A Southern Writer's Network

NC author attacks Southern "staleness"

2012-01-11T10:50:00.000-08:00

The Greensboro News & Record did a great write-up of Kat Meads's new novel When the Dust Finally Settles a few weeks ago. The novel is set in Northeastern North Carolina, just below the Virginia line, in 1968 amid desegregation. According to blogger Charles Wheeler:

The novel attacks staleness. Southern fiction often gets mired in mud holes of stereotypes. This story splashes through them like an open-throttled John Deere. A deputy sheriff is kind, understanding, reasonable and humane. A black high school basketball star is tentative and unsure of himself. A small community welcomes change, though not with wide open arms. It’s not easy. Change never is.

What do you think about Southern stereotypes in fiction? What's the difference between a stereotype and an artistic "rendering" of a region? The Southern authors I admire, like Lee Smith and Tim McLaurin, manage to capture the essence of the South without compromising their characters or the story.

Mag writing course still has openings!

2012-01-10T06:52:00.000-08:00

Need some extra cash? Want to see your name in print -- or online, as the case may be these days? Learn about magazine writing with my online class at www.writingclasses.co.uk starting January 16. It's ten weeks, for 150 pounds (about $232), which isn't bad for 10 weeks. At the end of the course, we put together a mini magazine, showcasing your writing, and post it on the website for the world to see!

Marianne Wheelaghan (right) has been running her online school for 10 years and also features classes in short story and novel writing. Check it out!

Anthology seeks Southern fiction

2012-01-04T18:11:00.000-08:00

Q&W Publishers, a small press out of Grayson, GA, is looking for submissions for its Anthology on the "Old, Weird South." They pay $50 a pop, which is better than many, which pay zilch! Here's the description from their website:

The American South is a haunted place — full of ghost stories, native legends, persistent devils & angels, souls sold at the crossroads, and moon-eyed maidens living in the Okefenokee. The South’s best writers — Faulkner, O’Connor, McCullers — all keep this sense of the otherworldly in their fiction.
In this spirit, Q & W Publishers is looking for submissions for an anthology of short fiction and non-fiction that explores the fantastic, eerie, and bizarre side of the American South.

Larry Brown Biography

2011-12-22T20:04:00.000-08:00

I'd heard of Mississippi author Larry Brown, but after reading this great review of his biography in Southern Literary Review, I realize I need to get cracking and read some of his work! His books include Dirty Work, Father and Son (which won the Southern Book Award), and Big Bad Love, which inspired a 2001 movie by the same name. He passed away in 2004 at the age of 53.

Selp pub writer wins Southern Fiction Award

2011-12-11T06:18:00.001-08:00

I am quite excited about this news because it shows that self published authors can have as much quality and clout as "regularly" published authors. Jessica James (I like that name, too!) has won the 2011 John Esten Cooke Fiction Award for her historical fiction novel Noble Cause.

The award is presented each year by to an author of a historical novel dealing with the South. According to a press release: "Other John Esten Cooke Award winners include New York Times bestselling authors Donald McCaig for Jacob's Ladder, Robert Macomber for Point of Honor, and Harry Turtledove for The Guns of the South."

In the coming months and years, I hope more self published books win literary awards, as it will show agents and publishing companies that they really need to pay attention to indie writers! Do you know of any other indie award winners? Please let me know, and I'll post them here.

Christmas Sale!

2011-12-06T19:36:00.001-08:00

Please grab a copy of my ebook, Rocky Road, for only $1 while the sale lasts! Just enter code FX88C at checkout. You can find it at: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/92580

Rocky Road is a mini collection of four short stories, all wacky and set in the South. You can read free previews on the website above. Sale ends Christmas day!

Southern writer Jesmyn Ward

2011-12-02T11:09:00.001-08:00

Mississippi author Jesmyn Ward has won the U.S. National Book Award for her second novel Salvage The Bones about a family living through Hurricane Katrina. Check out this interesting article about her in The Guardian.

Comparing Southern writers to Dostoevsky

2011-11-27T06:36:00.001-08:00

Check out the really interesting premise of Benjamin Saxton's thesis at Rice University. He analyzes the "Southern grotesque" of Flannery O'Connor, Carson McCullers, and William Faulkner and argues that they were influenced by Fyodor Dostoevsky. Put very simply, both the Southern writers and the Russian writer used "grotesque" misfits to illuminate truths about the world at large. Saxton takes Southern literature to a whole new level!

Indie Thursday

2011-11-17T07:41:00.001-08:00

Help promote indie bookstores everywhere by Tweeting about your purchases from an independent bookstore every Thursday. See the site: http://www.jennsbookshelves.com/indiethursday/ for more info. Start spreading the word!

Okay, yesterday I visited Purple Crow Books in Hillsborough, NC, and bought some children's books by local authors and a CD by Katharine Waylan and Her Fascinators. Good timing, huh?

Author Interview: Savannah Rose

2011-11-15T07:32:00.001-08:00

I recently interviewed Savannah Rose, a contemporary romance author from Southside, Alabama. She's written two romance novels -- And That, My Dear, Is What Love Is and Whistle Creek -- and shared some great insights about being a Southern writer.

Pleasetell us briefly about yourself—when you first began writing and a little bit aboutyour novels.

I was born in Alabama and I havealways lived in Alabama. I am an identical twin; my other half will tellyou she is the baby. We are eleven minutes apart. I write and she draws. I’vealways been interested in writing ever since I was old enough to remember. Mymother spent her hard earned money keeping me and my twinsy stocked in notebooksand pencils.

About the time I turned twenty-fiveor so, I discovered an author by the name of Kaye Gibbons. When I read herfirst book Ellen Foster, I fell inlove with the way she wrote. So Southernly, so normal. I guess I can say normal because she wrote like I spoke.And that was what I wanted to do. I’d struggled to find a voice, but afterreading her novel(s), I realized I had a voice. My Southern voice. And so thatwas how it all started. My novels are always based in the South. And you willalways find a set (or two) of twins somewhere in the characters. Just a littletribute to my wonderful twinsy, Pam.

Your first novel, And That, My Dear, Is What Love Is, is available as a paperback, and your second, Whistle Creek, is available only on Kindle. Why did you decide to only use Kindle the second time around?

Well, just to be frank, I had, andcontinue to have, a bad experience with my publisher. I knew when I began theWhistle Creek series I didn’t want to go back to this particular publisher. Infact, I’m waiting out my contract duration to buy my rights back on And That, My Dear, Is What Love Is. Letme clarify: I believe other people may have a wonderful experience with thisparticular publisher; however, it wasn’t exactly what I was looking for.

Okay, so as I was saying, I decidedwhen I began the Whistle Creek series that I wanted to try something differentwhile I searched for another publisher. I researched many eBook publishers andfound Kindle to be the easiest and offered a great percentage to theauthor/publisher. (By the way, WhistleCreek is also available on the Barnes & Nobles website for Nook users.) I willdefinitely use the eBook option with each book I finish because it’s easy,profitable, and it gets your name out there for others to see.

What are the advantages/disadvantages to also having print copies of your novel?

I have to say, even though I lovethe ease for readers when it comes to eBooks, there’s nothing like seeing yourname and your words in print. I will always be a traditional book reader andwriter. It just seems so difficult to get a book printed these days without thepublisher demanding money for everything. Hence, the situation I’m in now withmy first book.

The Advantages: The advantages are more traditional reasonsto me than anything else. Most collectors would prefer a novel, short story, documentary, orpoem collection in print. That’s something to hand down to the kids andgrandchildren. I have books that my Mom and my Grandmother bought for me when Iwas a child and I enjoyed reading with my children and now my grandchildrenthose same books. Those are moments that you can’t experience with an eReader,in my opinion. Another advantage would be I can donate copies to the locallibraries. I haven’t quite figured out how to do this for an eBook.

The Disadvantages: Thedisadvantages of having print copies? Well, I personally can’t think of areason other than it’s difficult getting books in print. With so many PODpublishers out there, it’s like a shark feeding frenzy. I’m not saying they areall bad, but the ones I’ve reviewed didn’t get very high marks with otherauthors. And my own experience with the current publisher on And That, My Dear, Is What Love Isexpects the authors to pay for EVERYTHING. And not at a very low rate, mindyou. I believe an author should be paid and not expect to pay others to printtheir books. Again, just my opinion.

