Once a fairly sleepy little attraction located in downtown Eatonton, the Georgia Writers Museum has significantly ramped up its presence and programming in recent years.
In summer 2019, the museum celebrated the grand reopening of its expansion and refurbishment during Alice Walker 75, a city-wide celebration of “The Color Purple” author’s 75th birthday.
The museum now has four galleries featuring dynamic, interactive exhibits. Three galleries are devoted to Eatonton writers Alice Walker, Flannery O’Connor and Joel Chandler Harris, and one is reserved for the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame, which is presented by the University of Georgia. And there is a separate room reserved for activities and events.
Executive Director Melissa Swindell came on board in 2021, and along with manager Amanda Vining, they have enlivened the event space with a robust slate of creative programming.
Monthly Meet the Author events are not just book signings, they’re parties that include dinner and adult beverages.
The April 4 event features Ben Wynne, a professor of history at the University of North Georgia in Gainesville and author of “Something in the Water: The History of Music in Macon, Georgia, 1823-1980.” For the occasion, Swindell has hired a DJ who will spin tunes ranging from Sidney Lanier flute music to the Allman Brothers Band.
“It’s going to be a dance party with Georgia music,” says Swindell, formerly executive director of the Wren’s Nest.
Credit: Georgia Writers Museum
Credit: Georgia Writers Museum
On Valentine’s Day the museum presents Crime & Wine featuring Sheryl McCollum, director of the Cold Case Investigative Research Institute and co-author of the criminal justice textbook “Cold Case: Pathways to Justice.”
Taking inspiration from the advertising campaign that put pictures of missing kids on milk cartons, McCollum invites participants to drink wine from bottles plastered with photos and details about missing persons while she presents details and evidence about a select cold case. Then she encourages participants to apply their amateur sleuthing skills to the mystery.
“She believes that if she goes into these communities and talks about these cases with people, that someone might know something and they could give them a lead,” says Swindell.
The museum’s big event of the year, though, is the second annual Writers Retreat, a two-track educational conference featuring 18 instructors taking place Feb. 25-26 at the museum.
“One track is on the craft of writing — shorts stories, novels, memoir, how to write dialogue,” says Swindell. “And one track is on publishing — how to edit, how to work with critique groups, how to host a book launch, how to write a proposal.
“We try to capture everybody in whatever stage of writing they’re in,” she says.
The Writers Retreat will have two keynote events. Bill Curry, a retired football coach, football analyst for CNN and author, along with his wife Carolyn Curry, author of the novel “Sudden Death,” will speak Saturday. On Sunday, Alice Walker will speak live via Zoom and conduct a Q&A.
Instructors include children’s book author Carmen Agra Deedy, YA author Jackson Pearce, screenwriter Michael Lucker and crime thriller author Brian Panowich, among others.
The museum also operates one of the only general interest bookstores in middle Georgia, but it has a unique niche: It only carries books by Georgia authors, and among its inventory is a large selection of signed editions.
Eatonton has an extraordinary literary legacy, but Swindell is determined to make sure the museum looks well beyond its city limits and represents the entire state.
“Our goal is to make it the Georgia Writers Museum,” she says. “We love our writers in the Lake Country, but we are the state’s museum. We are bringing in authors and writers from across the state so we are drawing a well-rounded, diverse audience that represents all ages, races, and genres even.”
The Writer’s Retreat is $300 for the weekend, $145 for one day and $45 for individual sessions. Meet the Author and Crime & Wine tickets are $45 per person. To register, go to georgiawritersmuseum.org.
Located at 109 S. Jefferson Ave. in Eatonton, the Georgia Writers Museum is open Thursday through Saturday and by appointment. Admission is free. For details, call 706-991-5119.
Suzanne Van Atten is a book critic and contributing editor to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Contact her at svanatten@ajc.com.
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