Kathryn Tucker Windham, Howell Raines to enter Alabama Writers Hall of Fame

Journalist, folklorist, photographer, storyteller and "ghost lady" Kathryn Tucker Windham will be inducted into the 2023 Alabama Writers Hall of Fame. As with Mobile raconteur Eugene Walter, she will be honored posthumously at the March 10 celebration in the University of Alabama's Bryant Conference Center.

The other honorees include "Big Fish" author Daniel Wallace, former New York Times executive editor Howell Raines, recently retired UA English professor Trudier Harris, children's book author Angela Johnson, fiction writer Tom Franklin, and fiction writer and essayist Michelle Richmond.

More:MARK HUGHES COBB: On the Kathryn Tucker Windham Stage, saying 'I love you' via stories

The Hall of Fame was created in 2014 to honor Alabamians who've distinguished themselves in the literary arts, including novelists, short story writers, memoirists, essayists, journalists and more. Previous inductees include Harper Lee, Helen Keller, Rick Bragg, Zora Neale Hurston, E.O. Wilson, Fannie Flagg, Truman Capote, Winston Groom, Gay Talese, Wayne Greenhaw, William Bradford Huie, Mark Childress, Honorée Fanonne Jeffers, Ralph Ellison and Zelda Fitzgerald.

The Hall of Fame was created by two entities:

• The Alabama Center for the Book, housed at UA libraries, state affiliate of the National Center for the Book in the Library of Congress

• And the Alabama Writers' Forum, a partnership program of the Alabama State Council on the Arts, supporting, advocating and promoting writers and reading.

Carolyn Haines, a 2020 Hall of Fame inductee, will serve as master of ceremonies. On March 10 at the Bryant Center, there'll be a reception at 6 p.m., with dinner at 7, and the ceremony following. Individual tickets, for $150, are available at www.tinyurl.com/4njhzzft. Inductee tables, seating up to 10, can also be purchased, for $1,800.

“The best way to celebrate the spirit and brilliance of all present and past Alabama Writers Hall of Fame inductees is to promote their works as an inspiration to the generations that follow," said Michael Pearce, director of the Alabama Center for the Book, in a written release.

Each of the living inductees plans to attend, though Johnson hadn't yet confirmed, at press time. Don Goodman, a friend of Eugene Walter, will accept on his behalf, and Windham's daughter Dilcy Hilley will accept for her mother.

The inductees:

• Tom Franklin, a novelist and short story writer, was born in Dickinson. He is the author of the short story collection “Poachers” and novels “Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter," “Hell at the Breech” and “Smonk.” Franklin is currently an associate professor of creative writing at the University of Mississippi.

• Trudier Harris, born in Greene County, is an author and scholar whose authored and co-edited books often focus on Black American literature and authors. Her memoir, “Summer Snow: Reflections from a Black Daughter of the South,” was published in 2003. She retired as UA Distinguished Research Professor of English in 2022.

• Angela Johnson, born in Tuskegee, is an award-winning author of more than 40 books for children and young adults. Her first, “Tell Me a Story, Mama,” was published in 1989. Her picture books, poetry and young adult novels celebrate Black families, their history and community, and frequently feature Alabama settings. Johnson received a MacArthur Fellowship in 2003.

• Howell Raines, a Birmingham native, is a prize-winning journalist and author of fiction, nonfiction and memoir. Raines reported for regional newspapers, including The Tuscaloosa News, before working at the New York Times, where he was executive editor for three years. His novel “Whiskey Man,” and memoirs about fly fishing and other topics, complement a career that includes commentaries, essays and reviews.

• Michelle Richmond, a native of Mobile, has written six novels, several short story collections and numerous essays. Among her best-selling novels are “The Year of Fog,” “The Marriage Pact” and “The Wonder Test.” She is a recipient of the Truman Capote Prize for literary nonfiction or short story. Her work often explores ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances.

• Daniel Wallace, from Birmingham, is a best-selling novelist, short story writer, children’s book author and illustrator. His best-selling novel, “Big Fish: A Story of Mythic Proportions,” was the basis for a hit 2003 film, "Big Fish," shot largely in Wetumpka and Montgomery. Wallace is a professor of English and director of the creative writing program at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill.

• Eugene Walter, dubbed "Mobile's Renaissance Man," was a writer, actor, host, editor, performance artist, screenwriter, translator, cookbook author, costume designer, cryptographer and more. He served in the military in the Aleutian Islands and lived in New York, Paris and Rome before returning to Mobile. He was a founding editor of Paris Review. His first novel, “The Untidy Pilgrim,” won the Lippincott Prize for fiction, and his Time-Life cookbook “American Cooking: Southern Style” is considered a classic of the genre.

• Kathryn Tucker Windham, born in Selma, raised in Thomasville, was the first woman journalist for the Alabama Journal and later reported and shot photos for The Birmingham News and the Selma Times-Journal. Beginning with "13 Alabama Ghosts and Jeffrey," Windham, working with folklorist Margaret Gillis Figh, began a series of true ghost story -- recounting the histories, along with the allegations of hauntings ― collections based throughout the South. It was named after a purported poltergeist in the Windham home in Selma. Her ability to spin stories impromptu lead to commentaries for National Public Radio and Alabama Public Radio, and appearances at storytelling festivals, schools, historical celebrations and more. Windham also performed a one-woman show about educator and reformer Julia Tutwiler, based on her book "They Call Me Julia." She founded the Alabama Tale-Tellin' Festival, held annually in Selma since 1978. On its 50th year, the annual Kentuck Festival of the Arts named its spoken-word area the Kathryn Tucker Windham Stage, for the "ghost lady" who would sit under a tree in Kentuck Park and entertain whomever came to sit a spell.

Reach Mark Hughes Cobb at mark.cobb@tuscaloosanews.com.

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Kathryn Tucker Windham, Howell Raines to enter Writers Hall of Fame