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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250814T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250814T193000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094603
CREATED:20250624T200320Z
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SUMMARY:August 2025 Open Mic Night
DESCRIPTION:The Pat Conroy Literary Center’s monthly Open Mic Night will be held at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.) on Thursday\, August 14\, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Our featured novelist will be Michael Spake\, author of Life Close to the Bone. \nOpen Mic will also include short readings of 3 to 5 minutes each by other writers in many genres. \nWhen: Thursday\, August 14\, 2025 at 6 PM – 7:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free · Duration: 1 hr 30 min\nWhere: Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.) \nInterested in reading as part of Open Mic? Let us know at contact@patconroyliterarycenter.org \nWe want to build our community of writers and an appreciation for the art and talent of new\, emerging\, and long-time writers. Thank you for supporting this partnership! \nEvent Facebook Page \nAbout our featured author:\nMichael Spake is the author of Life Close to the Bone\, his debut novel exploring the intricate layers of the past and the challenge of connecting them to the present. Inspired by his experience playing junior tennis in South Carolina and his career as a healthcare attorney\, the novel delves into themes of memory\, heritage\, and personal transformation. \nIn addition to Life Close to the Bone\, Michael has published short stories in Well Read Magazine’s Best of 2023 and 2024\, capturing the culture and history of his hometown\, Anderson\, SC in Well Read Magazine’s Best of 2023 and 2024. Michael graduated from The Citadel in 1994 where he received the Granville T. Prior Award for his exploration of Christian Mysticism in the works of T.S. Eliot. Michael lives in Lakeland\, Florida with his wife Mary Lucia Spake. Together they have four children: Henry\, Mary Clare\, Kathryn\, and Vivian. \n“In Life Close to the Bone\, debut novelist Michael Spake skillfully explores the complexity of the past and the impossibility of ever escaping its impact on the present. As protagonist John Greenburn\, a former tennis star turned pharmaceutical ethics attorney\, struggles to uncover the potential danger of a new drug\, he is drawn back into a past that threatens to undermine all he’s worked to achieve. Despite his reluctance to revisit old traumas\, John’s only hope for redemption is to face headlong the long-buried demons he has yet to acknowledge. Ultimately\, John’s journey in connecting the past to the present belongs to all of us.”–Cassandra King\, author of Tell Me a Story: My Life with Pat Conroy \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/august-2025-open-mic-night/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/open-mic-night-august-14-2025-1536x864-1.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250723T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250723T190000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094603
CREATED:20250624T200104Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250624T200104Z
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SUMMARY:An Evening with New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Novelist Karen White\, Author of That Last Carolina Summer
DESCRIPTION:Register: Register at EventBrite \nWednesday\, July 23\, 2025 · 5 – 7pm EDT\nCost: $40 (no refunds)\nVenue: Beaufort County Black Chamber of Commerce | 711 Bladen Street Beaufort\, SC 29902 \nThe nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center and the Storybook Shoppe bookstore are honored to host an evening with New York Times and USA Today bestselling novelist Karen White\, author of newly published That Last Carolina Summer. Join us on Wednesday\, June 23\, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at 711 Bladen Street (BCBCC\, ground floor). This event will also feature a special welcome by Conroy Center honorary chair and bestselling author Cassandra King. \nAdvance registration required; $40 fee includes an autographed copy of That Last Carolina Summer\, the author’s presentation\, and refreshments. This is a book-with-ticket event; no refunds will be possible. Additional copies of Karen White’s books will also be available for sale and signing through the Storybook Shoppe. \nLearn more and register at EventBrite \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nABOUT THE BOOK\nBeloved bestselling author Karen White returns with a captivating Southern drama about sisterhood\, secrets and one woman’s reckoning with the past. \nAs a child\, Phoebe Manigault developed the gift of premonition after she was struck by lightning in the creek near her Charleston home. Plagued throughout her life by mysterious dreams\, and always living in the shadow of her beautiful sister\, Addie\, Phoebe eventually moves to the West Coast\, as far from her family as possible. Now\, years later\, she is summoned back to South Carolina\, to help Addie care for their ailing mother. \nAs Phoebe’s return lures her back into deep-rooted tensions and conflicts\, she is drawn to Celeste\, whose granddaughter went missing years ago. Their connection brings comfort to Phoebe\, while Celeste’s adult grandson Liam resurrects complicated emotions tied to Phoebe’s past.\nBut the longer Phoebe spends in her childhood home\, the more her recurring nightmares intensify—bringing her closer to the shocking truth that will irrevocably change everything. Unfolding against the lush backdrop of the South Carolina Lowcountry\, That Last Carolina Summer is an unforgettable story about the unbreakable bonds of family and the gift of second chances. \n“This multi-generational story is layered with juicy family secrets while exploring sisterhood\, the power of memory\, and the pull of home. The perfect summer read.”—Jamie Brenner\, bestselling author of A Novel Summer \n“Karen White brings all her magnificent storytelling gifts to this stunner of a novel. As much as you want to race along and discover all the secrets\, you find yourself stopping to savor the truths she weaves into every twist and turn. If That Last Carolina Summer has a flaw\, it is this: you won’t ever want to wake up from its spell.”—Beatriz Williams\, bestselling author of Husbands & Lovers \nABOUT THE AUTHOR\nKaren White is a New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author with millions of copies of her books in print in fifteen different languages. When not writing\, Karen spends her time reading and bird-watching. She and her husband have two grown children and a spoiled Havanese dog\, Sophie\, and she divides her time between Atlanta\, Georgia\, and the northwest Florida coast. \n  \n  \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-evening-with-new-york-times-and-usa-today-bestselling-novelist-karen-white-author-of-that-last-carolina-summer/
LOCATION:Beaufort County Black Chamber of Commerce\, 711 Bladen St\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview,Book Signing
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/evening-with-karen-white.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250717T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250717T183000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094603
CREATED:20250624T195943Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250624T195943Z
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SUMMARY:An Evening with Katherine Scott Crawford author of The Miniaturist's Assistant
DESCRIPTION:Thursday\, July 17\, 2025 – 5:00-6:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free\nRegistration: Seating is limited; please call to reserve your spot: 843-379-7025.\nVenue: Pat Conroy Literary Center | 601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nThe nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center\, in partnership with Beaufort Bookstore\, will host an evening with novelist Katherine Scott Crawford\, author of The Miniaturist’s Assistant\, on Thursday\, July 17\, at 5:00 p.m.\, at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort). \nBooks will be available for sale and signing. Seating is limited; please call in advance to reserve: 843-379-7025. \nABOUT THE BOOK\nThe Miniaturist’s Assistant explores the mystery of time\, how our choices ripple throughout history\, and what it means to be a fully-realized woman— in any century. \n2004: In historic Charleston\, recently divorced art conservator Gamble Vance throws herself into her career restoring centuries-old miniature portraits. But one portrait haunts her: a woman in a fox stole\, with familiar hazel eyes. When Gamble meets a girl in an alley\, she’s convinced it’s the same woman— and it’s not the first time they’ve met. For help\, Gamble turns to African American Studies scholar Tolliver Jackson— a former foster kid with secrets of his own. But as Gamble’ s memories resurface\, the pair discover a connection which may endanger more than one life… in more than one lifetime. \n1804: Miniature portraitist and fallen-away Quaker Daniel Petigru paints for Charleston’ s high society. Daniel and his sister live with a free Black family\, their connection long and complicated. When Gamble arrives from the future and her presence puts them all at risk\, Daniel must decide if he loves her enough to let her go. \n“What a lush\, bold novel is The Miniaturist’s Assistant by Katherine Scott Crawford\, blending love\, intrigue\, and the role of portrait art in history for a story that is as suspenseful as it is wildly romantic. I’m not a fan of time travel tales in general\, but the astounding journey of art restorer Gamble Vance through the Charleston of the present and the very long past transcends genre and takes the reader places that are entirely new.”—Jacquelyn Mitchard\, author of The Deep End of the Ocean and The Birdwatcher \n“The Miniaturist’s Assistant is a multifaceted love story wrapped in a mystery that unfurls on the changing winds of history. A rollicking\, page-turning tale\, this unforgettable novel explores time travel\, art\, passion\, the complexity of past sins\, and the abundant promises embedded in the here and now. Katherine Scott Crawford has written a beautiful book steeped in humanity\, truth\, and wonder.”—Connie May Fowler\, author of Before Women had Wings \nABOUT THE AUTHOR\nKatherine Scott Crawford is the award-winning author of The Miniaturist’s Assistant and Keowee Valley. A former backpacking guide\, adjunct professor\, and recovering academic\, her newspaper column appeared weekly across the country and abroad\, including in USA Today\, The Detroit Free Press\, the Herald Scotland\, and more. Winner of a North Carolina Arts Award in fiction\, she holds an MFA in Writing from the Vermont College of Fine Arts. \nShe’d rather be in the woods with her dog than anywhere else\, enjoys curious people\, adventure\, and snow—and believes historical fiction the best way to time travel. An eleventh-generation Southerner\, she directs writing retreats at a remote mountain lodge in Western North Carolina\, where she lives with her family. \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-evening-with-katherine-scott-crawford-author-of-the-miniaturists-assistant/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/evening-with-katherine-scott-crawford.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250710T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250710T193000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094603
CREATED:20250624T195833Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250624T195833Z
UID:22613-1752170400-1752175800@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:July 2025 Virtual Open Mic Night
DESCRIPTION:The Pat Conroy Literary Center’s monthly Open Mic Night will be presented as a virtual event\, live-streamed to our Facebook page\, on Thursday\, July 10\, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Our featured presenter is novelist Abagail Summers\, author of After the Storm. Open Mic will also feature short readings of 3 to 5 minutes each by other writers in many genres. \nWhen: Thursday\, July 10\, 2025 at 6 PM – 7:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free · Duration: 1 hr 30 min\nWhere: Virtual – Facebook \nInterested in reading as part of Open Mic? Let us know at contact@patconroyliterarycenter.org \nWe want to build our community of writers and an appreciation for the art and talent of new\, emerging\, and long-time writers. Thank you for supporting this partnership! \nEvent Facebook Page \nAbout our author:\nAbagail Summers is a Lowcountry author of short stories\, poetry\, and novels—including Life with a Bird Out the Window (2014)\, Forgiving the Past (2020)\, The Untold Legacy (2021)\, and her newest release\, After the Storm (2025). \nTwo of her short stories\, Shining Light and Claire De Lune\, were published in the anthology An Iron Fist in A Velvet Glove\, and both were awarded honorable mention in the Globe Soup 7-Day Writing Contest. Summers earned her BA in Communication Studies from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She is a member of several writing groups\, including Write Like You Mean It\, Kingsbridge Writers Circle\, Writers Beyond Borders\, Charlotte Lit\, and Main Street Writes\, She has been regular participant in the Pat Conroy Literary Center’s Open Mic Nights. \n  \nAbout After the Storm\nJune Waters walks away from the country music business at the height of her popularity\, leaving people wondering why. But only she knows why. Not even the people closest to her know what’s happening inside her head or her heart. To make matters worse\, her dad is dying from lung cancer and can no longer run the farm on his own\, which has put her family in jeopardy of losing it all. Against their will\, June moves her absent husband and resentful daughter to her hometown of Franklin\, Tennessee. But when she’s there\, her past weaves its way back into her life\, leaving her with many questions about who she is. Not only that\, but the hourglass has been turned\, the bank starts the foreclosure process. As she balances on the high wire of life\, she must make an agonizing choice: Fight for the land she loves by heading back to Nashville with her pride tucked back into her pocket\, or become the mother her daughter needs her to be. \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/july-2025-virtual-open-mic-night/
