Author Loren Leith wins Royal Palm Literary Award for Unpublished Nonfiction Short Story Genre

LOCAL WRITER LOREN LEITH WINS PRESTIGIOUS AWARD, ANNOUNCED AT
2018 FLORIDA WRITERS ASSOCIATION CONFERENCE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE.  October 26, 2018.  The Florida Writers Association, Inc., (FWA) has announced that Loren Leith of Andrews, North Carolina won a prestigious Royal Palm Literary Award (RPLA). Leith’s winning entry, Basement Level, won First Place for Unpublished Nonfiction Short Story Genre.

The award was announced at FWA’s recent four-day annual conference in Altamonte Springs, Florida. This annual competition, which received 420 qualified submissions, was RPLA’s seventeenth.

“This is the most competitive RPLA we’ve ever had,” said Chris Coward, RPLA chairperson. “The RPLA administrative team, judges, and entrants did an amazing job.”

In all, the competition covered 26 adult genres and 5 Youth genres, with published and unpublished entries considered separately. There were five grand awards, as well.

·         Published Book of the Year: Beached, Mystery OR Crime, by Micki Browning

·         Unpublished Book of the Year: Downhill Fast, Thriller OR Suspense, by Dana J. Summers

·         Best Children’s Book: Citrus Green, Middle-Grade Fiction, by Annette Masters

·         The Dahris Clair Memorial Award for Plays: Hamlet, Reimagined, by Walter Joseph Schenck, Jr.

·         The Candice Coghill Memorial Award for the best youth entry: “Michael,” Poetry, by Samantha Leslie in the 12-15 age category

“A win at any level can help any writer market their manuscript or published book, and the detailed feedback from the judges is invaluable for all entrants,” Ms. Coward said.

The Florida Writers Association, 1,500 members strong and growing, is a nonprofit 501(c)(6) organization that supports the state’s established and emerging writers. Membership is open to the public.

The Royal Palm Literary Awards competition is a service of the Florida Writers Association established to recognize excellence in members’ published and unpublished works while providing objective and constructive written assessments for all entrants.

For additional information, visit the FWA website: floridawriters.net, where you’ll also find more about RPLA and the complete list of 2018 winners.

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Ledford Publishes Poetry Book

Brenda Kay Ledford's poetry book, "Red Plank House," has been published by Kelsay Books.

Evan Miller, senior editor of "Guideposts," endorsed Ledford's book.  Says Miller, "Reading these poems I couldn't help but feel as if I too had been transported to Shewbird Mountain, a place of majestic beauty.  I heartily recommend you take a visit there as well."

Additionally, Patricia Ann Mayorga, editor-in-chief of "Poet's Espresso Review," a publication of San Joaquin Delta College, endorsed Ledford's book.  Says Mayorga, "Brenda Kay Ledford has found her poetic voice in nature.  Her poetic verse embraces the doe or dance of sunflowers while celebrating the birth of a nation, as in "July," her songs of nature flow flawlessly in the music of poetry."

Lastly, Glenda C. Beall, NC Writer's Network-West Program Coordinator, and Director of Writer's Circle Around the Table, wrote a blurb for Ledford's book.  Says Beall, "These poems draw you into Appalachia.  You see wildflowers, gardens, children in homemade clothes, and hard-working people who kept the faith.  We feel present in the home where she grew up eating apple butter, dried stack cakes, and enjoying family.  This award-winning poet has delivered the best poetry book ever, "Red Plank House."

For information:  www.kelsaybooks.com
                             www.amazon.com

Gary Carden will release the DVD of his play, Birdell, Friday, November 2, 2018, 6:30 PM, at City Lights Bookstore, Sylva, NC

Come celebrate the DVD release of Gary Carden’s play, Birdell on Friday, November 2nd at 6:30 p.m. David Joy, author of The Line That Held Us, says of the play, “"Gary Neil Carden has lived with an ear to the ground and this play is the voice that he heard. Birdell is a testament to the gone and the going away, a lonesome whippoorwill song remembered by those who were here, never heard by those who have come." This event is held at City Lights Bookstore, 3 Jackson Street, Sylva, NC.

 

 https://www.citylightsnc.com/event/gary-carden%E2%80%99s-birdell

 

Event date: 

Friday, November 2, 2018 - 6:30pm

Event address: 

3 E Jackson St.

Sylva, NC 28779

Telephone: 828-586-9499

Delightful Reading, Nov. 9, Blairsville, GA, Writers' Night Out

Come hear Glenda & Estelle 

read these beloved stories. 

***

Sign-up for Open Mic at the door

***

It's the last Writers' Night Out of 2018. 

CONGRATULATIONS, LOREN LEITH

LOCAL WRITER LOREN LEITH WINS PRESTIGIOUS AWARD, ANNOUNCED AT
2018 FLORIDA WRITERS ASSOCIATION CONFERENCE

October 26, 2018.  The Florida Writers Association, Inc., (FWA) has announced that Loren Leith of Andrews, North Carolina won a prestigious Royal Palm Literary Award (RPLA).

 Leith’s winning entry, Basement Level, won First Place for Unpublished Nonfiction Short Story Genre.

We are happy for Loren! 

NCWN Fall Conference in Charlotte, NC has extended its deadline for registration.

