2007 Pulitzer Prize Winner for Poetry,
Mississippi's own Natasha Tretheway
and I at Yellow Dog Books, Madison, MS
Author/Editor Charlene McCord, Barry Hannah, and me
at the 2008 Brick Street Writing Competition Awards
Two-time SEBA Award Winner and #1 Book
Sense Author, Joshilyn Jackson and I at the
2007 Mississippi Writers Guild Conference
Book Signing at Lottie Bogan's Home for
Fireflies in Fruit Jars.
Author R A Nelson, Author
Irene Lathem, and me
2007 Tallahatchie Riverfest Awards
MCC Writer-in-Resident for
Mississippi's Write Initiative Program
made possible by
Mississippi Arts Commission (MAC)
Book Signing at 2008 Mississippi
Writers Guild Conference
Award Winning Poet, Pulitzer Finalist, Claude Wilkinson and I
at the 2008 Tallahatchie Riverfest Writing Awards Luncheon
Diane Williams, Malcolm White, Me,
and daughter Bailey
Derringer Award Winner, John Floyd and I
at AuthorFest, Main Street Books, Hattiesburg,
MS See Dogwood Press
here
Mandessa, my favorite Idol
contestant, and I at the Women's of
Faith Conference, Phoenix, AR,
Mandessa autographing her CD.
Simon! What were you thinking?
Newberry Award Winner, Paul Fleischman and me at the
2008 Southern Breeze WIK08 Conference, Birmingham, AL  
See Southern Breeze
here
Author Thomas Larson and I
at the Thomas Larson
Memoir Writing Workshop,
Main Street Books,
Hattiesburg, MS
My U. S. Army soldier son, PSC
John Aycock,
in Baghdad, Iraq
during the holidays and entertainment
for the troops doing the
Thriller dance
routine.  The crowd goes crazy because
he was in fact a backup dancer for a
popular Michael Jackson impersonator.  
You have to watch it on
YouTube  
here
Shown from left to right: Glen Allison, Judy Tucker, Richelle
Putnam and Pat Floyd

COLLEGE & BEYOND CATEGORY:
First Place ($250) — "The Quilts" by Pat Floyd of Clinton, MS
Second Place ($150) — "They" by Richelle Putnam of Meridian,
MS
Third Place ($75) — "The Christmas Monkey" by Glen Allison of
Tupelo, MS
Honorable Mention — "Skye: The Child of a Flower Child" by
Judy Tucker of Jackson, MS
Honorable Mention — "Baby Dolls" by Lottie Boggan of
Jackson, MS
Winners in the College & Beyond Division of the Brick
Streets Press Short Story Contest include (from left)
Richelle Putnam of Meridian, third place; Judy Tucker of
Jackson, second place; Dorothy Shawhan of Cleveland,
First Place Tie; and Michael F. Smith of Columbus, First
Place Tie. Not pictured is David McLendon of Robbins,
NC, honorable mention.
MGM Producer, Hudson Hickman and
I at the 2009 Tallahatchie Riverfest
Awards Luncheon.
Grammy Award winning songwriter
Jimbeau Hinson and me at the Historical
Newton Train Depot
October 9th
At Mississippi Artists
Commission (MAC) Artist
Training alongside Artist
Rick Anderson
At Mississippi Artists Commission (MAC)
Artist Training alongside Best Selling
Author Dianne de Las Casas and storyteller,
June Davidson
Morgan Freeman and me!!
Delta Blues, Writing Awards,
Clarksdale, MS
Daughter Bailey, Actress Sela Ward, and me at Walk
of Fame Presentation. Congratulations, Sela, on your
Walk of Fame Star at The Riley Center.  You make
Mississippi proud and Meridian even prouder.
Literary Agent/Attorney, Charles Tolbert,
Award Winning TV Development  Writer,
Barbara Garshman, and I at 2007 Mississippi
Writers Guild Conference
Gerrard (Gerry) Butler and me on the
set of "Playing the Field."
THERE'S NOTHING LIKE FAMILY

SUPPORT
OUR
TROOPS
Special People and Special Places
I write. Anything. Everything. About
people. About nature. About politics.
About God. About love. About hate.
About good. About evil. About
laughter. About grief. About being
young. About growing old. About
hardships. About successes. About
wisdom. About ignorance. About
religion. About non-belief. About
passion. About surrender. About light.
About darkness.  About belief. About
disbelief. About why. About why not.  
Because everything relates,
everything connects our life, becomes
as much a part of us as our skin,
bone, and blood. And to ignore one of
these elements, to pretend they don't
or will not exist in our life is like
running away from our own voices
that keep calling us back.

And I sing. Every morning. Every
afternoon. Every night. Because
singing is the rain after the drought,
the sun after a long, lonely night,
and the roaring fire after being
locked out in the cold.
More Event Photos Here
This Pen I Hold
H
E
R
O
E
S
come in all sizes
"All About Need" written and performed
byRichelle Putnam

2nd Place
Americian Songwriter Magazine