Monthly Archives: August 2021

The Southern Literary Messenger, one of the first literary journals associated with the American South, made its debut in August 1834 in the city of Richmond, Virginia. A year later, a young Edgar Allan Poe signed on as an assistant editor and regular contributor. Many of Poe’s most famous works originally appeared in The Southern Literary Messenger, including his only novel, The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket, which first came out in installments in the Messenger. Poe is but one of many Southern writers who have established their reputations and credentials by contributing to literary journals. Such literary journals and magazines have played significant roles in the history of Southern literature. 

Over the years, Charlotte has served as the home for several notable literary journals, such as that Southern Poetry Review, which was based in Charlotte for many years. The list of literary journals that are currently published in Charlotte include The Sanskrit Literary-Arts Magazine (a UNC Charlotte student-run magazine that made its debut in 1970), The Main Street Rag (a print magazine that has been publishing poetry, short fiction, essays, interviews and other features since 1996), and Qu: A Literary Magazine (a publication of the MFA program at Queens University of Charlotte that has been releasing issues since 2015). Soon, however, a new Charlotte-based literary journal will join this list.

This new journal is a project of the Charlotte Center for Literary Arts, more commonly known as Charlotte Lit. In just five years, Charlotte Lit has carved a unique spot in the Charlotte arts scene, hosting more than fifty classes annually and bringing big-time writers like poet Terrance Hayes to town for special events and classes. They’re entering new territory now with a major writing contest and journal. I asked co-founders Kathie Collins and Paul Reali for the details.

“We’re thrilled to announce the launch of an annual writing contest and journal, both called Writers/South,” wrote Collins. “With prizes totaling $10,000, plus publication, the contest and journal will be game-changers not only for Charlotte Lit but also for North Carolina and the surrounding region. Our mission is to be the premier creative writing center in this pocket of the southeast. To achieve that, we really needed to expand our reach.”

“We’re fortunate,” added Reali. “It’s very difficult for regional journals to attract big-name judges and offer significant cash prizes. Thanks to a generous Charlotte Lit patron, a good friend who wishes to remain anonymous, we’re able to enter the contest market with a splash. This patron has been actively supporting our mission for several years and understands how essential it is to our growth for us to ‘spread the words’ beyond Charlotte.”

Writers/South will award a first-place prize of $1,500 in each of four categories—fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and flash. Attractive cash prizes also go to second place, third place, and honorable mention winners. The judging panel is filled with familiar names and rising stars: Ron Rash for fiction, Nickole Brown and Jessica Jacobs for poetry, Tara Campbell for Flash, and Stephanie Elizondo Griest for nonfiction. Poet and University of South Carolina professor Michael Dowdy rounds out this dream team as journal editor. All winners will have their entries published alongside writing by this year’s judges in the inaugural issue of Writers/South: Journal of Charlotte Lit, to be published May 1, 2022.

In keeping with Charlotte Lit’s regional ambitions, the contest is open to writers in North Carolina and its four border states: Virginia, Tennessee, South Carolina, and Georgia. Submissions are open from September 1 to December 1. Winners will be announced March 1. Contest winners will be honored and have an opportunity to read at a May event that also honors the first inductees into the new Charlotte-Mecklenburg Literary Hall of Fame (which is a story for another day).

Writers should stop by https://www.charlottelit.org/ to learn more about the Writers/South Awards and how to enter. Collins said, “We can’t wait to read what you’re writing!”

In my role as the writer of the Storied Charlotte blog, I thank Kathie Collins and Paul Reali for their inside scoop on the founding of Writers/South. Just as The Southern Literary Messenger played a major role in the writing career of Edgar Allan Poe and other nineteenth-century writers from the South, I am sure Writers/South will soon play a major role in the careers of many contemporary writers who call Storied Charlotte home.

Bill Hill and I go way back.  We arrived at UNC Charlotte within two years of each other.  Bill came in 1982 as a communications studies professor and debate coach, and I came in 1984 as an English professor with a specialty in children’s literature.  Shortly after we met, we discovered that we both liked to play ping pong.  Nearly every week we played fast-and-furious ping pong games during our lunch breaks, and we’ve been friends ever since.  Over the years, our careers followed along similar paths.  We both served as program directors, department chairs, and associate deans.  Bill retired a few years ago, but we still stay in touch on a regular basis.

Another point Bill and I have in common is that we both pursued unusual careers before we entered academia.  During the 1970s and early ‘80s, I worked as a professional puppeteer, and around the same time period, Bill pursued a career in the professional roller derby world.  I’ve long enjoyed hearing Bill’s inside stories from his roller derby years, and I’ve often thought that these stories would be of interest to a wide audience.  Well, I am pleased to report that Bill’s roller derby stories are included in Jim Fitzpatrick’s new book titled Ad-Lib to the Blow Off!:  The True Story of Professional Roller Derby. 

