Southern Festival of Books 2024by Jennifer Sellers, Coffee With Authors Chair
I hope you were able to join us this year at Coffee with Authors during The Southern Festival of Books. Our moderator and Chapter President, Ami McConnell, sat down with authors Sarah Adams, Sarah Ready, Sophie Sullivan, and Melissa Ferguson for our first ever ROMANCE panel. I don’t know about you, but I wasn’t ready for the emotional roller coaster we were about to embark on. They each touched on what writing romance meant to them, the important role romance novels play in their lives, and how they got started. We laughed a lot along the way, and several of us needed to borrow tissues after Sarah Ready was finished with us! The hour went by WAY too fast and we finished with a drawing of curated gift bags. One for each of the authors new books. If you haven’t had the chance to check out these authors or the other amazing romance authors featured this year at the festival, I encourage you to check them out! You can find our CWA authors and their new books here: Sarah Adams - The Rule Book Sarah Ready - Wished Sophie Sullivan - Can’t help Falling in Love Melissa Ferguson - How to Plot a Payback October meeting30+ members gathered for our October meeting which featured authors Erica Rodgers (Lady of Steel and Straw), WNBA member Melissa Collings (The False Flat), and Ami McConnell (president, WNBA Nashville). We talked about Southern Festivals past and anticipated happenings for 2024—those author events. We got some great pro tips and “hacks” for maximum festival enjoyment—and spontaneous input and testimonies from members and guests!
November
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The Agustin Agency Announces Winner of the 3rd Edition of the Premio Novela Cristiana César Vidal, book award.
Nashville, TN – October 21, 2024 - The Agustin Agency proudly announces Diego Serna Sánchez as the winner of the third edition of the Premio Novela Cristiana César Vidal for his work Padre Nuestro (Our Father Who Art in Heaven). Diego, a social communicator and university professor in the country of Colombia, was chosen from among the finalists. "This contest creates a unique platform for Hispanic writers worldwide, reflecting our mission of ‘Connecting Authors to Readers Around the World,'" said Lluvia Agustin, founder and director of The Agustin Agency, and creators and sponsors of the award. On October 15, during a live YouTube broadcast, Lluvia Agustin revealed the three finalists. She thanked every writer who submitted their manuscripts, applauding their courage and encouraging them to keep writing. Special recognition was given to finalists Alejandro Rafael Corzo and Andru Polze, along with the volunteer judges from Chile, Canada, and the U.S. who selected the top three manuscripts for César Vidal’s final review. During the ceremony, Dr. César Vidal announced Diego Serna Sánchez as the winner, who will be awarded a signed certificate, $1,000 USD, and several interview opportunities, including appearances on La Voz with César Vidal and the podcast Hablemos de Libros with Lluvia Agustin. His book will also be presented to publishers for potential publication. Diego Serna, a graduate of Universidad del Valle in Cali, Colombia, has dedicated his professional career to university teaching and audiovisual production. His achievements include the medium-length films Al Borde and La Caída, awarded by both Colcurtura and the Cinematography Division of the Ministry of Culture, respectively. Lluvia Agustin closed by inviting Hispanic writers, both established and emerging, to enter the fourth edition of the Premio Novela Cristiana. Interested parties can get more information and subscribe to the agency’s newsletter at www.theagustinagency.com to receive all the contest updates. If you missed the live ceremony, the broadcast can be found at the following link: https://www.youtube.com/theagustinagency Many thanks to Jennifer Sellers for our first member spotlight profile in September. This month we are spotlighting our mother-daughter duo, Tatjana Stoljarova and Lauren Scott. My name is Tatjana Stoljarova. As some of you heard me say, I was born in a country that no longer exists (now called Estonia) and live with my family in Nashville. I earned a degree in linguistics and translations from a University in a city that changed its name three times. English is my third language (after Russian and Estonian). After working for an American corporation in Estonia, I moved to Nashville and received a law degree from Vanderbilt University. I have worked in the legal field since early 2000s, including court internships, global law firms, in-house Fortune 500 companies, teaching as Adjunct Professor in Law School. My career has taken me to 30+ countries across three continents. My lifelong love for languages and appreciating variety of cultures led me quite naturally to writing and speaking on the subject. I care to spread awareness, inspire and empower others to harness the powers of multilingualism and preserve our cultural heritage. Earlier this year I flew all the way to Zimbabwe to give my TEDx talk ( How language learning helps children make connections | Tatjana Stoljarova | TEDxBorrowdale) on preserving heritage languages and I am currently developing talks and writing a book titled “Lost and Found in Translation.” My daughter, Lauren Scott, was born in Nashville and is 10 years old. She is the youngest member of the WBNA-Nashville Chapter. Lauren is a great student and an avid reader. She shares my love of languages and is biliterate in English and Russian and is studying French, Spanish and Chinese. She also stays busy with competitive dance, acting, modeling, playing piano and martial arts. Lauren is the author of The Tale of Two Fawns: A Unique Gift of Destiny, a uniquely crafted memoir of her experience and adventures raising two fawns that miraculously showed up in our fenced-in backyard in the midst of the COVID pandemic. Her book received inspiring reviews (incl., Kirkus) and we are excited it is part of the Library of Congress. Lauren’s wish is to have the story of Amy and Andrew live on, see it translated and in libraries across the world. We’re working toward getting it into school libraries as well, to inspire young readers with its touching messages of caring and discovery. Thank you everyone at WBNA-Nashville for your warm welcome and amazing events! We love the people we’ve met, the energy and sharing the passion for books and storytelling. Lauren hopes you (or your kids and grandkids) enjoy "The Tale of Two Fawns" and share your reflections with her on Amazon or Goodreads. That would mean so much to her as she continues to grow as a writer and share her stories with the world. We look forward to seeing our fellow book enthusiasts at the Southern Festival of Books at the end of this month (I am bringing cupcakes to the WBNA tent when we volunteer to help celebrate Lauren’s 11th birthday). Until then, as Lauren likes to say Dream Big and Keep on Reading!
November 16, 2024 1610:00 am Zoom Book Discussion In Montana in the summer of 1872, Crow Mary marries Abe Farwell, a white fur trader, and accompanies him to his trading post in the Cypress Hills of Saskatchewan, Canada. In the spring of 1873, they are preparing to return to Montana when they witness the Cypress Hills Massacre, in which forty innocent Nakoda are killed by a drunken gang. Following the massacre, Crow Mary single-handedly rescues five Nakoda women who are being held captive and abused by the gang. Thus, she sets off a whirlwind of colliding cultures that brings out the worst and best in the cast of unforgettable characters and pushes the love between Farwell and Crow Mary to the breaking point. Inspired by the life of the real Crow Mary and endorsed by her great-granddaughter, Crow elders, and Crow scholars, this is an epic love story that sweeps across decades, showcases the beauty of the natural world, and probes the intimacies of a marriage and one woman’s heart.
This book discussion will be held on Zoom.
Contact [email protected] for the link. Join us on Zoom for our next Literary Society meeting. October 19 at 10:00 am |
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, or to request a Zoom code, contact [email protected]
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