Third edition of Southern LitFest set for June

Written by LAUREN JONES

Newnan’s Southern LitFest returns June 7-8 with a weekend of hobnobbing with local and nationally acclaimed authors.

Presented by the Newnan Carnegie Library Foundation (NCLF), the third iteration of LitFest focuses on literature, nature and art with the theme: Unplugged. Previous literary festivals were held in 2020 and 2022.

“Literature, nature and art intersect as we unplug and discover the joys and challenges of living off the grid,” says NCLF President Andrew Whitlock of this year’s LitFest theme.

Sharing their literary and/or artistic tributes to nature will be Sally Bethea, founding director of Chattahoochee Riverkeeper; CC Lockwood, Ansel Adams award-winning outdoor photographer; Louisiana Public Broadcasting star Gwen Roland of “Atchafalaya Houseboat” fame; and Coweta County’s own Newnan Theater Company.

Back by popular demand is syndicated columnist and humorist Sean Dietrich, who headlined the 2022 LitFest.

Southern LitFest kicks off Friday evening with an Alfresco on the Square event with local authors sharing their works aimed at various ages and interests.

If summer reading is one of your favorite pastimes, you’re sure to find a basketful of new books at this year’s LitFest.

For more info or tickets, visit southernlitfest.com or call the Carnegie Library at 770.683.1347. While daytime events on Saturday are free, registration is required on Eventbrite due to limited seating. The Saturday evening appearance of Sean Dietrich costs $35 with tickets available on Eventbrite.

“Unplug, unwind and don’t miss out on the fun,” says Whitlock.

LitFest 2024: Unplugged – Schedule of Events

Hometown Novel Night, Downtown Newnan

Friday, June 7, 6-9 p.m.

Hometown Novel Night kicks off the weekend with up to 40 regional authors on the Courthouse Square accompanied by the sounds of DJ Alan Ray. The pedestrian-only promenade of booths will extend from West Broad Street to Brown Street adjacent to the Carnegie. This free event is co-hosted by Hometown Novel Writers Association and the Newnan Carnegie Library Foundation.

Aesop’s Fables, Newnan Theatre Company, 24 1st Avenue, Newnan

Saturday, June 8, 9:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.

Once upon a time, Southern LitFest “Unplugged” 2024 brought the famous Aesop Fables to life for Newnan
children. Written, designed and produced by Newnan Theatre Company’s Children’s Academy Kids as a musical variety show, these timeless tales showcase their hard work and talent.

Sally Bethea, Carnegie Auditorium, 1 LaGrange Street, Newnan

Saturday, June 8, 11 a.m. - noon

Georgian Sally Bethea was one of the first women in America to become a riverkeeper, a vocal defender of a specific waterway who holds polluters accountable. In “Keeping the Chattahoochee,” she tells stories that range from joyous and funny to frustrating – even alarming – to illustrate what it takes to save an endangered river. According to Bethea, “My hope is that the book guides and inspires young people, people of all ages really, to help safeguard the natural resources that are so critical to our communities, to our personal, physical and mental wellbeing, and how I and the organization we created over 20 years went about that.”

Doors open at 10:30 a.m. for a coffee meet-and-greet with book signing to follow.

Gwen Roland and CC Lockwood, Carnegie Auditorium, 1 LaGrange Street, Newnan

Saturday, June 8, 2-4 p.m.

Author Gwen Roland and wildlife photographer
CC Lockwood combine forces to illustrate, through personal experience in captivating words and photographs, the experience of living as one with nature.

In the 1970s, Roland abandoned her doctorate and decided to live off the land – and water – in South-central Louisiana’s scenic and remote Atchafalaya River Basin Swamp. With a box of crayons and the book, “How to Build Your Home in the Woods,” Roland and her then-partner Calvin Voisin built a houseboat on a barge where they lived for eight years with no electricity or running water. Her book, “Atchafalaya Houseboat: My Years in the Louisiana Swamp,” has been the focus of numerous documentaries and the inspiration for many who choose to live off the grid. The book’s evocative photographs by CC Lockwood were showcased in National Geographic's September 1979 issue, bringing Gwen, Calvin and Lockwood unexpected fame. The story was revisited in National Geographic’s “Best 100,” renewing interest with a new generation.

Acclaimed wildlife photographer CC Lockwood has lived and worked in fragile ecosystems that shape his artistry. Through words and images, he captures the unique sense of space in wild places as diverse as the Louisiana swampland to the rugged backcountry of the American West. Recipient of the prestigious Ansel Adams Award for Conservation Photography, Lockwood has won international acclaim as an environmental artist. He has been recognized as a Louisiana Legend, served on many conservation boards, authored award winning books, has been featured in Smithsonian and National Geographic among others, and has produced a film on the Atchafalaya. In 2011, his iconic image, “Flat Lake Sunset,” was chosen by the United States Postal Service as Louisiana’s official bicentennial stamp.

Doors open at 1:45 p.m. with book signing to follow. 

Sean Dietrich, Wadsworth Auditorium, 25 Jefferson Street, Newnan

Saturday, June 8, 7 p.m.

Columnist, novelist, stand-up storyteller and humorist Sean Dietrich
is one of Newnan’s favorite guests. Known for his often poignant, tinged with humor, commentaries on life in the American South, his work has appeared in Southern Living and Garden and Gun magazines, among others. His column is nationally syndicated in newspapers across the U.S. and appears locally in The Newnan Times-Herald.

Dietrich has written 15 books, is the creator of the Sean of the South podcast, and makes frequent appearances at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tenn.

His newest release, “Kinfolk,” will be available for purchase as well as other works, including “You are my Sunshine.”

Doors open at 6:30. Tickets are $35 each and may be purchased through Eventbrite. This program is presented by the Newnan Carnegie Library Foundation and the Newnan Cultural Arts Commission. All proceeds benefit future programming of the Arts Commission and the Carnegie. NCM