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NEWS
STAY EVEN MORE UP TO DATE
on John Vanderslice via GoodReads and Facebook.
February 26, 2023
The Nous Nous e-book becomes available on Kindle.
February 27, 2022
Another long-delayed event finally happens! John discusses Nous Nous and his writing process with an attentive group at St. Peter's Episcopal Church in Conway, Arkansas.
February 22, 2022
It finally happens! Just twice-rescheduled central Arkansas launch event at the Faulkner County Library is a smash. Great fellowship, great conversation. People gather again for an author reading!
February 11, 2022
John's short story "Before" is featured in the new print issue of Notre Dame Review! This print issue comes with an online companion featuring information on the authors, including photos, descriptive bios, and "behind the scenes" details on the pieces published.
January 23, 2022
Nous Nous is reviewed by Jeyran Main on the book website Review Tales: "The story . . is written well and is intense. You are constantly on edge, reading more and more, wanting to know what happens."
January 5, 2022
Nous Nous is featured on the Superstition Review blog. John reveals the unique origin story of the novel.
RADIO APPEARANCE!!!
On Friday, March 9, 2018, John was the featured artist on KUAR-Little Rock radio's Arts and Letters program. He talked about The Last Days of Oscar Wilde with host J. Bradley Minnick.
RADIO APPEARANCE!!!
On Thursday, January 11, 2018, John appeared on KUAF-Fayetteville radio's Ozarks at Large program. He spoke with host Antoinette Grajeda about his novel The Last Days of Oscar Wilde and about Wilde's own turbulent life and times.
December 19, 2021
Nous Nous is featured on Philip Martin's Best Reads of 2021!
December 2, 2021
John reads from Nous Nous at the brand new Pearl's Books, on the square in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
November 17, 2021
John and Nous Nous are featured in a long profile, part of poet Chris Cooper's The Emotion of Writing series.
RADIO APPEARANCE!
On Friday, March 17, 2017 John was the featured artist on KUAR-Little Rock radio's Arts and Letters program. In the episode, he was interviewed by producer J. Bradley Minnick about his 2013 novel Days on Fire, a fictionalized account of the life of painter Vincent Van Gogh.
October 19, 2021
John is interviewed about Nous Nous on Cliff Garstang's blog I've Got Questions.
October 19, 2021
Nous Nous is released by Braddock Avenue Books. Paperbacks available for purchase. E-book coming in 2022!
October 8, 2021
Nous Nous gets a nice notice on Conway Public Board's social post.
RADIO APPEARANCE!
On Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2015 John was interviewed about Island Fog on WCAI radio, Cape Cod, Massachusetts. He appeared on The Point program to talk shop with host Mindy Todd.
September 19, 2021
John is interviewed for the Southern Maryland News and its Literary Lights featutre.
September 19, 2021
Nous Nous gets a thoughtful review from critic Philip Martin in The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette's Sunday paper: "Vanderslice [has] fashioned a deceptively literary thriller — a genuine page-turner — that sounds the depths and shallows of religious faith with generosity and compassion, even for his monster."
August 30, 2021
John's craft article "The Virtue of Pressure" is published on the writing website Review Tales. He discusses the process of drafting Nous Nous!
August 20, 2021
John is interviewed about Nous Nous, about writing, and about long-ago career ambitions on Lisa Haselton's Book Reviews and Interviews blog.
July 9, 2021
First launch event for Nous Nous is scheduled. It's a reading and book signing on OCTOBER 21 at 7 PM at the Faulkner County Library, 1900 Tyler St., Conway, Arkansas. It's almost here, folks!
June 29, 2021
Pre-orders open for Nous Nous!!!!!
June 29, 2021
Nous Nous is blurbed by the novelist and poet Stacey Margaret Jones, author of Mr. Catherine: "Nous Nous chronicles a crime in slow-motion, an interior thriller written with an unflinching and spare tick-tock from within the minds of those involved. You want to sprint ahead but can't stand to miss a detail in the experience of each complex character, as each person involved inches slowly toward doom or restoration, or both."
June 18, 2021
Nous Nous is blurbed by the novelist and bestselling writer Michael Kardos, author of Bluff, Before He Finds Here, and the textbook The Art and Craft of Fiction: "Nous Nous is both a suspenseful story about a kidnapping and an incisive meditation on what means to be held hostage: by anger and pain and guilt. With striking generosity and empathy, Vanderslice presents the minds and hearts of complex characters united, and reunited, by tragedy."
