For the past decade, I've been at work on a true crime story that had me down a rabbit hole of research into DNA. Regular readers of this irregular blog know that science isn't my strong suit. I may have loved it at one[..]
It's not even 8 a.m. on the West Coast as I type this and already this day has started off with several deep conversations. The first was with a daughter dealing with the aftermath of her 2nd Covid shot. A bit of a headache and[..]
There is an Appalachian word that been on my mind all day - Airish. You might hear one of the locals say, "Hit's kinda airish today." What they mean is the air feels lighter, not as much humidity or heaviness to it. They say it[..]
My plan was to tell you how grateful I was for all the work you all did to elect Jon Ossoff and Rev. Warnock. My plan was to tell you how all that work had ensured that my grandson, born on Epiphany, was welcomed into[..]
Like thousands across this nation, I start back to school next week. My graduate program was always going to be through distance learning so Covid doesn't disrupt that. As this week's DNC proved, there is a lot to be gained from virtual realities. Narrative[..]
Editor's Note: The following is an interview I did with author Terry Kay upon the release of his latest book - The Forever Wish of Middy Sweet (Mercer Univ. Press). Set in rural Georgia, the story contrasts the present with the past and the ways in[..]
Editor's Note: I first met author Ann Hite through her book Ghost on Black Mountain. It was one of the best ghost story novels I had read in decades. Ann and I share a love of Appalachia and the stories that come out of the mountains.[..]
What You are Getting Wrong About Appalachia by Elizabeth Catte is the book I have been telling everyone that they should read. It's short and well-written. It will make you rethink and think again about the role of media in political campaigns. I have taken[..]
I went in search of a ghost story. A story as familiar to me as that of Esther or Ruth; stories which have been repeated to me since before I knew how to read myself. I can't remember the first time I heard the[..]
Author/Journalist Karen Spears Zacharias is a Gold Star daughter and an alumna of Oregon State University, Shepherd University and University of West Scotland.
Karen's work has been featured in the Washington Post, New York Times, CNN, National Public Radio, and Good Morning America.
Her debut novel, Mother of Rain (Mercer University Press), received the Weatherford Award for Best in Appalachian Fiction from Berea College and was adapted for the stage by Georgia's Historic State Theater, The Springer. In 2018, Karen was named Appalachian Heritage Writer by Shepherd University, and Mother of Rain was chosen as the One Book One West Virginia Read.
Her first true crime book A Silence of Mockingbirds was chosen by the city of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, as the One City Read.
The Murder Gene is her second true crime work.
Karen and her husband, Tim, make their home in Deschutes County, Oregon.
For more information on Karen and her books, click here