Creative writing workshops can be tailored for beginner-to-advanced writers, addressing the needs of specific groups. Workshops incorporate interactive exercises to encourage students to develop skills specific to their writing goals. Students engage in various activities to improve ability and inspire confidence within a fun, nonjudgmental environment. Workshops cover fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry, exploring story and poetic elements such as plot, character, voice, dialogue, description, setting, pacing, and point of view. Some of the techniques utilized include:
Exploring events in students’ lives as inspiration
Exploring writing as a positive outlet
Examining situations through multiple points of view
Focusing on subject development
Developing a story from first draft through final revision
Chris has served as a fiction writing instructor for Writer’s Digest School and has conducted numerous workshops for continuing education programs. Chris offers free single-class workshops to K-12 public schools.
Educational presentations and musical performances on Native American flute explore the mythology, history, crafting, and music of the ancient and modern versions of the flute, dispelling popular but erroneous information of the flute’s development and true place in history.
Popular mythology portrays the Native American flute as an instrument used solely by men to court women, but the flute was and continues to be an instrument played by both men and women in numerous activities, from simple enjoyment of playing to use in fertility rituals honoring gods of harvest and more.
The presentation includes an overview of existing flute creation myths, flute history and use, crafting and structure information, and performance. Presentation length can be tailored to needs.
Chris is a craftsman and musician of the Native American flute. He has published two books on the history and crafting of the instrument and recorded/released three CDs of native flute instrumentals currently available under the WindPoem title. For more information or to arrange a presentation, please contact Chris.
~ A Vietnam veteran whose mother’s love proves worse than captivity…
~ A musician who employs music to resurrect his dead wife…
~ A boy who flees an abusive father to land in a circle of demented faeries…
~ An Iraqi War vet who discovers compassion in a tortured, decaying phooka…
~ A sexual assault victim who burns for her victimizers…
~ An angel, wounded and imprisoned by a father desperate for divine healing of his physically and mentally deformed daughter…
~ A suicidal woman who discovers salvation in a Tokyo street vendor’s box…
More than 30 years in the making, Walking after Midnight is a literary trove, collecting 61 tales of critically acclaimed dark fantasy, southern gothic, science fiction, horror, and mainstream fiction that mine the depths of character–how we fail and triumph, accept and reject others and ourselves, and light the darkest recesses of our souls.
On sale now at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle formats and soon to be available in paperback through most bookstores. Get a 20 percent discount if you order through Createspace. Use the code NA8BMLHK at checkout.
“Who doesn’t love a good children’s book encompassing a sweet message, exquisite, color imagery, and a dog gifted with the ability to whip up southern cuisine! Not only is [Hush, Puppy!] a delightful read of fantasy and enchantment, but [readers] will be astounded by the illustrations provided by Beth Young, who uses brilliant color to enhance the author’s story.” ~ Suzie Canale, Three Lifghts in the Attic book reviews
Ever wonder how fried cornbread came about? I did… Thus begins the story, Hush, Puppy! A Southern Fried Tale, the fantasy of how an excitable puppy and a tiny baker create the southern treat, hushpuppies. “In celebration of good people and tasty food,” the book is appropriate for all ages, available from most bookstores.
The iBooks version features full print-book layout AND read-along audio, perfect for iPad and other devices.
Beth Young is an award-winning artist with an extensive background in commercial, creative, and instructional art. A specialist in Montessori Method education and state certified in early childhood education, Beth is a full-time elementary art teacher, affording her intimate knowledge of the types of illustrations that appeal most to children.
It can take a long time to grow up. For Josh, six centuries isn’t enough. Enabled by Big Daddy’s fast-past gadget—a 1966 Mustang—and a device for communicating with the dead, 16-year-old Josh and companion Keala flee into a bizarre future six centuries hence that ends up looking a lot like home.
“Wry wit on socio-political problems … a refreshing look through the eyes of a youngster on the verge of manhood.” ~ MyShelf.com
“A special novel that will captivate readers and linger in the mind.” ~ Two Lips Reviews
“Action alone will keep you reading. The story contains a moral, but will humanity learn its lesson? A fun read.” ~ Coffee Time Reviews
Spanning nearly three decades of C.S. Fuqua’s literary career, White Trash & Southern collects 232 poems—an exploration of life’s challenges and rewards. Download an excerpt.
“With an eye for the particular and an ear for the music of everyday life, C. S. Fuqua shares with readers his brave and lyrical view of human experience. An unflinching examination of the sorrows and joys we experience while moving through the world, White Trash & Southern is a fine collection of poems.” ~ Dr. Wendy Galgan, Editor, Assisi
“White Trash & Southern is an exhaustive book of powerfully emotive poems that explore a lifetime of wounds still present and gaping. By not looking away, by taking stock and inventory of all that we’ve been through, we come to discover that we’ve become strong, hardened, and wise for all of our hardships. This is a wonderful book of poetry, and a fine achievement that will greatly enrich its readers.”~ Devin McGuire, Editor of the Unrorean and author of After the Hunt (Encircle Publications 2013)
“… gritty, insightful, humorous, tragic, and celebratory … begin anywhere, skip around, or read it from back to front … a well-written, coherent collection … however you read it.” ~Jonathan K. Rice, Editor/Publisher, Iodine Poetry Journal
“A poignant, very strongly emotional collection of poems ~ one I intend to return to …” ~ Judith B. Glad, author of Improbable Solution
In 2009, cancer took two friends. Joe had a good job that provided health insurance, but the insurance company refused to fund “experimental” procedures that might have saved his life. Rob was a waiter, working for low wages and tips, unable to afford insurance and not covered by an employee insurance program. Both men experienced inexcusable desperation and suffering–one because he had no insurance coverage, the other because he did. Many of the poems in this collection explore Joe’s experiences over the last year of his life and his family’s experiences the year following his death. All are meant to honor these two friends, both deeply cherished and missed.
Interest in crafting the Native American flute has grown steadily since the 1980s, but reliable, specific crafting instruction has been as scarce to come by as reliable accounts of its history and development. Now there’s Native American Flute Craft, a fully-illustrated manual for crafting Native American flutes.
In 2012, Cooperative Ink published C.S. Fuqua’s The Native American Flute: Myth, History, Craft, which explores the instrument’s true history and mythology while also providing a section on crafting, geared primarily to experienced woodworkers. In response to suggestions from readers, Fuqua produced Native American Flute Craft, an in-depth manual for crafters of all levels to build the Native American flute, including the ancient Anasazi flute, modern two-chamber flute, drone, contrabass, and more. Easy-to-follow, illustrated instructions provide thorough direction to crafting personalized instruments from a variety of materials, including wood, bamboo, and PVC.