February 12, 2021
Nous Nous is blurbed by the novelist John Fleming, author of Songs for the Deaf and The Book I Will Write: "Tense, menacing, and tightly constructed, Nous Nous is a deep dive into the complexities of character and the enigma of our moral universe. In precise, immersive prose, John Vanderslice snaps together a wrenching plot that engages and surprises as it moves readers through the perils and consolations of our interdependent lives. Nous Nous is a book you don’t simply read; you live through it."
February 10, 2021
Nous Nous publication date officially set for Fall 2021!
December 5, 2020
John's forthcoming novel Nous Nous is blurbed by the fiction writer William Lychack, author of Cargill Falls and The Wasp Eater: "If ever a novel sought to reveal the sacred in life... If ever a choir of voices and viewpoints came together with the design to lift hearts and hopes... Then Nous Nous is that collective of love and longing, of disappointment and loss and, ultimately, faith. There's a beautiful dignity and grace to be found in these modest pages, and John Vanderslice is sublime in evoking these modest lives."
December 1, 2020
Registration for the Secluded virtual writing conference continues indefinitely and remain free. Those who register can see taped versions of all the sessions, including John's reading from his forthcoming novel Nous Nous, and his talk on writing the pandemic. Register for the conference by hitting the button below.
July 2, 2020
John talks about his strategies for "Writing a Pandemic Without Panic" at the Secluded virtual writing conference. Session to start at 9:00 AM, Central Time, USA. Registration for the conference is free!
July 2, 2020
John's reads from his forthcoming novel Nous Nous, for the very first time, at the Secluded virtual writing conference. Session to start at 12:30 PM, Central Time, USA. Registration for the conference is free!
November 22, 2019
John's reads from his fiction at the Arkansas Philosophical Association's annual conference in Little Rock.
November 1, 2019
John's novel Nous Nous, a suspense story about religious intolerance, child abduction, and the catastrophic effect of trauma is under contract with Braddock Avenue Books. The publication date is tentatively set for Spring, 2021.
October, 2019
John publishes the short story "Him and Me" in the literary journal r.k.v.r.y.
March, 2019
John reads his new short story "Him and Me" at the Arkatext Writers Festival in Conway, Arkansas.
March 2, 2018
What Is That Book About publishes a review of Last Days: "It was enlightening and heart breaking."
February 26, 2018
Book blogger Alyssa Lynn Palmer publishes a review of Last Days: "Almost immediately, you’re drawn into Oscar Wilde’s life. It only takes a page or two, and his personality is so vivid that I began to feel as if I might know him."
February 21, 2018
Just Reviews publishes an interview with John about Oscar Wilde and The Last Days.
February 13, 2018
John holds a Last Days celebration/kickoff at the one and only Oscar Wilde NYC restaurant in New York City.
February 12, 2018
John appears on-stage, and reads from Last Days, as part of the February edition of Muldoon's Picnic at the Irish Arts Center in NYC. The program includes Irish actress Lisa Dwan, Irish fiddler Nollaig Casey, the lyrical/poetical talents of Paul Muldoon--and hours of great music!
February 1, 2018
Man of La Book reviews Last Days: "The depiction of the last days of the author . . . is an experience. One could almost feel themselves in the same filth hotel room, watching Oscar Wilde’s life slip away without being able to help."
January 30, 2018
The book blog A Bookish Way of Life reviews Last Days: "This is a book that you will love and won't forget."
January 24, 2018
The book blog Dwell in Possibility praises The Last Days of Oscar Wilde: "[Vanderslice] skillfully keeps the focus on characterization, with each part of the story driving toward a better understanding of Oscar Wilde as a character and, ultimately, as a person. . . how wonderful to have one more chance to see him again, even in the sad moments, and to realize the very human capacity for hope even to the end."
January 21, 2018
In the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, reviewer Philip Martin praises The Last Days of Oscar Wilde as "tender and eloquent." Martin writes, "This is a talky, thoughtful book . . . .its portrait of Wilde is not of a flamboyant creature given to aphoristic exclamations and barbed quips but of a sensitive and serious artist starving from a lack of meaningful human contact."
January 18, 2018
An excerpt from The Last Days of Oscar Wilde appears in Literary Hub!!!
January 16, 2018
Fiction Writers Review publishes an interview with John in which he discusses historical fiction and the writing of The Last Days of Oscar Wilde.
January 15, 2018
Gabina 49 publishes a review of Last Days and gives it 5 stars!! "Heartfelt, well researched, and definitely worth the read."
January 15, 2018
The book blog The Book Diva Reads publishes an excerpt from The Last Days of Oscar Wilde.
January 15, 2018
The book blog Dab of Darkness Book Reviews publishes an interview with John.
