WNBA Nashville ChapterWe gather, celebrate, and serve book lovers in the
Greater Nashville area and beyond |
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April Program
For Poetry Month, we are pleased to present Ciona Rouse, a poet and educator. The author of Vantablack, the first chapbook of Third Man Books (2017), her poetry has also appeared in Oxford American, wildness, Booth, The Account, and other publications. She’s featured on NPR’s Turning the Tables in a collaborative project with poets Adia Victoria and Caroline Randall Williams. A frequent collaborator with various artists, she served as a resident poet for the “Nick Cave: FEAT” art exhibition at Frist Art Museum in 2017-2018 and is co-curator of the Kara Walker: Cut to the Quick exhibition originating at the Frist Art Museum. Rouse has been a visiting writer at Vanderbilt University, The University of the South Sewanee, and the Debra K. Johnson Rehabilitation Center. A Nashville resident of 20 years, Rouse has created several literary events to help grow the city’s poetry community.
Come join us for a special Poetry Month presentation at Carrabba's on April 3 at 6:00. March Book Club
Join us to discuss this selection! If you need the location or more information, contact us on the website's contact page.
February meeting
At our February meeting, Gordon Belt, Director of Public Services for the Tennessee State Library and Archives gave us an overview of their collections and services. The library is located at 1001 Rep John Lewis Way at Bicentennial Mall. This is a great place to research that book you're reading or writing! Click on the link above to access all the information about this modern facility which opened on April 13, 2021.
Books to Start 2025Members and guests gathered at our monthly meeting on Thursday, January 2, 2025 at Carrabba’s. We each shared a book that we read in 2024 that we highly recommend! The titles are listed below. See you next month!
To see the dates for future meetings and to check out our previous programs, go to our Programs and Events page here. Nashville Board
Your Nashville WNBA board met on February 10 to discuss future programs, meetings, a philanthropy project, next year's Coffee With Authors and SFOB booth, the website and our social media among other things. Planning our activities and making our organization better is a year round endeavor! Let us know if you have ideas or if you would like to serve on the board and help us make WNBA Nashville even better!
2024
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The Women’s National Book Association (WNBA) Metro Atlanta chapter in association with Nashville, New Orleans and South Florida chapters present: Insights from Southern Women Writers
Join us to hear insightful Southern authors in conversation about the challenges and benefits of being a female voice in the literary world. We will touch on topics such as the current state of publishing in their region, how book bans are affecting their states, where they are finding their markets, publishing options, what they see as current hot themes and genres, and more. Moderator: Mel Todd (Bad Ash Publishing ) Panelists: Amanda Heckert (editor Garden and Gun), and authors Caroline Randall Williams, Berni Johnson and Cecilia Dominic. WHEN: Tuesday, March 18 at 7 PM CT/ 8 PM EST WHERE: Virtual COST: None REGISTER HERE: https://bit.ly/insightpaneleventbrite
My Life in Books by Etta Wilson
Like many members of the Nashville WNBA chapter, I joined at the urging of Carolyn Wilson, librarian at David Lipscomb University. I started attending meetings in the fall of 1986, while I was an editor at Abingdon Press, and by the spring of 1988, I had agreed to become the chapter president for a two-year term. In my copy of the 1991 chapter directory (yes, we had printed directories then), I see the names of other women who are still members of the Nashville Chapter such as Lee Fairbend, Phyllis Gobble, and Kathleen Dietz. They remind me of the longstanding friendships formed and which keep forming in WNBA. By the end of my term I had developed March Media, a book packaging company which kept me super busy. It was definitely time for Donna Paz to take the helm. I did continue to serve on the children’s chapter committee for the Southern Festival of Books. I cannot enumerate all the outstanding authors I met and heard through that annual event here in Nashville. It was exciting to make connections between authors of new books and the persons who would introduce them at their sessions and monitor their book signings. Of course, I usually managed to snag one of the top authors myself such as Paul Zelinsky, who became a dear friend. For about ten years, I hosted a Saturday night dinner at our home for children’s authors and interested local people. Being a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators was a help in making contacts along with all the travel I did to visit publishers and attend book conferences and trade shows. WNBA played a major role in helping me develop and publish in 1993, Tennessee Trailblazers, a collection of stories about important Tennesseans. The state had mandated study of state history for all fourth graders but there was no text. Eleven WNBA members were on a committee which helped to determine the scope and content of the book, and they are named in the acknowledgments. That foray into publishing--working with Patricia McKissack as author, Michael Sloan (state artist-in-residence) for illustrations, a designer, a printer in New Jersey, and then distributing across the state gave me a new appreciation for publishers. I also wrote a few other children’s books at publishers’ request. I feel that the 1990s until about 2005 were the golden years of children’s book publishing, and I am so grateful to have been a part of it. The latter years of my career were spent as an agent with Books & Such, a strong California literary agency. I represented primarily authors for the Christian market, and I continued to do consulting for a variety of individuals. My most recent effort in 2024 was to publish Sustenance, a chapbook of my poetry, which gives me opportunities to read and present poems to many people. It’s really hard to quit the book business, but I think that’s a good thing! Would you like to be in The Spotlight? This is a great way to get to know our members and for us to get to know you! Contact Nancy at [email protected] Virtual Pitch-o-Rama 2025
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 Pitch-O-Rama 2025! Pitch-O-Rama is WNBA-SF's annual event where we bring in a set of publishing professionals to share their knowledge of the publishing industry. During the event, you will be able to practice your pitch with coaches and fellow writers, and then share that pitch with an expert who will provide advice on taking your writing project to the next level. Everyone is welcome to participate!
WHEN: Saturday, April 5 at 8 AM-1 PM PT WHERE: VIRTUAL REGISTER: CLICK HERE January
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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, or to request a Zoom code, contact [email protected]