Now available through most bookstores, The Native American Flute: Myth, History, Craft explores the flute’s rich mythology and history to provide a better understanding of the instrument’s true place and function in ancient and modern cultures. The book’s final section provides crafting instructions appropriate for intermediate to advanced crafters.
The Native American flute is popularly known as a “love” flute, an instrument used by males in courting, but it is much more and has been played throughout history by children, women, and men. The commonly accepted mythology of the native flute does nothing but reinforce the negative view of native women as subservient to the male. Take, for example, entries on various internet sites that claim that only men played the flute—no matter the culture or tribe—that its power is completely destroyed by the slightest touch of a woman. Such stories make for appealing chauvinistic myth, but not for accurate history. While hunting and courtship were, indeed, associated with the flute, its uses numbered many more than courting, were more diverse in intent, and certainly were not restricted to the male.
Discover the true history and mythology of the Native American flute and learn to make your own, including the ancient and modern versions.
From Dexter Johnson’s garage studio to James Joiner’s “A Fallen Star,” Tune Records to FAME and Muscle Shoals Sound studios, Aretha Franklin to the Rolling Stones and the Black Keys, from the beginning to present day—Muscle Shoals: The Hit Capital’s Heyday & Beyond is an updated, expanded version of Music Fell on Alabama, the original book-length history of the Muscle Shoals music industry, first published in 1991, chronicling the cooperation of black and white producers and artists during one of the most volatile times in U.S. race relations, cooperation that produced many of the most celebrated and enduring songs of all time.
Much has been written about the Muscle Shoals music industry and even a movie produced since publication of Music Fell on Alabama, most accounts crediting the area’s phenomenal success to some mystical power divined from the Tennessee River. Myth makes for good drama, but Muscle Shoals: The Hit Capital’s Heyday & Beyond details the true source of the industry’s success: the tenacious determination of talented individuals obsessed with the desire to make a difference in music.
And what a difference they made…
Notes to My Becca
“C. Stephen Fouquet writes about his newborn daughter with sensitivity and grace. This is a compelling, honest book.”~ Bob Keeshan, TV’s “Captain Kangaroo”
In 1995, Notes to My Becca introduced a wide audience to the societal trend of at-home fathers. NTMB is a touching, practical look at parenting on the wonder—and anxiety—of becoming a father. All editions are currently out of print, but the book may be offered as a free digital download in the future. If interested, please contact C.S. Fuqua by clicking on the email icon.
The collection of poems documents intimate moments of the author’s daughter from birth into adolescence, contemplating the challenges, sacrifices, and rewards of parenting, The Swing elicits “thoughts and feelings from many experiences. A must for any (parent).” ~ Willie Elliott for Myshelf.com.
The Swing: Poems of Fatherhood, Uncial Press, 2008, EPIC winner for Best Poetry Collection.
Embark on fantastic adventures in a whimsical universe of poetry and art where everything is possible. Explore and celebrate the wonderful and diverse world through imagination!
“…a feeling of hope and the certainty that happiness and goodness are still out there.” ~ Cynthia Harris, author
If I Were, I Would! is available in trade paperback and digital formats. The audio enhanced iBook, available from iTunes for iPad and other devices, features print-book layout and full read-along audio to assist in vocabulary expansion for young readers. If I Were, I Would! is available in print and other formats digital formats through most bookstores.
Bibliography
Selected awards & honors
The Swing: Poems of Fatherhood: Uncial Press, 2008 EPIC winner for Best Poetry Collection.
“Contact is Everything”: Honorable mention in Year’s Best Fantasy & Horror 19.
“Mama’s Boy”: Honorable mention in Year’s Best Fantasy & Horror 6.
“Mama’s Boy”: Year’s Best Horror Stories XXI selection.
“Old Lady Campbell, She is Dead”: Honorable mention, 1990 Year’s Best Horror & Fantasy.
“The Sharps and Flats Guarantee”: Year’s Best Horror Stories XX selection.
“Undertaker II: Drowning”: Honorable mention in Year’s Best Fantasy & Horror 7.
“Walking After Midnight”: Year’s Best Horror Stories XIX selection.
Novels & Fiction Collections
Walking after Midnight, Cooperative Ink, October 2016. More than 30 years in the making, Walking after Midnight is a literary trove, collecting 61 tales of critically acclaimed dark fantasy, southern gothic, science fiction, horror, and mainstream fiction
Wolfshadow, Ursa Major Books, Limited edition, January 2016, no longer available. Mass market publication coming from Cooperative Ink in late 2017/early2018. Written with co-author Robert Edward Graham, the character and story’s creator. Rob died two days after we finished the first draft.
Big Daddy’s Fast-Past Gadget, Cooperative Ink, 2015. First published by Awe-Struck Publishing in eBook format as Big Daddy’s Gadgets, 2006. Republished in 2011 in paperback and eBook formats by Mundania Press. “For some, it takes a long time to grow up. For Josh, six centuries isn’t enough.” Big Daddy’s Fast-Past Gadget is science fiction social satire, set in present-day Hawaii and six centuries into the future. Available from online bookstores and most local bookstores by order.
Hush, Puppy! A Southern Fried Tale, Cooperative Ink, 2013. Ever wonder how fried cornbread came about? I did… Thus begins the story, Hush, Puppy! A Southern Fried Tale, the fictional history of how an excitable puppy and a tiny baker create the southern treat, hushpuppies. Hush, Puppy! A Southern Fried Tale is available in paperback and Kindle formats from Amazon.com and in Nook/ePub format from Barnes & Noble. Full production read-along audio for both print and eBook editions is available as an mp3 download from Amazon.com.
Rise Up, Mundania Press, 2012. C.S. Fuqua’s second collection of short fiction, collecting two dozen short stories that span nearly thirty years of Fuqua’s career, features ghosts and faeries, the macabre and mundane, rich and poor, and distraught and jubilant, exploring the motivations, actions, and consequences that force ordinary people to become extraordinary. Sometimes we recognize evil’s approach; sometimes we don’t. Rise Up explores the consequences. Out of print.
Trust Walk, short fiction collection, Mundania Press, 2010. The 35 stories collected in Trust Walk explore the motivations of the human spirit, the qualities that lead us into temptation as well as deliverance, that make even the most ordinary among us extraordinary. The unabridged audio version was published in 2013. Out of print.
