iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Honored to be invited as a featured author to the Louisiana Book Festival and looking forward to our panel with Joe Bond, Ashley Hudson, & Mark Neely. I’ll be signing books right after the panel at the Cavalier House Books tent! #louisianabookfestival #southernfiction #pinevilletrace

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Happy 2nd Book Birthday to PINEVILLE TRACE! I’m appreciative of everyone who’s helped bring this book into the world and supported it these last two years. Forever thankful to Kevin McKelvey my editor and founder of Etchings Press, Erik Rust for the cover art, and everyone who’s supported the book!

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Had a blast at the inaugural Appalachian Literary Arts Festival in Morehead, KY! Thanks to Amy Le Ann Richardson , Andrew Preston, Coffee Tree Books, Rowan County Arts Center, and everyone who worked to put this awesome festival together. Can’t wait till next year! #appalachianliteraryartsfestival

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

Hope to see you at the Appalachian Literary Arts Festival this weekend in Morehead, KY! Check out our panel at 11:30 am Sunday. And I’ll be signing copies of PINEVILLE TRACE at Coffee Tree Books on Sunday 10:30 am-5 pm! #appalachianliteraryartsfestival

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 24/08/2026

My debut book PINEVILLE TRACE is a novella-in-flash about a former revival preacher that escapes from prison in Eastern Kentucky (Etchings Press). It was recently reviewed by Small Press Picks. It was good meeting you in Richmond! That story you read (“Sugar,” I think) was awesome!

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

Stoked to talk about book tours and publicity at AWP ‘27 Chicago with these awesome writers—Jared Lemus, Karol Lagodzki , & @agatabrewer.bsky.social ! #awp27 #booktour #bookpublicity

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

If you’re a Gen X music and book fanatic like me, you are also a big fan of Chuck Klosterman. I got a chance to interview Chuck back in 2017. My thanks to Chuck and editor Chris Tula, who published this in the great Fiction Southeast Journal. Link in comments. #writingcraft #chuckklosterman

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

Love music and books? Check out our chat that aired recently on Hoot and Holler via WESU 88.1. Host Ed McKeon and I chat about all things literary and music. I’m the first guest to request a song by a certain band…. Listen to find out which one. Link in comments.

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

For National Book Day, consider one of these awesome reads from Appalachian authors who converged recently at the Appalachian Writers' Workshop at Hindman Settlement School. All are available at Read Spotted Newt. Photo credit: Sarah Insalaco #nationalbookday #appalachianlit #appalachia #books

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

Looking for a cat-centric book for International Cat Day? Pig has a recommendation. Link in comments. #internationalcatday

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

Love writing flash fiction? Check out the F(r)iction Fall Flash Fiction Contest! I’m stoked to be judging this great contest. Learn more at link in comments. #writingcontests #flashfictioncontests #flashfictionwriters

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

Loved getting a chance to teach and hang out with fellow writers at the awesome Appalachian Writers Workshop at Hindman Settlement School this week. It’s an honor to teach and be a part of a community and place that’s so meaningful to me. #aww2026 #appwriters2026

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

If you’re at Hindman Settlement School for the Appalachian Writers Workshop, I’d love to see you at this generative writing workshop! #writing #writingcraft #appalachianwritersworkshop

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 20/07/2026

My new review of Sherrie Flick’s I HAVE NOT CONSIDERED CONSEQUENCES is live at the recent RAIN TAXI Online Edition. Link in first comment.

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

Thanks to Beth Castrodale for choosing PINEVILLE TRACE as a Small Press Pick and writing such an insightful review! Scroll for highlights, then head to smallpresspicks.com/pineville-trace to read the review. #bookreview #smallpress #flashfiction #appalachianfiction #southernfiction

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

I’m excited to be a judge for the F(r)iction Fall Writing contest! Flash fiction writers—I’m looking forward to reading your work! Joy Deva Baglio will be judging short stories, and Renia White will be judging poetry. Send us your work! Visit link in comments. #writingcontest #flashfictioncontest

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 01/07/2026

On Denis Johnson’s birthday, I’m remembering this day 12 years ago when I met him in Lisbon via Bluegrass Writers Studio and Disquiet Literary Program . He’s my favorite writer and visited our workshop. I wrote an essay on Substack about it: open.substack.com/pub/wesblake...

