How can I follow you on social media?
The only place I show up regularly with new work is at "Coming Down to Earth" on Substack. Snippets of previously published work plus some new photos of the farm where I live appear weekly on Facebook, and Instagram (curated and managed by the wonderful Jenn Jensen at Copilot Publishing). Those are my only official accounts, so if you receive a friend request from me anywhere else, please ignore it. It’s not from me! I’m wandering around outside somewhere.
Will you sign a book for me?
Gladly. Just send it to me at Post Office Box 1030, Clarkesville, GA 30523. Be sure to include a self-addressed stamped book mailer along with your instructions to me for signing.
Who handles your speaking engagements?
For a matrix of reasons that include 1) staying home every chance I get, 2) granting priority to the written word over the spoken one, and 3) avoiding the five-hour round-trip to the Atlanta airport, I am traveling very little these days. Take a look at the few upcoming events on my calendar and you'll see what they have in common: biggish, near major airports, for broad audiences, involving just one (or two at the most) public presentations. If you'd still like to be in touch, you may contact live@thewatermarkagency.com for more information.
Are you available for in-person meetings or telephone calls with individuals?
This is one of many things I once did that I no longer do, since time is short and I want the lion's share to go to the people I live with and the place where we live. Some people aim to eat locally. I aim to relate locally. Plus, all my good stuff is already in a book.
May I send you the manuscript of my new book for endorsement?
The only books I read for endorsement are those sent to me by my publisher, and even then I'm no good at meeting deadlines. For the same reason, I no longer write forewords for other people's books or contribute articles to anthologies on particular subjects. Late in life, time is the one thing you can't make, buy, earn, or grow more of. All you can do is decide what matters most and mourn the old familiars as they fall to the scythe of your one true thing.
I am trying to break into the book business. Can you help me figure out how to do that?
The publishing business has changed so much since I first got into it that I would not know where to begin. In your place, I would subscribe to a publication such as Poets & Writers (which has a link for literary agents) or Writer's Digest (which stays on top of contests). The Center for Fiction, The Poetry Foundation, PEN America, and Kundiman (for Asian American writers) also host helpful sites online. If you are trying to figure out where to send your manuscript, scour the acknowledgements pages of authors whose work you admire to see if they mention the names of their editors or agents. Unless you are an extreme introvert, it may also be worth your while to join a local writer's group or search the web for a workshop you would like to attend. If you decide to self-publish, be sure to hire an editor or at least a proofreader. I receive too many self-published books that needed both.
Have you really left church?
I’m in churches all the time. The title of my first memoir was a sleight-of-hand, meant to help all of us explore what we mean when we say, “church.” In my lifetime, the answer is that “church” includes more people than I ever imagined, leaning into the Divine from vastly different angles that all sound familiar to me.
What books do you recommend for writers?
This is a little like setting up a blind date, but here are some books I have found helpful for writers of memoir, first person essay, homily, or poem: The Art of Memoir by Mary Karr, On Writing by Stephen King, Several short sentences about writing by Verlyn Klinkenborg, Writing from the Body by John Lee, Draft No. 4 by John McPhee, Drinking from the River of Life by Mark Nepo, A Poetry Handbook by Mary Oliver, Thinking About Memoir by Abigail Thomas, Writing the Sacred Journey by Elizabeth Jarrett Andrew, Caring for Words in a Culture of Lies by Marilyn Chandler McEntyre, and Burn this Book edited by Toni Morrison. If you can still find a brick-and-mortar bookstore where you can sit on the floor and browse the titles on the Writing/Reference shelf, you'll find more.