You live in Alabama and your novels are set in Alabama and Tennessee—do you consider yourself a Southern writer?

Yes, I do. I not only write in aSouthern voice, but being from the South, I can honestly say I’m a “SouthernWriter.” I love Southern slang. My husband, who was born in Ohio and raised byNorthern parents (his father is actually from Scotland), didn’t have theprivilege of learning the proper Southern slang and their meanings. I kid himbecause he can’t hear his father’s accent. It’s a Scottish/Northern accent witha “Y’all” at the end. Quite cute.

My Southern upbringing has a greatdeal of influence on my writing. I create characters based on my countrygrandparents and my city grandparents, my cousins, friends, siblings, and myparents. In the South we are exposed to many wonderful sights such as decked-outlawnmowers, four-wheelers, trailers (that would be mobile homes or manufacturedhomes to others), huge hair, and lots of camouflage (mostly on women in the offseasons). Really, I love living in the South. And even though I’ve dreamt ofmoving off after I retire, it will be to another Southern state such asTennessee or Florida. I think the mountains or the beach would be a great placeto draw in inspiration for my craft.

What has been the biggest challenge in becoming a professional writer?

Again, I hate to keep going back tothe same answer, getting read. It’s difficult when an aspiring author poursher/his heart into their work, then studies how to write the perfect queryletter only to send out the perfect query letter never to receive a reply.That’s very difficult and heartbreaking. But I won’t give up and neither shouldany of you out there. Keep writing, keep sending those perfect query letters,keep researching publishers, and keep publishing through eBook publishers. Thebottom line is this: If don’t keep trying, I will never have a chance ofsucceeding.

What’s been the most rewarding part?

The most rewarding part of writing,for me, is having my friends come up to me and say they can’t wait to read mynext book. Whistle Creek is the firstbook of the Whistle Creek series. This series will include two more books: Christmas By The Creek scheduled to bereleased December 2011 for Kindle and Nook and Whistle Creek Wedding scheduled to be released Spring 2012 forKindle and Nook.

I love to hear readers’ feedback.In fact, I encourage them to contact me through email, Facebook, MySpace,Twitter, or just face to face. I welcome positive and negative feedback. One ofmy friends, a student from work, came bouncing into my office. I work at thelocal Community College as an Administrative Assistant for the TechnicalDivision. Anyway, she informed me she checked my book And That, My Dear, Is What Love Is, from the local library and tookit to the beach with her on an unexpected weekend getaway. She informed me shenever, NEVER, reads Romance. However, she said she couldn’t put it down. Shenow is waiting for Whistle Creek tocome out in paperback J.

What sort of publicity have you done for your novels—obviously, social networking, but any local readings? Has it been hard to do your own marketing?

Word of mouth is always a greatpublicity tool. Tell a friend, they tell a friend, they tell a friend and soforth. I have created business cards that have all my contact info, publishinginfo, and the titles of my books on them and I leave them at random placeswherever I may go. I could one day be eating lunch out with the hubs and Ileave a business card with the tip. That’s always a great trick.

I’ve also talked to the locallibrary about participating in the April 2012 Local Authors Book Fair. I hopeto be able to purchase enough And That,My Dear, Is What Love Is copies for that event. See, there’s a con foreBooks right there. How do you sell your eBook at a Book Fair? Well, there’s noguarantee sell, but I plan to promote WhistleCreek by handing out small postcards I created with the blurb, websites fordownloading, and price per download. And another thought that crossed my mindwhile I was creating these postcards, if someone wants a signed copy of Whistle Creek or any of the upcoming Whistle Creek series books, I will sign the postcard. Gotta think outside thebox.

The larger bookstores won’t allowme to have book signings or book readings from And That, My Dear, Is What Love Is, because the publisher is a PODand does not distribute to the larger bookstores. I’m still researching how topromote an eBook.

So far, it has been difficult topromote the books through other channels besides social networking. But I planto be able to accomplish more sales once I have the series completed. And whoknows? By then, I may even have a publisher on my side.

Who are some of your favorite Southern authors?

Kaye Gibbons, as I mentionedearlier. She writes lovely books such as EllenFoster, A Virtuous Woman, and Charmsfor the Easy Life. Ms. Gibbons was born in Nash County, NC.

Another Southern author I’verecently discovered doesn’t really write Southern novels per say. He is aSouthern writer in the sense he lives in Huntsville, AL. Austin Boyd's Nobody's Child was a prize I won from ablogger bud's site. It is a Christian based novel about a topic that could becontroversial to this genre. However, his writing is similar to Kaye Gibbons inthe sense he writes with a Southern voice.

And I can't complete this interviewwithout throwing out a piece of trivia. Linda Howard (Linda Howington) is fromAlabama. In fact, she lives in Hokes Bluff, AL which is only a short fifteen totwenty minutes from my home. I have also had the privilege to work with her daughter-in-law,Donna Howington, at our local college. I hope to one day get the courage up toask Donna if her mother-in-law might have the time to read one of my novels.But for now, the dream of her being from my area and breaking through the bighouse publishing business, keeps my dream of doing the very same thing alive.

Eudora Welty and Southern writers

2011-11-06T18:13:00.000-08:00

I found this interesting article about Eudora Welty in The New York Times. As well as talking about her life, her works, awards, etc... one particular paragraph caught my attention:

For decades she was pigeonholed by critics who placed her with William Faulkner, Katherine Anne Porter, Flannery O'Connor and Carson McCullers as a writer of the so-called Southern School. Her reputation as a regional and apolitical writer was often cited as a reason for her failure to win a Nobel Prize. But her work, like that of those other Southern writers, transcended region and possessed a universal relevance and appeal.

I've heard this said before -- that regional writers don't get as much respect as national (or global?) writers. What do you think? Does being classified as "Southern" hurt a writer? Does it limit his/her success? I'm thinking of NC authors Lee Smith and Jill McCorkle in particular -- being Southern doesn't seem to have hurt their careers. But what does everyone else think?

Southern Appalachian Film Festival

2011-10-30T07:40:00.000-07:00

Looking for some great Halloween films? Check out the Southern Appalachian Film Festival, beginning tomorrow (Oct. 31) and running through Nov. 4. held on the four campuses of Pellissippi State Community College in Tennessee. My favorite film description?

"A locally-themed documentary, 'Hollywood to Dollywood,' tells the story of twin brothers Gary and Larry Lane, who journey to Pigeon Forge from Dolly Parton's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, in a camper they name 'Jolene,' to hand-deliver a movie script to Parton."

In memory of Nicky

2011-10-26T08:54:00.000-07:00

I'm no poet, so apologies to all poets and poetry lovers out there! But I wanted to record a few words in memory of my cousin, Nicky, who died earlier this month. We used to hang out as kids (I'm the chubby blond one in the photo). If you've lost a loved one and want to post a short poem, let me know.

“Bouncing Down the Heather”

Brown eyes and dark hair,

a mischievous grin
and contagious laugh
brought out the adventurous side in me.
Stories of “all-nighters” with his friends at the park,
rave music,
tricks on his BMX.
We’d sneak Granny’s biscuits outof the kitchen and up the stairs
to the Big Room.
One night, we crept outside and rolleda car in Arthur Street.
We shared slingshots
and walked 7 miles to Save theWhales.
He was cheeky,
never boring,
a spark always burning.
Energy,
laughter, and joy.
Always trying.
He reminded me of Granddad,
bouncing down the heather.

Coupon crazy!

2011-10-24T16:46:00.000-07:00

Just figured out how to create coupons on www.smashwords.com. If you'd like 50% off my mini-collection of short stories, Rocky Road, just enter the code KN56A during checkout. Aren't coupons great! "Sale" ends November 1.

Article in Our State mag.

2011-10-21T14:37:00.000-07:00

Please check out my article in the October issue of Our State magazine. It's about Carrboro, NC, writer Daphne Athas. She taught at UNC-Chapel Hill for 41 years and just recently published a kind of historical memoir, Chapel Hill In Plain Sight by Eno Publishers.

Catching up...

