C. Abraham Bellamy (a.k.a. the Vince McMahon of book games) imported the concept of Lucha Libro fresh from Peru, and so far Tampa and Austin are its sole stateside homes. The conceit: writers go head to head to write short-short stories or poems, under strict time constraints and guided by prompts randomly chosen from Moby-Dick. Oh, and all this is in front of a live, often inebriated audience who are encouraged to heckle and mess with combatants’ heads as they peck for greatness on clacking typewriters. The experience isn’t just a high-concept goof, though – by showing what gifted minds can make of a few minutes and one word, Lucha Libro makes literature not just thrilling, but newly inspiring. facebook.com/LuchaLibroTampaBay
This article appears in Sep 18-24, 2014.
