Success at the 2026 Killer Nashville International Writers Conference
Success at the 2026 Killer Nashville International Writers Conference in Tennessee
On August 22nd Chalk Circle’s J. Reid Graham (aka Jim) was among hundreds of writers in the audience for the writing awards ceremony after the gala dinner of the Killer Nashville International Writers Conference in Tennessee.
Jim's name was called out as second runner up in the action adventure category of the Claymore Unpublished Novel Award. Apparently this category had over two thousand entries. He leapt to his feet, fist-pumped the air, and then gave a bow before getting whisked away to say a few words in front of a camera for viewers around the word who were watching the awards ceremony on the Killer Nashville YouTube channel. He received a high-five from an agent as he made his way to give his interview, and that agent requested the full manuscript of his novel FREE ECONOMIC ZONE. A dream come true for an unrepresented debut novelist. You can read the opening to Jim's new novel on his author profile page.
The four-day conference was a wonderful experience for Jim from start to finish.
'There were around five hundred authors who ranged from highly successful full-time writers of multiple best sellers to those who are new to fiction writing. There was a packed schedule of workshops, panels, roundtables, lectures, and one-to-one meetings with agents. So much to learn. So many writing industry people to network with, including agents and editors. So many inspiring stories from those who had preserved and eventually made a successful career from their love of writing'.
Jim made the most of the opportunity to visit the USA, spending a full month exclusively in the state of Tennessee. Here are his highlights.
· Memphis for Civil Rights history, Blues music, Soul music, and Elvis.
· Nashville for Country-and-Western music.
· Chattanooga for Civil War history and a certain choo-choo train.
· Dollywood for paying respects to an icon who rose from poverty to write 3,000 songs and who donated 300 million books to children. And to get every bone in your body shaken up by rollercoaster rides.
· Visited two out of seventy State Parks in Tennessee that all are free to enter for camping, hiking, fishing, and boating.
· The ‘dry’ town of Lynchburg where you cannot buy a whiskey except on the Jack Daniel’s Distillery tour. The place to see how they produce a barrel every minute of the world’s best-selling whiskey, and store 2.5 million barrels on site while oak ages the liquor. Jack Daniel’s whiskey is produced nowhere else in the world.
A final word from Jim. 'The deeply ingrained warmth, politeness, and generosity that characterise Southern Hospitality was evident from the moment our flight landed in Nashville. The immigration official was lovely, as were all those encountered everywhere else – be it buses, trams, stores, state parks, etcetera. Everywhere we went in Tennessee we had conversations with strangers who became like friends-for-life in no time'.
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