The Shoppes of Brasstown Celebrate Earth Day.
April 25, 2009, 10 am to 5 pm.
Arts & Crafts, food, demos, green vendors, organic produce and live music.
The shops are in Brasstown, NC, just south of Clay's Corner where the famous Possum Drop takes place every New Year's Eve.
Shoppes of Brasstown give a flavor of the hand made quality items found in the mountains.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Saturday, April 18, 2009
How Much Time Should You Spend on Marketing?
I hear writers constantly say they hate self-promotion and can not do it.
It goes against their upbringing.
"Don't toot your own horn." "Be humble. Don't brag on yourself."
Sadly, if the author doesn't promote his work, his excellent book may sit on the shelf instead of resting in the hands of a reader.
More and more it has become the responsibility of the writer to "build a platform" for his book and for his name. In the past few years it has been my pleasure to promote our mountain writers, to make them known to the public through newspaper articles, E-mail, and on this blog. We held blog classes for writers and poets who will take the time to network online. Of course, as soon as we learned to "blog" we learn that Facebook and Twitter are now the the places everyone is using.
Sam Hoffer of Murphy, NC produced an excellent site, http://www.mycarolinakitchen.blogspot.com/ which links to another site for the memoir she is writing. The writer must take the time to learn how to use the Internet to her advantage. Sam's readers come from all over the country and around the world. You can tell by the comments on her posts.
Nancy Simpson set up a most pleasing site at http://www.nancysimpson.blogspot.com/ . Her theme, of course, is poetry. Nancy posts the work of other poets and links to their sites. While Nancy is well known in literary circles for her published works, her blog is a way to reach people who might never have known her poetry or the work of other writers she features on Above the Frost Line, the title of her blog..
Kathryn Stripling Byer, our next Netwest Program Coordinator, posts on three blogs, http://www.kathrynstriplingbyer.blogspot.com/ her personal site, http://www.ncpoetlaureate.blogspot.com the site set up for her poet laureate work, and here at Netwest Writers.
Maria Schneider, former editor at Writers Digest, writes on her blog,
http://editorunleashed.com/2008/12/03/the-6040-rule-of-self-promotion/ and tackles the question of how much time to spend marketing our work and how much time we should spend writing.
She espouses the 60/40 rule.
Maggie Bishop, successful author of mystery and romance novels said at the Blue Ridge Writers Conference that she spends two hours each day on the Internet marketing herself. She has websites, a blog and, I'm sure visits the sites of others. Leaving comments on other sites she reads makes it easy for readers to come and visit her.
The sixty/forty rule sounds plausible to me. But how wonderful it must have been for those writers who came along before the Internet, the computer, and social online networks. They could spend 100 percent of their time writing. The publisher bought the book, sold the book, and sent the checks. The writer sat in his room, in his P.J.s if he wanted, and pecked away on his typewriter, or scribbled away on his next book.
Successful writers can't be shy in today's world. A writer can't hole up and expect someone else to market his books. If he is serious about selling his work, he should take every opportunity to read, speak, sign his books and network with people. We never know when the right person will come along, like what we write, and put us in touch with the person who can made a difference in our writing career.
It goes against their upbringing.
"Don't toot your own horn." "Be humble. Don't brag on yourself."
Sadly, if the author doesn't promote his work, his excellent book may sit on the shelf instead of resting in the hands of a reader.
More and more it has become the responsibility of the writer to "build a platform" for his book and for his name. In the past few years it has been my pleasure to promote our mountain writers, to make them known to the public through newspaper articles, E-mail, and on this blog. We held blog classes for writers and poets who will take the time to network online. Of course, as soon as we learned to "blog" we learn that Facebook and Twitter are now the the places everyone is using.
Sam Hoffer of Murphy, NC produced an excellent site, http://www.mycarolinakitchen.blogspot.com/ which links to another site for the memoir she is writing. The writer must take the time to learn how to use the Internet to her advantage. Sam's readers come from all over the country and around the world. You can tell by the comments on her posts.
Nancy Simpson set up a most pleasing site at http://www.nancysimpson.blogspot.com/ . Her theme, of course, is poetry. Nancy posts the work of other poets and links to their sites. While Nancy is well known in literary circles for her published works, her blog is a way to reach people who might never have known her poetry or the work of other writers she features on Above the Frost Line, the title of her blog..
