Hosts carry on community tradition for Fall 2026 Reading Series
By Darby Shelton
Florida State University's Jerome Stern Reading Series continues to bring English students, faculty, and the local community together through writing every Tuesday night at The Bark.
This fall, Kate DeLay, a second-year doctoral student in poetry, and Allison Weissman, a second-year doctoral student in fiction, have carried on that tradition as co-hosts, curating the series they enjoyed as regular attendees.
a second-year doctoral student in poetry, are co-hosts for the Jerome Stern
Reading Series. (Photograph courtesy of Kate DeLay)
“It makes me a little nervous to get up in front of people and speak, but I feel like every time you take a risk like that, there’s a lot of payoff,” DeLay says. “You get to feel like you really are involved, and you’re really helping people connect with each other.”
The reading series began in the late 1990s to honor Jerome Stern, a former FSU English professor and then-director of the Creative Writing Program. The weekly readings take place on Tuesdays at 8 p.m. during each academic semester at The Bark, a restaurant and music venue near downtown Tallahassee.
Graduate students, faculty, and visiting authors alike gather to share poetry, fiction, and nonfiction in a relaxed setting that brings the creative work into the broader community.
“It’s a great place where you get to see people who you maybe aren’t in a class with,” Weissman says. “You’re interacting with people on a program-wide kind of basis.”
DeLay and Weissman credit last year’s organizers, English-Creative Writing alumna Camille Goering and English doctoral student in fiction Ryan Hunke, with cultivating an environment they wanted to continue to build.
For DeLay, having a weekly reading to look forward to attend was a major part of FSU's appeal.
“At my prior university, it had been a few times a semester,” DeLay says. “So, I was really excited for the opportunity to see so many different people once a week on Tuesdays. I feel like it brings all the programs together.”
Now, DeLay and Weissman make those interactions possible. Their responsibilities include coordinating readers, arranging schedules, designing promotional materials, and ensuring each writer receives a thoughtful introduction. Graduate students sometimes ask friends to introduce them, making the evening feel more personal for the authors and audience alike.
“Just making sure all the grad students get really wonderful introductions that make their work feel really seen,” Weissman says, describing one of their priorities as a host.
The Bark provides a relaxed backdrop for the readings. Murals frame the stage and people gather at tables, eat dinner, and enjoy drinks. When the readings conclude, attendees can meet the writers, catch up with peers, and browse books sold on-site by Midtown Reader, a local bookstore.
“The space is large enough to accommodate a lot of people, but the environment also provides a sense of intimacy,” DeLay says. “Sometimes there are people there eating dinner; sometimes people are just wandering in.”
The duo has also experimented this semester with other ways for graduate students to present their work. During a mid-September outdoor event at Oyster City Brewing Co., eight graduate students shared short pieces of poetry and prose, each reading for approximately five minutes. Organizing the event meant DeLay and Weismann had to consider the sound, weather, and logistics of a less-familiar venue, but the hosts found the format to be rewarding.
“Hearing from a bunch of different readers was cool,” DeLay says. “These little snapshots get you excited about other people’s work in the program.”
The Fall 2026 lineup offered even more to anticipate, including a visit from Kendra Allen, winner of the Iowa Prize for Literary Nonfiction for When You Learn The Alphabet. Weissman says they enjoyed learning about how Allen combines poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. DeLay was eager to hear Allen read again after she attended a reading at the University of Alabama, where DeLay earned her Master of Fine Arts.
Both hosts are also interested in works that bring different art forms together. For example, the Sept. 29 reading by FSU English alumni Michael Barach and Brandi George paired their poetry with projected paintings, which allowed listeners to experience the relationship between the two mediums.
“They write poems together collaboratively,” Weissman says. “Rather than one person wrote this poem, or one person wrote that poem.”
For undergraduates at FSU, the series offers a glimpse into graduate students’ writing lives and a starting point for building literary friendships. Weissman encourages students to invite classmates, get to know other attendees, and consider forming writing groups outside of their courses.
“It’s so hard to create work in a vacuum,” they say.
DeLay adds that seeing a creative community in person can make participating in one feel possible.
“I think it’s really nice to see living, working writers out in the world, people who are creating communities and all share something that they love together,” DeLay says. “And to feel like, ‘Oh, that is something that I can join and be a part of.’”
The remainder of the Fall 2026 Reading Series schedule at The Bark:
NOV. 10: English alumnae Dorsey Craft (Ph.D. 2021, Poetry) and Alexa Doran (Ph.D. 2021, Poetry)
NOV. 17: Current graduate students Brendan Byrne (M.F.A., Poetry) and Noah Farberman (Ph.D., Fiction)
NOV. 2: Special campus event and reading: Tom McCarthy
Follow the English-Creative Writing Program's Instagram account to stay updated on future events, including the Spring 2027 Jerome Stern Reading Series.
Darby Shelton is a double major in English-Creative Writing and information communication technology.
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