Writers' Night Out for November and December

 

Writers' Night Out - 7:00 pm 2nd Friday of each month - Join us on Zoom

October – Scott Owens -  Host Glenda Beall

November - Paul Higdon - Host Karen Holmes

December – Joseph Bathanti – Host Carroll Taylor

Congrats to Maren Mitchell

 Maren O. Mitchell has two poems, "Pale first cousin to red," and "Gray," appearing in The Antigonish Review, Volume 50, Numbers 201-02, Spring/Summer 2020. The editorial office of The Antigonish Review is located at St. Francis Xavier University, Antigonish, Nova Scotia, Canada.

From "Untying the Knot" to Happily Ever After

 Good News for a Netwest County Rep and Poet

Hi, this is Karen Paul Holmes. Anyone who has read my poetry probably feels like they know me, and so Glenda Beall has asked me to post this. When we all get to meet in person again and you see me beaming, you'll know why. 

My first poetry collection, Untying the Knot, is like a memoir of experiencing and healing from the trauma of divorce after 32 years of marriage. At the end are poems of finding happiness with a new man. But that ended with his sudden death after six years together. Those of you who attended Writers' Night Out several years ago in Towns County, GA met that wonderful man. 

Now there's a very special person in my life, whom some of you had the pleasure of meeting at WNO last season. My new husband Mark Shaver is a lover of poetry, opera, and BBQ in the mountains, just like me! We married last Sunday in an intimate ceremony, having had to cancel our bigger wedding due to COVID. And yes, I am writing poems about him. I even read one at our wedding. I am now a big believer in late-life marriages. 

By the way, my second book, No Such Thing As Distance continues the story in poetry of my family and me, including Macedonian recipes. I was lucky enough to have poems from it read by Garrison Keillor on The Writer's Almanac and by former U.S. Poet Laureate Tracy K. Smith on her insightful podcast, The Slowdown. Take a listen if you're so inclined! 

FYI: My addresses in the mountains and the city are the same, and I'm keeping my last name. 

ANTHONY ABBOT - January 7, 1935 – October 3, 2020

 We have lost an important North Carolina literary figure, Anthony Abbot. He was winner of the 2015 NC Award for Literature from the State of North Carolina. Anthony S. Abbott is the author of seven books of poetry, two novels, and four books of literary criticism. He was a 2020 Inductee to the North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame.  nclhof.org

Tonight I am listening to a podcast interview done recently on Charlotte Readers Podcast.

I did not know Tony Abbot well, but will always remember the NCWN Fall Conference when we Netwest writers sat at a table with Tony. This is a photo Barry, my husband, made that evening.

Left: Nancy Sales Cash, Mary Jo Dyer, Lana Hendershott, on right side from back, Glenda Beall, Tony Abbott, Pat Davis.

After reading more about this man and listening to him speak on the podcast, I wanted to know him better. On his website I found his About page and learned his history. I love life stories and his is one of the most interesting I've read.

https://anthonysabbott.com/anthony-s-abbott-in-his-own-words/

Congratulations to Carroll S. Taylor, novelist and poet

Carroll's poem, Linguistic Perspective, was published in the popular online journal, Your Daily Poem.

 

Carroll S. Taylor

Read Carroll's poem here.   http://yourdailypoem.com/

Read more:   https://profilesandpedigrees.blogspot.com/2020/10/your-daily-poem-accepts-carroll-taylors.html

Caldwell Arts Council Announces Winners of the Western NC Regional Poetry Competition

The Caldwell Arts Council is pleased to announce the winners of the inaugural Western NC Regional Poetry Competition. Seventy-nine poets submitted a total of 145 poems for this competition. All poems were reviewed by preliminary judge, David B. Prather of Parkersburg, West Virginia, and award selections were made by Kari Gunter-Seymour, Poet Laureate of Ohio. Both award winners and judges will read their works during a live Zoom presentation on Thursday, October 22, 2020 at 7:00 p.m.

 $500 First Place:      “When you tell me I’m being racist” by Catherine Carter, Cullowhee, NC
$250 Second:           “The Ottoman Empire” by Elizabeth Brandes, Hickory, NC
$150 Third:              “The River at World’s End” by Benjamin Cutler, Whittier, NC
$100 Fourth:            “Lessons from the Field” by Anne Maren-Hogan, Burnsville, NC
$75   Fifth:               “Figs” by Joyce Compton Brown, Troutman, NC
$25 Honorable Mention Awards:

“Nocturnal Howl Before Compline” by Jenny Bates, Germanton, NC

“Old Barn” by Les Brown, Troutman, NC

“Bluegills Take Part in the Creation of the World” by Catherine Carter, Cullowhee, NC

“Prayer for a New Trail” by Bill Griffin, Elkin, NC

“September Sunset” by Benjamin Cutler, Whittier, NC

 Competition awards were made possible by a contribution from Blue Ridge Energy.
The live online poetry reading will take place on Thursday, October 22, 2020 at 7:00 p.m. via Zoom.  This event is free and open to the public, but advance registration is required. Email the Caldwell Arts Council at WNCPoetryCompetition@caldwellarts.com for the link to the zoom event.

Jackson rep's poem in Southern Humanities Review

NCWN-West Jackson County representative Catherine Carter's poem "Lactobacilli" appeared this spring in Southern Humanities Review and can be read online at the SHR site, http://www.southernhumanitiesreview.com/531-catherine-carters-lactobacilli.html

Join us on Zoom for this popular writing event.

 

Scott Owens, Featured on Writers' Night Out - Friday, October 9, 7:00 PM.  

Award-winning poet, editor, reviewer columnist, community organizer, and instructor of English, literature, and creative writing with 15 published books, more than 1400 published poems and 500 published essays, articles, and reviews.

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/cc/e6/98/cce6985214c14098f4ab37040bcb098a.jpg

We will send the Zoom invitation to all on the membership list. Contact us if you want to read at open mic.

Congratulations to Karen Luke Jackson

 

 

GRIT by Karen Luke Jackson

Finishing Line Press, 2020

 

Thursday, October 8, from 7 – 8 p.m. Redheaded Stepchild will feature Karen Luke Jackson’s debut poetry chapbook GRIT which chronicles the life of Janis Luke Roberts and her alter ego Clancey the Clown. The online event will be hosted by Malaiki King Albrecht, the journal’s founder and editor and current president of the North Carolina Poetry Society. Karen's reading will be followed by an open mic.

 

            To access the program through Facebook, go to Redheaded Stepchild’s page here.

 

To access the program directly through Zoom, click here.

The book can be ordered from Finishing Line Press

 

 

Robert Lee Kendrick Published with Main Street Rag

Writers’ Night Out had a good attendance tonight with participants from Atlanta area up to Hendersonville, NC. Although we can’t hold our face to face meetings, it is fun to get together online and share our writing.

Robert Lee Kendrick presented us with a most interesting program talking about his writing technique and answering my questions. His latest book Shape the Bent Straight was published by Main Street Rag Publishing company. It can be ordered from Scott Douglas at Main Street Rag or from Robert. 

He said he has a number of books on hand because he had planned to be doing readings and book signings at this time. To order from Robert, send him an email at robertleekendrick@gmail.com He will get your mailing address and you can send him a small fee plus shipping cost. It is well worth the effort and the fee. I plan to order tonight.

If you have not joined our Writers’ Night Out Zoom meeting on the second Friday of each month, be sure to Zoom with us October 9. The name of the guest presenter will be sent out with our invitation to all members of NCWN-West and to the mailing list of those who have attended WNO in the past.

The Open Mic readers are introduced and some conversation takes place with each of them. Join us in October.