Thursday marked the beginning of this semester’s installment of the UF Master of Fine Arts Poetry and Fiction reading series.
Volta Coffee, Tea & Chocolate, located 48 SW 2nd St., was at maximum capacity as graduate students read their poems and short stories to kick off the series.
The program is student-run, and students earning their master’s in creative writing are required to read their work at one of the semesterly readings before they graduate, said Elaina Mercatoris, a first-year creative writing graduate student and one of the series organizers.
“I think, for the most part, we all want to participate,” she said. “Reading our work in public is good practice.”
UF English professor and Volta owner David Leavitt said the reading series usually has standing-room only and has been held at Volta since it opened five years ago.
This semester’s readings will be on Feb. 6, Feb. 20, Mar. 13, Mar. 27 and Apr. 10. The readings begin at 8 p.m. and last about an hour.