Kathryn Stripling Byer, our next Netwest Program Coordinator, posts on three blogs, http://www.kathrynstriplingbyer.blogspot.com/ her personal site, http://www.ncpoetlaureate.blogspot.com the site set up for her poet laureate work, and here at Netwest Writers.
Maria Schneider, former editor at Writers Digest, writes on her blog,
http://editorunleashed.com/2008/12/03/the-6040-rule-of-self-promotion/ and tackles the question of how much time to spend marketing our work and how much time we should spend writing.
She espouses the 60/40 rule.
Maggie Bishop, successful author of mystery and romance novels said at the Blue Ridge Writers Conference that she spends two hours each day on the Internet marketing herself. She has websites, a blog and, I'm sure visits the sites of others. Leaving comments on other sites she reads makes it easy for readers to come and visit her.
The sixty/forty rule sounds plausible to me. But how wonderful it must have been for those writers who came along before the Internet, the computer, and social online networks. They could spend 100 percent of their time writing. The publisher bought the book, sold the book, and sent the checks. The writer sat in his room, in his P.J.s if he wanted, and pecked away on his typewriter, or scribbled away on his next book.
Successful writers can't be shy in today's world. A writer can't hole up and expect someone else to market his books. If he is serious about selling his work, he should take every opportunity to read, speak, sign his books and network with people. We never know when the right person will come along, like what we write, and put us in touch with the person who can made a difference in our writing career.
Maggie Bishop's Top Ten Don'ts for Book Signings
Maggie Bishop and Glenda Beall at Blue Ridge Writers conference
10. Arrive late and show disrespect for the staff’s efforts. Show up without confirming the signing at least the day before. That way, if your signing has been overlooked, the staff has time to be prepared.
9. Limp handshake. Be proud of your writing and show it through a firm handshake.
8. Forget own supplies such as a pen, name tag and water. Demand free coffee or food as your reward for showing up.
7. Chatting on cell phone or talking with friend when a customer approaches. Don’t become that store clerk you complain about. Give the reader the respect they deserve.
6. Grab a customer by the arm and demand they "buy my book," put down other authors and books, use a guilt trip "I need the money to feed my kids," or steal another author’s customer when at a group signing. These are ways to make a reader avoid you and the store in the future.
5. Eat onions, garlic or tuna before a signing or chewing gum during a signing. You want customers to cry over your prose and not your breath.
4. Sit behind the table, do crossword puzzles or read, and ignore customers. Get over being shy and develop an outgoing persona for your moment before readers.
3. Wear revealing clothing, shorts, old shoes. Dress as you would for an interview–one level higher than the customer. You want to invite people into your space through your appearance.
2. Ignore or be rude to the help or, worse yet, blame the staff for low sales; if asked to sign stock, sign more than requested. The store needs to make money in order for you to get paid. The staff will chat about you after you leave so make sure they feel good about your visit.
1. Attitude that you are doing the store a favor, signing only because the publisher demands it, or that the reader is lucky that you appear in person. The reader is royalty, not you.
Contact Maggie at these links below.
Website http://maggiebishop1.tripod.com/
Blog http://damesofdialogue.wordpress.com/
Speaker http://www.blogger.com/
Maggie Bishop, North Carolina writer of mystery and romance novels, was a presenter at the Blue Ridge Writers Conference in Georgia on March 27-28. She has given permission for her top ten tips for things you should not do for book signings to be listed here. Maggie says she is available for teaching workshops.
Top Ten Don'ts for Book Signings10. Arrive late and show disrespect for the staff’s efforts. Show up without confirming the signing at least the day before. That way, if your signing has been overlooked, the staff has time to be prepared.
9. Limp handshake. Be proud of your writing and show it through a firm handshake.
8. Forget own supplies such as a pen, name tag and water. Demand free coffee or food as your reward for showing up.
7. Chatting on cell phone or talking with friend when a customer approaches. Don’t become that store clerk you complain about. Give the reader the respect they deserve.
6. Grab a customer by the arm and demand they "buy my book," put down other authors and books, use a guilt trip "I need the money to feed my kids," or steal another author’s customer when at a group signing. These are ways to make a reader avoid you and the store in the future.
5. Eat onions, garlic or tuna before a signing or chewing gum during a signing. You want customers to cry over your prose and not your breath.
4. Sit behind the table, do crossword puzzles or read, and ignore customers. Get over being shy and develop an outgoing persona for your moment before readers.
3. Wear revealing clothing, shorts, old shoes. Dress as you would for an interview–one level higher than the customer. You want to invite people into your space through your appearance.
