Spinning Toward the Sun: Essays on Writing, Resilience, and the Creative Life is a new collection of essays curated by editor, Nora Shalaway Carpenter. A diverse range of celebrated authors, including yours truly, have contributed essays on writing, resilience, and the power of community when facing hardship. Contributing authors offer everything from personal stories to practical advice to fellow creatives and anyone who might be going through a hard time.
More than a collection of essays, Spinning Toward the Sun walks its talk in the way a community of authors has come together to raise money for a community in need. Hurricane Helene ripped through Asheville, NC months ago, and the rebuilding effort is far from over. So many folks lost everything, and 100% of the profits made from Spinning Toward the Sun are being donated to those rebuilding efforts. Proceeds from Spinning will be split evenly between Beloved Asheville and World Central Kitchen, two crucial organizations dedicated to long-term community rebuilding as well as immediate support for folks working on the frontlines and those directly affected by the aftermath of Helene. Every book purchased will help provide clean water, food, and financial support for debris removal, home restoration, and school and community revitalization.
This anthology features essays donated by over 30 esteemed authors, including New York Times-bestseller and former Ashevillian Alan Gratz, National Book Award finalist and two-time Newbery winner Erin Entrada Kelly, and Coretta Scott King & Newbery winner, Alicia D. Williams. I am also fortunate to have an essay called “Look at What I’da Missed” about the resilience I developed being raised by rural farmers and factory workers, many of whom were Appalachian out-migrants.
None of the authors will receive any payment or proceeds from the book, so Spinning serves as a beautiful reminder that we all have gifts to give in service and support of our communities—our time, our energy, and our creative gifts.
Spinning Toward the Sun is curated by award-winning Asheville-based author Nora Shalaway Carpenter and published by Burlwood Books, an independent press based in Austin, TX whose mission is to foster inclusive art in all its forms. Spinning will be released on March 18, 2025, available for purchase everywhere in both print and eBook. An audiobook version is also scheduled to be released shortly after the print book. You can learn more about the collection and get updates on the release on the Burlwood Books website at burlwoodbooks.com/spinning.
More on My Essay
When I heard that resilience was going to be one of the themes of the collection, I knew exactly what I was going to write about. I have learned so many great lessons from my rural raising, but resilience definitely has to be at the top of the list. From marking hogs as an 8-year-old to pollinating corn in a research facility as a 13-year-old to now taking care of animals in subzero weather as a thirty-nine-year-old, I have and continue to have so many opportunities to cultivate my resilience. And I’ve had so many elders in my life who have helped to me to see what that looks like in practice.
This essay is really close to my heart because it contains the voices of my closest and best teachers—my family. Some still here and some gone. And the collection is near and dear to me as well because it is dedicated to helping Appalachia, which is where all of my dad’s side of the family is from. All of my rural raising has taught me that we should always help where we can. I learned this when my Papaw helped bring in an injured farmers crops, and when other farmers helped my Papaw after his own injury. My participation in this collection is meant to honor my resilient forebearers as well as support rebuilding efforts from afar. So many authors in this collection are rural people, and working with them feels like home. I hope you’ll consider helping in the way that you uniquely can. Maybe that means purchasing a copy of this book, maybe it means donating directly to organizations doing the good work, maybe it means something entirely different, but I hope you’ll give whatever gift you have to support the rebuilding efforts in Asheville and/or wherever you know there is a need.
About Burlwood Books:
Burlwood Books is an independent press based in Austin, Texas, known for its authentic approach to publishing diverse and sometimes under-celebrated authors. Its books are full of unapologetically-accessible poetry, storytelling, and vibrant art. Burlwood strives to see beauty in even the most overlooked corners, and believes in the power of words and art to create positive change and bring people together—one raw, beautiful page at a time.
For media inquiries, review copies, or more information, please contact:
Natalie Runnels
Burlwood Books | natalie@burlwoodbooks.com | burlwoodbooks.com
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