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Friday, October 30, 2009

Noah Copley Book Signing on Halloween


WV Writers member Noah Copley will be signing copies of his supernatural novel, Late Season, at Borders Books in Huntington on October 31st from noon to 2 pm.

Visit his website for more details on the book.

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Online Q&A with editors of Cup of Comfort series

(This news courtesy Rhonda Browning White)

In this interactive webinar, writers will have the unique opportunity to participate in a Q&A session with Paula Munier, the creator of the Cup of Comfort series, and Meredith O’Hayre, the in-house editor of the Cup of Comfort series. This is a great chance for contributor and hopeful contributors alike to ask Paula and Meredith for advice and tips to get their COC story selected from the thousands of competitors.

CLICK HERE for more details and how to sign up.

Friday, October 23, 2009

Bridgeport Library "Author Extravaganza"

The Bridgeport Library is hosting an "author extravaganza" on Saturday, October 24th, from noon to 5pm. Authors will have displays and have scheduled times to read from their work.

Author list includes:

12:30 Phyllis Wilson Moore, Literary Historian June Langford Berkley, Poet Opening remarks.

1:00 Puppet Show

Patsy Pittman, Author
1:30 Cheryl Denise Miller, Poet

Cheryl Ware, Children’s Author

2:00 Lori Wilson, Poet

Anna Egan Smucker, Children’s Author

2:30 Debra Conner, Portraying Rebecca Harding Davis
Sonya Dunlap & Sharon Snider, Author & Illustrator, Children’s Books

3:00 Susanna Holstein “Granny Sue”

3:30 Steve Goff, Comedian

4:00 Dwight Harshbarger, Author
Trick-or-Treat Begins

4:30 Charlotte Snead, Author


Thank you to the Bridgeport Library for this exciting event.

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Meredith Sue Willis Online Writing Classes offered for January

Jan Plan 2010: An Online Class for Writers of Prose Narrative

Meredith Sue Willis is offering a four-session online creative writing class called Jan Plan 2010 for intermediate and advanced prose writers who want to get a project started or restarted– or who just need feedback on their writing. The class takes place on four Tuesdays in January:

January 5, 2010
January 12, 2010
January 19, 2010
January 26, 2010

The class welcomes writers of all kinds of prose narrative (novels, stories, memoir, and more).. We will explore the techniques that are common to these forms, emphasizing narrative, dialogue, description, and the shaping of a piece through story arc. There will be exercises and individual feedback on up to 900 words per week.

Until January 1, 2010, the course costs $200, payable in advance. On January 1, the price goes up to $240. To apply, send an email to Meredith Sue Willis at meredithsuewillis@gmail.com explaining why you think this class would be a good match for you. If you are accepted, she will send you the next steps. You must apply, be admitted, and have your payment arrive by Monday, January 4, 2010; however, the class will close early with no notice if it fills. There will be no cash refunds. For testimonials and more information, see http://www.meredithsuewillis.com/summerstories2008.html

Please pass on to others who might be interested!

Meredith Sue Willis

Saturday, October 17, 2009

Sotto Voce Event on Shepherd University Campus tonight!

This is a reminder of the Sotto Voce Poetry Festival events on the campus of Shepherd University today.

Earn strong culture points for attending and writing up your impressions . . .
Do plan to attend readings and discussions by poets from across the country! ==
Especially wonderful this year are Peggy Shumaker and Alice Friman, superb
tellers of tales that weave a net of enchantment and surprise. Biographies of the poets
and more information about the festival can be found at
http://www.somondocopress.com/sottovoce/.
Saturday, 10/17:
THIS READING WILL BE WONDERFUL!
7:30 pm Readings by
Rick Campbell and Peggy Shumaker
Stanley Plumly and Alice Friman will also read
Erma Ora Byrd Auditorium, Shepherd University
Free and Open to the Public

8:30 – 9:00 pm Dessert and Coffee Reception and Book Signing
Sponsored by Shepherd University
Erma Ora Byrd Foyer, Shepherd University
Free and Open to the Public

9:00 pm Open Mic
Stone Soup Bistro
Ethan Fischer, MC
Workshop participants have priority for reading at Open Mic.

