The thing about doing an anthology of LGBTQ fiction and poetry from Appalachia is that you have as distinguished and accomplished a group of writers as you would have if you just did an anthology of Appalachian fiction and poetry or even an anthology of American fiction and poetry. I mean, Dorothy Allison, Lisa Alther, doris davenport . . . And who would you choose to do any kind of literary anthology? Who better than Jeff Mann and Julia Watts?? If I was again teaching a course on Appalachian Literature, this would be one of my required books. “This collection, through its poetry and prose, maps the queer ecology of Appalachia and the voices that construct themselves in relation to the landscape and the cultural imagination of the place. Each piece in the book unfolds as paradox of both belonging (being from and of a place) and nearly complete alienation.” - Stacey Waite. “A gratifying diversity of multigenerational voices, styles, and attitudes. The theme of loyalty to place paired with queer identity results in marvelous poetry and fiction.” - Felice Picano. Jeff Mann is a multi-genre writer whose work includes much more than memoir, distinguished nature poems, and cutting-edge homoerotic fiction. He hails from West Virginia and teaches at Virginia Tech. Julia Watts teaches at South College in Knoxville and in the Murray State University low-residency MFA Program. An Eastern Kentucky native, she is the author of over a dozen novels for both the young adult and the trade audience.
Morgantown: West Virginia University Press, 2019. 283 pages with a “Selected Bibliography of Same-Sex Desire in Appalachian Literature.” Trade paperback