Butterflies Die, audio novel, Books in Motion, 2001. Currently unavailable.
Flight of the Omni, audio novel, Books in Motion, 1998. Currently unavailable.
Deadlines, audio novel, Books in Motion, 1998. Currently unavailable.
Death in Service, audio novel, Books in Motion, 1997. Currently unavailable.
Poetry Collections
Cancer, Cooperative Ink, 2015. A collection of poems celebrating two friends who died from different forms of cancer in 2009.
White Trash & Southern ~ Collected Poems, Volume I, Cooperative Ink, 2014. Collects more than 200 previously published poems, spanning three decades of C.S. Fuqua’s writing career.
If I Were, I Would!, Cooperative Ink, 2014. (A different version, entitled If I Were, was published in eBook format by SynergEbooks, 2011.) Promoting vocabulary expansion and parental interaction, If I Were, I Would! inspires deeper awareness and respect as it takes readers on an extraordinary ride into imagination. Embark on fantastic adventures in a whimsical universe of poetry and art where everything is possible. Explore and celebrate the wonderful and diverse world through imagination! And if you see the authors there, wave!
The Swing: Poems of Fatherhood, Uncial Press, 2008, EPIC winner for Best Poetry Collection. Poems that document intimate moments of a child from birth into adolescence, contemplating the challenges, sacrifices, and rewards of parenting, The Swing elicits “thoughts and feelings from many experiences. A must for any (parent).” — Willie Elliott for Myshelf.com.
Nonfiction Books
Native American Flute Craft ~ Ancient to Modern, Cooperative Ink, 2015. Interest in crafting the Native American flute has exploded since the 1980s, but reliable, specific crafting instruction has been as scarce to come by as reliable accounts of its history and development. In 2012, Cooperative Ink published C.S. Fuqua’s The Native American Flute: Myth, History, Craft, which explored the instrument’s true history and mythology while also providing a section on crafting, geared primarily to experienced woodworkers. In response to the continuing success of that book, Fuqua has written Native American Flute Craft, an in-depth manual for crafting the Native American flute in all its forms, from the ancient Anasazi flute to the modern two-chamber flute, from the traditional to the drone and more. Easy-to-follow illustrated instructions provide thorough instruction on crafting personalized instruments from a variety of materials, including wood, bamboo, and PVC.
Muscle Shoals ~ The Music Capital’s Heyday & Beyond, Cooperative Ink, 2014. From Dexter Johnson’s garage studio to James Joiner’s “A Fallen Star,” Tune Records to FAME and Muscle Shoals Sound studios, Aretha Franklin to the Rolling Stones and the Black Keys, from the beginning to present day–Muscle Shoals: The Hit Capital’s Heyday & Beyond is an updated, expanded version of Music Fell on Alabama, the original book-length history of the Muscle Shoals music industry, first published in 1991, chronicling the cooperation of black and white producers and artists during one of the most volatile times in U.S. race relations, cooperation that produced many of the most celebrated and enduring songs of all time.
Notes to My Becca, Second Edition, Cooperative Ink, 2013, features an update, new photographs, and expanded entries, offering a touching, practical, and thoughtful look at parenting from a dad’s viewpoint while addressing the miracle, anxiety, fear, and wonder of becoming a parent. Notes documents the fear of a possible third miscarriage, tumultuous extended-family situations, and normal post-birth parenting stress. But more, the book describes the joy of father regarding his new daughter, from first breath to first feedings, first words, and first steps.
The Native American Flute: Myth, History, Craft, Cooperative Ink, 2012, separates flute myth from flute fact to provide a better understanding of the Native American flute’s true place and function in history and in today’s culture. The book details the development and use of the native flute by both women and men, as well as the myths that have grown up around its use. The book’s final section provides readers with detailed instruction on crafting both the ancient, end-blown native flute and the modern native flute.
Alabama Musicians: Musical Heritage from the Heart of Dixie, The History Press, 2011. Alabama Musicians details the history of “musical” Alabama, from the state’s contributions to folk music, jazz, country, rock and more from the 1800s through the present. The book will also feature biographies of dozens of Alabama music stars who have had and continue to have profound effects on music, from Pinetop Smith, Michael Graham Allen, Urbie Green, and W.C. Handy to Big Mama Thornton, Ward Swingle, and Hank Williams.
Notes to My Becca, First Edition, Fairview Press, 1995, charts a new father’s concerns, feelings, and hopes during his wife’s pregnancy and through the first year of their daughter’s life. The late Bob Keeshan, TV’s “Captain Kangaroo,” wrote, “C. Stephen Fouquet [C.S. Fuqua] writes about his newborn daughter with sensitivity and grace. This is a compelling, honest book.”
Divorced Dads: Real Stories of Facing the Challenge, Fairview Press, 1996, is an unusual glimpse into the lives and relationships of some extraordinary divorced fathers, providing an intimate portrait of fatherhood beyond marriage, an exploration and examination of post-divorce failures and successes as “Dad.” Out of print.
Music Fell on Alabama, Crane Hill Publishers, 1991; reprinted by New South Books, 2007. The first book-length history of the Muscle Shoals, Alabama, recording industry from its inception through the 1980s. These two editions are now out of print. The content has been updated and expanded, published as Muscle Shoals ~ The Hit Capital’s Heyday & Beyond
Short Fiction
“The Addict,” 3PBS Radio, Melbourne, Australia; Rick Kennett, producer; 1986.
“The Chair,” Southern Beat (Defunct), P.O. Box 11454, Norfolk, VA 23517; Winter 1993-1994.
“Chips Man, Act I,” Fright Depot (Defunct), 15519 Domarat Ave., Norwalk, CA 90650; No. 1, Spring 1988.
“Contact is Everything,” Bare Bone, 1742 Madison St., Kingsport, TN 37665; Issue 8, 2005. (Honorable mention in Year’s Best Fantasy & Horror 19, 2005, edited by Ellen Datlow.)
“Graduation,” Grue, P.O. Box 370, Times Square Station, New York, NY 10108; No. 12, Winter1991. Also appeared in the on-line magazine Creatio Ex Nihilo, April 1997.
“Hope,” Cabal Asylum, P.O. Box 24906, Denver, CO 80224; 1998.
“Hunting,” Pinehurst Journal, P.O. Box 360747, Milipitas, CA 95036; Spring 1992.
“Hurricane,” Theme of Absence, June 6, 2015; includes author interview.
