Ricketson and Westwood to Read at May 16 Literary Hour

  Poet Mary Ricketson of Murphy, and writer David Andrew Westwood of Hayesville will be featured at the Thursday, May 16, Literary Hour at 7 p.m. in the Keith House library on the John C. Campbell Folk School campus in Brasstown, NC.  The Literary Hour is sponsored by the North Carolina Writers’ Network-West and is free and open to everyone.

Mary Ricketson

Ricketson has been writing poetry for over twenty-five years.  Her poems have been published in numerous poetry reviews and in her recent collection, “Stutters, A Book of Hope,” as well as five other full-length poetry collections and two chapbooks.  She won first place in the 2011 Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest 75th anniversary national poetry contest.  Inspired by nature and her role as a mental health counselor, her poems reflect the healing powers of nature, a path she follows from Appalachian tradition, with the surrounding mountains as midwife for her words.

David Andrew Westwood

Westwood was brought up in 1960s London, got stuck in Los Angeles for far too long, and is now happily settled in Hayesville.  He writes mostly historical fiction — 17 novels so far — but also the occasional short story and essay.  His novels have won three awards from the Military Writers Society of America, and a recent short story was a finalist for North Carolina’s Doris Betts Prize.  His latest novel, “Bitternut Creek,” will be released in August.

The Literary Hour at the folk school is offered every third Thursday of the month through October and brings local poets and writers to the campus to share their work with the community.  The public, and students and faculty of the school are welcome to attend the readings.

The John C. Campbell Folk School offers classes in folk arts and crafts and storytelling.  For information about the school, you can find its webpage and contact information at https://www.folkschool.org/.

NC Poet Laureate Jaki Shelton Green Featured in WNC

 North Carolina Poet Laureate Jaki Shelton Green and North Carolina Writer's Network-West member, Brenda Kay Ledford, at the Multicultural Women's Development Conference; Hinton Rural Life Center; Hayesville, NC; April 19, 2024.

Jaki was the keynote speaker at the MWDC on Friday, April 19th.  Her presentation was very impressive and we enjoyed her poetry.  It was an honor for our NC Poet Laureate to share her beautiful work with us here in Western North Carolina.  

Senior Games, Silver Arts Literary Division Winners

 Our NCWN-West members and Ridgeline Alliance writers, won several medals in the 2024 Clay/Cherokee County Senior Games; Silver Arts Literary Division:

Life Experience:

Sandy Benson                Silver     "Honoring and Honored at the Rosebud Wacipi

Shelia Queen                  Bronze   "Remembering Johnny"

Poem

Mary Ricketson              Gold         "Gone"

Brenda Kay Ledford      Bronze       "Counting my Blessings"

Short Story

Sandy Benson                Gold           "Mad Max"

Brenda Kay Ledford      Silver         "The Soldier"

Essay

Brenda Kay Ledford       Silver        "The Healing Power of Pets"

Congratulations to the writers who placed in the Silver Arts Literary Division!  😃

Owens and Beall to be Featured at April 18 Literary Hour

Poet Scott Owens of Hickory, NC, and writer Glenda Beall of Hayesville will be featured at the Thursday, April 18, Literary Hour at 7 p.m. in the Keith House library on the John C. Campbell Folk School campus in Brasstown.  The Literary Hour is sponsored by the North Carolina Writers’ Network-West and is free and open to everyone.

Scott Owens

Scott Owens is the author of 20 collections of poetry and recipient of numerous awards for his poetry.  His poems have been featured in national publications and he has twice been nominated for the National Book Critics Circle Award and to be North Carolina Poet Laureate.

Owens is Professor of Poetry at Lenoir Rhyne University, and former editor of Wild Goose Poetry Review and Southern Poetry Review. He also owns and operates Taste Full Beans Coffeehouse and Gallery and coordinates Poetry Hickory in Hickory, NC. His 21st book, "An Augury of Birds," a collaboration with photographer, Clayton Joe Young, will be out in August. And his collection of haiku, illustrated by Missy Cleveland, will be out in December.

Glenda Beall

Glenda Council Beall has taught memoir writing at the folk school, Tri-County Community College and at the Institute of Continuing Learning (ICL) for many years. She became interested in Genealogy in the early 1990s and compiled a family history book, “Profiles and Pedigrees, Thomas C. Council, and his Descendants,” which chronicles the lives of her grandfather and his 10 children born in the late 19th century.

Beall’s short stories and personal essays have been published in online journals including “Muscadine Lines,” “A Southern Journal” and “Dead Mule School of Southern Literature.” Several of her poems and essays have appeared in “Living with Loss” magazine, “Breath and Shadow,” and “Reunions Magazine.”

She is currently the North Carolina Writers’ Network -West program director.  “Now Might as Well be Then,” her poetry chapbook was published in 2009.

The Literary Hour at the folk school is offered every third Thursday of the month through October and brings local poets and writers to the campus to share their work with the community.  The public, and students and faculty of the school are welcome to attend the readings.

The John C. Campbell Folk School offers classes in folk arts and crafts and storytelling.  For information about the school, you can find its webpage and contact information at https://www.folkschool.org/.