LOCATION:Online – Facebook Live
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/open-mic-night-july-10-2025.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250612T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250612T193000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094603
CREATED:20250213T221235Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250213T221235Z
UID:22086-1749751200-1749756600@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:June 2025 Open Mic Night
DESCRIPTION:The Pat Conroy Literary Center’s monthly Open Mic Night will be held at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.) on Thursday\, June 12\, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. For National Poetry Month\, Open Mic Night will feature local novelist Doris E. Wright\, author of Cabbagehead. Open Mic will also include short readings of 3 to 5 minutes each by other writers in many genres. \nWhen: Thursday\, June 12\, 2025 at 6 PM – 7:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free · Duration: 1 hr 30 min\nWhere: Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.) \nInterested in reading as part of Open Mic? Let us know at contact@patconroyliterarycenter.org \nWe want to build our community of writers and an appreciation for the art and talent of new\, emerging\, and long-time writers. Thank you for supporting this partnership! \nEvent Facebook Page \nAbout our featured author:\nDoris E. Wright is an award-winning author whose fiction and nonfiction stories have been published in several anthologies. She is a mother\, grandmother\, wife\, artist and writer. Always curious about what’s beyond the next bend\, she has ridden camels in Timbuktu\, done tai chi in Xi’an\, and walked the veld in Kwazulu-Natal. To facilitate her and her husband’s love of travel\, especially on the cheap\, they have pet sat dogs\, cats\, tarantulas\, rats\, a tortoise\, and both normal and unusual plants in the U.S.\, France\, Ireland\, and the U.K. \n“Cabbagehead by Doris E. Wright will have you wondering if plants have a life\, and if they can intervene in our lives in ways we’ve not yet fathomed. Readers will love Wright’s deft skill with words\, her ability to move the story along\, and her ability to keep us in suspense. Dry wit\, the suspense over the next revelation in the vegetable dilemma\, and Wright’s other writerly gifts will keep you reading. It’s a story for anyone who’s experienced family estrangement or lost themselves in nature anywhere.”–Estelle Ford-Williamson\, author of Rising Fawn \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/june-2025-open-mic-night/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview,Open Mic Night
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/open-mic-night-june-12-2025.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250531T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250531T153000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094603
CREATED:20250116T212809Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250116T212809Z
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SUMMARY:An Afternoon with Annelore Harrell\, author of Et Cetera Y’all
DESCRIPTION:Saturday\, May 31\, 2025 – 2:00-3:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free\nRegistration: Seating is limited; please call to reserve your spot: 843-379-7025.\nVenue: Pat Conroy Literary Center | 601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nThe nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center will host an afternoon with Annelore Harrell\, author of Et Cetera Y’all\, Volume 1\, on Saturday\, May 31\, 2025\, at 2:00 p.m.\, at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort). \nFree and open to the public. Books will be available for sale and signing. Seating is limited; please call in advance to reserve: 843-379-7025. \nAbout the Book and Author \n“Step into the enchanting world of Annelore Harrell and the coastal Lowcountry I love so dearly. With twenty-four years of remarkable newspaper columns\, this collection is a treasure chest of insight\, immersive experiences\, and wisdom. From past to present\, Annelore Harrell brings us on a journey to meet the forgotten heroes\, see the locales of her experience\, and encounter the allure of southern hospitality. A captivating storyteller with a keen and wise eye\, Annelore Harrell’s prose transports us to the soul of the south.”–Patti Callahan Henry\, bestselling author \nGet inspired by the extraordinary Annelore Harrell\, who brings her unique voice and vibrant storytelling to life in Et Cetera Y’all\, Volume 1. This delightful collection\, released in October 2024\, showcases her charming and insightful newspaper columns from her inaugural year. \nAnnelore Harrell’s journey is a tapestry woven with fascinating experiences and extraordinary accomplishments. Born in 1932 in Savannah\, Georgia\, Annelore began visiting Myrtle Island in Bluffton with her family in 1942\, joining the ranks of the “summer people” who traveled from Savannah. Despite bullying at school in 1937\, which led her to stop speaking her first language\, German\, Annelore’s resilience shone through. \nBy age 12\, Annelore was confidently driving a car\, a skill she still retains with a careful eye on the rearview mirror. Her remarkable journey continued with her presidency of the world’s largest Officer’s Wives Club at Ft. Bragg\, NC\, in 1970. In 1974\, she captivated audiences with her portrayal of Eleanor of Aquitaine in “Lion in Winter” in Stuttgart. \nTransitioning into real estate in the mid-to-late ’70s\, Annelore founded Annelore Harrell Realty\, further cementing her legacy. In 1981\, she moved to her retirement home on Myrtle Island\, but retirement was merely a new chapter for her. \nIn the early ’80s\, she taught her daughter\, Tamela Pinckney\, and other young mothers the art of bridge. From 1995 to 1998\, Annelore hosted a weekly\, live\, one-hour show on the Bluffton Broadcasting Channel\, “BBC.” Her voice resonated with the community for nearly 25 years as a weekly columnist for the Bluffton newspaper\, Carolina Morning News\, later known as The Bluffton Today. Her outstanding work earned 1st Place in her category for Best Column from the SC Press Association. \nIn 2017\, Mayor Lisa Sulka celebrated Annelore’s contributions by recognizing her 1\,000th newspaper column and declaring June 23rd as “Lala Day\,” a nickname her grandchildren gave her. She was further honored in 2021 when she served as the Grand Marshal of the Bluffton Christmas Parade. \nAnnelore’s eclectic tastes in reading and music reflect her adventurous spirit. She enjoys various genres\, from rock and classical to blues\, bluegrass\, indie\, alternative\, R&B\, and Gregorian chants. Known for her unforgettable parties and fashion-forward style\, she was rocking men’s ties long before it became a trend. \nEven at 92 in 2025\, Annelore’s energy and zest for life continue to inspire. Kathy L. Murphy of Big Book Love (formerly Pulpwood Queens Book Club) honored her work by naming Et Cetera Y’all\, Volume 1\, the Bonus Book of the Month for December 2025. \nAnnelore Harrell’s story is a testament to living with passion\, resilience\, and an unquenchable thirst for adventure. \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-afternoon-with-annelore-harrell-author-of-et-cetera-yall/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/afternoon-with-annelore-harrell.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250508T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250508T193000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094603
CREATED:20250114T215312Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250114T215312Z
UID:21966-1746727200-1746732600@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:May 2025 Virtual Open Mic Night
DESCRIPTION:The Pat Conroy Literary Center’s monthly Open Mic Night will be presented as a virtual event\, live-streamed to our Facebook page\, on Thursday\, May 8\, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Our featured presenter is fiction writer James Alan Gill\, author of the story collection Not Dark Yet. Open Mic will also feature short readings of 3 to 5 minutes each by other writers in many genres. \nWhen: Thursday\, May 8\, 2025 at 6 PM – 7:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free · Duration: 1 hr 30 min\nWhere: Virtual – Facebook \nInterested in reading as part of Open Mic? Let us know at contact@patconroyliterarycenter.org \nWe want to build our community of writers and an appreciation for the art and talent of new\, emerging\, and long-time writers. Thank you for supporting this partnership! \nEvent Facebook Page \nAbout our author:\nJames Alan Gill was raised in a town with no stoplights by a family of coal miners\, then attended Southern Illinois University at Carbondale where he earned degrees in History and Creative Writing. \nHis work has appeared in numerous publications\, including Colorado Review\, Crab Orchard Review\, The Common\, Sou’wester\, The Laurel Review\, Midwestern Gothic\, Fried Chicken and Coffee\, Atticus Review\, Book of Matches\, and Prime Number Magazine. He has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize and is a seven-time winner of the JD Supra Reader’s Choice Award for his writing in the legal technology industry. He currently lives with his wife\, Brittany\, in Minneapolis. \n“Not Dark Yet unfurls like a fantastic roll of film capturing the hidden pockets of wonder in the lives of the denizens of James Alan Gill’s Illinois town of Matin. People fall in and out of love\, race cars\, make friends\, make tracks\, as ordinary lives reveal the extraordinary\, all the while wrestling with the fundamental question\, Can you really live the life you want and still please the people who love you?”—Whitney Otto\, New York Times Bestselling Author of How to Make an American Quilt and Eight Girls Taking Pictures. \n“Gill writes\, with grace and humor and pain\, about small-town life. This evocative chronicle of plain lives in crisis belongs on the same shelf as the stories of Bobbie Ann Mason and Raymond Carver. Poignant and powerful.”—Benjamin Percy\, author of The Ninth Metal\, Red Moon\, and Thrill Me. \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/may-2025-virtual-open-mic-night/
LOCATION:Online – Facebook Live
CATEGORIES:Author Interview,Open Mic Night
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/open-mic-night-May-8-2025.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250425T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250425T183000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094603
CREATED:20250205T210111Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250205T210111Z
UID:22057-1745600400-1745605800@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:An Evening with Marjory Wentworth\, author of One River\, One Boat
DESCRIPTION:Friday\, April 25\, 2025 – 5:00-6:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free\nRegistration: Seating is limited; please call to reserve your spot: 843-379-7025.\nVenue: Pat Conroy Literary Center | 601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nIn honor of National Poetry Month\, the nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center will host an evening with Marjory Wentworth\, past Poet Laureate of South Carolina\, and author of One River\, One Boat\, on Friday\, April 25\, at 5:00 p.m.\, at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort). \nFree and open to the public. Books will be available for sale and signing. Seating is limited; please call in advance to reserve: 843-379-7025. \nABOUT THE BOOK AND AUTHOR\nFamously cut from Governor Nikki Haley’s inauguration in 2015\, former South Carolina poet laureate Marjory Wentworth’s poem “One River\, One Boat” serves as the titular piece for her newest book. This collection of occasional poems and essays includes those written about heartbreaking and joyous times in South Carolina’s history and Wentworth’s own life including the deaths of relatives\, gubernatorial inaugurations\, the Mother Emmanuel AME massacre\, Hurricane Hugo\, and more. \nCongressman James Clyburn read Wentworth’s poem “One River\, One Boat” into the Congressional record in 2015 after it was pulled from Haley’s inauguration\, saying he “hope[s] the people of South Carolina\, across the country\, and peoples around the world are as touched by her words as I have been.” \n“A poet is a historian. If they are tuned in to the community around them\, their words can be important documents of an era. South Carolina is a complicated and beautiful place. If you want to know the nuance of the Palmetto State\, read Marjory’s poems.”—Marcus Amaker\, Inaugural Poet Laureate of Charleston \nMarjory Wentworth is the New York Times bestselling co-author of Out of Wonder: Poems Celebrating Poets\, and the author of the prizewinning children’s story Shackles. \nCelebrated for her significant contributions to literature and social justice\, she served as the poet laureate of South Carolina from 2003–2020. During her tenure as poet laureate\, she published 4 collections of poems and received seven Pushcart Prize nominations. She is also the co-writer with Juan Mendez of Taking a Stand: The Evolution of Human Rights and We Are Charleston: Tragedy and Triumph at Mother Emanuel\, with Herb Frazier and Dr. Bernard Powers\, and co-editor with Kwame Dawes of Seeking: Poetry and Prose inspired by the Art of Jonathan Green. \nAfter receiving a Bachelor of Arts from Mount Holyoke College and a Master of Art in Writing from New York University\, she moved to South Carolina in 1989\, where she taught courses in writing\, social justice\, and banned books at The College of Charleston. For further information about the author visit her website\, marjorywentworth.com \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-evening-with-marjory-wentworth-author-of-one-river-one-boat/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250417T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250417T183000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20250116T230143Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250116T230143Z
