MANDY INTRODUCES AUGUST’S FEATURED AUTHOR, BRENDA SUTTON ROSE

It is my honor to introduce you to this month’s featured author, Brenda Sutton Rose. Not only is she a fantastic author, she’s a very talented artist, and a wonderful human being.

I first “met” Brenda years ago on social media after the release of my first short story collection. I was scrolling through and stopped on a video to listen to one of the sweetest, soft-spoken, southern accents ever. Imagine my surprise when I realized she was talking about Walking the Wrong Way Home! I almost hit the the floor and I’m not going to lie, I probably replayed it five times. Then a couple years later, I got to meet her in person when she and her beautiful red-headed daughter, Alyson (who is the spitting image of her mama), surprised me at an event Live Ink Theatre put on for the same book when I lived on Amelia Island. After the event, we went to dinner and I laughed so much my face hurt. It honestly felt like we’d been friends for years. Y’all, that’s the kind of person Brenda is. See what I mean when I say she’s a wonderful human being? And that’s just one tiny example—you’ll read more in the following interview. The only thing that would make this better is if you could hear the answer’s in Brenda’s southern accent.

Tell us a little bit about the free library you have in front of your home – is it true the library played a part in your writing this novella?

I love the little free library and have since it was installed. My husband and a man who helps him with household projects built it many years ago. Since then, I have discovered many thank you notes left inside for me, mostly from children, telling me how much they enjoy books being so accessible in the neighborhood. Because of how many children borrowed books from Dogwood Free Library that sits at the end of my driveway, I decided to write something young adults would find interesting. The seeds for a novella that would appeal to both young and old began spreading and taking root inside my chaotic and creative head. I wanted the youth living in today’s wiregrass region to know how life was for the early settlers, wanted them to understand the history of this place, wanted them to fall in love with nature.

When did the characters in A Wiregrass Childhood come to you and what order?

Three boys emerged early in the process. I grew up with four brothers and two sisters, so I began writing with a good bit of first-hand knowledge about young boys. My brothers and I played games such as Cowboys and Indians, War, and other games such as ones involving quicksand for boys. I also have a son, grown now, but I remember those youthful years with deep love. He and his cousins used sticks as lasers. The story of the three boys is set in the wiregrass region of Georgia during the early to mid-1800s, a dangerous yet extraordinary period of time when pioneers arrived to make their homes on untamed land belonging to the Creek Indians.

The first character I came to know through my writing was Micah, even though he appeared in the book after his older brother Isaac. Micah was different and easily bullied. He was sensitive and gifted in many ways. 

Isaac, Micah’s older brother, took on much responsibility and looked out for Micah. Although unusual, Isaac loved the labor it took for him and his family to survive in the untamed wiregrass region. 

The last of the three boys to appear was Oak, a Creek boy whose mother and uncle had died. Among the Creeks, the maternal side of the family were the role models for the children, and Oak had been left without his mother and without his only maternal uncle. Alone in many ways, Oak would not leave the wiregrass region to be relocated. He knew his home by heart. He knew it like he knew the curves of his bow and arrow. He felt the steady beating of his heart coming from the land. He heard the voices of his ancestors near the river. 

The three boys’ lives make the story of A Wiregrass Childhood.

Which character or scene was the most fun to write? Which scene was the hardest?

The music came from me as easily as breath. It took on wings and flew. Scenes involving music lifted me, turned me around, and carried me back to my youth and to my family, and the violin touched every corner of my heart. I also found it easy to write about Micah. I knew him as a mother knows a son.

The most difficult part to write was about the pain and suffering of the Creek Indians. To this day, in my mind, the souls of the Creek float in the river nearby. 

I know that your novella is fiction, but there’s a lot of truth intertwined in the story. How did you do your research? What did you find that was the most interesting or surprising?

The research for this novella began more than a dozen years ago. My interest in local history, my family’s role as early pioneers, the beautiful and scandalous stories related to my ancestors—my findings filled numerous files. I bought all the history books I could find based on this region. I went through DNA testing and searched through Census records, birth, death, and marriage records. War records. Pension records. Newspaper stories. Oh, goodness! I loved every minute of research! I learned a great deal about the Creek tribes. When preparing the story, I kneaded as much truth into the dough as required to make it rise. 

A Wiregrass Childhood was published through The Horseman Press, which is the student-run book publication entity at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College. Tell me how this came about.

When Dr. Rachael Price, advisor of Horseman Press, contacted me and asked what I was writing, she found the story quite interesting. It would be a good fit for an agricultural college. The college owns The Georgia Museum of Agriculture which preserves 19th-century history. My novella was set in the 19th century in Georgia. Dr. Price’s students took on a great deal of the work involved in publishing. They handled editing, book cover, much of the promoting, and more. 

You are a very talented writer, but you are also a very talented artist. How long have you been painting? What is your favorite type of medium? One more question – do your stories inspire your art, or vice versa?

I no longer can remember exactly how long I’ve been painting, but I became serious about it about twenty years ago. Music hides among my brushstrokes and in the paints. Stories often reveal themselves on my canvas. I am unable to describe my style. If there is a particular style of mine, it would best be described as what lives and grows and flourishes in me. I am old bones and new bones. It is my intention to create what I find to be deep and soulful, paintings that inhale and exhale, dance and bleed. I am a member of The Tuesday Colorists, a group of four extraordinary artists who meet to paint at my art studio once a week, usually on Tuesdays. We exhibit solo and as a group. These artists nourish me—we nourish one another. They would tell you that many of my works tell stories. 

My paintings are normally oils, though you might come across one painted in acrylics from time to time. I use Michael Harding paints and absolutely love them. They feel as if they were mixed and prepared near the landscape of my youth. I can nearly taste the rich pigments. I painted a large scene of longleaf pine and wiregrass while writing A Wiregrass Childhood. By getting lost in the painting, I fed my writing. The two often work hand in hand. Oh! And you, Mandy, own one of my paintings! “Leavin’ His Sorry Ass!” Now, that was a fun painting!

You have such a sweet family and I know they are all very proud of you – including your four-legged kids! Who is the first person you run a story by?

Thank you. I do have a supportive family. They bring me such joy, including my three dogs. Some of the readers might know Ahab. He is the oldest and largest of my dogs. He posts on Facebook with a bit of help from me. And dogs do tend to often show up in my writings. In Dogwood Blues, BB King was the protagonist’s dog. And in A Wiregrass Childhood, Butter Bone often sneaked into scenes. But you asked who the first person is that I run my stories by. That would be my son Patrick who reads nearly everything I write before it is published. When I created Micah for A Wiregrass Childhood, based loosely on him, he read it and approved it, even though Micah’s differences were on full display. He also gave me a great deal of feedback on Dogwood Blues. Patrick offers constructive criticism and runs ideas by me. His enthusiasm is contagious.

What are you reading these days?

I am reading Ahab’s Wife again. It is a book that often calls me back. 

You’ve been very busy (and it looks like you’ve been having a lot of fun) promoting A Wiregrass Childhood. Have you had time to think about your next project? 

I’ll make this answer short and simple. Yes. I am writing another book. Exciting!