Nancy Sales Cash - from Queen Mary 2

Are you up for some armchair traveling? My husband and I are currently in the Norwegian fjord country, but doing it the easy way on the Queen Mary 2. We went to Oslo yesterday and at the Viking Museum saw the Viking ships used as burial vessels by the ancients.

(See photo.) The whole ship, several (rich) people, their possessions, and special sleds (to carry them into the next world) were buried in the ground. They were first discovered in the 19th century by a farmer digging a well. Not many have been found, so there should be plenty more where these came from. The earliest Scandinavians came from the Black Sea / Russia, it is thought, when the last ice age melted.

Oslo itself was founded on a fjord in 1050 AD. Global warming has cut down its months under snow from six to five. Not so good when so many industries depend on snow, but they are hosting the winter Olympics again in 2010.

Their new Opera House was designed to look like an iceberg, and part of the concert hall is below sea level. Not sure I'd be all that comfortable with that!One-eighth of the population is Muslim due to a low unemployment rate (4%). Norwegians have 1.9 children per couple, one of the highest in Europe. 70% of women work outside the home. The average salaries are high, but so are taxes and the cost of living, although their health care is free. Wonder what the Vikings would have made of all that?

NANCY SALES CASH grew up in Murphy, now lives in Asheville, and is a member of Netwest. Her short story, 'Talking To Mama,' will be published in Netwest's next anthology, 'Echoes Across The Blue Ridge,' due out soon. She also has a story in Celia Miles' new anthology, due out in October 2009, and was in Celia's 'Christmas Presence' anthology in 2008. She has two published novels, 'Ritual River,' and 'Patterns of the Heart,' available at The Curiosity Shop in Murphy and Andrews, and at Phillips and Lloyd in Hayesville

COFFEE WITH THE POETS WILL FEATURE POET MARY MICHELLE KELLER

All practicing poets within driving distance are invited to join our monthly celebration of poetry August 12, 2009 on the square in Hayesville, NC at Phillips and Lloyd Book Store. 10:30 a.m. Arrive early to get a seat and to sign up for the open mic reading.

The featured poet is Mary Michelle Keller of Young Harris, Georgia. There will be an open mic reading where each attending poet can read a poem. Welcome. Do come.

Coffee and delicious desserts are provided by Phillips and Lloyd for a small price.

Mary Michelle Keller is a long time member of N.C. Writers Network West. She serves as the publicity chairman and has been hosting Coffee With the Poets.

She says about her writing: "Words are like small blue eggs that I incubate and hope of giving them life that can touch and be felt."

Keller's poems have been published in The Mountain Lynx, Freeing Johan III and IV, and Lights in the Mountains. Her poem "As The Deer" is forthcoming from Winding Path Publishing, Netwest's new anthology titled ECHOES ACROSS THE BLUE RIDGE Stories, Essays and Poems by Writers Living in and Inspired by the Southern Appalchian Mountains.

My deepest appreciation to you all

It is with great humility and appreciation that I address the many writers who came to honor Barry today at the Memorial Service for him in Hayesville, NC at the Hayesville First United Methodist Church. Barry enjoyed our writing events and especially enjoyed photographing our members. Often he grew tired of my incessant talking about Netwest, and I'd have to think of other things to discuss. I know Barry was smiling and enjoying your coming today, knowing you all would rather be at home writing something to submit on Monday.
.Many have asked. I do plan to stay in Hayesville and I plan to continue with my life, my writing, my work with Netwest as Clay County Rep, and seeing all of you whenever I can.
Your support during this difficult time has been and continues to be gratefully accepted. Thanks to all.

Fred Chappell at City Lights, Sylva, NC

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fred Chappell To Read from New Poetry Collection

Friday, August 7th at 7:00 p.m.
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Dear Friends:

Poet and novelist Fred Chappell will be at City Lights on Friday, August 7th at 7:00 p.m. to read from his new collection, entitled Shadow Box: Poems, published by Louisiana State University Press.