UID:22010-1744909200-1744914600@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:An Evening with novelist Emily Carpenter\, author of Gothictown
DESCRIPTION:Thursday\, April 17\, 2025 – 5:00-6:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free\nRegistration: Seating is limited; please call to reserve your spot: 843-379-7025.\nVenue: Pat Conroy Literary Center | 601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nThe nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center will host an evening with novelist Emily Carpenter\, author of the newly published novel Gothictown\, on Thursday\, April 17\, at 5:00 p.m.\, at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort). \nFree and open to the public. Books will be available for sale and signing. Seating is limited; please call in advance to reserve: 843-379-7025. \nABOUT THE BOOK AND AUTHOR\n“A high-energy read that effortlessly reinvents the modern Gothic while delivering all the elements that make the genre so captivating: a haunting atmosphere\, a dark legacy\, a determined heroine and a whisper of horror. I love the Gothic and I love Gothictown.” —Jayne Ann Krentz\, New York Times bestselling author \n“Just the right amount of creepiness to add a scary but not terrifying element to the promised gothic tale\, and the post-pandemic what-do-I-do-now feeling is spot on.” —firstCLUE \n*A Publishers Marketplace BUZZ BOOKS Selection* \nIn an immersive Southern Gothic with echoes of Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery and Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn\, a restauranteur lured by pandemic-era incentives moves her family to a seemingly idyllic small town in Georgia\, only to discover a darkness lurking beneath the Southern hospitality and sun-dappled streets. \nThe email that lands in Billie Hope’s inbox seems like a gift from the universe. For $100\, she can purchase a spacious Victorian home in Juliana\, Georgia\, a small town eager to boost its economy in the wake of the pandemic. She can leave behind her cramped New York City rental and the painful memories of shuttering her once thriving restaurant and start over with her husband and her daughter. Plus\, she’ll get a business grant to open a new restaurant in a charming riverside community laden with opportunity. It seems like a dream come true…or a devil’s bargain. \nA few phone calls and one hurried visit later\, and Billie\, Peter\, and six-year-old Meredith are officially part of the Juliana Initiative. The town is everything promised—two hours northwest of Atlanta but a world away from city living\, a “gentle jewel” with weather as warm as its people. Between settling into their lavish home and starting her new restaurant\, Billie is busy enough to dismiss any troubling signS.\nBut Billie’s sleep is marred by haunting dreams\, and her marriage with Peter is growing increasingly strained. Meanwhile the town elders\, all descended from Juliana’s founding families\, exert a level of influence that feels less benevolent and more stifling day by day.\nThere’s something about “Gentle Juliana”—something off-kilter and menacing beneath that famous Southern hospitality. And no matter how much Billie longed for her family to come here\, she’s starting to wonder how\, and if\, they’ll ever leave. \nEmily Carpenter is a bestselling author of suspense novels including Burying the Honeysuckle Girls\, The Weight of Lies and Gothictown. \nBorn and raised in Birmingham\, Alabama\, she graduated from Auburn University and worked in New York City as an actor\, producer\, screenwriter\, and behind-the-scenes soap opera assistant for the CBS shows As the World Turns and Guiding Light. She now lives with her family outside Atlanta\, Georgia\, and can be found online at EmilyCarpenterAuthor.com. \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-evening-with-novelist-emily-carpenter-author-of-gothictown/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250415T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250415T183000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20250123T211258Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250123T211258Z
UID:22031-1744736400-1744741800@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:An Evening with novelist Dawn Tripp\, author of Jackie
DESCRIPTION:Tuesday\, April 15\, 2025 – 5:00-6:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free\nRegistration: Seating is limited; please call to reserve your spot: 843-379-7025.\nVenue: Pat Conroy Literary Center | 601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nIn partnership with NeverMore Books\, the nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center will host an evening with novelist Dawn Tripp\, author of Jackie\, on Tuesday\, April 15\, at 5:00 p.m.\, at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort). \nFree and open to the public. Books will be available for sale and signing through NeverMore Books. Seating is limited; please call in advance to reserve: 843-379-7025. \nABOUT THE BOOK AND AUTHOR\n“An intimate\, episodic narrative… Tripp’s wonderful\, pointillistic skill with physical description and the deft\, empathetic leaps she takes — jumping off from letters\, contemporary memoirs and photographs snapped of the former First Lady — gives “Jackie” undeniable emotional punch. Tripp’s book stands out for its psychological acuity… notable for its admirable emphasis on the intelligence and grace of this valiant American woman.”—Washington Post \n“Perfect for those who can’t get enough from one of the country’s most iconic couples.” —People \nIn this mesmerizing novel of the life of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis\, bestselling author Dawn Tripp has crafted an intimate story of love and power\, family and tragedy\, loss\, and reinvention. \nJackie is the story of a woman who forged a legacy out of grief and shaped history even as she was living it—a deeply private person with a nuanced\, formidable intellect. It is the story of a love affair\, a complicated marriage\, and the fracturing of identity that comes in the wake of unthinkable violence. \nWhen Jackie meets the charismatic congressman Jack Kennedy in Georgetown\, she is twenty-one and dreaming of France. She has won an internship at Vogue\, and she thinks Kennedy is not her kind of adventure: “Too American. Too good-looking. Too boy.” Yet she is drawn to his mind\, his humor\, and his drive. The chemistry between them ignites. During the White House years\, the love between two independent people deepens. Then\, a motorcade in Dallas: “Three and a half seconds—that’s all it was—a slivered instant between the first shot\, which missed the car\, and the second\, which did not. . . . A hypnotic burst of sunlight off her bracelet as she waved.” \nThis spellbinding novel is a window into the world of a woman who led many different lives: Jackie\, Jacks\, Jacqueline\, Miss Bouvier\, Mrs. Kennedy\, Mrs. Onassis\, Jackie O. It is at once a deeply human story and a captivating work of imagination that comes right up against what she was thinking and feeling\, what she was afraid of\, fought for\, and believed in. \nDawn Tripp’s novel Georgia was a national bestseller\, finalist for the New England Book Award\, and winner of the Mary Lynn Kotz Award for Art in Literature. She is also the author of three previous novels: Game of Secrets\, Moon Tide\, and The Season of Open Water\, which won the Massachusetts Book Award for Fiction. \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-evening-with-novelist-dawn-tripp-author-of-jackie/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250410T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250410T193000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20250205T204754Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250205T204754Z
UID:22051-1744308000-1744313400@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:April 2025 Open Mic Night
DESCRIPTION:The Pat Conroy Literary Center’s monthly Open Mic Night will be held at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.) on Thursday\, April 10\, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. For National Poetry Month\, Open Mic Night will feature poet and memoirist Galen Warden\, author of I Believe You: When Doctor’s Wont\, A Mother Must. She will also be reading on behalf of her son\, James Strazza\, author of Unsung: Poems Written in the Dark. Open Mic will also include short readings of 3 to 5 minutes each by other writers in many genres. \nWhen: Thursday\, April 10\, 2025 at 6 PM – 7:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free · Duration: 1 hr 30 min\nWhere: Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.) \nInterested in reading as part of Open Mic? Let us know at contact@patconroyliterarycenter.org \nWe want to build our community of writers and an appreciation for the art and talent of new\, emerging\, and long-time writers. Thank you for supporting this partnership! \nEvent Facebook Page \nAbout our featured author:\nGalen Warden has enjoyed poetry since childhood\, drawing from the joyful\, transcendent\, and most difficult moments of her life. From adolescence through motherhood\, divorce\, dating\, and caregiving—and throughout her career as a designer and marketer for Bowker and LexisNexis—poetry has been a steady companion. Her work has appeared in Sensations Magazine\, The Ever-Dancing Muse\, Get Satisfied\, and Lips\, plus the anthologies Poets of the Palisades\, The Paterson Literary Review\, and The World Book of Healing. \nGalen is a fourth-generation Beaufortonian who has cared for her adult son James in her home for the past five years. Her forthcoming memoir\, I Believe You\, captures the heartrending reality of very severe M.E. \n“I have come to know Galen as an amazing mother\, caregiver and advocate. Patients\, families\, caregivers and medical professionals will benefit from her lived experience and effectiveness… Her book is a highly effective clarion call to anyone with ME or long COVID to just rest\, and to their loved ones to support them. I believe it’s what the world urgently needs right now.”—Janet L. Dafoe\, PhD\, psychologist \nJames Strazza was a prolific songwriter as well as a professional music producer when his young life was destroyed by a serious neurological disease. His only creative outlet became texting on his phone\, so he leveraged his songwriting skills for a newfound passion: poetry. His second collection of poetry is Unsung\, Poems Written in the Dark. \n“This poet—and he is a poet in the fullest sense—gives utterance to a horrific reality that escapes all utterance. Transforming us into witnesses\, he ignites our own soul: to read James Strazza is to burn with him. And to be forever transformed.”—David Patterson\, Hillel A. Feinberg Distinguished Chair in Holocaust Studies\, University of Texas at Dallas \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/april-2025-open-mic-night/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview,Open Mic Night
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250404T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250404T183000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20241203T211620Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241203T211745Z
UID:21909-1743786000-1743791400@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:An Evening with bestselling novelist Colleen Oakley\, author of Jane and Dan at the End of the World