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 18/06/2026

Awards for PINEVILLE TRACE, a Southern Gothic, flash novella from the Univ. of Indianapolis’ Etchings Press about a former revival preacher who escapes from prison in 1970’s Kentucky, following a cat named Buffalo while confronting his past and seeking redemption.

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

I’m stoked to be part of the inaugural Appalachian Literary Arts Festival in my childhood home of Morehead, Kentucky! There’s so many writers, artists, and musicians there I admire. Come see us!

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

New podcast alert! The new episode of READ APPALACHIA dropped today! Em J Parsley and I talk about novellas, why we love short fiction, unique structures, Gurney Norman, books that inspired us, and nature as healer. Give it a listen!

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

I’ll be teaching a flash fiction and a paths to publication class this Friday and Saturday at the 20th annual Mountain Heritage Literary Festival at Lincoln Memorial University! Get tickets at link in comments. #appalachianlit #writingcommunityofinstagram #writingcraft #flashfiction #publication

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

Honored to be included in this list and to have my work in Porchlight: A Journal of Southern Literature. Check out their journal—they’re doing good work. Read article at link in first comment. Thanks to editor-in-chief Randy Mackin and their other editors. #southernlit

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 11/05/2026

PINEVILLE TRACE is a FINALIST for the Eric Hoffer Book Award! Thanks to the judges for recognizing the book! Learn more about the award: www.hofferaward.com/Eric-Hoffer-... Learn more about the book at wesblake.com #HofferAward #BookAward #literaryfiction #appalachianlit #southernlit

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

Kingsport, Tennessee! A mess of Appalachian authors associated with Hindman Settlement School will be arriving at Kingsport Public Library on Friday, May 15 from 3-6 pm to read, tell stories, meet you, and sign their books! We hope to see you! Please feel free to share! #appalachianauthors

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 05/05/2026

New interview about flash fiction, constraints, influences, inspiration, craft, and more! Thanks to the Flash Fiction Institute , Kim Culbertson, and Grant Faulkner for featuring me! If you don’t follow them already, you should! Link in first comment. #flashfiction #writingcraft #authorinterview

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

Congrats to ETSU’s 10th annual Spring Literary Festival! Founder Jesse Graves brought in Ron Rash, Juan Martinez, Nickole Brown, Rose McLarney, and shared work from their talented students and faculty. #appalachianlit #literaryfestival

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

Happy Indie Bookstore Day from Joseph-Beth in Lexington!

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 13/04/2026

Stoked to have words in the new spring Appalachian Journal spring ‘26 issue! Check out my review of Julie Hensley’s FIVE OAKS. Thanks to Jessica Cory for including me and putting together this stellar issue! Get a copy! #appalachianlit #writingcommunity #literaryjournal #bookreview #fiveoaks

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Join us for the 20th Annual Mountain Heritage Literary Festival, May 29 and 30 at Lincoln Memorial University. Founder @silashouse.bsky.social will be keynote speaker. Engaging courses w/ Charles Dodd White, Mandi Fugate Sheffel , Wes Blake, Meg Wade. Get tickets: www.eventbrite.com/e/20th-annua...

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 01/04/2026

HAZELGREEN AND OTHER HAUNTS: A Memoir of Place-in-Essays is a finalist for the River Teeth Literary Nonfiction Book Prize! Exciting things are coming soon. Stay tuned. This book is about Appalachia, impermanence, Sam Shepard, an eastern Kentucky jazz pianist, place, stories, and time.

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

When I get this time machine working, I’ll be stopping here! Thanks to Grayson for sharing this. This is one of my favorite songs, and Midway, KY is the town on the north side of the county I live in. Somehow I never ran into Sam Shepard, but a lot of my friends did.

