By the time Veronica Jones finished reading her poem, the intense silence that had fallen over the listeners was broken with smiles an applause.

Jones had shared a poem she was inspired to write when she learned October was Domestic Abuse Awareness Month.

Jones is a common contributor at open mic nights at the Brick House Coffee Shop. Since June of 2009, writers, musicians, and other creative people gather to share their work once a month at the coffee shop.

“We just enjoy it. It’s a great outlet. Everyone leaves saying they feel connected,” Brigette Rambadt said, who co-owns the coffee house with D.J. Gorman.

Rambadt and Gorman had brought in musical acts to perform at the Brick House, but Rambadt said that hadn’t worked well. The two contacted storyteller Michael Cotter and his wife, Bev, who were receptive to the idea of helping start up the event.

A core group attends almost every month, but the number of participants ranges from about a dozen to more than 20.

Attendance isn’t limited to Austin, as the Cotters and others come from Albert Lea, a group of Hayfield high school students are frequent attendees, and people have attended from as far as Plainview and a few people from Iowa.

Those in attendance showcase a unique conglomeration of skills, including writing, music, acting, story telling and more. However, the mood is laid back, and people can choose to simply tell a story or share a passage of something they read.

Rambadt said it’s important for someone to offer such nights to the public.

“We just want to be a place in the community offer things,” Rambadt said. “I have kids, and I want them to experience this and experience this in Austin. It’s not like you should say, ‘Hey, let’s drive up to the cities.’”

“We can do that right here,” she added.

The night typically opens with a time for people to grab food or coffee as they filter in. Those who wish to share sign in on a sheet. Michael typically opens the evening with a story and ends the night as well, if there is time. A typical evening starts at 7 p.m.

Michael, acts as the emcee, and people take turns performing, reading or even telling a story.

While the readings typically end by 9 p.m., the participants commonly stay long after talking in small groups.

Jones, who lives in Austin and works at Gerrard Academy, said the evenings are laid back and enjoyable.

“Sometimes people come and they might not do anything for months,” Jones said. “They just want to come out and listen. Either they’ll bring a piece that they wrote themselves, or they may just bring a piece they just want to read to share with everybody else.”

The positive atmosphere of the nights comes as no surprise to the Cotters, as Bev and Michael used to host a story telling festival.

After it ended, the two realized they missed getting together with groups of creative people.

“We just realized that there is something really neat about getting creative people together,” Cotter said.

“We realized there’s all these different people that have something to offer,” he added.

The evenings offer a close, relaxed environment where people are able to let their guard down.

“It’s very friendly,” Michael said. “People are able to be vulnerable here. And so what happens, when people are able to be vulnerable? They’ll tell the truth. And the truth is never boring.”

The open mic nights bring together people of all ages. As Bev noted, it’s about three generations of people who come to share.

The open mic nights aren’t the only events that go on at the coffee shop. Authors commonly speak at the shop, and a book club met there last year.

Rambadt and Gorman plan to continue to host open mic night on the second Friday of each month.

“I hope this gets bigger,” Rambadt said. “I hope more people want to come.”