Event Recap:
Words and Wine with Carrie Fountain and Liz Garton Scanlon
by Jessica Hincapie
Every Wednesday night, The Writing Barn hosts a “Words and Wine” event where we invite local published authors to talk about their newest works. It’s free to the public and is a great way to support Austin talent. This past Wednesday, The Writing Barn was thrilled to welcome esteemed poet, Carrie Fountain, and award winning picture book author, Liz Garton Scanlon, to talk about Carrie’s latest collection of poems from Penguin Random House, Instant Winner.
The night started out warm, but wonderfully, with a mingling over wine and cheese. Nothing puts people in the right frame of mind to discuss writing, quite like wine. There was a nice mix of newcomers and returnees to The Writing Barn, including Samantha, one of The Writing Barn’s past interns. We even had a special canine companion come out to support Austin Literature and The Writing Barn.
The night proceeded with an in-depth Q&A Panel, moderated by the lovely Liz Garton Scanlon. Carrie Fountain discussed everything from her debut book of poems, Burn Lake, all the way to her family’s history in New Mexico, and the Conquistadors that once tried to settle there. She read two poems from her new collection, Instant Winner, one in particular that was Scanlon’s favorite. She discussed her relationship to her writing and how it has developed and changed throughout her life, noting that now she has no problem saying that poetry, for her, is akin to a spiritual experience. She discussed her experience with the publishing world and her experience as a mother of two. She then took questions from the audience, sharing with us her past writing regimens and processes.
The night ended with the purchasing and signing of both Carrie and Liz’s latest works. Carrie even mentioned that there might be a young adult novel in the making. Maybe the next time she comes to The Writing Barn, it will be to promote her debut novel. If it’s anything like her collections of poetry, then I have no doubt it will be amazing.
