Tuesday, April 7, 2015

Glenda Barrett will read at Coffee with the Poets, Wednesday, April 8th, 2015




We are happy that Glenda Barrett, artist, poet and writer from Hiawassee, Georgia will read with Nancy Simpson at Coffee with the Poets and Writers on Wednesday, April 8. Brenda Kay Ledford had to cancel and we appreciate Glenda Barrett stepping in at the last minute.
A long-time member of Netwest, Glenda’s work has been widely published. Her poetry and prose have appeared in Journal of Kentucky Studies, Woman's World, Farm & Ranch Living, Country Woman, Chicken Soup for the Soul and in anthologies, Lights in the Mountains and Echoes across the Blue Ridge. Her artwork is online at Fine Art America. Finishing Line Press, in 2008, published her poetry chapbook titled, "When the Sap Rises.”
Come and enjoy two experienced and well-loved local poets. Bring a poem or short prose to read at open mic. Bring a friend and enjoy Joe's delicious coffee and have a bagel with cream cheese. Joe has welcomed our writers to  his shop and I hope we will come out and show our appreciation.

Monday, April 6, 2015

Laurence Holden’s, (of "The Artist's Path" Blog) poem,"The Gate" featured in the inaugural issue of Snapdragon: A Journal of Art & Healing



I am pleased to be able to support this new venture which recognizes the deep relationship between art and healing. The editors' hope is that" this will be a place to which you come as you journey the luminous path to wholeness."  Snapdragon: A Journal of Art & Healing

Here is an image I created to go with the poem:
Laurence Holden,
Warwoman Creek,
Katuah Province, Turtle Island
"What ever you make must be a being...Only a deliberate process of creating being-like (and self-like) centers...throughout the world will encourage the world to become more alive...[this means you] consciously move towards those things which most deeply reflect or touch your own self, your own inner feeling, and consciously move away from those which do not...this process creates places which are profoundly practical, harmonious, adequate for the conduct of life, respectful of ecology and all living forms..." -Christopher Alexander,  The Nature of Order

Thursday, April 2, 2015



Two Events Coming up:
The Working Writers Reading: On Thursday, April 9th at 7 p.m. at Brevard College, novelist and newspaper columnist Katherine Scott Crawford, short story writer Jubal Tiner, and poet Ken Chamlee from their published work and works-in-progress. Brevard College, McLarty-Goodson Room 125. 

On April 25, Katherine Scott Crawford will discuss her historical novel Keowee Valley as an Author Presenter at the 2015 Blue Ridge Bookfest. She joins other Author Presenters Tommy Hays, Karen White, Terry Kay and more.Event is FREE and open to the public. For more information, go to www.blueridgebookfest.org.


"The clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness."
~ John Muir

Coffee with the Poets April 8, 2015

Brenda Kay Ledford
Nancy Simpson


April is poetry month and there is no finer way to celebrate than attending Coffee with the Poets, a monthly event held at Joe’s Coffee Shop and Trading Post, 82 Main Street, Hayesville, NC. North Carolina Writers Network-West sponsors this event which meets at10:30 a.m., Wednesday, April 8, 2015.

Recently a visitor to our area said, "This should be on a list of things to do here!"

Two widely published local poets, members of NCWN West, Brenda Kay Ledford and Nancy Simpson, are featured on the program this month. Coffee with the Poets and Writers is open to the public at no charge. Bring a poem or short prose, 1000 words or less, and read at Open Mic. Joe’s Coffee shop serves fine coffees and teas, and snacks can be purchased.

Brenda Kay Ledford is a well-known poet and native of Clay County, NC. She holds a Master of Arts in Education from Western Carolina University. She has done post-graduate work in Appalachian Studies, and the theme of most of her writing is her Appalachian heritage.

Brenda received the Paul Green Multimedia Award from the North Carolina Society of Historians seven times for her books, her collections of oral history, and her blog Historical Hayesville. Her work has appeared in Our State, Carolina Country Magazine, Chicken Soup for the Soul, Appalachian Heritage, Wild Goose Poetry Review, Journal of Kentucky Studies, Asheville Poetry Review, Country Extra Magazine, Blue Ridge Parkway Silver Anniversary Edition Celebration, and many other journals.

Finishing Line Press published Brenda’s poetry books: Shewbird Mountain, Sacred Fire, and Beckoning. She co-authored Simplicity with Blanche L. Ledford.  She is also an outstanding photographer as you can see on her blog, Blue Ridge Poet.

Nancy Simpson lives in Hayesville, NC. Through 2010 she served as Resident Writer at the John C. Campbell Folk School. She taught many of the poets and writers in this area in her classes there and at Tri-County Community College. She also taught poetry for ICL at Young Harris College.

Nancy is the author of three poetry collections: Across Water, Night Student, and most recently Living Above the Frost Line, New and Selected Poems (Carolina Wren Press, 2010). She also edited Echoes Across the Blue Ridge (anthology 2010). She holds an MFA from Warren Wilson College and a BS in education from Western Carolina University. She received a NC Arts Fellowship and co-founded NC Writers Network-West.

Simpson’s poems have been published in The Georgia Review, Southern Poetry Review, Seneca Review, New Virginia Review, Prairie Schooner and others. Her poems have been included in anthologies, Word and Wisdom, 100 Years of N.C. Poetry and Literary Trails of N.C. (2008). Her poems have also been featured in Southern Appalachian Poetry, a textbook anthology published at McFarland Press.
Visit her blog, Living Above the Frost Line to learn more about her.  

Contact NCWN West Representative, Glenda Beall, at 828-389-4441 or glendabeall@msn.com  for information.


Friday, March 27, 2015

Karen Paul Holmes Teaches a Writing Class at John C. Campbell Folk School May 3 to May 9th

 

Just Write
Date: Sunday, May 3 - Saturday, May 9, 2015
Subject: Writing
Instructor: Karen Paul Holmes



A prompt a day will keep you writing away…or bring your own ideas and finally have time to write what you've been itching to write. We'll dig into a magic bag of inspiration including nature walks, music, and favorite poems or passages by favorite writers. Self-editing tips and one-on-one coaching will help make your pieces stronger. Ideal for poetry, memoir, or short-fiction writers of all levels.

Tuition: $594.00
Deposit: A deposit of $150.00 will be due upon checkout to hold your seat in this class.

https://classes.folkschool.org/class_details.aspx?pk=17708

Karen Paul Holmes

Her book, Untying the Knot is available here: http://www.amazon.com/Untying-Knot-Karen-Paul-Holmes/dp/0615998984