“Interview with the Witch,” Cyber-Psychosis Aod; P.O. Box 581, Denver, CO 80201; Issue 3, February 1993.
“Interview with the Witch,” Goblin Muse webzine (Defunct), Australia; Issue 2, 2000.
“Interview with the Witch,” 3PBS Radio, Melbourne, Australia; Rick Kennett, producer; 1989.
“Mama’s Boy,” Cemetery Dance, P.O. Box 18433, Baltimore, MD 21237, Spring 1992. (Honorable mention in Year’s Best Fantasy & Horror 6, edited by Ellen Datlow.)
“Mama’s Boy,” Internet electronic magazine Knightmares, an MDG Publications publication; April-May 1997.
“Mama’s Boy,” Year’s Best Horror Stories XXI, edited by Karl Edward Wagner, Box 1064, Chapel Hill, NC 27514; October 1993.
“Modesto 60,” Co-authored with Michael Kelly; Thirteen Stories, c/o Twilight Writers,102-1111 Jervis Street, Vancouver, BC CANADA V6E 2C5; Issue 10, June 2003.
“Obon,” The Big Book of Erotic Ghost Stories, hardback, Suspect Thoughts Press, 2215-R Market Street PMB #544, San Francisco, CA 94114-1612, on behalf of Bookspan and Venus Book Club; 2004.
“Obon,” The Big Book of Erotic Ghost Stories, trade paperback, Suspect Thoughts Press on behalf of Blue Moon Books, Avalon Publishing Group Incorporated, 245 West 17th St., New York, New York; 2005.
“The Occasional Demon,” Terminal Fright, P.O. Box 100, Black River, NY 13612; Number 6, 1994.
“The Occasional Demon,” Three Lobed Burning Eye, 3LBE; online issue 7; Three Lobed Burning Eye, annual print edition; 1918 NE 48th Ave., Portland, OR97213; Annual Volume II, December 2004.
“Old Lady Campbell, She is Dead,” 2AM, P.O. Box 6754, Rockford, IL 61125-1754; No. 12, Summer 1989. (Honorable mention, 1990 Year’s Best Horror & Fantasy, edited by Ellen Datlow.)
“Old Lady Campbell, She is Dead,” Gothic.net webzine, 431 Holloway San Francisco, CA 94112; 2003.
“The Pinpoint Tune,” Over My Dead Body!; P.O. Box 1778, Auburn, WA 98071-1778; Vol. 2, Issue 4, Spring 1994.
“The Pinpoint Tune,” Writers On The River, Mid-South Writers’ Association, Memphis, TN; 1994 issue.
“Playing the Notes,” Cabal Asylum, P.O. Box 24906, Denver, CO 80224; Summer 1996.
“Poker Face,” Short Story Digest, P.O. Box 1183, Richardson, TX 75803; No. 8, Nov. 1992.
“Primal Therapy,” Onionhead Literary Quarterly, 115 N. Kentucky Ave., Lakeland, FL 33801; April 1991.
“Reconciliation,” Sounds Of The Night, Sam’s Dot Publishing, P.O. Box 782, Cedar Rapids, IA 52406; August 2010.
“The Recruitment,” Midnight Zoo, 544 Ygnacio Valley Road, #A273, P.O. Box 8040, Walnut Creek, CA, 94956; Vol. 1, Issue 5, December 1991.
“Side-Road Shack,” Nøctulpa, P.O. Box 5125, Long Island City, NY 11105; No. 1, 1987.
“The Simple Sound of Dead Trees Singing,” Co-authored with Michael Kelly, All Hallows, Ghost Story Society, PO. Box 1360, Ashcroft, British Columbia, Canada V0K 1A0; Issue 42, 2007.
“The Stain,” Barbaric Yawp, 3700 County Route 24, Russell, NY 13684; March 2001.
“The Tenor’s Wife,” Shock Treatment, Peak Output Press, Box 325, Stacyville, IA 50476; Anthology, 1988.
“Time Now,” Queered Fiction Science Fiction Anthology; P.O.B. 732, Gillitts, 3603, KZN, South Africa; September 2009.
“Towels,” Arabesques, Agence de Presse et de Communications, Société Arabesque, Case Postale 75, Ctr. de TRI, Chlef 02000, Algeria; August 2006.
“Trust Walk,” Grue, P.O. Box 370, Times Square Station, New York, NY 10108; No. 8, 1988.
“Trust Walk,” Sounds Of The Night, Sam’s Dot Publishing, P.O.B. 782, Cedar Rapids, IA. 52407; August 2009.
“Undertaker I: Ashes and Dust,” Rictus, 2712 Wisconsin Ave. NW #408, Washington, DC 20007; No. 7, 1996.
“Undertaker II: Drowning,” Cyber-Psychosis Aod, P.O. Box 581, Denver, CO 80201; No. 7, Autumn 1997. (Honorable mention in Year’s Best Fantasy & Horror 7, edited by Ellen Datlow.)
“The Urinal,” Bohemian Chronicle, P.O. Box 387, Largo, FL 34649-0387; February 1994.
“Walking After Midnight,” Figment, P.O. Box 3566, Moscow, ID 83843-0477; No. 5, October 1990.
“Walking After Midnight,” DAW Books’ Year’s Best Horror Stories XIX, edited by Karl Edward Wagner, Box 1064, Chapel Hill, NC 27514; October 1991.
“Walking After Midnight,” Dunesteef audio podcast; http:/www.dunesteef.com; 2010.
“Walking After Midnight,” online magazine Other Dimension (Defunct); March 21, 2002.
“What We Do,” Big Pond Rumours, P.O. Box 182, Acton, Ontario, Canada L71 1117, Volume 2, Issue 7, March 2007.
“When I See You Again,” Space And Time, 138 W. 70th St., Apt. 4B, New York, NY 10023-4432; Issue 83, Spring 1994.
Poetry [Duplicate titles, in most cases, refer to different works.]
“2 Haiku,” Birmingham Arts Journal, Birmingham, AL; July 2012.
“Bass,” Poet Magazine, Box 54947, Oklahoma City, OK 73154; Summer 1991.
“The Bayou at Your Back Door,” Confetti, Peak Output Press, P.O. Box 325, Stacyville, IA 50476; 1988.
“Beach,” CaKe, A Journal OF Poetry & Art, Florida A&M University, Tallahassee, FL; 2010.
