St. Petersburg – Nearly three years ago, an open mic outlet that catered to fiction and non-fiction writers has transformed into a monthly event for creative writers in Tampa Bay. Now Tiffany Razzano’s Wordier Than Thou brings together creative minds from throughout Tampa Bay.
Razzano, a New York native, moved to Florida with her parents six years ago, and at first, it wasn’t the ideal living or job situation.
“My parents moved to Spring Hill, and I didn’t really know what I was getting into,” she says. “It was a somewhat terrible, sort of an adventure. I kind of assumed I would leave and go to Ashville, Austin or Portland—one of those cities with cool things, but then I found St. Pete, and even St. Pete has so much more going on within that six year period.”
Razzano thought she would easily find a full-time job after moving here, as she had in New York where she wrote for different newspapers. She graduated, after all with a bachelors degree in creative writing from Dowling College. But she only worked part-time jobs and freelanced for publications. After a year, she found her first serious jobs with Home Shopping Network as a copywriter, and with Nielsen Media as an editor.
“It took awhile,” she says. “Not as many media opportunities down here, that’s for sure.”
Throughout it all she built a system that gives local writers a chance to learn and share their works through Wordier Than Thou.
The idea for the project spontaneously came to her while she was out with friends, and she knew that if her idea came to life, it would kill two birds with one stone. She wanted to create a place where she could present her work in a suitable environment—since her short fiction stories didn’t exactly fit in at spoken word poetry open mics—and she also wanted to get herself out there more with public speaking. Her first Wordier Than Thou was held at the now-closed L-Train in downtown St. Petersburg. Future versions were in coffee shops until Razzano found a permanent home at Studio@620.
“When you’re reading an essay, more time is required to convey what you’re trying to say, and you need an audience with different expectations, like ready to have that attention span to listen to that short story and absorb everything you’re trying to say,” she says. “There wasn’t anything like that out there.”
The program is going strong now and Razzano took the opportunity to propose to her girlfriend of four years, Julie Fisher, at the Jan. 20 event. Her familiarity with public speaking, she says, made it easier for her to pop the question in front of 35 people that night.
Wordier Than Thou unites a diverse crowd each month—and oftentimes a surprise will appear. Once, a comedian and a ventriloquist showed up, which offered a new perspective in creativity.
But for the most part, Razzano s that a lot of talented writers participate. She likes the features, which are published authors and professors, who share some of their published works at each event. Every participant is allowed 10 minutes at the microphone.
“Wordier Than Thou does not knock anyone else’s formats or set ups,” says Nicholas Kotowski, a participant since May 2013. “We simply welcome all writers who have a story to tell and want to share their creativity with the world. Tiffany has created a platform that revitalizes the written word to a growing culture in greater Tampa Bay.”
Razzano does not make a living from Wordier Than Thou. The $5 suggested donation at the door cover the cost of fliers, and the cost of the space where events are held.
“I don’t read at every event, because I don’t like to take the spotlight away from people who have paid their five-dollars at the door to participate,” Razzano says. “But I also don’t always have it in me to host and speak.”
Austin Collins, a published author, has attended Wordier Than Thou for several months, and like many, benefits from the feedback he gets from the audience.
“The most valuable aspect of participating in Wordier Than Thou, as a reader or as a listener, is the incredible insights one cannot help but gain into what flows in fiction versus what feels clunky, repetitive, dry or flat,” Collins says. “It’s often hard to tell, looking at the page, whether something pops and sings. As soon as you hear it out loud, however, especially in front of a group, you can immediately tell if it has rhythm and power. If it drags, it’s instantly obvious.”
Monthly Wordier Than Thou events take place in St. Pete at Studio@620, and in Tampa at Florida Avenue Brewing Company. Orlando started having monthly events in Winter Park at Stardust Video and Coffee on Feb. 11 and will host another on March 18.
Orlando monthly events will be held the fourth Wednesday of every month. The Sarasota events are bimonthly at Fogartyville Community Center. Razzano’s future goal is to have it as a monthly event there, too.
For more information and a full schedule, visit WordierThanThou.com.
