Sellers Lecture Series Brings Creators of Hub City to Young Harris College

The annual Sellers Lecture Series at Young Harris College brings author John Lane and journalist Betsy Teter to campus October 23, 2007.  The lecture, to be held at 8:00 p.m. in the Susan B. Harris Chapel, is free of admission and the public is invited to attend.

Lane and Teter, together with journalist Gary Henderson and photographer/graphic designer Mark Olencki, were instrumental in creating the Hub City Writers Project in Spartanburg, South Carolina, in 1995.  Modeled after the Depression-era Federal Writers, Project, they encouraged writers across South Carolina to create a series of books characterized by a strong sense of place.  The name, Hub City Writers Project, was chosen because it invokes Spartanburg’s past as a railroad center and also challenged them to make Spartanburg a center for literary arts.

With its emphasis on place-based literature that encourages readers to form a deeper connection with their home territory, the young press asked local authors to write about the experience of living in Spartanburg.  The first title produced was Hub City Anthology, which sold out within six months of its printing.  Since that time, Hub City has published a variety of genres, including fiction, personal essays, poetry, non-fiction, biography, humor, nature writing, children’s literature, and historical prose.    Hub City has published 29 books to date.  This collection includes local writers and authors with national profiles.  Nationally recognized authors who have contributed work to Hub City books include Josephine Humphreys, Rosa Shand, Bret Lott, Fred Chappell, George Singleton, John Lane, Shelby Hearon, Dori Sanders, and Frye Gaillard.  Other artists include singer/songwriter Marshall Chapman, Southern historian David Carlton, horticulturalist Michael Dirr, and Nashville music writer Peter Cooper. 

The Hub City Writers Project now boasts publication of nearly 200 South Carolina writers, an 18 member board of directors, and has been instrumental in helping communities throughout the United States create projects modeled on Hub City.

The Sellers Lecture Series was established to honor Dr. Betty Sellers, professor at Young Harris College and noted Georgia poet.

Founded in 1886, Young Harris College is a private, core liberal arts college focused on university preparation.  Historically affiliated with The United Methodist Church, a primary goal of Young Harris College is to provide a quality education for the whole person: intellectually, socially, culturally, and spiritually.  To learn more about Young Harris College, visit us at www.yhc.edu.