When notices started going up around Eureka Springs about the "Meet the Maker" events frequently held during the holiday season, Writers' Colony at Dairy Hollow Executive Director Michelle Hannon had a flash of inspiration: Why couldn't WCDH emulate these cheery salons, where artists were available to chat with potential art buyers, by hosting an event where readers could meet the writers of some of their favorite books?
"Our writers are all creators too; let's do the same thing for them," says Hannon. "It's 'Meet the Story Maker,' and you're buying the book directly from the writer. It's a book that's going to be signed by the author with a personalized message, which is a thoughtful gift you can be proud of. Buying a book directly from the writer that created it is a purchase you can feel good about."
Hannon says 19 authors are scheduled to appear, and each will read a 15-minute selection from their book.
"There will be something for everybody -- books for children, young adults and adults -- in a wide range of genres," she says. "Everything from fantasy, poetry, history, mystery, anthologies, to entertain, educate and inspire."
Admission is free, as is the gift wrapping that will be offered during the event. However, says Hannon, donations are always welcome and will support the scholarship fund that helps bring a diverse slate of authors to WCDH, including "emerging writers and marginalized voices." The Dairy Hollow Echo, an anthology of work from the online literary magazine published four times a year, will be available for purchase. The anthology includes 107 stories, poems, essays and other creative works from 87 different authors. The Carroll County branch of Dolly Parton's Imagination Library will also be present.
WCDH first opened its doors to writers in 2000 and, today, offers eight private suites designed to provide the quiet surroundings necessary for authors to work. European-style gourmet meals are served each night, Monday through Friday, and the kitchen is stocked with food and cooking implements so that guests can fend for themselves for the remaining meals.
"The Writers' Colony at Dairy Hollow is an incubator for creative thought," reads a quote on the organization's website from author Crescent Dragonwagon, original founder of Dairy Hollow in its former incarnation as a bed and breakfast and internationally renowned restaurant. "Writers can come here to find their stories -- not only the stories they come here knowing they want to tell, but the stories beneath that. The stories that have an even greater need to be told."
Hannon, who has been in her position for two and a half years now, says it has given her fresh insight into the writer's life.
"I am not a writer myself, but I am a reader," she says. "I have been my whole life -- a voracious one. I absolutely love to read, and I read like I eat -- I'll try anything and find something I like about it. And working at the Writer's Colony, I have come to a new appreciation for writers. I understand how much goes into getting a story from an idea in a writer's head to that published work that you're holding in your hands. It is a long journey -- and it's really such a gift that these creators give to all of us. So when you get to meet the writer, face to face, it's brilliant. You can find out what inspired the writer, the journey they took."
