Match Point

The lit series everyone's talking about isn't afraid to make a scene.

Listen to Elizabeth Koch (above left) talk about traditional literary readings, and it’s pretty clear that wasn’t the way she and fellow Literary Death Match founder Todd Zuniga (right) were going to draw a crowd. “I hate them—they’re so boring! I hate it when people read too long. It’s narcissistic. We don’t want to listen to your shitty rough draft for 45 minutes—I don’t care how famous you are.”

Founding and executive editors, respectively, of the literary journal Opium, Koch and Zuniga have lived in San Francisco less than a year, but in that time they’ve already established themselves as fixtures in the literary community. Their calling card? A no-holds-barred reading series, called Literary Death Match, that pits notable writers against one another in a reading competition presided over by a trio of judges. Imagine American Idol meets Paris Review, and you’ll have some idea of what to expect: Two rounds of “serious” readings act as elimination heats; in the third, the competition is narrowed to two writers, who compete in a not-necessarily-literature-related challenge (think sack races and long-division problems) to determine the victor.

Zuniga and Koch came up with the death-match concept in New York City in 2005 as a way to distinguish their literary events from others happening nightly. Says Koch, “If everyone is going to compete for the same audience and the same readers, [we thought we’d] bring it into one room and create a kind of community experience.”

The events are anything but boring—July’s instantly infamous SF debut of Death Match took a dramatic turn when, after reader Stephen Elliott of McSweeney’s received a harsh critique from judge Howard Junker of Zyzzyva, he responded by throwing a drink on Junker. Future events promise to be similarly exciting; Litquake’s installment of Death Match will pit Opium’s Daniel Handler against Wesley Stace of Swink, Gary Kamiya of Salon and Evany Thomas of McSweeney’s. They’ll be judged by The New Yorker’s Ben Greenman, the Chronicle’s Oscar Villalon and Shawn Landry, producer of the SF Improv Festival. “When people go to readings in NYC, they’re only going so they can pitch the editor—or to be near a celebrity writer,” says Zuniga. “Here, people go because they love reading and they love writing—it’s a celebration.” A sentiment any well-read partygoer can get behind. Just remember to hold on to your drink.

Litquake's Literary Death Match at the Swedish American Hall, Oct. 12; litquake.org

BOOKS by Vanessa Brunner Detailing his pre-SNL days, which included shows at SF’s Boarding House, Steve Martin’s first full-length memoir takes a look at the bleaker side of comedy. From the nitty-gritty of his 30-year rift with his father to a story about a run-in with a gun-toting Elvis Presley, Born Standing Up (Scribner) is chock-full of anecdotes guaranteed to satisfy the most fanatical wild and crazy guy. In stores Nov. 20.

Local it-girl Michelle Tea sidesteps out of the spotlight  to edit the writings of 35 contributors in this girl-powered anthology. Including the work of public-radio regular Sandra Tsing Loh, transgender icon Kate Bornstein and Calvin Klein model Jenny Shimizu, It's So You (Avalon) explores how women attempt to find and define themselves without selling out or buying into Hollywood-manufactured standards. In stores Sept. 28.

Brimming with essays by 24 female authors, Choice (MacAdam Cage) examines contemporary reproductive issues from every perspective. Coedited by Karen Bender and Nina de Gramont, the smart and heart-wrenching collection includes stories from Oprah favorite Jacquelyn Mitchard as well as local author Susan Ito, who navigate the bigger issues of reproductive rights while detailing deeply personal experiences. In stores Oct. 19.

This pint-size collection features 145 very short stories from three of the finest writers of the genre. Gen-X prose laureate Dave Eggers, together with writers Sarah Manguso and Deb Olin Unferth, have crafted a tribute to the 500-word story with One Hundred and  Forty Five Sories in a Small Box (McSweeney’s), a three-book collection replete with talking dogs, misadventures and a host of batty characters. In stores Sept. 20.

The man behind our favorite cover of “San Francisco Bay Blues” recounts the roller-coaster life of the three-time Grammy-winning music superstar in his own words. In Clapton: The Autobiography (Broadway), readers can count on the the British guitarist’s  personal insights and anecdotes about his battles with drugs, his relationship with the Beatles and the tragic death of his young son. In stores Oct. 9.

