About

We are forWord, an arts collective with an emphasis on spoken word and creative writing. We aspire to:

  —encourage self expression
  —connect with other poets
  —improve our creative skills in the process.

The group is made up of four members who met while students in the spoken word organization Uncultivated Rabbits at the University of California, Irvine. After graduating, forming a new group after U.R. was always in the back of their minds, but one day, after having dinner at a Cheesecake Factory they decided to put their aspirations into motion.

In the fall of 2010, Susan Diep, Eddy M. Gana Jr., Mark Maza, and Stephanie Sajor decided to form forWord. Unsatisfied with the daily grind of post-college life, they were set on continuing to be creative outside of Uncultivated Rabbits, the only spoken word scene they were really exposed to in Orange County.

And before we knew it… forWord was born.

Get regular updates from us, “LIKE” our page:
http://www.facebook.com/forwordcollective
To see more of our spoken word check out our YouTube page: http://www.youtube.com/forwordcollection

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Susan Diep
—Hometown: Rosemead, CA
—Birthday: August 19
—Education: B.S. Biology and Minor: Psychology (cognitive)
—Interests: music, poetry, dance, SCIENCE!, adventure
—Influences: Sarah Kay, music, art

Eddy M. Gana, Jr.
—Hometown: Union City, CA (Bay Area)
—Birthday: March 30, 1988
—Education: B.A. Psychology & Social Behavior; B.A. Criminology, Law & Society
—Interests: Listening to music, playing basketball, writing, Netflix
—Influences: Tupac Amaru Shakur, Eminem, Alvin Lau

Mark Maza
—Hometown: Tondo, Manila, Philippines; Fullerton, CA
—Birthday: ???
—Education: B.A. Criminology, Law, and Society; Minor: Sociology
—Interests: spoken word, music, movies, basketball + sports, videogames, politics, honestly there’s just way too many to list.
—Influences: Shihan, Bassey Ikpi, J. Ivy, Alan Dugan, Langston Hughes, Amiri Baraka, Shakespeare, Nujabes, hip hop, saturday morning cartoons, the poets of Uncultivated Rabbits past and present, and just everyday life.  Mix well, then serve.

Stephanie Sajor
—Hometown: Pico Rivera, CA
—Birthday: March 14
—Education: B.A. Film & Media Studies and B.A. Political Science
—Interests: playing piano, reading & writing, analyzing films, being a sponge for knowledge
—Influences: Gina Loring, Andrea Gibson, Disney & Pixar, Mae, Anberlin, Broadway