Monday, August 14, 2006

By Walter Zaykowski, marketing and communications intern

WILMINGTON, NC - The University of North Carolina Wilmington Publishing Laboratory has collaborated with Andy Wood, nature radio commentator and education director for Audubon North Carolina, to publish Backyard Carolina, a collection of essays taken from his public radio commentaries.

Backyard Carolina features 52 selections taken from the nearly 800 commentaries Wood produced for WHQR 91.3FM National Public Radio affiliate in Wilmington. Fans of Wood's vivid, thought-provoking on-air essays will welcome this book, edited and arranged to present a cycle that reflects the world just outside their back doors. Although geared towards an adult audience, the tales of bird watching, a story of an unexpected encounter with an alligator, and accounts of rescued snakes and sea turtles will delight readers of all ages.

Louisa Jonas, master of fine arts candidate in creative nonfiction, spearheaded the project. Illustrations were commissioned from Melissa Smith of UNCW's Center for Marine Science. Under the direction of Barbara Brannon of the Department of Creative Writing, students involved with the Publishing Laboratory, including Sumanth Prabhaker, a first-year MFA student in fiction, helped with various aspects of the publishing process.

The Publishing Laboratory, a regional publishing imprint that involves students of creative writing in the "real-world" business of book publishing, is a group-oriented venture. Students are active in all aspects of publishing a book including editing, design, author relations, marketing and production.

Prior to his work with Audubon North Carolina, Woods served for 13 years as education curator for the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher. Beginning in 1987, he reported his observations on nature as a weekly commentator on public radio station WHQR. Wood took a year-long sabbatical from this volunteer post to complete work on Backyard Carolina and has again resumed producing radio commentaries. He and his wife, Sandy, live in Hampstead with their two sons, Robin and Carson.

The book is available for $14.95 in retail bookstores regionally or directly through the University of North Carolina Wilmington Department of Creative Writing and is also available for trade distribution nationwide.

For more information or to order a review copy, contact Barbara Brannon in the Publishing Laboratory at 910.962.7401, brannonb@uncw.edu, or call the UNCW Department of Creative Writing at 910.962.7063.