“The Beat,” RE:AL,The JournalofLiberal Arts, College of Liberal Arts, Stephen F. Austin State University, Box 13007-Sfa Station, Nacogdoches, TX 75962; Issue 30.2, Fall/Winter 2005.
“Crane,” In the Eye anthology by Thunder Rain Publishing Corp., P.O. Box 87 Alamogordo, NM 88311-0087; 2007. Proceeds from this anthology went to “Habitat for Humanity” to benefit those affected by Hurricane Katrina.
“He Said Wishes are as Good as Prayers, but His Friend Has Walked a Thousand Dreams,” U.S. 1Worksheets, U.S. 1 Poets’ Cooperative, P.O. Box 127, Kingston, NJ08528; Volume 51, Spring 2006.
“Hidden Inside,” Protea Poetry Journal, P.O. Box 894, Pine Grove, CA 95665; Vol. 7, Spring, 1991.
“Strains,” The Blotter, 1010 Hale Street, Durham, NC 27705; August 2008.
“Stranger, We’ve Changed the War,” Paisley Moon, P.O. Box 2373, Santa Cruz, CA 95063; Volume II, No. 3, Summer 1991.
“Strangers,” Licking River Review, Northern Kentucky University, Northern Kentucky Univ., Highland Heights, KY 41099, Volume 42, 2011.
“Studebaker,” Poet Magazine, Box 54947, Oklahoma City, OK 73154; Summer 1991.
“Studebaker,” A Contemporary American Survey: The Unitarian–Universalist Poets; Pudding House Publications, 60 N. Main St., Johnstown, OH 43031; March 1996.
“A Clown Around Project for Fun,” CreativeCrafts, P.O. Box 700, Newton, NJ 07860; Vol. 7, No. 11, Oct 1981.
“Adding A Machine Shop Transforms this Jobber into a One-Stop Service Center,” EasternAutomotiveJournal, P.O. Box 373, Cedarhurst, NY 11516; March/April 1981.
“A Florida Wholesaler Says No to Walk-in Trade,” EasternAutomotiveJournal, P.O. Box 373, Cedarhurst, NY 11516; July/Aug 1981.
“Alabama Edisons,” BusinessAlabamaMonthly Magazine, P.O. Box 66200, Mobile, AL 36660; Aug 1989.
“Allen’s Christian Store,” ChristianBookseller, 396 E. St. Charles Rd., Wheaton, IL 60187; Aug 1981.
“Aloha from Aiea,” ThePetDealer, 567 Morris Ave., Elizabeth, NJ 07208; Nov 1983.
“A Primer on Painting,” Maintenance & BuildingManagement, 287 Mokauea St., Honolulu, HI 96819; Aug 1983.
“Atlanta Wholesaler Prospers in Tough Market,” BeerWholesaler, 75 SE 4th Ave., Delray Beach, FL 33444; Jan/Feb 1982.
“Australia’s First Naval Casualty Remains a Mystery,” Warship, Conway Maritime Press Ltd, 101 Fleet Street, London, England EC4Y 1DE; 1992.
“Australia’s Stake in America’s Civil War,” NavalHistory, US Naval Institute, Annapolis, MD 21401; Vol. 3, No. 2, Spring 1989.
“Back to Basics Groceries,” BusinessAlabamaMonthly Magazine, P.O. Box 66200, Mobile, AL 36660; Feb 1989.
“Barn Style Increases Sales,” Western & EnglishFashions, 2403 Champa St., Denver, CO 80205; Oct 1980.
“Beyond Star Wars,” BusinessAlabamaMonthly Magazine, P.O. Box 66200, Mobile, AL 36660; April 1989.
“Big Island Automotive Trades Association,” HawaiiAutomotiveNews, 1177 Kapiolani Blvd., Suite 201, Honolulu, HI 96814; June 1984.
“Bonus Bucks mean extra sales,” Tack ‘N’ TogsMerchandising, P.O. Box 67, Minneapolis, MN 55440; Nov 1980.
“Boots, Bucks, Boost Two Stores,” Army/NavyStore & OutdoorMerchandiser, 567 Morris Ave., Elizabeth, NJ 07208; July 1981.
“Bryson, Inc. of Oklahoma,” BeerWholesaler, 75 SE 4th Ave., Delray Beach, FL 33444; Jan/Feb 1982.
“Building the Prime Corner in Calhoun County,” BusinessAlabamaMagazine, P.O. Box 66200, Mobile, AL; Vol. 4, No. 10, Oct 1989.
“Cashing in on the Tourist Trade,” Western & EnglishFashions, 2403 Champa St., Denver, CO 80205; May 1986.
“Circle H Carried Through Hard Times,” Western & EnglishFashions, 2403 Champa St., Denver, CO 80205; Feb 1986.
“Colonial Creates a Huntsville Skyline,” BusinessAlabamaMagazine, P.O. Box 66200, Mobile, AL; Vol. 4, No. 10, Oct 1989.
“The Dark Side of Aloha,” Honolulu Magazine, P.O. 36 Merchant St., Honolulu, HI 96813; Vol. Xxi, No. 4, Oct 1986.
“Dressing Up Friends,” Western & EnglishFashions, 2403 Champa St., Denver, CO 80205; Feb 1987.
“Fort Book,” WilsonLibraryBulletin, 950 University Ave., Bronx, NY 10452; Vol. 63, No. 6, Feb 1989.
“Growing Alabama Wholesaler Diversifies to Meet Retailers’ Needs,” BeerWholesaler, 75 SE 4th Ave., Delray Beach, FL 33444; 4th Qtr, 1979.
“Hawaii Store Marches with Military Market,” Army/NavyStore & OutdoorMerchandiser, 567 Morris Ave., Elizabeth, NJ 07208; April 1983.
“Hawaii Wholesaler Promotes Imports,” BeerWholesaler, 75 SE 4th Ave., Delray Beach, FL 33444; March/April 1983.
“Hawaii’s Country Corner: Hard Times Success in a Limited Market Area,” Western & EnglishFashions, 2403 Champa St., Denver, CO 80205; May 1983.
“Hawaiian Shop Owner Profits by Using Direct Mail Advertising,” Brake & FrontEnd, 11 S. Forge St., Akron, OH 44309; Vol. 54, No. 1, Jan 1984.
“High Rolling in Huntsville,” BusinessAlabamaMonthly Magazine, P.O. Box 66200, Mobile, AL 36660; Sept 1987.
“Hiking DeSoto State Park,” TheGreatAmericanOutdoors, P.O. Box 10069, Huntsville, AL 35801-3670; May 1987.