One of the chapters in Fitzpatrick’s book is titled “Bill Hill: The Debater and the Skater.”  This chapter traces Bill’s involvement in roller derby, from watching roller derby on television with his father, to skating with the Chicago Pioneers and other teams, to working as a commentator for ESPN’s coverage of roller derby.  This chapter is chockfull of stories from Bill’s roller derby days.  I especially enjoyed the stories about how Bill entered the world of professional roller derby, including a story about hitchhiking to San Francisco so that he could participate in a roller derby training program.  The chapter concludes with a reflection from Bill about his skating career:

Needless to say, Roller Derby changed my life.  I have often said that I learned as much or more being on the road skating as I did in school.  I grew quickly when I joined Roller Derby; it was an experience and a prerequisite for getting along. … I constantly think about the places, the people, the feel of the track, the sounds of the audience.  Yes, I miss all the night drives, … I miss the bumps and the bruises, I miss the people, … I miss doing the TV.  It may sound strange, but nothing can replace those things because there is simply nothing else like life in Derby.

Of course, Ad-Lib to the Blow Off! is not just about Bill’s connections to roller derby.  Jim Fitzpatrick covers the entire history of roller derby in his book. In writing this book, Jim turned to Bill for research and editorial help.  Bill also provided the foreword to the book.  I contacted Jim and asked him for more information about the book and Bill’s role in making this book a reality.  Here is what Jim sent to me:

I fell in love with Roller Derby and the San Francisco Bay Bombers as a small boy in 1968 and had a childhood dream to become a professional skater. Fast forward a number of years and I was able to live out my dream which ended up lasting 36 years (in a variety of roles which included skater, referee, track crew member, trainer, assisting in promotion, coach/general manager)! Things didn’t quite pan out as I had envisioned but it was a wild roller coaster ride that I would definitely take again if I had it to do over.

Over the years I became a collector and historian of the sport and a little over a decade ago began writing my book in order to preserve its history before it was too late. I reached out to Bill Hill for his insights into his time as a professional skater, from rookie to one of the top player coaches. Bill also gave me valuable assistance with editing and organizing the book.

As for my book, I feel one doesn’t need to be a fan of Roller Derby to enjoy it. It offers something(s) for a wide variety of audiences. The original Roller Derby’s rich history began during the Great Depression and survived through three wars (WWII, Korean War, and Vietnam War), as well as decades of radical changes in society. Just when Roller Derby reached its peak in popularity and its future looked bright, in the blink of an eye it shut down. For years the fans, participants, and media were led to believe the sport succumbed to the oil crisis and gas rationing of the early 70s. In reality, the actions of a member of the Chicago Outfit (Al Capone’s Mob) were what actually led to the league’s demise. Since then, countless attempts to revive the sport have come and gone. Many were poorly executed or run. A few were totally bizarre reinterpretations of the game involving huge money and major TV deals but stood absolutely no chance of succeeding since those in charge lacked the understanding of what made the original sport so successful. Many of the attempts “muddied the water” as to what the original Roller Derby was and tarnished its reputation.

The book also gives an unprecedented look inside the sport, from not only the business end but the skaters’ point of view. In order to do that, I had to shatter kayfabe (a term that was used in professional wrestling in which events were portrayed as “real” even though they were staged) and be the first to expose what really went on and how much of the sport was legitimate and how much was “set.” Numerous personal and touching insights are included which expose the hazards, hardships, and sacrifices skaters and personnel endured for the honor of being a part of Roller Derby. The allure of performing in an amazingly entertaining but extremely dangerous spectacle, in front of huge crowds and on television, was so powerful that most look back upon it as the best time in their life.

Barnes & Noble Press published Ad-Lib to the Blow Off!, and they have more information about the book on their website:  https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/ad-lib-to-the-blow-off-jim-fitzpatrick/1139822756 Fitzpatrick includes the stories of many skaters in his book, and I enjoyed reading about these other skaters.  Nevertheless, the skater’s story that interests me the most is Bill’s story.  In a sense, this book captures a side of Bill that most of his professional colleagues at UNC Charlotte never saw during his long career as an administrator.  I think of Bill’s skater self as his alter-ego.  In his role as a Senior Associate Dean, Bill represented the interests of the university and behaved as one would expect an upper-level university administrator to behave.  However, having played ping pong with him many times, I saw another side of Bill—a more rebellious, go-for-broke side.  In a way, the multiple sides of Bill are like the multiple sides of Charlotte.  The Chamber-of-Commerce side of Charlotte is all business, but the Storied Charlotte side of the city is far more interesting.