How does one write about their own life?
“One word at a time,” the sarcastic one says.
“Follow a set bracket of time,” a wise one adds.
“Start at a pivotal moment and detail the surroundings,” your neighbor tells you.
Pick up a pen and begin again what you already know.
You might’ve seen the previous posts, but it’s true: Leah and I are expecting a girl this August. She is due to arrive on Leah’s birthday (Aug. 11th) no less.
We spent this past weekend at Mom’s in Monticello to celebrate with family and close friends. As we’ve learned this info., it is now much more real.
There is growth.
There is a child on the way.
We are naming her after my babysitter- Zella (Rose), which means ‘blessed.’
All of the complimentary Kentucky checkboxes were marked this past Easter weekend:
I hinted previously that there could be a new book coming down the pike this year.
THERE IS! It’s one I’ve had quite a fun time with, as it really defies classification.
Here’s my best effort to label it –
With the current landscape of modern high school libraries shifting away from books involving shootouts, I was nervous to promote such a book for teen readers. However, the strong historical significance won out for me, to tell a story about this ‘not-so-famous’ Kentucky feud, which unlike the Hatfields & McCoys (happening due east of Perry County), spawned not from the greed over a hog, but something much more closely tied to every Appalachian – land, the coal within.
I look forward to sharing more details, as they develop, and I gladly welcome any of my more talented writing peers to offer to blurb for this book well in advance of its intended release, which is: 9.20.18.
Happy Easter Weekend to everyone!
Brian
Things which captivate me still, regarding my hometown, Monticello, Kentucky:
Blackberries growing along the edge of Sally Burnett Road
Cheeseburgers simmering on Main Street’s Pool Hall grill
Turtles stepping on one another to get pellets at Conley Bottom Resort
Shane Blevins shooting a 3-pointer, the subsequent swish
Cornbread recipes shared at Mill Springs Mill
The word ‘Pull!’ being shouted in a field, followed by shotgun blasts
Horses swimming in an open pond in summer
Church bells ringing at Elk Ridge Baptist Church
Harold Turpin preaching 1 Corinthians 13
Baptism with six friends in a creek one, crisp October
Dennis Wheeler leading a choir on Sundays
Cardinal couples darting from branch to branch at the park
A skier dropping a ski between New Fall and White Oak Creeks
Lake Cumberland reaching into the trees after a rain
Losing a teammate to that same pool one year
Kelda Stringer sharing the Wayne County Outlook with all
The doughboy looking on
Dad driving like Steve McQueen between Delta and Hwy 92
The roar of a Chevy Nova getting me to Bell Elementary
Grandma’s suppers on Tuesday nights
Family reunions at the Memorial Park shelter house
Bus rides to and from Cave Street with Ingrid Coffey
Basketball double headers on Fridays
Kickball tournaments in the Miniard auditorium
Veteran’s Day parades and our pride in hometown heroes
Open lunch at South Creek Mini Mart
Paul Stringer reading Harper Lee aloud
Jimmy Cooper obsessing over his desk
Mountain View Camp and Chrysalis – God’s very movement
Menville Dishman on our family doorstep, inviting us back to church one more time
(*image by Mitchell McGuire, Art Deco rendering/design)
Being an enigma is far from bad
Every finger print differing for a reason
Consider the differences in the Grand Canyon
And Mount Everest
Trenches and peaks falling and rising in varying proportions
A cave remaining dark all day
And snow lingering on precipices, up high
A bat needing a home during daylight hours
And man craving rest in the darkest reaches of night
Differences are awe-inspiring
Sameness is bland
Leonardo da Vinci was anything but mad
Van Gogh while mad was anything except boring
Hobbits were constructed in the mind of a world-builder
And Billy Graham preached like his soul was on fire
These are the attributes of difference
These are the joys of deliverance
From a world lacking season
From a dish missing salt
Difference is good
Mysterious
While it’s still very much in its infancy, I’m so excited about an idea I’ve been constructing of late!
It’s still too early to give much away, but suffice it to say it encompasses post-Civil War America. But not the parts in Reconstruction mode we all think about and get sentimental for.
It’s taken more research than I thought I’d put into a book, but hopefully that will pay off in bringing truth to light.
And most importantly, I hope you enjoy it as much as you’ve enjoyed other projects. Baptisms & Dogs, Wheelman, and Swimming the E. were all largely passion projects from personal experience and growth. This one isn’t memory-driven at all, but rather, an overflow of interest regarding a region. There. I’ve said too much.
It’s being composed as a quasi-illustrated novellette. (Say that 5 times really fast.)
And as much as I’d like to share sketches, plot, and a forthcoming title…it’s still too early in the game to do so.
However, my promise is to get these things to you soon. If you promise me, you’ll share the heck out of it once it becomes a real, living breathing thing.
The SouthWord Literary Festival, 2017 – Chattanooga, TN.
Writers included some of my all-time favorites. A list as talented as the Golden State Warriors of present day. No. Better. Way way better. Forget the comparison. Just look at the list below.
In no particular order:
Wendell Berry (I could stop right here.)
Tom Franklin
Jim Grimsley
Tim Gautreaux
Ron Rash
Steve Yarbrough
Maurice Manning
Bobbie Ann Mason
Charles Frazier
George Singleton
Brad Watson
Allan Gurganus
Tony Earley
Lee Smith
Silas House
Richard & Robert Bausch
Now I understand why some obsess over Disney World/ Disney Land. This conference housed rock stars in the literary arena, and they all came together and discussed the craft of writing. I was star struck like a girl at her first Beatle’s concert. May the magic never wear off! I’ll probably never wash hand again.
Many thanks for the attendance at last week’s Q&A, Reading, & Signing at Star Line Books in downtown Chattanooga! It was a great return to that wonderful independent bookstore. Sharing Swimming the Echo and its construction with everyone was a fantastic time. The questions were thoughtful and welcomed! Hope to see you at the next event soon.