2. Ignore or be rude to the help or, worse yet, blame the staff for low sales; if asked to sign stock, sign more than requested. The store needs to make money in order for you to get paid. The staff will chat about you after you leave so make sure they feel good about your visit.
1. Attitude that you are doing the store a favor, signing only because the publisher demands it, or that the reader is lucky that you appear in person. The reader is royalty, not you.
Contact Maggie at these links below.
Website http://maggiebishop1.tripod.com/
Blog http://damesofdialogue.wordpress.com/
Speaker http://www.blogger.com/
Friday, April 17, 2009
PHILLIPS AND LLOYD BOOKS HOST MILLER
Phillips and Lloyd books on the square in Hayesville hosts former Georgia governor and senator, Zell Miller, Saturday, May 9th, 11:00 AM until 1:00 PM, as he signs his new book, Purt Nigh Gone.
Gainesville Times newspaper says Miller’s forthcoming book, "Purt Nigh Gone: The Old Mountain Ways," is part history lesson and part mourning of the loss of a way of life that Miller dearly loves. The title is mountain speak for "pretty near gone," Miller’s assessment of the current state of things.
To reserve a signed copy, call 828-389-1493
Gainesville Times newspaper says Miller’s forthcoming book, "Purt Nigh Gone: The Old Mountain Ways," is part history lesson and part mourning of the loss of a way of life that Miller dearly loves. The title is mountain speak for "pretty near gone," Miller’s assessment of the current state of things.
To reserve a signed copy, call 828-389-1493
Thursday, April 16, 2009
The Place to Be May 8 - 9
BLUE RIDGE BOOK AND AUTHOR SHOWCASE
When: May 8-May 9
Where: Technology and Education Development Center at Blue Ridge Community College
The event will feature more than fifty authors and their works as well as displays, book signings, group conversations, readings, socializing, and a meet-and-greet reception.
One hour sessions will be held Saturday, May 9 from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm.
Topics will include poetry, fiction, nonfiction, plays, and Appalachian literature.
Sharyn McCrumb and Robert Morgan are two of the fifteen presenters. For more information go to http://www.blogger.com/ or call Robert Greenwald at 828-698-1550.
When: May 8-May 9
Where: Technology and Education Development Center at Blue Ridge Community College
The event will feature more than fifty authors and their works as well as displays, book signings, group conversations, readings, socializing, and a meet-and-greet reception.
One hour sessions will be held Saturday, May 9 from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm.
Topics will include poetry, fiction, nonfiction, plays, and Appalachian literature.
Sharyn McCrumb and Robert Morgan are two of the fifteen presenters. For more information go to http://www.blogger.com/ or call Robert Greenwald at 828-698-1550.
Julia Ebel to read at City Lights in Sylva
Julia Ebel to Read from New Appalachian Works
Time: Saturday, April 18, 2009 2:00 p.m.
Location: City Lights
(Julia Ebel)
Novelist, poet, and non-fiction writer Julia Ebel will be at the store on Saturday afternoon, April 18th at 2:00 p.m. to read from several new books. Her new title for children is The Picture Man, which tells the story of an Appalachian farm girl’s curiosity about the itinerant photographer who offers to make her family’s portrait. Ebel is also editor of a new collection entitled Jack Tales and Mountain Yarns as Told by Orville Hicks. Her first poetry collection is also new, entitled Dresses, Dreams and Beadwood Leaves, which is an Appalachian growing-up story told in a series of poems. You may go to My Laureate's Lasso to find more about this book.
The Picture Man(Hardcover (Cloth))
by Ebel, Julia Taylor, Canter, Idalia
Format: Hardcover (Cloth)
Price: $16.95
Published: Parkway Publishers, 2009
Inventory Status: On Our Shelves Now
In the first half of the twentieth century, itinerant photographers known as "picture men" traveled the backroads of Appalachia and made their living taking photographs of the local farmers and their families. These picture men come to life in this story of an Appalachian farm girl who is intrigued by an offer to photograph her family. Gentle brown-toned watercolors hint of old photographs, while poetic text leads readers from the picture man's arrival to the taking of the photograph. The story culminates with the actual 1940s photograph that inspired this story.
Time: Saturday, April 18, 2009 2:00 p.m.