Listen to Elizabeth Koch (above left) talk about traditional literary readings, and it’s pretty clear that wasn’t the way she and fellow Literary Death Match founder Todd Zuniga (right) were going to draw a crowd. “I hate them—they’re so boring! I hate it when people read too long. It’s narcissistic. We don’t want to listen to your shitty rough draft for 45 minutes—I don’t care how famous you are.”

Founding and executive editors, respectively, of the literary journal Opium, Koch and Zuniga have lived in San Francisco less than a year, but in that time they’ve already established themselves as fixtures in the literary community. Their calling card? A no-holds-barred reading series, called Literary Death Match, that pits notable writers against one another in a reading competition presided over by a trio of judges. Imagine American Idol meets Paris Review, and you’ll have some idea of what to expect: Two rounds of “serious” readings act as elimination heats; in the third, the competition is narrowed to two writers, who compete in a not-necessarily-literature-related challenge (think sack races and long-division problems) to determine the victor.

Zuniga and Koch came up with the death-match concept in New York City in 2005 as a way to distinguish their literary events from others happening nightly. Says Koch, “If everyone is going to compete for the same audience and the same readers, [we thought we’d] bring it into one room and create a kind of community experience.”

The events are anything but boring—July’s instantly infamous SF debut of Death Match took a dramatic turn when, after reader Stephen Elliott of McSweeney’s received a harsh critique from judge Howard Junker of Zyzzyva, he responded by throwing a drink on Junker. Future events promise to be similarly exciting; Litquake’s installment of Death Match will pit Opium’s Daniel Handler against Wesley Stace of Swink, Gary Kamiya of Salon and Evany Thomas of McSweeney’s. They’ll be judged by The New Yorker’s Ben Greenman, the Chronicle’s Oscar Villalon and Shawn Landry, producer of the SF Improv Festival. “When people go to readings in NYC, they’re only going so they can pitch the editor—or to be near a celebrity writer,” says Zuniga. “Here, people go because they love reading and they love writing—it’s a celebration.” A sentiment any well-read partygoer can get behind. Just remember to hold on to your drink.

Litquake's Literary Death Match at the Swedish American Hall, Oct. 12; litquake.org

BOOKS by Vanessa Brunner Detailing his pre-SNL days, which included shows at SF’s Boarding House, Steve Martin’s first full-length memoir takes a look at the bleaker side of comedy. From the nitty-gritty of his 30-year rift with his father to a story about a run-in with a gun-toting Elvis Presley, Born Standing Up (Scribner) is chock-full of anecdotes guaranteed to satisfy the most fanatical wild and crazy guy. In stores Nov. 20.

Local it-girl Michelle Tea sidesteps out of the spotlight  to edit the writings of 35 contributors in this girl-powered anthology. Including the work of public-radio regular Sandra Tsing Loh, transgender icon Kate Bornstein and Calvin Klein model Jenny Shimizu, It's So You (Avalon) explores how women attempt to find and define themselves without selling out or buying into Hollywood-manufactured standards. In stores Sept. 28.

Brimming with essays by 24 female authors, Choice (MacAdam Cage) examines contemporary reproductive issues from every perspective. Coedited by Karen Bender and Nina de Gramont, the smart and heart-wrenching collection includes stories from Oprah favorite Jacquelyn Mitchard as well as local author Susan Ito, who navigate the bigger issues of reproductive rights while detailing deeply personal experiences. In stores Oct. 19.

This pint-size collection features 145 very short stories from three of the finest writers of the genre. Gen-X prose laureate Dave Eggers, together with writers Sarah Manguso and Deb Olin Unferth, have crafted a tribute to the 500-word story with One Hundred and  Forty Five Sories in a Small Box (McSweeney’s), a three-book collection replete with talking dogs, misadventures and a host of batty characters. In stores Sept. 20.

The man behind our favorite cover of “San Francisco Bay Blues” recounts the roller-coaster life of the three-time Grammy-winning music superstar in his own words. In Clapton: The Autobiography (Broadway), readers can count on the the British guitarist’s  personal insights and anecdotes about his battles with drugs, his relationship with the Beatles and the tragic death of his young son. In stores Oct. 9.

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