WNBA Nashville ChapterWe gather, celebrate, and serve book lovers in the
Greater Nashville area and beyond |
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It's time for new leadership on the WNBA Board. Our current board's term was from 2024-2026, and it's time for some members to roll off while others stay on. If you might be interested in serving our organization, please click on this link for a description of some of the jobs available. We're still looking for a Vice-President, Secretary, Program Chair, Webmaster, Communications Chair, Hospitality Chair, and Southern Festival of Books Chair. There are also some job descriptions at the bottom of the Board Members page. If you have questions, go the contact page on this website or email [email protected], and your inquiry will be directed to the appropriate board member. Help make WNBA Nashville even better! 
For more information about this event, click here.
From Pitch to PurchaseOn March 3, WNBA members gathered to network and for a program called “From Pitch to Purchase: How Books Actually Land on Shelves” presented by Susanne Marx, Territory Manager (Sourcebooks) and Linda Jameson Harris, former Executive Director, Mass Merchants. They shared a behind-the-scenes look at the distribution and sales process, leading a masterclass in strategy, relationships, and the perfect pitch. Participants learned all about books sales and the logistics it takes to get a book into every corner of the retail world.
Our next membership/program meeting will be on April 7 at Carrabba's in Green Hills. Pasta, Publicity, and Professional InsightsOn the evening of February 3, the Nashville chapter of the WNBA gathered at Carrabba’s for an evening that was equal parts delicious and discerning. And it was a welcome respite from the ravages of Winter Storm Fern—for many of us it was the first time we had left our homes in a week!
Between bites of calamari and sips of wine, we dove deep into the ever-evolving world of book publicity and marketing. Our guest speakers—Kelsey Merritt, Patsy Jones, and Kat Hoort—delivered a masterclass in how to get books off the shelves and into the hands of readers. For more information on book publicity and marketing, see these websites. Kelsey Merritt: https://www.woogirlpr.com/about-kelsey Patsy Jones: https://www.pjonesandco.com/ Kat Hoort: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cat-hoort-b276822/ Hope to see you at our next meeting on March 3 at 6:00 pm at Carrabba's Italian Grill in Green Hills. Great Group Reads
WHAT: Save the Date~ Virtual Pitch-O-Rama is April 25
Are you developing a concept for a new book? Do you have a manuscript in progress? Have you always wanted to publish that book you’ve been working on for years? If this sounds like you, we would love to invite you to WNBA-SF's Pitch-O-Rama 2026! Everyone is welcome to participate! Pitch-O-Rama is a virtual event, where writers will be given the opportunity to pitch their works to agents and editors for publication. WHEN: Saturday, April 25, 2026 at 8am - 1pm PT WHERE: Virtual COST: Early Bird registration: only $85 as a WNBA member and $130 as a non-member (Rates go up March 1)! REGISTER HERE Doing GoodWNBA Nashville President Ami McConnell was featured on two podcasts, including the Doing Good podcast hosted by Megan McInnis. In another podcast, Doing Good also featured Ami and member Molly Lyon discussing our spring philanthropy project. Watch and listen with these links. Just click on the images!
Melissa Collings was also featured in a podcast. To listen, click below! Congratulations, Melissa!
Did you realize there are more pages on our website than this one? Click above the website header on the three lines or the plus sign to find the links to our other pages. You'll find lots more content and information! To join click here. And don't forget to let us know when you have news for our Member News page. We want to share your accomplishments with our members! |
Looking for a thrill? Our book club will be meeting on March 23 at 6:00 p.m. at Kimberly Dana's house. Join us for a discussion of The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware. You can get Kimberly's address by emailing [email protected] or use the Contact Page under the + sign at the top of this page.
Love to read? Love to talk about books with other people? Want opinions from people of all ages? If the answer is YES, you would be a great WNBA Nashville book club coordinator. We’re looking for someone to take over the position which involves coordinating a time and place for meetings and the books to read. We meet every other month so it shouldn’t take up too much of your time. If you’re interested, please contact Ami at WNBA-Nashville Chapter <[email protected]> Thanks for serving our community! 
Vanderbilt University Presents
the 38th annual Southern Festival of Books, a program of Humanities Tennessee 2026 OCTOBER 17 (9am to 6pm) OCTOBER 18 (10am to 5pm) Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park, Tennessee State Museum, and Tennessee State Library and Archives We're excited to celebrate the written word with you downtown this fall! Initial lineup to come midsummer. In the meantime, happy reading! Greetings from Ami
Greetings, WNBA members!
