the night; it was going to rock- et right out of the gate
Presenters from the night included:
Brandon Krause, CSUN graduate whose poem “Seven Grand” was a winning piece in Hollins University’s 2014 National Undergraduate Poetry Competition and has been featured in the Spring 2014 issue of Cargoes literary journal. His short story “Coldline” was published in the Fall 2014 issue of The Northridge Review.
Karlee Johnson, CSUN alumna and co-author of the ’zine series Doggone Sentiment, and whose work has been featured in The Northridge Review and Uno Kudo magazine. Johnson and Krause each received honorable mentions from Glimmer Train Press, and they are both currently pursuing MAs in Creative Writing at San Francisco State University.
Cody Dietz, master’s candidate at CSUN who has been published in Ellipsis, Chaparral, and The Northridge Review. His chapbook placed in the finals of Split Lip’s Uppercut Chapbook Awards, and he is currently working on a full-length collection of poetry.
Gina Srmabekian, graduate student and teaching associate at CSUN who was a recent finalist of the Glimmer Train New Voices Awards. She has work published in several literary journals including Chaparral, and is described by her students as “young and pretty…and kind of mean.”
Kim Young, creative writing professor at CSUN, author of the 2011 Agha Shahid Ali Poetry Prize–winning piece “Night Radio,” and founding editor of the Southern California–based online poetry journal Chaparral. Her work has appeared in Los Angeles Review, Los Angeles Review of Books, No Tell Motel, and POOL poetry journal.
Joseph Mattson, author of story collection Eat Hell and SCIBA Fiction Award finalist novel Empty the Sun, and editor of The Speed Chronicles and Two Letters: Collection of Art and Writing Vol. 2. His work has appeared in Slake: Los Angeles-A City and Its Stories, The Rattling Wall, Ambit, Pearl, and The Fix.
From the moment the first presenter took the mic, it was clear that a vibrant spark had ignited the air. The colors and rich- ness that mark the writing culture of Los Angeles seemed to congeal and condense within the small swanky mecca of Gallery 800 as the eyes and ears of nearly a hundred captivated audience members drank in the words of CSUN’s literary best. From the quiet yet cutting honesty of Krause’s “Seven Grand” to Mattson’s sardonic and scorning sketch of his story’s antihero “Lenny Kablinski,” there was no slowing down the rhythm or the poignancy of the night’s tone, which rang with a satisfying mixture of profoundness and profanity. My personal favorites were Dietz’s beautifully tragic family- inspired pieces “Treehouses” and “Ritual,” as well as Johnson’s rendition of “Truth Ingest,” which had me silently mouthing “whoa” to myself every few lines.
When all was said and done, Voices from the Valley proved to be a re- sounding victory not just for CSUN and its writers, but for the whole of the L.A. writing scene. With such a warm and receptive response to fresh and upcoming literary talent, there is no question that the future of stories as art burns as bright and as hot as the spirits and sparks of these young voices.
“Voices from the Valley was a true testament to the potency and variety of the work coming out of CSUN’s creative writing program,” Dietz proudly proclaims. “I am honored to have read with such a talented bunch of writers and poets, and we really couldn’t ask for a more supportive community.”
“It was an honor to be a part of Lit Crawl. I loved seeing the city open up to words, and hope that it continues to grow each year,” Johnson adds.
Professor Martin Pousson, former instructor of and adviser to many of these talented individuals, says he couldn’t be more proud. “The CSUN Voices from the Valley team generated loud buzz by flashing bold colors,” Pousson says. “Their range, their poise, and the infinite variety in their creative writing form the hallmark of our students’ success. They dare to defy convention, to cross boundaries, to blur borders. We should all expect to hear a great deal more from these writers.”
Justin La Torre ’13 (Creative Writing) has been published in CSUN’s Northridge Review and UCLA’s Westwind. He has received an Honorable Mention from Glimmer Train Press and was a finalist in Cargoes’ Fiction Competition for New Writers. He regularly contributes to HalfAChicken.com and The Wordsmith’s Foundry.