Location: City Lights
(Julia Ebel)
Novelist, poet, and non-fiction writer Julia Ebel will be at the store on Saturday afternoon, April 18th at 2:00 p.m. to read from several new books. Her new title for children is The Picture Man, which tells the story of an Appalachian farm girl’s curiosity about the itinerant photographer who offers to make her family’s portrait. Ebel is also editor of a new collection entitled Jack Tales and Mountain Yarns as Told by Orville Hicks. Her first poetry collection is also new, entitled Dresses, Dreams and Beadwood Leaves, which is an Appalachian growing-up story told in a series of poems. You may go to My Laureate's Lasso to find more about this book.
The Picture Man(Hardcover (Cloth))
by Ebel, Julia Taylor, Canter, Idalia
Format: Hardcover (Cloth)
Price: $16.95
Published: Parkway Publishers, 2009
Inventory Status: On Our Shelves Now
In the first half of the twentieth century, itinerant photographers known as "picture men" traveled the backroads of Appalachia and made their living taking photographs of the local farmers and their families. These picture men come to life in this story of an Appalachian farm girl who is intrigued by an offer to photograph her family. Gentle brown-toned watercolors hint of old photographs, while poetic text leads readers from the picture man's arrival to the taking of the photograph. The story culminates with the actual 1940s photograph that inspired this story.
SPRING CONFERENCE IN GREENSBORO
Kevin Watson of Press 53, 2008 Spring ConferenceI hope to see many of our Netwest members at the NCWN Spring Conference in Greensboro on April 25. Although I've wanted to go all along, we could not make definite plans until today. I think the presenters will be excellent and it is always fun re-connecting with writer friends and making new friends.
I will be helping at the registration desk so when you come in, let me know if you are a Netwest member. This will be my last conference as Program Coordinator for Netwest and I'm so happy we will be able to make the trip.
See you there.
Glenda Beall
Sunday, April 12, 2009
PAINTED LEAVES: Poems by Joyce Foster, Art by Jane Smithers
(For copies, contact Painted Leaves, P.O. Box 2332, Cashiers, NC 28717)
Joyce Foster's Painted Leaves, with art by Jane Smithers, is one of the most beautiful books I've ever seen, if not THE most beautiful. I met Joyce several years back in a workshop. She had just begun to write poetry, and I could tell that she had the gift for it. Her "Imprimatur for Pleasure" was one of the first poems she showed me, so you can see why I was impressed. As she says in the Afterword, "I was in my mid-60's and looking for the courage to make a profound change in my life. Poetry, or perhaps I should say the Muse of poetry, found me. ...Now I can't imagine life without it."
Joyce was born in Oklahoma of Cherokee, English, and German stock. She graduated from Emory University with a degree in Nursing and has worked for years in Public Health, as well as training and showing Morgan horses. She also worked for awhile as a model when she lived in Florida! She lives in Cashiers, NC, with her dog Wynston.
The artist whose work illuminates these pages is Jane Smithers (www.janesmithers.com). A self-taught artist, having chosen art "relatively late in life," she has lived in New York, London, Houston, and now in Cashiers, where she paints and teaches. Visiting Jane's website is like stepping into a world vibrating with image and color.
If you go to my ncpoetlaureate blog, you will find a display of the pages from PAINTED LEAVES. I hope you enjoy the visual feast. This would make a lovely Mother's Day gift, by the way. I'm giving a copy to my own mother.
EASTER MORNING ON THE HAIRPIN CURVE
Easter Morning on the Hairpin Curve
Smoky Mountains
Is it water or
phacelia that tumbles
down the banks,
overflowing its rocky
creel, water
or trillium,
merging this morning
in one brim-
ful flagrant
resounding of
yes, She lives,
does the Earth,
our longsuffering
handmaiden raising
up dipper
by dipper the day
for us out of
her dark womb.
----KS Byer
(first published in Kakalak)
Smoky Mountains
Is it water or
phacelia that tumbles
down the banks,
overflowing its rocky
creel, water
or trillium,
merging this morning
in one brim-
ful flagrant
resounding of
yes, She lives,
does the Earth,
our longsuffering
handmaiden raising
up dipper
by dipper the day
for us out of
her dark womb.
----KS Byer
(first published in Kakalak)
Friday, April 10, 2009
LOOK WHO IS READING, SIGNING AND WHERE
The Curiosity Bookstore in Murphy, NC and in Andrews, NC welcomes author, Paralee Dawson this Saturday, April 11th
The book is Living A Dream -- reflections of her Appalachian Trail odyssey.
Paralee lives at our end of the trail for part of the year and the other end (Maine) for the rest of the year.
