What Happens in East Texas, Stays in East Texas Jamie Ford

What Happens in East Texas, Stays in East Texas Jamie Ford

2018 marked the fifth time I’ve attended the annual Pulpwood Queens Girlfriend Weekend, which for authors is sort of like Coachella meets Burning Man with a little bit of Elvis thrown in for a hunka-hunka good measure. (And twice they’ve had world-class Elvis impersonators, so I’m not even kidding.)

In other words, you have to be there to fully understand this phenomenon.

The Pulpwood Queens began as one humble little book club founded in Jefferson, Texas (Pop. 1967), by Kathy L. Murphy, who owned Beauty and the Book, a salon/bookstore where you could read Cutting for Stone while Kathy cut your bangs.

Now they number over 750 affiliated book clubs all over the world. Their book-loving members wear tiaras, leopard print everything, and a lot of pink! (I tried writing that sentence without an exclamation mark, but it just needed to be there.)

Once a year, scores of these book club members make the pilgrimage to East Texas for a book love explosion of author panels, keynotes, dancing, and costumes galore.

A few years ago, the theme was “Around the World with Books” so I went as a steampunked Phileas Fogg, complete with a wearable hot air balloon. That was my fourth year, and I’d learned that you can’t overdo it when it comes to costuming. These ladies go all out. I was also honored to be co-hosting, which meant I got to do a lot of the interviewing, instead of being the interviewee, which was exhausting, exhilarating, and an all-round good time.

Plus, it’s always nice to meet other authors, make new friends, spend time with fellow travelers on this weird, magical writing journey. I got to rub elbows with a Pulitzer Prize winner (Bill Dedman), a Nobel Prize finalist (Pat Montandon), and one of the ghostwriters for the Hardy Boys (Joe Holley).

Last, but not least, I was gobsmacked to learn that my novel, Songs of Willow Frost, had been voted the Pulpwood Queens Fiction Book of the Year. You’d think those highlights would be enough to sum it all up, but no, there’s so much more.

If you’d like to know what Jamie’s Top 10 PQ Girlfriend Weekend moments are - get a copy of THE PULPWOOD QUEEN CELEBRATES 20 YEARS and read for yourself.

You’ll be glad you did!

#8 - Dressing up as the White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland (my wife, Leesha, was the Dormouse). As I donned my ears and bowtie, fellow author, Mark Childress, said, “There will be photos of you in that outfit for the rest of your life.” I’m totally okay with that.

Published by Brother Mockingbird and edited by Pulpwood Queen Author, Susan Cushman, this collection of essays by authors, book club members, and supporters of the Pulpwood Queens is a love letter to the founder and CEO, Kathy L. Murphy. An ode to the written word and the place that literature and reading play in all of our lives.

Thank you Brother Mockingbird Publishing for letting us share some stories!