“Horne’s Country Store,” Western & EnglishFashions, 2403 Champa St., Denver, CO 80205; July 1984.
“The Huntsville Law Rush,” BusinessAlabamaMonthly Magazine, P.O. Box 66200, Mobile, AL 36660; May 1989.
“Is One Town Big Enough for Them?” BusinessAlabamaMonthly Magazine, P.O. Box 66200, Mobile, AL 36660; April 1988.
“The Knockoff Pros,” BusinessAlabamaMonthly Magazine, P.O. Box 66200, Mobile, AL 36660; March 1989.
“Knowledge: The Key to Triangle C,” Western & EnglishFashions, 2403 Champa St., Denver, CO 80205; Mar 1982.
“Mazy Dazy,” KidsFashions, 210 Boylston St., Chestnut Hill, MA 02167; Sept 1983.
“Mobile Practice Helped This Young Doctor Keep Rolling,” VeterinaryEconomics, P.O. Box 13265, Edwardsville, KS 66113; Dec 1983.
“Mocking as a Business,” BusinessAlabamaMonthly Magazine, P.O. Box 66200, Mobile, AL 36660; Aug 1989.
“Moving Management In House,” Maintenance & BuildingManagement, 287 Mokauea St., Honolulu, HI 96819; July 1983.
“Neural Networking,” Ad Astra, 922 Pennsylvania Ave., Washington, DC 20003; Vol. 1, No. 4, April 1989.
“The Soft Touch,” Bath & Domestics, 75 SE 4th Ave., Delray Beach, FL 33444; 3rd Qtr, 1980.
“Sparking Revolution,” BusinessAlabamaMonthly Magazine, P.O. Box 66200, Mobile, AL 36660; Oct 1988.
“Suppository,” The Writer’s Exchange “Favorite Faux Pas,” The Writer, posted on the magazine’s website, September 2008.
“Staying Country in the Country,” Western & EnglishFashions, 2403 Champa St., Denver, CO 80205; Jan 1981.
“This Alabama Wholesaler Works on a First Name Basis,” BeerWholesaler, 75 SE 4th Ave., Delray Beach, FL 33444; 2nd Qtr, 1979.
“Triumph’s First Postwar Roadster,” CarCollector/CarClassics, Box 28571, Atlanta, GA 30328; Vol. IV, No. 3, March 1981.
“Unattended Children: An Engagement Policy that Works,” WilsonLibraryBulletin, 950 University Ave., Bronx, NY 10452; Vol. 62, No. 10, June 1988.
Various basic reading stories; CriticalVocationalReadingSeries, Instructional/Communications Technology, Inc., Huntington Station, NY 11746; Sets VA*A, VA*B, VA*C, 1981.
“Water Heating in the 1980s,” Maintenance & BuildingManagement, 287 Mokauea St., Honolulu, HI 96819; May 1983.
“When One Man’s Hometown Changes,” HometownPress, 2007 Gallatin St., Huntsville, AL 35801; March/April 1988.
“Yagoda: 45 Years of Success,” BeerWholesaler, 75 SE 4th Ave., Delray Beach, FL 33444; 4th Qtr 1978.
“Youth and Experience Pay Off at New Orleans Beer Wholesaler,” BeerWholesaler, 75 SE 4th Ave., Delray Beach, FL 33444; Sept/Oct 1980.
Selected Nonfiction Periodicals
The Writer; Ad Astra; The Old Farmer’s Almanac; Honolulu; Business Alabama Monthly; The Wilson Library Bulletin; Alabama Magazine; Hometown Press; Hawaii Remodeling; Naval History; Freelance Writer’s Report; Hawaii Foodservice News; Hawaii Automotive News; Apparel Industry Magazine; Hawaii Real Estate Investor; Brake and Front End; Eastern Automotive Journal; Army/Navy Store & Outdoor Merchandiser; Professional Housing Management Association “Pronotes,” Kids Fashions; Tack ‘n’ Togs; Western & English Fashions; Christian Bookseller; Bath & Domestics; Beer Wholesaler; Veternarian Economics; Pet Dealer; Pet Business; Car Collector/Car Classics; Creative Crafts; Play Meter; Hawaii Maintenance & Building Management; Hawaii Building Industry Digest; Hawaii Food Show Guidebook; Social Issues Resources Series, Inc.; Critical Vocational Reading Series; Hawaii Filipino News.
With four decades of experience in every facet of the publishing industry—writing, editing, layout, design, finished product—I can assist you in making your current project the best it can be. If you need coaching, proofreading, detailed editing, ghostwriting, layout and design, or publication of your project, contact me to see how I can help.
Ready-to-submit electronic and print file creation
Indie author vendor accounts setup
Basic Services
Writer Coaching
Determine clear objective and goals
Define remedy and plan of action to overcome obstacles
Assist in organization, defining timeline for completion (research, first draft, revisions, completed manuscript)
Assist in developing clear plot, voice, tone, etc., for intended audience
Assist in adapting personal experience into creative process
Basic Manuscript Evaluation
The basic evaluation will assess a manuscript’s overall readability, addressing:
Strengths and weaknesses
Characterization
Plot structure
Voice
Dialogue
Action/pacing
Point of view
Overall grammatical structure
Proofreading and Editing
Proofreading
Grammar, spelling, punctuation
Line editing
Grammar, spelling, punctuation
Mechanics of style
Consistency
Basic manuscript formatting
In-depth book editing
Grammar, spelling, and punctuation
Mechanics of style
Consistency and logic (plot and characterization)
Dialogue
Manuscript standard submission formatting
Basic reorganization and/or rewriting of content
Narrative clarification
Elimination of jargon and/or cliché language/phrases
Other non-mechanical editing as needed
Research (optional), writing original material, checking or correcting reading level, and/or creating/reformatting tables and figures
Rewrite editing
Create new manuscript from client’s rough draft, utilizing client’s research and content
Ghostwriting
Develop client’s idea into marketable manuscript, utilizing client’s research
Manuscript Evaluation
Basic Manuscript Evaluation
The basic evaluation will assess a manuscript’s overall readability, addressing:
Strengths and weaknesses
Characterization
Plot structure
Voice
Dialogue
Action/pacing
Point of view
Overall grammatical structure
Detailed Fiction Manuscript Critique
Evaluate and offer specific critique on strong and weak areas, with suggestions for improvement regarding:
Plot
Subplots
Conflict
Characterization and character development
Dialogue
Point of view
Setting
Mechanics (grammar, spelling, punctuation)
Detailed Nonfiction Manuscript Critique
Evaluate and offer specific critique on strong and weak areas, with suggestions for improvement regarding:
Organization
Topic development
Fact-checking
Voice
Indexing (optional cost at $10 per 1,000 words with manuscript evaluation, $30 per 1,000 words without evaluation)
Formatting
eBook Formatting & File Creation
Formats include Nook, Kindle, Kobo, iBooks, etc. (price dependent upon length of book and use of tables and/or illustrations; query for specific price quote for your project)
Audio iBooks creation (optional cost dependent on scope, audio source, and length)
Cover creation
Vendor account setup and publication through Amazon, B&N, Kobo, iBooks, and partnered distributors (optional service, cost dependent upon selected vendors)
Print Book Formatting & Creation
Cover creation
Full formatting (price dependent upon use of tables, illustrations, and other specialty design requirements)
Printer-ready formatted file
Optional publication and distribution through CreateSpace/Amazon (channels for worldwide distribution to online and brick-and-mortar bookstores and libraries)
Cover Design/Creation
Full cover design specific and unique to your book, using graphic or photographic background
Miscellaneous Services
Résumés
High school and college class essay editing: I will not research or write a class essay. That would be cheating. I will only edit to improve a paper’s appearance and readability. In some cases, I will make suggestions for further research and expansion to improve content.
