UNC Asheville’s Great Smokies Writing Program has launched a new online literary magazine, “The Great Smokies Review.” The magazine offers former and current students of the Great Smokies Writing Program an opportunity to share not only their creative work, but their writing experiences and expertise, as well.
“As the Great Smokies Writing Program approaches ten years of bringing quality writing workshops to the Western North Carolina community, it is only fitting that we offer a place to highl…
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Added by UNC Asheville on November 20, 2009 at 5:35pm —
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Some writers can use language to create images that evoke the gamut of emotions. Some writers can tell a darn good story. But not every writer can do both.
Paula Kane, a long-time student in the Great Smokies Writing Program, is a card-carrying member of that special class of writers whose words can make you shiver with their beauty while still satisfying your desire for plots and character development. Her short story, "The Color of Magic," appears in the premier issue of The Great Smokies Rev…
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Added by Caralyn Davis on November 18, 2009 at 9:00pm —
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Time for this month's Vocabulary Test:
1.Gall
2.Gander
3.Give out
4.Give in
5.Go devil
1.Gall-nerve. "The gall of her to talk about me after I bent over backwards to help her!"
2.Gander-look, stare. "Take a gander at that set of woods and see if you don't think it'd be a good place to hunt."
3.…
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Added by Tipper on November 18, 2009 at 1:12pm —
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Time for this month's Vocabulary Test:
1.Gall
2.Gander
3.Give out
4.Give in
5.Go devil
1.Gall-nerve. "The gall of her to talk about me after I bent over backwards to help her!"
2.Gander-look, stare. "Take a gander at that set of woods and see if you don't think it'd be a good place to hunt."
3.…
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Added by Tipper on November 18, 2009 at 1:12pm —
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When Pap was a boy, corn was the most important crop folks grew-I guess it still is for many farmers. Corn not only helped people survive through the winter-it was also necessary to ensure the farm animals survived the winter months too.
Here in the Southern Highlands of Appalachia, it was typica…
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Added by Tipper on November 18, 2009 at 1:00pm —
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Every once in a while, even I have to get out of the mountains.
This weekend, I'll be attending the
North Carolina Writers Network at Wrightsville Beach, near Wilmington.
I'll be presenting a workshop on
How to Write a How To.
Most people who attend are novelists or write memoirs but
the Network recognizes that "how-to" of all types sell.
I encourage folks to join the North Carolina Writers Network.
It is the premiere writers group…
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Added by Danny Bernstein on November 17, 2009 at 5:44pm —
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Little girl running on the sidewalk, how far from your mother will you go?
Is running a dress rehearsal for adulthood?
Or is it just a game,
Something only a child would know?
Skipping back and forth on the sidewalk
A little further every time
Seems like so much of my life
Has been wasted on song and wine
And when I vacillated so much
Not sure of what to do
Shying away like a young fool
From a lover’s gentle touch
Little girl running away from her mother
So pure and innocent still
All of us r…
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Added by Chuck Connors on November 16, 2009 at 1:01pm —
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Whenever I think of you
It’s always your wonderful eyes
Windows of the soul
Love lights on the world
At times I’ve seen your anger
Flashing eyes, storm clouds and wind
Other times I see the hurt and pain
The past re-played again
Our eyes show our soul-strength
The strength to hold to life itself
A tremendous strength of will
Who of us perseveres, only time will tell?
Through your eyes sometimes I see the joy,
A girl’s heart shining through
Now the loving, caring woman
Someone special and bran…
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Added by Chuck Connors on November 16, 2009 at 12:45pm —
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Past the midnight hour, way into the small hours of the night
I sit staring into the blackness, pondering what’s wrong and what’s right
Should I have grimaced and told the truth, risking all on trust and empathy
Or told sweet lies with a straight face, getting what I want without frippery
No answers come this late, only questions seem to grow
The pain of living hits me hardest when I’m all alone below
My only chance is to help another—someone facing more pain than I
When I give my hope to other…
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Added by Chuck Connors on November 16, 2009 at 11:17am —
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I'm going to be at the Smoky Mountains Book Fair in Sylva on Saturday.
Check out
their link
and come on out. It's only 45 minutes from Asheville.
Sylva is a sweet town with several good restaurants.
City Lights, their bookstore, is awesome.
So I hope to see you there - along with many other authors.
But I'll be giving away chocolate.
