STORY

Over 11,000 copies have been sold of the first three literary maps of Southern states created by E. T. Malone, Jr., for the Literary Lantern Press. Malone, a writer, illustrator, and literary historian, got the idea for doing his first map after drawing localized literary maps for the book Literary North Carolina: A Historical Survey, Revised and Enlarged (1986), which he co-authored with the late Professor Richard Walser of North Carolina State University. Malone decided to expand his research and execute a new literary map for the entire state of North Carolina, showing the boundaries of every county, and listing writers either where they were born or in the locale with which their work is associated. Significant books whose setting is in a state are also pin-pointed on these maps. Authors are listed, with the genre of their writing, and dates of birth and death if they are deceased. Each map attempts to present the historical perspective of writing in the state, from colonial times to the present, but with an emphasis on modern writers. The writers chosen include novelists, poets, children's book authors, authors of juvenile fiction and nonfiction, historians, journalists and editors, playwrights, screen play writers, movie directors, religion writers, publishers, and a selection of illustrators, botanical writers, ecological writers, and so on.

Some of the maps show the filming locations of movies. An effort is made to list the winners of significant awards such as the Pulitzer Prize, Nobel Prize, National Book Award, etc. Persons designated as Poet Laureate of a state are listed. Each map generally includes between 250 and 300 writers. Each of these maps is the result of extensive research. Malone's first map was endorsed by the North Carolina English Teachers’ Association. He holds a Master’s Degree in English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and he completed the course work for a doctoral degree there, focusing on Southern Literature and folklore. He is a past president of the North Carolina Folklore Society. The maps are hand-drawn, hand-colored, and illustrated with detailed line drawings by the author. They are large scale and printed on glossy poster paper, suitable for dry mounting or framing for use in the classroom or decorating one's home or library.