Public relations and other business writing
Advertising pamphlets, booklets, and flyers, cost dependent upon project scope; includes printer-ready formatted file
Other services: Have a need? Let me know, and we’ll discuss possibilities.
Payment
Small projects, payment accepted at beginning of assignment.
Major projects/services, 50 percent down payment, 50 percent upon completion (payment plans available)
Payment via conventional check, PayPal, or (preferred) Dwolla
Background & Qualifications
I began writing professionally in 1979 while still in college, freelancing for magazines. In 1980, I became a newspaper journalist and later moved into magazine staff writing and editing. In the late 1980s, I turned to full-time freelancing, publishing nonfiction, fiction, and poetry in regional, national, and international publications. Please click here for a publishing bibliography. Click here to open and download my press kit.
Nearly two dozen books published by traditional large and small publishers, including novels, poetry collections, short fiction collections, and nonfiction books
Professional Background: Chris has worked as a newspaper reporter, magazine editor, book editor, English tutor, substitute teacher, janitor, respiratory therapy technician, gas station attendant (when such things existed), salesclerk, musician in a Mexican restaurant, writing instructor, and more. After graduating college and a few stints as a daily and weekly newspaper reporter, Chris moved to Hawaii where he served as a magazine writer/photographer, both on-staff and freelance. In the mid-1980s, he turned to full-time freelance writing, specializing initially in nonfiction before transitioning primarily to fiction and poetry.
Chris’s work spans a broad spectrum—historical, musical, and social nonfiction, and dark fantasy, literary, and science fiction and poetry—appearing in hundreds of publications worldwide as diverse as Bull Spec, Main Street Rag, Slipstream, Pearl, Bogg, Chiron Review, The Year’s Best Horror Stories, Cemetery Dance, Christian Science Monitor, Honolulu Magazine, Naval History, and The Writer. His published books include Native American Flute Craft ~ Ancient to Modern, The Native American Flute ~ Myth, History, Craft, Trust Walk and Rise Up fiction collections, The Swing: Poems of Fatherhood, Big Daddy’s Fast-Past Gadget, Muscle Shoals ~ The Hit Capital’s Heyday & Beyond, Cancer, White Trash & Southern ~ Collected Poems, and Notes to My Becca.
Birth: 1956 in Andalusia, Alabama, City Hospital, a two-story building on East Watson Street near the intersection of South Cotton Street, built in the early 1900s, later named Covington Memorial Hospital before being abandoned in the early 1960s. The hospital’s now gone, razed, nothing remaining, not even a splinter. Chris swears he is not responsible.
Education: BA in communication arts/journalism from University of West Florida where he learned to write news articles shortly before 24/7 cable and internet “news” annihilated journalistic ethics, reliability, and professionalism.
Other Pursuits: Chris is an accomplished musician of several instruments, primarily guitar and Native American flute. He has recently produced the WindPoem series of CDs, featuring Native American flute meditations, and a musical soundtrack based on the novel Wolfshadow. Other music projects are in pre-production. His music can be licensed through Pond5.com for use in other creative projects. He also crafts Native American flutes. For more information about his flutes and music, please visit the WindPoem page.
Contact: Reach Chris through Twitter or email. After nearly three decades in Alabama, Chris, his spouse, and their daughter reside in Las Cruces, NM.
Please download his press kit for more information.
[C.S. Fuqua] writes … with sensitivity and grace … compelling, honest. ~ Bob Keeshan, TV’s original Captain Kangaroo
Good horror … isn’t about gore but about the unexpected … Fuqua is a master of prose. I found his writing crisp, filled with details that make a story come to life. ~ Diabolical Plots
…[R]eminded me a bit of Manly Wade Wellman’s Silver John stories. I can think of no better praise than that. ~ SFRevu
…a lasting impression on the reader. ~ Sensawunda
Wry wit on socio-political problems … ~ MyShelf.com
C S Fuqua handles the themes of love and death with beautiful simplicity: what else is there to life? ~ Kalyna Review
With an eye for the particular and an ear for the music of everyday life, C. S. Fuqua shares with readers his brave and lyrical view of human experience. ~ Dr. Wendy Galgan, Editor, Assisi Literary Magazine
…a feeling of hope and the certainty that happiness and goodness are still out there. ~ Cynthia Harris, author
… gritty, insightful, humorous, tragic, and celebratory … ~ Jonathan K. Rice, Editor, Iodine Poetry Journal
Fuqua’s, then, is a mind that’s not mired in or bogged down by horror, but one that appreciates the possibilities dark fantasy provides in terms of language and ideas, symbol and emotion. ~ David Bain, author/editor
… a wonderful job of creating compelling, well-drawn characters…Mike Suchcicki, author/editor/digital designer & producer
C.S. Fuqua is a first-class [Native American] flute builder and flute musician … ~ Dick Claassen, Native American flute musician and author of numerous Native American flute instructional manuals
5-time winner Year’s Best short fiction
4-time winner Year’s Best “honorable mention” short fiction
EPIC winner Year’s Best Poetry Collection
Bestsellers & more:
Native American Flute Craft, an in-depth, workbench manual for crafting the Native American flute in all its forms, perfect for the beginner through pro levels. More information on the WindPoem page.
