Author to sign books, lead workshop

SALISBURY — Award-winning author, editor and teacher Valerie Nieman will visit the Literary Bookpost on Saturday, July 16, for a meet-and-greet followed by a special writing workshop on dialog.

Nieman’s latest novel, “Blood Clay,” is a story that readers say they “can’t put down,” a crime drama that reflects on home, race and the cost of truth-telling, and a lyrical look into the changing face of the New South.

Nieman will read from and discuss her novel from noon until 2 p.m. Following the meet-and-greet, a writing workshop will be offered from 2-4 p.m. The workshop is limited to 15 writers, and the $50 fee includes a personally inscribed copy of “Blood Clay.”

“Dialog is one of the knottiest craft issues for writers,” Nieman commented. “We’ll look at strategies to make your dialog work on every level — advancing the plot, illuminating character, shaping the reader’s understanding of time and place, adding humor and drama.

“Participants may bring selections from their work-in-progress for critiquing and revision. We’ll write through an exercise, and I’ll provide a packet of additional handouts and exercises for continued writing.”

Nieman is the author of a collection of short stories, “Fidelities”; a poetry collection, “Wake Wake Wake”; and two earlier novels. She has received an NEA creative writing fellowship and the Greg Grummer Prize in poetry, among other awards. A graduate of West Virginia University and the MFA program at Queens University of Charlotte, Nieman teaches writing at N.C. A&T State University in Greensboro, as well as workshops for the North Carolina Writers Network and the John C. Campbell Folk School. She is the poetry editor for Prime Number magazine.

For more information or to register for the workshop, contact the Literary Bookpost at 704-630-9788 or by email at mail@literarybookpost.com. The store is located at 110 S. Main St., downtown Salisbury.

Meet the authors contest

The Writers’ Workshop of Asheville is sponsoring the sixth annual Meet the Authors Contest, with a deadline of July 30. The top five contest winners will meet National Book Award-winning authors E.L. Doctorow and Peter Matthiessen in Sag Harbor, N.Y., on Sept. 13-15. They will have the opportunity to discuss their story with the authors, and have books autographed. In addition, 10 honorable mentions will receive recognition.

Submit an unpublished story or chapter of a novel (fiction or creative non-fiction), of 5,000 words or less. Pages should be paper clipped. Your name, address, email, phone, title and genre of work (fiction or nonfiction) should also appear on a cover sheet. Double-space; use 12 point font. The entry fee is $30 per story. Multiple entries are accepted. Enclose legal size self-sealing SASE for critique and list of winners. Please make check or money order payable to The Writers' Workshop, and mail to: Author’s Contest, 387 Beaucatcher Road, Asheville, NC 28805. Emailed submissions may be sent to writersw@gmail.com, with “Authors Contest” in the subject. The entry fee can be paid online at www.twwoa.org.