The Writing on the Stage

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• Damn Blonde
  June 3, 2009

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• Mimi Lok
• Mimi Loks
• Books and Literature
• Arts, Entertainment, and Media

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San Francisco may not be the center of the art world, or the fashion world, or the conservative world, or the people-can-afford-to-live-here world. We got Litquake, though. Our literary festival is the best, meaning highest quality as well as coolest. And it is upon us. Out of Litquake's 11 events today, all of which rule, “Barely Published Authors” is our favorite. The reason is Mimi Lok, as long as she can be understood to represent the seven other writers on the bill as well as herself. Lok's writing is undoubtedly influenced and inspired by her work as executive director of the McSweeney’s “Voice of Witness” oral-history human-rights book series. Her work is ephemeral, though, not the heavy political lifting you might expect from that. She digs around in her subjects to get at the intricate causes and effects of human relationships — filigree work, in many cases. This is what you come to Litquake for: eight Mimi Loks reading filigree work in a cozy bar. (Litquake runs Oct. 1-9.)
Oct. 3, 7 p.m., 2010