Today I met Al Manning, NCWN Board Rep for Netwest, and Betty Cloer Wallace in Franklin to talk about Netwest and to discuss writing and writers in Macon County. After we left the Gazebo, I drove down to Mainstreet and wondered into Books Unlimited. There I talked with the former owner who was subbing for the present owner. I'm sure the friendliness of these folks is one of the reasons that store has been successful for so many years. The wide array of books displayed in both rooms is the other reason.
On the left, just inside the front door, I found a shelf filled with the books of local writers. The ladies said they carried many North Carolina writers. The legendary Gary Carden's books caught my eye and I picked up his Mason Jars in the Flood and other Stories, published in 2000 and reprinted in 2002.
I found it interesting that Gary expressed a special debt to the Internet because much of this book had been read and critiqued by an online group. Many of his revisions are based on the words of hundreds of email posters.
