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Stories

Kentucky poet Emma Aprile, winner of the Salvation South New Poets Prize, smiling outdoors with trees in the background; featured in an exclusive interview and poetry collection for Salvation South, highlighting emerging Southern poets and contemporary poetry.

We Are All From Where We Are

Louisville poet Emma Aprile, winner of our inaugural Salvation South New Poets Prize, discusses her creative process, the landscapes that shape her work, and what it means to write from and for the South.

The South We Thought We Saw in the Bandit

Forty-six years ago, some young Southern boys watched “Smokey and the Bandit” and saw a region where the little guys could win. Were we looking at it wrong?

Requiem for a Dollar Store Christmas Bear

His mother could afford only a single Christmas gift, and he treasured it. It kept him warm. At least for a little while.

The Moments at Hand

The most weathered hands hold the most profound stories.

One Last Weekend to Join the Salvation South Family Circle

Read this roundup of four weeks of amazing stories, poems, and films—all reasons to join the Salvation South Family Circle.

A Gift of Hope

One of the finest Southern writers in history, Ron Rash, now 70, has a long talk with Salvation South about his career as a teacher, novelist, poet, and storyteller.

“Where’s the Reservation?”

Tourists come to North Carolina’s Cherokee Country and buy lots of souvenirs. But they rarely connect with the essence of Cherokee culture, which lives in the people’s stories, the geography beneath their feet, and the cosmography above.

Fleeing for My Life

A South Carolina poet on how we leave a special place—but it never leaves us.

A Toast to Unforgettable Stories and a Call to Join the Family Circle

There isn’t one South. There are 10,000. Join us on our journey to tell the stories of them all.

I Am Not a Rock Star

Sometimes, the haircut you want is not the haircut you need.

Inside the Family Circle

Fiction from Mississippi’s Michael Farris Smith, verses from Ohio’s poet laureate, and a Christmas memory from Deb Bowen prove why we need your support in this membership drive.

There Must Be Light

The poet laureate of Ohio—a ninth-generation Appalachian—on holiness, the murmur of autumn trees, and the anticipation of honeysuckle.

Takin’ Up a Poundin’

You can give just for giving’s sake. Or you can give to fill a need. A Christmas story from coastal North Carolina.