A Wall of Bright Dead Feathers ~ Lone Star Book Blog Tours Author Interview & Giveaway!

A WALL OF BRIGHT DEAD FEATHERS

By Babette Fraser Hale

Publisher: Winedale Publishing

Pages: 216

Pub Date: March 1st, 2021

Categories: Short Stories / Literary Fiction

 

Scroll for Giveaway! 

Most are newcomers to the scenic, rolling countryside of central Texas whose charms they romanticize, even as the troubles they hoped to leave behind persist. Twelve stories highlight “the book’s recurring theme of desire—for freedom, for clarity, for autonomy, and for personal fulfillment…When women are alone, unencumbered and unbeholden to anyone, they engage in intense internal reflection and show reverence for nature—and during these scenes, Hale’s language is luminescent” (Kirkus Reviews). 

PRAISE FOR A WALL OF BRIGHT DEAD FEATHERS: 

“Hale shows a great respect for her characters and for the difficulty of their deceptively ordered existence, as well as for the problems they suffer because so much cannot be spoken.” -- Francine Prose, on “Silences” 

“A vivid set of tales about connection to other people and to the natural world…Hale’s lovely prose shows a keen eye for detail…”  

-- Kirkus Reviews 

Purchase Links: 

Winedale Publishing | Brazos Bookstore | Amazon 

Interview with Babette Fraser Hale

 

What cultural value do you see in reading and storytelling?

In my view, reading books develops the imagination and attendant qualities of empathy and understanding better than any other practice. These are central qualities if we want a humane and responsible society. Plus reading books give us an escape from dailiness that can be very affirming.

 

How does your book relate to your life path?

Many of my characters are struggling with choices they’ve made and how those decisions relate to what they think they should do or should have done. In my view this is a lifelong struggle and ought to be.

 

Why did you decide to self-publish?

I published it with my own, established, small press because we’re in a period where the market opportunities for fiction with literary intent by older women have virtually disappeared. Covid forced my hand. I wanted to publish my husband’s retirement journal, anyway. Why not do them together? They were written twenty feet apart, after all.

 

What do you think most characterizes your writing?

Flow, attention to language, to the way words sound and the precision of their usage in the context of the characters. Also, a relationship with societal pressures of the decade as characters react to the decisions they make.

 

What was the hardest part of writing this book? 

Talking about it. Way harder. But beyond that, I would say patience. I write slowly. It’s very tempting to submit work too soon. And I think it is always a mistake to do that. The last thing one wants to do upon “finishing” a draft is to put it aside for, say, three weeks—or months. But that’s almost always a superior approach. I’ve never been a patient person.

 

What did you enjoy most about writing this book?

Immersing myself in the minds of my characters and residing there through numerous drafts.

Babette Fraser Hale’s fiction has won the Meyerson Award from Southwest Review, a creative artist award from the Cultural Arts Council of Houston, and been recognized among the “other distinguished stories” in Best American Short Stories, 2015. Her story “Drouth” is part of the New York Public Library’s digital collection. Her nonfiction has appeared in Texas Monthly, Houston City, and the Houston Chronicle. She writes a personal essay column for the Fayette County Record.  

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GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY! 

TWO WINNERS each receive a signed bookplate

+ $20 Brazos Bookstore Gift Card to buy the book 

 (US only. Ends midnight, CDT, 4/2/2021.) 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Click to visit the Lone Star Literary Life Tour Page  
for direct links to each post on this tour, updated daily,  
or visit the blogs directly: 

3/23/21	Author Video	The Page Unbound
3/23/21	Excerpt	Texas Book Lover
3/24/21	Review	Book Bustle
3/24/21	BONUS Promo	LSBBT Blog
3/25/21	Review	Rainy Days with Amanda
3/25/21	Author Interview	Chapter Break Book Blog
3/26/21	Review	Missus Gonzo
3/27/21	Excerpt	All the Ups and Downs
3/28/21	Guest Post	The Clueless Gent
3/29/21	Review	StoreyBook Reviews
3/29/21	Author Interview	Hall Ways Blog
3/30/21	Review	Reading by Moonlight
3/31/21	Review	Bibliotica
3/31/21	Guest Post	Librariel Book Adventures
4/1/21	Review	It's Not All Gravy
4/1/21	Review	Forgotten Winds

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