Walking after Midnight ~ Collected Stories, with eight “year’s best” honors, has something for every reader in your life, from dark fantasy, horror, and science fiction to slipstream, southern gothic, and literary.
Stream C.S. Fuqua’s WindPoem albums and Sinner’s Suite EP on Pandoraand Spotify.
Get free downloads by signing up for the newsletter, packed with information about current and coming releases and free downloads of fiction, poetry, music, and more in every issue.
This essay was written originally for PoetryRepairs.com and entitled “The Moral of It All.”
In a review of my short story collection Rise Up, a critic wrote that “…many of these tales [are] meant to leave the writer with a moral lesson, or at least comment on morality in the modern age.” Although it was expressed as criticism, I took the comment as compliment because I believe a piece should imply more than the description on the page and impart some kind of moral or position. When my work achieves that, I feel lucky.
I’ve published short and book-length material, nonfiction and fiction, poetry and prose. By far, my short work, especially poetry, is the most satisfying to produce. Everything is story, and the most challenging form of story is the poem—the shorter, the better. What’s more, if the narrative on the page implies an extensive story beyond the words, then, in my opinion, it has succeeded on a greater level. And if it imparts a moral? Pure gravy.
The poet whose work I admire most was a master at achieving story and moral beyond the printed page. Raymond Carver is celebrated most for his short stories, but he was a master poet as well. Take “The Net” as example. The narrator describes passing a one-armed fisherman who’s wrestling with a fishing net. The narrator assumes the fisherman is simply doing his job. But when the narrator looks back from a greater distance, he sees the fisherman is caught in the net, struggling to free himself. In its simplest interpretation, the poem’s net is a metaphor for life or circumstances. The distancing of the narrator from the fisherman is a metaphor for achieving objectivity by seeing the “big picture.” Of course, much more is going on in this poem, but even its most simplistic story and moral demonstrate the power and depth of short, concise, precise writing, of creating an expansive story within the confines of a poem.
My poem “Studebaker” accomplishes what I try but regularly fail to accomplish in each poem I write. “Studebaker” has appeared in several journals and is included in my first collection of poems, White Trash & Southern ~ Collected Poems, Volume I.
Studebaker
There, next to the polished Mercedes,
the yellow Studebaker,
rust holes in the fender walls,
paint-chipped hood,
worn seats—nothing like
the old man’s.
He kept his sparkling, let me tell you,
just like the Model T before,
and the Thunderbird, the ’56 Chevy,
and the entire freeway of cars
that sped through my youth,
but none was so striking
as that hand-buffed Studebaker
with its whitewalls,
its custom steering wheel,
its immaculate seats,and that night,
coming back from Andalusia
when they thought I was asleep
in the back,
and he reached over,
grabbed her hair,
jerked her hard enough
to spin her head to the side.
I found two spots of dried blood
the following day,
and I remembered how the moon
had hung in the rear window
just below a cluster of stars
as he muttered, Christ,
why’d you make me do that?
And she had rested her head
back against that perfect seat
as the hum of new tires on asphalt
rose through the floorboard.
The story beyond the words involves a family plagued by domestic violence—a father/husband who prizes flashy cars over his relationship with his wife, who rules with anger and violence, whose behavior taints the very things that should be cause for celebration and enjoyment, a man who blames others for his own failures as a human being. Further, the poem’s second half implies that life itself is a cynical journey because everything that’s perfect in the poem—immaculate seats, custom steering wheel, whitewalls, new tires, moon, stars—is corrupted by the dark side of reality. As for lessons, draw your own conclusion, but, if I had to define a moral, it would be that people should value one another at least as much as they value their toys. Does the fact the poem communicates a moral make it less important, less enjoyable, less relevant?
As “Studebaker” suggests, I’m not a fan of poetry that relies on abstract, philosophical musing. I don’t condemn such writing. Certainly not. It’s just a matter of preference. I prefer to write and read poetry derived from and descriptive of everyday struggle, failure, success, and celebration, poetry that relates life through specific events and situations that may or may not be similar to the reader’s experiences. Through such work, we can relate to circumstances that might otherwise be foreign to us. We can sympathize and empathize closely with characters. And we can learn something new or validate something old, even if it’s the simple fact that not every reader enjoys work with a moral.
Collecting 232 poems spanning more than three decades, White Trash& Southern explores the beauty, joys, challenges, and sadness thatencompass life. From the book’s cover:
“Poetry in this data-saturated age is not, for most, a viable way to make a living. So why expend the time and energy to create something that few people will read and even fewer will purchase? To which I must ask, why do people sing in the rain, paint pictures, dance? Because it provides pleasure and reward and perhaps even keeps them sane. As a writer of fiction and nonfiction, I am most concerned with story. When I write poetry, I view it not as some lofty literary tool to fool or condescend, but as an exercise in crafting story within the strictest confines. White Trash & Southern is a collection of such exercises, spanning nearly three decades. To create a complex story within a limited number of words—to communicate far more than appears on the page—is a challenge that can provide enormous reward and satisfaction. Sometimes I succeed. Sometimes I don’t. But at least I remain sane. Sort of.”
“With an eye for the particular and an ear for the music of everyday life, C. S. Fuqua shares with readers his brave and lyrical view of human experience. An unflinching examination of the sorrows and joys we experience while moving through the world, White Trash & Southern is a fine collection of poems.” ~Dr. Wendy Galgan, Editor, Assisi Literary Magazine
“White Trash & Southern is full of empathy and honor for the human condition that we ultimately all share. This is a wonderful book of poetry, and a fine achievement that will greatly enrich its readers.” ~Devin McGuire, Editor of the Unrorean literary magazine and author of After the Hunt (Encircle Publications 2013)
“White Trash & Southern [by] C.S. Fuqua [is] gritty, insightful, humorous, tragic, and celebratory … [B]egin anywhere, skip around, or read it from back to front … a well-written, coherent collection … however you read it.” ~Jonathan K. Rice, Editor/Publisher, Iodine Poetry Journal
A good friend asked whether the poems in White Trash & Southern are autobiographical.
Yes.
No.
All of the poems evolved out of experience, certainly, but that doesn’t mean the events explored transpired exactly as detailed. Some did. Some didn’t. Some sort of. Many of the ideas came from other people. Some poems are simple exercises of placing myself in other people’s situations. An idea has a way of becoming more on the page, transforming into something completely different from the original inspiration and intent.