L.A.'s own Aimee Bender (The Girl in the Flammable Skirt, An Invisible Sign of My Own) returns to the Speakeasy to celebrate the release of her highly anticipated new book, Willful Creatures. Ms. Bender will read a bit from this sublime, surreal and perfectly crafted collection of stories, AND lead an original parlor game that promises its own rewards.

She will be joined by the O.C.'s own Santiago Steps. The Santiago Steps will screen a smattering of cinematic interpretations of songs (aka music videos) by local filmmakers*, pro and amateur alike, from their latest cd, Points and Corners.

The evening's bookmark artist is Nicole C. Russell.

Cookies and lemonade will be served, she said knowingly.

Password is "You are the prize."

*Attendees who bring items they've won (from lunch boxes to trophies to…?) may be filmed for a future Santiago Steps video being directed by Smart Gals' own Christine Louise Berry.

Aimee Bender is the author of the short story collection The Girl in the Flammable Skirt and the novel An Invisible Sign of My Own. Her stories have appeared in Granta, GQ, Harper's, the Paris Review, and other magazines, and have been heard on PRI's This American Life. She lives in Los Angeles. flammableskirt.com


Nicole C. Russell is an artist, writer and avid baker who received her BFA from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1999 and her MFA from the University of Southern California in 2005. Nicole's work explores human emotion and idiosyncrasy within the ordered structure of universal systems and daily routines. She works in a variety of mediums including installation, photo, sound, video, and fiction. Currently her work can be seen and heard at Soundwalk2005 (www.soundwalk2005.org) in Long Beach, CA through September 7, 2005.


"What better band to make us hopeful about humanity than the Santiago Steps?" So asks the OC Weekly. Despite laboring in obscurity, the Santiago Steps this summer completed their second collection of songs, Points & Corners, while working on a soundtrack for a documentary film on professional air hockey. thesantiagosteps.com