"Now, Appalachia"

On the latest episode of Now, Appalachia, Eliot interviews Eliot interviews co-hosts of the Pantsuit Politics podcast as well as authors Beth Silvers and Sarah Stewart Holland. In addition to the podcast, they are the authors of "Now What?: How to Move Forward When We're Divided (About Basically Everything)." Sarah attended Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky, and later received her Juris Doctor from American University. Sarah began her career as a congressional staffer, campaign aide, and blogger and social media consultant. She lives in Paducah, Kentucky. Beth s cohost with Sarah Stewart Holland of the popular podcast Pantsuit Politics and also coauthored I Think You're Wrong (But I'm Listening): A Guide to Grace-Filled Political Conversation. She attended Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky, and later received her Juris Doctor from the University of Kentucky. Beth has practiced law and served as a human resources executive and business coach. She lives in Union, Kentucky, and serves on several local boards of directors.

On the latest episode of Now, Appalachia, Eliot speaks with author Jamie Lyn Smith about her latest book TOWNSHIP. Jamie Lyn Smith is a writer, editor, and teacher. She earned her BA in English and Theatre from Kenyon College, her Masters in Education from Fordham University, and her MFA in Creative Writing from Ohio State University. Jamie Lyn is the Fiction Editor at BreakBread Magazine and a Consulting Editor for The Kenyon Review. Her work has appeared in The Pinch, Mississippi Review, The Kenyon Review, American Literary Review, Yemassee, Bayou, and others, and she is the recipient of a 2020 Ohio Arts Council Individual Excellence Award in fiction.

On the latest episode of Now, Appalachia, Eliot interviews author Valerie Nieman about her latest novel IN THE LONELY BACKWATER. Valerie has been a farmer, a sailor, a journalist, a teacher. To the Bones, a genre-bending novel about Appalachia, was published by West Virginia University Press in 2019, joining three earlier novels, a short fiction collection, and three poetry books. Her award-winning poetry and short prose have been published here and abroad. A graduate of WVU and Queens University of Charlotte, she has held state and NEA creative writing fellowships.

On the latest episode of Now, Appalachia, Eliot interviews Ohio author Michael Wayne Hampton about his new novel DREAM KIDS. Michael Wayne Hampton is the author of five books of fiction. His criticism, essays, fiction, and poetry have appeared in numerous publications such as Atticus Review, The Southeast Review, 3AM Magazine, and Fiction Southeast.In 2013 he won The Deerbird Novella Prize, and in 2012 his work was nominated for Best American Short Stories. In the past he has been a semi-finalist for the Iowa Short Fiction Prize, and a two-time finalist for the World's Best Short Short Story Contest. In 2014, he was awarded an Ohio Arts Council Individual Excellence Award.

On the latest episode of Now, Appalachia, Eliot interviews author Jess Montgomery about her latest novel THE ECHOES. Jess writes a Writer's Digest magazine column, "Level Up Your Writing (Life)" and was formerly the “Literary Life” columnist for the Dayton Daily News. Based on early chapters of the first book in the Kinship Series, The Widows, Jess was awarded an Ohio Arts Council individual artist’s grant for literary arts and named the John E. Nance Writer-in-Residence at Thurber House in Columbus. She also hosts the podcast, “Tea with Jess: Chatting with Authors & Artists.” Jess lives in her native state of Ohio.

On the latest episode of Now, Appalachia, Eliot interviews Virginia historian Jonathan White about his new book: A HOUSE BUILT BY SLAVES: AFRICAN AMERICAN VISITORS TO THE WHITE HOUSE. Jonathan White is associate professor of American Studies at Christopher Newport University. He is the author of ten books and over 100 articles, essays, and reviews on Lincoln and the Civil War. His writing has appeared in Smithsonian, Time, the New York Times, and the Washington Post. He lives in Newport News, Virginia.

On the latest episode of Now, Appalachia, Eliot interviews author Nancy Allen about her novel RENEGADE. Nancy Allen, author of the Ozarks Mystery Series, practiced law for fifteen years as Assistant Missouri Attorney General and Assistant Prosecutor in her native Ozarks. She’s tried over thirty jury cases, including murder and sexual offenses, and is now a law instructor at Missouri State University. Her debut novel, a legal thriller entitled The Code of the Hills, was published in 2014 by HarperCollins/Witness, followed by A Killing at the Creek (2015), The Wages of Sin (2016) and A Wolf in the Woods (2018).

On the latest episode of Now, Appalachia, Eliot interviews author Robert Gwaltney about his novel THE CICADA TREE. Robert Gwaltney, a writer of southern fiction, is a graduate of Florida State University. He resides in Atlanta Georgia where he is an active member of the Atlanta literary community. By day, he serves as Vice President of Easter Seals North Georgia, Inc., Children Services, a non-profit supporting children with disabilities and other special needs. Robert’s work has appeared in such publications as The Signal Mountain Review and The Dead Mule School of Southern Literature. Robert also serves as Prose Editor for The Blue Mountain Review.

On the latest episode of Now, Appalachia, Eliot interviews author Jessica Weible about her new non-fiction book DEAD LETTERS: DELIVERING OPENED MAIL FROM A PENNSYLVANIA GHOST TOWN. Jess Weible is a freelance writer and reporter. She is also a founding editor for The Watershed Journal, an inclusive, regional literary magazine for the western Pennsylvania wilds. Jess leads two writing groups, the Writer’s Block Party and the Rebecca M. Arthur’s Young Writers. She lives with her husband and two boys in Brookville, Pennsylvania.

On the latest episode of Now, Appalachia, Eliot interviews science fiction author J.V. Hilliard about his latest book THE LAST KEEPER. Born of steel, fire, and black wind, J.V. Hilliard was raised as a highlander in the foothills of a once-great mountain chain on the confluence of the three mighty rivers that forged his realm’s wealth and power for generations.

His father, a peasant dwarf, toiled away in industries of honest labor and instilled in him a work ethic that would shape his destiny. His mother, a local healer, cared for his elders and his warrior uncle, who helped to raise him during his formative years. His genius brother, whose wizardly prowess allowed him to master the art of the abacus and his own quill, trained with him for battles on fields of green and sheets of ice.