In this innovative collection, Chappell layers words and images to create a new poetic form -- the poem- within-a-poem. In his introduction to Part I of the book, Chappell says "poems-within-poems (enclosed, inlaid, embedded, double, nested) present two aspects of a situation or personality simultaneously. Each whole poem implies a narrative incomplete without these different perspectives. The points of view are distinguished by separate type faces."

Like the shadow box in the book's title, each piece consists of an inner world that is contained, framed, supported by an outer - the two of which are interdependent, sometimes supplementary, and often contrary. Chappell also introduces sonnets in which the sestet nests within the octet.

Chappell is the author of a dozen books of verse, two short story collections, and eight novels, including I Am One of You Forever, Farewell I'm Bound to Leave You, and Brighten the Corner Where You Are. A native of Canton, he is retired from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

The event at City Lights will feature a reading by Chappell and a question-and-answer period. For more information, or to reserve an autographed copy of Shadow Box, please call us at 586-9499.

Spotlight, by Fred Chappell

The hamlet sleeps under November stars.
Only the page of numerate thought toils through
The darkness, shines on the table where, askew
And calm, the scholar's lamp burns bright and scars
The silence, sending through the slot, the bars
And angles of his window square, a true
Clean ray, a shaft of patient light, its purview
Lonely and remote as the glow of Mars

Handy Links
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
# See This Book/Event on Our Website
# Visit our Homepage


Contact Information
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
email: more@citylightsnc.com
phone: (828) 586-9499
web: http://www.citylightsnc.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FCity Lights Bookstore | 3 E. Jackson Street | Sylva | NC | 28779

BARRY AND GLENDA BEALL: A Celebration

Barry and Glenda Beall right away made me feel comforrtable in their presence. I can't recall which Netwest event it was. A reading? A picnic? No matter. I felt I'd known them all my life. When I found out they were originally from my childhood neck of the woods, SW Georgia, I counted them pretty close to family. Glenda's poems for Barry are among her best and made me like him all the more. He was what we call "salt of the earth," a person who was open to all sorts of things in the world around him, especially if his wife cared about those things. Consequently, Barry was a steadfast supporter of Netwest. I liked him tremendously, and I know all of us in the WNC literary community will feel his absence each time we come together. Glenda's new chapbbok will arrive a little too late for Barry to see, although he had already seen the poems and had celebrated their acceptance by Finishing Line Press. When at last we hold the book in our hands and read the poems, we will feel Barry's presence. He will be looking over our shoulders, giving the poems, and Glenda, a thumbs up!

Kay Byer

THE REDHEADED STEPCHILD

From Malaika King Albrecht of Southern Pines, NC: The Redheaded Stepchild is open for submissions for the month of August. We only accept poems that have been rejected by other magazines. We do not accept previously published work. We do, however, accept simultaneous submissions, but please inform us immediately if your work is accepted somewhere else. For more information, visit http://www.facebook.com/l/;www.redheadedmag.com/poetry/

How Can You Get Netwest Writers in Your Email?

DO YOU KNOW THAT YOU CAN SUBSCRIBE TO NETWEST MOUNTAIN WRITERS AND POETS and receive the latest post in your E-mail? On the sidebar on the right, you will see a box that says SUBSCRIBE and asks for your email address. It is simple and you will stay up to date on all the latest posts.
If you are a member of Netwest, this is an excellent way to keep updated on what is happening within our group and in our Netwest area.If you have any problems, email writerlady21@yahoo.com

Some of you have subscribed already and I hope more of you will get on the bandwagon.
Thanks,
Glenda Beall

Welcome New Members

Welcome New Members of Netwest

All members of the North Carolina Writers' Network who live in Clay, Cherokee, Graham, Jackson, Macon, Transylvania, Haywood, Henderson, and Swain counties, N C. GA mountain counties, bordering counties in South Carolina, and east Tennessee automatically become members of NCWN West (Netwest). No extra dues.


To join online or by mail: Contact

NC Writers' Network, P.O. Box 954,Carrboro, NC 27510

Membership in Netwest has grown. If you are a new member we are happy to have you and hope you will check in here often to see the latest news on Netwest events, Netwest writers, news from the NCWN, work by our members and others we think you will enjoy.

