NCWN West will be on the Historic Courthouse Square again in July

Each year our writers' organization, North Carolina Writers' Network - West, sets up a booth at the annual Festival on the Square in historic Hayesville, NC. 

Thousands of  people descend on our little mountain town for that weekend. This year it will be held July 9-10. This event is sponsored by the Clay County Historical and Arts Council. This is one busy organization throughout the year. Their devoted volunteers work tirelessly on the festival and on the Tour of Homes at Christmas plus working to bring art into the schools.

I  have  lived here for over twenty years and have attended this festival most of those years. My family from south Georgia used to come up and we would sit in the shade of the big trees on the square and listen to local musicians and singers entertain us. We ate the best bar-b-que cooked right on the site and ate ice cream, drank home-made lemonade, and visited with folks we might not  have seen in a long time. 

Visitors come from Florida, South Georgia as well as our local region. It is a wonderful opportunity to introduce this beautiful area to people who might want to retire here or open a business here. We would love to have small businesses locate around our historic courthouse square. 

Clay County has much to offer tourists who come for a vacation. We have the fabulous Lake Chatuge, a huge lake for boating and fishing. The John C. Campbell Folk School, just across the county line, has become world famous for their educational programs for crafts and music as well as classes for writers.

Not far away is the new Cherokee Casino, another Harrah's, here  in the mountains. In Hayesville, we have two community theaters and the plays are topnotch. The Peacock Playhouse is another landmark in the county. 

This year Joan Ellen Gage is our chairman for the NCWN-West festival booth. She will set up our tent with tables and chairs for our members to sit and talk with visitors about their books and about membership in NCWN West. 

We will hold a drawing two times each day, Saturday and Sunday, for books or discounts on classes.

FESTIVAL ON THE SQUARE 2016   Hayesville, NC 

Festival dates – Saturday, July 9 (10-5) 

Sunday, July 10 (10-4) 

Street Dance Friday – July 8

Families turn out for the street dance on Friday night. Elderly and children enjoy the mountain music played by a local band.

I hope to see you at the festival in July.