2011-10-20T07:37:00.000-07:00

Don't have anything substantial to report on just yet... Just got back from Scotland on a family trip. Had hoped to visit The Writers' Museum in Edinburgh, but there just wasn't time. Also wanted to make it to Scotland Street, where reportedly Ian Rankin, J.K. Rowling, and Alexander McCall Smith live. But found out that they actually live in the Merchiston area in the southwest part of Edinburgh, which would have been harder to get to, anyway!

Rocky Road now available

2011-09-29T14:47:00.000-07:00

Need something short and sweet to read while you're on the go? Check out my mini-collection of four short stories, Rocky Road, now available on Smashwords:

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/92580

You can download a free sample in just about any format (.pdf, .html, nook, Kindle, etc...). Let me know what you think!

Author Interview: Lisa Logan

2011-09-26T05:44:00.000-07:00

Lisa M. Logan is a North Carolina native who loves to write short stories, screenplays, and novels. Death by Clogging is her collection of short stories, which you can find on Smashwords and Amazon. Currently, she's working on her first novel, to be published later this fall.

Please tell us a little about your collection. What sort of style or tone is it?
It's about a variety of people from all walks of life, thrown into challenging situations. The tone is maybe dark comedy. The style ... well, I don't know if it has a style at all! It includes the story "Uncle Frank," which is about a Vietnam War hero who is now a cross-dressing farmer. Another story is "Dandelion Wish," the story of a mother driven by desperate circumstances to live as a fugitive with her young son. "Angry Nipple," is a cautionary tale of extreme jealousy. And the title story, "Death by Clogging" is about exactly that.

Are the stories primarily set in the South, and if so, do you consider yourself a Southern writer?
They are all set in the South. "Angry Nipple" could be set anywhere, though. Yes, I consider myself a Southern writer. I try to set my stories in Southern locales because the South has always been a unique place to live, where people still hold on to old-time traditions, and not everyone has been culture-washed by television shows like MTV and VH1.

You have a master's in creative writing. Do you think those who want to write (and get published) should go to school for it, or is it more about learning as you go?
I think it's more about learning as you go. I know of successful writers who didn't earn their master's degrees, and they did just fine. I think you need to study the authors in your favorite genre and see what they're doing -- what techniques they are using to draw the readers in. What are they doing right? I ask myself when I'm reading my favorite authors' works, "Why do I like this story so much? What is this author doing to get me to feel this way about this passage? How is he/she pushing my emotional buttons?"

Why did you decide to publish your collection on Kindle?
I read about a young author Amanda Hocking who has become an indie ebook sensation. She's become a millionaire in, like, 10 months by selling her vampire adventure/romance novels. Reading about her success made me decide to just do it and see how many I can sell online. Plus, there's a lot more freedom to publishing on Kindle, Nook, and other epublishing venues. You have more control.

Who are some of your favorite Southern writers?
Truman Capote is my favorite of all time. His descriptions and scenes are so vivid. I can only hope to write half as well as that. I also like Flannery O'Connor's work.

What's your "guilty pleasure" reading?
Anything Stephen King. He's a wonderful writer and really draws you into the story.

Banned book week

2011-09-22T13:18:00.000-07:00

Okay, I'm piggy-backing off Marianne Wheelaghan's blog entry and am talking about Banned Book Week next week. Every year, this event "highlightes the benefits of free and open access to information while drawing attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted bannings of books across the United States."

Some of the books challenged in 2010:
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

What's the difference between a challenge and a banning?
According to the American Library Association, "A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials. Challenges do not simply involve a person expressing a point of view; rather, they are an attempt to remove material from the curriculum or library, thereby restricting the access of others. Due to the commitment of librarians, teachers, parents, students and other concerned citizens, most challenges are unsuccessful and most materials are retained in the school curriculum or library collection."

Can you imagine a world without Aldous Huxley, Judy Blume, or Toni Morrison, all of whom have been challenged? Scary!

Deep South Lit. Mag

2011-09-19T11:53:00.000-07:00

Have you heard of Deep South Magazine? I just discovered it today: "an online magazine connecting the Southern states of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, the Carolinas, and parts of Texas and Florida." They have a Southern Voice literary section that accepts submissions of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Worth a try!

Review: The Blue Suitcase

2011-07-26T11:41:00.000-07:00

I've mentioned author Marianne Wheelaghan a few times on this blog -- she's a self-starting writer and entrepreneur who created www.writingclasses.co.uk. She recently published her first novel, The Blue Suitcase, through Pilrig Press, and although she's not Southern (she's from Scotland, my native home), she faces the same challenges we all face. How to get the word out about her book, how to juggle writing and the rest of her life... her story is our story.

The Blue Suitcase is historical fiction, set around World War II. Antonia lives in Silesia, formerly part of Germany, with her opinionated family. Her parents are outraged that one son, Hubert, wants to join Hitler Youth and the other, Hansi, is a member of the Communist Party. Antonia's two sisters are fighting over which one of them should be sent off to become a nun. But all Antonia wants to do is celebrate her 13th birthday in peace! Things only get worse in 1933 when Adolf Hitler becomes Chancellor of Germany and begins national boycotts of Jewish businesses and starts rounding up anyone who disagrees with his policies. Hansi disappears, Hubert joins the Hitler Youth march, and Antonia's mother loses her job. Women are meant to be at home taking care of the family, according to Hitler. Not surprisingly, family is the first thing to crumble under the harsh new regime.

The novel follows Antonia's struggles to find work, a home, and later simply to survive as the war ravages Germany. Marianne has flawlessly recreated images of rubble-infested Breslau and emaciated German citizens forced to evacuate their homes on foot, despite the frigid winter. It was hard to put this book down -- I had to find out what happened to Antonia, her family, and the German people. The book is all the more powerful because it's based on real events.

2011 SIBA Awards!

2011-07-14T08:48:00.000-07:00

If you haven't yet heard, SIBA (Southern Independend Booksellers'Alliance) announced this year's winners on July 4th. Check out SIBA's website, and for a great overview of the winners and other literary news, see the excellent Authors 'Round the South blog.

Here are a few of the winners:

Fiction: Burning Bright by Ron Rash

Nonfiction: The Blueberry Years: A Memoir of Farm and Family by Jim Minick

Poetry: A House of Branches by Janisse Ray

Submit a play!

2011-07-09T05:35:00.000-07:00

If you're a Southern playwright looking for an audience, you might want to submit a play for consideration in the Southern Writers' Project Festival of New Plays. The weekend-long festival is held in the spring of each year as part of the Alabama Shakespeare Festival (ASF). If your play is chosen for the festival, it'll also be considered for future ASF productions. There are two conditions: 1) You must be a Southern writer 2) Your script must be set in the South or deals specifically with Southern issues, characters, or themes.

Interesting article in Glamour

2011-07-05T11:39:00.000-07:00

Katie Couric has an interesting interview with Kathryn Stockett in Glamour Magazine. Stockett makes the point that it's hard to answer the question, "How does the African American race feel about the book?" as it's not as though all African Americans have the same point of view...

Now, I feel dumb for asking the question at all! Maybe the point is to not focus so much on one perspective but give everyone a chance to be heard -- which is the message of the book, after all.

What do you think of The Help?

2011-07-05T05:46:00.000-07:00

Just finished reading The Help by Mississippi author Kathryn Stockett. I know I'm late to the game, as the book's been receiving rave reviews since it was published in 2009. I really enjoyed it -- great characters, lots of plot twists, and a satisfying ending. As a novel, it was very engaging. As a political commentary on race relations, to me it seemed powerful, but I wonder what African American audiences think.

For me, growing up in Scotland as a white person and moving to the States well after the Civil Rights Movement, I feel like an outsider to this part of history. Are the characters realistic, both white and black? Stockett studied Susan Tucker's book Telling Memories Among Southern Women, and she obviously knows her subject, growing up in Jackson, Mississippi. Mainstream media love her novel, as do book clubs. But what about specifically black audiences? Or is it not cool to ask that question?

Excellent blog for writers!