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 23/03/2026

Good times signing books and meeting readers at the Virginia Festival of the Book in Charlottesville! #appalachianlit #southernlit

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 23/03/2026

Had a blast at the Appalachian Studies Assciation Conference (ASA)! Loved our panels “Appalachian Men Write the Seasons of Love” and “Animal Rescues in Appalachian Literature.”

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 20/03/2026

Looking forward to seeing everyone in Huntington, West Virginia at the Appalachian Studies Association Conference! #appalachianlit

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 16/03/2026

Charlottesville! We’ll be at the Virginia Festival of the Book this Saturday from noon until 6pm. Drop by, say hello, and get a signed book if you’re in the area! #bookfestival #appalachianlit #southernlit

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 13/03/2026

Love animals? Love Appalachia? Check out our panel at the 49th Annual Appalachian Studies Association Conference at Marshall University! #appalachianlit #animals

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

Come hear us read our work from “Appalachian Men Write the Seasons of Love: Portraits of Vulnerability and Masculinity in Contemporary Appalachia” 49th Annual Appalachian Studies Conference at Marshall University

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

If you missed me at Joseph-Beth Books in Lexington today, there are signed copies of Pineville Trace left! Pineville Trace, an award-winning novella-in-flash from the University of Indianapolis’ Etchings Press, is an “introspective, haunting tale that remains with us” (Heavy Feather Review). 💙📚

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

I’ll be signing copies of the ole Pineville Trace this Saturday at the always supportive Joseph-Beth Bookstore in Lex, 1-3 pm. I’m appreciative to the judges that have recognized this book (and allowed me to cover it with all these cool award stickers like my Trapper Keeper when I was a kid). 💙📚

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

Had fun signing books at Wildside Winery, just down the road in Nonesuch, KY #PinevilleTrace

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 02/03/2026

This is one of the most impactful and stunning books I’ve read. From the unforgettable opening prose poem “Allegiance” to the closing consciousness-mirroring “Shattered Jewel,” this is a soulful, visceral and urgent work brimming with clarity, honesty, sadness, humor, and beauty. Read it.

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 20/02/2026

Hope to see you out there! Learn more at wesblake.com/events #writingcommunity

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 20/02/2026

Throwback Thursday! David Domine talked with me and Erik Rust at @carmichaels.bsky.social a while back. Tonight MURDER IN GLITTERBALL CITY, a new documentary based on his awesome book premieres on HBO Max. Watch it! #truecrime

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 07/02/2026

Excited to be part of the 2026 Appalachian Writers Workshop faculty alongside these talented writers and teachers. You won’t find a better workshop or writing community. Join us! Applications are open until March 1st. Apply at hindman.org/workshop #AWW26 #AppalachianWritersWorkshop #WritingWorkshop

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 03/02/2026

Check out my new story “To Bury” in the brand new UNTELLING Issue 4 | Winter ‘25 issue. I workshopped the story this summer at Appalachian Writers Workshop at @hindmanschool.bsky.social . I worked on the final sentence every day for three weeks! Order your copy at hindman.org/untelling/

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 02/02/2026

Loved this book. One of the best Jim Harrison books, and it surprises me how high quality most are. This is a story about grief, life, death, the UP, Chippewa religious ideas, bears, our connection with animals and the spirit world, and how our stories and the stories of our ancestors carry on. 💙📚

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 30/01/2026

Honored to be included in the new UNTELLING Issue 4 | Winter ‘25 issue alongside so many writers/poets/artists I admire. Thanks to editor Melissa Helton and Hindman Settlement School. Order your copy at hindman.org/untelling/

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

A sad day in our country that should deeply concern every American.

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Wes Blake @wesblake.bsky.social · 22/01/2026

Honored to be a finalist and look forward to writing in James Still’s cabin soon! Congrats to the winners and other finalists, and thanks to the judges! #OakLedgeResidencyContest #JamesStill #Contest #WritingRetreat #appalachianwriter

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