She will be showing videos and signing her book in Andrews NC from 11:am - 1:00 pm and in Murphy from 1:15 pm -3 pm.
Aaron Gwyn will be at Osondu's in Waynesville, NC on Saturday April 25th @ 11:00 a.m. The World Beneath is an eerie and deep mystery. In this book a 15 year old boy is missing and the sherrif is trying to find him.
Spaces are filling up for Kathryn Magendie's Book Launch reception on April 17th at Osondu's from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Kathryn's novel is Tender Graces. Looks like a most appealling book. Please call Osondu's to reserve your book and your spot at the reception.
The book is Living A Dream -- reflections of her Appalachian Trail odyssey.
Paralee lives at our end of the trail for part of the year and the other end (Maine) for the rest of the year.
She will be showing videos and signing her book in Andrews NC from 11:am - 1:00 pm and in Murphy from 1:15 pm -3 pm.
Aaron Gwyn will be at Osondu's in Waynesville, NC on Saturday April 25th @ 11:00 a.m. The World Beneath is an eerie and deep mystery. In this book a 15 year old boy is missing and the sherrif is trying to find him.
Spaces are filling up for Kathryn Magendie's Book Launch reception on April 17th at Osondu's from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Kathryn's novel is Tender Graces. Looks like a most appealling book. Please call Osondu's to reserve your book and your spot at the reception.
Freeing Jonah V Includes Estelle Rice
Dr. Gene Hirsch, a resident of North Carolina and Pennsylvania, teaches poetry classes at John C. Campbell Folk School. He has published five volumes of Freeing Jonah. The anthologies are collections of poetry from students in workshops at the Folk School and from poets in the region.
Tonight I picked up my copy of Freeing Jonah V, published in 2007. Listed among the forty-five poets featured are a number of NCWN West members: Glenda Barrett, Janet Benway, Joyce Foster, who has a new poetry collection, Mary Michelle Keller, Brenda Kay Ledford, Mary Ricketson, Nancy Simpson, Linda Smith, Dorothea Spiegel and many more.
My good friend, writer and poet, Estelle Rice of Marble, NC will be reading at the John Campbell Folk School next week. See sidebar. The following poem touches me in a special way.
Goodbye
In my heart, there is a lingering scent
of Johnson’s wax
pickled peaches,
Evening in Paris perfume,
Mennen’s After Shave,
smoke from a Dutch Master’s Cigar.
I can almost taste the Brunswick stew,
Melton’s barbecue,
fruitcake and eggnog,
chocolate-peanut butter cookies,
and homemade peach ice cream.
Bookshelves are empty,
and there is no piano
in the sun parlor.
No voice or human sound,
I hear the echo of my footsteps
in halls and hollow rooms.
Lilacs Mother planted
are blooming.
I pick a flower
to press for safekeeping.
Cardinals have returned to their nest
in the Talisman rose.
Outside the breakfast room window
squirrels chatter in the oak tree
unaware of my tears.
I shut the door and turn the key.
Tonight I picked up my copy of Freeing Jonah V, published in 2007. Listed among the forty-five poets featured are a number of NCWN West members: Glenda Barrett, Janet Benway, Joyce Foster, who has a new poetry collection, Mary Michelle Keller, Brenda Kay Ledford, Mary Ricketson, Nancy Simpson, Linda Smith, Dorothea Spiegel and many more.
My good friend, writer and poet, Estelle Rice of Marble, NC will be reading at the John Campbell Folk School next week. See sidebar. The following poem touches me in a special way.
Goodbye
In my heart, there is a lingering scent
of Johnson’s wax
pickled peaches,
Evening in Paris perfume,
Mennen’s After Shave,
smoke from a Dutch Master’s Cigar.
I can almost taste the Brunswick stew,
Melton’s barbecue,
fruitcake and eggnog,
chocolate-peanut butter cookies,
and homemade peach ice cream.
Bookshelves are empty,
and there is no piano
in the sun parlor.
No voice or human sound,
I hear the echo of my footsteps
in halls and hollow rooms.
Lilacs Mother planted
are blooming.
I pick a flower
to press for safekeeping.
Cardinals have returned to their nest
in the Talisman rose.
Outside the breakfast room window
squirrels chatter in the oak tree
unaware of my tears.
I shut the door and turn the key.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
My Nuts and Bolts for Good Writing Seminar
I will hold a one day seminar, Saturday, April 18 at TCCC. 9:00 - 12:00 and 1:00 - 4pm. Bring your lunch. We will cover intriguing beginnings, holding the reader's interest throughout, development of characters and much more.
