Eastern N.C. Literary Homecoming set for Sept. 25 & 26

Published Sep 18, 2009 by
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North Carolina novelist and poet Reynolds Price will be honored

GREENVILLE, N.C.  —   The region’s literary traditions will be celebrated Sept. 25-26 with the sixth annual Eastern North Carolina Literary Homecoming at Joyner Library, East Carolina University. 
 
The 2009 homecoming will bring people “back to the book” as participants will engage in activities that merge, challenge, and blur the lines between what is seen and what is read. This year, eight award-winning writers rooted in the history, literature, and culture of eastern North Carolina will share their work and their experiences with homecoming participants.
 
“One of the best parts about being the editor of the North Carolina Literary Review is that I get to meet my favorite writers at various literary events across the state, but I have to admit I’m a little partial to this particular event,” said Dr. Margaret Bauer, NCLR editor and English professor at ECU. “On behalf of all the readers in this region, all of the people who appreciate fine literature, a great big thank you to all the writers who will visit for the literary homecoming to help us celebrate the literary inspiration that is eastern North Carolina.”
 
Reynolds Price, novelist and poet, will be in attendance to receive the Roberts Award for Literary Inspiration Sept. 25. NCSU Professor and Southern literary scholar, Barbara Bennett will present the award, which will be followed by a theatre production based on Price’s works, directed by Tracy Donahue and performed by ECU School of Theatre and Dance students.
 
Allan Gurganus, author of “Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All,” will give a reading during the luncheon Sept. 26.  Also on Saturday, the Coastal Cohorts will perform selections from “King Mackerel & The Blues are Running.”
 
A host of workshops – from playwriting and poetry to music making – will be offered. All events, except for the author’s luncheon, are free, but registration is requested. Visit the homecoming online at http://www.ecu.edu/lithomecoming  or call (252) 328-6514.
 

Literary Homecoming schedule of events:

  • Sept. 25, Mendenhall Student Center, 7-9:30 p.m., Presentation of the Roberts Award for Literary Inspiration to Reynolds Price, A Theatre Piece based on the works of Reynolds Price – performed by ECU School of Theatre and Dance students.
  • Sept. 26, Joyner Library, Panels:  9:30-10:45 a.m., exhibit area, 2nd floor: “Our Visual Society and Peace Poetry” with Allison Hedge Coke and Lenard Moore; 11:30 a.m.-12:45 p.m., exhibit area, 2nd floor: “Playwrighting Poetry” with Lenard Moore and Samm-Art Williams; 3-4:15 p.m., exhibit area, 2nd floor: “From the Page to the Stage” with Robert Inman and Samm-Art Williams.
  • Sept. 26, Joyner Library, Workshops:  9:30-11:30 a.m., Special Collections, 4th floor: “Produced” with Allan Gurganus and Robert Inman; 11 a.m.-1 p.m., North Carolina Collection, 3rd floor: “Making the Ocean Sing: Transforming Waves into Song” with Bland Simpson and Don Dixon; 2:45-4:45 p.m., conference room, 2nd floor: “Still Life:  The Message of a Moment” with Allison Hedge Coke.
  •  Sept. 26, Mendenhall Student Center, 1-2:30 p.m., author luncheon featuring a reading by Allan Gurganus; musical performance, 5-6:30 p.m., Coastal Cohorts Don Dixon and Bland Simpson with Special Guest Jamie Hoover, at ECU Mendenhall Student Center.

Other related community events:

  • Oct. 3, “The Lost Colony” costume workshop with Carl Cunutte, William Ivey Long, and Vicky Fanberg, Emerge Gallery, 404 Evans Street, Greenville. 

  • Nov. 9, 7 p.m., Program on Reynolds Price’s latest memoir “Ardent Spirits,” Wilson County Public Library.