2011-06-22T08:48:00.000-07:00

Former literary agent Nathan Bransford has an excellent blog with a whole list of "Publishing Essentials," including templates for query letters, advice on how to write a novel, information about how the publishing industry works, and tons more. Check it out: http://blog.nathanbransford.com/

Leaf & String Book Festival

2011-06-14T07:20:00.001-07:00

I was in Galax, VA, this weekend with family and discovered that the Leaf & String book festival had taken over downtown Galax. What a great festival! Although I'd missed the authors events (we got there kind of late), I went into Chapters Bookshop, which sponsors the festival. Lovely book store with lots of local author displays and gifts to peruse. And out on the streets, musicians played fiddle, mandolin, the bass, and banjo. And vendors sold delicious barbecue.

New Southerner Magazine Suspended

2011-06-07T13:39:00.001-07:00

Uh-oh.... Another one bites the dust! New Southerner Magazine has suspended publication while they "explore options for restructuring and relaunching operations." Archives of the online magazine are still available on the website. So much for the idea that online magazines are easier to sustain than print ones... Any thoughts?

My updated website

2011-06-07T13:33:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to plug my own website: www.louisajdang.com

It's still very basic, but I've changed the focus from freelance writing to my upcoming (hopefully!) novel. I'm hoping to finish it up this summer and then look for a literary agent...yikes! Wish me luck! Anyone have any advice/experience to share about finding a literary agent? Are there any that specifically focus on Southern authors/fiction?

THEMA seeking submissions

2011-05-30T19:00:00.001-07:00

THEMA is a Louisiana-based literary journal that publishes short stories, poems, photography, and art. Each issue focuses on a specific theme, which must be an integral part of the plot:

Wisecracks & poems (deadline July 1, 2011)

Who keeps it tiday? (November 1, 2011)

White wine chilling (March 1, 2012)

Sounds like a great idea!

Therese Fowler: Exposure

2011-05-11T14:21:00.000-07:00

I had the pleasure of attending a reading by Therese Fowler last Thursday at Quail Ridge Books in Raleigh for her new book Exposure. This is her third novel, and it's about the controversial topic of teenage romance and sexting -- when is it harmless, and when is it a crime? Therese and I both graduated from the MFA in creative writing program at N.C. State University. She and her first novel, Souvenir, got snapped up by the big publishers, and it's been uphill ever since!

National Poetry Month

2011-04-26T18:33:00.000-07:00

Oops! I had forgotten that April is National Poetry Month. I'm not an expert on poetry by any stretch, but I definitely appreciate the need to honor our poets! You might want to check out the interview of Tennessee-based poet Kate Daniels in Southern Literary Review. Here's a tiny segment of the interview...

Kate Daniels: "Robert Penn Warren would be the Southern poet who had the most influence on me – the lack of compression, the grandiosity of syntax, the very quirky speaking voice in his poems were all things that I found very appealing aesthetically and very encouraging personally. I always had a hard time with (some other poets) because of how highly formal, how self conscious, the poems seemed to me. They intimidated me in a way, but also made me anxious: so boxed-in, so careful, so neat and tidy. Just the way that Warren’s poems, particularly the later poems, sprawled all over the page was really inspiring to me. There was a way to break out of jail! And because his poems sounded so different from everyone else’s, they became important to me – as a young southern woman of working class origins – as a model for an independent literary life."

Readers' Corner

2011-04-22T13:46:00.000-07:00

Going crazy trying to figure out what to read? The Athens, GA, Regional Library System has a great website. Look under "Readers' Corner" for tips on books, Internet resources, and writers in different genres -- African American authors, Civil War fiction, Family Sagas, and tons more.

Writers' radio

2011-04-12T05:25:00.000-07:00

This looks like a great radio station for writers and readers... Clearstory Radio (107.1 Nashville) features an array of authors and is live on Fridays at 9 a.m. CST. You can listen via a link on their website. Here's a list of upcoming authors:

Catherine Coulter, Author Thrillers, FBI Series, Historial Fiction

Olivia Byrd Cooley, Author Miss Hildreth

Jeannie Cummings, Author The Outside Boy & A Rip In Heaven

Dr. Mark Green, Author My Night With Saddam

Shellie Rushing Tomlinson, Author/Radio Host

Meet the author...

2011-04-09T12:52:00.000-07:00

C.C. Jackson is a Louisiana writer who recently self published her young adult novel, Stay. I interviewed Jackson via email to find out more about her writing journey.

Please tell us a little about yourself and your novel.

I grew up in a small town in northern Maryland and moved to southern Louisiana after meeting my husband 15 years ago. I really enjoyed growing up in Maryland but have definitely fallen in love with the deep south.

I wrote my first book when I was in the fourth grade. It was about six orphans that became friends and traveled to Paris. In Paris they rode horses and met Michael Jackson. It was featured in an exhibit at our local mall at the time. My parents still have and cherish that little book.

When I was in the tenth grade, I won a local Sci-Fi writing contest. It was very exciting and really let me know that I could do this. I have been writing and blogging ever since. Stay just sort of came to me one day. I just sat down and started writing all of the things that popped into my head.

It is about a girl named Callie Rose. She grew up in southern Louisiana, leading the life of a normal teenage girl. One night she was stolen away from her home only to be told that she was destined to become queen of the fairies. The story is about her struggle to grow up in a harsh underground environment, putting aside everything that she thought that she wanted for her life prior to being kidnapped. She gets her first dose of love and heartbreak when she finds herself torn between two guys. She must also decide if she is willing to challenge the current queen, who is a tyrant, in order to take her rightful place on the throne.

What made you decide to self publish your novel?

My husband purchased a Nook Color to give to me as a Christmas gift. I think that it is one of the best gifts that he has ever given me. I have always been an avid reader, and I was reading at about a three-book-per-week pace.

It was during the exploration of my new toy that I first discovered Indie Writers. They were putting out all of these really great books themselves. I had written several stories over the years just for fun and thought… Hey, I can do this. That’s when I sat down and started writing Stay. Six weeks later, it was published.

I never even considered submitting to a large publishing house. As an Indie, I was in total control. I could set my own price, or even change it if I chose. I was able to price my book at a price that people could afford, especially in this economy. I didn’t have to sit and wait for years just to see someone else read my work. Self publishing has been very rewarding.

How did you juggle three children, a part-time job, and writing?

I am very fortunate to have a wonderful husband that works very hard so that I only have to work a part-time job. It started out that way when the kids were small. I was able to be at home with them through the week, and just pick up shifts on the weekend. I am also very fortunate to work somewhere that offers such a great shift. I just work two nights, twelve hours each shift. It’s great and works out perfectly for my writing.

Now that the kids are getting a little older, I have all day to write while they are in school. So, I have decided to keep my weekend shift at work and continue to concentrate my free time during the week on my writing.

Your novel is available on Kindle and Nook – could you briefly describe the process of creating an ebook?

After reading some great books by Indie Authors on my Nook, I started paying attention to who they listed as their publisher. Smashwords was the name that kept popping up over and over. When I finally went onto the Smashwords site, I found a great tutorial that talked about formatting and such so that your book could be converted into ebook format. The main things that it talked about were things like paragraph indentions and spacing. It was pretty easy really.

When my book was finally ready to be uploaded, I opted to publish to Kindle and Nook directly. Those are the main sites that your book will sell through and I felt that a one-on-one relationship with those networks was pretty important. I still use Smashwords to publish to iBooks, Kobo, Sony, and a few others.

What has been the biggest challenge in making your novel a reality?

The biggest challenge by far has been marketing. Going from a complete unknown to trying to sell your work is a daily battle. Social networking has been my biggest asset, but it can become very time consuming and leave little time for actual writing if I’m not careful.

What’s been the most rewarding part?

The most rewarding part of getting my work out there is when someone sends me a comment, whether it be on Twitter, Facebook, or my website, that says I really loved your book and can’t wait for the sequel. It just gives me such a feeling of satisfaction. That’s what it is all about.

What sort of publicity have you done for your novel – obviously, social networking, but any local readings? Has it been hard to do your own marketing?

The largest part of my publicity has been through social networking. Twitter is my number one asset for getting my name out there. I have also sent copies of my book to several book bloggers for review on their websites. I am hoping that they will play a large part in helping me reach a bigger audience. All of the publicity that I have done has been through the internet in some way. With my book not being available in local book stores, it’s very hard to gain an audience for public readings or book signings.

Are you working on any other writing projects now?

I am working on two projects at the moment. I am working on the sequel to Stay, as well as another young adult paranormal romance. I hope to have them both available in the next few months.

