The Piedmont Publishing Symposium
The Piedmont Publishing Symposium is organized by Clemson University Press, Hub City Press, University of North Georgia Press, and University of South Carolina Press. This event will be held at Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina, May 20-21, 2026. During the two days of programming, we will offer multiple sessions appealing to different constituencies: academic writers, non-academic writers, publishing professionals, and students and recent graduates who want to know more about publishing.
Read a participant’s write-up of her experience at the 2025 Piedmont Publishing Symposium here.
Registration is now open! Purchase Tickets
Schedule:
Day 1
8:30 am Registration
9:15 am Introduction and Welcome
9:30 am Session 1 [Students] Publishing Programs: Are they worth it?
Dawn Durante, (UNC Press)
Maliea Ruby, (University of Tennessee Press)
Kate McMullen, (Hub City Press)
Amanda Rosa, (Hub City Press)
9:30 am Session 2 [Publishers] Accessibility in digital publications
Ana Bichanich (USC Press)
Michelle Wallen (UNC Press)
Corey Parson (UNG Press)
Emily Hills (Virginia Tech Publishing and Press)
10:30 am Coffee Break
11:00 am Session 3 [Authors] [Publishers] Copyright and Intellectual Property in PublishingDrew Griffin (Clemson University Press)
Elizabeth Adams (UGA Press)
John Morgenstern (Emory University)
Jayne Stevens (Layman Group)
SPONSORED BY LAYMAN PUBLISHING PARTNERS
11:00 am Session 4 [Authors] Southern Literature
Kyler Campbell (author of Everything that We’ve Buried)
Scott Gould (author of Peace Like a River)
Meagan Lucas (author of Here in the Dark)
P.M. Raymond (author of Things as They Should Be)
SPONSORED BY THE USC PROVOST’S OFFICE
12:00 pm Lunch Break
1:30 pm Keynote:
Anne Trubek (Belt Publishing)
Publishing as a Creative Act
3:00 pm Coffee Break
3:30 pm Session 5 [Authors] Student-led publishing: Atheneum Press as a case study
Alli Crandall (Atheneum Press, Coastal Carolina University)
Students from Atheneum Press (Coastal Carolina University)
SPONSORED BY ATHENEUM PRESS
3:30 pm Session 6 [Publishers] Printing
Craig Ragsdale (Martin Printing)
Sallie Gold (TruColor Printing)
Lucina Schell (Ingram Lightning Source)
Reception at Hub City Bookshop
Day 2
9:00 am Session 7 [Authors]Self-publishing
Gloria Aragon (Clemson University Press)
Kelly Durham (author of The Movie Star and Me)
Dakota McElhinny (author of The Realm series)
SPONSORED BY THE SOUTH CAROLINA WRITERS ASSOCIATION
9:00 am Session 8 [Publishers] Lessons from starting a small press
Annette Flavel (Lucky Rabbit)
John Burbage (Evening Post Press)
Lib Ramos (Good Printed Things)
Anne Trubek (Belt Publishing)
10:00 am Coffee Break
10:30 am Session 9 [Publishers] The business of publishing
Kourtnay King (Layman Publishing)
Michael McGandy (USC Press)
Meg Reid (Hub City Press)
Anne Trubek (Belt Publishing)
10:30 am Session 10 [Authors] Author-driven marketing
Alexa Bigwarfe (Women in Publishing), moderator
Mary Martha Green (author of The Cheese Biscuit Queen Tells All)
Gary Machlis (author of Sustainability for the Forgotten)
Otis Pickett (author of Southern Sheperds, Savage Wolves)
SPONSORED BY UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA PRESS AND LONGLEAF SERVICES
11:30 am Final remarks
