Brenda Kay Ledford's feature, "Planting by the Signs," appeared in Grit Magazine, (March/April, 2024).
www.Grit.com
Writers and poets in the far western mountain area of North Carolina and bordering counties of South Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee post announcements, original work and articles on the craft of writing.
www.Grit.com
NCWN-West member Kenneth Chamblee's biography in poems "The Best Material for the Artist in the World" has won the Western Heritage Poetry Book Award from the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City.
Ken Chamblee |
"A work of brilliance and depth," Bob Ross, author of "Billy Above the Roofs" said of Chamblee's work, adding, the poems are sober, evocative, and respectful, and they overflow with their own penetrating light."
Bob Joly, director of St. Johnsbury Athenaeum says the poems bring Bierstadt, his contemporaries, the West, and our notions of the painter and his work to full illumination.
The Western Heritage Awards honors individuals who have made significant contributions to Western heritage through creative works in literature, music, television and film that share the great stories of the American West. Honorees will be presented with a Wrangler award during the 63rd Western Heritage Awards dinner held at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum on April 13, 2024.Poet Mary Ricketson and novelist Mary Jo Dyre will be the featured readers at Cherokee Cellars Winery's authors night Thursday, March 28. Doors will open at 5 p.m. with the presentation begining at 6 p.m. The address for the event is 45 Valley River Ave., Murphy, NC.
Mary Ricketson will read selections from her poetry collection, "Mississippi, The Story of Luke and Marian," about life with her parents, their belief that all people are equal, while Mississippi's time of segregation and the civil rights movement stirred pain and conflict. Additionally, she read will from her newest collection, "Stutters, A Book of Hope," which delves into her lifelong struggle with stuttering. The poems speak to the experience of many people- feeling different, challenged, and finding a way.Mary Jo Dyre will read from "Dark Spot," a mystery novel started by her brother Arnold who died midway through the writing. Dyre picked up his manuscript and found her own words to finish the "tangled, complex web of humanity that often results when man gives over to evil." She will also read from "Springheads," which will take you to another time and still keep you wrapped in your own heart. She weaves truth and tweaks it with what might be, ingrained with vibrant characters set in a world where all returns to two springheads.
This is a heart-warming story how faith, love, and family made a meager holiday during the Great Depression in the Appalachian Mountains, to be a joyful Christmas.
Ordering information will be released soon!
Award-winning writer Jeff Stewart will be the featured reader at Mountain Wordsmiths’ gathering on Thursday, February 22, at 10:30 a.m. via Zoom. The monthly event is sponsored by North Carolina Writers’ Network-West.
Jeff Stewart |
Stewart’s book, "Living: Inspiration from a Father with Cancer," was named the best cancer book of 2023 at the 20th annual American BookFest awards. Their review states, “'Living' tells the story of a molecular biologist, Jeopardy! champion, and cancer patient. Cancer patients and their caregivers will find valuable insider advice… 'Living' is more than a book about cancer. 'Living' is a book about life.”
"Living" also received a “get it” rating from Kirkus Reviews, which called Stewart’s book “Complex and thoughtful, with a refreshingly upbeat attitude.” BookLife from Publisher's Weekly called "Living" a "remarkable memoir" and "a final and powerful act of love."
“So many cancer books are downers,” says Stewart. “I wanted my cancer book to be funny and helpful. I’m excited by the award and positive reviews, but it’s when someone tells me, ‘Your book helped me understand what my mother was going through’ that it all feels worth it.”Ken Jennings—yes that Ken Jennings—blurbed Stewart’s book, calling it “a moving message-in-a-bottle from a great Jeopardy! champion—who also turns out to be a writer with a rare gift for aphorism and insight.”
To learn more about Jeff Stewart, you can watch his interviews on youtube.com.
Mountain Wordsmiths gatherings will always take place on Zoom. NCWN-West is also continuing to stay in touch by using technology to share our writing. We offer writing events and writing classes both online and in person. Writers are enjoying the convenience and flexibility of Zoom meetings because they can join our gatherings from other locations across America. Attendees are welcome to bring a poem or short prose piece to read during Open Mic. Please limit the reading to 3-5 minutes.
Those wishing to attend Mountain Wordsmiths may contact Carroll Taylor at vibiaperpetua@gmail.com or ncwngeorgiarep@gmail.com to receive the Zoom link. Our group is informal, and we We welcome those who would simply like to listen to the beauty of wordsmithing. All who attend are encouraged to enjoy their morning cup of coffee or tea as we share our thoughts about writing.
Poets Karen Luke Jackson and Kathleen Calby will launch their new poetry books over Zoom Thursday, Feb. 1, at 7 p.m. The event is open to anyone wishing to join over Zoom and is sponsored by Redheaded Stepchild Magazine.
They will be reading selections from "Flirting with Owls" and "If You Choose to Come." An open mic will follow the reading.