January 15, 2018
The Last Days of Oscar Wilde published and available for purchase!
January 11, 2018
John appears on KUAF radio's Ozarks at Large to discuss The Last Days of Oscar Wilde with host Antoinette Grajeda.
December 25, 2017
Kirkus Reviews posts a review of The Last Days of Oscar Wilde!
They call it "a tender portrait of a literary giant."
December 17, 2017
Southern Maryland News Online rush an interview with John. He talks about what made him into a writer, and why he keeps doing it.
October 28, 2017
The Last Days of Oscar Wilde becomes available for pre-order through Amazon.com, bn.com, and other online outlets.
October 27, 2017
John reads from his forthcoming novel The Last Days of Oscar Wilde, at the 2017 meeting of the Arkansas Philological Association. The meeting be held Oct. 27-28 at the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies, in downtown Little Rock. John's session will run on Friday morning (Oct. 27) from 10:00-11:00 in room 124.
October 11, 2017
For the first time since the announcement of its looming publication, John reads from his forthcoming novel The Last Days of Oscar Wilde, at the annual Oxford American UCA Faculty Reading: 7:30 PM at the UCA Downtown building on Oak Street, in downtown Conway, Arkansas.
September 10, 2017
Island Fog garners a mention in Sunday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, specifically the "What We're Reading, and Why" article by Karen Martin.
March 17, 2017
John's previous novel Days on Fire is the featured subject of the latest
Arts and Letters program on Little Rock's KUAR radio, 89.1 FM.
December, 2016
John is invited to write a guest post for the Superstition Review
blog. In the post he considers the role of the artist in an American society that will soon have one Donald J. Trump as its president.
November 30, 2016
Two of John's plays are performed during UCA's Festival of One Acts:
"Look Alike" and "Visa."
October 20, 2016
John reads his short story "Capuchin" in Torreyson Library on the UCA campus. The reading is part of an effort to celebrate and promote the newly unveiled Readers' Map of Arkansas, which features John along with several other UCA-based writers.
October 4, 2016
John gives a preview of his forthcoming historical novel The Last
Days of Oscar Wilde during an MFA faculty reading
at the Oxford American magazine's annex in downtown
Little Rock.
September, 2016
John's one-act play Look Alike selected by the UCA Theatre Department for inclusion in its end-of-the-semester Festival of One-Acts.
September 14, 2016
John gives a central Arkansas premier reading from his
forthcoming novel The Last Days of Oscar Wilde. He reads
at Irby Hall on the campus of the University of Central
Arkansas, before an audience of graduate and undergraduate
students.
May, 2016
John signs a contract with the New Orleans based Burlesque Press. They will publish his historical novel The Last Days of Oscar Wilde. To be released late in 2017!
April, 2016
A new, updated version of the Reader's
Map of Arkansas is unveiled in Little
Rock. John and his Island Fog make the
map!
Spring 2016
Two bizarre flash fictions by John are accepted for publication by national literary magazines: "Parrot" by MUSE (forthcoming) and "Nouvelle Cuisine" by Radvocate (also forthcoming).
October, 2015
Island Fog is named a finalist for the 2015 Housatonic Fiction Award!
August, 2015
John visits Nantucket Island for the first time since the publication of Island Fog. On Tuesday, August 11, he signs copies of the book at the historic Mitchell's Book Corner in downtown Nantucket.
July 16, 2015
John writes a guest blog post for Superstition Review. In it he examines various myths about teaching that seem to underlie the critically acclaimed movie Whiplash.
July, 2015
John is profiled in the Artist Highlight of July's Women's Inc. magazine. He answers questions about writing and about Island Fog for editor Jennie Strange.
June, 2015
John's short story "Dear Aunt J" appears in the print journal Short Story (NS Volume 21, No. 2). It's an imaginary letter from Chef Boyardee to Aunt Jemima! For a copy, look in bookstores carrying literary journals or contact the Department of English at the University of Texas-Brownsville.
June, 2015
John's short story "Dear Aunt J" appears in the print journal Short Story (NS Volume 21, No. 2). It's an imaginary letter from Chef Boyardee to Aunt Jemima! For a copy, look in bookstores carrying literary journals or contact the Department of English at the University of Texas-Brownsville.
Spring, 2015
John publishes two short stories in renowned national literary magazines: "The Function of a Story" in Potomac Review (issue 56) and "Something for Dinner" in the inaugural issue of Cherry Tree!
January 21, 2015
The blog tour ends on a very high note! Book Geek blog says, "Island Fog is one of the best short story collections I have ever read!"