All writers are welcome, beginning or experienced. Students will take an active part throughout the class. I promise you will have fun and y ou will probably go home with at least one valuable tool for your writing and probably many more. Call TCCC Continuing Education to pre-register 835-4313. The fee is $35.00.
Shirley Uphouse 828-837-6007 or shirl@dnet.net
All writers are welcome, beginning or experienced. Students will take an active part throughout the class. I promise you will have fun and y ou will probably go home with at least one valuable tool for your writing and probably many more. Call TCCC Continuing Education to pre-register 835-4313. The fee is $35.00.
Shirley Uphouse 828-837-6007 or shirl@dnet.net
James MalONE SMITH: POET AND EDITOR
Editors of anthologies as definitive as DON'T LEAVE HUNGRY: Fifty Years of Southern Poetry Review work long and hard to give readers a book that will be just as important 50 years from now as it is today. Often such editors go unrecognized as the poets they are, while the more widely recognized poets in the collection draw the attention of reviewers and readers. In DON'T LEAVE HUNGRY, James Smith, the editor, has no poem included, so it's time to recognize him for his poetry. In my previous post, I called him a native western North Carolinian, and I still think of him that way, but as you'll see in the following short biography, he was born in the N. Georgia mountains. Blairsville is where my family stayed when we headed north into the mountains to visit relatives in Dahlonega. It's my paternal grandmother's native ground, and I consider it part of my native ground as well, a place that extends into the mountains of southwestern North Carolina. Forget about state boundaries.
Today is" James Smith Day" on my blog. Good poets make the best editors of poetry journals and anthologies. Let's celebrate them while we are celebrating National Poetry Month.
James Malone Smith has published oems in AGNI (online), Connecticut Review, Nebraska Review, Quarterly West, Tar River Poetry, and others. He has new work forthcoming in Asheville Poetry Review, Poet Lore, and Prairie Schooner. His fiction has appeared in American Short Fiction.
Associate professor of English at Armstrong Atlantic State University in Savannah, Georgia, he teaches creative writing and American literature.
He grew up in the north Georgia mountains of Blairsville but spent much of that time in his mother's home community of Vengeance Creek, North Carolina.
Here is Jim's poem that first appeared in AGNI.
HEN
Day took fire at her bidding,
the stove down to coals, almost cold,
bacon drippings in the coffee can
white as ice. She would prod embers
until flames bit at her fingers,
glut the open mouth with fat wood
and slam down the iron lid
as if she were rousing some monster.
Then she scrambled an egg for me.
But all this had happened forever
when one morning I dawdled in
as she dredged ashes, crisscrossed kindling.
The stove is out. She lights a match.
I sit at the table and wait.
Morning light flutters and stills
on the chipped enamel of the white sink.
In it, spraddled headlong (but headless!),
a large plucked chicken
in all its galled gooseflesh,
a single bloody feather stuck to the faucet.
I startle as the stove lid clangs into place.
With a flourish she reveals an immaculate
brown egg in her powerful hand
and pauses. Long enough to make sure
the break will be clean and even,
the yolk full, and heavy,
the rest as clear as water—
then cracks the world apart.
James Malone Smith
AGNI online, 2004
Friday, April 3, 2009
DON'T LEAVE HUNGRY: Fifty Years of Southern Poetry Review
Southern Poetry Review has been so much a part of so many poets' lives over the past 50 years that it's hard to imagine the universe without it. When I was a student in the MFA program at UNC-G in the '60s, I was introduced to the journal and to its founder Guy Owen. Owen was an instructor in the program for one semester while I was there.
After his death, SPR, as we called it, moved to Charlotte for several years and then down to Savannah's Armstrong Atlantic State University, where a friend of mine and native western North Carolinian, James Smith, became Associate editor. Now, as editor of the new anthology Don't Leave Hungry, celebrating 50 years of Southern Poetry Review, he gathers this peripatetic history together in his masterful introduction. His first paragraph makes Owen's commitment to poetry, and SPR's ongoing adherence to it, clear: In many journals, and certainly in major magazines that bother at all, as Owen notes, poems are “filler,” not “the main course.” A Journal Dedicated to Poetry: that’s the logo the current editors gave SPR, and we like to think its founder would approve. For us, talking about Guy Owen is a way of talking about Southern Poetry Review.
