Monthly Archives: March 2025

The Spring 2025 Issue of Litmosphere

March 31, 2025 by Mark West
Categories: Storied Charlotte

The other day one of my students asked me if I knew of any literary journals published in Charlotte, so I happily told her about Litmosphere, the literary journal published by Charlotte Lit. As she wrote down the information that I shared with her about Litmosphere, she said, “That’s a cool-sounding name.” I agree.

Some of my favorite words start with lit, such as literature, literary, literacy, and literati. They all derive from the Latin word littera, which means letters.  I also like the word sphere. This word has connections to the Latin word sphaera, which means, “globe, ball, or celestial sphere.”  Thus, for me, the name Litmosphere conjures up a vision of a celestial sphere with letters zooming around, forming words, phrases, poems, and stories. Well, I am happy to report that the new spring 2025 issue of Litmosphere completely matches my vision of a literary, celestial sphere.

I contacted Kathie Collins, the Editor-in-Chief of Litmosphere, and asked her for more information about the latest issue.  Here is what she sent to me:

Mark, thanks so much for asking about Charlotte Lit’s spring issue of Litmosphere. There are some thrilling (and a few chilling) voices in this issue, each of which is paired with a painting by A. J. Belmont, an outstanding contemporary artist from New Hampshire. Our issues are never themed, but Paul and I usually find a feeling tone emerges among the pieces we select for publication. While this issue’s subject matter is broad, the overall feeling is one of estrangement, and Belmont’s emotionally captivating deconstructions of his subjects—spaces, sleep, and key memories—perfectly capture its mood.

The opening lines of Richard Allen Taylor’s poem “Tour Guide” are a good example of this disorientation: “If you need a guide through the territories / of loneliness, take me. I know these lands, / speak the language…”. Likewise, Erin Slaughter’s “The Killing of Snakebird” presents us with the longing for a re-ordering of an inner landscape that’s become unrecognizable: “I tire of my own mythology. I wake up alive / past the end credits, unsure which story / I’m in.”

These rich explorations of strange worlds, inner and outer, are evident in the issue’s other categories, too. In her essay “Educación,” Justine Busto orients herself in Satillo, Mexico by learning to move more slowly; while Jeremy Schnee, in his outrageous “The Young Master Wannabe,” finds glory in moving fast. In her flash story “Twenty-three and None,” Deborah Davitt imagines what it might be like to come from nowhere. And, among this issue’s short fiction stories, we wander through multiple surreal landscapes, stories that attempt again and again to answer the question, “who will I be next?” In the final lines of her epistolary story “Tenure,” Amelia Dornbush explains to her imagined reader, “Most of all, I hope that you understand that until and past the End, we loved. That is how Maria and I chose to die. And it is now how I will choose to live.”

This issue is rich in its strangeness and full in its declaration of love. Mark, we hope your readers will explore some of these strange and fantastic landscapes by taking some time to read a few poems and a story or two. The entire issue is free to read. Let us know what you think!

To read the spring 2025 issue of Lithosphere, please click of the following link:  https://litmosphere.charlottelit.org/issues/2025spring/

I congratulate Kathie and all the good folks at Charlotte Lit on the release of the latest issue of Litmosphere.  With the publication of each issue of Litmosphere, Charlotte Lit makes an important contribution to the larger literary sphere that I call Storied Charlotte.

Tags: Charlotte LitLitmosphere

Webb Hubbell’s New Legal Thriller 

March 22, 2025 by Mark West
Categories: Storied Charlotte

A few months before she died, Dannye Powell sent me an email message in which she provided me with a tip for my Storied Charlotte blog.  Over the years, she often contacted me when she had information about a new book by a Charlotte author, and I always followed up on her suggestions. In this particular email, she wrote, “I want to bring your attention to a man in my neighborhood—Webb Hubbell—whose new thriller novel is out.  He served as Associate Attorney General under Clinton and also served as mayor of Little Rock, but now he lives in Dilworth and writes thrillers.  His new novel is titled Light of Day, and it’s part of a series.”

Taking Dannye’s advice, I did a little research on Webb. I found out that he moved to Charlotte in 2010 after serving in high-level positions in government and industry. Drawing on his background as a lawyer, he started a new career as an author of legal thrillers. He launched his Jack Patterson series in 2014 with the publication of When Men Betray. The central character in this series, Jack Patterson, is a successful lawyer in Washington, DC, who often finds himself in the middle of complicated and dangerous cases. In Light of Day, he agrees to represent a young computer genius who happens to be the grandson of the head of the Louisiana crime syndicate.  Almost immediately, Jack gets caught up in a life-threatening situation involving technology companies, the FBI, and Louisiana’s crime syndicate.

