For all my friends who missed BookMarks 10th Annual Festival yesterday, you missed a treat. With a line up of authors that included Rita Mae Brown, Emily Giffin, Robert Morgan, Lev Grossman, Maggie Stiefvater, Eric Litwin, Scott Berg, James McBride, J.A. Jance, Sam Kean, Karen Abbott, L.M. Elliott, Frances Mayes, Meg Medina, Margaret Stohl, Mary Alice Monroe, and many, many others. One of the best sessions was the "Southern Identity in Writing", which featured Robert Morgan, Mary Alice Monroe and Jeremy B. Jones discussing what makes a writer southern.
The trio discussed everything from southern region to dialect to passion. Though these authors are regional authors, their artistic work transcends region to provide stories that have universal appeal. Despite the oppressive heat, we had well over 100 attendees in the audience. For more info on these acclaimed authors, visit their websites. Robert Morgan
http://www.robert-morgan.com/, Mary Alice Monroe
http://www.maryalicemonroe.com/, and Jeremy B. Jones
http://thejeremybjones.com/thewritingof/Home.html .
The next session I worked was "Publishing Today: Digital, Traditional, and Indie" with Megan Bryant, Jen McConnel and Bill Kane. They all discussed the changing landscape of publishing and how it affected the publishers. Gone are the days where you didn't need an agent. There are fewer publishing houses. Authors make more from the sales of e-books. And independent publishing is becoming a validated form of getting the stories to the public. The advice they gave to writers was to never give up. If you give up, your work will NEVER be published. This was a fascinating session which also attracted over 100 attendees.
The icing on the cake for me was to see Mary Alice Monroe. I have loved Mary Alice's books since I read
Girl in the Mirror many years ago. Her ability to infuse a social or environmental situation into the character's story is what drew me to her. In
Skyward, you are made aware of injured birds of prey and the people who provide sanctuary while the birds are healing. In
Last Light over Carolina, the issue is the decline in the coastal SC shrimping businesses. In
The Beach House, you learn about the annual loggerhead turtle spawn. In
The Butterfly's Daughter, we see the migration of the Monarch butterflies.
In this session, Mary Alice discussed her children's book, A Butterfly Called Hope, which chronicles the life cycle of the caterpillar into a butterfly. She also discussed the dire situation of the Monarch butterflies, which has been in the news lately.
http://strib.mn/1lPyIuq and
http://bit.ly/Mwr5bY are a couple of articles that describe the plight of the Monarchs. You can instantly see where Mary Alice's passions lie. She is passionate about nature. She understands the importance of preserving nature and we also see that in her writing. Yesterday she said, "It's time to put our ear to the ground and listen". Yes, we do! That is why I love her books so much. I consider myself an environmentalist as well. My passions are the food I eat and the products I use. I eat organic and non-GMO food as this is what is healthiest for my body. I also believe in eliminating synthetic chemicals and toxins from my beauty, skin care and household cleaning products. I think we all can make a difference, even if we start small. But we need to have a passion, plus we need to make a decision to simply "start". Thus I am committed to doing more of what I love, which is getting involved. Through the art of literature, we can be reminded of what is important. Authors like Mary Alice Monroe remind us of what is possible when we are passionate about something.
Mary Alice's session was the last of the day, ending at 5pm and then, while the Bookmarks volunteers were beginning to break down the tents and equipment, Mary Alice walked over to the book signing tent. She graciously posed for a picture with Emily Giffin and then proceeded to sign books for those who braved the heat. I was the last in line, waiting with 9 books for Mary Alice to sign. She took the time to address them all to me. She is one of the most gracious and humble women I have ever met. That is why she will always be among my favorites. And this is why I volunteer at Bookmarks NC Festival. I get the opportunity to meet and work with authors who, literally, can change the world.
