Lit Happens

A lot of literary happenings in the next few days:

Today, I hung out at Peggy Shifflett’s Cottage Curio, where Rex Bowman was signing copies of his wonderful Blue Ridge Chronicles. Peggy’s sister-in-law, Hilda, cooked some green beans just like Grandma used to make. She had also made some apple butter rolls and some homemade potato salad, too.

Rex Bowman and Peggy Shifflett

A bunch of folks stopped in to chat and tell stories. An intern from the Salem Times-Register took some pictures and interviewed Rex and me. All copies of Rex’s books sold out by one-thirty.

Rex and I with our books.

On August 8, Peggy will be one of the readers at the Franklin County Book Festival Coffeehouse readings. She’ll read from her book, The Red Flannel Rag. I’ll be one of the readers, too. Dick Raymond and I will read from out worst sentences in the Bulwer-Lytton anthology, It Was a Dark and Stormy Night. I hope the 2008 Bulwer-Lytton winners will be announced by then. They haven’t been announced yet! In the past, judging never lasted beyond mid-July at the latest. (Other readers are Mike Allen, Peter Crow, and Dan Smith.)

Sunday afternoon, the Westlake Library will have its official ribbon-cutting. Since I now serve on the Franklin County Library Board of Trustees, I’ll be there.

On Tuesday evening, I’ll return to Westlake to hear author Scott Loring Saunders speak. I know Debi is going with me. I might convince one or two other writer buddies to go along.

This coming Friday, I’ll join two other Bookfest committee members in publicizing the Franklin County Book Festival on Dick Showemaker’s Rise and Shine show on cable 12. We have to be there by 7:45, so I’ll have to rise earlier than usual that day. Don’t know yet if I’ll shine or not.

I’m chair-person for the Virginia Writers Club “Back Page” poetry contest. Deadline is August 1, and entries are finally starting to roll in.

On August 9, we’ll have two Civil War authors as guest speakers for the book festival—Robert Johnson and Marc Leepson.

And my own big lit news:
At 10:15 tonight, I finished the first draft of my middle-grade paranormal novel, Stuck.

Yeah, I know the real work—rewriting—starts now. But I have carried this idea around since December 26, 2006. I should have finished it a year ago, but I procrastinated.

But now it’s finished! Thirty-two chapters!

Well, the first draft. . . .

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