Danny Continue
Added by Danny Bernstein on November 10, 2009 at 4:30pm —
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My fall garden is producing a bumper crop of radishes, greens, and turnips. I made sure to plant my seeds on the appropriate day-dictated by the zodiac signs.
Back in the summer I attempted a sign test and a few folks played along. The test didn't really work out-first, I was unorganized and waited too…
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Added by Tipper on November 8, 2009 at 10:00am —
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I am currently working on a collection of oral histories to be published Fall 2010. If you, or someone you know would be interested in participating in this project, please contact me.
I am specifically looking for subjects 60 and over who have roots in Western North Carolina. It does not matter if you currently live out of state as long as you have access to email as I have completed several interviews for the book by email.
My contact information is...
Dawn McCall
PO Box 262
Rosman, NC 28772
P…
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Added by Dawn McCall on November 4, 2009 at 3:46pm —
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Hi everyone! Hope you'll stop by the
Rose & Thorn - since Angie Ledbetter and I became co-editors/publishers, we've created a new website and newsletter.
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Added by Kathryn Magendie on November 2, 2009 at 2:00pm —
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This is my first blog and i would like to write a few sentences regarding hostels. Hostels are a fantastic way to see the world on a low budget. From the cheapest to the more grand there is something to accommodate every taste and plan. The great thing regarding
backpacker hostels is that tons of university students flock to them because they are cheap and entertaining so there is always plenty of student travelers around to party with!
In most every other…
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Added by Peter on October 27, 2009 at 6:09pm —
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Editor’s note: This is a work of autobiographical fiction. Some of the facts have been changed to protect the dumb, foolish and outright scared.
I was taken to the craft store the other day searching for Halloween costume brick-a brack. Two other wusses, I mean men were there and they were obviously terrified.
As they were pulled along by their female captors they had anxious fearful looks on their faces which shouted silently, “Help Me!” Glancing over my shoulder, I caught them, like me, makin…
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Added by Chuck Connors on October 26, 2009 at 4:56am —
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I catch brief glimpses of you late at night when I fall asleep.
In my dreams we pass each other, your hair flying in the wind.
Your eyes shine with excitement and
You boldly laugh at the promise of a new day.
Waiting for you seems like forever.
Yet I must wait, for there can be no other.
Will we ever meet dream girl? Or will we smile and pass each other,
Moving on to other worlds and dreams?
Chuck Connors, October 22, 2009
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Added by Chuck Connors on October 26, 2009 at 4:51am —
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The La Book Festival was a wonderful experience. I enjoyed the panel I was on (they paired me with a Louisiana author). Wally Lamb and his wife bought my book after his wife attended my panel (teehee), and the book signing went better than I thought it would. The evening before, the author's party was well-attended and the food - well, So Louisiana food -even the worst is better than a lot of the best!
I had a great time and hope to be invited again next year!
Next stop: A book club here in H…
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Added by Kathryn Magendie on October 25, 2009 at 8:22am —
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My ancestress Nancy Goldsmith , Fisher, Morgan 23 was living with Nimrod Buckner,65 and his wife Nancy Anderson Bucknerl 64 in 1960, along with her young son Henry Fisher 2, and her half brother James Goldsmith 15, and half sister Rebecca Goldsmith 10. She was a widow at that time but I am wondering if Nimrod Buckner was her mother Mary Buckner, Goldsmith's father or was he Mary's older brother? I noticed Nimrod's wife was named Nancy Anderson Buckner. Was Nancy Goldsmith named after her. I am w…
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Added by Sallie on October 24, 2009 at 12:30am —
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Over at the Blind Pig we've been gathering scary stories during this month of Halloween. Need a good scare- click
here.
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Added by Tipper on October 22, 2009 at 9:55am —
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A magic carpet of colors
Flying up the highest ridges
Swooping down the mountain sides
Engulfing the valleys in lakes of light
Zoom zoom across the rivers
Way up high in the air
Reflecting the reds, oranges, greens, and gold’s
Splashes of rainbow colors slide down the streams
Autumn is the season of change
Wet and chilly, crisp and clean
Trees shimmer in the afternoon light
A smorgasbord of colors everywhere
Nature performs a shiveree—
raucous celebration of the transition of life
Puts on Her…
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Added by Chuck Connors on October 20, 2009 at 1:18am —
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