Contact writerlady21@yahoo.com.com and let us post your poem, fiction or essays online. Send along a photo with your work. Contact us with any questions or comments about this site or about Netwest.

Curiosity - of what value is it"

Tonight I ran across a blog by a woman in Australia ( found on Pat Workman's delightful site) and enjoyed her musings very much.

She wrote about the value of being curious and how this trait enriches our lives. I think scientists must be the most curious of people. Their work on research of whatever subject matter, is benefited by their curiosity to find an answer.

I think my early love of reading was born from an innate curiosity to know more than I could learn from my surroundings on a farm in Georgia. I have never lived in a large city, and I don't think I would ever want to live in a large city, but my curiosity about city life has led me to read many books and stories based in New York or Los Angeles. My curiosity about the life style of a woman there drives me to put myself in her place for a few hours. How does one live in NYC without a car? How does one take public transportation everywhere? Does she have to plan for extra time to make sure she isn't late because she can't get a taxi or misses the bus? And all that traffic - how do you handle the traffic jams when you must make your flight out by a certain time? I'm curious. What about those days when it snows? How do people get to work in all that snow?

Those questions must seem silly to one who lives or has lived in large cities, but I've heard some questions from city dwellers about rural life that seems a bit silly to me.

Just yesterday, my brother-in-law, who grew up in Chicago, listened to some of us telling about life on the farm in years past.
"My mother would just go out and kill a chicken when unexpected company arrived," I said, "and she would clean it, cut it up and fry it. She'd make biscuits and gravy and feed a car full of hungry Florida relatives."

He shook his head and said, "I understand about killing a chicken, but doesn't it have to be refrigerated first before you eat it?"

Curiosity is necessary for writing, I believe. For many, many years, I've been an eavesdropper on conversations around me. I have often said to my husband, "Did you hear what that couple was talking about?"

Incredulous, he'd respond, "Of course not. Why would I want to listen to their conversation?"

That was one big difference between us. I was curious about people. He was more observant of things around him. He would remember an object hanging on a wall in an office, but I'd remember the man's facial expressions when he discussed his son's lack of interest in football.

Sometimes curiosity can over-reach into nosiness, poking into one's private business. We have to be careful there. My husband often reined me in when I'd ask questions of others that he considered too personal.

Part of my enjoyment of people is learning about their lives, what they like, dislike, where they have lived and what they find important in life. I am definitely a curious person, and maybe that is why, like the Australian lady I continue to enjoy learning. She earned her college degree after she retired at age sixty. Now she is off on a new career.

I am off on a new way of life, and I am curious as to what will develop down the road. I don't think I'll ever stop being curious, therefore, I'll not stop wanting to meet interesting people, and I'll not stop wanting to learn new things.

A Poem

Big Sur

I drive along the freeway,
cars like inch worms creep.
I visualize a moment
far removed from traffic jams.

High above the scene,
we picniced on cheese and wine.
The wind swept up the cliff
and kissed my face with droplets
from the great Pacific which crashed
on rocks one hundred feet below.

Wind tossed our words up to the gulls
who shrieked them back at us.
The day was dazzling in its brilliance.
Our love, not young, refreshed, renewed.
We dreamed, made promises.
That perfect day - a perfect place,
away from all the world.
--- Glenda Council Beall

2009 Best of the Net

First of all, I extend my sympathy to Glenda Beall and her family upon the loss of her beloved husband, Barry. We all loved Barry and appreciate very much all the work he did for North Carolina Writers Network-West. Barry took photos of our writers' events and was always faithful. We will all miss him very much. Glenda and her family are in our thoughts and prayers.

Barry always supported the writers of this region. I think he would be glad to heard I was nominated as 2009 "Best of the Net" for my poem, "Crepe Roses," that was published on THE DEAD MULE SCHOOL OF SOUTHERN LITERATURE website (April, 2009). You may visit the blog at: http://www.deadmule.com/blog

N.C. Writers Network West Has Lost One of our Strongest Supporters.