Brenda Kay Ledford' Story Published in "When Love Wags a Tail"

 

Brenda Kay Ledford's Feature in Grit Magazine

 Brenda Kay Ledford's feature, "Planting by the Signs," appeared in Grit Magazine, (March/April, 2024).

www.Grit.com

Chamblee Receives Western Heritage Poetry Book Award for Bierstadt Biography

NCWN-West member Kenneth Chamblee's biography in poems "The Best Material for the Artist in the World" has won the Western Heritage Poetry Book Award from the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City.

Ken Chamblee

The book is a collection of poems which follow the life of Albert Bierstadt, a 19th-century landscape painter of the American West.  The poems "celebrate the timeless spledor of Bierstadt's work through the witness of many voices and points of view... bringing us into intimate contact with the art," according to
New York Times bestselling author Robert Morgan.

"A work of brilliance and depth," Bob Ross, author of "Billy Above the Roofs" said of Chamblee's work, adding, the poems are sober, evocative, and respectful, and they overflow with their own penetrating light."

Bob Joly, director of St. Johnsbury Athenaeum says the poems bring Bierstadt, his contemporaries, the West, and our notions of the painter and his work to full illumination.

The Western Heritage Awards honors individuals who have made significant contributions to Western heritage through creative works in literature, music, television and film that share the great stories of the American West.  Honorees will be presented with a Wrangler award during the 63rd Western Heritage Awards dinner held at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum on April 13, 2024.

Ricketson and Dyre collaborate in powerful presentation of their original writing.

Poet Mary Ricketson and novelist Mary Jo Dyre will be the featured readers at Cherokee Cellars Winery's authors night Thursday, March 28.  Doors will open at 5 p.m. with the presentation begining at 6 p.m.   The address for the event is 45 Valley River Ave., Murphy, NC.

Mary Ricketson will read selections from her poetry collection, "Mississippi, The Story of Luke and Marian," about life with her parents, their belief that all people are equal, while Mississippi's time of segregation and the civil rights movement stirred pain and conflict.  Additionally, she read will from her newest collection, "Stutters, A Book of Hope," which delves into her lifelong struggle with stuttering.  The poems speak to the experience of many people- feeling different, challenged, and finding a way.

Mary Jo Dyre will read from "Dark Spot," a mystery novel started by her brother Arnold who died midway through the writing.  Dyre picked up his manuscript and found her own words to finish the "tangled, complex web of humanity that often results when man gives over to evil."  She will also read from "Springheads," which will take you to another time and still keep you wrapped in your own heart.  She weaves truth and tweaks it with what might be, ingrained with vibrant characters set in a world where all returns to two springheads.

 

Christmas in Matheson Cove

 Brenda Kay Ledford's new children's picture book, Christmas in Matheson Cove,  is upcoming with Catch the Spirit of Appalachia.

This is a heart-warming story how faith, love, and family made a meager holiday during the Great Depression in the Appalachian Mountains, to be a joyful Christmas.

Ordering information will be released soon!

Jeff Stewart Featured Reader at Mountain Wordsmiths Feb. 22

 Award-winning writer Jeff Stewart will be the featured reader at Mountain Wordsmiths’ gathering on Thursday, February 22, at 10:30 a.m. via Zoom. The monthly event is sponsored by North Carolina Writers’ Network-West.

Jeff Stewart

Stewart is a man of many gifts. He is a healthcare consultant, scientist, inventor, author, playwright, and father of seven. He was a Jeopardy! College Champion and runner-up in the Tournament of Champions. Stewart lives in Cary, NC..

Stewart’s book, "Living: Inspiration from a Father with Cancer," was named the best cancer book of 2023 at the 20th annual American BookFest awards. Their review states, “'Living' tells the story of a molecular biologist, Jeopardy! champion, and cancer patient. Cancer patients and their caregivers will find valuable insider advice… 'Living' is more than a book about cancer. 'Living' is a book about life.”

"Living" also received a “get it” rating from Kirkus Reviews, which called Stewart’s book “Complex and thoughtful, with a refreshingly upbeat attitude.” BookLife from Publisher's Weekly called "Living" a "remarkable memoir" and "a final and powerful act of love."

“So many cancer books are downers,” says Stewart. “I wanted my cancer book to be funny and helpful. I’m excited by the award and positive reviews, but it’s when someone tells me, ‘Your book helped me understand what my mother was going through’ that it all feels worth it.”

Ken Jennings—yes that Ken Jennings—blurbed Stewart’s book, calling it “a moving message-in-a-bottle from a great Jeopardy! champion—who also turns out to be a writer with a rare gift for aphorism and insight.”

To learn more about Jeff Stewart, you can watch his interviews on youtube.com.

Mountain Wordsmiths gatherings will always take place on Zoom. NCWN-West is also continuing to stay in touch by using technology to share our writing. We offer writing events and writing classes both online and in person. Writers are enjoying the convenience and flexibility of Zoom meetings because they can join our gatherings from other locations across America. Attendees are welcome to bring a poem or short prose piece to read during Open Mic. Please limit the reading to 3-5 minutes.

Those wishing to attend Mountain Wordsmiths may contact Carroll Taylor at vibiaperpetua@gmail.com or ncwngeorgiarep@gmail.com to receive the Zoom link. Our group is informal, and we We welcome those who would simply like to listen to the beauty of wordsmithing. All who attend are encouraged to enjoy their morning cup of coffee or tea as we share our thoughts about writing.