Friday, October 16, 2009

Press53 Call for Submissions

Call for Submissions for new Anthology

What Doesn’t Kill You… a new anthology coming from Press 53 in Spring 2010 is looking for stories of struggle—real or imagined, physical or mental.

Contributors will receive a complimentary copy of the anthology plus the opportunity to buy unlimited copies at a discount.

Contributors will also have one page in the back of the anthology for his or her bio, photo, and story comments.

We’re looking for eight stories to run alongside the seven we have already requested from some of today’s top award-winning writers.

Stories can be fiction or nonfiction, from 100-10,000 words.

There is NO reading fee.

Please limit your submission to one story.

Previously published works are acceptable, so long as the author holds all rights and no previous publication agreement is violated.

DEADLINE: Submissions will be accepted until the New Year rings in at midnight December 31, 2009.

Send your submission via email attachment to co-editor Murray Dunlap at murraydunlap@gmail.com.

If you have any questions, please email Kevin Morgan Watson at kevin@press53.com

ALL THE DETAILS HERE...
http://www.press53.com/whatdoesntkillyou.html

WVW Podcast Bonus Show 4


Our 4th WVW Podcast Bonus Show is now online and features trimmings from our Episode 12 interview with Pops Walker.

We also pass along the results of the Shenandoah Valley Acoustic Roots Fest and Songwriting Contest, which we talked to Pops about in Episode 12.

Click HERE to go THERE.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Legends of the Mountain State 4 Accepting Submissions

Title: Legends of the Mountain State 4

Publisher: Woodland Press

Editor: Michael Knost

Format: Trade Paperback

Payment: five-cents per word (upon publication) plus contributor copy.

No reprints (and please do not resubmit rejected stories from previous editions)

Story length: Up to 2000 words

No multiple or simultaneous subs

Deadline: April 1, 2010

Do NOT query about submission status until August 1, 2010

Send submissions to: LOTMS4@yahoo.com

E-mail submissions only. We will accept .doc or .rtf attachments only. Do NOT copy and paste story into the body of your e-mail. Send submissions or inquiries to the above e-mail address.

Publication date: September 1, 2010

I do NOT want stories with legends or ghosts already covered in previous editions of this series. Reading the other books is a great way to see what I am buying.

Stories MUST expand a known legend/ghost tale from the state of West Virginia.

You do not need to be a West Virginian to submit, but you will need to keep the story (and legend/ghost) true to the state. All stories should include real towns and counties from the Mountain State. Do not tell us the biography of a legend/ghost-tell us a story with the legend or ghost at story's center.

We are looking for tales with a solid plot and good character development. Stories should grab the reader's attention quickly and hold it until the end. We want powerful and emotional tales that are creepy, chilling, disturbing, and moody. However, we DO NOT want stories containing explicit language or content.

The most common reasons for rejection will be lack of originality, slow pacing, poor writing, and failure to follow the guidelines. Please visit www.shunn.net/format/story.html for the only manuscript format we accept.

We purchase First World Anthology Rights for publication in the English language anywhere in the world.

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Shenandoah Valley Acoustic Roots Fest Songwriting Contest Winners

Performing Arts of Luray is pleased to announce the top three winners of the first Shenandoah Valley Acoustic Roots Fest and Songwriting Contest.

Those songwriters are: 1st place: Bryan Elijah Smith, of Dayton, VA, for his song, “The Other Side of Town”. Bryan won $500, six hours of studio time, and a future gig with Performing Arts of Luray.

2nd place: Judith Avers, of Weirton, WV, for her song, “Raining”. Judith won $300 and a guaranteed future booking.

Con Burch, Fort Valley, VA, for her song “Maybe Someday”. Con won $200.

