Author, self-made renovation expert to share insights
"From Animal House to Our House: A Love Story" author visiting Eureka Springs June 17
Against his better judgment and in large part to appease his girlfriend, Ron Tanner bought a Victorian row house in midtown Baltimore that had been more-or-less destroyed by a fraternity. At the time, neither Tanner nor his girlfriend Jill knew anything about restoring houses, but both realized it would take years of hard work and a fair amount of money to make the 4,500-square-foot, condemned three-storey house livable again.
The year was 2000 and the couple had only been dating for six months.
They not only survived the renovation, they got married in the house in 2003, and Tanner wrote a book about their experiences, which was released in February 2012.
Tanner hit the road in February on a 66-city book tour, and he’s agreed to make a detour from Fayetteville to visit the Writers’ Colony at Dairy Hollow on Sunday, June 17, at 2 p.m. to share some of his experiences.
Above are photos of the library after, left, and what they started with, right. Below are photos of the back yard, before and after.
Here’s a link to a video about his book: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rx2nt7SRg58
Books in Bloom joined authors, readers
in celebrating the written word
Ann Hood was joined at Books in Bloom by Arkansas authors Kevin Brockmeier, Radine Trees Nering, Janet Carson, Kate Cooper, Ernie Dumas, Tim Ernst, Lanny and Derlyne Gibson, Chip Ford, Edward C. Robison III, Vivienne Schiffer, Steve Weems and June Westphal. Coming from further afield were C.J. Box, Phillip Margolin, Diane Ott Whealy, Shin Yu Pai, Vanessa Diffenbaugh, Kristin Kaufman, and Crescent Dragonwagon, one of the founders of the Writers' Colony.
Held at the Crescent Hotel on May 20 - a beautiful, sunny day with balmy temperatures - it was a day packed with fascinating readings and conversations with some of our favorite authors and a chance to get books signed.
Ann Hood (top left) delighted listeners with her presentation at Books in Bloom. Hood chatted with Writers' Colony board member Elise Roenigk (left) who also owns the Crescent Hotel, where the event was held.
Hood signed books for fans, (above) including Crow Johnson Evans, Colony board member. Under the Colony tent (left) were Alison Taylor-Brown, Coordinator of the Colony's Community Writing Program, Linda Caldwell, Colony Director, and author Beverly Litzinger. Crescent Dragonwason, (above), Colony founder, was kept busy by lines of people wanting her autograph on one of her many cookbooks.
It was a Special Bean Shindig with Crescent at the Colony
On Sunday, March 25, it was both a homecoming and a celebration when Crescent Dragonwagon, author and colony founder, visited Eureka Springs and shared the release of her newest book, Bean by Bean: A Cookbook: Over 200 bean recipes! She entertained us at the Colony with stories of the original Dairy Hollow, which was home to several dairies in the 1970s when she first discovered Eureka Springs. Then we were all treated to samples of the tasty recipes in her newest book.
This was followed by a book signing, and visitors and fans also had the opportunity to buy some of her other cookbooks.
WCDH's Exclusive event with Charlaine Harris was a SMASH HIT!
Wow, what a party! New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Charlaine Harris made an exclusive appearance and book signing October 1, 2011, in Eureka Springs and Bentonville to help raise funds for The Writers Colony at Dairy Hollow. This was the first time Ms. Harris has ever appeared in Northwest Arkansas. She loved us. We loved her. The events were a smashing success!
A native of Magnolia, AR., Charlaine Harris is best known for her "Sookie Stackhouse" urban vampire fantasy series, and HBO's super hit "True Blood" based on the Sookie series. There are more than 20 million copies of her 10-book series in print. She is currently on tour for her new book "Dead Reckoning". Last year Charlaine entered the world of iPlay Games with "Dying for Daylight", where she invites you to be Dahlia -" the vampire with a devastating sense of fashion and a razor-sharp wit, on an epic hunt to find a legendary sun potion". For more information on Miss Harris, visit her website: www.charlaineharris.com
BONUS: Charlaine has donated two autographed books and a large poster for us to auction for donations to the Writers Colony. We're taking bidders now!
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WELCOME HOME, CRESCENT WAS A BLAST FROM THE PAST (and Present!)
It was long overdue, but well worth the wait! On November 10th, WCDH co-founder Crescent Dragonwagon treated over 125 friends, alumni and new friends during a special homecoming PoetLuck. Crescent stirred up the kitchen with some fabulous soups, cornbread and her delightful humor. During PoetLuck, Crescent reminded (taught us) about the history of the Colony - how it was conceived and how proud she is that it has thrived and survived. Her enthusiasm for the Colony and our future has never waivered. Crescent will back in the spring in between her new book tour, and she'll be back as part of the 2012 Books in Bloom on May 20th. C'mon by and say hi.
BONUS: Crescent also brought us a box of her best selling cookbook, and our namesake, "The Dairy Hollow House Cookbook". We stll have a couple left so if you don't have one and want one - here's your chance. (they are out of print). Just send an email to director@writerscolony.org and let us know you want one for a donation to the Colony of $15.00.
