2008 Woodie Awards
Southern Selection
New Writing Series invites Julia Elliot
Kyle Kernan
Issue date: 4/14/08 Section: Style
Julia Elliot whipped the attention of a full Soderberg Auditorium at Jenness Hall on April 10 at 4:30 p.m. In the second to last reading of the University of Maine's New Writing Series, Julia Elliott made her first appearance.
Elliot read her story "The Whipping," which is published in the collection, "Best Fantasy Stories." In a shorter reading, Elliot's stark description for the unpleasant - shown through amusing perspectives of Southern children about a strange, semi-abusive father - made for an exciting evening for the series.
Associate professor of English David Kress introduced Elliot and called her "one of my heroes." He provided his list of people that were heroes to him, calling to mind famous individuals including Elliot. Kress praised her writing for being perfect, which he called the only imperfection in her writing. "She doesn't miss a trick," Kress said.
Elliot's intense first-person perspective was meticulously descriptive and articulate, as it seemed she took one breath in the beginning of the reading and let it out in the final captivating words of her story. You couldn't help but feeling lost when it was over.
People flocked to the reading in the dimly lit room of Jenness Hall to hear the story of an abusive and bewildering father. We heard that the father "splashes Jim Beam in his cake," while the children in the piece take to drinking pickle juice. Elliot said that she wasn't sure why her story was chosen for the Best Fantasy Story of Fiction in 2007's collection, but the answer to that question may lie in the mind of the narrator, who takes the audience into the fantastic imagination the young character has.
According to the NWS Website, nwsnews.wordpress.com, Elliot's fictions have appeared in the literary publications "Conjunctions," "Tin House," "The Georgia Review," "Puerto del Sol" and "The Mississippi Review."
Besides being published in the Best American Fantasy collection of 2007, (Plume Books), which was listed in "The Hugo Awards that Weren't"; included in Story South's Million Writer's Award, "Notable Stories of 2004" - "Top Online Short Stories of 2004" - and received the Great American Novel Award in the Virginia Festival of the Book.
Elliott was asked questions that seemed to go on longer then the reading itself. When asked if she reflected on her own personal experience to write the piece, she answered that the circumstances are mostly fictional and the story is based on people she knew. In clarifying what she thinks are the most important aspects of the short story, Elliot said that it's important to develop an authentic texture with details that immerse you in a conventional plot with three-dimensional characters.
Elliot said her writing is more minimalistic and she touches upon surrealist writing. She said she draws on her Southern heritage, evokes texture in her writing through the description of objects and her experiences as a child growing up in the South.
Elliott is an instructor in English and women's studies at the University of South Carolina.
For more information about the New Writing Series or Julia Elliot, visit nwsnews.wordpress.com.
Elliot read her story "The Whipping," which is published in the collection, "Best Fantasy Stories." In a shorter reading, Elliot's stark description for the unpleasant - shown through amusing perspectives of Southern children about a strange, semi-abusive father - made for an exciting evening for the series.
Associate professor of English David Kress introduced Elliot and called her "one of my heroes." He provided his list of people that were heroes to him, calling to mind famous individuals including Elliot. Kress praised her writing for being perfect, which he called the only imperfection in her writing. "She doesn't miss a trick," Kress said.
Elliot's intense first-person perspective was meticulously descriptive and articulate, as it seemed she took one breath in the beginning of the reading and let it out in the final captivating words of her story. You couldn't help but feeling lost when it was over.
People flocked to the reading in the dimly lit room of Jenness Hall to hear the story of an abusive and bewildering father. We heard that the father "splashes Jim Beam in his cake," while the children in the piece take to drinking pickle juice. Elliot said that she wasn't sure why her story was chosen for the Best Fantasy Story of Fiction in 2007's collection, but the answer to that question may lie in the mind of the narrator, who takes the audience into the fantastic imagination the young character has.
According to the NWS Website, nwsnews.wordpress.com, Elliot's fictions have appeared in the literary publications "Conjunctions," "Tin House," "The Georgia Review," "Puerto del Sol" and "The Mississippi Review."
Besides being published in the Best American Fantasy collection of 2007, (Plume Books), which was listed in "The Hugo Awards that Weren't"; included in Story South's Million Writer's Award, "Notable Stories of 2004" - "Top Online Short Stories of 2004" - and received the Great American Novel Award in the Virginia Festival of the Book.
Elliott was asked questions that seemed to go on longer then the reading itself. When asked if she reflected on her own personal experience to write the piece, she answered that the circumstances are mostly fictional and the story is based on people she knew. In clarifying what she thinks are the most important aspects of the short story, Elliot said that it's important to develop an authentic texture with details that immerse you in a conventional plot with three-dimensional characters.
Elliot said her writing is more minimalistic and she touches upon surrealist writing. She said she draws on her Southern heritage, evokes texture in her writing through the description of objects and her experiences as a child growing up in the South.
Elliott is an instructor in English and women's studies at the University of South Carolina.
For more information about the New Writing Series or Julia Elliot, visit nwsnews.wordpress.com.
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