The finals competition took place on October 3, 2009, at the BB&T Center for the Performing Arts in Luray, VA.

Be on the lookout for news about next year’s show and competition. Details are forthcoming at: http://www.popswalker.com/ and http://www.performingartsluray.org/.

Monday, October 12, 2009

The Morgantown Writers Group presents "The Pale Light of Sunset: Conversation With Novelist Lee Maynard"

The Morgantown Writers Group presents . . .

"The Pale Light of Sunset: Conversation With Novelist Lee Maynard"
Special Literary, Jazz, and Arts Event -- Tuesday October 13 - Arts Mon Gallery
(next to Huntington Bank) Starts at 7 p.m. Refreshments. No Charge.
===
AUTHOR LEE MAYNARD JOINS
A BRASILIAN JAZZ ENSEMBLE
IN RARE 'IMAGINED JOURNEY'

Morgantown Writers Group is proud to feature Novelist LEE MAYNARD in a unique literary arts program that combines literature with an incredible Brasilian jazz ensemble called Music Alive! plus a unique Exhibit of Local Artists in the Jackson Kelly Gallery.
WVU Director of Jazz Studies Paul Scea leads a great Brasilian jazz ensemble playing flute, piano, bass, guitar, and the pandero at 7:15 p.m. Lee Maynard follows at 8:00 p.m.

This special program is next Tuesday, October 13, 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Arts Mon Gallery (next to Huntington Bank) is on High Street, just off corner of Pleasant Street. downtown Morgantown.

This Literary Arts event allows WV writers (and community residents) to converse informally with Lee Maynard, the controversial author of "Crum" and "Screaming with the Cannibals". In the Jackson Kelly Gallery at Arts Mon, there is the Fall 2009 Regional Invitational Exhibit featuring 14 wonderful WV artists -- a fabulous background to jazz and literary nuance. - G.

The WVU Press released Maynard's latest novel and will host Lee in a premiere reading at WVU Mountainlair Ballroom, Monday, Oct. 12, 7:30 p.m. Complete Book Tour is below.

Morgantown Writers worked closely with the WVU Press, Arts Mon, WVU Jazz Studies, and the Greater Morgantown Community Trust, to set up this gig. It gives all local writers an opportunity to hear a unique blend of Brazilian beats and later, ask questions of master novelist LEE MAYNARD, in an informal setting. Come and ask about his new book, about his past, about his novels. . .

There is no charge for event. A book signing and autograph session will be hosted by The Book Shelf, during the evening. This novel is a great gift idea for West Virginians. And there will be fine refreshments offered by the Morgantown Writers Group at Arts Mon.

PODCAST -- "Conversation with Novelist Lee Maynard". For advance insights, into Lee's vision, view a 3:45 minute Podcast http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dg9bkRyW-RE

TUESDAY OCTOBER 13th EVENT SCHEDULE:
7:00 p.m. Welcome + Introductions + Refreshments
7:15 p.m. Brasilian Jazz "WVU-Brasil Music Alive Ensemble"
===
Paul Scea (Director of WVU Jazz Studies) leads Music Alive! Brasil and WVU musicians:
Paul Scea - flute -- Brandon Lucas - guitar
Diego Lyra - piano (Music Alive!) -- Greg Thurman - bass
Michael Vercelli - pandero (Director of World Music)
They will entertain you when you walk in the door right after 7:00 p.m. with an array of jazz, bossa nova, drums, percussion, and more. They start at 7:15 p.m. sharp. No charge for the event.
===
8:00 p.m. Lee Maynard "Conversation with Author"
8:45 p.m. Autograph Book Signing
9:00 p.m.+ Wrap Up
===

AUTHOR BACKGROUND:
Lee Maynard's recent novel, "The Pale Light of Sunset" (Scattershots and Hallucinations in an Imagined Life) is a breakthrough fiction-memoir, with a tone that takes readers through different years in West Virginia. As Chuck Kinder, the good friend of Lee's, put it: "This reads like a prose poem and memoir -- only the story is fiction." To illustrate, the "Pale Light of Sunset" is a 2009 New Mexico Book Award Finalist where Lee now resides