While researching Webb’s colorful life, I became curious about how an electrical engineering student at the University of Arkansas, turned college football player, turned high-powered attorney, turned politician ended up becoming a novelist in Charlotte.  I contacted him and asked him about his decision to become a writer.  Here is what he sent to me:

I am a bit nervous writing to an English professor. My high school English teacher is probably rolling in her grave at the thought that I’ve published seven books. As you might imagine, I was not her favorite student. Ironically, I studied engineering in college, where I didn’t write a single sentence for five years — perfect training for a lawyer and author. However, being a Southerner, storytelling comes naturally to me, and when my wife and I moved to Charlotte, I decided to write novels to keep myself out of trouble.

My first book, When Men Betray, begins with Jack driving to Davidson for Parents Weekend, but he ends up in Arkansas when his best friend murders a U.S. Senator. Each time I start a new Jack Patterson thriller, I consider setting it in Charlotte. However, after living here for fifteen years, I still don’t feel confident enough to accurately portray this wonderful city. My current project, following Light of Day, was originally set in Bat Cave, NC, but Hurricane Helene has forced me to reconsider.

That’s not to say the Carolinas haven’t influenced my writing. Every novel has been written at my desk in Dilworth, with occasional writing retreats to Little Switzerland or the Carolina beaches. Light of Day is a perfect example. During and after Covid, I was stuck. Finally, Suzy and I went to Pawleys Island to walk the beach and write. The sunrises and sunsets over the ocean and marshes provided the inspiration I needed to finish the novel I’d struggled with for two years.

In each of my novels I come up with a theme and setting, but I don’t outline. (I know, that’s not the right way to write.) Instead I put Jack and the other characters in a pickle and hope they will subconsciously help me figure out how to escape. I try to incorporate themes based on my experiences as a lawyer or at the Justice Department. Light of Dayexplores our loss of privacy, the cooperation between major tech companies, and the manipulation of justice. My oldest daughter lives in New Orleans, so our visits have introduced us to the city’s restaurants, the influence of organized crime, and the mysterious swamps and bayous.

A good trial lawyer, like an author, simplifies complex facts for an audience. I let Jack use some of my old courtroom techniques.

For more information about Webb and his novels, please click on the following link:  https://webbhubbell.com

I thank Webb for sharing his thoughts on his writing career.  I also thank Dannye for introducing me to Webb.  Although Dannye is no longer with us in person, her spirit and her good advice continue to resonate in our Storied Charlotte community.

Tags: Legal ThrillerWebb Hubbell

The Power of Stories to Bridge Differences

March 15, 2025 by Mark West
Categories: Storied Charlotte

I recently learned that the second day of April is National Reconciliation Day. The history of National Reconciliation Day can be traced back to the 1980s when the advice columnist Ann Landers came up with the idea of devoting this day to mending strained relationships.  For Landers, reconciliation always involves fostering understanding through improved communication.

In keeping with Landers’ idea, the Levine Museum of the New South is sponsoring an author panel discussion on April 2, 2025. Titled “Reconciliation Through Story,” this event will take place at the South Boulevard Library (4429 South Blvd.) from 6:00 to 7:30. The event is free, but registration is required. Here is the official description of the event:

Join Levine Museum on National Reconciliation Day at South Boulevard Library, for a panel discussion, moderated by Natisha Lance, with four local authors on the power of stories. Those with different perspectives can read the same book to spark conversations promoting understanding and communication which are necessary steps in reconciliation. Our panelists will speak about how their books are a part of that bridge-building process.

The author panel will include Carol Baldwin, debut author of Charlotte-based young-adult novel, Half-Truths, based in Charlotte in the 1950s; Kathleen Burkinshaw, the author of The Last Cherry Blossom, which is based on her mother’s life as a 12-year-old during the last year of WWII in Hiroshima; children’s book author Dorothy H. Price, author of the Jalen’s Big City Life series; and Daddy-Daughter Day; and Meredith Ritchie, author of Poster Girls, a women’s historical fiction novel set in Charlotte in WWII.

For more information about registering for this event, please click on the following link: https://www.museumofthenewsouth.org/lmns-events/reconciliation-through-story/

I commend the Levine Museum of the New South for sponsoring this panel discussion. All the authors on this panel are active members of the Storied Charlotte community, and they all have valuable points to make about the power of stories to bridge differences.