Karen Luke Jackson |
Editor Malaika King Albrecht, who hosts these launches, is a wonderful supporter of the writing community. You can sign up on Facebook for the event https://fb.me/e/1zcm2xrvc or email Jackson atkljluke@gmail.com.
By Carroll S. Taylor
Mountain Wordsmiths will begin its 2024 year of gatherings with a stellar guest reader, Karen Lauritzen, on Thursday, January 25, at 10:30 a.m. via Zoom. The monthly event is sponsored by North Carolina Writers’ Network-West.
Karen Lauritzen |
“In Just the Right Amount of Wrong," author Karen Lauritzen deftly crafts the story of 23-year-old Toni Margiani, whose flawed and broken life propels her to St. Mary’s Abbey where she sets forth on a journey of self-discovery and spiritual growth. This book is a page-turner that leaves readers waiting for Lauritzen’s next contribution to literary fiction.” (author Peggy Tabor Millin)
Sandra I. Brown, MA, psychotherapist, writes, “Lauritzen portrays the ‘courageous terror’ a victim of a socially hidden psychopath experiences and the unlikely path of restoration. All recovery is a journey of heroism and Lauritzen deeply portrays the victim’s experience of harrowing fear and courage.”
Readers can find more about Lauritzen on her blog at her website karenlauritzen.com where she talks about the development of her writing process.
Mountain Wordsmiths gatherings always take place on Zoom. NCWN-West is also continuing to stay in touch by using technology to share our writing. We offer writing events and writing classes both online and in person. Writers are enjoying the convenience and flexibility of Zoom meetings because they can join our gatherings from other locations across America. Attendees are welcome to bring a poem or short prose piece to read during Open Mic. Please limit the reading to 3-5 minutes.Those wishing to attend Mountain Wordsmiths may contact Carroll Taylor at vibiaperpetua@gmail.com or ncwngeorgiarep@gmail.com to receive the Zoom link. Our group is informal, and we welcome those who would simply like to listen to the beauty of wordsmithing. All who attend are encouraged to enjoy their morning cup of coffee or tea as we share our thoughts about writing.
Mary Ricketson will be reading at the City Lights Bookstore in Sylva, NC, from her new book of poems "Stutters: A Book of Hope" Saturday, Jan 6, 2024, at 3 p.m.
Mary Ricketson |
She will read a sample of the full length collection, discuss her work, and sign books. Also, refreshments will be available.
City Lights Bookstore is located at 3 E. Jackson St, Sylva NC, on Saturday, 1-6-24 at 3 pm.
Please come if you can, bring a friend, and please do pass this notice on to others.
Come be inspired and productive while having fun in a place of beauty. Whether you’re already writing or looking for a place to begin, give yourself the gift of time in a setting conducive to creativity. Magic—inspiration, encouragement, and laughter—abounds inside the studio.
Gain editing and publishing tips from the instructor and learn from and support your classmates’ polished and unpolished work. Return home with the motivation to continue your writing and maybe even pursue publication.
Local residents usually qualify for a discount.
About the instructor: Karen Paul Holmes won the 2023 Lascaux Poetry Prize and received a Special Mention in the Pushcart Prize anthology. Her two poetry books are No Such Thing as Distance (Terrapin Books) and Untying the Knot (Aldrich Press). She's is widely published in literary journals, including Plume, Gargoyle, and Prairie Schooner, and her poems have been read by Garrison Keillor on The Writer's Almanac and by the US Poet Laureate on The Slowdown podcast. Karen founded the Side Door Poets in Atlanta in 2010 and still hosts the group monthly. At about the same time, she started a monthly Writers' Night Out in the N. Georgia Mountains and hosted it until recently. She is also a freelance writer and has taught writing workshops at local and international conferences and various venues. Karen is a member of the North Carolina Writers' Network. www.karenpaulholmes.com
Raven and Dulce her beloved rescue |
I met Raven when she
registered for my writing class on Zoom in the early days of the pandemic.
Although she was a quiet person, she was always thinking, and her presence was
felt. We learned about her life from the stories she wrote in class. I learned
she was a person who liked to run. From early childhood, she found her calling
and with the ongoing support of a caring coach, she began to join and take part
in events all over Florida and in other states.
Her career highlights include qualifying for the First
Ever 1984 Women’s Olympic Marathon Trials and paying it forward with her
19-year cross-country coaching career at DePauw University (IN), Florida
Atlantic University, Pine Crest Prep School (FL), and Mills College (CA) where
she was also coordinator and grant writer for the N.C.A.A. program,
C.H.A.M.P.S.—Challenging Athletes Minds for Personal Success.
She served as United States Ambassador at the
International Olympic Academy in Olympia, Greece, and took 10 ten-year-old
students to Australia to run, relay style, in the Brisbane Half-Marathon.
