By Ariana Sumpter
College of Fine Arts and Communication Media Office
CONWAY — University of Central Arkansas writers featured in “A Readers’ Map of Arkansas” will give a public reading in UCA Torreyson Library, Seminar Room 215 on Thursday, Oct. 20 at 7 p.m.
Featured UCA writers will include Dr. John Vanderslice, associate professor of creative writing; Terry Wright, dean of the College of Fine Arts and Communication; Dr. Jay Ruud, retired chair of the Department of English; Garry Craig Powell, associate professor of creative writing; and Sandy Longhorn, assistant professor of creative writing.
According to Wright, a literary map serves as “an abbreviated journey through the state’s letters” and is “meant to be not exhaustive but a generous selection.”
Longhorn said the literary map, available at arkansasreadersmap.com and in print form, honored authors of diverse genres and eras who have contributed to the rich culture of the Natural State. This edition is a revision of a literary map published in 1994 by the late poet C.D. Wright as part of her Lost Roads Project and features works that have both influenced and been influenced by the state of Arkansas.
A steering committee of writers, professors and librarians worked for more than two years to develop the new edition in consultation with H.K. Stewart of H.K. Stewart Creative Services, who executed the graphic design.
Project coordinator Hope Coulter, director of the Hendrix-Murphy Foundation Programs in Literature and Language at Hendrix College, was inspired to spearhead a Readers’ Map revival after hearing Wright say on a visit to Arkansas in 2013 that she’d “love for someone to take it up.”
Wright, a Mountain Home native and one of the nation’s most eminent poets, remained close to her Arkansas roots despite living away from the state for many years. She died suddenly in January 2016.
This project is supported in part by a grant from the Arkansas Humanities Council and the Department of Arkansas Heritage. Additional support comes from the Arkansas Library Association, the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies, the Central Arkansas Library System Foundation, the Hendrix-Murphy Foundation Programs in Literature and Language, the Porter Fund and UCA.
Readers’ Map posters will be on sale at the event, with proceeds going to the Central Arkansas Library System (CALS) Foundation. A free print copy will be available to any Arkansas school or library upon inquiry at readersmap@hendrix.edu.
For more information, contact Longhorn at (501) 450-5108 or slonghorn@uca.edu.
The UCA College of Fine Arts and Communication includes the Departments of Art, Music, and Film, Theatre and Creative Writing as well as the School of Communication. The college’s primary mission is the preparation of the next generation of artists, educators and communicators. For more information about CFAC, visit www.uca.edu/cfac or call (501) 450-3293.
