Death Rattle Writers Fest P.A.

It was born out of a frustration with the lack of unaffiliated, independent outlets for up and coming writers to share with a live audience, to draw out creativity and ideas, and to inspire ourselves and each other within our community. As people we need not only contribute to our society, but to our culture. Our word carries us. The mission of The Death Rattle Writer’s Festival is to carry this idea to the people around us; fostering the art of words in Idaho.

We strive to create an outlet for area writers to display not only their work, but also themselves to an audience of empathizing peers. In order to do this, Death Rattle works hard to organize a celebration of the literary arts through a wide variety of community events year round including poetry readings, flash fiction exhibitions, one act plays, hip-hop shows, true live stories told live and more featuring local and touring poets and artists who want to share what they have with YOUR community.



Death Rattle has continually grown in its size and its breadth of endeavors and is asking the community to help with a much needed expansion:
the purchase of our very own P.A. system!

Death Rattle holds events in a wide variety of venues in your community that you know and love, from local coffee shops and breweries and historic local bars and bookstores, to public alleys, local art spaces and house venues which require the use of a P.A. in order to successfully create an atmospheric space and inspiring outlet for local artists to foster an accessible, diverse, and experimental literary community, benefiting participants and spectators alike. We want to be able to service the community that is so willing to share themselves with us through their poetry and stories with the proper equipment and infrastructure that it takes to create these inspiring spaces and events.


Let's talk specifics of what buying a P.A. entails and what it takes to ensure a system runs smoothly.
Due to the wide variety of events Death Rattle brings to your area, our P.A. must be capable of projecting intimate readings as well as handling a full band lineup.
We will be sourcing the equipment as frugally as possible while still maintaining our commitment to quality.

Equipment list:
— 8 channel mixer

— stage snake

— one pair of speakers for main speakers, one speaker for subs

— power amps for speakers and monitors

— 2 powered stage monitors 

— 2 instrument & vocal mics and boom stands

— instrument and XLR cables 


Here are some inspiring words from past Death Rattle readers about what we can accomplish together in our community: 

From Reed Bills:

"honestly, Death Rattle changed my life two years ago. i only caught the last evening-&-a-day of the festival, but being invited to participate in this beautiful, diverse gathering of poets, writers & artists coming together to celebrate one another was the greatest thing i had ever experienced. to see it happen in a small community very similar to the place in which i grew up was so inspiring, and returning home after the festival was genuinely heartbreaking. the absence of anything like it in my hometown was thrown into stark relief.

an excuse to move to Nampa auspiciously fell into my lap last summer, and i was able to experience last year's festival in full. it completely exceeded my expectations, and i was truly blown away by all the talented performers Death Rattle was able to bring together, as well as the friendship, love & communal support fostered by this small group of passionate, dedicated individuals. i am now very fortunate & proud not only to call them dear friends of mine, but also to be a part of the wonderful organization they created."


From Alex Yann:
"I've been working for the Death Rattle Writers Festival for almost four year now. What started as a path for me to share and cultivate my love for writing built into a passion for building a strong and healthy community of writers who support one another.

The reason I choose to work for Death Rattle is because I'm able to help people first hand realize and actualize their literary pursuits. It is about creating opportunities where there were few, and I believe our organization does just that."

Your contribution represents a reverberation of raw speech and artistic opportunity in Idaho; lending voice to those in our community who are given little chance to speak. Your donation makes the invisible, visible.
You make the impossible, possible.