2011 Spring Okra Picks

2011-04-04T11:50:00.000-07:00

Okra Picks are new Southern books that SIBA indie bookstores want to especially share with their customers. All the books selected are Southern in nature, and there is a SIBA member Bookstore who is really excited about the book. Here's a link to the 2011 spring picks (which include Under the Mercy Trees by Heather Newton, Tales from a Free-Range Childhood by Donald Davis, and Fighting the Devil in Dixie by Wayne Greenhaw): http://www.sibaweb.com/okra

Edible Book Festival

2011-03-30T11:32:00.000-07:00

Watch out for the annual Edible Book Festival at Duke Univesity this Saturday. The only rule: make edible art that has something to do with books as shapes or content. April 1, 2011 - Gothic Reading Room (Perkins Library) 2-3:30 p.m. Duke University Libraries Information and inspiration can be found on the International Festival's home page at http://www.books2eat.com/.

Book Buzz in Columbia, SC

2011-02-23T18:33:00.000-08:00

Richland County Public Library has a great section on their website called Book Buzz. It has reviews of recently published books( including one of Ron Rash's Serena) staff picks, and lists of books from the NY Times Bestseller list. It's worth checking out, especially if you're looking for something to read and don't have any ideas!

Trailfest 2011

2011-01-26T12:14:00.000-08:00

Check out the Southern Literary Trail, where there are events throughout the South. Here's a link to events in Mississippi:

http://www.southernliterarytrail.org/events-ms.html

Events include:

"FIELDS OF DREAMS: SPORTS IN THE SOUTH": The Natchez Literary and Cinema Celebration
The 100th BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION OF TENNESSEE WILLIAMS
Amanda/Regina: Fashioning Southern Women for the Broadway Stage
THE 17th ANNUAL OXFORD CONFERENCE FOR THE BOOK

Buy a book, get one free!

2011-01-04T11:10:00.001-08:00

Check out this website for info. on how to get a free book from an indie bookstore:
http://www.authorsroundthesouth.com/cos_display_arts.php

"Wanda Jewell, Executive Director of the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance for nearly 20 years, is overrun with books. All kind of books, galleys, advance reading copies, advance reader editions, paperbound and hardbound, slip-covered and not, limited editions, signed and unsigned, personalized and not; and finds herself overrun with books. Books here, books there, books, books, everywhere…and when contemplating the management of her extensive personal library, had her aha moment. How to weed her collection and support her southern indie bookstores at the same time? Thus was born the Free Book Stimulus Plan."

The Blue Suitcase

2010-12-01T06:43:00.000-08:00

Okay, so Marianne Wheelaghan is not a Southern writer -- she lives in Scotland, in fact. But she's just released her first novel, and she did it by creating her own small press, so I thought lots of writers might be interested in this...

Marianne is an established writer, editor, and creative writing teacher (see her interview in the April, 2008 blog entry). Her husband has written several academic books and is a skilled desktop publisher. When the big publishing houses failed to pick up her novel (historical fiction, by the way; I guess they thought it'd be hard to market?), Marianne and her hubby decided to do it themselves, and why not? They have the skills, talent, drive, and the strict attention to detail that is needed to produce a high-quality publication. Check out their website at www.pilrigpress.co.uk.

I'll be posting a review of the book soon, and possibly an interview with Marianne. In the meantime, what do you think of start-up presses? Is it a good idea for writers? It's a lot of work, but isn't it better than being ignored by the big presses??

Local writers' festivals

2010-10-21T15:54:00.000-07:00

It's tempting to write off the big-chain-bookstores as the "bad guys" stealing all the business from small bookstores, but every now and then they do their bit to support local writers. A few years ago, I went to the Barnes & Noble in Durham, NC, that had a roundtable of local self-published authors. They talked about their books, and then the audience were able to buy signed copies.

Here's another example of the "local writers festival" at a B&N in Birmingham, AL. Let me know if you know of any other similar events.

Southern Writers' Festival
Author Signing
Come and support our wonderful selection of local authors in person during this eclectic event. With the collection of many genres, there is something for everyone.
Sunday October 24, 2010 2:00 PM
The Summit Birmingham
Summit Shopping Center,
201 Summit Boulevard Suite 100,
Birmingham, AL 35243,
205-298-0665

Blue Moon Cafe

2010-06-17T05:56:00.000-07:00

My friend recently let me borrow Stories from the Blue Moon Cafe, a great anthology of short stories, essays, and poetry from writers all over the South. It's not new--it was published in 2002 as the result of a literary gathering called Southern Writers Reading in Fairhope, Alabama. Apparently, there's a whole series of them now.

Some of the writers in this first volume include: Rick Bragg, C. Terry Cline Jr., Patricia Foster, William Gay, Pat Controy, Silas House, and lots more. An especially humorous one is "S. Trident" by C. Terry Cline Jr, about the purchase of some old Cold War government property, told entirely in letters to and from the U.S. and Russian government.

New Indie Bookstore in Hillsborough

2010-06-13T06:35:00.000-07:00

Let's hope it's a trend...a new independent bookstore opened in November in Hillsborough, NC. Purple Crow Books is a tiny nook that specializes in Hillsborough and NC authors. There's a cute little kids' room with great selections and a special "seat" made out of a claw-foot tub!

If you've heard of any new indie bookstores in the South, please let us know!

Southern-style book reviews

2010-03-09T05:55:00.000-08:00

If you've not already checked out Southern Literary Review, here's another good reason ... their book review section. There's a good mixture of academic stuff, literary journals, and fiction. Fun to read for the recommendations or just as reading material in itself. Here's the website:

http://southernlitreview.com/category/reviews

Writing contest for study abroad

2010-01-27T19:08:00.000-08:00

There's a new kind of writing prize at the University of New Orleans. Three contest winners will attend a writing program at the Ezra Pound Center for Literature in Dorf Tirol, Italy, or the Writing Workshops in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.

Prizes are given annually to a poet, a fiction writer, and a creative nonfiction writer. The award includes full tuition and lodging, and the winning works are published in the Pinch. The editors of the Pinch will judge. Using the online submission system at the link above, submit your work with a $25 entry fee by January 31. Visit the Web site for complete guidelines.

The Walker Percy Project

2010-01-09T07:44:00.000-08:00

Have you read any Walker Percy? I came across this website dedicated to the Alabama-born author, winner of the 1962 National Book Award for his first novel The Moviegoer. The site is a literary center with lots of information, free to the public. It's a little hard to navigate, but if you're like me and hadn't heard of Percy, it may pique your curiosity about the unusual writer. There's even an online discussion group.

Here's a quote from the website, answering the question, "Who is Walker Percy?"

"novelist of ideas

philosophical novelist

comedic satirist

cautionary moralist

diagnostician

prophetic essayist

post-modern thinker

'existentialist' Southern gentleman

ex-suicide wayfarer-pilgrim

Martian castaway [...]

None of the above/all of the above"

Going Away Shoes

2009-10-11T10:44:00.001-07:00

Check out NC author Jill McCorkle's new book of short stories, Going Away Shoes, published by Algonquin Books. If you haven't yet read McCorkle, this is a great way to start -- her stories have weight to them and are addictive because the characters are so real, with dark senses of humor and real faults -- like a wife who invites her ex and his new girlfriend for Christmas Eve and then wonders why she ever did such a stupid thing. Then the septic tank goes bust. What could be a better story??

Seeing STARS!

2009-04-19T06:37:00.000-07:00

If you haven't yet heard about STARS (Southern Traveling Authors Registration Service), you might want to check it out: http://www.authorsroundthesouth.com/STARS/author.php

Authors and readers will benefit from this new service, launched in January by SIBA. Basically, STARS is a listing of Southern authors -- their websites, press kits, upcoming readings they're doing ... Each time they enter a trip on STARS, an announcement is sent to nearby SIBA stores, telling booksellers that the author will be in the area and is available for events, speaking engagements, book club discussions, etc. Great idea!

Back again ...

2009-03-15T12:29:00.000-07:00

... after a short hiatus! Will be updating the events and contests section soon, along with more literary news from the South.

Current and upcoming reading list:
King of Lies, John Hart
Serena, Ron Rash

I'm obviously more familiar with the NC authors, so please feel free to share any other Southern authors that you know of.