No doubt about it, DON'T LEAVE HUNGRY: Fifty Years of Southern Poetry review, recently published by the University of Arkansas Press, makes an immediate impression on anyone who comes within a few feet of the book. Its cover design is composed of a Mark Rothko painting, Untitled, from 1953, Courtesy of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.
Its title, too, surprises the eye. This is a poetry anthology? Not a cookbook? When you read the title poem, by Eleanor Ross Taylor, you will understand that this anthology offers nothing less than an invitation to feast on the art of poetry. James Smith, again, from his Introduction: Our anthology’s title derives from a poem in it by Eleanor Ross Taylor, a southern poet undervalued for years. I was delighted to find “Don’t Leave Hungry” as I read through SPR’s archives, selecting poems for this book. Not only is it strange and marvelous (that word again!) in its own right, but its commanding title has a “southern” ring to it that would satisfy Owen. Taylor’s niece, Heather Ross Miller, also in the anthology and a former staff member, described Owen as “always encouraging us and welcoming us toward that table where so many crowd and so few get fed.” Miller speaks of writers here and their desire for publication, but Owen also offered his journal as a table where he hoped readers would crowd and find plenty to feed them, no needto leave hungry.
(Eleanor Ross Taylor)
What else by way of enticement? Well, there's a foreword by Billy Collins. And dust jacket testimonials by Jane Hirschfield and Lee Smith, who says "No reader will leave this harvest table hungry--here is nourishment for all. ...These poems epitomize their eras yet move beyond, rise beyond as poetry always does, capturing time and place and lived life in a way no other art can manage."
And now for the "main course," as Guy Owen called them, arranged and introduced by decade, with Smith's usual clarity of style and presentation! As the dust jacket notes, this anthology "charts the development of this influential journal decade by decade, making clear that although it has close ties to a particular region, it has consistently maintained a national scope, publishing poets from all over the United States. SPR’s goal has been to celebrate the poem above all, so although there are poems by major poets here, there are many gems by less famous, perhaps even obscure, writers too. Here are 183 poems by nearly as many poets, from A. R. Ammons, Kathryn Stripling Byer, James Dickey, Mark Doty, Claudia Emerson, David Ignatow, and Carolyn Kizer to Ted Kooser, Maxine Kumin, Denise Levertov, Howard Nemerov, Sharon Olds, Linda Pastan, and Charles Wright."
But wait--why rush through a feast? In this first week of National Poetry Month, let's sit back and anticipate what waits for us tomorrow, several poems from this beautiful and generous anthology. And because these few poems I offer will, I hope, serve to whet the appetite for more, here is the publication information and a link to the University of Arkansas Press.
5 1/2 x 8 1/2, 380 pages
$24.95 paper
ISBN 978-1-55728-893-6 | 1-55728-892-5
$54.95 (s) unjacketed cloth
ISBN 978-1-55728-892-9 | 1-55728-892-5
http://www.uapress.com/titles/sp09/smith-dlh.html
After his death, SPR, as we called it, moved to Charlotte for several years and then down to Savannah's Armstrong Atlantic State University, where a friend of mine and native western North Carolinian, James Smith, became Associate editor. Now, as editor of the new anthology Don't Leave Hungry, celebrating 50 years of Southern Poetry Review, he gathers this peripatetic history together in his masterful introduction. His first paragraph makes Owen's commitment to poetry, and SPR's ongoing adherence to it, clear: In many journals, and certainly in major magazines that bother at all, as Owen notes, poems are “filler,” not “the main course.” A Journal Dedicated to Poetry: that’s the logo the current editors gave SPR, and we like to think its founder would approve. For us, talking about Guy Owen is a way of talking about Southern Poetry Review.
No doubt about it, DON'T LEAVE HUNGRY: Fifty Years of Southern Poetry review, recently published by the University of Arkansas Press, makes an immediate impression on anyone who comes within a few feet of the book. Its cover design is composed of a Mark Rothko painting, Untitled, from 1953, Courtesy of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.
Its title, too, surprises the eye. This is a poetry anthology? Not a cookbook? When you read the title poem, by Eleanor Ross Taylor, you will understand that this anthology offers nothing less than an invitation to feast on the art of poetry. James Smith, again, from his Introduction: Our anthology’s title derives from a poem in it by Eleanor Ross Taylor, a southern poet undervalued for years. I was delighted to find “Don’t Leave Hungry” as I read through SPR’s archives, selecting poems for this book. Not only is it strange and marvelous (that word again!) in its own right, but its commanding title has a “southern” ring to it that would satisfy Owen. Taylor’s niece, Heather Ross Miller, also in the anthology and a former staff member, described Owen as “always encouraging us and welcoming us toward that table where so many crowd and so few get fed.” Miller speaks of writers here and their desire for publication, but Owen also offered his journal as a table where he hoped readers would crowd and find plenty to feed them, no needto leave hungry.