January 20, 2015
The book blog Bibliotica raves about Island Fog : "From the opening chapters to the last words of the last story, I was hooked on John Vanderslice’s writing voice."
January 16, 2015
The book blog Peeking Between the Pages reviews Island Fog : "John Vanderslice definitely has an exquisite way with words, thoughts, and feelings."
January 13, 2015
The No More Grumpy Bookseller blog reviews Island Fog : "A thought-provoking read . . .Vanderslice proves he is a strong writer with a talent for connecting his readers to his characters."
January 12, 2015
The Discerning Reader blog reviews Island Fog : "A well crafted collection filled with plenty of history, mystique and intrigue . . . Highly recommend."
January 9, 2015
The book blog The Book Binder's Daughter publishes a review of Island Fog: "a clever, well-written and entertaining collection of short stories. It makes me eager to read longer works by the author."
January 8, 2015
Fiction Writers' Review publishes an interview with John about writing and Island Fog!
January 8, 2015
Island Fog is reviewed on the book blog Savvy Verse & Wit: "The collection would generate lively discussions in a book club."
January 7, 2015
Island Fog is reviewed on the book blog Books on the Table: "It's so compelling that I read it in just two sittings."
January 7, 2015
Island Fog is reviewed on the book blog Svetlana's Reads and Views: "a very powerful collection of short stories."
January 5, 2015
Eleven day blog tour starts! Island Fog is reviewed on the book blog The Year in Books: "It's a book that still haunts me after having finished it."
December 4, 2014
John's new short story "Capuchin" is published in Superstition Review.
November 5th, 2014
The book blog Readsalot gives Island Fog 41/2 stars, saying "the prose is beautiful."
October 31, 2014
Island Fog is named one of the Top 15 Indie Fiction titles of 2014 by the Library Journal!
October 31st, 2014
John appears on KABF radio, Little Rock, Arkansas to talk about Island Fog with host Jason Weist on his Big Gay Radio Show. (Sorry, no podcast available.)
October 31st, 2014
John is interviewed about Island Fog in The Practicing Writer newsletter, edited by internet whiz kid and "resource maven" Erika Dreifus!
October 23rd, 2014
John is the day's spotlighted author on the book blog Reading is Better Than Life. The spotlight contains a substantial interview iwth the author!
October 22nd, 2014
John appears on The Edge of Sanity show on KUCA radio in Conway, Arkansas to talk about Island Fog with hosts Mark Lager and John Mitchel.
October 19th, 2014
The Australian book blog The Bookshelf Gargoyle includes Island Fog in its Indie Fiction Roundup: "Each of the stories in this collection feels like a novel."
October 19th, 2014
The book blog Books Are Love raves about Island Fog, declaring "this book is amazing!"
October 7th, 2014
John's novel-in-progress The Escapists was named a finalist in the 2014 Faulkner-Wisdom Novel-in-Progress competition, administered by the Pirate's Alley Faulkner Society of New Orelans.
October 7th, 2014
John's short story "Escape to Ash," published in the anthology Appalachian Voice, nominated for a Pushcart Prize!
October 6th, 2014
John appears on the interview show Ozarks at Large on KUAF radio, Fayetteville, Arkansas and talks about how he came to write Island Fog.
October 4th, 2014
The book blog Deal Sharing Aunt gives Island Fog a "5 out of 5" and declares "It was hard for me to put this book down!"
October 3rd, 2014
John is the subject of an Author Highlight on the book blog Mrs. Mommy Booknerd's Book Reviews.
October 2nd, 2014
Island Fog e-book version available for Kindle.
October 2nd, 2014
Excerpt from Island Fog is published on the WeWantedToBeWriters website.
October 2nd, 2014
Island Fog released on BN.com and Amazon.co.uk.
October 1st, 2014
Island Fog officially released on Amazon.com.
September 28th, 2014
Sunday's Arkansas Democrat Gazette, Phillip Martin, publishes a review of John Vanderslice's book comparing his Nantucket to Sherwood Anderson's Winesburg and Faulkner's Yoknapatawpha.
September 26th, 2014
Southern Maryland newspaper interviews John about his writing life!
September 25th, 2014
UK's Beck Valley Books reviews Island Fog!
September 18th, 2014
Kirkus reviews Island Fog and calls it "a spellbinding collection!"
September 15th, 2014
Oh my bookness, via the General Book Reviews blog, posts a review of Island Fog just two weeks before the release date!
August 19th, 2014
The book blog, Just Reviews, posts a substantial descriptive review of Island Fog a month before publication.
June 14th, 2014
David Abram's popular book blog The Quivering Pen mentions Island Fog.
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