Authors find community at weekend fair

The walls of the Poplar Bluff Municipal Library were filled Saturday with authors there to make connections and share stories.

Writers came up from Arkansas and down from Rolla for the sixth annual Author Fair.

Morgan Straughan Comnick came down from Fredricktown for the event after she was invited while in town for SEMOcon in September.

She said she enjoys these kinds of events because it’s a chance to be within the community and interact with other authors.

“I love the personal experience,” she said, “and the chance for one-on-one time with potential readers.”

Comnick is a teacher in Fredrickton and advisor for the high school anime club, which she said helps inspire her books. They are about high school students and include “a feeling of anime.”

Her first book came out in 2013 and she now has seven published.

She sometimes visits with middle and high school students to talk about writing and answer questions they have.

“I want to inspire people the way others inspired me,” she said.

Meanwhile, Rachel N. Johnson made the trek from Rolla with her first book for the event. She’s a kindergarten teacher in Vienna and is writing a book series roughly based on things she’s come across as a teacher. The first “Mrs. Johnson and the Ant Attack” is based around the letter A and the next one, out in fall, will be around the letter B.

“It’s been an alright day,” she said. “I wish there was a little more traffic. I sold a few books and met some other authors.”

Martha Rodriquez came up from Arkansas with her collection of books ranging from children’s to adult fiction to non-fiction. She said she came to the event last year and wanted to return.

Her latest book, an adult fiction novel “Where the River Goes,” is based off the story of David and Jonathan from the Bible, she said.

A little closer to Poplar Bluff, Anne Jeffries came in from the Bootheel with her book “A California Girl Meets the Bootheel,” which is roughly based on her experiences moving from California.

She said she considered Saturday to be a success because her main goal was to meet other authors, which she was able to do. It was also about getting outside of her comfort zone.

“You don’t come to these (kinds of events) expecting to make sales,” she said. “If you do, it’s a win. If you don’t, it’s a win in other ways.”

Nancy Griffin came in from Qulin with her books, including her latest release of true stories about her daughter’s two dogs. Her main series is a western set in the 1800s about a bounty hunter and an accountant building a family.

Griffin said she’s come the last few years and enjoys it.

“Just signing books and getting them out there, it’s fun,” she said. “I’ve enjoyed meeting authors and reconnecting with some.”

Steve Cross, of Poplar Bluff, said the day was “nice and relaxing” as he talked with the other authors while trying to sell his latest book.

“It’s nice to be part of a community,” he said.

Cross said he writes mainly young adult contemporary stories with themes of mental illness or fantasy books. His newest release, “Drowning,” focuses around high school student Dean while he copes with bullying and feeling as though he’s drowning.

While he’s been writing for 40 years, Cross said, he’s seen more success in the last two years than any before.

“It’s better late than never,” he said.

The two main goals of the day for most authors at the event were summarized by AR Simmons, of Poplar Bluff. He has published 13 novels in his “Blue Creek” mystery series about criminalist Richard Carter.

“I’m just trying to build readership,” Simmons said. “I know a lot of the other people here, so we get the chance to spend time together and catch up.”