Adventures in Pen Land

2008-11-13T13:34:00.000-08:00

Adventures in Pen Land: One Writer's Journey from Inklings to Ink is North Carolina writer Marianne Gingher's fifth book and tells of her uphill slog toward writing success. Written in first person, this is a smooth, easy read with humorous anecdotes from Gingher's life, starting at age 6, and illustrations by Daniel Wallace. There's an interesting chapter called "The Southern Writer Thing" where she describes a trip to New York City to meet her literary agent and reflects on what it means to write, sound, and look "Southern."

Here's the blurb from the back of the book, which describes it much better than I can!

She invites us along on a raucous tour of soul-sucking jobs, marriage, and a teaching career, with accompanying disquisitions on blasphemous reading preferences, ’60s pop culture, writing workshops, and other amusing detours and distractions on the way to publication. She also shares her keen insights into the role of a Southern writer in American literary culture, the experience of writing as a mother, and the process of novel-writing as compared to a lengthy family car trip.

New Stories from the South

2008-10-27T14:28:00.000-07:00

Have you checked out this year's collection yet? Each year, Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, NC, publishes an anthology of contemporary Southern short stories, selected by a guest editor. This year's editor was ZZ Packer, author of the collection of short stories, Drinking Coffee Elsewhere (2003).

Here's the table of contents to whet your appetite:

Introduction by ZZ Packer
Holly Goddard Jones, Theory of Realty
Pinckney Benedict, Bridge of Sighs
Amina Gautier, The Ease of Living
Kevin Moffett, First Marriage
Robert Drummond, The Unnecessary Man
Stephanie Soileau, So This Is Permanence
Clyde Edgerton, The Great Speckled Bird
Ron Rash, Back of Beyond
Merritt Tierce, Suck It
R.T. Smith, Wretch Like Me
Karen E. Bender, Candidate
David James Poissant, Lizard Man
Daniel Wallace, The Girls
Jim Tomlinson, First Husband, First Wife
Bret Anthony Johnston, Republican
Mary Miller, Leak
Charlie Smith, Albemarle
Jennifer Moses, Child of God
Stephanie Dickinson, Lucky Seven & Dalloway
Kevin Brockmeier, Andrea Is Changing Her Name

Southern Festival of Books

2008-10-08T09:33:00.000-07:00

Nashville, TN, hosts 250 authors at the 20th annual Southern Festival of Books this weekend. Visiting authors include Sherman Alexie, Richard Bausch, Madison Smartt Bell, Rick Bragg, Clyde Edgerton, Rheta Grimsley Johnson, Bobbie Ann Mason, and tons more nationally- and locally-known authors and presenters. Too many to mention here! Sounds like a great festival!

The Southern Festival of Books will be held at Nashville's War Memorial Plaza, and the hours are:
Friday, October 10 from Noon–6 pm;
Saturday, October 11 from 9 am–6 pm;
and Sunday, October 12 from Noon–5 pm.

Authors and Geography

2008-09-10T06:43:00.000-07:00

I spotted this book, A Literary Guide to Flannery O'Connor's Georgia, and thought it looked interesting. From the UGA Press website:

"The guide describes such places as O'Connor's childhood home in Savannah; the Governor's Mansion, Cline House, and Central State Hospital in Milledgeville; and the family farm, Andalusia. Numerous facts about O'Connor and the people closest to her are woven into the site descriptions, as are critical observations about her Catholicism, her acute sense of character and place, and her fierce sense of humor."

I've recently noticed quite a few books that connect authors with geography. In NC, we had Literary Trails of the North Carolina Mountains by Georgann Eubanks, published last year. It's another interesting angle from which to study popular authors (and hopefully a boost to local tourism), and I expect we'll see more in the future. Feel free to share any related books you know of ...

Southeastern Writers...

2008-08-14T13:44:00.000-07:00

I discovered this blog and website for the Southeastern Writers Association; they offer workshops, information on conferences and writing contests, and blurbs about regional authors. Although the focus seems to be more on Georgia, they also feature writers from NC, SC, and other Southeastern states. The membership fee is $35, and they offer services for members, like links to authors' sites and blogs and announcements about members' books being published. Worth checking out!

2008 SIBA Trade Show

2008-08-05T07:09:00.000-07:00

Around 500 Southeastern booksellers - not to mention around 1500 book editors, publishers, authors, and other industry professionals - are going to be at the 2008 Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance Trade Show, September 26 - 28, in Mobile, Alabama.

Just a few of the authors who'll be there.... Ron Rash, Celia Rivenbark, William Conescu, Rick Bragg, Sarah Addison Allen, and many, many more.

Are video clips the way to go?

2008-07-08T08:44:00.000-07:00

I know there's animosity out there towards big chains like Barnes & Noble, who are in direct competition with independent bookstores, in many cases helping to put them out of business. But can our own indies learn a few lessons from the big guys? Take a look at this video clip, part of a new series released by B&N -- I posted this because it deals with writer Dorothea Benton Frank and other women Southern writers.

Posting videos is a great idea, one I think independent bookstores could use for their own benefit. Podcasts are cheap; why not post videos of author readings, editors' picks, informal book reviews, etc... Then, make those videos available to local bloggers who can spread the word.

Are there indies out there already doing this? I'd be interested to know.

Writing the Region

2008-07-07T12:06:00.000-07:00

Florida writers should take advantage of "Writing the Region" 12th Annual Writers Workshop in Gainesville, from July 23-27th. The workshop honors Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings and features some great classes for those wanting to know more about publishing their work. Some of the offerings include "How to Write a Synposis that Won't Make an Editor Sneer" and "Six Steps to a Killer Query," as well as classes on writing fiction and poetry.

Deadline extended for weekend retreat

2008-07-07T11:45:00.001-07:00

Ok, shameless promotion ahead!

For anyone interested in doing a weekend workshop in either "Magazine Writing and More" or "Knitting by the Sea," the deadline for the deposit has been extended to July 16.

The workshop is at the lovely Pine Knoll Shores, NC, from August 1-3 and costs $300 (for shared room) or $380 (single), including tuition, food, and room. For more details, please visit http://www.louisajdang.com/Retreats.htm

Gene Hackman spotted in NC

2008-07-01T11:24:00.000-07:00

Co-authors Gene Hackman (yes, that Gene Hackman!) and Daniel Lenihan were at Quail Ridge Books in Raleigh on Friday, promoting their new Civil War novel, Escape from Andersonville. Our own Lisa Morgan was there, soaking up the history!

Here's a synopsis from Quail Ridge Books:

An explosive novel of the Civil War about one man's escape from a notorious Confederate prison camp---and his dramatic return to save his men.

July 1864. Union officer Nathan Parker has been imprisoned at nightmarish Andersonville prison camp in Georgia along with his soldiers. As others die around them, Nathan and his men hatch a daring plan to allow him to escape through a tunnel and make his way to Vicksburg, where he intends to alert his superiors to the imprisonment and push for military action. His efforts are blocked by higher-ups in the military, so Parker takes matters into his own hands. Together with a shady, dangerous ex-soldier and smuggler named Marcel Lafarge and a fascinating collection of cutthroats, soldiers, and castoffs, a desperate Parker organizes a private rescue mission to free his men before it's too late.

Exciting, thoroughly researched, and dramatic, "Escape from Andersonville" is a Civil War novel filled with action, memorable characters, and vividly realized descriptions of the war's final year.

Interview: William Conescu's Debut

2008-06-11T08:01:00.000-07:00

Up-and-coming North Carolina author William Conescu will celebrate the release of his first book, Being Written, on September 9. He was the first graduate of N.C. State University's new creative writing M.F.A. program and has been published in several literary journals, including The Gettysburg Review, New Letters, and Green Mountains Review.

We were in some of the same writing workshops at N.C. State, and I caught up with him the other day to ask him about his new novel.

What was the process for getting your novel published?

As you know from our grad school days together, I wrote Being Written as the largest part of my creative writing thesis. Because it was on the short side, I thought I’d market it as the anchor novella in a novella/short story collection. After graduating, I set it aside for about a year and wrote a few more stories, and then I showed the whole package to an agent who specializes in literary fiction. Bill Clegg is a terrific reader and a great agent. He urged me to think of Being Written as a novel and worked with me as I revised and expanded it a bit. By March 2007, we were ready to send the novel out to publishers, and it was sold to Harper Perennial within about two weeks. [...]

