Write Club Chicago Kicks Off 17th Season at Gman Tavern

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Breon Arzell, Christopher Bigelow, Elizabeth Gomez, Archy Jamjun, Jean Marie Koon, and Lawrence Tolefree will face off with original essays.

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Write Club Chicago, has announced its combatants competing in its 17th season launch Tuesday, Oct. 20 at 7:30 p.m. at Gman Tavern, in Chicago’s Lakeview East neighborhood, 3740 N. Clark St. Also, to celebrate the kick-off of the 17th season, the cover band Gargamel will perform immediately following the October “bouts.” Tickets are a suggested donation of $25 and are available at the door the night of the event, doors open at 7 p.m.

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Write Club Chicago returns to Chicago on Tuesday, Oct. 20 with its infamous “bout” format, in which three rounds of combatant writer-performers face off with original, seven-minute essays on competing topics to win prize money and claim the cherished Loving Cup of Deathless F***ing Glory. The October 20 list of combatants are Breon Arzell , Christopher Bigelow , Elizabeth Gomez , Archy Jamjun , Jean Marie Koon and Lawrence “Binkey” Tolefree . Winners are decided by the audience following each “bout.”

Write Club Chicago, initially founded by Ian Belknap and Lindsay Muscato, is the world's foremost competitive reading series, featuring the most audacious and fearsome of writers and performers. The evening offers quick, crafted performed essays: an immediate art form that takes audiences on a seven-minute ride they will not forget. Belknap first described the show as “Live Lit,” a turn of phrase which then became widely applied to the variety of storytelling shows produced throughout the city.

Write Club’s stage represents the full breadth of Chicago’s sharpest writing talent, bringing together contenders from across the city’s diverse range of identities in a lively, entertaining show. Past combatants include Breon Arzell , Sam Bailey , Lily Be, Sydney Charles , McKenzie Chinn , Jacoby Cochran, Scott Duff , Jen Ellison, Nestor Gomez, Ike Holter , Samantha Irby, David Isaacson, Jitesh Jaggi, Carly Oishi, Jeremy Owens, Jennifer Peepas, Katie Rich, Megan Stielstra, Sherman “6 Figga Dilla” Thomas and Binkey Tolefree.

Future “bouts” at Gman Tavern include Tuesday, Nov. 17 and Tuesday, Dec. 15 at 7:30 p.m. Write Club Chicago, announces its combatants competing in its 17th season launch Tuesday, Oct. 20 at 7:30 p.m. at Gman Tavern, in Chicago’s Lakeview East neighborhood, 3740 N. Clark St. Also, to celebrate the kick-off of the 17th season, the cover band Gargamel will perform immediately following the October “bouts.” Tickets are a suggested donation of $25 and are available at the door the night of the event, doors open at 7 p.m. More information available at WriteClubNation.com .

Nominate your favorite local productions and performers before the deadline on October 31, 2026.

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_Originally reported by [BroadwayWorld](https://www.broadwayworld.com/chicago/article/Write-Club-Chicago-Sets-17th-Season-Launch-at-Gman-Tavern-20260918)._