She never bragged about her accomplishments,
but she was proud. Running and helping other athletes reach their goals were
deeply ingrained in her. The essay she wrote about that coach who saw something
special in a child who was suffering after the divorce of her parents, feeling
alone and unseen, was authentic and honest. It brought tears to our eyes as she
read it, and she choked up as well.
Raven and I became good
friends, and I realized she had great potential as a leader and influencer for
writers. She seemed to have an aura that made people comfortable with her. She
listened more than she spoke. She joined NCWN-West and was dedicated to helping
the organization in any way she could. She volunteered to help sell books we
had on hand and soon she had Echoes Across the Blue Ridge in every shop
and store in Hayesville and in other cities in the area. The books sold and the
income was added to the Netwest bank account.
I realized what a talent she
had for working with people. We
asked her to be our Clay County Representative for NCWN-West and she accepted.
Our monthly meetings had
come to a halt during the COVID period when everyone stayed home. But Raven
revived the Netwest poetry critique group that had met monthly for twenty years
before the pandemic. She gave it a new name. The Netwest Bee City Poets met at
the Moss Memorial Library. The meeting time had to work with her job, so she
began at 1:00 PM and ended at 2:15. The number of participants grew every month
and many of the poets who had begun with me twenty years ago attended Raven’s
group as well as new poets who had moved to town. I heard compliments and
praise for Raven from many.
Raven has worked for Best Friends Animal Society
since 2008 before she came to the mountains of Appalachia. It wasn’t long
before she worked for them again from home on her computer.
She had four “monkeys” of
her own, four dogs she had rescued and loved immensely. The only thing she
asked as her days grew shorter was for her dogs to be taken back to Utah to
live out their lives where she knew they would be well cared for. Many of her
friends offered to make that happen.
Community Support
Raven was a member of the
Clay County Communities Revitalization Association (CCCRA), Clay County
Historical and Arts Council (CCHAC), Friend of the Moss Memorial Library, and a
supporter of Historic Hayesville, Inc., Celebration of Pets Foundation, and One
Dozen Who Care, Inc. You can see her impressive resumé here.
Raven could always be
depended on to be there when she was needed. She often called to ask if she
could do something for me. She helped me in so many ways and always with a big
smile and loving spirit.
She was here in Clay County
only a few years ago, but she left us an example to follow. Raven gave of herself
and her time to others. When she saw that someone needed encouragement and
support, she quietly gave it. If it meant driving to another town miles away to
attend a friend’s art exhibit, she drove there.
Once the cancer had been
diagnosed, and she was told it was terminal, she did everything possible to
beat it with natural means – hiking in the woods, soaking in the calm and
energy of the trees, grass, and animals. She embraced acupuncture, energy
healing, and a strict diet. She lived longer than the six months predicted. She continued
her activities including mowing her yard up until only a few weeks ago. She had
a Caring Bridge
account where we followed her through the ups and downs. There I found Raven had many
friends in Utah and how much they loved her.
Raven Chiong will be missed in Clay County for a long, long time. We will do all we can to continue her work for NCWN-West. The outpouring of love and admiration for her has been amazing. I hope we can follow her example of loving and caring about others, encouraging, and supporting each other, as we continue our own journey with dignity and kindness.
.The Netwest Bee City Poets. Raven is standing on second row right
Memory of Raven Chiong
"A Blue Ridge Snow," appeared in West End Poets Newsletter, December/January/February 2024
www.westendpoetsweekend.com
Created and issued by: Carrboro Recreation, Parks & Cultural Resources Department
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Her poem, "Unicorn License," was published in Tigershark Magazine, an international publication based in the United Kingdom; Issue 34, Autumn/Winter 2023
tigersharkpublishing@hotmail.co.uk
Maren Mitchell, a member of NCWN-West for a long time, has had a busy year. Her poems have been widely published in literary journals, online publications, and most recently in a chapbook, In My Next Life I Plan by Dancing Girl Press.
Three of her poems have been nominated for Pushcart Prizes. She has received a 1st Place Award for Excellence in Poetry from the Georgia Poetry Society.
If you are a poet, you might want to check out these publications.
The Lake, (UK) November 2023 issue, "As They Go, So Go We" and
"The Theory of Everything."
POEM, #123, May 2023 issue, "Light Enough To See."
The Antigonish Review, (Canada) Spring 2023 issue, "I swear the most" and
"Nothing to Say, II." Silver Birch Press, September 8, 2023, the
"Spices & Seasonings" series, "Nasturtiums."
About Place Journal, The More-Than-Human World issue, Communion, "Dermodex Brevis;
Dermodex Folliculorum."
Twelve Mile Review, Winter 2023, "The gravity of our situation is
what we want to escape from and" and "Greeks favor red mullet."
Maren O. Mitchell, is a poet and author of a nonfiction book, Beat Chronic Pain, An Insider's Guide
In my next life I plan... (dancing girl press, 2023)