An Evening of Community with John Talbott Presenting The Storekeeper's Vigil & Other Tales
The writer, Henry Miller, once wrote, “A book is not only a friend, it makes friends for you.” Last Friday night, November 6th, that quote found truth in a gathering to celebrate the release of John Talbott’s The Storekeeper’s Vigil and Other Tales.
More than 40 individuals and lovers of literature gathered at The Latta Cultural Center in Selmer, Tennessee, to discuss Talbott’s new novel and collection of short stories. All are set in rural West Tennessee during the World War II era and based largely in McNairy and Chester Counties.
Arts in McNairy (AiM) hosted the event for John, Front Porch founder, attorney and writer, in an effort to give the public an opportunity to discuss the book with the author. The audience who came out to meet him and discuss his new book was a diverse group.
Folks from all walks of life gathered that evening. From school teachers, to local officials, all shared the love for books and stories where characters feel like old friends and its setting is rooted in regional history.
People lingered for the entire evening, holding the hardcover in their hands, exchanging ideas and questions around the book and the creative process behind it.
“I am very appreciative of Shawn and Joanna Pitts and Arts in McNairy for agreeing to host this event and give me an opportunity to discuss the book with an interested audience,” Talbott stated.
Arts in McNairy, a local rural arts agency, encourages the literary arts in West Tennessee and John has long been engaged in writing regional history. However, this is his first published work of fiction, released under the imprint of Front Porch, our independent publishing house rooted in contemporary Southern literature. Based on fictionalized events, many of which have actual roots in the area, the primary work in the collection grapples with issues of community, grief and loss on the homefront during World War II.
“I always welcome the opportunity to visit with readers and those interested in my work, because they help provide an insight into the work that sometimes even the author had not yet had an opportunity to appreciate,” John Talbott.
That exchange between the writer and the reader came alive during the evening’s conversation. Attendees wanted to step inside the craft and the lives of the characters between the covers.
John shared how he writes without a storyboard or outline, discovering what happens from one page to the next, and admitted that the hardest part of writing the book was deciding how much of a character's innermost soul to lay bare when these characters are based on real people from his family and our region’s past. Throughout the interaction with the author, it became clear how deeply those who have already read the book, had bonded with them, not only those that are part of the main Novella, but also around those that are part of the collection’s two short stories, The Quiet Room and The Gravedigger’s Memory.
At the end of the presentation, John Talbott indicated that further events are planned in West Tennessee and looks forward to sharing more about the book with future audiences.
If you have already read The Storekeeper's Vigil and Other Tales, please share your experience on Amazon or Goodreads. Do you have a question you would like to ask John about Nute Jackson, Asaton, or the real history behind these stories? Leave us a comment on our social media platforms (@frontporcheditorial), we are putting together an upcoming reader Q&A and would love to include your voice.
On behalf of John and the Front Porch Team, we would like to thank everyone who joined us for our very first live gathering to celebrate John’s debut fiction novel. Seeing readers connect over these stories in person is the exact reason Front Porch was born.
Also, we are deeply grateful to Arts in McNairy and The Latta Cultural Center for opening their doors and hosting us during First Fridays.
The Storekeeper’s Vigil and Other Tales is available now on hardcover and eBook through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Parnassus Books, and major book retailers. Learn more about the book and the stories that inspired the creation of its characters.