DESCRIPTION:Friday\, April 4\, 2025 – 5:00-6:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free\nRegistration: Seating is limited; please call to reserve your spot: 843-379-7025.\nVenue: Pat Conroy Literary Center | 601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nThe nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center will host an evening with USA Today bestselling novelist Colleen Oakley\, author of Jane and Dan at the End of the World\, on Friday\, April 4\, at 5:00 p.m.\, at Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort). Oakley will be joined in conversation by Conroy Center executive director Jonathan Haupt. \nFree and open to the public. Books will be available for sale and signing. Please call to reserve your seat in advance: 843-379-7025. \nAbout Jane and Dan at the End of the World\nDate night goes off the rails in this hilariously insightful take on midlife and marriage when one unhappy couple find themselves at the heart of a crime in progress\, from the USA Today bestselling author of The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise. \nJane and Dan have been married for nineteen years\, but Jane isn’t sure they’re going to make it to twenty. The mother of two feels unneeded by her teenagers\, and her writing career has screeched to an unsuccessful halt. Her one published novel sold under five hundred copies. Worse? She’s pretty sure Dan is cheating on her. When the couple goes to the renowned upscale restaurant La Fin du Monde to celebrate their anniversary\, Jane thinks it’s as good a place as any to tell Dan she wants a divorce. \nBut before they even get to the second course\, an underground climate activist group bursts into the dining room. Jane is shocked—and not just because she’s in a hostage situation the likes of which she’s only seen in the movies. Nearly everything the disorganized and bumbling activists say and do is right out of the pages of her failed book. Even Dan (who Jane wasn’t sure even read her book) admits it’s eerily familiar. \nWhich means Dan and Jane are the only ones who know what’s going to happen next. And they’re the only ones who can stop it. This wasn’t what Jane was thinking of when she said “’til death do us part” all those years ago\, but if they can survive this\, maybe they can survive anything—even marriage. \n“Jane and Dan at the End of the World is a triumph! Poignant\, darkly funny\, and mind-bendingly twisty at every turn. With each new chapter\, I felt more invested in Jane and Dan\, the fate of their marriage\, and the outcome of their shocking predicament. I cheered for them all the way to the story’s satisfying end.”—Elle Cosimano\, New York Times bestselling author of Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice \n“Only Colleen Oakley could turn a terrorist attack on a restaurant into a charming story full of humor\, surprises\, and familial love. A delightful\, imaginative\, laugh-out-loud joy ride of a novel.”—Nina Simon\, New York Times bestselling author of Mother-Daughter Murder Night \nAbout the Author \nColleen Oakley is the USA Today bestselling author of The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise\, The Invisible Husband of Frick Island\, You Were There Too\, Close Enough to Touch\, and Before I Go. Her books have been translated into more than twenty languages around the world and have won multiple awards including Georgia Author of the Year and the French Reader’s Prize. \nA former magazine editor for Women’s Health & Fitness and Marie Claire\, Colleen lives in Atlanta with her husband\, four children\, three chickens\, and a mutt named Baxter. \n  \nAbout the Interviewer \nJonathan Haupt is the executive director of the nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center\, the past director of the University of South Carolina Press\, and co-editor of the anthology Our Prince of Scribes: Writers Remember Pat Conroy\, winner of 17 book awards. He is a frequent guest book reviewer for the Charleston Post and Courier and a mentor to the student leaders of DAYLO: Diversity Awareness Youth Literacy Organization. \n  \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-evening-with-bestselling-novelist-colleen-oakley/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250328T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250328T153000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20250116T211029Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250116T211205Z
UID:21976-1743170400-1743175800@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:An Afternoon with novelists Jeffrey Blount and John Pruitt\, in conversation with Rebecca Dwight Bruff
DESCRIPTION:Friday\, March 28\, 2025 – 2:00-3:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free\nRegistration: Register at Eventbrite by March 27\nVenue: Penn Center’s Frissell Hall\, 16 Penn Center West\, St. Helena Island \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nThe nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center will host an afternoon with novelists Jeffrey Blount (Mr. Jimmy from Around the Way) and John Pruitt (Tell It True)\, in conversation with Rebecca Dwight Bruff (Trouble the Water) on Friday\, March 28\, at 2:00 p.m. \nFree and open to the public\, this special event is presented in partnership with Luxe Lowcountry Travel and will be held at Penn Center’s Frissell Hall\, 16 Penn Center West\, St. Helena Island. Books by all three authors will be available for sale and signing. \nAdvance registration is required by March 27 at: https://blountandpruitt.eventbrite.com \nAbout Jeffrey Blount and Mr. Jimmy from Around the Way \nJeffrey Blount is the award-winning author of three novels. He is also an Emmy award-winning television director and a 2016 inductee to the Virginia Communications Hall of Fame. During a 34-year career at NBC News\, Jeffrey directed a decade of Meet the Press and was the first African-American to direct the Today show. He is an award-winning documentary scriptwriter for films and interactives that are now on display in the Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture. \nMr. Jimmy from Around the Way is a story about failure\, self-discovery\, empowerment\, and the possibility of redemption. James Henry Ferguson doesn’t belong here. After a highly publicized fall from grace\, James attempts to flee from the chaos in his life. He ends up in a community he had never heard of before\, one that has been neglected and ignored by everyone in rural Ham\, Mississippi. A place of abject poverty\, the neighborhood is commonly referred to as “Around the Way.” Within a place forgotten by the rest of the world\, politics can be a dangerous game. When a troubling discovery is made\, the entire neighborhood is rocked to its core and James is forced to confront his own past in order to help the community have a future. He will have to find the strength to fight for the neighbors he once disregarded and avert a heart-breaking disaster. A self-identified failure is forced to uncover the wisdom of his past in order to recognize that money can’t solve every problem. Full of never-ending twists and turns\, no one can prepare themselves for the surprises in store. Winner of the 2024 National Indie Excellence Award for African American Fiction\, 2024 Next Generation Indie Book Awards for African American Fiction\, 2024 NYC Big Book Award for General Fiction\, and 2024 American Book Fest Best Book Award for African American Fiction. \n“This tender story is for any of us who have fallen and found the only way up is by reaching out a hand to others.”—Cassandra King\, author of Tell Me a Story: My Life with Pat Conroy \nAbout John Pruitt and Tell It True \nJohn Pruitt began his journalism career in 1964 as a television reporter-cameraman and eventually rose to top anchor at WSB-TV in Atlanta\, Georgia. For a half-century he covered the civil rights movement\, Georgia politics\, and the major news figures of the day. His reporting has been honored with multiple awards including induction into the Atlanta Press Club and Georgia Association of Broadcasters Halls of Fame. \nIn Tell It True\, An African American serviceman is gunned down on a rural Georgia road in July 1964. This shocking murder ensnares a wide range of characters including the journalists who cover it\, the lawmen who must solve it\, the civil rights leaders who capitalize upon it\, the politicians who exploit it\, and the Atlanta magnate who fears its impact on the New South image he desperately wants to protect. TV news cameraman Gil Matthews and AP reporter Mindy Williams team up to follow the twists and turns of the murder investigation as rural\, state\, and federal lawmen clash\, a civil rights leader fends off a black power challenger\, and voters take sides in a governor’s race pitting virulent racist Roscoe Pike against moderate underdog Harrison Parker. Focusing on the challenges faced by journalists as they covered a societal revolution and brought the dramatic and sometimes violent scenes to TV screens around the world\, Tell It True takes us to a time when the future of the South hung in the balance. \n“Pruitt takes us back to a time where black lives truly didn’t matter in the South\, but it was a time black votes began to matter. The characters in this novel tell the story of the media’s role in changing race relations in the South\, and the behind-the-scenes political alliances that helped to bring change. Pruitt’s meticulous character development and scenery depiction put me right there in the story. Gripping from beginning to end and hard to put down.”—Monica Kaufman Pearson\, journalist and former news anchor \nAbout Rebecca Dwight Bruff \nRebecca Bruff is the author of the award-winning historical novel Trouble the Water and the children’s book Stars of Wonder. Bruff earned her bachelor’s degree in education at Texas A&M and a master’s and doctorate in theology at Southern Methodist University. In 2017\, she was a scholarship recipient for the prestigious Key West Literary Seminar. A frequent presenter at literary events\, she volunteers at the Pat Conroy Literary Center. \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-afternoon-with-novelists-jeffrey-blount-and-john-pruitt/
LOCATION:Penn Center\, 16 Penn Center Circle West\, St. Helena Island\, SC\, 29920\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250325T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250325T183000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20250116T201319Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250116T201319Z
UID:21971-1742922000-1742927400@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:An Evening with Penelope Coker Hall and Eliza Wilson Ingle\, Authors of A Curious Heart
DESCRIPTION:Tuesday\, March 25\, 2025 – 5:00-6:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free\nRegistration: Seating is limited; please call to reserve your spot: 843-379-7025.\nVenue: Pat Conroy Literary Center | 601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nThe nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center will host an evening with Penelope Coker Hall and Eliza Wilson Ingle\, Authors of A Curious Heart: The Life and Letters of Elizabeth Boatwright Coker\, on Tuesday\, March 25\, at 5:00 p.m.\, at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort). \nFree and open to the public. Books will be available for sale and signing. Seating is limited; please call in advance to reserve: 843-379-7025. \nAbout the Book and Authors\nWritten by Elizabeth Boatwright Coker’s daughter\, Penelope Coker Hall\, and granddaughter\, Eliza Wilson Ingle\, A Curious Heart chronicles the life and work of the award-winning author. \nIn this poignant literary biography\, Hall and Ingle give readers a front row seat to the remarkable life and career of award-winning author Elizabeth Boatwright Coker (1909-1993). Drawing liberally from Elizabeth’s own letters\, journal entries\, book passages and interviews\, A Curious Heart reveals for the first time the inner life of this complex\, Southern woman who dreamed of becoming a published writer. \nBorn in Darlington\, South Carolina in an era when women could not vote and the legacy of the Civil War suffused nearly everything\, Elizabeth was blessed with movie star beauty\, a keen intellect and sense of humor\, and extraordinary determination. At an early age\, she was mentored by inspired teachers and some of the great writers of the 20th century. She would go on to challenge the status quo\, in her life and her books. \nElizabeth’s journey juggling the demands of corporate wife and mother with that of working writer is a story of trial and triumph\, heartbreak and joy. Her life spanned nearly the entire century\, the second half of which yielded nine historical novels. With sensitivity and insight\, the authors chronicle the passion\, the powers of observation\, the gift of storytelling\, and the fierce independence that propelled their mother and grandmother to The New York Times bestseller list and the South Carolina Hall of Fame. \nBorn in Hartsville\, South Carolina\, Penelope Coker Hall matriculated to Sarah Lawrence College and eventually settled in New York\, becoming a writer and host for Metromedia’s Channel Five TV show “The New Yorkers.” Later at NBC\, Hall worked as a co-producer of several TV specials\, including “Vanishing 400” and “Debutante.” During this time\, she met and married film producer William Wilson and in 1968 their daughter\, Eliza\, was born. In 1972\, Hall left the performing arts and embarked on a new marriage with widower Mortimer Hall of Millbrook\, N.Y. Ensconced in Millbrook for 50 years\, Hall served as editor of Dutchess Magazine while raising daughter Eliza as well as Morti’s five young children\, along with a bevy of horses and dogs. Hall is author of several children’s books and the novel Riding High (under the pseudonym of Emily Brooks)\, written with former E.P. Dutton editor Ann LaFarge. Today\, she divides her time between Charleston\, S.C. and Millbrook. \nEliza Wilson Ingle is a New York native with Southern roots. She earned her BA in Dance from Middlebury College\, and after a brief stint in New York City\, moved to Charleston S.C. where she became a Professor of Dance at the College of Charleston. In addition to teaching\, Ingle has been a performer and choreographer with Anonymity Dance Company. A dance reviewer for The Post and Courier covering Spoleto Festival USA\, as well as a contributor to Charleston Magazine and Charleston City Paper\, and creator and co-host of “Just Imagine” – a radio program covering local cultural events and people – she stays tapped into the arts and believes\, as her grandmother did\, in the power of story. \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-evening-with-penelope-coker-hall-and-eliza-wilson-ingle-authors-of-a-curious-heart/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250320T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250320T183000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20250213T220130Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250213T220130Z
UID:22079-1742490000-1742495400@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:An Evening with Dawn Major and Kim Poovey
