38th Annual Meeting of the
Thomas Wolfe Society
Dear Wolfe Friends,
I look forward to seeing you in Asheville as we gather for a splendid program and good fellowship with the mountain springtime providing a majestic backdrop for our meeting.
I have attached the TWS Registration Form-2016 MTG and the TWS Program 2016-Final for ease of vie
wing and printing. The registration fee for the 2016 Thomas Wolfe Conference is $120 per person and includes all sessions and the Saturday evening banquet. Students may register for $60 per person. Guests of conference attendees who wish to attend only the Saturday evening banquet may register for the banquet for $60. Please use the attached registration form above.
This year’s TWS conference, titled “Thomas Wolfe and the Creative Process” will officially begin Friday, May 20, 2016 with registration from 10:30 to 12:00/noon at the Windsor Ballroom Foyer, first floor of the Renaissance Asheville Hotel with a welcome from Mark Canada, TWS President and opening with a Prologue reading by Mary Aswell Doll. Sessions I and II will be held Friday with featured creative readings in the afternoon, followed by a reception at the Thomas Wolfe Memorial Visitor Center, dinner on your own, and ending the day with a special session: documentary and discussion by Tom Rash and Steve Agnew.
Saturday, May 21 begins at 8:00 a.m. with Session III papers in the Windsor Ballroom, a brief TWS business meeting, Session IV papers and final words by TWS President Mark Canada, closing with an epilogue by Jan Hensley, lunch on your own, then the delightful “‘Something Stinking and Scavenging’: An Exhibition of Books and Items by and about Thomas Wolfe, Principally from the Collection of J. Todd Bailey.” Place and time TBA. A cash bar will be open from 6:00-7:00 p.m. at the Top of the Plaza, 12th Floor followed by the TWS Banquet and Awards Ceremony with a keynote address given by Tommy Hays, Director, Great Smokies Writing Program, UNC: Asheville.
If you have not yet reserved your room at the Renaissance Asheville Hotel (31 Woodfin Street, 828.252.8211), please do so by April 19. The conference rate of $159 per night is available on rooms booked for the evenings of May 19, 20 or 21. To make a reservation, call 1.800.468.3571 and use the group code: TWSTWSA. You may also email TWS President Mark Canada (canadam@iuk.edu) for the url to a webpage where you can make your reservation online.
Some of you who can arrive early or stay after the conference may want to see an exhibit documenting the Thomas Wolfe 75th Anniversary Celebration that will be on display in Special Collections at the University of North Carolina at Asheville, May 19-27. The display will feature documents and ephemera from the 75th Anniversary Celebration of Wolfe’s birthday, held in Asheville, October 2-5, 1975.
1975 events included discussions by a panel of Wolfe scholars including Louis D. Rubin, Jr. and C. Hugh Holman, as well as the staging of a play about Wolfe’s life entitled “37 Octobers.” The exhibit will be viewable in display cases outside of Special Collections in Ramsey Library on campus. Ramsey Library will not be open on Saturday or Sunday during our conference but Monday-Friday hours are 7:45am-6:00pm. If you have questions, please contact speccoll@unca.edu.
On Sunday, the restaurant Lex 18 will offer us a special show, Mystery Luncheon Immersive Experience: Clairvoyance, Thievery and Thomas Wolfe’s Look Homeward, Angel. Those interested in this entertaining musical performance should reserve tickets directly with Lex 18 by going to Brown Paper Tickets at http://twsluncheon.bpt.me/ and use the password TW Society. Seating is limited, so make your reservations soon. Thanks to Deb Borland for suggesting this wonderful opportunity!
Those who haven’t toured the Thomas Wolfe Memorial recently might want to walk through the house on Friday morning or early Saturday afternoon. Guided tours begin at half past each hour.
Lastly, please renew your TWS Membership Form for 2016 if you have not done so. You may send the renewal form to me even if you cannot attend this year’s conference. If you are not sure about your current membership status, please send inquiries to David Strange (twostrange2000@yahoo.com)
Sincerely,
Rebecca Godwin
Vice President, Thomas Wolfe Society
I am requesting that the TWS move this year’s conference to another location outside North Carolina in light of the anti-LGBT law just passed in NC. governor. However, if Asheville passes an ordinance like Charlotte’s, I’d withdraw my request.
Thank you.