Writing Circle (ongoing)
Fridays, 9:30 AM to 10:30 AM
Jacki Kellum Studio at 26 S. Main Street, Water Valley

Water Valley Literary Festival
Sep
27

Water Valley Literary Festival

Y'all, are you excited for our first ever Water Valley Literary Festival?

9:00 AM – Writing Young Adult and Children’s Literature 
Amy Carlisle Deluca (pen name Amy Patrick) 
Linda Williams Jackson 
In conversation with Chris Goodwin, moderator 

10:00 AM – Writing Water Valley History 
Calvin Hawkins, author of Under the Dusty Sands, a history of African Americans in Yalobusha County, in conversation with Joseph Gurner 

11:00 AM - Hubert Creekmore’s Literary Life  
Mary Alice Welty White 
Suzanne Marrs 
Pip Gordon 
Michael Pickard 
Cynthia Kennedy 
In conversation with Annette Trefzer, moderator 

12:15 PM DECLARATION OF A MISSISSIPPI HUBERT CREEKMORE DAY 
Mayor Tommy Reynolds and Representative Sam Creekmore 

12:30 PM - Lunch Conversation 
Robert Fieseler, author of American Scare: Florida’s Hidden Cold War on Black and Queer Lives, in conversation with Jaime Harker

2:00 PM – Writing Fiction  
Sean Ennis 
Exodus Oktavia Brownlow 
Margaret-Love Denman 
In conversation with Kellene O’Hara, moderator

3:30 PM – Writing Biography 
E. Stanely Godbold, Jr. author of Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter: Power and Human Rights, 1975-2000, in conversation with Brandon Presley

5:00 PM – 6:00 PM - Reception  

Books will be for sale through Violet Valley bookstore.  Writers will sign their books. 

View Event →
“Writing Your Book Proposal" with Erin Austen Abbott
Jun
21

“Writing Your Book Proposal" with Erin Austen Abbott

Have an idea for a book but no idea how to formulate your proposal? Erin Austen Abbott, author of three books, with a fourth on the way, will walk attendees through the process to stand out to book agents and publishers alike. Along with writing her books, Erin has ghostwritten three books and contributed to several others. She knows the ins and outs of what works and what doesn’t. Bring your ideas or work-in-process proposals or just come to learn. No experience is necessary.

 

Registration: This event is free and open to the public, but space is limited so please send an email to creekmorelit@gmail.com with your name (first and last) to reserve your spot. It is first come, first served.

 

About Erin Austen Abbott: With over 20 years of experience in photography, design, styling, and storytelling, Erin Austen Abbott has built her world to include freelance lifestyle, travel, food, and design writing and photography. She is the author of three creative non-fiction books, with a fourth out in the spring of 2026 on Running Press Books. Erin has contributed to several other books, including the Oxford travel guide for Wild Sam, Paris by Design, and Truth, Love, & Clean Cutlery.

 

Erin wrote for the blog Design*Sponge for many years and has contributed work to 20+ magazines and blogs over the years. Erin also works as a creative consultant for writers, small business owners, and other creatives. She has lived back in her home state of Mississippi since 2005.

 

Learn more about her here.

View Event →
Hubert Creekmore Birthday Celebration
Jan
16

Hubert Creekmore Birthday Celebration

We humbly invite our Water Valley neighbors, and lovers of the written word everywhere, to join us to celebrate the birthday of poet, novelist, translator, and garden aficionado Hubert Creekmore. Hubert Creekmore was born in Water Valley on January 16, 1907 and graduated from the University of Mississippi in 1927. After studying drama at Yale University, he earned a Master’s degree in American literature from Columbia University in 1940. New York City would become his home base for the rest of his life. His novels focused on Mississippi life; The Welcome, set in a fictionalized Water Valley, was reprinted by the University Press of Mississippi in 2023.

We want to honor Water Valley’s famous literary son on his birthday. Please join us for a brief program, in which we will read excerpts from Creekmore’s writing and share a birthday cake with our friends and neighbors.

We also want to take the opportunity of Hubert’s birthday to announce the creation of the Hubert Creekmore Literary Society. The goals of the society are to engage local writers and community members in the literary arts; educate the larger public about Hubert Creekmore and Water Valley as a literary community; promote and sponsor literary arts more broadly; and provide opportunities for youth and community members to write.

We have many ideas for future activities, including reading series, writing workshops, book clubs, and a Water Valley Literary Festival. But first, we want to invite our Water Valley neighbors, and lovers of the written word in North Mississippi, to sign up for membership, volunteer for event planning, and contribute ideas and expertise to the new organization. We are excited about the possibilities of the Hubert Creekmore Literary Society and we want it to serve the needs and interests of Water Valley and surrounding communities.

Please join us on January 16 and let us know what kinds of literary events you would like to see in Water Valley during our first year.

View Event →