DESCRIPTION:Thursday\, March 20\, 2025 – 5:00-6:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free\nRegistration: Seating is limited; please call to reserve your spot: 843-379-7025.\nVenue: Pat Conroy Literary Center | 601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nThe Pat Conroy Literary Center will host an evening with authors Dawn Major and Kim Poovey portraying characters from their respective novels\, introduced by host Mary Ellen Thompson. \nFree and open to the public\, this special event will be held at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.) on March 20 at 5:00 p.m. Books will be available for sale and signing. Please call in advance to reserve a seat: 843-379-7025. \nDawn Major is an associate editor for the Southern Literary Review. Her debut novel\, The Bystanders\, was named finalist for 2024 Georgia Author of the Year for Best First Novel. Set in the 1980s\, The Bystanders is the story of a family who moves from California to a small town in Missouri\, where\, to put it mildly\, they didn’t fit in. Dawn will converse from the point of view of her teenaged character\, Shannon Lamb\, who is the source of much gossip from the townspeople. \nKim Poovey is a storyteller\, Victorian reenactress\, and has written nine novels. The first of her Dreamist Series\, The Haunting of Monroe Manse\, centers on Sarah Holden\, a smalltown antiques dealer who is “plagued by haunted dreams and gruesome visions.” As Sarah’s visions increase in intensity\, the reader is taken on a chilling page turning journey of the otherworldly. Kim will portray Sarah in the conversation. \nABOUT THE AUTHORS\nDawn Major’s debut novel\, The Bystanders\, was named finalist for 2024 Georgia Author of the Year for Best First Novel. Major has a graduate degree in Creative Writing\, is associate editor at Southern Literary Review\, and a co-editor at WELL READ Magazine where she writes a column called “TripLit with D. Major.” \nShe enjoys advocating for Southern writers and artists on her blog\, SouthernRead. Major’s literary awards include the following: the Dr. Robert Driscoll Award for Excellence in Writing Award and a James Dickey Fellowship. She is a member of the William Gay Archive and helps edit and publish the late author’s works. She serves on the board at Broadleaf Writers Association\, is a member of multiple writing association\, as well as a member of M’ville\, an Atlanta-based artist salon. She has been published in multiple journals\, reviews\, and anthologies. Major lives in Atlanta\, GA with her family and is currently working on her novelette\, The Dandy Chronicles. \nKim Poovey is a bestselling author of cozy horror and historical fiction. She has traveled the Southeast for more than 20 years presenting on 19th century fashion\, Victorian era mourning practices\, Ornamental Hairwork\, and the history of ghost stories. \nIn 2011 she portrayed Mrs. Stanton\, wife of Secretary of War Stanton (Kevin Kline)\, in the Robert Redford film\, The Conspirator. Additional film projects include portraying the wife of a villainous husband in the Vook version of Jude Devereaux’ novella Promises and the documentary Beyond the Oaks\, Lowcountry Plantations. \nKim has published nine books to include four in the Dreamist series and two in the Shadows trilogy. In addition\, Kim has written for several magazines to include Beaufort Lifestyles\, Bluffton Breeze\, Citizen’s Companion\, and the Civil War Times. When not writing or performing\, Kim works as a school psychologist. She lives in a haunted 1890s Victorian cottage in the South Carolina Lowcountry with her husband\, Darryl\, and their furry children. \nMary Ellen Thompson is an associate editor for the Southern Literary Review. Her interview with the legendary Pat Conroy was published in A Lowcountry Heart. A lead features writer for Beaufort Lifestyle Magazine for eight years\, and columnist for Lowcountry Weekly for ten years\, she has also written for Pooler Magazine\, Effingham Magazine\, Carolina Arts Magazine\, St. Mary’s Magazine and Eat\, Sleep\, Play Beaufort. Mary Ellen has very happy feet and loves to travel. \nRaised on the Main Line of Philadelphia and the Eastern Shore of MD\, she has a B.S. From Skidmore College in Business. Currently living on Saint Helena Island\, SC\, she hosts a Writer’s Residency for the Pat Conroy Literary Center\, and is writing a retrospective narrative. \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-evening-with-dawn-major-and-kim-poovey/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250313T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250313T193000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20250114T214051Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250114T214051Z
UID:21961-1741888800-1741894200@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:March 2025 Virtual Open Mic Night
DESCRIPTION:The Pat Conroy Literary Center’s monthly Open Mic Night will be presented as a virtual event\, live-streamed to our Facebook page\, on Thursday\, March 13\, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Our featured presenter is multi-genre author Susan Tekulve\, whose newest book is Bodies of Light\, her first full-length poetry collection. Hosted by poet Melissa Whiteford St. Clair\, Open Mic will also feature short readings of 3 to 5 minutes each by other writers in many genres. \nWhen: Thursday\, March 13\, 2025 at 6 PM – 7:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free · Duration: 1 hr 30 min\nWhere: Virtual – Facebook \nInterested in reading as part of Open Mic? Let us know at contact@patconroyliterarycenter.org \nWe want to build our community of writers and an appreciation for the art and talent of new\, emerging\, and long-time writers. Thank you for supporting this partnership! \nEvent Facebook Page \nAbout our author:\nSusan Tekulve’s newest book Bodies of Light is her first full-length poetry collection. She is the author of Second Shift: Essays (Del Sol Press) and In the Garden of Stone (Hub City Press)\, winner of the South Carolina Novel Prize and a Gold IPPY Award. She’s also published two short story collections: Savage Pilgrims (Serving House Books) and My Mother’s War Stories (Winnow Press). \nHer photo essay\, “White Blossoms\,” appeared in Issue 12 of the KYSO Flash Anthology. Her nonfiction\, fiction\, and poetry has appeared in journals such as Denver Quarterly\, The Georgia Review\, The Louisville Review\, Puerto del Sol\, New Letters\, and Shenandoah. Her web chapbook\, Wash Day\, appears in the Web Del Sol International Chapbook Series\, and her story collection\, My Mother’s War Stories\, received the 2004 Winnow Press fiction prize. She has received scholarships from the Sewanee Writers’ Conference and Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference. She teaches in the BFA and MFA writing programs at Converse University. \n“Susan Tekulve’s Bodies of Light both illuminates and enchants. In odes to body parts—teeth and thumbs\, feet and hair—as well as bodies inside bodies (pregnancies)\, this poet delights in the corporal and spiritual. In elegies\, Tekulve honors the bodies of her beloved dead and the magic of her garden. Hummingbirds\, tarantulas\, stinkbugs\, spiders\, and bees wearing ‘tiny yellow combat boots’ populate these terrific poems of wonder and dazzle.”–Denise Duhamel\, author of Pink Lady\, Scald\, and Blowout \n“It’s a kind of magic\, the way Susan Tekulve’s forthright monosyllabic titles (Bonnet\, Grief\, Kimono\, Son—the list goes on) blossom into poems so lush in vision\, so voluptuous in vocabulary and song\, they feel as bountiful as the planet we live on. Tekulve’s poems have their specific concerns of course (parenting\, for example\, and world travel) but ultimately she’s in love with existence itself\, whether elegiac or celebratory\, and her one-word titles (Relics\, Geodes\, Feathers: the list goes on) are keys to a lavish proof of that love’s great depth.”–Albert Goldbarth\, author of History (and Pre-)\, Saving Lives\, and Heaven and Earth: A Cosmology \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/march-2025-virtual-open-mic-night/
LOCATION:Online – Facebook Live
CATEGORIES:Author Interview,Open Mic Night
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250227T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250227T183000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20240809T160917Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241220T202444Z
UID:21002-1740675600-1740681000@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:An Evening with novelist Jen Marie Wiggins\, author of The Good Bride
DESCRIPTION:Thursday\, February 27\, 2025 – 5:00-6:30 PM EDT (Rescheduled from December)\nPrice: Free\nRegistration: Seating is limited; please call to reserve your spot: 843-379-7025.\nVenue: Pat Conroy Literary Center | 601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nThe nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center will host an evening with novelist Jen Marie Wiggins\, author of The Good Bride\, on Thursday\, February 27\, at 5:00 p.m.\, at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort). \nFree and open to the public. Books will be available for sale and signing. Seating is limited; please call in advance to reserve: 843-379-7025. \nAbout The Good Bride\nThe Wedding of the Year turns disastrous in this twisty family drama full of lies and betrayals\, perfect for fans of Laura Dave\, Lucy Foley\, and Ruth Ware. \nOne year after a devastating hurricane\, bride-to-be Ruth Bancroft is marrying her perfect groom in a quaint fishing village on the Gulf Coast. The weekend is carefully curated\, with the displays of pomp and social media magic meant to promote an area still struggling to rebuild as well as bring Ruth’s estranged family back together. \nYet as good intentions often go\, this road to wed is hell and paved in complications. With tensions rising between the family and the bridal party\, long-buried secrets come to light\, and accusations start flying. Things officially spiral out of control when the oceanfront rehearsal dinner is rocked by a series of gunshots\, and a high-profile guest goes missing. As the investigation gets underway\, it turns out that everyone has something to hide. \nBig Little Lies meets The Guest List in this gripping page turner that asks the big questions about messy family liaisons\, modern media\, and the lies we tell the world. \nAbout the Author \nJen Marie Wiggins’s first book\, the gifty nonfiction title Married AF: A Funny Guide for the Newlywed or Bride\, was published with Sourcebooks in 2022. \nShe has a background in advertising and public relations\, and her writing has appeared in Southern Coastal Weddings\, Savannah Magazine\, Savannah Homes\, and elsewhere. The Good Bride draws much of its inspiration from the devastation and rebuilding struggles of Mexico Beach\, Florida\, a place near and dear to Jen’s heart. \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-evening-with-novelist-jen-marie-wiggins-author-of-the-good-bride/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250221T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250221T183000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20250213T213942Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250213T213942Z
UID:22074-1740157200-1740162600@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:An Evening with contributing writers to The Heartbeat of Quiet Streets
DESCRIPTION:Friday\, February 21\, 2025 – 5:00-6:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free\nRegistration: Seating is limited; please call to reserve your spot: 843-379-7025.\nVenue: Pat Conroy Literary Center | 601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nThe Pat Conroy Literary Center will host a discussion by a panel of contributing writers to the anthology The Heartbeat of Quiet Streets\, all members of the Chapin/Irmo Chapter of the South Carolina Writers Association\, on Friday\, February 21\, at 5:00 p.m. Panelists will discuss both the content of the book as well as its publication. \nThis event is free and open to the public. Copies of the anthology as well as other books by the contributing writers will be available for sale and signing. To reserve a seat in advance\, please call 843-379-7025. \nABOUT THE ANTHOLOGY AND CONTRIBUTORS\n“The Heartbeat of Quiet Streets is an outstanding collection of polished work from authors who know their canvas. The South\, small towns and mid-century summers collide in verse with quiet tension and churning drama.”–Kasie Whitener\, PhD\, University of South Carolina\, Darla Moore School of Business \n“The Heartbeat of Quiet Streets is an amazing title for a quality compilation of writing pieces. I chose one or two at a time to read\, to best enjoy them\, sinking into each\, basking in the unique world each had to offer. Kudos not only to the writers\, but to the editor who made the pieces an admirable whole.”–C. Hope Clark\, award-winning author of The Carolina Slade Mysteries\, the Edisto Island Mysteries\, and the Craven County Mysteries \nGlen Bramlitt\, an artist and engineer in South Carolina\, blends the boundless possibilities of ‘what-if’ with a vivid imagination. His current genre is dystopian fiction. Glen is an accomplished wood-working artist who carved charcuterie boards as a thank you to our guest testimonials. \nSue Cryer served on the South Carolina Writer’s Association Board of Directors and co-edited Catfish Stew\, SCWA member’s anthology\, The Quill newsletter\, and The Petigru Review\, now an international publication. She also served on The State Newspaper’s Community Advisory Board and runs a home business. She recently completed a fictional memoir\, Surviving Riversedge. \nBy day\, Laura Lanni teaches organic chemistry and oversees her undergraduate research laboratory. When not teaching or writing\, she can be found working with writers in her critique group\, running\, hugging her grandchildren\, riding a jet-ski\, blogging\, and baking. \nCarolyn Hartley is a six times #1 best-selling author. She has been in publishing for more than thirty years as an author\, publicist\, speaker\, and publisher for Fortune 500 companies. Her historical fiction trilogy\, The Buried Sunshine series\, won the International Book Impact Award in 2024 in the Historical Fiction category. \nTerresa Cooper Haskew’s poetry and prose has appeared in more than fifty printed journal and anthology issues (Atlanta Review\, American Journal of Nursing\, The Main Street Rag). Her story\, “Living the Dream\,” was showcased in 2013 as a short film by Ron Hagell and Shirley Smith. Her first novel\, Winston’s Book of Souls is forthcoming in Spring 2025. \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-evening-with-contributing-writers-to-the-heartbeat-of-quiet-streets/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250213T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250213T193000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20241203T205733Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241203T205733Z
