AN EVENING WITH CLINT BOWMAN AND LOBLOLLY PRESS

Highland Books is pleased to host an unforgettable evening with Loblolly Press as they celebrate the importance of independent bookstores and presses. The event will take place at the Mary C. Jenkins Center, 221 Mills Avenue, Brevard, on September 22, 2024, at 6:00pm.

The evening’s headliner, Clint Bowman, will read from If Lost, his debut collection inspired by the mountains, forests, animals, and people of Appalachia. The evening of powerful readings and community connection will also feature readings by Loblolly Press writers with forthcoming projects: Emma Ensley, Cheryl Whitehead, and Andrew Mack. This is a unique opportunity to meet the authors, hear their work read aloud, purchase books, and have them signed.

Loblolly Press is an independent press based out of Asheville, North Carolina, that is dedicated to publishing contemporary poetry, short fiction, and novels from emerging and marginalized writers across the South. Their goal is to publish writers with a distinctly Southern voice from communities and experiences not always represented in traditional publishing. They are striving to create a community of writers and readers who feel deeply connected to the work they publish because they can see themselves represented within it.

Clint Bowman is a native of Davidson County, North Carolina. His debut chapbook, Pretty Sh!t, was published in May 2023 by Bottlecap Press. Clint is the co-founder and facilitator of the Dark City Poets Society (DCPS) in Black Mountain, NC, where he currently lives with his family. When Clint isn’t volunteering his time to the DCPS, he works as a recreation coordinator— leading hikes, river cleanups, trail workdays, and other outdoor programs.

Cheryl Whitehead is a teacher, musician, and poet from Snow Camp, North Carolina. Her poems have appeared in Mezzo Cammin, The Hopkins Review, Crab Orchard Review and other journals. She has been a finalist for the New Letters and Morton Marr Poetry Prizes and the Unicorn Press First Book Award. She won an emerging artist grant from the Astraea Foundation and received scholarships from the Sewanee Writers’ Conference, the Quest Writers’ Conference and the North Carolina Writers’ Network. She currently teaches English at the Middle College at North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro, North Carolina. Her debut full-length collection, Distant Relations will be published with Loblolly Press in April 2025.

Emma Ensley is a fiction writer, artist, and graphic designer living in Asheville, North Carolina. She grew up in North Georgia and on the internet, and considers both places equally influential to her work. Her short fiction has appeared in Joyland, The Quarterless Review, and Peach Mag. Her collection The Computer Room will be published with Loblolly Press in September 2025.

Andrew Mack is the Founder and Managing Editor of Loblolly Press. His commitment to fostering emerging writers particularly those from marginalized or underrepresented communities drives Loblolly Press’s mission to showcase contemporary poetry, short fiction, and novels with a distinctly Southern voice. Andrew has published two collections of his own poetry, Weekend Revival and What the River Was. His new chapbook, Beasts of Chase, will be published in 2025. He lives in Asheville, NC with his partner.

The event is free and open to the public. Highland Books will have books available for purchase, with a signing at the conclusion of the event.

Highland Books is proud to have been Brevard’s indie bookstore since 1975. They are located at 36 W. Main Street in downtown Brevard. Learn more at highlandbooksonline.com.