As you know, we like to take things easy during the month of July. Therefore on this pre-holiday morning on which we'd normally be mounting a live episode of Tuesday Funk we present instead a poem from nearly a year ago, on the subject of living forever...

And if you enjoyed that, you'll get another new Poem by Bill at our next Tuesday Funk, Tuesday, August 7th, 2012, which will also feature great readings from Stacy Bierlein, Holly McDowell, Scott Smith, Jesse Jordan, and our very own Sara Ross Witt. Have a great Fourth of July!

Our latest edition of Tuesday Funk at Hopleaf was a real humdinger. Were our audience members trying to hold onto their dinners because they were laughing so hard, or was there some other reason? If you weren't there, I'm afraid, you may never know.

The memorable evening started out strong with fiction from Jennifer Schaefer, poems from Kristin Lueke, and a sweet, affecting memoir from Dion Walton.

But after a break for beer and a biking poem by Bill—well, that's where the evening took a turn for the indelible. Seriously, we don't think anyone who heard it will ever forget the personal essay by Samantha Irby that brought the house down. We wish, seriously, that we could show it all to you, and not just the excerpt you'll find below, but it was so scorchingly vile that it must have broken our camera, because somehow the audio track became corrupted. We could only salvage the last few lines from Sam's reading, but we think you'll find that it conveys the, er, flavor of the piece quite well.

No one could possibly have followed that reading, but somehow Alex Shakar managed it, with an engrossing chapter from his L.A. Times Book Prize-winning novel Luminarium. We look forward to sharing that video with you soon.

So that's it—a Tuesday Funk for the ages. But if you missed it, don't fret. After a break in July, we'll be back on August 7th with our guests Stacy Bierlein, Jesse Jordan, Holly McDowell, Scott Smith, and our own Sara Ross Witt. Be sure to join us! The airsickness bags will be optional.

Tuesday Funk is proud and excited that the 70th World Science Fiction Convention will be coming to Chicago from August 30 to September 3rd, 2012!

It so happens that our September reading will take place Tuesday, September 4th, 2012, the day after Worldcon ends. We plan to put on an evening of great science fiction readings that night—a veritable Science Fiction Spectacular—with a group of terrific science fiction and fantasy writers we wouldn't normally be able to bring together in Chicago.

We're very pleased to announce our stellar September 4th lineup of Daryl Gregory, Rae Carson, Rajan Khanna, Adam Rakunas, and Gregory A. Wilson! We look forward to telling you much more about these amazing writers as the convention draws closer.

And whether you're a science fiction fan or just a lover of great writing, mark September 4th on your calendar. It's going to be a terrific evening!

You can chalk it up to the beautiful weather, but tonight at Hopleaf for our 46th episode, your friends at Tuesday Funk are bringing you our most dynamic lineup of all time. Believe it.

This stellar evening will feature Alex Shakar (author of the L.A. Times Book Prize-winning novel Luminarium), not to mention Samantha Irby, Dion Walton, Kristin Lueke, Jennifer Schaefer, and one of our patented Poems By Bill.

So "like" us today on Facebook, grab one of dozens of varieties of beer from the bar, and get set for an evening of entertaining and provocative live literature with your hosts Sara Ross Witt and William Shunn. You'll be glad you did.

Hopleaf Bar is at 5148 N. Clark St. in Chicago. The reading begins at 7:30 pm in the upstairs lounge. The lounge opens at 7:00 pm. Arrive early if you want a seat.

As always, the upstairs lounge at Hopleaf is cash-only and 21 and over. Remember also that no food can be brought in from the restaurant.

Samantha Irby writes dick jokes on the internet. Find them at bitchesgottaeat.com and irbyandian.com.

Kristin Lueke once lived in Southern California for 17 years in a row, if you can believe it. Her poems have been published in NAP, Untoward Magazine, the Acentos Review, and elsewhere. Her first chapbook, (in)Different Math, is forthcoming this summer from Dancing Girl Press.

She sometimes reads not-poetry at the sometimes monthly but mostly sporadic reading series Ray's. No matter what she tells you, she knows nothing about science.

Alex Shakar's latest novel, Luminarium, was this year's winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Fiction. It was also named a Notable Book of the year by The Washington Post, an Editor's Choice by The New York Times, and a best book of the year by Publishers Weekly, Booklist, the Austin Chronicle, and the Kansas City Star.

His novel The Savage Girl was a New York Times Notable Book. His story collection City in Love won the FC2 National Fiction Competition.

A Brooklyn native, he now lives in Chicago.

Jennifer Schaefer was born in nineteen seventy-something in Waukegan. She grew up in Illinois and Wisconsin, but spent her roaring twenties in London, where she lived in youth hostels, an assortment of squalid flats, a rundown old pub, and worked such varied jobs as barmaid, singer in a punk band, TV extra, financial advisor and fashion model.

You can read a chapter from her recently completed novel, The Salamander's Slipper, in the Spring 2012 print issue of Curbside Splendor literary journal. She's currently seeking a home for this book while working on a second, a supernatural adventure story set in a Renaissance faire. You can find her online at www.jenschaefer.com, and in-the-flesh in Evanston, where she's happily encumbered with a limey husband and their two lovely sprogs.

Originally a theater performer for 25 years, Dion Walton has been writing for the past 10. He's a published writer, OUR LEGACIES (Writings from Chicago's Older Gay Men), a singer, and an artist that has presented artwork in art galleries in the Chicago area.

At present he is writing his autobiography, The Happening, and also writing and performing with The Goodman Theater.

Follow him on Facebook via his page, "Where is Dion Now."

A few weeks ago, Andrew Huff of Gapers Block issued a fascinating challenge to Tuesday Funk co-host William Shunn: to take a piece of original poster art by Chad Kouri and produce a piece of writing of between 1,500 and 2,500 words to accompany it.

The resulting art/writing combo, along with seven other collaborations between artists and writers, will be on display and on sale at The Coop on May 18th. All the info is below. Hope to see you there, Funkers!

8 x 8
Friday, May 18, 2012
6:00 pm until 10:00 pm

The COOP | A co-working space in River North
230 W Superior, 2F, Chicago, IL 60654

In the spirit of artistic collaboration, The Coop and Gapers Block teamed up to produce 8x8, an experiment in writing and design. Eight Chicagoland designers were paired with eight local writers to create collaborative works, with text informing and influencing art and vice versa. The results of this experiment are presented in limited edition poster form, with writing and design back to back.

Writers:
Patrick Somerville, Claire Zulkey, Ramsin Canon, Kevin Guilfoile, William Shunn, Veronica Bond, Wendy McClure, Scott Smith

Designers:
Jesse Hora, Andy Luce, Chad Kouri, Ina Weise, Letterform, Ryan Sievert, Paul Octavious, Kyle Fletcher

Proceeds benefit Open Books.

More info: http://blog.coworkchicago.com/post/22148593743/the-coop-presents-8x8
RSVP on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/events/375591619149230/