Consider this summary of Pale Light of Sunset:
"In 1936, a child is born in the mountains of West Virginia. In 2005, he scatters his past into a deep canyon of rock. The Pale Light of Sunset illuminates the journey of this boy, a constant tourist and visitor, who travels everywhere, yet belongs nowhere. Through tales of swarming hornets and swinging bullies, love affairs with the land and the people, and near death by frostbite and heat stroke, the absurd hilarity and clear, tender voice found within this story navigates a surreal road paved by the experiences of one man.

"As many of you know, Lee Maynard does not run from controversy. He is the author of nationally acclaimed and locally banned novels "Crum" and "Screaming with the Cannibals", Lee Maynard details an imaginative account of his journey through seventy years of hard living-from West Virginia, to Mexico, the Arctic Circle, and beyond. Scattered and hallucinated, The Pale Light of Sunset grants a long-awaited glimpse into the bent condition of the Maynard brain."

===
LEE MAYNARD WEST VIRGINIA BOOK TOUR
- Friday, October 9: A Reading with Lee Maynard at Taylor Books, Charleston, WV (4 pm)
- Saturday, October 10: A Book Signing WV Book Festival, Charleston, WV (1 pm)
- Saturday, October 10: Reading with Lee Maynard at WV Book Festival, Charleston, WV (4 pm)

- Monday, October 12: A Reading with Lee Maynard at WVU Mountainlair, Ballroom, Morgantown, WV (7:30 pm)
- Tuesday, October 13: A Book Signing and Reading at Borders at Meadowbrook Mall, Bridgeport, WV (4-7 pm)
- Tuesday, October 13: A Night of Brazilian Jazz and A Conversation with Lee Maynard, Arts Monongahela (7-9 pm, with a Q&A with Lee at 8 pm)
====

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Ethel Morgan Smith will be the featured author during Morgantown Poets literary even

Ethel Morgan Smith will be the featured author during Morgantown Poets 7 p.m. literary event Thursday, Oct. 15, at Monongalia Arts Center (MAC).
The reading is free and open to anyone interested in the arts. The MAC is at 107 High St., Morgantown.
Smith is the author of "From Whence Cometh My Help: The African American Community at Hollins College."
Her essay "Love Means Nothing" won the Mid-Atlantic Arts Prize for Nonfiction. "Outside of Dreams" has recently been published in "Shaping Memories: Reflections of African American Women Writers." Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Callaloo, African American Review, ThatMinorityThing.com, and other national and international outlets.
Smith has earned numerous awards and honors in the following literary and scholarly programs: Fulbright Scholar (Tubingen, Germany), Rockefeller Foundation Fellowship (Bellagio, Italy), DuPont Scholar (Randolph-Macon Woman's College), Visiting Artist at the American Academy in Rome, Visiting Scholar in the Women's Studies Research Center at Brandeis University, Bread Loaf Writers Conference, Jane C. Camp Fellowship at the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, and others.
Her novel-in-progress, "The House of Flowers," placed second for the West Virginia Writers, Inc. Annual Writing Competition, and her play for the stage, "African Violets," placed third for the same contest.
Smith is an associate professor of English at West Virginia University..
Public parking is available near the MAC in the parking garage at the corner of Pleasant and Chestnut streets and at the city lot behind 142 High Street (enter off Spruce). The MAC is accessible to individuals with mobility impairments; please schedule ahead at least two days prior to the event by calling 304-906-7268, or write to info@monartscenter.com for more information.
Morgantown Poets is an informal community group that meets from 7-9 p.m. on the third Thursday of each month at the MAC, providing literary enthusiasts the opportunity to express themselves, share their work, network and to connect up-and-coming writers with more established authors.
New writers are welcome. Meetings usually begin with a spoken reading by a featured author that is followed by readings from attendees. Join Morgantown Poets’ mailing list by writing to morgantownpoets@yahoo.com or join the group on Facebook by entering "Morgantown Poets" in Facebook’s search.