(Eleanor Ross Taylor)
What else by way of enticement? Well, there's a foreword by Billy Collins. And dust jacket testimonials by Jane Hirschfield and Lee Smith, who says "No reader will leave this harvest table hungry--here is nourishment for all. ...These poems epitomize their eras yet move beyond, rise beyond as poetry always does, capturing time and place and lived life in a way no other art can manage."
And now for the "main course," as Guy Owen called them, arranged and introduced by decade, with Smith's usual clarity of style and presentation! As the dust jacket notes, this anthology "charts the development of this influential journal decade by decade, making clear that although it has close ties to a particular region, it has consistently maintained a national scope, publishing poets from all over the United States. SPR’s goal has been to celebrate the poem above all, so although there are poems by major poets here, there are many gems by less famous, perhaps even obscure, writers too. Here are 183 poems by nearly as many poets, from A. R. Ammons, Kathryn Stripling Byer, James Dickey, Mark Doty, Claudia Emerson, David Ignatow, and Carolyn Kizer to Ted Kooser, Maxine Kumin, Denise Levertov, Howard Nemerov, Sharon Olds, Linda Pastan, and Charles Wright."
But wait--why rush through a feast? In this first week of National Poetry Month, let's sit back and anticipate what waits for us tomorrow, several poems from this beautiful and generous anthology. And because these few poems I offer will, I hope, serve to whet the appetite for more, here is the publication information and a link to the University of Arkansas Press.
5 1/2 x 8 1/2, 380 pages
$24.95 paper
ISBN 978-1-55728-893-6 | 1-55728-892-5
$54.95 (s) unjacketed cloth
ISBN 978-1-55728-892-9 | 1-55728-892-5
http://www.uapress.com/titles/sp09/smith-dlh.html
Netwest writing groups
Coffee with the Poets
Phillips and Lloyd Books, Hayesville, NC
10:30 a.m. second Wednesday of each month.
Poets and writers are welcome, members and non-members are welcome to read at open mic..Contact Michelle Keller, mmkeller@brmemc.net for information
Netwest Poetry group, Tri-County College, Murphy NC, 7:00 pm. first Thursday of month.
Janice Moore facilitates this friendly but helpful group.
Netwest Prose Group 7:00 p.m. second Thursday of month, Tri-County College, Murphy, NC
Richard Argo dandjargo@verizon.net facilitator
Poets and Writers Reading Poems and Stories John C. Campbell Folk School, most third Thursdays, 7:00 p.m Two NCWN writers featured each month. Contact Michelle Keller, mmkeller@brememc.net
Writers Morning Out, Waynesville, NC. Contact Penny Morse,fairlight_inc@hotmail.com
Writing for Children group
Moss Memorial Library, Hayesville, NC 10:00 a.m. third Wednesday of month. Nancy Gadsby is facilitator. Writers for children are welcome to come and bring work to critique or for support in their writing. Nancy Gadsby facilitates.
gadsby@brmemc.net
Phillips and Lloyd Books, Hayesville, NC
10:30 a.m. second Wednesday of each month.
Poets and writers are welcome, members and non-members are welcome to read at open mic..Contact Michelle Keller, mmkeller@brmemc.net for information
Netwest Poetry group, Tri-County College, Murphy NC, 7:00 pm. first Thursday of month.
Janice Moore facilitates this friendly but helpful group.
Netwest Prose Group 7:00 p.m. second Thursday of month, Tri-County College, Murphy, NC
Richard Argo dandjargo@verizon.net facilitator
Poets and Writers Reading Poems and Stories John C. Campbell Folk School, most third Thursdays, 7:00 p.m Two NCWN writers featured each month. Contact Michelle Keller, mmkeller@brememc.net
Writers Morning Out, Waynesville, NC. Contact Penny Morse,fairlight_inc@hotmail.com
Writing for Children group
Moss Memorial Library, Hayesville, NC 10:00 a.m. third Wednesday of month. Nancy Gadsby is facilitator. Writers for children are welcome to come and bring work to critique or for support in their writing. Nancy Gadsby facilitates.
gadsby@brmemc.net
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