I’m still smiling from our sold-out, members-only holiday party on December 2. We had a wonderful night together, thanks to Catherine Hooper, Membership Chair, and Linda Harris, Programming Chair. A huge, end-of-year thank you to the full Nashville board. You make this chapter so special: https://www.wnbanashville.org/2024-2026-board-members.html#/ 2025 has been surprising and fulfilling for WNBA Nashville with many opportunities for networking, socializing, and volunteering for the good of the community. Here’s a quick recap of the year: 7 chapter meetings https://www.wnbanashville.org/programsevents.html#/ 3 Summer Happy Hours at Pinewood Social https://pinewoodsocial.com 7 book club discussions https://www.wnbanashville.org/book-club-discussions.html#/ 3 community service projects including a spring book drive for foster families, a fall book drive for the Debra Johnson Rehabilitation Center, and a Christmas book wrap for CASA https://www.wnbanashville.org/philanthropy.html#/ 2 members only events: May Garden Party at Ami’s featuring Southern Festival of Books’ Serenity Gerbman + our annual Holiday Party at Natchez Country Club 2 amazing events at Southern Festival of Books https://www.sofestofbooks.org *Coffee with Authors, WNBA Nashville’s exclusive, ticketed event: https://www.wnbanashville.org/southern-festival-of-books.html#/ chaired by Jennifer Sellers and moderated by board secretary Melissa Collings with Bruce Holsinger (Culpability) Jenna Levine (Road Trip with a Vampire) and narrators Amanda Stribling and Austenne Grey https://www.wnbanashville.org/southern-festival-of-books.html#/ *Booth time at locations #57 and 58, thanks to Libby Simons, Southern Festival board chairperson and all of you who volunteered time and energy greeting and serve book lovers (and their dogs) at this free and open to the public event. Looking ahead we’ll continue programming on the first TUESDAY of each month, starting January 6. Reserve your ticket for free here: https://parnassusbooks.net/event/2026-01-06/jennifer-moorman-charmed-library-ami-mcconnell). I look forward to chapter meetings, summer happy hours, members-only events (Garden Party and Holiday Party), book club discussions, Southern Festival of Books celebration, & many other philanthropic projects. Count on your board to advocate for a growing, thriving community. And we welcome your ideas! If you’d like to serve, let a board member know. This chapter is strong because of YOU! Thanks for your continued support of our thriving Nashville literary and arts community. Gratefully, Ami McConnell, President WNBA Nashville Chapter 📚💙 WNBA Nashville exists to gather, celebrate, and serve book lovers in the Greater Nashville area and beyond.
Cici Christman has always been an avid reader and writer. During school, she and her friends would usually have lunch in the library, preferring to be surrounded by books as they gossiped about their favorite characters. She stayed in the library as she earned both her Bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M University and her Doctorate of Pharmacy degree from the University of Texas at Austin. When she wasn’t studying, she and her friends would write stories in the round back and forth to each other about anything from napkins to faeries. When the medical textbooks and fantastical stories started to blend together, she realized that she was maybe spending a bit too much time in the library.
She made her escape and moved to Nashville to complete her residency in 2018, and has called the city home ever since. After her residency, she worked at various mental health hospitals across middle Tennessee, before meeting her now husband. Years of fighting a broken healthcare system convinced them to open their own outpatient mental health clinic, East Nashville Wellness Center. Together, they have worked for the past 5 years to help improve the health and wellness of Nashvillians in need. Through her work in mental health, she has seen how powerful books can be, and how they can help a person heal. Luckily, CiCi's book buying and her husband's woodworking hobbies cancel each other out, and he is always willing to build another shelf for the books they personally collect, or for the lending library they established at their clinic. Through this library anybody can read something to hopefully help along their mental health journey. After the political turmoil of the first Trump administration, and seeing how it impacted familial relationships, CiCi was inspired to write her debut contemporary upmarket novel to share stories of healing during political instability. She joined WNBA in 2023 and has loved being surrounded by other book-loving individuals. She now serves as the Hospitality Chair, where she enjoys getting to help at the monthly programs the chapter puts on. If she is ever not at the meeting it is most likely because she is traveling or one of her two cats has curled up in her lap, and won’t stop purring long enough to let her leave. I'm looking for one of our members who would like to be in the spotlight for May. Please contact Nancy at [email protected] Thank you for your help! Upcoming Events Monthly Programming for Members. Guests welcome! March 23 6-8 p.m. Book Club Discussion The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware April 7 6-8 p.m. Carrabba's Italian Grill in Green Hills. Novel and Verse – Poetry Month May Annual Garden Party for Members Only May Book Club Discussion WNBA Loves Books!We write them, we publish them, we sell them, we teach children and adults to read and appreciate them, we loan them, we borrow them, we give them, we read them, we listen to them, and we share them with friends. --Lee Fairbend |
About the Nashville Chapter
Since 1955, the Nashville chapter of the Women’s National Book Association has been promoting reading, supporting literacy, and advancing the role of women in the community of the book. We offer informative programs and networking opportunities from September through May, a book discussion group that meets six times a year, and various charitable and outreach activities
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Questions?
All events, with the exception of the annual Christmas dinner and the Garden Party, are free and open to the public. For more information, contact [email protected]