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Making Contact
The Sixth Annual
Harriette Austin Writers
Conference
Sure, the self-realized artist writes for the
sake of writing. But, if you want to get pub
lished, you may want to check out the
upcoming Harriette Austin Writers
Conference.
In its sixth year, this is the only confer
ence of its kind in Georgia and one of the few
in the Southeast. It was organized by former
students of Harriette Austin, longtime writing
teacher at the Center. Austin to have unique
ability to inspire her students encouraged
many to pursue careers in writing. Beyond
their wonderful teacher, however, they found
only brick walls.
One such former student was Charles
Connor. “We were sending really good manu
scripts to New York and getting nowhere —
manuscripts that were just as good or better
than what we found at bookstores. Finally,
we decided that if sending our work to New
York didn’t work, we would
bring New York to us.”
Connor enlisted some
other Austin acolytes and
began to put together a writ
ers conference, which they
named in tribute to their
mentor.
“The conference is
designed to bring together the publishing
industry and writers. It’s about making con
tact,” says Connor. “We’ve made a lot of con
tacts at all the major literary agencies and
publishing houses in New York. I’ve been
told by several agents that ours is one of the
best two or three conferences in the coun
try.”
This year’s conference lineup offers 10
agents and/or editors, several of whom are
with big-time agencies or publishing houses
in New York. A major coup, according to
Connor, is the involvement of Marcie Wright,
a TV/Feature writing agent named by Fade In
Magazine in 1996 and 1997 as one of the top
100 people in Hollywood that you should
know. There will also be 10 successful writ
ers presenting sessions including Terry Kay
and best-selling author Sharyn McCrumb.
Some of the presenters will also be evalu
ating manuscripts and giving personal con
sultations. Last year, two writers were picked
up out of the approximately 150 who submit
ted manuscripts — great odds compared to
the industry average. (Unfortunately, the
deadline for submitting a manuscript has
already passed for this conference.)
Organizers are well aware of the market
place — there's a lot of emphasis cn more
commercial genres like mystery, children’s
writing, sci-fi, and business Writing. The
many seminars on the actual business of
writing are counterbalanced by the author
presentations — the fun stuff.
For information and to register, call 542-
6645.
Misty Starlene Herrin
WHAT: Harriette Austin Writers Conference
WHERE: Georgia Center for Continuing Education
WHEN: July 17-19
HOW MUCH: $150 (some events extra)
ART REVIEW
bv LIZZIE ZLCKER SALTZ
TOO WEIRD FOR MOM
Paintings by Terry Rowlett at Jittery Joes
and other selections from the AthFest
Artwalk. All over town.
Thanks to AthFest’s Art Walk, downtown
walls are flush with exceptional art. Duck
into some A/C between bands and stimulate
your optics with Nancy Carter’s manipulat
ed Polaroid transfers and
whimsical line drawings
at Dreamcatcher. Or
Marrakech Express’s dis
play of Ja»on Thrasher’s
well-composed dccu-pics
from the Tibetan Freedom
Concert. Or Blue Sky’s
crowded group foray boast
ing astounding new dot-
encrusted Peter Loose con
structions, 20-plus talis
mans of the talent-oozing
Taylor family, and an ample
set of sizable canvases by
accomplished area painter
June Johnston, whose
rose and beige zoftig fig
ures are unusual
Balthus-Botero
hybrids.
Jittery Joe’s mini-retro
spective of one of Athens’
rising art stairs, Terry Rowlett, is particularly
absorbing. Some of these 11 meticulously
crafted, surrealistic figure paintings are famil
iar from previous shows; others have hung in
Dig-city southern galleries but never in
Athens, and two are fresh off the easel. Each
image subtly subverts the Italianate, goody-
goody Sunday School, coloring-book schlock
Rowlett was force-fed in the rural Arkansas
church-basement nurseries of his childhood.
But rather than toss off simplistic, cynical
send-ups, he creates densely layered essays
on the complexities and ambiguities of con
temporary morality, often
depicting the moment
just before something
momentous occurs,
pinning us at the
tense • rossroads of con
flicted choice.
Anachronisms are par
ticularly piquant in Fire
Starter, Rowlett’s powerful
ly funny new painting
inspired by l bar
encounter with a young
secular-nihilist. In it, a
scantily clad b-cup-teen in a
red devil outfit judges us
from atop the hood of a
Firebird, gnawing her finger
thoughtfully. The artist
leaves us teetering hal-
lucinogenicaily, faith
under fire. Rowlett
yearns to make accessible
realistic pictures that mom would be happy
to hang above her couch, but his honest
artist’s hand wins every argument. ©
* MONDAY
$1.99 Lime Margaritas
WEDNESDAY
All Flavored Margarita Pitchers
$2.00 OFF
THURSDAY
$2.75 - 60oz. Beer Pitchers
FR/DAY
Happy Hour Specials
i ni m m > tavi-kn
WEDNESDAY 7/15 .
Jump Steady
AthfestT6-18 JY
FRIDAY 7/17
Nathan Sheppard 1 2am
Todd Stonesifer
x Trey Boyer
Kip Jones
SATURDAY 7718
King Daddy Zeb
Grout
MONDAY 7/20
Jeremy Joel
TUESDAY 7lTi
ACOUSTIC UNDERGROUND
Open Mic - No Cover
Always $1 Draft & Sh.ot
^ -n n •
1 140 E. Clayton St. • 543-9276
BY THE 40WATT • OPEN DAILY AT 6PM
' 263 W. WASHINGTON • 227-1988
JULY 15, 1998
4JIC4lMUflT
Mush n. y{ luU
BARRY SELL A SUSAN STALEY
WILLIAM TONks \ HI \ REYNOLDS 9:UU|»r*
THE RUNS
HAY RIDE • Ql \l)R A|ETS
. BLOODKIN
I)A\ ID RYAN HARRIS • TENDOR IDOLS
WILL'S DRAMA
v er - r
THE HEALERS
HIGHMATER • THE FOUNTAINS
v - ~’V ■
UGA COMEDY 9:0()prii
Hus “ J1 *.
SONGWRITERS SHOWCASE
STACEY EARLE • DODD TERRELL
VIC VARNEY • WINflELD SMITH
321 E. CLAYTON St.
549-5508
mwiirs
Pack A
Picnic
We have
all of Your
Summer
Picnic
Essentials
Petite Croissants
Fruit & Cheese
Veggies and Dip
Sliced Meats
Salad Samplers
1650 S. Lumpkin
706-546-8915
FLAGPOLE D