Elk County author to present at writers conference
JOHNSONBURG The Writers Conference of Northern Appalachia (WCoNA) will host a Regional Writers Event in the metro-area of Pittsburgh, a city also called the "Paris of Appalachia," at Robert Morris University, March 10-11.
Writers from, living in, or writing about the region of northern Appalachia have yet to be distinguished with a regional identity. The diverse peoples, places, cultures, folk traditions, history, landscapes, and geography of northern Appalachia are uniquely inspiring, and their stories deserve to be represented and valued as distinct literature.
The Writers Conference of Northern Appalachia Inc. (WCoNA) brings together writers and others interested in the region's literature together to honor their distinct body of work and enhance our authors' craft. WCoNA is a catalyst to inspire more novels, poetry, essays, history, memoir, drama, and other modes of literary writing that represent, in some way, northern Appalachia and so create and promote a canon of writers and writing of northern Appalachia.
Workshop and presentation topics include; Voice, Place, Marketing, History, Heritage, Fiction, Poetry, and Memoir. Attendees include writers, publishers, and others interested in creating and promoting a canon of Northern Appalachian Writing. Saturday's keynote speaker, Ben Moyer, is an Appalachian essayist and is Audubon Pennsylvania's Conservation Communicator of the Year.
Elk County author Megan Schreiber-Carter will be presenting a story-craft program on Saturday, March 11, based on the unvarnished voices, homegrown characters, and illustrations in her “Mostly-True Short Stories” series. She'll be reading scenes set in the woods of Elk County; the woods inside the D.C. beltway; and the woods of West Virginia, Pittsburgh, and the Middle Ages. Megan will present Appalachian-Mountain and Forest Scenes: Story Craft, MountainForest Cultures, and Unvarnished Voices of Homegrown Characters.
"People are people. Wherever we are, we have in common our human nature, tempered by our surroundings. The people in my stories are diverse and complicated," said SchreiberCarter
The three books she will promote at the conference include “The Great Aunt Alice Collection”. This is the first in the mostly-true stories series and is a memoir. In it, a young girl navigates tall tales and tells truths told in rural Elk County, from the 1870s to the 1970s. Ultimately, she protects what she once feared, including the “Indians in the Attic.” Scene readings Indians in the Attic (opening scene), Ghosts of the
Forest, Recipes for Girls, Lutheran Husbands, & Mom’s Free-Spirited Friends.
In “Ill-Gotten Gold”, a mostly-true confession story set in the woods of West Virginia, Pittsburgh, and the Middle Ages. In it, readers join a fireside confession about a quest for hidden gold in modern-day Pittsburgh. Readers hear a tale of chivalry, dishonesty, thievery, and the hazards of acting on youthful impulse. In the opening scene reading, the story opens with a medieval wench in the woods before introducing three temporarily-insane young adults who become infected with Gold Fever.
In Her third book, “The White Devil & the Twisted, Young Owl” is a mostly-true, wildlife rescue story set in the woods inside the D.C. Beltway. In the story, three old friends with backwoods-mountain life experience find adventure, humor, and hope while trying to save a twisted owl in D.C.-area woodlands. Presented readings include You Gotta Come with Me (opening scene), Not Normal, and Swishing.
WCoNA defines Northern Appalachia as "the Appalachia counties of Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York, and the northern portion of West Virginia."
The event kicks off Friday evening with live entertainment, including open-mic readings. Attendees will sign and sell books at the event's book sale, held both days.
More information about the conference event may be found at wcona.com where those interested can sign up to attend. More information about Megan’s Mostly True Stories may be found at megansdesk. net.