UID:21904-1739469600-1739475000@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:February 2025 Open Mic Night
DESCRIPTION:The Pat Conroy Literary Center’s monthly Open Mic Night will be held at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.) on Thursday\, February 13\, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Our featured author is Tayler Simon\, founder of Liberation Is Lit and author of Phases and Love and Other Forms of Heartbreak. Open Mic will also feature short readings of 3 to 5 minutes each by other writers in many genres. \nWhen: Thursday\, February 13\, 2025 at 6 PM – 7:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free · Duration: 1 hr 30 min\nWhere: Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.) \nInterested in reading as part of Open Mic? Let us know at contact@patconroyliterarycenter.org \nWe want to build our community of writers and an appreciation for the art and talent of new\, emerging\, and long-time writers. Thank you for supporting this partnership! \nEvent Facebook Page \nAbout our featured author:\nTayler Simon (she/her) is a writer\, social worker\, and the owner of the bookstore Liberation is Lit. She has self-published three books: Phases: Poems\, Writing Our Truths: A Guide to Self-Publishing for BIPOC Writers\, and Love and Other Forms of Heartbreak. Tayler is passionate about promoting social liberation through the power of transformative stories. \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/february-2025-open-mic-night/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview,Open Mic Night
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250124T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250124T180000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20241220T204033Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241220T204033Z
UID:21940-1737738000-1737741600@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:An Evening with Karen Salyer McElmurray
DESCRIPTION:Friday\, January 24\, 2025 – 5:00-6:00 PM EDT\nPrice: Free\nRegistration: Seating is limited; please call to reserve your spot: 843-379-7025.\nVenue: Pat Conroy Literary Center | 601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nThe nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center will host an evening with award-winning writer Karen Salyer McElmurray\, author of the essay collection I Could Name God in Twelve Ways\, on Friday\, January 24\, at 5:00 p.m.\, at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort). \nFree and open to the public. Books will be available for sale and signing. Seating is limited; please call in advance to reserve: 843-379-7025. \nAbout I Could Name God in Twelve Ways\n“I could dream in poetry\, could summon words for spiritual experience\, could name God in twelve ways and in ten times and places in history.” \nAward-winning writer Karen Salyer McElmurray details her life’s journey across continents and decades in a poetic collection that is equal parts essay-as-memoir\, memoir-as-Künstlerroman\, and travelogue-as-meditation. \nIt is about the deserts of India. A hospital ward in Maryland. The blue seas of Greece. A greenhouse in Virginia. It is about the spirit houses of Thailand. The mountains of eastern Kentucky. The depths of the Grand Canyon. A creative writing classroom in Georgia. An attic in a generations-old house. It is about coming to terms with both memory and the power of writing itself. \nAt turns lyrical\, poignant\, and alluring\, McElmurray probes her personal history from the stance of different places\, perspectives\, and vulnerabilities as she tenderly and fiercely searches for acceptance and a place to call home. \n“McElmurray teaches us how to reckon and ravel\, how to unpack secrets\, abandon maps\, and learn from everything\, even vertigo\, even a global pandemic. This book is for everyone who has ever felt vulnerable in this world\, which is to say\, everyone.”―Julie Marie Wade\, author of Otherwise: Essays and Just an Ordinary Woman Breathing \n“The essays in this stunning collection are elegiac\, urgent\, vulnerable―full of loss and longing. Although the narrative is rooted in Kentucky\, the scope is global as the narrator travels literally and metaphorically toward love and away from the ghosts of the past.”―Sue William Silverman\, author of Acetylene Torch Songs: Writing True Stories to Ignite the Soul \nAbout the Author \nKaren Salyer McElmurray’s Surrendered Child: A Birth Mother’s Journey\, was an AWP Award Winner for Creative Nonfiction. Her novels are The Motel of the Stars\, Editor’s Pick by Oxford American\, and Strange Birds in the Tree of Heaven\, winner of the Chaffin Award for Appalachian Writing. \nAs a fiction writer\, she is the recipient of a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts\, the Kentucky Foundation for Women and the North Carolina Arts Council. Her work in nonfiction has been a recipient of the Annie Dillard Award for the Essay\, the New Southerner Award\, the Orison Anthology Award for Creative Nonfiction and\, most recently\, the LitSouth Award. She has co-edited\, with poet Adrian Blevins\, an essay collection called Walk till the Dogs Get Mean. Wanting Radiance\, a novel\, and Voice Lessons\, a short collection of lyric essays\, came out in 2021. A new essay collection\, I Could Name God in Twelve Ways came out in September 2024 from University Press of Kentucky. \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-evening-with-karen-salyer-mcelmurray/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250109T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250109T193000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20241203T202902Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241203T202902Z
UID:21888-1736445600-1736451000@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:January 2025 Virtual Open Mic Night
DESCRIPTION:The Pat Conroy Literary Center’s monthly Open Mic Night will be as a virtual event\, live-streamed to our Facebook page\, on Thursday\, January 9\, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Our featured presenter is Niles Reddick\, award-winning short story writer and author of Who’s Going to Pray for Me Now? Open Mic will also feature short readings of 3 to 5 minutes each by other writers in many genres. \nWhen: Thursday\, January 9\, 2025 at 6 PM – 7:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free · Duration: 1 hr 30 min\nWhere: Virtual – Facebook \nInterested in reading as part of Open Mic? Let us know at contact@patconroyliterarycenter.org \nWe want to build our community of writers and an appreciation for the art and talent of new\, emerging\, and long-time writers. Thank you for supporting this partnership! \nEvent Facebook Page \nAbout our author:\nNiles Reddick is author of a novel\, four short fiction collections\, and two novellas. His work has appeared in over five hundred publications including The Saturday Evening Post\, New Reader Magazine\, Cheap Pop\, Flash Fiction Magazine\, Citron Review\, Hong Kong Review\, and Vestal Review. \n“Even though we don’t know when it’s going to happen\, be damn sure\, if it’s going epic than we need a 1965 Skylark\, fast and focused with a smooth and graceful landing\, to help blast the transition! Reddick presses fiction into the ultimate excursion. DEATH! Who’s Going To Pray For Me Now is a mesmerizing collection: flammable and saturating tales of those final moments when we become feverish weeds whacked into oblivion. These narrative adventures are palpable and inescapable. LOVE! GET A COPY”–Meg Tuite\, author of White Van and an editor at Bending Genres \n“The stories in Niles Reddick’s Who’s Going to Pray for Me Now? show us what it means to be in the know\, whether it’s the inside of a 1965 Skylark or the way to handle snakes in a county church. But there’s also a lot of heart here\, the little hurts and reconciliations of coupledom in a world where two equals more than one plus one. The best flash fiction keeps opening outward after you’ve read it. Reddick’s stories do that and more.”—David Galef\, author of My Date with Neanderthal Woman and editor of Vestal Review \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/january-2025-virtual-open-mic-night/
LOCATION:Online – Facebook Live
CATEGORIES:Author Interview,Open Mic Night
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/open-mic-night-january-9-2025.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241213T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241213T183000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20240809T155423Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240819T190621Z
UID:20995-1734109200-1734114600@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:An Evening with Andrew K. Clark\, author of Where Dark Things Grow\, in conversation with Dana Ridenour
DESCRIPTION:Friday\, December 13\, 2024 – 5:00-6:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free\nRegistration: Seating is limited; please call to reserve your spot: 843-379-7025.\nVenue: Pat Conroy Literary Center | 601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nThe nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center will host an evening with debut novelist Andrew K. Clark\, author of Where Dark Things Grow\, in conversation with Dana Ridenour\, author of the Lexie Montgomery Series\, on Friday\, December 13\, at 5:00 p.m.\, at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort). Books will be available for sale and signing. Seating is limited: please reserve in advance to attend this free author event: 843-379-7025. \nAbout Where Dark Things Grow\nFifteen-year-old Leo is watching the world crumble. His father is missing\, and his mother is slipping into madness as she cares for Leo\, his sick sister Goldfish\, and two useless brothers. Relatives are no help\, and the church folk have turned their backs in the middle of the Great Depression. \nWhen he discovers an enchanted wulver from ancient folklore that will do his bidding\, he decides to settle old scores. Revenge is sweet\, but Leo soon learns he can’t control what he’s unleashed. It takes his spitfire best friend Lilyfax to help Leo overcome his anger and try to escape the wulver’s evil. As they search for his father\, Leo\, Lilyfax\, and friends are pursued by dark forces and pulled into a rescue effort to find and save trafficked girls rumored to have been taken by the mysterious Blue Man. \nFeaturing elements of horror\, folklore\, and magical realism\, Where Dark Things Grow is a dark bildungsroman set squarely in the place and culture of the 1930s Southern Appalachian Mountains. \n“As haunting as all fireside stories should be. Where Dark Things Grow will make you sleep with the lights on.”—Jason Mott\, winner of the National Book Award\, and author of Hell of a Book \n“Andrew K. Clark’s Where Dark Things Grow\, is a page-turning epic of gothic adventure\, full of wildly imagined creatures and black magic\, propulsive\, deeply felt\, and wonderful. A marvel of a book.”—Tessa Fontaine\, author of The Red Grove and The Electric Woman \nABOUT THE AUTHOR\nAndrew K. Clark is a writer from Alexander\, North Carolina\, outside of Asheville where he now resides. His first full-length collection of poetry\, Jesus in the Trailer\, was short-listed for the Able Muse Book Award. \nHis work has appeared or is forthcoming in UCLA’s Out of Anonymity\, Coffin Bell Journal\, The Journal of American Poetry\, Appalachian Review\, Rappahannock Review\, fall/lines\, The Wrath Bearing Tree and many others. Clark earned his a B.A. in English and M.B.A. from Georgia Southern University\, and an M.F.A. from Converse College. \nWhere Dark Things Grow is his debut novel. \nABOUT THE INTERVIEWER\nDana Ridenour is the award-winning author of the Lexie Montgomery FBI Series: Behind the Mask\, Beyond the Cabin\, and Below the Radar. Ridenour is a retired FBI special agent who spent most of her career as an undercover operative. She now lives and writes in the South Carolina lowcountry. \n  \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-evening-with-andrew-k-clark-author-of-where-dark-things-grow-in-conversation-with-bren-mcclain/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/evening-with-andrew-k-clark-with-dana-ridenour.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241212T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241212T193000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20240915T200034Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240915T200130Z
UID:21746-1734026400-1734031800@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:December 2024 Open Mic Night