Saturday, October 10, 2009

Come see us at the Book Festival!

The eighth annual West Virginia Book Festival will be held today, October 10 and tomorrow, Oct 11, at the Charleston Civic Center. Each year the festival offers something for book lovers of all ages and interests: authors, publishers, book vendors, the Festival Marketplace, a special section just for children, a used book sale, meet the author events, workshops and panel discussions.

It would be a treat to meet and display the talent of this group.

Friday, October 09, 2009

Stephen Earley Jordan II Performing at Morgantown Poets event at Monongalia Arts Center.

Author, spoken word artist and cultural critic Stephen Earley Jordan II will be performing as a special guest of Morgantown Poets from 7-9 p.m. TODAY (Friday, Oct. 9), at Monongalia Arts Center (MAC).
The MAC is at 107 High St., Morgantown. The performance is being presented as an extra feature in addition to Morgantown Poets regular series of events. It is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be available.
Jordan will be headlining the event with an opening spoken word performance by Ted Webb of Morgantown Poets.
"I'm thrilled Stephen is sharing his engaging work with the north-central West Virginia community," said Webb, who organizes the Morgantown Poets events at the MAC with Tamara Woods, Charlotte Firestone, Casie Fox and others. "Stephen's a multitalented writer and a dynamic speaker. This will definitely be a very special, unique performance in Morgantown you won't want to miss."
Jordan grew up in Huntington, graduating from Ceredo-Kenova High School (1995) and Alderson-Broaddus College in Philippi (1999). He currently lives in Bronx, N.Y.
Jordan recently released his debut CD, "Black Baby Tears." The album is an eclectic collection of spoken word poetry mixed with cutting-edge beats. Jordan’s lyrics challenge modern thought on race, class, gender issues and poetry itself. The CD, including free excerpts, is available at http://cdbaby.com/cd/sejordanii, Amazon.com and iTunes.
Following the black literary tradition of such gifted writers as legendary Langston Hughes and James Baldwin, and contemporary writers such as Essex Hemphill and Sapphire, Jordan wrote "Beyond Bougie" (2006). A collection of creative nonfiction, essays and poetry, "Beyond Bougie" has been used for book clubs and college multicultural/sociology courses.
Along with the book, Jordan created the "Are You Bougie?" presentation for a series of talks at colleges where he discussed being progressive in the black community. He is also the producer and host of a weekly online show, "The Bougie Black Show," which can be heard on iTunes.
In August 2007, Jordan released his sophomore collection of writing, "Cold, Black and Hungry."
Jordan is the founder of a nonprofit organization, OutStretch Literary Advancements, which is dedicated to advancing higher education and literacy rates among black males in foster group homes.
In addition to Jordan's Oct. 9 performance, Morgantown Poets will conduct its monthly community literary arts event at its regularly scheduled time, 7-9 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 15, at the MAC. A notice with all information for the Oct. 15 event is forthcoming.
Morgantown Poets schedule for its fall/spring series of events is available at http://www.monartscenter.com.
Join Morgantown Poets’ mailing list at morgantownpoets@yahoo.com or join the group by entering "Morgantown Poets" in Facebook’s search.
Public parking is available near the MAC in the parking garage at the corner of Pleasant and Chestnut streets and at the city lot behind 142 High Street (enter off Spruce). The MAC is accessible to individuals with mobility impairments; please schedule ahead at least two days prior to the event by calling 304-906-7268, or write to info@monartscenter.com for more information.
Stephen Earley Jordan II on the Web: http://www.sejordan.net

Thursday, October 01, 2009

Pluck Seeks Submissions

(This news courtesy of Rhonda White)

Pluck! The Journal of Affrilachian Arts & Culture is seeking poetry submissions from African Americans who live in states within the Appalachian Mountain Range.

Info here:

http://www.pluckonline.com/about.htm