N.C. Writers Network West Has Lost One of our Strongest Supporters. Barry Beall of Hayesville died July 21, 2009. Barry was not a writer, but he gave his support to our members. He was always supporting Glenda Beall, our Program Coordinator in her job. He went to get copies and delivered copies and set up for workshops. He set up for the annual picnic and took our pictures and came to hear us read. Barry Beall will be missed.

NOW MIGHT AS WELL BE THEN by Glenda Council Beall

Finishing Line Press recently announced the publication date for Glenda Beall's new poetry collection titled NOW MIGHT AS WELL BE THEN.
Click Here to order your copy.

(Cover by Mike Keller)

$12.00 plus $1.00 mailing fee if ordered before October 16, 2009






Posted by Nancy Simpson

I know these poems well, and I feel the excitement in the air knowing her book, NOW MIGHT AS WELL BE THEN, will soon be in my hands. All of us who know Glenda as our NC Writers Network Program Coordinator, are placing our orders now. It is a bitter sweet time for Glenda, as she is caring for her life mate and husband Barry Beall, the subject of a number of her poems, who is seriously ill.

"I asked for an early release of the book for Barry," Glenda wrote to me, "and I wonder if he will ever see the finished book."

NOW MIGHT AS WELL BE THEN by Glenda Council Beall

Finishing Line Press is taking pre-orders for Now Might As Well Be Then, poetry chapbook by Glenda Council Beall, Program Coordinator for Netwest since 2007.


It is the second book on the page of new releases coming out in October.


This book is dedicated to her husband, Barry Beall, who was an unofficial member of Netwest as he made many of the photos at writing events, for articles, and of members that are used in publicity today.


Like William Wordsworth, Glenda Beall was raised knowing well the "yoke of earth," how the fields, pastures and woodlands yield both beauty and terror. Her evocations of being a daughter in the deep South, growing up on a farm, riding her mare, witnessing death and tragedy, as well as joy and fruitfulness, ring absolutely true. She gives us love poems from a mature woman's perspective, too, and poems that celebrate the vistas and culture of the mountains where she now lives. Every poem pulses with detail that brings life back to us in all its varied detail and music. The "yoke of earth" is also the poet's yoke, and she bears it gladly. --- Kathryn Striping Byer, NC Poet Laureate

Netwest Mountain Writers and Poets: Our Own Jayne Jaudon Ferrer Shares Her Survival Tale, Hazards of Youth Growing Up in the 1950s on MSNBC

Netwest Mountain Writers and Poets: Our Own Jayne Jaudon Ferrer Shares Her Survival Tale, Hazards of Youth Growing Up in the 1950s on MSNBC

MONDAY, JULY 6, 2009
Hey! I'm on MSNBC!
Some weeks back, I got word that a reporter was looking for input from people who grew up in the 40s and 50s and lived to tell about it. You know, back in those BAD old days, before any of us knew the dangers of suntans, red meat, bicycles, cigarettes, hairspray, hard candy, and such. By all rights, we Boomers should be dead, according to today's health and safety standards. But I feel pretty good myself; how about you? I frankly think my childhood was a lot more fun than what kids today experience, so I wrote the reporter and shared some of my thoughts on that. Lo and behold, he used my comments! Who'da thought it? As it turns out, he didn't do much reporting (doesn't even use a byline; what writer lets that opportunity fall by the wayside?!); he just printed some of the responses he got. But, hey, I'll take my fifteen seconds of fame from whencever they come.

Mostly, I thought it would be fun to use this as a prompt for YOUR memories of "dangerous" living during your childhood days. I've heard my big sister talk about foot x-rays (that was before my time) and I loved my mother's tales of driving the family car to school when she was nine. (Nine?!) One of my own favorite activities--which is totally banned these days--was walking barefoot around town in the summer; it felt sooooo good to go from that hot sidewalk on Main Street onto the cool linoleum of Ben Franklin's Five and Dime or the smooth hardwood floors of my Daddy's Western Auto.

