See part 1 here. When The Hum and the Shiver proved successful enough to warrant a sequel, I wanted to advance the themes as well as the story. I decided that the central recurring character would be the place, not Bronwyn Hyatt. Cloud County and Needsville held many other characters I felt could (and subsequently did) carry their own novels. I’ve said … Read More
How Does Being a Southerner Affect My Writing?
Recently fan Laura Kannard asked me, “How has being from the South affected your writing?” I got a similar question during my recent appearance at Poisoned Pen bookstore in Scottsdale, AZ, so it’s been fresh on my mind. And it’s one of those questions for which there’s no easy answer. It’s clear that the South certainly has more than its … Read More
"The most demanding form after poetry…"*
(*the short story, according to William Faulkner.) For the first time in a long while, I’m working on a new short story. When I had my epiphany moment in 1996 and decided it was time to get real about this whole writing thing, I started with short stories. For a while I wrote a new one every week, as if … Read More
Are You William Faulkner? Check Yes or No
An article in the current issue of The New Shetlander made me recall a writing teacher in college who, when asked about composing in the vernacular, gave this response. “You should ask yourself one question: Am I William Faulkner? If the answer is ‘no,’ then you should never write in the vernacular.” I’m not sure where the contempt for writing … Read More