On Wednesday, November 14, 2018, at 10:30 AM, Coffee with
the Poets and Writers (CWPW) will feature local poets Joan Ellen Gage, and Don Long. This event will be held at the Moss Memorial Library, 26 Anderson Street, Hayesville, NC. The
readings are free and open to the public, and an open mic will
follow the readings. CWPW is sponsored by the North Carolina Writers' Network-West.
Joan Ellen Gage is an author of humor and inspiration
written from her own unique perspective. Her recipe for her writing focuses on
staying upbeat and laughing at her own foibles. Joan’s photos are the spice in
the mix that serve to punctuate the writing and add that special garnish to her
creations.
Joan has written and published five books: Water Running Downhill!, Embracing
Your Inner Cheerleader!, A Redhead
Looks At 60, Trinity's Adventures in
Imagination, and a special edition of Water
Running Downhill! the Rose Edition, as a tribute to her friend Rose
Macedo Kull. All books are available as eBooks.
Additionally, Ms. Gage has two
blogs, Traveling at the Speed of Now, www.joanellengage.com/ and A
redhead blogs at 60, at https://joans-zone.com/. Gage is working on a new book entitled, Words of Defiance and Empowerment.
Gage is a member of her area’s writing group, NC Writers’ Network-West,
serving as the administrator for their blog.
Donald Long is a retired army Lieutenant Colonel. He flew
helicopters and airplanes, and had two tours in Vietnam. Upon retiring, he
worked with the Federal Government as a Safety Professional.
Starting in his teen years and all throughout his adult life Long has
written poems, mostly for his consumption, but occasionally on request,
for personnel at special occasions during his careers. For a short while
after retiring from the Army he had a business called “People Poems”
writing poems for others for a fee after they provided him with
pertinent information. Although the business was doing well, his second
career necessitated that he close it.
Long writes poems
for personal reasons and likes to make them rhyme. One of his poems, “I’m Glad
It’s Mine” has been used during citizenship swearing-in ceremonies in central
Florida and for central Florida Flag Day ceremonies. Another poem about being a Vietnam Veteran
was featured at the 2013 Florida “Convention” for Vietnam Helicopter
Pilots. One story about his Vietnam
Experience entitled “Combat in Chump Valley” has been published in two
different military related anthologies, The
Harsh and The Heart and Vietnam Helicopter Crew Member Stories, Volume 2. The story has also been featured in the VHPA Aviator Magazine. Long’s other
hobby is genealogy.
For more information, please contact Glenda Beall at glendabeall@msn.com.
