BECCA MARTIN-BROWN
bmartin@nwadg.com
There’s no question that Eurekan Zeek Taylor is best known for the colorful, humanistic chimps he’s been painting for many years.
But Taylor’s Facebook fans know he’s also a prolific storyteller who loves to reminisce about his childhood in the Arkansas Delta. Eventually, his throw-back Thursday musings became so popular, fans started asking for a book, and the result, “Out of the Delta,” was independently published in 2016.
“I call myself an accidental author,” Taylor says. “I didn’t set out to write a book. I think I would have been terrified to have even considered the idea. [But] after several months of writing the stories, I looked at the list of titles and thought, ‘By gosh, I think I’ve written a book.’ I then spent weeks editing and arranging the material into book form.”
Taylor still couldn’t have imagined himself as anything but a happy attendee at Books in Bloom, a festival for writers and readers held at the Crescent Hotel as part of the May Festival of the Arts in Eureka Springs. But all that changed this year.
“The Carroll and Madison Public Library Foundation recognizes that there are many pathways to publishing, and I am excited that we are exploring some of those ways this year,” says Jean Elderwind, co-chairman of the event. “We invited Marisa Mohi who, through her blog, has amassed thousands of readers. She will share writing tips for building an author platform.
“This year, we also established an Independent Authors Committee. They read dozens of works submitted by independently published writers and chose four authors, Brenda Hancock, Wendy Reese Hartmann, Rosalie Stanton and Zeek Taylor, to share their experiences as self-published authors. They will discuss both why they chose the self-publishing route as well as their experiences about the process. The foundation’s goal is that the ‘Queen of Blogging’ and these talented indie writers will give aspiring writers the tools they need to take the next steps to publishing their work.”
Taylor says his mama, who figures prominently in his stories, would be “over the moon that I’ve written a book and that I will be participating in such a prestigious literary festival. I don’t think she would be surprised. She was my biggest fan and thought I could do anything. I’m the one that’s surprised.
“Being accepted as a participant in the festival is very exciting, and has encouraged me to continue writing. I plan to do just that.”
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FAQ
Books in Bloom:
Zeek Taylor
WHEN — 4 p.m. May 19
WHERE — In the Authors Tent
COST — Free
INFO — booksinbloom.org
