Coffee, comedy and connection can be found at The Delta Literary Journal’s open mic nights at Highland Coffees every semester.
For those uninitiated, The Delta Literary Journal is a nonprofit organization that spotlights LSU students’ creative output. It is the oldest undergraduate literary magazine on campus, with 2026 marking the release of its 68th volume. In this journal, you can find everything from poetry to short stories to even screenplays.
According to the journal’s website, “The Delta seeks to publish and embody the creative expression of the LSU undergraduate student body.”
While The Delta has been putting on open mic nights such as this since 2022, this past Thursday marked the first one of the semester and of the new year.
Amidst the backdrop of a serene mural, which highlighted this event’s connection to local art, co-editors Evie Richard and Lucia Bralley welcomed the attendees. The setup was simple: a single microphone connected to a speaker, along with a Highland Coffees-branded podium supported by a rickety metal table.
Throughout the night, the breadth of talent at LSU became clear. Any kind of art was performed by any kind of person. The first act of the night was LSU senior Ricardo Mendoza acting out a skit he came up with in his theater pedagogy class. It played out an absurd situation between a Chipotle employee and customer arguing over extra chicken.
Another senior, Jules LeJune, read excerpts from a story of hers in which an extremely unordinary kid named Chester has his visions come to life in an explosive way. First time performer, poet and LSU senior Evan Tassin performed a poem of his. It was a captivating piece that drilled into strong imagery to evoke emotion within its listeners.
“What draws me to open mics is the chance to get my work out there, even if it’s just for three minutes to an audience that will never hear me read again,” said Tassin. “It helps build confidence in myself as a writer and scratches that itch that artists get when they just want to get their work out there in any capacity.”
And there were many confident, colorful characters there that are sure to grow with time. There was the woman who theatrically screamed about being free from her mind; the man who brought his keyboard to play some jams; the absurd and accurate recreation of a Tim Robinson sketch by another man. All this and more can be found at these events.
This is exactly what Richard loves about putting on these open mic nights. She said that through this, she has gotten a chance to see how truly creative the LSU student body is. As well, she hopes they get something out of it as she does.
“It’s just nice to see everybody’s different opinions and what everybody can bring to the table,” Richard said, “and I definitely think it’s helping everybody work together better in a workshop type scenario and helps us be able to make decisions.”
Richard also revealed that this particular open mic night is one for the record book. The turnout here compared to The Delta’s last event is double or triple what it was.
Above all else, the editors want people to know that submissions for this year’s journal are still open, but they will be closing soon. Anyone who wants to submit a poem, short story, screenplay, song or any other creative work can do so through The Delta Literary Journal’s website.
Submissions for the 86th annual Delta Literary Journal are open until Jan. 31. For updates on future events, you can also follow the group on Instagram.