From: Charles Fiore,  Communications Director for NCWN

We've extended the pre-registration deadline for the NCWN 2018 Fall Conference until 11:59 pm on Sunday, October 28. That's as late as we can possibly push it back and still be ready to host nearly 200 writers in Charlotte the following weekend.

For full conference info, go to www.ncwriters.org.

Randall Kenan, a 2018 inductee to the North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame, will give the Keynote Address. We'll have an exhibit hall packed with vendors, many of whom have never exhibited with us. And if you've wanted a chance to force more people to hear your work, you'll get it, if you sign up to read at our open mics on Saturday night.

Just a heads up: there are no more hotel rooms available at the conference venue, but you can find additional options at a variety of price points here. All of these are less than half-a-mile (and more like a quarter-mile) from the conference venue.

Please note, this deadline extension only applies to online registrations. If you're planning to pre-register by mail, those still need to be received at the NCWN offices no later than 5:00 pm on Friday, October 26.

It's not too late to get in on the literary event of the fall.

Register at www.ncwriters.org.

See you in Charlotte.

Charles Fiore
Communications Director
North Carolina Writers’ Network
PO Box 21591
Winston-Salem, NC 27120
336-293-8844

Nature Journaling & Phenology Workshop at Wander North Georgia! with Alarka Expeditions, November 10, 2018

Nature Journaling & Phenology Workshop at Wander North Georgia!

November 10, 2018

Wander North Georgia has teamed up with Cowee, NC based Alarka Expeditions (Brent and Angela Martin) for a day long workshop on nature journaling and phenology (recording natural phenomena through direct observation). The morning will begin at the Wander North Georgia shop in a classroom setting where attendees will learn about the history of this activity in our landscape, with readings from the 18th century American botanist and artist, William Bartram, who explored and described the upper Chattooga watershed in May of 1775. The techniques of phenology as developed by the famous conservationist Aldo Leopold, and his daughter Nina, will also be part of the morning’s classroom activities. We’ll take lunch to the field, where the afternoon will be spent in observation, writing, and creative exercises. Attendees will leave the day with a new awareness of how to appreciate nature in their daily lives and how to increase their powers of observation in the natural world.

The workshop will begin promptly at 10:00AM and end at approximately 4:00PM. The cost of the workshop is $55. 100% of the ticket costs will go directly to the workshop hosts and presenters from the Alarka Expeditions team.

What do you need for the course?
Hand Lens
Notebook/Journal
Pen, pencil (a set of colored pencils or pens will add to your experience if you like to draw)
Appropriate clothing for the day’s forecast
Pack Picnic Lunch/Water

Optional:
William Bartram’s Travels (available in paperback, best to get the Harper’s Edition)
The Law’s Guide to Nature Drawing and Journaling
Binoculars

The Literary Hour Readings for October 18, 2018, at the JCCFS, Brasstown, NC, will feature writers Glenda Barrett, Lucy Cole Gratton, and Mary Michelle Brodine Keller

On Thursday October 18, at 7:00 PM, John C. Campbell Folk School and NC Writers' Network-West will sponsor The Literary Hour. At this event, NCWN-West members will read at the Keith House on the JCCFS campus, in Brasstown, NC. The Literary Hour is held on the third Thursday of the month unless otherwise indicated. This reading is free of charge and open to the public. This month's featured readers will be Glenda Barrett, Lucy Cole Gratton, and Mary Michelle Brodine Keller.

Glenda Barrett, a native of Hiawassee, Georgia, is a poet, writer, and visual artist. Her work has been widely published since 1997 and has appeared in: Woman's World, Farm & Ranch Living, Country Woman, Chicken Soup for the Soul, Journal of Kentucky Living, Nantahala Review, Rural Heritage, Wild Goose Poetry Review, Kaleidoscope Magazine and many more. Barrett is the author of two poetry books, When the Sap Rises, published by Finishing Line Press, in 2008 and The Beauty of Silence, published by Aldrich Press, in 2017. Both books are available on Amazon.com. Glenda's artwork is online at Fine Art America.

Lucy Cole Gratton is a retired CPA, moving to the mountains after retirement.  She was the Cherokee Representative for NCWN-West for five years.  She facilitated the program at John Campbell Folk School during that time.  She has written for many years but only in the past ten years has she been active in Poetry Critique and Prose Critique.  She has read at the Folk School many times.  Her poems have been published in various media including on-line, print, her college magazine and various small publications to which she enjoys.  Her focus is predominantly centered around the environment, incidents and images of her home of 35 acres of woods on Lake Apalachia outside Murphy NC.  She has lived there for 20 years and is in the process of moving to Stone Mountain outside of Atlanta GA.

Mary Michelle Brodine Keller, or Mary Mike as she is often called by her friends, writes poetry, essays and short fiction. She draws her subject matter from things she sees or experiences, putting meaning to them. She is also a visual artist, painting in oil, water color and pastels.  She likes to think of her poetry as painting with words. Her poems have been published in The Mountain Lynx, and in anthologies: Freeing Jonah III and IV, Lights in the Mountains, Echos Across the Blueridge, Stories, Essays and Poems by Writers Living in and Inspired by the Southern Appalachian Mountains and various other publications. She calls herself a reader. She reads to others in a variety of settings. She finds that more satisfying than publication, as it is a shared experience.