DESCRIPTION:The Pat Conroy Literary Center’s monthly Open Mic Night will be held at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.) on Thursday\, December 12\, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Our featured presenters are children’s author Nancy E. Merrill and artist Colleen Sgroi\, creators of the new holiday book\, Elf Dust. Open Mic will also feature short readings of 3 to 5 minutes each by other writers in many genres. \nWhen: Thursday\, December 12\, 2024 at 6 PM – 7:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free · Duration: 1 hr 30 min\nWhere: Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.) \nInterested in reading as part of Open Mic? Let us know at contact@patconroyliterarycenter.org \nWe want to build our community of writers and an appreciation for the art and talent of new\, emerging\, and long-time writers. Thank you for supporting this partnership! \nEvent Facebook Page \nAbout our featured presenters:\nNancy E. Merrill is a mom of two children who were born in Hong Kong where she lived and worked for many years. Living there was an important element in the creation of Elf Dust. Highrise apartment life meant there were no chimneys and Santa wasn’t going to land on the roof. Something had to be found to ignite imagination and magic for her kids. Elf Dust did not disappoint. Today\, Nancy lives in South Carolina after a consulting career around writing\, communications\, and creativity. She is delighted to offer Elf Dust to all who celebrate Christmas and the magic of imagination. \n  \nColleen Sgroi dreamed of being an artist since she was a young girl. Her work is available worldwide on puzzles\, calendars\, prints\, and greeting cards\, and her art has been included in films by major motion picture companies. Her illustrations in children’s books have earned her a Moonbeam Best Illustrator Award\, Feathered Quill Book Award\, Mom’s Choice Awards\, and IBS International Book Awards. She lives and creates in Massachusetts. \n  \n“A new addition to our Christmas library. Children will fall in love with the elves and Elf Dust. The illustrations bring you back to your childhood. Absolutely beautiful. This book will be your go to picture book this holiday season. Can’t wait to use this with my class.”–Heidi Lane\, author and educator \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/december-2024-open-mic-night/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview,Open Mic Night
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/open-mic-night-dec-12-2024.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241204T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241204T193000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20240809T162209Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241130T231051Z
UID:21008-1733335200-1733340600@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:An Evening with William “Billy” Douglas\, author of Hope Is All I Have
DESCRIPTION:Wednesday\, December 4\, 2024 – 6:00-7:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free\nRegistration: Seating is limited; please call to reserve your spot: 843-379-7025.\nVenue: Pat Conroy Literary Center | 601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nThe nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center will host an evening with memoirist and cancer survivor William “Billy” Douglas\, author of Hope Is All I Have\, on Wednesday\, December 4\, at 6:00 p.m.\, at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort). \nFree and open to the public. Books will be available for sale and signing. Seating is limited; please call in advance to reserve: 843-379-7025. \nAbout Hope Is All I Have\nThe three most shocking words you will ever encounter in your lifetime are: You Have Cancer! Once you hear those words\, your life will be forever changed. For William Douglas\, instead of being at the end of his lifetime in dealing with cancer\, it was actually the beginning of a new path unlike any he had ever traveled. How did he prevail through a Stage Four cancer diagnosis and come out for the better? \nHis memoir\, Hope Is All I Have\, champions the inspiration to live\, no matter the circumstances. It is a story of faith\, hope\, love\, friendship\, medicine and how to navigate through many unknown challenges while entrenched in the battle of your life. If you\, a family member\, friend\, loved one\, or just an acquaintance has ever been faced with cancer\, this memoir will give you an insightful story of their enduring battle. An inviting read about a most difficult subject\, Hope Is All I Have is an inspirational story of true perseverance and survival. \n“Defying all odds after a shocking death experience in surgery\, Billy Douglas did more than survive: he lived and he continues to live and to share his inspirational story with other cancer patients\, their loved ones\, and healthcare professionals. This is a compelling book of faith–in both the spiritual and humanistic senses of that word–in which\, as Billy says\, PAP: Positive Attitude Prevails. Hope Is All I Have is as engaging as it is empowering.”—Jonathan Haupt\, executive director\, Pat Conroy Literary Center \n“As a Medical Oncologist\, I am exposed to the effects of cancer almost every day. Despite the obvious suffering that can accompany a cancer diagnosis\, there are also moments of great hope and inspiration. Billy’s story is one of these examples of stealing light from potential darkness. I often feel like my career in cancer medicine allows me to understand to some extent what our patients are going through as they receive and tackle a cancer diagnosis. Stories like this one make me realize that I don’t know the half of it. Billy’s descriptions of the events he experienced help open my eyes to all of the aspects of a cancer journey that I would never even imagine having not walked in the shoes of someone dealing with the struggle first-hand. I hope that his story will serve as inspiration to patients facing cancer themselves\, as well as those working to help find better therapies.”–Todd Gourdin\, Medical Oncologist\, Medical University of South Carolina \nAbout the Author \nWilliam “Billy” Douglas had a successful fifty-year career in sales and marketing in the marine industry. As a product of the South\, he enjoys writing and any kind of water activity. \nHe lives on Hilton Head Island with his wife Linda and their standard poodle Gianni. Douglas is the founder of the Terminate Cancer Foundation. \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-evening-with-william-billy-douglas-author-of-hope-is-all-i-have/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/evening-with-william-douglas-time-change.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241115T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241115T183000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20240915T193240Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240915T193240Z
UID:21740-1731690000-1731695400@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:An Evening with Nancy Murray\, author of No Experience Necessary
DESCRIPTION:Friday\, November 15\, 2024 – 5:00-6:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free\nRegistration: Seating is limited; please call to reserve your spot: 843-379-7025.\nVenue: Pat Conroy Literary Center | 601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nThe nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center will host an evening with memoirist Nancy Murray\, author of No Experience Necessary\, on Friday\, November 15\, at 5:00 p.m.\, at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort). \nFree and open to the public. Books will be available for sale and signing. Seating is limited; please call in advance to reserve: 843-379-7025. \nAbout No Experience Necessary\nIn No Experience Necessary\, Nancy Murray shares the insights\, pitfalls\, and strategies that she gleaned along her journey toward meaningful employment. Her stories prove that even so-called nowhere jobs can be crucial steps to not only establishing a career\, but to discovering ourselves. \nNancy’s workplace tales span a colorful spectrum\, from selling speakers from a seedy van to driving a posh limo; from performing as a professional clown to financial advisor. With each job she profited in ways beyond a traditional paycheck. \nSome might consider this a cautionary tale\, but it’s also a field guide for anyone preparing to fill out their first job application\, not to mention a humorous flashback for those who recall the trials and tribulations of the workplace all too well. \n“Through the many jobs—both ordinary and extraordinary— in this memoir of working\, Nancy Murray shows not only how willing she is to take a chance and fail\, but to grow from those failures with her trademark blend of humor and humility. What really stands out\, however\, is her prose—like a long lunch with a good friend\, there is never a dull moment.”—Jen Michalski\, author of The Company of Strangers \n“No Experience Necessary is an extraordinary account of what it means to work. In vivid and engaging prose\, the book illuminates the struggles and triumphs of insisting on a creative life. A tightly-focused and engaging memoir\, this is an amazing read!” —Kathy Flann\,award-winning author of Smoky Ordinary and Write On: Secrets to Crafting Better Stories \nAbout the Author \nNancy Murray is a poet\, playwright\, and storyteller. Her first memoir\, One Child for Another\, was published by 11th Hour Press\, and was recognized by Baltimore Magazine as one of the Ten Best Reads in 2015. Her storytelling was showcased by the Women of the World Festival in Baltimore\, Maryland. \nNancy’s plays and poetry have been produced and published in various venues and presses including\, Ireland’s HCE Review\, The Maryland State Poetry and Literary Society\, and in multiple anthologies. Her most recent publication\, a poetry collection called The Colors of Fear\, was published by Cyberwit Press. She teaches compositional writing at the Community College of Baltimore County and hosts a series of poetry workshops at the Arts Lab of South County\, Maryland. \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-evening-with-nancy-murray-author-of-no-experience-necessary/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/evening-with-nancy-murray.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241114T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241114T193000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20240809T152630Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240809T152630Z
UID:20990-1731607200-1731612600@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:November 2024 Open Mic Night
DESCRIPTION:The Pat Conroy Literary Center’s monthly Open Mic Night will be held virtually on Thursday\, November 14\, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Our featured writer is poet Mamie Morgan\, author of Everyone I’ve Danced with Is Dead. Open Mic will also feature short readings of 3 to 5 minutes each by other writers in many genres. \nWhen: Thursday\, November 14\, 2024 at 6 PM – 7:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free · Duration: 1 hr 30 min\nWhere: Facebook Live \nInterested in reading as part of Open Mic? Let us know at contact@patconroyliterarycenter.org \nWe want to build our community of writers and an appreciation for the art and talent of new\, emerging\, and long-time writers. Thank you for supporting this partnership! \nEvent Facebook Page \nAbout our featured writer:\nMamie Morgan received an MFA from UNC Wilmington and a BA in English and Religious Studies from Wofford. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in numerous literary journals\, including Washington Square Review\, the Oxford American\, Fish Barrel Review\, Nimrod\, Muzzle\, Four Way Review\, Yemassee\, Carolina Quarterly\, Inkwell\, and the Greensboro Review. She lives in the woods with her husband and their two pit bulls\, Henrietta Modine and Wednesday Stewart. \n  \nAbout Everyone I’ve Danced with Is Dead \n“Reading these poems is like sitting down with a friend for a conversation-the kind of friend you trust to tell all of the truth\, but with mercy. These whip-smart poems don’t flinch\, even at the hardest truths about what it means to be human-to love and to lose\, to damage and be damaged\, to live through moments ‘where the quake originates\,’ that make you cling to ‘every word that had ever made me want to stay alive.’ These poems have an electric power\, one strong enough to change lives. Morgan faces devastation with such an open grace and generosity that a reader can’t help but feel there’s one truth more real than any other: that even in the moments that shake us to the core\, there is always hope.”–Emma Bolden \n“The central organ pumping blood through these poems is wonderment. Morgan’s particular brand of wonder knows no hierarchies: love\, betrayal\, fallings out\, quotidian\, joy\, jail\, sex\, school\, the body\, war\, race\, politics\, and that old tricker Death all crowd around the same table. This book pulls you forward and shows you the world as it is–a mess worth celebrating\, recoiling from\, enduring\, and embracing. These poems are built of risk and witness–importantly\, they have the language and daring to match. This is one helluva barn burner.”–Michael McGriff \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/november-2024-open-mic-night/
LOCATION:Online – Facebook Live
CATEGORIES:Author Interview,Open Mic Night
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/open-mic-night-november-14-2024.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241024T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241024T183000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20240826T213529Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241009T183012Z
UID:21727-1729789200-1729794600@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:An Evening with photographer and writer Pete Candler\, author of A Deeper South