I'm as cautious as the next person, but I think sometimes we get carried away with all these rules and regulations, and I have to say, I think the motivation for all the hoopla is more often about profit than public safety. Several years back I read Myrna Blyth's fascinating book, Spin Sisters, which shares in great detail how the media--women's magazines, in particular--thrive on alarmist stories targeted at "power moms"--those of us who are 25-54 with at least one child at home. Blyth should know; she was editor of Ladies' Home Journal for years, and helped give birth to one of my favorite magazines, More. She readily confesses that she was as guilty as the rest in making us moms second guess our belief that our homes and families are safe. Blyth's need to come clean (or, perhaps, just her need to sell a book, but that's okay) resulted in a mesmerizing examination of how media preys on our insecurities and need for approval. If you haven't read Spin Sisters, go find a copy. It's well worth buying, and certainly deserving of a trip to the library.

In the meantime, I invite you to confess all the horrors your mother may have unwittingly exposed you to in your youth, and the appalling risks you may have taken. Roller skating with no kneepads? For shame! B-B guns? The very idea! Truly, it's a wonder any of us survived to have children of our own.

Here's the MSNBC article. Hope it brings back some happy memories; scroll down seven paragraphs and one ad: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31670024/from/ET/ .


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31670024/from/ET/

Nagging Questions can be answered by Yvonne Perry's blog

Do you know when to use an en dash and when to use an em dash? What is an en dash? What is an em dash?
Interesting information on the subject at this site.

Cherokee County Poetry and Essay Contest

Dalton Mallonee, Cliff Owl, and Amanda Gaddis - Essay contest winners.
Kelly Noel Waldorf and Hannah Larson. Poetry contest winners.

Serving as judge of essays for the Cherokee County Poetry and Essay Contest held each year for high school students in Cherokee County, North Carolina was and is always an honor. I read and re-read the work of these students and found it difficult to choose only three winners.

Cliff Owl III, in the white shirt in the photo, was my choice for first place. His personal essay, Walking the Line of the Reservation, expresses deep insight into his feelings of guilt, stygma, and his reconciliation of these feelings as he graduates from Murphy High School. With a small enrollment of people from his father's Cherokee Indian heritage Cliff often felt he should be at Cherokee High School on the Qualla Boundary, home of the Eastern Band of Cherokee where his relatives live and his family once lived. I was not surprised when Cliff said he was going to college at Stamford University.His writing showed a surprising maturity for such a young man.

Second and third place essay winners responded to an assignment in class and both wrote entirely different views on the subject of a Learning Experience.

First place Poetry winner was Hannah Larsen. This was her second time to win this contest in her four years of high school

Judging the Poetry contest was Jayne Jaudon Ferrer, our Netwest Rep in South Carolina.

Our congratulations to all the winners. This contest is sponsored each year by the local community, and the Cherokee Scout Newspaper.

Paul Donovan, a long time supporter of writers in his community, organizes the contest which awards monetary prizes. Netwest donates an award each year.

Titles of winning essays are:
First Place :Walking the Line of the Reservation
Second Place :A Powerful Learning Experience
Third Place :A Learning Experience

Corporate Sponsor of Netwest

Netwest is indeed appreciative of the annual donation from United Community Bank, Inc. UCBI supports the arts and other community events, and we are delighted they recognize the advantages of our writing group to the public. Mary Taylor, Administrative Assistant to Jimmy Tallent, founder and CEO, says she has noticed we support them as well. If you have a branch of United Community Bank in your town, you will find the folks who work there to be among the friendliest anywhere. I always come out of their doors with a smile on my face.







Many thanks, Mary, to you and United Community Bank, Inc.

MOTIF Anthology

Publisher Seeks Submissions for 2010 MOTIF Anthology

MOTIF is an anthology series published annually by MotesBooks of Louisville, Ky. Volume 1: Writing By Ear featured 116 writers, including Patty Griffin, Silas House, Buddy & Julie Miller, Maurice Manning, Evie Shockley, Neela Vaswani, Frank X Walker and Pamela Duncan.

Each volume in the MOTIF series focuses on a theme – for Volume 2 the theme is CHANCE.

