News to Share

I've been slogging away on some applications and proposals today; very tiring day. But there is a little news on the storytelling front:

My CD Beyond the Grave will be listed with the West Virginia Book Company soon, allowing a much wider distribution and publicity. I will drop some off tomorrow and it should be listed on their website soon. I'm excited about this, and relieved. Promotion is time-consuming; while I will still be promoting and selling my CD wherever possible, it helps to have this larger outlet for sales. I will still be selling them myself, of course.

AND I have been asked to be a judge for the West Virginia Liars Contest! It's held during the Vandalia Gathering; this year it is on Sunday, May 30 at the Cultural Center in Charleston. I will have performance time onstage prior to the contest. If you attend Vandalia, please stop by and say hello. And get in the contest! It's fun and you just might win. The contest rules are here.

Did I mention earlier that I will be doing a workshop on using the old ballads as a frame for writing original stories at the WV Writers Conference in June? And also one on blogging--now that one will be easy! The ballad one is an idea I've had for a while, and there are actually several authors who have done this very thing. Sharyn McCrumb, for instance, writes the Ballad series featuring her character Nora Bonesteel, who is based on one of the old balladsingers from North Carolina. And Jane Yolen's Tam Lin come to mind, along with any written story of Robin Hood, who was a figure in ballads before he was in stories. I am reading my friend and fellow storyteller Gail De Vos' new book Stories from Songs: Ballads as Literary Fictions for Young Adults which is sure to be a good source of ideas for this session. Gail's book won a Storytelling World award this year, and small wonder. It's well researched and thorough.

Time to stop writing and start reading. Mr. Poe's biography is calling me, and I'm tired of thinking for now. Brain break!