In Being Written, you tell the story of a man who knows that he is a minor character in a book (sort of like the movie, Stranger than Fiction, although you had written your idea way before the movie!). How did you get the idea for your novel?

I started out wanting to write a playful work of metafiction about a guy who knows he’s in a novel, but who’s the literary equivalent of a movie extra. His greatest purpose in the universe is to fill out crowd scenes. That idea tied in nicely with another story I’d been wanting to write, one about artistically-minded people in their twenties and thirties trying to figure out how best to live their lives. So these stories collide in Being Written. Daniel, the fellow who’s only been a minor character thus far in his life, works his way into the life of a singer and her “artsy” social circle and goes to some lengths to make himself a vital part of their story. I wrote Daniel’s sections in the second person, which was a lot of fun, so Being Written alternates between third person chapters of “the book” that’s being written and second person chapters that show Daniel’s perception of being written into it.

Growing up in New Orleans and later living in NC, do you consider yourself a "Southern" writer? How do you think living in the South has influenced your writing?

I don’t think someone reading my work would necessarily identify me as a Southern writer, but as you said, I’ve spent most of my life in New Orleans and North Carolina – two places with rich literary traditions. As a writer, I’ve certainly been shaped by these communities, and I’ve benefited from exceptional teachers, first in New Orleans, and then at UNC and NC State.

What are you reading right now?

Ian McEwan’s Atonement.

What is your "guilty pleasure" reading?

I love the comedienne Chelsea Handler, and I’m about to start reading Are You There Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea.

What advice would you give to writers who’re considering whether or not to attend an M.F.A. program in creative writing?

I’m someone who really values the creative writing workshop. I value the constructive feedback, I’m motivated by the deadlines, and I think we become better critics of our own writing when we critique and discuss other writers’ works-in-progress. If you value these things, then go for it. In the meantime, you might see if your local university or community college offers a creative writing workshop for continuing education students.

What are you working on now?

I’m hard at work on another novel. I’m not ready to talk about it yet (I haven’t made it to the end yet, so I only think I know what happens!), but it’s going well. I’m excited about it.

Note: If you're interested in checking out William's book before September, you can pre-order it at various websites, such as Amazon.com, Powells.com, etc...

Save the Date!!

2008-05-21T06:56:00.000-07:00

If you're going to be in North Carolina on Saturday, June 7, you'll want to get a copy of Our State magazine. There's going to be a coupon in the June issue for one complimentary admission to tons of tourist attractions across the state--museums, gardens, aquariums, Linville Caverns, Chinqua Penn Plantation.... Some of these places cost up to $30 to get in, so $4.95 for one magazine is a pretty good deal!

Here's a link to the magazine for more info:

http://www.ourstate.com/best/special_events.asp

Storytelling

2008-05-13T11:13:00.000-07:00

Storytelling is big in the South. It seems to me that oral storytellers and writers have a lot in common--having to think of interesting plots, exaggerate or fictionalize the truth, keep the audience's attention, and have a flair for the dramatic. Of course, being a good storyteller doesn't guarantee you'll be a good writer, and vice versa. But I'd like to go to a storytelling festival one day, just to see how it is, and I bet I would learn some tips for my writing.

Here's one in Roswell, Georgia, June 27-28:

http://www.cvb.roswell.ga.us/storytelling.html

Interview: Marianne Wheelaghan, online inventor

2008-04-25T14:08:00.000-07:00

Marianne Wheelaghan is a fiction writer and teacher. She used to teach Creative Writing for the Open University in Great Britain and for Edinburgh University. She's now developing new courses for her online writing school, http://www.writingclasses.co.uk/. While not from the American South, Marianne offers great insights about online learning, especially important in today’s world of cyber-degrees and virtual classrooms.

You earned your Master’s through a distance-learning program. Can you tell us a little about how that worked, logistically?

When I began to inquire about enrolling on a Master’s program I was running my own business and caring for my two children, who were still quite young. These commitments meant attending face-to-face classes on fixed days at set times in inconvenient places was simply not an option for me. On the other hand, online distance learning was perfect, I could ‘log on’ and download my course notes as well as meet my colleagues at a time that most suited me, and better still, from the comfort of my own home. And although my colleagues weren’t necessarily online at the same time as I was - the conference program we used was not asynchronous – when I logged on communication felt instantaneous and a very real ‘virtual’ community rapidly developed, which was both stimulating and supportive and conducive to learning.

Did you find it harder to write, not being in a classroom environment? For example, do you think it would have been easier listening to critiques in person?

No. I found – and still find - the physical classroom environment rather intimidating and not conducive to creativity.

As for giving and receiving feedback – well, I find taking and giving critiques much easier in the virtual environment. In the virtual classroom students have to write down their comments in black and white, this process tends to make the students better consider what they are saying. At the same time, for those who are receiving feedback, there is time to reflect on what is said and as a consequence one tends to react intellectually rather than emotionally to comments. Furthermore, everyone has an opportunity to have his or her say in the virtual classroom – there are no loudmouths hogging the floor, intimidating the less confident student.

Why did you decide to start your own online creative writing school?

I passionately wanted to teach creative writing, not just because I enjoy writing so much myself, but previous to doing my master's degree I had been on so many bad creative writing courses that I was determined to create a ‘good’ course once I’d qualified. And what do I mean by ‘bad’? Well, so many of my ex-tutors seemed to have had an ‘airy-fairy’ idea of to how to teach creative writing – especially those tutors on short courses. They invariably talked about being ‘gifted’ and brought ‘interesting’ objects into class to inspire creativity - usually something like a hideously large orange-brown ash tray in the shape of a dromedary, found in the back of a shed at the bottom of the tutor’s garden (where it should have stayed!). I found it frustrating not to be ‘taught’ specific writing skills, and was not in the least bit inspired by objects that meant nothing to me.

So, now that I have experience and amassed a good deal of writing ‘know-how’ I have created courses, which teach specific writing skills and techniques. Through the honing of these skills I encourage both beginner and emerging writers to discover the things that matter most to them and show them how to write creatively about these things.

What “challenges” have you had working online? For example, how do you encourage group interaction and the exchange of ideas?

The main challenge working online is to keep students logging on. It is too easy not to switch on, and the longer the student stays ‘away,' the more isolated the student feels and the more disengaged from the learning process. Students need to understand that participating online is not like attending face-to-face classes. Online participation is more fluid – students need to check in frequently but they don’t necessarily need to check in for a long time on every virtual visit. So students have to be both flexible and disciplined.

Once students get used to the idea of logging on frequently, group interaction and the exchange of ideas is more likely to follow – especially if the students have been given stimulating course notes and/or assignments, which give the student the opportunity to have his or her say.

What are some advantages to working online?

It’s convenient and flexible – you can participate at any time from anywhere. It cuts down on paper. There’s no travel time. It’s less confrontational than the face-to-face environment. Everyone is equal online. It’s more conducive to learning.

Tell us a little bit about the writing projects you working on right now.

I am writing a fictional account of my mother’s life. The first part is in memoir form. It covers the period from 1932 to 1946 and specifically looks at the way of life of an ordinary Lower Silesian family and how the Nationalist Socialist Party coming to power affected them. It culminates in disaster, when they are forced to flee their home at the end of WWII, when Silesia was handed over to Poland as part of the Potsdam agreement. Millions of Germans [...] were made refugees by this agreement. It is now acknowledged that a wrong was committed against the indigenous German population of the former Eastern districts, but specifically in Lower Silesia, where almost all the population was indigenously German. I want to tell the story of these German victims – one of whom was my mother.

What is your “guilty pleasure” reading?

The Inspector Montalbano Mysteries – by Andrea Camilleri

Build your vocab...

2008-04-21T09:39:00.000-07:00

Okay, so this has nothing to do with Southern literature, but it is a way to build your vocabulary and help donate rice to the United Nations World Food Program. Plus, it's fun!

http://www.freerice.com/index.php

John Ehle

2008-04-11T14:09:00.001-07:00

Another Southern writer who's often classified as "regional" is John Ehle, author of more than 15 fiction and nonfiction books in his 50 years of writing. Press 53 out of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, have republished three of his books: The Land Breakers, The Free Men, and Move Over, Mountain.

