Local Writer prepares for upcoming book launch
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Local Writer prepares for upcoming book launch
By Shane Gilreath
Angelia Ross has been dreaming of the day she could add ‘published author’ to her resume for a long time. Though her work had been published elsewhere, the dream of publishing her own book was recently realized with the help of the local publishing trio, Dandelion Scribes, for whom Ross is a contributor.
The author told SCN that she’d been writing poetry since 1990 and in her exploration of the genre had been inspired by some of the greats, among them Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost, and Henry David Thoreau. Despite the inspiration she drew from some of history’s most renowned pens, there was a struggle in realizing that being a poet didn’t automatically take away from desire to be a writer and that the two were not mutually exclusive. Now that she’s found an appropriate blend of the two, she has high hopes for the new publication, a book of poetry entitled “Shadows of the Heart.”
“I can hopefully help each reader find peace, joy, comfort, inspiration or see a tiny bit of light that can lead them out of their darkness,” the writer said of her journey through the publication and what she hopes her offering will bring to others.
Though Ross may have struggled with the amalgamation of writer and poet, Dandelion’s Editor-in-Chief, Cheyanne Leonardo, a popular writer in her own right, heaped praise on Ross. “Angelia’s reality is made of poetry, intensely alive in every nook, cranny, and corner,” Leonardo said. “She can revisit a single moment in time – a minute of memory – and create a scene so near and real, the past eclipses the present in a matter of seconds.”
Ross’ love for the written word began through teenage journaling and then exploring fantasy and science fiction genres, before turning her attention to the heartfelt prose of poetry, contributing to the 2023 anthology ‘Hometown Poems,’ for which she won “Poet of the Year.”
“She is a curious observer, courageous explorer, honest historian, and skilled storyteller. She notices the finest details – the mysterious inner-workings and puzzling complexities few dare to entertain,” Leonardo expressed. It could be why Ross said her favorite of the book’s many pieces is “Poetry What Is It?” a poem, she says, “that depicts life in general, then leaves me to think about ‘all those things which might have been.’”
Such emotional exploration may have led Ross to “Shadows of the Hearts,” a collection described as “an Appalachian life in poetry,” according to Scribes. The book will officially drop on March 15th at the Scott County Office Building (Kitchen/Dining Area) in Huntsville. The book will later be available in the shop at dandelionscribes.com. For more information on the book signing event, please visit @dandelionscribes on Instagram.