Tags: Charlotte AuthorsLevine Museum

The Charlotte Mecklenburg Library’s Community Read Program

March 09, 2025 by Mark West
Categories: Storied Charlotte

During the month of March, the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library is once again sponsoring its Community Read program.  The purpose of this month-long program is to encourage the members of the larger Charlotte community to read and discuss common texts that all deal with a central theme. For this year, the theme deals with our responses to art.  The organizers are asking participants to complete the following statement: Art is …

For more information about the Community Read program, please click on the following link: https://www.cmlibrary.org/community-read

This year’s signature title is  Portrait of a Thief  by Grace D. Li. This novel focuses on a group of Chinese American college students who set out steal five priceless Chinese sculptures from Western art museums. These sculptures were all looted from Beijing centuries ago. On one level, the novel is an exciting heist story, but on a deeper level, it is a thought-provoking introduction to the role that colonization has played in the history of art.

In organizing this year’s Community Read program, the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library has reached out to many community partners, including Charlotte Lit.  The folks at Charlotte Lit are providing participants with opportunities to write about this year’s theme.  Intrigued, I contacted Paul Reali, the co-founder and Executive Director of Charlotte Lit, and I asked him for more information about their role in this year’s Community Read program.  Here is what he sent to me:

Charlotte Lit has been a Community Read partner for several years. Beginning last year, we decided it would be fun to integrate the year’s theme into our most popular program, Pen to Paper. 

P2P, as it’s commonly known, is Charlotte Lit’s free weekly writing session, 9:30-10:30 a.m. Tuesdays, via Zoom. Each P2P includes a mini-lesson, a writing prompt, quiet writing time, and optional sharing—led by Kathie Collins, Paula Martinac, Meg Rich, or me. For March, each P2P session (4, 11, 18, and 25) will include a prompt that’s based on the Community Read’s “Art is…” theme or is inspired by the adult title.

We see about 20 people for P2P each week, mostly from this area but also from across the country. They’re fun, and not quite like any other prompt-based writing sessions we’ve encountered. It’s easy to sign up for our March sessions, or any P2P, here: https://charlottelit.configio.com/p2p. We’ll look forward to seeing some new faces!

I commend Charlotte Lit and all of the other community partners who are contributing to this year’s Community Read program.  I always describe my Storied Charlotte blog as a celebration of Charlotte’s community of readers and writers, and the Community Read program is a perfect example of what I mean when I use this phrase.

Read Aloud Rodeo Returns to Park Road Books

March 01, 2025 by Mark West
Categories: Storied Charlotte

Park Road Books and I are pleased to announce our second Read Aloud Rodeo, a read-aloud story-time event that will take place at Park Road Books (4139 Park Road) from 10:30 to 12:30 on Saturday, March 8, 2025. At the Read Aloud Rodeo, children’s authors, local educators and literacy advocates will participate in a two-hour marathon reading of picture books aloud to children. For more information about this event, please click on the following link:  https://www.parkroadbooks.com/event/read-aloud-rodeo-celebrating-read-across-america-day

The Read Aloud Rodeo is tied to the National Education Association’s Read Across America Week, which traditionally kicks off on the second day of March in honor of Dr. Seuss’s birthday.

Park Road Books and I previously collaborated on an annual event called the Seuss-a-Thon, which involved a marathon reading of picture books by Dr. Seuss.  Like the previous Seuss-a-Thons, the Read Aloud Rodeo will include a marathon reading of picture books, but at this year’s event, not all the featured picture books are by Dr. Seuss.  

My interest in organizing the Read Aloud Rodeo has a personal connection  For me, the act of reading aloud to children relates to my own childhood. I went to a very small, rural school that did not have the resources that were generally available in larger schools at the time. As a result, my dyslexia went undiagnosed. My third-grade teacher told my parents that she thought I was “mildly retarded,” but the school did nothing to help me overcome my learning disability. Luckily for me, my father did. He read aloud to me practically every night, and this experience helped me develop my love of literature even though I initially found it difficult to read on my own. By cultivating my interest in books and stories, my father provided me with the incentive to persist in my efforts to become a proficient reader despite my dyslexia. I am sure that I would not be an English professor today if my father had not read to me during my childhood.

In recent years, researchers have studied the impact of reading aloud to children, and their research findings are consistent with my own experiences. Ralf Thiede, a colleague of mine at UNC Charlotte, summarizes these findings in his book Children’s Books, Brain Development, and Language Acquisition. As Ralf points out, the act of reading aloud to children plays a major role in helping children build their vocabularies and learn how language works.

While I believe there is a pedagogical value associated with reading aloud to children, the purpose of the Read Aloud Rodeo is just to have fun.  I invite everyone in Storied Charlotte to bring their kids to Park Road Books next Saturday for a fun story-time event.

Tags: Reading Aloud