Worth checking out!

"Southern" vs. "Mainstream"

2008-03-26T09:07:00.001-07:00

In his article, "Carrying America's Shadow," David Payne makes an interesting point...why is it that successful Southern writers, such as Lee Smith, don't seem to have the same fame and readership north of Washington, D.C. ? It's something worth thinking about...does the "regionalism" that distinguishes Southern writers and helps set us apart as something special also hinder us? As Payne points out, you don't often hear about "Northern" writers--they're called, instead, "national" writers.

The second half of Payne's article gets a bit labored, in my opinion, veering into racial stereotypes of "rednecks," etc... and isn't as well argued as the first half.

I think he makes a good point, though, that writers who've distanced themselves from the South seem to have done better nationally than writers who've focused on and celebrated their "regionalism." But is it worth it?

"Cormac McCarthy, after setting several novels in his childhood home of Knoxville, left the South, literally and figuratively, and gained attention writing about the West. Anne Tyler, though a Southerner, writes of a Baltimore with little native inflection. Barbara Kingsolver, who grew up in Kentucky, wrote for years of the Southwest, and then of Africa, and only late into the game, and from the vantage of success, returned to her Appalachian roots."

Virginia Festival of the Book

2008-03-20T09:15:00.000-07:00

Here's another book festival...this time in Charlottesville, VA. Walter Mosley (not a Southerner but a pretty big name in crime fiction) will be the headliner. Wish I could go to this. Maybe the next one...

http://www.vabook.org/index.html

Affrilachian arts and culture...

2008-03-14T07:06:00.000-07:00

There is a great article in Blue Ridge Country magazine by poet Frank X. Walker, a writer in residence at Northern Kentucky University. Walker helped start the Affrilachian Poets group and talks about how people tend to forget that ethnicities other than "white" exist in the Appalachian region, groups of people who have influenced music, literature, and national and Appalachian culture for generations. Nina Simone came from Tryon, North Carolina, for example. Nikki Giovanni was born in Knoxville, Tennessee, and spent summers there with her grandparents.

Walker is also the editor of Pluck! The Journal of Affrilachian Arts & Culture, now on its second issue. Pluck! has a fresh, modern look and is full of interesting essays and dynamic poetry that is enjoyable to read--not a chore! It covers the Appalachian region from Mississippi to New York.

SIBA Book Awards

2008-03-11T13:05:00.000-07:00

Each year, hundreds of booksellers around the South vote on their favorite books. Whether you agree with them or not, looking at the list of nominations is a good way to find out about Southern authors. Here's a few from SIBA's fiction list for 2008:

Capote in Kansas by Kim Powers
Cataloochee by Wayne Caldwell
Down River by John Hart
Effigies by Mary Anna Evans
One Fell Swoop by Virginia Boyd
Rhett Butler's People by Donald McCaig
The Unnatural History of Cypress Parish by Elise Blackwell
Thistle & Twigg by Mary Saums
Women of Magdalene by Rosemary Poole-Carter
Work Shirts for Madmen by George Singleton

Low-Residency MFAs...

2008-03-05T09:31:00.000-08:00

Every so often, we'll be highlighting MFA creative writing programs across the South. I wanted to mention a couple of low residency MFA programs, since I know a lot of people would love to go back to school, if only they could keep working, or if the college was a bit closer...

Murry State University in Kentucky requires four 10-day residencies at the university. The rest of the hours can be obtained through distance learning -- submitting work to a mentor through email or snail mail -- and you can transfer (with approval) up to 9 literature hours from another grad. school, so it's not a bad plan... In-state prices ($3887 per semester) also apply to residents of many nearby counties in Tennessee, Illinois, and Indiana. And residents throughout the states of Missouri, Tennessee, Illinois, and Indiana benefit from Regional Tuition, which is below the usual MSU out-of-state rates.

Being from NC, I'd always heard of Warren Wilson, but I didn't realize that Queens University of Charlotte also has a low-residency MFA in creative writing. This program requires five 7-day residencies, and in the periods between residencies students complete online workshops with three or four other students and a faculty mentor for that semester. It's pricier than a state college at $5400 a semester (with a $1200 charge for the fifth graduating residency) but comparable to out-of-state prices...and still cheaper than Warren Wilson!

Update: Retreat at the Beach

2008-02-25T10:54:00.000-08:00

If you're interested in taking either a knitting or magazine writing workshop (see Feb. 11 post), please visit my website for more details. Classes are small, so each student will get lots of attention, but that means space is limited.

Free Book Festival

2008-02-12T13:44:00.000-08:00

The South Carolina Book Festival in Columbia is FREE and open to the public, Feb. 22-24. Featured among the many events is a presentation entitled "Women Writing Southern Fiction," with NC writers Pamela Duncan, Virginia Boyd, and Lynn York. Sounds like you won't want to miss it!

Write (or Knit) at the beach

2008-02-11T13:30:00.000-08:00

Like to write? Like to knit? Well, a retreat at the Trinity Center at the North Carolina Outer Banks will offer workshops in both. I will be teaching a class on beginning magazine writing, and Jacqui Mehring will be offering a knitting class. Here's the blurb for my class (more details will be posted soon):

"Magazine Writing and More" - An introduction to freelance magazine writing but also a source of inspiration for those who want to write but don't know how to get started. Beginners and seasoned writers who just need a jolt of creativity are welcome.

DATE: first weekend in August
COST: $300 (will also confirm, along with details about how to apply)
INCLUDES: meals, accommodation, workshop

Review: Ron Rash

2008-01-31T13:46:00.000-08:00

The World Made Straight; by Ron Rash, published 2006

Seventeen-year-old Travis Shelton thinks he's struck it rich when he discovers a hoard of marijuana hidden deep in the woods of Madison County, North Carolina. But the plants belong to Carlton Toomey, alternate farmer and community drug dealer, who gets vicious when people mess with his stash... Rejected by his strict father, Travis moves in with an ex-history professor and drug dealer, who begins teaching Travis about the history of Madison County, the Civil War, and Travis's own ancestors who were killed in the Shelton Massacre of 1863.

Ron Rash intertwines suspense, history, and poetic writing in this powerful novel. He's a master of description, and every tobacco leaf and speckled trout is as vivid as a memory. Rash refuses to sugar-coat the South, creating realistic, believable characters who you root for until the very end.

New Orleans Writing Marathon

2008-01-24T13:13:00.001-08:00

Started by the Southeastern Louisiana Writing Project back in 1994, the New Orleans Writing Marathon draws on ideas from Natalie Goldberg's book Writing Down the Bones. Groups of writers split up and go off on their own, writing down observations and thoughts, and later the groups get back together and share their work, without comment or criticisms. It sounds like a great idea to do anywhere, on a smaller scale, just to get ideas flowing...

This article gives a good overview:

http://www.nwp.org/cs/public/print/resource/315

"Southern" writer Kelly Cherry

2008-01-17T08:46:00.000-08:00

I had never heard of Kelly Cherry until I read an article about her in Nantahala, a journal I just found browsing online. (This looks like a good journal, by the way, focusing on writers/readers in the Appalachian region. The "Fiction" page wasn't working on my computer, but the other links were.)

Apparently, I should read some of Cherry's work because she sounds pretty good--is a fiction writer, poet, and essayist and has won the Pushcart Prize, the National Endowment for the Arts fellowship, and the PEN/Syndicated Fiction Award. She was born in Louisiana and got her M.F.A. at UNC-Greensboro.

Here's an interview where she talks briefly about being a Southern writer:

http://www.southernscribe.com/zine/authors/Cherry2_Kelly.htm

January birthdays...Carl Sandburg

2008-01-16T08:40:00.000-08:00

Born January 6, 1878, Galesburg, Illinois

Although not traditionally "Southern," Carl Sandburg spent the last 22 years of his life at his home in Flat Rock, North Carolina. It's worthwhile to visit his estate, Connemara, where you can see his collection of 10,000 books, notes, and papers and the goats, descended from his wife's prize-winning brood! I visited the house years ago, and I remember the homey feel of the home, the messiness of parts of it, papers strewn around, almost as if the writer would come back at any minute...