Submissions may be poems, short stories, song lyrics, short memoirs, essays, letters, creative nonfiction, or other forms. Combinations of forms are acceptable up to the limits described: Prose must be under 3,000 words. Send no more than three poems/lyrics. All genres will be considered as long as “chance” is referenced or illuminated in the works. Submissions may address the theme either directly or indirectly, but “chance” should figure significantly and artfully in the piece. The definition or concept of “chance” can be interpreted in any way the writer sees fit, but could include ideas related to chaos, serendipity, mistake, the occasion for wonder, kismet, accident, fate, destiny, cause and effect, encounters, and/or predestination.

Each contributor whose work is accepted will receive one (1) complimentary copy of the book upon publication as payment. Contributors will also receive an ongoing contributor's discount for unlimited purchases of additional copies to use or resell. Marketing outlets include Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and the publisher's website, MotesBooks.com. Special marketing strategies will also be utilized, including one or more public readings with selected contributors by invitation of the editor or publisher.

Submit by email only. Send manuscript (Arial 12 pt., single-spaced) as a .doc or .rtf file (MS Word) to MOTIF@MotesBooks.com.
IMPORTANT: Use "MOTIF Anthology" as the subject line (email containing blank subject lines will automatically be deleted; other subject lines may inadvertently be tagged as spam). Include all author contact information (including phone, snail mail, and e-mail address) with each submission.
Include a 50-60 word biographical note to appear in Contributor's section of the anthology in case of acceptance.
Do not send previously published or simultaneously submitted material.
Submission period closes September 1, 2009.

Acceptances will be notified by end of 2009. Publication slated for early 2010. Editor is Marianne Worthington.

For clarifications, visit www.MotesBooks.com or email MOTIF@MotesBooks.com.

What else are we up to? See our growing fiction, non-fiction & poetry catalog:
http://www.motesbooks.com/

Poet W.S. Merwin, Today With Bill Moyer

Pulitzer Winner W.S. Merwin Interviewed on PBS’s Bill Moyers Journal, Friday, June 26



Dear Friend,


This Friday, June 26, the Bill Moyers Journal will feature poet W.S. Merwin and his Pulitzer prize-winning book, The Shadow of Sirius.

For information on the broadcast in your area: Check Time and Stations.

With this second Pulitzer, Copper Canyon poet W.S. Merwin has established himself as one of the most influential poets of our time. In this candid interview with Bill Moyers, Merwin shares his unique perspective on a lifetime of literary achievements, reads poems from his new book, and fields questions ranging from poetic inspiration to political engagement.

I hope you enjoy the show and welcome your thoughts and reactions to the broadcast. We also encourage you to forward this email to friends and post a comment on our Facebook page.

Sincerely,

Joseph Bednarik
Copper Canyon Press
poetry@coppercanyonpress.org


Special Offer: Purchasing a copy of The Shadow of Sirius—or any of our W.S. Merwin books listed below—directly from Copper Canyon Press is an effective way to support our mission.

Order any W.S. Merwin books by June 30 and receive free shipping. Simply type “Moyers” in the “coupon code” section of our secure checkout… and while you’re there, please make a tax deductible donation. Your support—as a reader and a donor—is vital to the future of Copper Canyon Press, a non-profit publisher that invests every dollar into publishing and promoting poetry.

To read poems, reviews, and descriptions of W.S. Merwin books published by Copper Canyon Press, click on the titles below:



The Shadow of Sirius, winner of the 2009 Pulitzer Prize
Hardback, $22

Migration: New and Selected Poems, winner of the National Book Award
Paperback, $24

Present Company, winner of the Bobbit Poetry Prize from the Library of Congress
Paperback, $16

The Book of Fables (short prose pieces)
Paperback, $20

The First Four Books of Poems (complete text of Merwin’s first four books)
Paperback, $16

The Second Four Books of Poems (complete text of Merwin’s second four books)
Paperback, $18

Flower & Hand: Poems 1977-1983 (complete text of three Merwin volumes)
Paperback, $15




Notice: Copper Canyon Press loves poetry readers, and we occasionally send out email messages like this one to inform them about special events. If you know someone who would like to receive this email, please forward this message to them or send their address to poetry@coppercanyonpress.org and we’ll be happy to send it along. If you would like to not receive future email announcements, please send an email to poetry@coppercanyonpress.org with “Remove” in the subject line.