DESCRIPTION:UPDATE: This event has been postponed and will be rescheduled for early 2025.\nThursday\, October 24\, 2024 – 5:00-6:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free\nRegistration: Seating is limited; please call to reserve your spot: 843-379-7025.\nVenue: Pat Conroy Literary Center | 601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nThe nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center will host an evening with photographer and writer Pete Candler\, author of A Deeper South\, on Thursday\, October 24\, at 5:00 p.m.\, at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort). \nFree and open to the public. Books will be available for sale and signing. Please call in advance to reserve a seat for this free event: 843-379-7025. \nAbout A Deeper South\nIn A Deeper South: The Beauty\, Mystery\, and Sorrow of the Southern Road\, Pete Candler offers a travel narrative drawn from twenty-five years of road-tripping through the backroads of the American South. Featuring Candler’s own photography\, the book taps into the public imagination and the process of both remembering and forgetting that define our collective memory of place. Candler\, who belongs to one of Georgia’s most recognizable families\, confronts the uncomfortable truths of his own ancestors’ roles in the South’s legacy of white supremacy with a masterful mix of authority and a humbling sense that his own journey of unforgetting and recovering has only just begun. \n“A beautifully crafted journey through the past and current South that will interest Southerners and readers curious about the region and its history.”―Library Journal \n“A righteous plumbing of suppressed family histories\, a vigorous exorcism of the myths and willful ignorance that trouble the land of his birth\, A Deeper South blazes a path through the nostalgia thicket for readers who want to make sense of their inheritances. Candler writes with indignation and empathy\, showing us a better way to see the South so that we can better love any place we call home.”―John T. Edge\, author of The Potlikker Papers and host of TrueSouth \n“Part history\, part memoir\, and part self-discovery\, Candler calls on us to face the demons of our past so that we can truly appreciate the region we call home.”―Karen L. Cox\, author of Dreaming of Dixie: How the South Was Created in American Popular Culture \nAbout the Author \nBorn and raised in Atlanta\, Georgia\, Pete Candler is a writer\, photographer\, and filmmaker whose work has appeared in Los Angeles Review of Books\, Bitter Southerner\, Washington Post\, and elsewhere. He lives in Asheville\, North Carolina. \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-evening-with-photographer-and-writer-pete-candler-author-of-a-deeper-south/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/evening-with-pete-candler-postponed.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241010T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241010T193000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20240808T203249Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240808T203249Z
UID:20917-1728583200-1728588600@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:October 2024 Open Mic Night
DESCRIPTION:The Pat Conroy Literary Center’s monthly Open Mic Night will be held at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.) on Thursday\, October 10\, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Our featured writer is Columbia City Poet Laureate Jennifer Bartell Boykin\, author of Only Believe\, selected for the 2023 Hilary Tham Capital Collection. Open Mic will also feature short readings of 3 to 5 minutes each by other writers in many genres. \nWhen: Thursday\, October 10\, 2024 at 6 PM – 7:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free · Duration: 1 hr 30 min\nWhere: Conroy Center (601 Bladen St. Beaufort\, SC) \nInterested in reading as part of Open Mic? Let us know at contact@patconroyliterarycenter.org \nWe want to build our community of writers and an appreciation for the art and talent of new\, emerging\, and long-time writers. Thank you for supporting this partnership! \nEvent Facebook Page \nAbout our featured writer:\nPoet Laureate of Columbia\, South Carolina\, and a 2023 Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellow\, Jennifer Bartell Boykin is the author of the poetry collections Traveling Mercy and Only Believe. Her poetry has also appeared in Obsidian\, Callaloo\, the Raleigh Review\, kinfolks: a journal of black expression\, the museum of americana: a literary review\, and Scalawag. \nBartell Boykin is the recipient of fellowships from Callaloo and The Watering Hole. A school librarian at Muller Road Middle School in Blythewood\, SC\, she previously taught creative writing and English at Spring Valley High School in Columbia\, SC\, where she was also named the 2019–20 Teacher of the Year. She has been recognized as an American Library Association Spectrum Scholar and an Augusta Baker Scholar at the University of South Carolina’s School of Information Science\, where she earned her master of library and information science degree. Bartell Boykin was born and raised in Bluefield\, a Black community in Johnsonville\, South Carolina. \nAbout Only Believe\n“Bartell’s Only Believe carefully treads through remembering childhood assault confounded with good memories that some would struggle to keep\, including memories that elders lose if we’re not quick enough to catch them. These poems are part oral history and part affirmation\, but this collection complicates faith and walks readers closer to truth\, healing\, and forgiveness and standing tall in a grandmother’s house.”–Tara Betts\, author of Refuse to Disappear and Break the Habit \n“There are two stories in Only Believe–the story of a girl who doesn’t know how or when to tell what happened to her\, and the story of her grandma\, whose house is a place of both refuge and danger\, whose decline into Alzheimer’s is a counterpoint to the speaker’s own struggles with memory. Memory\, as Jennifer Bartell reminds us\, is neither window nor mirror nor veil\, but all at the same time. Religion promises answers—’My Black Jesus can do anything’–but tricks her into blame and shame instead. Something happened to that girl and she knows that ‘it’s time to speak / it’s time to heal.’ The only way to do that is by telling both stories\, that of the girl struggling to speak\, and that of the grandmother\, whose life reminds her that ‘God is a woman / on a big black Singer / sewing machine\, whose quilts became her tablets\, whose needle becomes her pen.’–Ed Madden\, author of A Pooka in Arkansas and Ark \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/october-2024-open-mic-night/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview,Open Mic Night
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/open-mic-night-october-10-2024.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240919T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240919T183000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20240826T212222Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240826T212222Z
UID:21720-1726765200-1726770600@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:An Evening with novelist Roger Jones\, author of The Final Victory
DESCRIPTION:Thursday\, September 19\, 2024 – 5:00-6:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free\nRegistration: Seating is limited; please call to reserve your spot: 843-379-7025.\nVenue: Pat Conroy Literary Center | 601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \nThe nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center will host an evening with novelist Roger Jones\, author of The Final Victory\, on Thursday\, September 19\, at 5:00 p.m.\, at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.\, Beaufort). \nFree and open to the public. Books will be available for sale and signing. Seating is limited; please call in advance to reserve: 843-379-7025. \nAbout The Final Victory\nIn a novel that fuses the riveting action of The Boys in the Boat with the emotional heft of The Fault in Our Stars\, twenty men and women with cancer-ridden bodies compete in a grueling race only to discover that real victory is achieved within. \nAfter he is diagnosed with neuroendocrine cancer\, Tripp Avery feels like all is lost. He finds himself coaching a team of twelve men and eight women with cancer diagnoses of their own\, hoping to qualify for the Mixed Masters Dragon Boat national championship and defy their prognoses. If they win\, they will represent the United States at the International Dragon Boat races in Hong Kong. \nBut things soon get complicated\, as four of his teammates struggle against their physical limitations and the psychological weight of their conditions. In the summer heat of Chattanooga\, their resolve grows thin—along with Tripp’s patience. After a devastating loss to the defending national champions\, Tripp can only see the finish line\, and he pushes the team even harder. Soon\, the team starts to fall apart.\nAs members of the team collapse under the pressure and one is hospitalized\, he must confront his own failings and find a way to move forward. He begins to question his motives\, wondering if the win is worth the trauma and what that says about him. Despite the odds\, he resolves to rally the team toward a comeback that seems impossible\, if only for one final victory. \n“What is courage? In this notable debut\, Roger Jones explores the strength\, resilience\, compassion\, and willpower of a band of athletes who define courage and triumph over unspeakable odds. These twenty men and women overcome cancer to not merely win a national championship but to survive. I laughed. I cried. I was inspired. The Final Victory is an uplifting novel we all need to read.”—Mary Alice Monroe\, New York Times bestselling author \n“An inspiring and stirring tale of courage\, The Final Victory is inspired by the true story of a group of athletes who face life-threatening illnesses and are bonded together by their indomitable will to win. Jones gives us a novel that is equal parts laugh out loud funny\, moving\, and uplifting. You will love it!”—Patti Callahan Henry\, New York Times bestselling author \n“The Final Victory brilliantly demonstrates that women recovering from breast cancer can lead full and active lives — paddle for sure\, but also pick up and hug their grandchildren. Dragon boating challenges the limits of human performance\, especially for those with more than their share of hurdles to clear. That’s the magic that Roger Jones captures\, and that’s why The Final Victory is a great book.”—Dr. Don McKenzie\, Founder of the original Breast Cancer Dragon Boat team \nAbout the Author \nRoger Jones\, businessman\, philanthropist\, humanitarian and avid athlete has founded numerous business and community organizations. In 1996\, he started Companion Associates\, Inc.\, one of South Carolina’s largest privately held real estate development firms. Companion Associates was distinguished as one of South Carolina’s fastest growing companies by The South Carolina State Chamber of Commerce in 2006. Jones has helped establish and launch a number of non-profit organizations including Reading Partners of South Carolina\, Charleston Social Venture Partners\, and The Charleston Paddle Club. \nDuring a 2012 trip to East Germany to receive a newly developed intensive radiation treatment for Neuroendocrine Cancer\, Jones decided to pursue his lifelong dream of becoming a writer. The Final Victory is his first novel. He has had articles and short stories published in several local publications as well as The Writers Digest. Married for forty-seven years\, he is the proud father of three children and grandfather of three grandchildren. His life’s greatest lesson is quoted by The Final Victory’s protagonist Tripp Avery\, “Forgiveness is the foundation of every miracle.” \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/an-evening-with-novelist-roger-jones-author-of-the-final-victory/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/evening-with-roger-jones.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240912T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240912T193000
DTSTAMP:20260417T094604
CREATED:20240826T210729Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240826T210729Z
UID:21714-1726164000-1726169400@new.patconroyliterarycenter.org
SUMMARY:September 2024 Open Mic Night
DESCRIPTION:The Pat Conroy Literary Center’s monthly Open Mic Night will be held at the Conroy Center (601 Bladen St.) on Thursday\, September 12\, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Our featured writer is Deirdre Garr Johns\, author of the forthcoming children’s picture book Weathering the Storm and the forthcoming poetry chapbook Fallen Love. Open Mic will also feature short readings of 3 to 5 minutes each by other writers in many genres. \nWhen: Thursday\, September 12\, 2024 at 6 PM – 7:30 PM EDT\nPrice: Free · Duration: 1 hr 30 min\nWhere: Conroy Center (601 Bladen St. Beaufort\, SC) \nInterested in reading as part of Open Mic? Let us know at contact@patconroyliterarycenter.org \nWe want to build our community of writers and an appreciation for the art and talent of new\, emerging\, and long-time writers. Thank you for supporting this partnership! \nEvent Facebook Page \nAbout our featured writer:\nDeirdre Garr Johns writes poetry\, nonfiction\, and children’s fiction. Her work is often inspired by the beauty of nature and the memories of people and places. Deirdre hopes to inspire others and create a sense of connectedness to the world around us. Deirdre’s poetry has appeared in Sylvia Magazine\, South Carolina Bards Poetry Anthology\, Eunoia Magazine\, Nymeria Magazine\, Silver Birch Press\, Stone Poetry Quarterly\, Pink Magazine\, and more. Her nonfiction has appeared in Sasee Magazine. \nFallen Love (Finishing Line Press)\, her first chapbook collection\, will be available for pre-sales this fall and published in January 2025. Her children’s book\, Weathering the Storm\, will be published later this fall. She currently resides in South Carolina with her family\, but Pennsylvania will always be home. She enjoyed a teaching career for eighteen years. Learn more at www.amuseofonesown.com \n  \n\nThis program and others like this would not be possible without your financial help for which\, as always\, Pat Conroy Literary Center gratefully thanks you.
URL:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/calendar/september-2024-open-mic-night/
LOCATION:Pat Conroy Literary Center\, 601 Bladen Street\, Beaufort\, SC\, 29902\, United States
CATEGORIES:Author Interview,Open Mic Night
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://new.patconroyliterarycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/open-mic-night-sept-12-2024.jpg
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END:VCALENDAR